THE LAND OF THE FREE IN AFRICA 



423 



Photograph by T. J. Alldridge 



A NATIVE INDUSTRY PAST LOSING GROUND IN LIBERIA 



Formerly Liberian women wove much fine cloth from cotton that had been treated with 

 native vegetable dyes. Cheap, bright-colored cotton prints from Manchester are gradually 

 replacing the finer, heavier native cloths. 



"Has not Roberts made you a good 

 president?" 



"Yessah," said the former slave. 



"He is a very smart man," Captain 

 White urged, "and much respected 

 abroad ; I think you had better vote for 

 him." 



"That's all true, but the fac's just this, 

 Massa White : The folks say as how us 

 darkies ain't fitten to take care o' our- 

 sel's — ain't capable. Roberts is a very 

 fine gentleman, but he's more white than 

 black ; but Benson, he's colored people all 

 over." 



There are to-day less than fifteen thou- 

 sand of the descendants of the original 

 colonizers. These are the Americo- 

 Liberians, who carry on the afifairs of the 

 Republic, control much of the commerce, 

 and attend to the few existing industries. 

 They have, in turn, civilized and given 

 a certain amount of education to about 

 100,000 of the coastal natives. In ad- 

 dition to these, Liberia's population is 

 composed of some 1,500,000 uncivilized 

 natives who inhabit the interior regions. 



Never have the Americo-L,iberians 

 penetrated far inland. Their towns are 

 along the seacoast, and for 15 or 25 miles 

 up the principal rivers their settlements 

 and farms are found. 



Monrovia, the capital, has a population 

 of about 4,000. Grand Bassa and Cape 

 Palmas rank next in order. Then come 

 the smaller villages, and how interesting 

 to Americans are their names : New York, 

 Philadelphia, Virginia, New Georgia, 

 Marshall, Bunker Hill, Hartford! But 

 they are like American localities only in 

 name. 



Some 20 miles up the St. Paul River 

 from Monrovia, the one motor-boat, if it 

 happens to be running properly that day, 

 turns sharply to the left, toward the 

 landing place of New York. 



It might be said that New York, Africa, 

 and New York, America, form the two 

 extremes in human habitats. At the 

 latter, one lands from a 50,000-ton liner 

 upon a wonderful two-story pier of re- 

 inforced concrete, and is cast ashore into 

 the canyons between skyscrapers, into the 



