Richmond planet. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1883-1938, 1924-05-24

I WILLIS COLE, Edltor VI 'no
Louisville Leader, energetlc anu
distant.
left this interesting quartet ana
stumbled into as striking Big -Four
in Nashville, Tenn. as can be rouno
anywhere in the whole OF Dixie. we
have big men who never care TO seek
personal advertisement. Sucn are
these. Perhaps one Of these mas
had his share Wherever american
dollar bills have circulated his name
hos been heralded. That man Is
tall. olive in complexion, with gray
hair and quiet eyes. He is ordinary
of speech, and retiring in disposition.
II one walked not by the Citizens
Savings and Trust Company ana sa"
his name beneath the WINDOW Ia
belled Cashier" or be informed by
someone in the street he would
never dream that this parsonage was
Hon. ] @. Napier, ex-Register OF
the United States Treasury. he lm
messed me as a man who does not
seek notoriety, but one who remains
respectfully aloof without preten'
tious claims to prestige, distinction
or superiority. ~
The people around Nashville ike
him too. He doesn't try to tell them
how tn run the town. When you see
dollar bills again, watch them. Tnere
are MANY of the Napier series In
circulation. Besides looking for
great character Of our race there
will be much to be learned. 1t Is
a safe guess to say that nine hun
dred and ninety-nine out OF every
thousand of us unobserving, intel
lectually lazy Americans can not &C
curately describe ten important
features on our friendly dollar notes
we love so well but know so little.
: A second member of the Big Four
in the Tennessee Capital is Henry
@A1len Boyd, bank president editor,
and successor Of his father as asaQ
Of the National Baptist Publishing
House. Somehow in him I was re-
minded of the late Madam Walker.
He was of her complexion, of med
ium height and weighs nearly one
hundred ninety.
His father made a breach with
the Baptist people. The son seems
to be filing that breach by his SIN
certify of manner. One would Judge
him as naturally kind. One must be
busy to preside over trust COM
pany, to operate great publishing
house. and edit decent newspaper,
but Henry Allen Boyd does all of
these, gives frequent addresses, but
never seems to be worried or in a
great buster of hurry. Composure
and self mastery are his attributes.
found him in shirt sleeves busy
at work in his publishing house.
There was nothing about him sug-
costing that he knew he was a ma
tional figure. Frankness was writ
ten plainly upon his brow. There
was every visible evidence Of truly
sturdy conservative character. A
passer-by would not expect him to
be Henry Allen Boyd.
The Original Fisk Jubilee Quartet
made that university famous. Men
know less, however, Of the personnel
who composed it. 1t was interesting
to meet Prof John Wesley Work, a
member of that noted quartet, an
ex-professor of music at Fisk, and
now President of Roger Williams
University. The voice of Professor
Work was one of the first Negro
voices of the world to be embalmed
in the records for talking machines.
81. rio tQnny. r
weighs 200 pounds, is dark-brown
skinned, but not talkative. He is
easily met and belongs to that easy
going. all-is-well type Of personality
One hears little about Professor
Work because he has sought to de-
velop Negro music. He and his
brother Frederick, also member OF
the famous Foursome, were pioneers
in the field of arranging and pop
ularizing our folk songs. Millions
of dollars have been raised for Ne
gro education and other causes be-
cause Of what the Works have done.
The scores Of quartets which roam
the country every year from any
number of our schools and colleges
are following the example Of this
retiring old Fiskite.
Despite the Astounding good of his
fundamentally, he Is little known
and other men instruments to less
beneficial ends reap national ap'
plause, Outlines because they are
fortunate In having good advertising
back of them-illustration of the
results of organized publicity.
The Nashville quartet was com
pleted with the races most eminent
pathologist, the noted Doctor W. s.
Quinland, Meharry's "Big Gun"
was among whom, Judge are thous
ands of others Of our group, who are
much better acquainted with Harry
Wills, Amos Hokum and our moaning
"blues-singing' Sara Martin, than
the illustrious DIR. Quinland. We
would all sing the blues were 1t not
for such big characters as he. Had