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THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC MAGAZINE 



Photo from Captain Cloniaii, U. S. A. 

 LIBERIAN GUARDS AT U. S. LhXxATlON, MONROVIA 



ing that it was the final, unmistakable 

 evidence of the black man's inability to 

 govern himself. Being familiar with the 

 negro and his traits, it did not take long 

 to grasp the significance of Monrovia. 

 Since the freshness of those first im- 

 pressions was lost in the intimate obser- 

 vation of the more stirring events that 

 came afterward, I cannot do better than 

 put down here what I wrote at the time. 



There is much about Monrovia that 

 reminds me daily of home, more particu- 

 larly of my earlier home in the South. 

 I see no real difiference between the peo- 

 ple of Monrovia and those of the same 

 race in the United States. Even their 

 shortcomings are homelike. 



The capital presents from the ship's 

 deck an aspect of quiet civilization that 

 is in marked contrast with the clusters 

 of thatch-roofed huts on the islands 



near by. The main street is 

 lined with attractive cottages 

 having large porches and bal- 

 conies, with the Executive Man- 

 sion facing an open square. 

 Beyond is the residence dis- 

 trict — streets of frame cottages 

 of which an English writer re- 

 marks that there is nothing like 

 them to be seen anywhere else 

 in Africa. The general average 

 is about that of the homes of 

 the most prosperous negroes in 

 America. 



The people of Monrovia look, 

 dress, and act very like the bet- 

 ter class of negroes of Atlanta 

 or Louisville. All the Americo- 

 Liberians (and many civilized 

 natives) are neatly but not flash- 

 ily clothed, and most of the 

 aborigines put on an extra cloth 

 when they come to town. I 

 doubt if there be anywhere in 

 the L-nited States a negro com- 

 munity of the size of Monrovia 

 where there is so little boister- 

 ousness, profanity, and inde- 

 cency. Swearing is a lost art, 

 and I saw but one case of 

 drunkenness during my first 

 month in Monrovia. 



The Liberian Sundays suggest the 

 quiet of a New England city — a quiet 

 that is broken only by the sound of 

 church organs and congregational sing- 

 ing. The churches are well attended, 

 and the services are conducted with due 

 regard to dignity and reverence. There 

 appears to be a complete absence of the 

 American saloon, of the degrading con- 

 cert hall, and of the negro "dive." The 

 Monrovian may not be a paragon of vir- 

 tue and sobriety, but he is certainly a 

 decent citizen. 



It is well for Americans to know — and 

 I say this with regret — that information 

 about Liberia is not to be trusted if it 

 come from European sources. There are 

 some English gentlemen, for instance, 

 who have had an object in persuading 

 the outer world that the negro republic 



