The sun., 1916-12-05
BARNACLED LIBERIA
AN ECHO OF EMPIRE
How Silver Tongue Of skiing
Sam" Lurcd Negroes to
Where the Rainbow Ends.
HIS VICTIMS WERE MANY
Scattered Over African West
Coast, While emperor Now
Heads Native Tribe.

Moored to a pier in Erie Basin II a
huge old rustpot Of a steamship. barnac,e
Sncrusted, sticky with mildew, rotten. But
three short years Z q thousand persons
buiided upon her dreams Of an empire. OF
\ huge and wealthy country where they
would be better than the best In This
country.
Some Of them have died In their at
eempt to make their dream q reality;
others. after passing safely throush COM
pound dangers Of drowning and disease.
are now scattered along the west coast
Of Africa. picking up their living ~ they
can. scorned and mistreatsd in the land
where their empire was to lie.
80 ends their faith In king SAM" the
magic tongued negro who had woven the
scheme that made happy their sleep with
soft dreams. For months now they have
been awake. and aware that II was all
. nightmare.
san's Ambitious scheme.
Three hundred feet from the spot
last spring the Liberia was tied on Sun
day sfter . dangerous trip from Africa.
when King Sam was nlling the negro
newspapers Of this country with his
stock selling scheme the authorities got
after him quickly. but he was able to
point 70 the vessel in Erie Basin. which
he had relabelled Liberia, a proof Of
his good faith. So the authorities per-
United him to continue. a. there was
nothing illegal in his methods. and be-
cause they moro than half suspected
chat he was honest. although . visionary.
His scheme was to transplant Ameri-
can negroes to Africa, where they would
build IN empire. One share Of stock at
SIS entitled IT. purchaser TO a free
voyage 20 the empire. where and would
- given him. Sam was to be emperor.
Money Came Rolling In.
The British authorities tried to pre-
vent his work, but could do nothing
except trumpet warnings In the negro
newspapers. But in spite Of that negroes Of
both sexes flooded Sans once with their
subscriptions: he bought the Liberia for
about S200.000 In cash.
He injected religion Into the scheme.
and surrounded every commonplace with
the mysticism and formality that the
negroes love.
The Liberia, under q crew OF negroes,
few Of whom were sailors. steamed "a
Galveston and there the irst load OF
passengers for Africa wal taken aboard.
: The trip was made disease claimed a
huge toll. others were swept overheard
: during storms. 1t vas . miracle that
the vesbei did not founder under .hei
inexperienced crew.
: Shafroachsd Africa. and here Sam
soueM his kingdom. The land was no,
forthcoming. The Liberia was anchored
while the empire seekers sought work
Sam drifted to . west coast village ant
soon put such Q spell on the nativei
that they elected him chief.
ToweA All the Way Back.
When the wal multiplied the value o,
2 ~efeighters those to whom Sam OWED
huge sums thought they could get som'
of II back by bringing the Liberia home
1t a hard TO md any vessel which
would consent to tow her. Finally tn
c. w. Morse. a wooden tug. went aftel
her. but was never heard from after sh'
left this port.
Then on September II last the Zea
landia OF the Universal Transportation
Company left here under Capt. A. W
Barlow. At Barbados her crew sickene'
of the work n quit. Another crew wa
shipped and on October Is she reache,
the Liberia, hen anchored OF Animahoe
. Some Of the barnacles on the old ship
sides were scraped of by native divers
such repairs as could be made wer
made. An 500 foot 5 inch hawser wa
made fast and the journey home began
Luckily the weather remained fail
otherwise It L. doubtful II h vess<
could have remained afoat.
The saloon Of the Liberia Is filled wit
reminders of Sam. There is the piano
from which camp meeting hymns an
ragttne were thumped 80 much that
gives forth no sound. The linoleum O
the floor 10 worn through In a hug
circle where the dances were held.
Over q DOR In the rear In a sig
s'Holy': King Sam used to mediate |
the room behind II. There are, SCRAP
Of hymnais scattered around. some q
them inscribed with the names OF color
fats. "Cotha Bwerly, give to my daugf
ter 8. b." "Mr. Fonnie Staples. PadeI
Okla. African Gold Coast, the Negro
Home" are two Of the inscriptions. !
the ptanist's hymnal are written tn
names Of half a dozen girls. In III
store rooms are barrels OF rotten col
beef. musty hams, widowed potatoes.