a critical transition state, he exhibited powers of intellect, honesty
of purpose, and private virtues seldom equalled. General Sheridan,
while in command at New Orleans, early discovered the rare gifts of Mr.
Dunn, and appointed him a member of the city council. He served the
city and state in various ways until he was elected to the position of
lieutenant-governor of the state. Intelligent upon all subjects, and
remarkable for sound judgment, his opinion and counsel upon questions
of state were sought by men of all parties. As a presiding officer in
the Louisiana Senate, Mr. Dunn exhibited parliamentary talent that at
once commanded the respect and challenged the admiration of the most
fastidious; and for dispatch of business in his official chair, few
men in the country have been his equal.
But the greatest characteristic of this man was his downright honesty.
In this he stood almost alone, for while the legislature of Louisiana
was charged with being a stock-jobbing concern, and its members, one
after another, rolling in their new-gained wealth, Oscar J. Dunn was
not only above suspicion, but actually died a poor man.
He was a calm, vigilant sentry for Louisiana when she dreamed it least.
Firmly resisting temptations to sin, which too often beset official
station, he could never be made an accomplice with others against her.
His inflexible integrity was in itself a mighty protest against the
shams of the state administration, and commanded such candid respect
even from the Democrats, that of late the authors of those shams, in
their recourse to Democrats for the fresh lease of power denied them
by Republicans, were constrained to revive a prejudice for a pretext,
and to charge him with instigating a black man’s party. There existed
not a fact to justify the charge; but a lie was a fit auxiliary to
new projects of fraud, and unhappily, there were “itching palms” to
subscribe it per order.
His views were most catholic on the question of class. He wanted
amity, not jealousy, between the colors, for he recognized all in the
political society as brethren, not as rivals. He felt that injustice
to any one citizen, white or black, was, if unredressed, a menace to
all; that our interests were in common; our ballots, honestly counted,
our common consent; and our influence for good, our common basis of
endeavor for Louisiana. His aims for his race were too sincere to
embarrass its progress by provoking anew the old sectional spleen
against it--and he tacitly compelled in his own case a recognition,
which any citizen might envy. Standing in a high official trust, and
yet in a dark skin, he rebuked with quiet, inoffensive emphasis, the
miserable heresy that a man is more or less a worthy citizen because of
his color.
As a speaker, Mr. Dunn was not what the world would call “eloquent,”
but what he said was always listened to with the greatest interest
and respect. All classes held him in high esteem, and with his own
color his power was unlimited. Attacked by a sudden and sure malady,
death swept him away while in the zenith of his influence, on the
twenty-first of November, 1871.
JOHN R. LYNCH.
The late rebellion has not produced a more remarkable instance of a
self-made man than is seen in the career of John R. Lynch, Speaker of
the House of Representatives of Mississippi. He was born in Louisiana,
just opposite Natchez, in the year 1847, of a slave mother, then
the property of a Mr. Lapiche, and is now in his twenty-fifth year.
His father, being a man of wealth and character, made the necessary
arrangements when Mr. Lynch was yet a child, to have him and his mother
set free, but by his sudden and unexpected death, and treachery on the
part of those who had entered into the agreement with him, the plan
was not carried out, and both remained slaves until emancipated by the
result of the war.
During his time of servitude, and while he was yet a boy, Mr. Lynch had
a deep, irrepressible desire to rise above the hopeless lot to which
destiny seemed to have assigned him, and went forward with the energy
which has characterized him since that time, to the acquirement of as
much education as was within his reach. He learned to read and write
while a slave, but no more. After his mother became the property of
Mr. Alfred Davis, she was taken to Natchez with her children, and has
lived there ever since. In 1864, and while the Federal troops were in
possession of that city, Mr. Lynch enjoyed the opportunity of attending
night school, for four months only, and that closed all the educational
advantages of which he has been possessed. Since that time he has been
entirely dependent on his own efforts and resources, and his innate
desire to obtain knowledge, for the advancement he has made.
That his career has been most remarkable thus far, cannot be denied by
any one. This will appear most evident by a comparison of his humble
origin and the many disadvantages under which he has labored, with the
honorable position he now holds, and the high qualifications he brings
with him to sustain him in that place. In point of education, he is
amply fitted; in natural ability that is well-defined, cultivated, and
ready, he certainly has no superior in the House. His knowledge of
parliamentary law and usages has been tested in many heated contests
with the best tacticians of the legislature, and proved to be inferior
to none, however able. Nor do all these high qualifications, so
amply possessed by Mr. Lynch, contain all the good things we have to
say of him. He has the still higher virtue of unimpeached honesty
and veracity. During all the two years of tempting trials that he
has witnessed, it never once was intimated that he was even open to
suspicion. The record he made during all that time is as pure and
untarnished as the driven snow. No one ever questioned his integrity,
or clouded his fair name with the intimation that he deviated from the
path of rectitude and right. If he sometimes departed from the course
marked out by a majority of his party, he did so, as he believed, in
the discharge of a solemn duty, and with no other desire than to do
what he conceived to be right.
He was appointed justice of the peace by General Ames in 1868, for
the city of Natchez, took a prominent part in the constitutional
convention of the State, was a member of the last legislature, and now
fills the Speaker’s chair. Mr. Lynch is fluent in speech, eloquent
in his addresses, chaste in his language, and gentlemanly in all his
intercourse with others. Medium in size, genteel in figure, brown in
complexion, with piercing eyes, amiable countenance, manly and upright
walk, Mr. Lynch makes a dignified appearance in the speaker’s chair,
and handles the gavel according to Cushing. He has been elected to a
seat in Congress from his state.
WILLIAM WHIPPER.
The subject of this sketch is one of the deepest thinkers of which the
black man can boast in our broad land. In early life, he was engaged
in the lumber trade in Columbia, Pennsylvania, in which he secured
a competency. Even while battling with the world for filthy lucre,
Mr. Whipper gave much of his time to the advocacy of the freedom of
the slave, and the elevation of the colored men of the North. In his
business relations with the whites he always left a good impression of
the negro’s capability, honesty, and gentlemanly deportment.
In 1833, he took charge of the editorial department of the “National
Reformer,” a monthly magazine, published by the American Moral Reform
Society. Mr. Whipper’s editorials were couched in chaste and plain
language, but bold and outspoken in the advocacy of truth. He said:--
“We believe that Education, Temperance, Economy, and Universal Liberty,
if properly carried out, will prove a powerful auxiliary in producing
this necessary reformation, on which rests the Christian’s hope.
They are now producing wonders in our country, under distinct and
specific organizations. They are adhesive virtues, and as capable of
uniting with each other as a like number of seas are of commingling
their waters, and forming one great ocean. If this mighty current of
philanthropy could become united in one living stream, it would soon
sweep from our country every vestige of misery and oppression. And is
it not as necessary that it should be so, as that a single mind should
embrace these principles alone? Our country is rich with the means of
resuscitating her from moral degeneracy. She possesses all the elements
for her redemption; she has but to will it, and she is free.”
Mr. Whipper is a mulatto of fine personal appearance, above the middle
size, stoops a little,--that bend of the shoulders that marks the
student. He is remarkably well read, able to cite authority from
the ancients, and posted in all the current literature of the day.
He is social and genial, and very interesting and entertaining in
conversation. Mr. Whipper resides in Philadelphia, where he is highly
respected by all classes, and loved and looked up to by his own race.
T. W. CARDOZO.
Mr. Cardozo is a native of Charleston, South Carolina; is a mulatto,
with a slight preponderance of Anglo-Saxon blood. He is thirty-five
years old, and therefore, is in the prime of life. He was born free,
and had advantages of northern schools, and finished his education
at the Newburg Collegiate Institute. From 1861 to 1866, he was a
school-teacher. In 1868, he went to North Carolina as a pioneer in the
cause of education among the freedmen, and to establish a normal school
in the eighteenth congressional district, and to use his influence
in procuring state aid in organizing a system of common schools. His
success in this enterprise was all that the most sanguine devotee could
have expected. He remained there until the schools were firmly fixed
upon a substantial basis.
In 1870, Mr. Cardozo removed to Vicksburg, Mississippi. He did not
apply for any office, although it is well known that all the offices in
the State were in that year filled by appointment of the governor,--but
he went to work, and organized a large school in the city, which soon
took rank among the first in the State. In 1871, at the earnest
solicitation of the members of the Republican party, he became a
candidate for, and was elected to, the office of Circuit Clerk of
Warren County. For the manner in which he has discharged the intricate
duties of that very responsible office, he elicited the highest
compliments from the judge as well as the members of the bar.
Mr. Cardozo has recently been nominated for State Superintendent of
Education, a position which he is in every way well qualified to fill.
He will bring to the office a practical knowledge which will be of
great service to the State, and a lasting benefit to the race with whom
he is identified.
Modest and reserved, dignified and gentlemanly, Mr. Cardozo is
calculated to gain the esteem and confidence of all with whom he may
come in contact.
LOUISE DE MORTIE.
Although born free, in Norfolk, Virginia, Mrs. De Mortie’s education
was limited. This, however, she strove to improve by studying when the
time for her school days had passed. She came to Boston in 1853, we
believe, and made it her home. In the autumn of 1862, Mrs. De Mortie
began as a public reader in Boston, and her rare ability, eloquent
rendering of the poets, pleasing manner, and good sense, gained for
her a host of admiring friends, among whom were some of the leading
men and women of the country, and a successful public career seemed
to be before her. But hearing of the distress and want amongst the
colored children of New Orleans, left orphans by the war, she resolved
to go there, and devote herself to their welfare. Although urged by
her relatives and friends at the North to leave New Orleans until the
yellow fever had ceased, she refused to desert her post, saying that
her duty was with her helpless race.
In 1867, Mrs. De Mortie undertook to raise the means to build an Orphan
Home, and succeeded in obtaining the amount required for the erection
of the building. But her useful career was cut short by the yellow
fever. She died on the tenth of October, 1867, in the thirty-fourth
year of her age. She bore her illness with Christian fortitude, and in
her last moments said, with a childlike simplicity, “I belong to God,
our Father.”
The announcement of her death was received with regret by her large
circle of friends at the North, while the newspapers of New Orleans,
her adopted home, spoke of her in the most eulogistic terms.
Mrs. De Mortie was a remarkably gifted and brilliant woman. In personal
appearance, she was somewhat taller than the middle height, with a
Grecian cast of countenance, eyes dark and sparkling, lips swelling,
forehead high, refined manners, and possessing energy which always
brings success. In fact, it may be truthfully said, that Louise De
Mortie was one of the most beautiful of her sex.
EBENEZER D. BASSETT.
Mr. Bassett is a self-made man, and may safely be put forward as
one of the best representatives of his race. Born at Litchfield,
Connecticut, in 1833, Mr. Bassett graduated, the foremost scholar of
his class, at the Birmingham Academy, when quite young, and afterwards
graduated at the Connecticut State Normal School, with high honor, in
1853. He immediately thereafter removed to New Haven, took charge of
a public grammar school in that city, and eagerly availed himself of
the facilities afforded by Yale College, to prosecute the study of
the classics, mathematical science, and general literature. In 1855,
he was called by the Orthodox Society of Friends to the charge of the
Philadelphia Colored High School, which, under his management, became
very widely known as the foremost institution of the kind in the
country. The honorary degree of Master of Arts was conferred upon him
by the Lincoln University at Oxford, Pennsylvania.
On the elevation of General Grant to the presidency, Mr. Bassett became
a candidate for the Haytian Mission, and so well satisfied were the
people generally, that he received the unsolicited endorsement of the
ablest men, colored and white, of all parties.
He is a mulatto of medium size, prominent features, nearly straight
black hair, neat figure, gentlemanly in personal appearance,
intelligent and chaste in conversation, and possesses a high moral
character. He is a ripe scholar, well versed in the classics, and has
much literary taste.
As a representative of the United States to another government, Mr.
Bassett has more than fulfilled the most sanguine expectations of his
friends, while the country generally regard him as one of the ablest
of our diplomatic agents. His correspondence with the Home Government
has shown him to be a man of decided ability. Indeed, Mr. Bassett’s
manly deportment, and dignified and high-toned character, have raised
the Haytian mission to a more elevated position than it has ever before
enjoyed.
WILLIAM HOWARD DAY.
As a student at Oberlin College, William Howard Day stood well, and
graduated with honors. He resided some years at Cleveland, Ohio, where,
for a time, he published a weekly newspaper, which rendered timely and
efficient service to the cause of freedom, and the elevation of the
colored people of that State. In 1856 or 1857, he visited England,
where he was much admired for his scholarly attainments, and truly
genuine eloquence. On his return home, Mr. Day became associate
editor of the “Zion’s Standard and Weekly Review.” He now resides at
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where he publishes “Our National Progress,” a
paper devoted to the cause of reform, and the elevation of man.
As a speaker, Mr. Day may be regarded as one of the most effective of
the present time; has great self-possession, and gaiety of imagination;
is rich in the selection of his illustrations, well versed in history,
literature, science, and philosophy, and can draw on his finely-stored
memory at will. As a writer, Mr. Day is far above newspaper editors
generally, exhibiting much care and thought in many of his articles. As
a speaker and writer, he has done a good work for his race.
He is a mulatto of ordinary size, has a large and well-balanced head,
high forehead, bright eyes, intellectual and pleasing countenance,
genteel figure, and is what the ladies would call “a handsome man.” Mr.
Day, besides his editorial duties, holds a responsible and lucrative
office in the State Department of Pennsylvania, which he fills with
honor to himself, and profit to the State.
HIRAM R. REVELS, D. D.
Dr. Revels is a native of North Carolina, where, at Fayetteville,
Cumberland County, he was born, a freeman, on the first of September,
A. D., 1822. Passing his boyhood and youth, until about twenty-one
years of age, in North Carolina, he went to northern Indiana, the laws
of his native state forbidding colored schools. The parents of the lad
had been permitted to prepare him somewhat for an education, and he
had been studying, off and on, some years previous to leaving for the
North. He passed two years in Indiana, attending a Quaker school, and
then removed to Dark County, Ohio, where he remained for some time, and
subsequently graduated at Knox College, at Galesburg, Illinois; and
after that, entered the ministry as a preacher of the gospel under the
auspices of the Methodist Church. At this time he was twenty-five years
of age. His first charge was in Indiana. From entering the service
of the church to the present time he has steadily persevered as a
preacher, and is well known as a practical Christian and a zealous and
eloquent expounder of the word.
After some years in Indiana, he filled important posts in Missouri,
Maryland, Kentucky, and Kansas, in the cause of the African M. E.
Church. He was in Maryland in 1861, at the breaking out of the war, and
materially aided in forming in that State the first Maryland colored
regiment. He was also able to assist in Missouri in raising the first
colored regiment in that State, and returned to Mississippi in 1864,
settling in Vicksburg, where he had charge of a church congregation,
and assisted in organizing other churches, and in forming and putting
into operation the school system, visiting various portions of the
State on his own responsibility, and among other places, preaching in
Jackson. His health failing, Dr. Revels went to the North once more,
after the close of hostilities, where he remained eighteen months.
Returning, he located at Natchez, where he preached regularly to a
large congregation, and where General Ames, then military governor,
appointed him to the position of alderman. In 1869, he was duly elected
to the State Senate.
In January, 1870, Dr. Revels was selected to represent Mississippi in
the United States Senate, the announcement of which took the country by
surprise, and as the time drew near for the colored senator to appear
in his place in Congress, the interest became intense. Many who had
heard reconstruction discussed in its length and breadth,--by men of
prophetic power and eloquent utterance, by men of merely logical and
judicial minds, by men narrow and selfish, as well as those sophistical
and prejudiced,--and who had no particular interest in the debates,
still came day after day, hoping to see qualified for his seat in the
senate the first colored man presenting himself for so high an office,
the first to be in eminent civil service in the general government.
At last, on Friday, February 25, 1870, a day never to be forgotten,
at about five o’clock, in the presence of the chamber and galleries
crowded with expectant and eager spectators, the oath was administered
to Hiram R. Revels, by the vice-president. Senator Wilson accompanied
him to the chair, and he was at once waited upon to his seat by the
sergeant-at-arms.
Saulsbury had done his best to turn backward the wheels of progress;
Davis fought in vain, declaring he would “resist at every step”
this unconstitutional measure, giving illustrations, dissertations,
execrations, and recommendations of and for the “Negro” and his
Republican friends; Stockton, in the interest of law and precedent,
begged that the subject should go to the judiciary committee, but the
party of freedom moved on in solid phalanx of unanimity to the historic
result. Mr. Sumner, who had not taken part in the debate, raised his
voice with impressiveness and power, comprehending the whole question
in a short speech just before the vote.
Thus was accomplished the last important step in the National
Legislature for those once enslaved, and the crowning rebuke to the
Rebellion, especially as the Mississippi senator took the seat made
vacant by Jefferson Davis when his treason became known to the North
and to the government. After the close of his senatorial course, he
was appointed President of Alcorn University, with a salary of two
thousand five hundred dollars per annum, which place and its emoluments
he left,--at the desire of Governor Powers, and as he thought it his
duty,--to serve as Secretary of State, at the longest possible time,
for less than one year. He had four years still remaining of his office
as President of the University; hence, financially considered, he
sacrificed something in reaching the higher official honors. It is due
to him to say that the appointment was bestowed unsolicited by himself,
through the governor’s belief in his fitness for the position.
Dr. Revels is a mulatto, of good address, of medium size, hair curly,
features somewhat prominent, with something of the ministerial air.
ROBERT B. ELLIOTT.
Mr. Elliott has the honor of representing in Congress the South
Carolina District, once filled by John C. Calhoun, the most
distinguished man of the olden time from the Palmetto State. We have
not been able to inform ourselves as to Mr. Elliott’s birth-place and
educational advantages; but we understand, however, that he studied and
adopted the law as a profession, in which he stands high. He commenced
his political career at the South, and was a member of the State
Constitutional Convention of South Carolina in 1868; was a member of
the House of Representatives of South Carolina from July 6, 1868, to
October 23, 1870; was appointed, on the 25th of March, 1869, Assistant
Adjutant-General, which position he held until he was elected to the
Forty-second Congress as a Republican.
Mr. Elliott is black, of unmixed blood, strongly-marked negro
features, close curly hair, bright and penetrating eyes, genteel
in his personal appearance, somewhat English in his accent, a good
speaker, and dignified in his manners. His speeches in Congress, and
his public addresses before his constituents, show him to be a man of
high cultivation. With his own race, Mr. Elliott stands deservedly
well, and commands the respect of the whites everywhere. In Congress,
he is looked upon as an able debater, and is listened to with marked
attention.
J. MADISON BELL.
The negro’s ability to master language, his vivid imagination, his
great delight in rhetorical exercise, his inward enthusiasm, his
seeming power to transport himself into the scene which he describes,
or the emotion he has summoned, has long puzzled the brain of our
deepest and most acute thinkers. The best test of true eloquence is the
effect it produces upon the listener. The finest illustration of the
self-made orator may be found in J. Madison Bell, whose poetic genius,
classic mind, and highly-cultivated understanding has never been
appreciated by our people.
In the winter of 1867, it was our good fortune to make the acquaintance
of this gentleman, then giving a series of poetical readings at
Washington. His evening’s entertainment was made up entirely of his
own writings, and they were all of a superior character. Mr. Bell is
a rare instance of the combination of the highest excellence of the
poet with the best style of the orator. The oratory of some men is not
easily described; so it is with Mr. Bell. His masterly argument, acute
reasoning, and the soul-stirring appeals to the highest feelings of our
nature soon carry away the listener in an enthusiasm of admiration.
His descriptive powers, both in his writings and his extemporaneous
addresses, are of the highest order.
Mr. Bell has spent some years in California, where he did much for
the elevation of his race. He now resides in Ohio, and exerts a good
influence in behalf of the cause of universal freedom. He is a mulatto,
of fine physical appearance, high, broad forehead, countenance beaming
with intelligence, handsome, like most of his race who have a mixture
of Anglo-Saxon. Mr. Bell was born in Gallipolis, in 1827, and was in
early life a plasterer by trade, but ere long he laid aside the trowel
for the pen.
J. MILTON TURNER.
The subject of this sketch was born a slave, and resided in Missouri.
He received his education at Oberlin College, where he gained the
reputation of possessing remarkable oratorical ability. Whether he
graduated at that institution or not, we have been unable to learn. It
is said, however, that he has a classical education, and is refined
in his manners. In the last presidential election, Mr. Turner was the
leader of the colored citizens in St. Louis, where it is asserted that
he was the most eloquent man on the stump.
After the inauguration of President Grant, Mr. Turner received the
appointment of Consul General to Liberia, the government of which
received him with distinguished honors. At his reception, Mr. Turner
said: “In the true spirit of progress, you have planted upon these
shores the germ of a republic that is destined not only to develop
a civilization worthy of the respect and admiration of unborn
generations, but by means of the Christian religion to debarbarize and
benefit for almost immediate usefulness thousands of human beings whose
intellects are to-day debased by the destructive potency of heathenish
superstition.”
HENRY M. TURNER, D. D., LL. D.
Of our many gifted, enthusiastic, and eloquent men, few have been more
favored by nature than Henry M. Turner. A native of South Carolina,
he seems to have the genius and fire of the Calhouns and McDuffies,
without possessing a drop of their blood. Mr. Turner is a good-sized,
fine-looking, brown-skinned man, of forty years of age, with a splendid
voice, fluent in speech, pleasing in gestures, and powerful in his
delivery. It is said that at the tender age of twelve, he had a dream
in which he saw multitudes of men coming to him to be taught.[55] That
dream made an impression that followed him to the present time, and no
doubt had much influence in shaping his course of life. He was licensed
to preach before he had reached his twenty-first year. He joined
the A. M. E. Church in 1857. During the rebellion, President Lincoln
appointed him chaplain of the 1st Regiment, U. S. C. T., and the first,
too, of all the colored chaplains. He resigned his pastoral relations
with his church, and followed his brother-men to the battle-field, and
remained in service till the close of the war.
In his “Apology,” Tanner says of Dr. Turner: “He is a remarkable man;
and though at times the paraphernalia of the kitchen seems to be in
the parlor, and, _vice versa_, there is always enough of him to demand
the respect of the most learned and the admiration of the masses. More
earnest than polite, a man who thinks for himself, speaks as he feels,
and who fears only God, his memory will not cease with his life--a man
who may truly say with Themistocles, ‘’Tis true I never learned how to
tune a harp, or play upon a lute; but I know how to raise a small and
inconsiderable city to glory and greatness.’”
In a sermon preached on the death of the Rev. Milton Tillinghast,
pastor of the First Baptist Church, Macon, Georgia, Dr. Turner
shows himself to be an able theologian, and a man of the finest
sensibilities. His “Negro in all Ages” is a production of rare merit,
and exhibits great research.
JOSEPH H. RAINEY.
Mr. Rainey is a native of South Carolina, and was born at Georgetown.
His parents purchased their freedom, and gave the son a good education,
although it was against the law to do such an act. His father was a
barber, and he followed that occupation at Charleston till 1862, when,
having been forced to work on the fortifications of the Confederates,
he escaped to the West Indies, where he remained until the close of the
war, when he returned to his native town. He was elected a delegate
to the State Constitutional Convention of 1868, and was a member of
the State Senate of South Carolina in 1870, resigning when elected to
the Forty-first Congress as a Republican to fill the vacancy caused
by the non-reception of B. F. Whittemore, and was re-elected to the
Forty-second Congress as a Republican.
Mr. Rainey is below the medium size, of a dark olive complexion,
straight, black hair, finely chiseled features, modest in manners, and
dignified in his deportment. Although not what the world would call
an orator, he is, nevertheless, an able debater, and in his reply to
“Sunset” Cox, in the House of Representatives, showed talents superior
to the New Yorker.
FANNY M. JACKSON.
Miss Jackson was born, we believe, in the District of Columbia,
about the year 1837, and was left an orphan while yet a child. She
was brought up by her aunt, Mrs. Sarah Clark. She had but limited
opportunities for education in Washington, in those days. In charge
of Mrs. Orr, she removed to New Bedford when in her sixteenth year.
After remaining here a while, she took up her residence in the family
of Mayor Caldwell, at Newport, Rhode Island. It was at this time that
Miss Jackson evinced those high attributes of mind which have since
culminated in the ripe scholar.
Her rare genius attracted the attention of Mr. Caldwell, and by his
aid, in connection with Mrs. Clark, she was able to enter school at
Bristol, Rhode Island, and begin the studies of the higher branches.
After due preparation here, Miss Jackson went to Oberlin College, where
she soon took rank with the most industrious and progressive students.
To enable her to assist in paying her increased expenses, she taught
music in families in the village, and thereby aided others while she
was helping herself. Her intellectual aspirations and moral endowments
gained the undivided respect and sympathy of her Oberlin teachers.
Graduating with honors, Miss Jackson at once took a position as teacher
in the high school for colored youths in Philadelphia, where she is
at present the principal. Her ability in governing an institution
of learning has given her more than a local fame. She believes in
progress, and is still the student. She has written some good articles
for the press, which evince culture of no mean order. As a writer, she
is a cogent reasoner, a deep thinker, taking hold of live issues, and
dealing with them in a masterly manner.
Miss Jackson has appeared on the platform, and with telling effect.
In her addresses, which are always written, she is more fluent than
eloquent, more solid than brilliant, more inclined to labored arguments
than to rounded periods and polished sentences, and yet no period or
sentence lacks finish. Wit, humor, pathos, irony,--flow from her lips
as freely as water from an unfailing fountain.
Looking back at her struggles for education and the high position
she has attained as a teacher and a lady of letters, Miss Jackson is
altogether one of the most remarkable women of our time.
In person, she is of medium size; in complexion, a mulatto; features,
well-defined, with an intelligent cast of countenance. The organ of
benevolence is prominently developed, as are the organs of causality,
comparison, ideality, and sublimity. This accounts for the elegance of
her diction, the dazzle of her rhetoric, and the native grace of her
fascinating powers. Irreproachable in her reputation, with her rare
gifts and moral aspirations, Miss Jackson cannot fail to be of untold
benefit to her race.
ALONZO J. RANSIER.
Mr. Ransier is, in every respect, a self-made man. Born in Charleston,
South Carolina, and, although his parents were free, they had to
contend with poverty on the one hand and slavery on the other, and
the son’s opportunities for education were poor. It is said that he
never had any regular schooling. Yet he so far advanced in a common
business education that at the age of sixteen years he was engaged
in shipping cotton, rice, and other produce for some of the leading
commercial houses in Charleston. Throughout all his business relations,
Mr. Ransier gained the respect and confidence of those with whom he had
dealings.
Immediately after the war, he contributed much towards the first
Republican Convention held in his State, 1866, and was chosen by it
to convey a memorial from that body to the Congress of the United
States, setting forth the grievances of the loyal people, and asking
the protection and aid of the government in their behalf. He remained
in Washington nearly one month, as a member of what was known as the
“Outside Congress,” which was composed of the leading colored men from
all parts of the country. He was chairman of the executive committee of
that body.
He was a member of the constitutional convention, and presidential
elector on the Grant and Colfax ticket in 1868. He conducted that
campaign, as chairman of the Republican State Executive Committee,
with great judgment and ability. He was auditor of Charleston County,
and resigned it on accepting the nomination as a candidate for
lieutenant-governor. Being elected by a large majority to the latter
position, he became, _ex-officio_, presiding officer of the senate,
and, as such, was very popular among the members, because of his just
rulings and courteous manners.
He is known to be favorable to general amnesty, and somewhat
conservative upon many questions of public policy, but no one has ever
assailed his private reputation. He may be regarded as one of the most
reliable and influential men in the South.
Mr. Ransier is a mulatto, under forty years of age, of good address,
energetic, and at times enthusiastic, full of activity, genial,
good-natured, genteel in his personal appearance, and has all the
bearing of a well-bred gentleman. He has been elected to a seat in
Congress, where he will no doubt ably represent his race, and prove
a valuable addition to the cause of Republicanism. As a speaker,
Mr. Ransier stands well, being a good debater, always using refined
language and--what is better than all,--good sense in his arguments.
ISAIAH C. WEARS.
To be a good debater is one of the noblest gifts of God to a public
speaker. There are thousands of men in and out of the pulpit, who can
deliver sermons and addresses, original or selected, and do it in the
most approved style of oratory, and yet cannot debate a simple question
with a child. This may seem extravagant to those who have not been
behind the curtain with public men. A proficient and reliable debater
must have brains, a well-stored mind, with ability to draw upon the
resources at will; then the gift of gab, a temper entirely under his
control, and must possess a common degree of politeness. Give such a
man a fair cause, and you have a first-class debater. We listened to
the ablest men in and out of the British Parliament twenty years ago,
when Brougham, Derby, Thompson, Disraeli, Cobden, and a host of English
orators, were in their prime, and we sat with delight in the gallery of
the French Assembly when the opposition was led by Lamartine. We spent
twenty-five years with the abolitionists of our own country, and in
whose meetings more eloquence was heard than with any other body of men
and women that ever appeared upon the world’s platform. And after all,
we have come to the conclusion that the most logical, ready, reliable,
and eloquent debater we have ever heard is a black man, and that black
man, the gentleman whose name heads this sketch.
Isaiah C. Wears is a resident of Philadelphia, but a native of
Baltimore, Maryland, and is about fifty years of age. For more than
a quarter of a century he has been a leading man in his city, and
especially in the organization and support of literary societies. The
“Platonian Institute,” “Garrisonian Institute,” “The Philadelphia
Library Company,” and some smaller associations, owe their existence to
the energy, untiring zeal, and good judgment of Mr. Wears. Fidelity to
the freedom and elevation of his own race kept him always on the alert,
watching for the enemy. The Colonization Society found in him a bitter
and relentless foe; and the negro, an able and eloquent advocate.
He has long stood at the head of “The Banneker Institute,” one of
the finest and most useful associations in our country, and where we
have listened to as good speeches as ever were made in the halls of
Congress. Mr. Wears is not confined in his labors to the literary and
the political, but is one of the foremost men in the church, and, had
he felt himself called upon to preach, he would now be an ornament to
the pulpit.
In person, he is small, of neat figure, pure in his African origin,
intelligent countenance, and an eye that looks right through you. Mr.
Wears has a good education, is gentlemanly in appearance, well read,
with a character unimpeachable, and is a citizen honored and respected
by all.
JOSIAH T. WALLS.
Josiah T. Walls was born at Winchester, Virginia, December 30, 1842;
received a common-school education; is a planter; was elected a member
of the State Constitutional Convention in 1868; was elected a member of
the House of Representatives of the State Legislature in 1868; after
serving one year, was elected to the State Senate for four years in
1869, and was elected to the Forty-second Congress as a Republican,
from the State of Florida.
In stature, Mr. Walls is slim and thin; in complexion, a mulatto;
close, curly hair; genteel in dress; polite in manners; and well
esteemed by those who know him best.
He sometimes reads his speeches, which makes him appear dull; but, in
reality, he is a man of force and character, and has done a good work
in his adopted State.
Mr. Walls is deeply interested in agriculture, and takes pride in
inculcating his well-informed views in the freedmen, whose welfare
he has at heart. As a farmer, he ranks amongst the foremost in his
locality, and his stock is improved far above that of his neighbors.
JOHN PATTERSON SAMPSON.
James D. Sampson, of North Carolina, the father of the subject of this
notice, by his wealth and enterprise as a house carpenter, gave the
Sampson family distinction in that State many years ago. They were
free people, of Scottish and African lineage, who valued education
highly, and boasted somewhat of their revolutionary ancestry. He
educated his children at Northern schools, and (by special legislation)
before the war, was allowed certain privileges for his family. It
was a question, however, with the authorities, after he had erected
several fine buildings, whether he should be allowed to live in the one
intended for his family, although the street in the neighborhood of his
property took his name.
John, Benjamin, and Joseph were inclined to literary professions.
Benjamin, probably the best scholar, graduated at Oberlin College; was
professor of the classics at the Avery Institute, in Pennsylvania,
and is now filling a similar position with credit, at Wilberforce,
Ohio. John P. Sampson, the most active in public life, was born in
Wilmington, North Carolina, 1838. At an early age, he was sent to
Cambridge, Massachusetts, where he acquired a common-school education;
then among the first colored youth entering the white schools of
Boston, he graduated from Comer’s College through a course in
book-keeping, navigation, and civil engineering, but began life as a
teacher in the public schools of New York, until inspired by a speech
from William Watkins, when he gave up the school, and engaged to
canvass New York under Horace Greeley and James M’Cune Smith, in behalf
of Negro Suffrage, continuing for several years in the lecturing field
through the West.
He published the “Colored Citizen” several years at Cincinnati, the
only colored war-policy paper published during the war, and was aided
by the Christian Commission, which circulated thousands among the
colored soldiers. The paper was generally quoted as the soldiers’
organ. At the same time, he edited through the mail a paper published
by a company of colored men in Louisville, Kentucky. He studied
theology at the Western Theological Seminary in Pennsylvania, and
was ordained elder over a prosperous congregation in Alleghany,
Pennsylvania; was principal of the Phonetic Academy, at Bowling Green,
Kentucky, assisted by Professor Murray and other able teachers. He
accepted an engagement in the work of reconstruction; was commissioned
by General Howard to look after schools in the Third District of North
Carolina; elected treasurer and assessor of Wilmington; nominated for
the Legislature, and soon became a prominent candidate for Congress;
and might have succeeded, were it not for some perversion of his
father’s connection with the purchase of slaves before the war, in
order to assist them in obtaining their freedom.
Becoming interested in the profession of the law, he gave up his
prospects in the South, stood a clerical examination at Washington, was
appointed to a clerkship in the Treasury, read law at the National Law
University, graduated, and was admitted to practice in the District
Supreme Court. He soon became prominent in district politics, published
a spirited campaign paper, was engaged by the general committee
to speak in the Republican canvass of 1872, and has since been
commissioned by Governor Cook as one of the justices for the district,
in connection with his present position at the Treasury.
Mr. Sampson is an able writer, an eloquent and interesting speaker,
polished and gentlemanly in his manners, and highly respected. In
person, he is tall and slim, with a genteel figure, well-balanced head,
bright eye, and a countenance beaming with intelligence.
BENJAMIN S. TURNER.
Mr. Turner is a man of large size, full chest, and broad shoulders,
flat nose, curly hair, and has the appearance of having experienced
plantation life.
He was born in Halifax County, North Carolina, March 17, 1825; was
raised as a slave, and received no early education, because the laws
of that State made it criminal to educate slaves; removed to Alabama
in 1830, and, by clandestine study, obtained a fair education; is now
a dealer in general merchandise; was elected tax collector of Dallas
County, in 1867, and councilman of the city of Selma, in 1869; and was
elected to the Forty-second Congress as a Republican from the State
of Alabama. Mr. Turner, though always in his seat during the sitting
of the House, is very quiet; is seldom seen conversing; votes, but
never speaks; has a reputation for good sense and political business
sagacity. He has the unbounded confidence of his constituents, and is
looked up to as a leader amongst his people.
P. B. S. PINCHBACK.
Struggling upward from the colored man’s starting-point in the
South, and at last reaching a seat in the United States Senate, Mr.
Pinchback has placed himself in the front rank of the race which his
color represents. His position as Lieutenant-Governor of the State of
Louisiana, at a time when true courage, manly vigor, great prudence,
and good judgment were needed, showed him to be in possession of some
of the best qualities of a statesman.
The wily Warmoth found more than his match in his attempts to make a
tool of the colored man. Becoming acting Governor of the State, he
surprised even his most intimate friends in the ability he exhibited.
For the victory over Warmoth, and the great benefit that will
accrue from it to the State, the people of Louisiana owe much to
Acting-Governor Pinchback. Had he accepted the tendered bribe of
Warmoth, and acted as his accomplice, the outrages upon the treasury
of the State, the installation of persons as State officials against
the expressed wish of the people, would have been carried out without
any means of redress being left in the hands of the people. By the
patriotic action of Governor Pinchback, the calamities that would have
followed the continuance of the power of Warmoth were averted, and a
greater feeling of security at once sprang up amongst the masses.
The colored population of Louisiana have reason to be proud that one of
their race was so conspicuously instrumental in seizing the opportunity
for opening the way to rid the State of that power which had retarded
its progress.
The statesmanlike conduct of Oscar J. Dunn and Mr. Pinchback reflects
great credit upon the intelligence of the colored citizens of that
commonwealth.
Mr. Pinchback is a man of energy, eloquent in speech, gentlemanly in
manners, kind and hospitable, and is said to be a man of wealth.
JAMES LYNCH.
Mr. Lynch was born in the city of Baltimore, Maryland, about the year
1840. His father, who followed a mercantile pursuit, was a freedman,
and his mother had been a slave, but had her liberty purchased by
her husband. While quite young, James was employed in caring for his
father’s interests, and there are those living who remember him as a
remarkably smart and fine appearing lad, driving the delivery team
which hauled goods to his father’s patrons in the city. As soon as
old enough, he was sent to Hanover, New Hampshire, to enter Kimball
University, from which institution, in due time, he graduated with
usual honors.
After completing his education, Mr. Lynch went to Indiana, where he
was a preacher of the Gospel for some years. He then went to Galena,
Illinois, where he married. We next hear of him in Philadelphia,
pursuing the honorable calling of editor of the “Recorder,” a popular
Methodist publication. He was known everywhere as an eloquent speaker
and able and fluent writer, and he moved in as good society as perhaps
any of his compeers enjoyed.
In the year 1867, Mr. Lynch removed to the State of Mississippi, and
filled the pulpit in one of the Methodist churches in Jackson. He there
became editor of a religious journal.
Lynch’s articles were always carefully prepared, thoughtful,
argumentative, and convincing, and undoubtedly performed a good work
wherever read.
He first became politically prominent in Mississippi in what is
denominated as the “Dent-Alcorn” campaign of 1869, when he was
nominated for the office of Secretary of State by the Republicans,
made the canvass with the best speakers in the State, and was duly
elected and qualified, and up to the time of his decease had ably
and efficiently filled all the requirements of that important and
responsible position.
Mr. Lynch was of a brown, or coffee color, a little below the medium
size, good features, gentlemanly and kind-hearted, a genial companion,
and well beloved by all who knew him. He died on the 18th of December,
1872.
WILLIAM STILL.
The subject of this sketch is a native of the State of New Jersey, and
was born in Burlington County, on the 7th of October, 1821. He was
brought up on a farm owned by his father and mother, Levin and Charity
Still. The immediate neighborhood of his birth-place afforded but
little advantage for the education of the poorer class of whites, much
less for colored children, who had to meet the negro-hating prejudice
of those times; yet William’s thirst for knowledge and love of books
created in his favor a good impression with the teacher of the common
school, which obtained for the lad a quarter’s schooling, and some
additional aid on rainy days.
The colored boy’s companions were all white, nevertheless his good
behavior, earnest zeal, and rapid advancement gained him the friendship
of both teacher and scholars, and did much to break down the prejudice
against the colored race in that vicinity.
By assiduous study and outside aid he became proficient in reading,
writing, and arithmetic, and, as age advanced, paid considerable
attention to the classics.
The harsh prejudice of race which William Still was called upon to
meet in his business intercourse with the whites, early made him
deeply interested in the cause of freedom, then being advocated by
the Abolitionists, and he became a subscriber to one of their weekly
journals. At this time he was the only colored man in the town that
took such a paper, and it was hard work, with his small wages, to meet
its subscription and postage demands.
Seeing the bad effects of the use of intoxicating liquors in the
community, Mr. Still early adopted the principles of temperance, to
which he tenaciously clings to the present day.
Well-grounded in moral, religious, and temperance views, William Still,
at the age of twenty-three years, went to the city of Philadelphia to
reside.
Although the temptations of the great Babel were laid before him, his
early convictions kept him from yielding.
The long connection of William Still with the anti-slavery office
in Philadelphia, his intimate relationship with the Pennsylvania
Abolitionists, a body of men and women of whom too much cannot be said
in their praise, and the deep interest he felt in the fleeing bondmen
passing through that city to Canada, has brought him very prominently
before the American people.
Mr. Still is well educated, has good talents, and has cultivated
them. He is an interesting and forcible writer, and some of the
stories of escaped slaves, which he has recently put forth in his
valuable work, “The Underground Railroad,” point him out as one of the
best benefactors of his race. After the beginning of the war of the
slaveholders had made it certain that slavery would be abolished, and
the close of the anti-slavery office in Philadelphia, Mr. Still went
into the coal trade, by which he has become independent.
Upright and honest in all his dealings, a faithful friend, blameless
in his family relations, an affectionate husband and father, we have
always taken pride in putting forth William Still as a model man.
The subject of this sketch is of medium size, unadulterated in race,
prominent and regular features, always a smile upon his countenance,
affable, humorous, neat in his person, gentlemanly in his deportment,
and interesting in his conversation. With all classes of good men and
women who know him, both colored and white, no man stands higher, or is
regarded with more confidence, than William Still.
PETER H. CLARK.
As an acute thinker, an eloquent and splendid speaker, possessing
rare intellectual gifts, fine education with large culture, a moral
nature full of sympathy and benevolence for all mankind, Peter H.
Clark justly stands in the foremost rank of the noted men of his race.
Although not an old man, Mr. Clark has, for the past quarter of a
century, taken a prominent part in all of the great conventions called
to consider the condition, and the best means for the moral, social,
and political elevation of the colored population of the United States.
Mr. Clark was associated with Frederick Douglass in the editorial
management of the “North Star” twenty years ago, and his articles were
always fresh, vigorous, and telling.
In the various political contests in the State of Ohio for the last ten
years, he has taken a foremost position, and his appearance at public
meetings in Hamilton County has done much towards annihilating the
prejudice so rampant in that section.
His argumentative speeches, scholastic attainments, and gentlemanly
bearing, have been of untold benefit to his race throughout Ohio.
During the Rebellion, when the colored citizens of Cincinnati were
sorely and cruelly abused, Peter H. Clark stepped forward as their
representative man, and nobly did he do his duty.
The history of “The Black Brigade,” written at that time, did him great
credit, and was of immense value to the black man.
Mr. Clark is a resident of Cincinnati, and is the principal of the
Gaines High School in that city. To him, probably more than to any
other man, are the colored people there indebted for the inculcation of
the creditable desire for education and advancement true of them.
He is somewhat below the middle size, thin, sharp features, bright
eye, rather of a dyspeptic appearance, hospitable and kind, upright
and gentlemanly in all the relations of life, with a host of admirers
wherever he is known. No man has been truer to his oppressed people
than Peter H. Clark, and none are more deserving of their unlimited
confidence than he.
To the pen of Mr. Clark we are indebted for the sketch of John I.
Gaines, in this work.
FRANCES ELLEN HARPER.
Mrs. Harper is a native of Maryland, and was born in Baltimore, in
1825, of free parents. What she was deprived of in her younger days in
an educational point of view, she made up in after years, and is now
considered one of the most scholarly and well-read women of the day.
Her poetic genius was early developed, and some of her poems, together
with a few prose articles, with the title of “Forest Leaves,” were
published, and attracted considerable attention, even before she became
known to the public through her able platform orations.
An article on “Christianity,” by Mrs. Harper, will stand a comparison
with any paper of the kind in the English language.
Feeling deeply the injury inflicted upon her race, she labored most
effectually by both pen and speech for the overthrow of slavery, and
for ten years before the commencement of the Rebellion, the press
throughout the free states recorded her efforts as amongst the ablest
made in the country.
Few of our American poets have written verses more pointed against
existing evils, than Frances Ellen Harper. Her eloquent poem, “To the
Union Savers of Cleveland,” on the return of a fugitive slave to her
master at the South, will always be read with a feeling of indignation
against the people of the North who could suffer such things to be done.
“The Slave Mother” will stand alongside of Whittier’s best poems on
the “Peculiar Institution.” The poems on “The Proclamation,” and the
“Fifteenth Amendment,” will be read by her race with delight in after
ages.
All of Mrs. Harper’s writings are characterized by chaste language,
much thought, and a soul-stirring ring that are refreshing to the
reader.
As a speaker, she ranks deservedly high; her arguments are forcible,
her appeals pathetic, her logic fervent, her imagination fervid, and
her delivery original and easy. Mrs. Harper is dignified both in public
and in private, yet witty and sociable. She is the ablest colored lady
who has ever appeared in public in our country, and is an honor to the
race she represents.
In person, Mrs. Harper is tall, and of neat figure; mulatto in color,
bright eyes, smiling countenance, and intelligent in conversation.
WILLIAM F. BUTLER.
Mr. Butler is a native of Halifax, Nova Scotia, and came to the States
in 1853. Three years later, he was ordained by Rev. William H. Bishop,
and began as a preacher of the Zion M. E. Church. He is now pastor of
St. Mark’s Church, New York. For the past three or four years, Mr.
Butler has taken an active part in the politics of the Empire State,
and was sent as a delegate to the National Republican Convention that
nominated General Grant for his second term, and in which assembly he
exercised considerable influence with the colored delegates from the
South.
Mr. Butler is a man of good education, well read, of retentive memory,
able in debate, quick to take advantage of an opponent, an eloquent,
extemporaneous speaker, and popular with the masses.
He is considered “headstrong” by the older preachers of “Zion,” and
came out from that connection a few years since, and has built up the
church over which he now presides. He has great energy and force of
character, and will generally be found in the front rank, rather than
as a follower. In stature, Mr. Butler is below the medium, of neat
figure, genteel in appearance, of mixed blood, sharp, bright eyes,
pleasing countenance, easy in manners, and interesting in conversation.
He is about thirty years of age. In all emergencies, he has been
considered true to his race, and may be regarded as a representative
man.
T. MORRIS CHESTER.
Mr. Chester is a native of Pennsylvania, and is by profession, a
lawyer. He spent some years in Liberia, returned home, and took
an honorable part in the war of the Rebellion. He has travelled
extensively in Europe, making a good impression wherever he appeared.
In 1867, Hon. C. M. Clay, Minister to Russia, in a correspondence with
the State Department at Washington, said of Mr. Chester’s visit to St.
Petersburg:--
“SIR:--Captain T. Morris Chester, late of the United States Volunteer
Army, being in St. Petersburg, coming well recommended by distinguished
citizens of the United States, and being also well educated, and of
good address, I called upon the minister of foreign affairs, and told
him that I would not apply in the usual way, by note, to have Captain
Chester, a colored American citizen, presented to his Imperial Majesty,
as there was no precedent, and I did not know how his Imperial Majesty
would be disposed to act; but I desired that he would approach his
Imperial Majesty in an informal way, and ascertain his wishes in this
regard. The assistant minister of foreign affairs, Mr. De Westmann,
acquiesced in the proposal, and, in a few days, wrote me that the
Emperor had given orders to have Captain Chester’s name put upon the
list of persons for the first presentation.
“To-day being the occasion of a grand review of the imperial guard, the
Emperor sent an invitation to Captain Chester to assist in the review,
which he did, riding around with his Imperial Majesty’s staff, and
taking lunch at the winter palace with the staff officers and a portion
of the Imperial family, who accompanied the Emperor at the lunch.
“I have made these facts known to you, as I regard the affair of some
importance. We have four millions of colored citizens; they are with
us, and of us, for good as well as evil.
“I think that it is the duty of all good citizens to try and elevate
the African race in America, and inspire them with all possible
self-respect, and prepare them for that ultimate influence which they
must sooner or later have, upon the political and economical interests
of the United States. These are the views which have influenced my
action in this case, which, not partisan in their character, I should
hope would be satisfactory to all patriotic Americans.”
Mr. Chester is of pure African origin, a splendid looking man, with
manners highly cultivated.
JOSEPH J. CLINTON, D. D.
Joseph J. Clinton is a native of Philadelphia, born October 3, 1823,
possesses a good, common-school education, studied at the Alleghany
Institute, but did not graduate. He was apprenticed to Francis Chew,
a hair-worker, and learned that trade. At the age of fifteen, he
experienced religion, joined the Zion Methodist denomination, and
became an ardent advocate of the cause of Christ. He began as a lay
preacher, at the early age of seventeen. At eighteen, he went into
business for himself in the hair work, yet continued dispensing the
Gospel to those who would hear.
In 1843, Bishop Clinton was ordained an elder, and in 1856, was made
bishop. During the civil war, he spent almost his entire time at the
South. As chaplain of the First United States Colored Regiment, Colonel
Holman, Mr. Clinton did a good work amongst his race. He did not
confine himself to mere camp duties, but performed a mission work which
had its influence amongst the slaves, far and wide. Seeing that the
spread of the Gospel was of greater importance than remaining with a
regiment, Bishop Clinton gave himself entirely up to gospel missionary
work. He organized ten conferences, ordained and licensed seven hundred
ministers, admitted two hundred thousand members in the denomination,
brought one hundred thousand children into the Sabbath School,
and travelled in all of the Southern States. In 1869, he visited
California, and organized a conference in San Francisco.
In person, Bishop Clinton is stout, fleshy, and well-proportioned.
He has a full face, which indicates the best of health and happy
contentment; countenance mild, benignant and thoughtful, with an
expression of integrity, denoting his inability to do a mean thing.
The bishop is a good declaimer, and the outbursting and overwhelming
effusions of his natural eloquence, the striking originality of his
conceptions, the irresistible power of his captivating voice, the vivid
and copious display of illustration, thrill and charm the hearer. He is
justly popular with the public, as well as with his own denomination.
He presides in the conferences with great dignity and impartiality,
deciding questions according to Cushing and justice, and without
fear or favor. Bishop Clinton resides in the city of Philadelphia,
surrounded by a loving family and a host of admiring friends.
BENJAMIN T. TANNER, D. D.
Dr. Tanner is the editor of the “Christian Recorder,” the organ of the
African Methodist Episcopal Church (Bethel). He is a mulatto of medium
size, modest and genteel, social and pleasant in conversation, and
has a classical education. Tanner’s “Apology for African Methodism,”
is the ablest written work yet produced upon that subject. In it, he
employs facts and statistics, but they have the varied beauty of the
rainbow, and the golden glow of the sunlight, when viewed through the
prism of his rich imagination. There are but few men who can excel him
in description; indeed, he wields a masterly pen in that department
of literature, every idea being full of thought. As editor of “The
Recorder,” he has written many witty, pithy, and brilliant sentiments.
There is a tinge of opulent fancy running through his editorials which
always refreshes one. As a speaker, Dr. Tanner ranks well, being
fluent, ready, easy in his manner, and reliable in his statements.
The wide reputation of his journal, outside of his own denomination,
is probably the best test of his ability as a newspaper conductor. He
has done much to build up Methodism among our people, and to inculcate
the feeling for a better educated ministry, which is everywhere needed.
Dr. Tanner’s efforts towards the elevation of his race have been of
lasting good, and, as he is still a young man, we look forward to his
accomplishing more in the large field before him. As a citizen of
Philadelphia, he is enterprising, energetic, and works for the public
good. He is highly respected by all classes, and justly holds the
position of a representative man, whose title was gained by merit, and
not by favor.
SINGLETON T. JONES, D. D.
Singleton T. Jones is a native of Pennsylvania, and is about fifty
years of age. He is tall, and of a fine figure, pleasing countenance,
bright eye, and unadulterated in race and color. He commenced
travelling as a preacher of the Zion Methodist denomination in the year
1847, and was ordained a bishop in 1868. He is a man of surpassing
power and eloquence. His sermons are brilliant with unmeasured poetry,
and abound in wit, invective, glowing rhetoric, and logic.
The bishop often surprises his attentive listeners with his historical
knowledge. When in the pulpit, he throws light on the subject by the
coruscations of his wit, drives home a truth by solid argument, and
clinches it by a quotation from Scripture, and a thrilling and pointed
appeal which moves his audience like a shock from an electric battery.
No one sleeps under the preaching of Bishop Jones, for he has long been
considered the most eloquent man in his denomination. His character is
without a blemish, and he is blest with a large circle of friends, and
the happiest family relations.
JERMIN W. LOGUEN.
Born a slave at the South, and escaping to the free states some thirty
years ago, Jermin W. Loguen passed through the fiery ordeal that
awaited every fugitive lecturer or preacher in those days. He was
among the earliest of those to take stock in the underground railroad,
and most nobly did he do his work. For more than twenty years Bishop
Loguen labored in season and out of season, in western New York, as an
efficient conductor on the road, helping the fugitive on his way to
Canada. As a lecturer, his varied experience, eloquent and effective
speeches, did much to change public opinion in behalf of liberty.
As a preacher, he was very popular with the Zion Methodist
denomination, with whom he acted. His education was limited, yet he
used good language, both in his sermons and addresses. He was made a
bishop some time about 1868, and discharged his duties with credit to
himself, and satisfaction to his people.
But Bishop Loguen will be remembered longer for his humanitarian work.
If to have been true and faithful to the cause of his people in the day
of their sorrow and destitution, when friends were few, and enemies
were many; if to have been eyes to the blind, legs to the lame, bread
to the hungry, and shelter to the outcast of our afflicted and hunted
people when it was the fashion in America to hunt men; if to have
devoted a whole life to works of humanity and justice, entitles a man
to the respect and esteem of his fellow-men, and especially, of the
class benefited, Jermin W. Loguen has well earned such respect and
esteem.
In person, he was of large frame, of mixed blood, strong, manly
voice, fine countenance, genteel in his manners, and interesting in
conversation. He died in 1871.
RUFUS L. PERRY.
“The National Monitor” is a wide-awake journal, edited by Rufus L.
Perry, a live man, in every sense of the term. As corresponding
secretary of “The Consolidated American Educational Association,” Mr.
Perry has been of great benefit to the cause of education at the South
amongst the freedmen who so much need such efforts. His society is
mainly engaged in sending into the field approved missionary preachers
and teachers; organizing schools and missions on a self-sustaining
basis, in the more interior portions of the South; looking up, and
having on hand, qualified colored teachers, to send out as they may be
called for.
The association is under the auspices of the Baptist denomination, and
the “National Monitor,” of which Mr. Perry is editor, may be termed an
organ of that sect. The columns of the paper show well the versatile
character of the gentleman whose brain furnishes the mental food for
its readers, and the cause of its wide-spread popularity.
Mr. Perry is a self-made man, well educated, possessing splendid
natural abilities, an able and eloquent speaker, popular with other
religious bodies as well as his own, and makes himself generally useful
wherever he may happen to be. He is devotedly attached to his race, and
never leaves a stone unturned to better their moral, social, religious,
and political condition.
As a resident of Brooklyn, New York, his influence is felt in building
up and maintaining the character of the colored people. Mr. Perry is
considered one of the most efficient of the Baptist clergymen of the
“City of Churches.”
LEONARD A. GRIMES.
A native of Loudon County, Virginia, born in Leesburg, in 1815, of free
parents, Leonard A. Grimes was subjected to all the disabilities that
his race had to endure in the South, except being a bound slave. While
yet a boy, young Grimes went to Washington, where he was employed in
a butcher’s shop, and afterwards in an apothecary’s establishment. He
subsequently hired himself out to a slaveholder, whose confidence he
soon gained. Accompanying his employer in some of his travels in the
remote South, he had an opportunity of seeing the different phases of
slave life; and its cruelty created in his mind an early hatred to the
institution, which lasted him during his long and eventful career.
On his return to Washington, the subject of this sketch began to take
an interest in the underground railroad, and to him many escaped slaves
were indebted for their freedom. A free colored man with a slave wife
and seven children appealed to Mr. Grimes to aid them to escape, for
the wife and children were to be carried to the far South. Through the
kindness of this good man the family succeeded in reaching Canada,
where they were free. Search was made for the family, suspicion fell
upon Grimes as the author of their escape, he was tried, found guilty,
and sent to the state prison at Richmond for two years.
At the expiration of his imprisonment, Mr. Grimes returned to
Washington, and soon removed to New Bedford, Massachusetts, where
he resided two years, and then came to Boston. A small Baptist
congregation was worshipping in a hall at this time, and they called
Mr. Grimes to be their pastor. In this new field of labor he soon
began to show the great executive ability which was to be a blessing
to his race in Boston. The Twelfth Baptist Church, of which he was the
head for a quarter of a century, and the congregation, consisting of
some of the better class of the colored citizens of the metropolis, is
a monument that no one need be ashamed of. Mr. Grimes was an ardent
anti-slavery man, when many of his clerical brethren were on the other
side of the question.
Mr. Grimes was a man of great amiability of character, with always a
cheering word and a smile for those with whom he came in contact. As
a preacher, he was a man of power, though he was not an easy speaker.
He was a mulatto of fine appearance, good manners, dignified, and
courteous. No man was more beloved by his friends or respected by the
community. At his funeral, which occurred in March, 1873, more than
fifty carriages were among the long cortege that followed his remains.
It is not often that a man leaves the world with fewer enemies or more
substantial friends than Leonard A. Grimes.
JOHN SELLA MARTIN.
John Sella Martin is a native of the State of North Carolina, and was
born at Charlotte, in 1832. He was the slave of his master, who sold
him while he was yet a child. Part of his life was passed in Georgia
and Louisiana, from the latter of which States he escaped in 1856.
Mr. Martin resided some time at Chicago, studied for the ministry at
Detroit, and was first settled over a church at Buffalo. He came to
Boston in 1859, and was introduced to the public at Tremont Temple,
by Rev. Mr. Kalloch, for whom he preached several weeks, during that
gentleman’s vacation. The impression which Mr. Martin made while at
the Temple was very favorable; and after supplying a pulpit for some
time at Lawrence, he was settled over the Joy Street Baptist Church in
Boston. He has since preached in New York and Washington, but is now
engaged in politics, having renounced the ministry three or four years
since.
Mr. Martin has visited England three times, and is well informed upon
matters pertaining to that country, as well as this. He is an easy
speaker, fluent and ready, and gives the impression of a man well
informed on the subject upon which he talks. He was, for a time, editor
of the “National Era,” and then corresponding editor of the same paper.
However, he lacks stability of purpose. In his newspaper articles, Mr.
Martin evinces considerable literary ability. In person, he is of mixed
blood, gentlemanly in his appearance, and refined in his manners.
“MOSES.”
For eight or ten years previous to the breaking out of the Rebellion,
all who frequented anti-slavery conventions, lectures, picnics, and
fairs, could not fail to have seen a black woman of medium size, upper
front teeth gone, smiling countenance, attired in coarse, but neat
apparel, with an old-fashioned reticule, or bag, suspended by her
side, and who, on taking her seat, would at once drop off into a sound
sleep. This woman was Harriet Tubman, better known as “Moses.”
She first came to Boston in 1854, and was soon a welcome visitor to
the homes of the leading Abolitionists, who were always attentive
listeners to her strange and eventful stories. Her plantation life,
where she was born a slave at the South, was cruelly interesting. Her
back and shoulders, marked with the biting lash, told how inhuman was
the institution from which she had fled. A blow upon the head had
caused partial deafness, and inflicted an injury which made her fall
asleep the moment she was seated. Moses had no education, yet the most
refined person would listen for hours while she related the intensely
interesting incidents of her life, told in the simplest manner, but
always seasoned with good sense.
During her sojourn in Boston, Moses made several visits to the South,
and it was these that gave her the cognomen of “Moses.” Men from
Canada, who had made their escape years before, and whose families were
still in the prison-house of slavery, would seek out Moses, and get her
to go and bring their dear ones away. How strange! This woman,--one
of the most ordinary looking of her race; unlettered; no idea of
geography; asleep half of the time,--would penetrate the interior slave
states, hide in the woods during the day, feed on the bondsman’s homely
fare at night, bring off whole families of slaves, and pilot them to
Canada, after running the gauntlet of the most difficult parts of the
Southern country. No fugitive was ever captured who had Moses for a
leader.
While in Canada, in 1860, we met several whom this woman had brought
from the land of bondage, and they all believed that she had
supernatural power. Of one man we inquired, “Were you not afraid of
being caught?”
“O, no,” said he, “Moses is got de charm.”
“What do you mean?” we asked.
He replied, “De whites can’t catch Moses, kase you see she’s born wid
de charm. De Lord has given Moses de power.”
Yes, and the woman herself felt that she had the charm, and this
feeling, no doubt, nerved her up, gave her courage, and made all who
followed her feel safe in her hands.
When the war broke out, instinct called Moses into active service, and
she at once left for the South. Long before Butler’s “Contraband of
War” doctrine was recognized by the government, Moses was hanging upon
the outskirts of the Union army, and doing good service for those of
her race who sought protection in our lines. When the Negro put on the
“blue,” Moses was in her glory, and travelled from camp to camp, being
always treated in the most respectful manner. These black men would
have died for this woman, for they believed that she had a charmed life.
It is said that General Burnside, on one occasion, sent Moses into the
enemy’s camp, and that she returned in due time, with most valuable
information. During the last year of the Rebellion, she had in her
possession a paper, the presentation of which always gained for her a
prompt passage through any part of the Union lines.
Moses followed Sherman in his march “From Atlanta to the Sea,” and
witnessed the attack on Petersburg. The great deference shown her by
the Union officers, who never failed to tip their caps when meeting
her, and the strange stories told of her pioneer adventures, and the
substantial aid given by her to her own race, has left with them a
lasting impression that Moses still holds “the charm.”
MARY SHADD CAREY.
Mary Ann Shadd Carey is a native of Delaware, and has resided for
several years in Canada. She is tall and slim, with a fine head, which
she carries in a peculiar manner. She has good features, intellectual
countenance, bright, sharp eyes, that look right through you. She holds
a legitimate place with the strong-minded women of the country.
Mrs. Carey received a far better education than usually fell to the lot
of the free colored people of her native State, and which she greatly
improved. She early took a lively interest in all measures tending
to the elevation of her race, and has, at various times, filled the
honorable positions of school teacher, school superintendent, newspaper
publisher and editor, lecturer, and travelling agent. As a speaker, she
ranks deservedly high; as a debater, she is quick to take advantage of
the weak points of her opponent, forcible in her illustrations, biting
in her sarcasm, and withering in her rebukes.
Mrs. Carey is resolute and determined, and you might as well attempt
to remove a stone wall with your little finger, as to check her in
what she conceives to be right and her duty. Although she has mingled
much in the society of men, attended many conventions composed almost
exclusively of males, and trodden paths where women usually shrink to
go, no one ever hinted aught against her reputation, and she stands
with a record without blot or blemish. Had she been a man, she would
probably have been with John Brown at Harper’s Ferry.
When the government determined to put colored men in the field to aid
in suppressing the Rebellion, Mrs. Carey raised recruits at the West,
and brought them on to Boston, with as much skill, tact, and order
as any of the recruiting officers under the government. Her men were
always considered the best lot brought to head-quarters. Indeed, the
examining surgeon never failed to speak of Mrs. Carey’s recruits as
faultless. This proves the truth of the old adage, that “It takes a
woman to pick out a good man.” Few persons have done more real service
for the moral, social, and political elevation of the colored race than
Mrs. Carey. She is a widow, and still in the full-orbed womanhood of
life, working on, feeling, as she says, “It is better to wear out, than
to rust out.”
GEORGE L. RUFFIN.
One of the most damaging influences that the institution of slavery had
on the colored population of the country, was to instill in the mind of
its victim the belief that he could never rise above the position of
a servant. The highest aspiration of most colored men, thirty years
ago, was to be a gentleman’s body servant, a steward of a steam-boat,
head-waiter at a first-class hotel, a boss barber, or a boot-black with
good patronage, and four or five boys under him to do the work. Even
at this day, although slavery has been abolished ten years, its spirit
still clings to the colored man, and, more especially, at the North. To
wait at parties, attend weddings and dinners, and above all, to be a
caterer, seems to be the highest aim of our Northern young men, when,
to be a good mechanic, would be far more honorable, and have greater
tendency towards the elevation of the race. A few exceptions to what I
have penned above are to be found occasionally, and one of these is the
gentleman whose name heads this sketch.
George L. Ruffin was born in Richmond, Virginia, of free parents, and
of course had limited educational opportunities. He came to Boston some
twenty years ago, and followed the calling of a hairdresser up to about
five years since, when he began the study of the law with Honorable
Harvey Jewell. In due time, he was admitted to the bar, and is now in
the enjoyment of a good practice in his profession. One of the most
praiseworthy acts connected with Mr. Ruffin’s elevation, is that he
studied law while he was at his barber’s chair, and dependent upon it
for a living.
As a member of the Massachusetts Legislature, Mr. Ruffin exhibited
scholarly attainments in his speeches that placed him at once amongst
the foremost men of that body. As a speaker, he is interesting, for his
addresses show that he gives his subjects a thorough canvassing before
he delivers them. Mr. Ruffin is a good student, and is destined, we
think, to rise still higher in his profession.
He takes a deep interest in the elevation and welfare of his race, is
prominent in all public meetings, has a happy faculty in discharging
the duties of presiding officer, or chairman of a committee, and writes
resolutions that are readable, as well as to the purpose for which they
are intended. Mr. Ruffin is highly respected in the community, and has
done much in his dealings with prominent citizens to lift upward the
standard of the colored man. He is of mixed blood, short, stout, with
a rather pleasing cast of countenance, and features good to look upon.
In speaking to our young men, we have often mentioned the career of Mr.
Ruffin as worthy of imitation.
RICHARD T. GREENER.
Richard T. Greener is a graduate of Harvard University, which, under
ordinary circumstances, is considered a passport to future usefulness
and preferment. Soon after leaving college, he was invited to become
a teacher in the institute for colored youth, at Philadelphia. Here
his labors were highly appreciated, and many regrets were manifested
on his leaving to take charge of another institution of learning at
Washington, where he now resides.
Mr. Greener takes a deep interest in everything tending towards
the development of the genius of the race, and has written some
very readable articles on education for the “New National Era.” His
writings exhibit considerable research, a mind well stored from
English literature, and show that he is a man of industry and progress.
Long before leaving college, Mr. Greener gave evidence of possessing
talents for the platform, and recent speeches and addresses place him
in the advanced ground in the art of oratory.
Mr. Greener is a mulatto, and, in personal appearance, is of medium
size, good figure, well-balanced head, intellectual face, interesting
conversationalist, and eager for distinction. Mr. Greener is not
more than twenty-eight or thirty years of age, and has before him a
brilliant future. He is a good representative of our rising young men,
and is well calculated to inspire the youth of the country with noble
feelings for self-elevation. His motto is “the young men to the front.”
But he should remember that while the young men may take a legitimate
place at the front, the old men must not be asked to take a back seat.
The race cannot afford, yet a while, to dispense with the services of
the “Old Guard.”
LEWIS H. DOUGLASS.
The senior editor of the “New National Era” is the eldest son of
Frederick Douglass, and inherits a large share of the father’s
abilities. He was born in Massachusetts, has a liberal education, is a
practical printer, received excellent training in the office of “The
North Star,” at Rochester, New York, and is well calculated to conduct
a newspaper. Mr. Douglass distinguished himself at the attack on Fort
Wagner, where the lamented Colonel Robert G. Shaw fell. His being the
first to ascend the defences surrounding the fort, and his exclamation
of “Come, boys, we’ll fight for God and Governor Andrew,” was at the
time commented upon by the press of Europe as well as of our own
country.
Mr. Douglass is an active, energetic man, deeply alive to every
interest of his race, uncompromising in his adherence to principle, and
is a valuable citizen in any community. He has held several important
positions in Washington, where his influence is great. He is a good
writer, well informed, and interesting in conversation. In asserting
his rights against the proscriptive combinations of the printers
of Washington, Mr. Douglass was more than a match for his would-be
superiors. As a citizen, he is highly respected, and is regarded as
one of the leading men of the district. He is of medium size, a little
darker in complexion than the father, has a manly walk, gentlemanly in
his manners, intellectual countenance, and reliable in his business
dealings. His paper, the “New National Era,” is well conducted, and
should receive the patronage of our people throughout the country.
RICHARD H. CAIN.
Mr. Cain is well known as a Methodist preacher of some note, having
been a leading man in that denomination for many years. During the
Rebellion he took up his residence in South Carolina, where his good
judgment, industry, and executive ability gave him considerable
influence with his race. In the Constitutional and Reconstruction
Conventions Mr. Cain took an active part, and in the State Legislature,
gave unmistakable evidence of a knowledge of state affairs. He has been
called to fill several positions of honor and trust, and discharged his
duties with signal ability.
The moral, social, religious, and political elevation of his people has
long claimed a large share of Mr. Cain’s time and attention.
As an editor, he exhibited much literary tact and talent in conducting
his paper, urging in its columns education, character, and wealth,
as a basis for man’s elevation. In 1872, he was elected to Congress,
representing the city of Charleston. As a politician, Mr. Cain stands
high in his State, being considered one of their ablest stump-speakers,
and stump-speaking is regarded at the South as the best quality of an
orator. Mr. Cain is nearly pure in blood, rather under the medium size,
bright eye, intelligent countenance, strong, loud voice, energetic
in his actions, throwing some dramatic fervor into his elocutionary
powers, and may be termed an enthusiastic speaker. Gentlemanly in his
manners, blameless in his family relations, staunch in his friendship,
honest in his dealings with his fellow-men, Mr. Cain may be regarded as
a representative man, and an able one, too.
STEPHEN SMITH.
In no state in the Union have the colored people had greater obstacles
thrown in the way of their moral, social, and political elevation,
than in Pennsylvania. Surrounded by a population made up of the odd
ends of all countries, the German element predominating, with a large
sprinkling of poor whites from the Southern States, holding prejudice
against the race, the blacks of Pennsylvania have had a hard struggle.
Fortunately, however, for them, there were scattered over the State
a few representative men, who, by their industry, honesty, and moral
courage did much to raise the character and standard of the colored man.
Foremost among these was Stephen Smith, who, while a young man began
life as a lumberman in Columbia, where, for twenty-five years, he
was one of the principal dealers in that business. By upright and
patient labor, Mr. Smith amassed a fortune, removed to the city of
Philadelphia, where he has since resided, and where he has long been
one of the pillars of society.
For many years, the subject of this sketch has been an acceptable
preacher in the Methodist denomination, to which sect he has given
liberally of his vast means. Several years ago, Mr. Smith built a
church at his own expense, and gave it to his people. More recently, he
has erected and endowed an asylum for the poor of his race.
Mr. Smith is a mulatto, of medium size, strongly built, fascinating
countenance, yet plain looking, with indelibly marked features. He is
now in the sunset of life, and his head is thickly sprinkled with gray
hairs. Although he is in the autumn of his years, he is still vigorous,
attending to his own business, preaching occasionally, and looking
after the interest of “our people.”
Always interested in the elevation of man, few have done more for his
race than Stephen Smith. He is highly respected, and has the entire
confidence of the people of his own city, as well as all who enjoy his
acquaintance.
LEWIS HAYDEN.
Thirty years ago, the underground railroad was in full operation, and
many daring attempts were made by Northern men to aid slaves in their
escape to a land of freedom. In some instances, both the fugitives and
their friends were captured, taken back, tortured, and imprisoned. The
death of the Rev. Charles T. Torrey, in the Maryland Penitentiary, for
helping away a family of slaves; the branding of Jonathan Walker for
the same offence; the capture of Captain Daniel Drayton for bringing
off a number of bondmen in his vessel, the “Pearl;” and the long and
cruel imprisonment of the Rev. Calvin Fairbanks, are historical facts
well known to the old Abolitionists.
The subject of this sketch was born in Lexington, Kentucky, where he
spent his early days in slavery. Lewis Hayden and his family made their
escape from the State of Kentucky in the year 1846; by the assistance
of the Rev. Calvin Fairbanks and Miss Delia A. Webster. Both of the
above persons suffered cruelly, for their kindness to the fugitives.
Miss Webster, after several months’ imprisonment, was liberated, but
Mr. Fairbanks remained in the State Prison at Frankfort, Kentucky, more
than ten years, during which time everything was done by officials of
the prison to make his confinement as painful as possible.
To the great credit of Mr. Hayden, he labored faithfully to secure the
release of his friend, and was, we believe, the means of shortening his
sufferings.
With his family, Mr. Hayden took up his residence in Boston, where he
has since remained, and where he now enjoys the respect and confidence
of a large circle of friends.
Daring the reign of terror, caused by the attempt to enforce the
Fugitive Slave Law, in the return of escaped bondmen, Mr. Hayden became
conspicuous as one of the most faithful friends of his race, daring
everything for freedom, never shrinking from any duty, and never
counting the cost.
For the past dozen years, he has held a situation at the State House,
and, last winter, served in the Legislature, where his speeches and his
votes were given for reform.
While he does not attempt to be an orator, Mr. Hayden is, nevertheless,
a very effective speaker. He is a man of common size, with little or no
Anglo-Saxon blood, genteel in his manners, intelligent in conversation,
and correct in all the relations of life.
HENRY GARLAND MURRAY.
To be able to tell a story, and tell it well, is a gift, and not an
acquirement; a gift that one may well be proud of. The gentleman whose
name heads this sketch, left his sunny home in the Island of Jamaica,
last autumn, and paid a flying visit to our country. We had heard of
Mr. Murray as the able editor of the leading newspaper in Kingston,
and, therefore, he was not an entire stranger to us.
But his great powers as a lecturer, we were ignorant of. With a number
of friends, we went one evening to listen to a lecture on “Life among
the Lowly in Jamaica.” The speaker for the occasion was Henry G.
Murray, who soon began his subject. He was a man of fine personal
appearance, a little inclined to corpulency, large, electric eyes,
smiling countenance beaming with intelligence, and wearing the air of a
well-bred gentleman.
He commenced in a calm, cool, moderate manner, and did not depart from
it during the evening. Mr. Murray’s style is true to nature, and the
stories which he gave with matchless skill, convulsed every one with
laughter. He evinced talent for both tragic and comic representation,
rarely combined. His ludicrous stories, graphically told, kept every
face on a grin from the commencement to the end. For pathos, genius,
inimitable humor, and pungent wit, we have never seen his equal. He
possesses the true _vivida vis_ of eloquence. Mr. Murray is a man
of learning, accomplishment, and taste, and will be warmly welcomed
whenever he visits us again.
SAMPSON DUNBAR TALBOT.
Bishop Talbot is a native of Massachusetts, and was born in the town
of Stoughton. He received a good, common-school education at West
Bridgewater, went to the West, and studied theology, and began to
preach, at the age of twenty-five years. Returning East, he preached
in Boston for two years, where he made many friends. He was ordained
a bishop of the A. M. E. Zion Church, about nine years ago, and now
resides in Washington, D. C.
Bishop Talbot is about fifty-five years of age, of common size and
stature, a dark mulatto, fine head, and thoughtful face, with but
little of the negro cast of countenance. He is a good student, well
read, and better informed than the clergy generally.
As a speaker, he is sound, clear, thorough, and though not brilliant,
is a very interesting preacher. His dignified, calm utterance has great
power. He is much admired in the pulpit, and never lacks hearers.
The absence of fire and brimstone in his sermons gives the bishop a
gentlemanly air in the pulpit that strongly contrasts with his brethren
of the cloth. He is a good presiding officer, and rules according to
Cushing. Living a blameless life, having an unblemished reputation, and
taking a deep interest in everything pertaining to the moral, social,
and political condition of the race, Bishop Talbot is highly respected
by all.
CHARLES BURLEIGH PURVIS, M. D.
Dr. Purvis is a son of Robert Purvis, the well-known philanthropist,
and co-worker with William Lloyd Garrison, Wendell Phillips, and
Lucretia Mott. When a boy, “Burleigh” often met us at the steamer or
the cars, a number of miles away, took us to the homestead at Bybery,
listened to our lecture in the “old hall,” and then returned us to the
train or boat the next morning, and always did it cheerfully, and with
a smile.
The subject of our sketch was born in Philadelphia, in 1841, received
a collegiate education, graduating A. M.; studied at the Cleveland
Medical College, where, in 1864, he received the degree of M. D. He
entered the army as acting-assistant surgeon during the summer of the
same year.
Dr. Purvis now resides at Washington, and holds the honorable
position of Professor of _Materia Medica_ and Jurisprudence in Howard
University. The doctor takes a lively interest in the education and
elevation of his race, and exercises considerable influence in the
affairs of the District.
He inherits much of his father’s enthusiasm and oratorical powers,
and has spoken eloquently and successfully in public meetings and
conventions.
By close attention to his profession, Dr. Purvis has taken a high
rank as a physician. In complexion, he stands about half-way between
the Anglo-Saxon and the negro, probably throwing in a little mite of
Indian. Like his father, the doctor is of fine personal appearance,
dignified and gentlemanly in his manners, and respected by every one.
JOHN J. FREEMAN.
That spicy and spirited weekly, “The Progressive American,” is edited
by the gentleman whose name heads this sketch. By his native genius,
untiring industry, and scholarly attainments, he has created and kept
alive a newspaper that is a welcome guest in New York, and the country
around. As an editor, Mr. Freeman has been eminently successful,
and his journal now ranks amongst the very best of our papers. His
editorials exhibit more than ordinary tact and talent, and are always
on the side of right, morality, and the elevation of man. He has long
taken a leading part in state affairs, and has held prominent places in
conventions and public meetings.
As a speaker, he is interesting, and knows what he talks about.
His speeches consist of strong arguments and spirited appeals.
Personally, Mr. Freeman is sociable and affable in his manners, and
hearty and pleasant in his address. In complexion, he is of a brown
skin, with well-defined features, intellectual forehead, slim and
straight, with a walk something akin to the Indian. He is gentlemanly,
upright, and correct in his intercourse with mankind, and highly
respected as a man of advanced ideas.
ELIJAH W. SMITH.
The subject of this sketch is a grandson of the late Rev. Thomas Paul,
whose eloquence as a preacher is vividly remembered by Bostonians of
forty years ago, as one of the most entertaining of divines. Born in
Boston, Elijah W. Smith is well known as one of her most respected
citizens. He is by trade a printer, which he learned in the office
of “The Liberator,” with Wm. Lloyd Garrison, who always speaks of
“Elijah” with the utmost respect. No one can read Mr. Smith’s poems
without a regret that he has written so little, and yet he has given
us more poetry than any other colored American. Few living poets
understand, better than he, the elements of true poetry.
The evenness of his numbers, the polish of his diction, the rich melody
of his musically-embodied thoughts, and the variety of his information,
show that Nature has not been sparing in showering her gifts upon him.
In his poetry Mr. Smith seeks to make mankind, and things around him,
in harmony with a better state of moral existence.
His contributions to literature will ever tend to delight and instruct
the lovers of liberty and pure and refined society. Most of his
articles have appeared in “The Boston Daily Traveller,” and “The
Saturday Evening Express.” The longest poem contains thirty verses.
“Keep off the Grass,” and “Welcome to Spring,” shows the author’s
leaning towards Nature. “Crushed At Sedan,” “Vive La France,” and “A
Plea for the Recognition of Cuba,” are the promptings of a sympathetic
heart. “Peter and Joseph’s Trip to Vermont” is full of humor, and shows
that our author is at home in comic poetry. Mr. Smith’s finer feelings
find vent in those beautiful poems the “Winter Song of the Poor,”
and “Merry Christmas,” either of which is enough to give a writer
everlasting fame.
The Republican Party owes our author a debt of gratitude for the lyrics
he has contributed to its aid in this section. The following lines are
from the beautiful and soul-stirring poem entitled “Freedom’s Jubilee,”
read at a Ratification Meeting of the Fifteenth Amendment:
“Glory to God! for the struggle is ended,
Glory to God! for the victory won,
Honor to those who the Right have defended,
Through the long years since the conflict begun.
“O, may the prayers of those ready to perish
Guard them from harm like a girdle of fire!
Deep in our hearts their good deeds we will cherish,
And to deserve them we’ll ever aspire.
“God! at Thine altar, in thanksgiving bending,
Grant that our eyes Thy great goodness may see;
O, may Thy light, while the temple’s veil rending,
Show, through its portals, the path of the Free.”
“Our Lost Leader,” written on the death of Charles Sumner, is one of
Mr. Smith’s best productions. “The Boston Daily Traveller” says: “This
is a beautiful poem written by Elijah W. Smith, who is a true poet, and
who has produced some of the best poetry called forth by the death of
Mr. Sumner.”
We can only give the last verse:
“Give us the faith to kneel around
Our Country’s shrine, and swear
To keep alive the sacred flame
That SUMNER kindled there!”
The “Song of The Liberators” has in it the snap and fire that shows the
author’s sound appreciation of the workers for liberty. We give a few
of those spirited verses, and regret that want of space prevents our
placing the entire poem before the reader:
“The battle-cry is sounding
From every hill and vale,
From rock to rock resounding,
Now shall the tyrants quail.
No more with chain and fetter,
No more with prison cell,
Shall despots punish heroes
In the land they love so well.
“And thou, O Isle of Beauty,
Thy plaintive cry is heard;
Throughout our wide dominions,
The souls of men are stirred;
And rising in their manhood,
They shout from sea to sea,
‘Destruction to the tyrants!
Fair Cuba shall be free!’”
In person Mr. Smith is short, and inclined to be stout, with complexion
of a light brown.
His head is large and well developed; the expression of his features
are mild and good, his eyes are lively, and the turn of his face is
graceful and full of sensibility, and delicately susceptible of every
impression.
Still on the sunny side of fifty, and being of studious habits and an
impassioned lover of Nature, we may yet look for valuable contributions
from his versatile pen.
We hope, ere long, to see his poems given to the reading public in a
collected form, for we are sure that they would be a prized accession
to the current literature of the day, besides the valuable work they
would do for the elevation of his own race.
Mr. Smith has written more than sixty poems, one of which will be found
in the fore-part of this volume.
FOOTNOTES:
[54] “An Apology for Methodism.” B. T. Tanner, p. 388.
[55] Tanner’s “Apology,” p. 415.
“MY SOUTHERN HOME,”
Or, the South and Its People.
BY DR. WM. WELLS BROWN.
PRICE, $1.00 PER COPY.
The following are some of the comments of the Press:--
“This book may well be termed the great inside view of the South.
It runs back for fifty years, and gives the state of society in
the olden time. For wit and humor it has had no equal. Dr. Brown
faces the whole problem of the negroes’ past and future in a
manly, sensible, incisive way.”--_Daily Advertiser, Boston._
“The work is full of spicy incidents and anecdotes.”--_The
Commonwealth, Boston._
“The book is very entertaining and suggestive, and will be read
with pleasure and profit.”--_Zion’s Herald, Boston._
“Dr. Brown has given us an interesting book.”--_The Journal,
Boston._
“A racy book, brim full of instruction, wit, and humor, and will
be read with delight.”--_Daily Transcript, Boston._
“Dr. Brown has written a very interesting and instructive volume
upon the South and its people at the present time. The book is
illustrated with an engraving of the author, which does no justice
at all to the handsome features of one of the most able of the
anti-slavery orators of the past generation.”--_Sunday Herald,
Boston._
“The most graphic and racy work yet written on the South and its
people.”--_New York Times._
“Dr. Brown gives an interesting picture of the South, discusses
the Negro question with sound sense and logical force, and clearly
points out to the proscribed colored man the way to rise and rank
as a man among men. We commend the book to our readers.”--_The
National Monitor, Brooklyn, N. Y._
“The style is easy and pleasing. The portrayal is wonderful.
Throughout the work there is a vein of humor running which is
a characteristic of the author, and creative of side-splitting
laughter in its effect. Be sure and get the book.”--_Virginia
Star, Richmond, Va._
“‘My Southern Home,’ is a true and faithful picture of Southern
Whites and Blacks. Read the book by all means.”--_Herald and
Pilot, Nashville, Tenn._
“Dr. Brown has written an interesting book.”--_Fred Douglass._
A. G. BROWN & CO., Publishers, Boston, Mass.
“THE NEGRO IN THE REBELLION:”
HIS HEROISM AND HIS FIDELITY.
Containing 380 Pages, Bound in Cloth, Price, $1.50.
This splendid work was published in 1867, and nearly the whole edition
was burnt in the great Boston fire, so that but few copies were sold.
The universal demand now, for the only History which has done justice
to the heroism of the colored Americans in the late war, induces us to
get out this new edition.
_The following are some of the comments of the Press_:--
“William Wells Brown, M.D., the colored historian, is an author of
whom the American Negro ought to feel proud. He has written much,
and become popular as an author.
“Commencing with the first cargo of slaves landed in the Colonies
in 1620, Dr. Brown carries the Negro through the war of 1812,
the John Brown Raid, and the Rebellion, portraying in a graphic
manner the horrors of the slave-trade, the different struggles of
individual Negroes for the freedom of themselves and brothers; and
finally gives a complete and detailed history of the part taken
by the colored man in the late war, which showed to the world the
true heroism and fidelity of the race.
“The book is full of interesting and instructive facts, told in a
fascinating way.”--_The National Monitor, Brooklyn, N. Y._
“Dr. Brown has laid his race under great obligations to him for
writing this History of the services of the Negro in the Wars for
American Liberty.”--_Wm. Lloyd Garrison._
“The Negro in the Rebellion is a needed accession to our
literature, and does the author great credit.”--_New York Tribune._
“Every soldier of the war, and especially every colored soldier,
will want this book.”--_New York Evening Post._
A. G. BROWN & CO., Publishers, Boston, Mass.