Metropolis weekly gazette. (Metropolis, Ill.) 1???-19??, 1915-10-01

One of the features of the program
Chicago was a presentation of a por-
trait of Governor Ferris to him by VIII
liam Ross Roberts of the Michigan
commission. President Oscar Baker
was unable to be present. The portrait
was made by Negro.
The Michigan exhibit came in for
the lions share of observation and all
of the articles shown, from the needle
work of an eight-year-old girl to nu-
merous quilts made by eighty-year-old
Aunt Debby" Anderson of Cass coun-
ty, were made ready for inspection.
Aunt Debby" modestly bears the
distinction of having made more than
5000 quilts during her life. Particular
attention was called to the needlework
of two blind Negro girls who are stu
dents of Lansing school
The principal exhibits from Michi-
gan came from Cass county, where the
majority of the Negro population. out
side of the large cities of the state. is
located. The Negro population of Cass
county owns an area of about fifteen
miles. most of which is devoted TO
farming, at which industry the Ne
groes have proved themselves efficient.
One or two of the Negro farmers own
as much as 1900 acres of land. and
their homes are fitted out with the
latest appliances for the comfort of the
occupants.
While about 5000 Negroes live in
Cass county, the exhibit was by no
means limited to that area. There
were exhibits from nearly every impor-
tant town and city in the state. The
exhibits were mostly of needlework
and millinery by the women and farm
products raised by the men. An old
darby named Turney Byrd has a new
tangled dump wagon which he devised
and which he is using to good adFan-
tage in his home town of Lansing. The
wagon can be emptied all at once or
quarter or half load at time.
While not strictly included in the
Michigan exhibit. the booth of the
United States census bureau was in
charge of a Detroit Negro-Robert A.
Pelham-who has been employed In
that federal department for the last 10
years.
The booth was given over to the
Story of the Census" from the Ne
gro's standpoint. and tended TO show
that the Negro clerks in the depart
ment exceed in some respects In eff
cheney the white employees.
The story is told BY pamphlets ar
ranged by Mr.. Pelham and deals with
the growth In favor Of the Negro In
government employ and shows how he
has justified the confidence that Uncle
Sam has placed In his ability. Incl
dentally Mr.. Pelham shows two de-
vices which he invented and which
are now in use in the census bureau
namely. a paste-supplying device and
a tallying machine-the latter working
on the principle OF an adding machine
and used in recording the population.
As far as possible the industrial ex-
hibits at the exposition In Chicago
show the Negro actually at work DEM
onstrating his handicraft, wrote Bish-
op Faliows. Tuskegee and the 9TH
er great Negro schools viii be
represented, and Booker T. Washing
ton and other noted Negro educators
will come to add their efforts to make
the exposition a success.
The Negroes progress has been won
derful Fifty years ago, as an army
officer and minister, | saw the for
bears of the Negro OF today walk into
camp, ignorant and unlettered.
taught the old folks, leading their
children, their first letters that they