MIXED RACES IN LIBERIA. 387 



school. The reason is that pains and money have been bestowed upon 

 persons largely mixed with Caucasian blood, who, if males, have mostly 

 died, or if females, have got married and assumed the cares of a family. 

 It seems that the females of mixed blood, who are not obliged to put 

 forth much exertion, and not subject to much exposure, last longer than 

 the males. It appears, also, that mulattoes born and brought up in 

 America, if they can pass through the acclimating process, stand the 

 climate much better than those born here, but only by engaging in as 

 little physical or mental labor as possible. Persons having an admix- 

 ture of foreign blood are very frail, easily take cold, and seldom recover 

 from a severe attack of illness. This will account in part for our want 

 of enterprise and progress here. Such men have had the lead and man- 

 agement of things, and, by the fearful exami)le of their disastrous inac- 

 tivity, have been obstructive guides, discouraging all energy and go-a- 

 Jteadativeness. 



Before the question of race came up here, mulattoes died just as they do 

 now, but it was not noticed. Their mortality was put down to the gen- 

 eral uuhealthiness of the climate. But since Professor Freeman, in his 

 address of July, 18G8, called the attention of the people to the startling 

 history of mixed breeds on this coast for the last two hundred years, 

 the mixed classes have been watching with alarm the numerous indica- 

 tions of the frail tenure of their existence. 



I have been for the last eighteen years connected with educational 

 matters here, and feel safe in giving it as one reason why we are no 

 better off in men to take charge of schools and churches, that the atten- 

 tion of educators has been principally devoted to persons of feeble con- 

 stitutions. 



The idea was that the presence of white blood imi^arted greater apti- 

 tude for learning, and such persons were to be fitted for teachers. 

 Black boys of hale and hearty physique were left to grow up unnoticed. 

 Many of them have taken to sea-faring life, or gone to reside as perma- 

 nent traders among the natives, who might now be active workers in 

 our destitute fields. But with all the advantages afibrded to the inisce- 

 gens, still the only professors for the college yet produced in Liberia 

 are pure negroes ; and the only man with enterprise, energy, and talent 

 enough to explore the interior, calculate distances, and construct a map 

 is a pure negro ; and in the future, if we have any scientific men here, 

 botanists, mineralogists, chemists, &c., they are sure to be pure negroes, 

 and perhaps from the native tribes. 



But what has become of the half and three-fourths white proteges ? 

 In the Alexandria high-school we had Armistead, Miller, Fleming, Mel- 

 ville, Augustus, Fryzon, Samuel D'Lyon, Colston, Waring, James H. 

 Roberts, all are dead. In Liberia College, we have had James H. 

 Evans, J. J. Eoberts, jr., Beverly Russell, J. T. Chambers, John Heprj^, 

 J. H. Harris, Edmund J. Payne, all dead. J. W. Leone is a raving 

 maniac, and may die at any moment. In connection wath this, I would 



