r— ~c..S1ave Stories	—-
~jstrict #5		... .
~anderbUrgh County			8.
Lattafla Creel	A Slave, Ambassador and City Doctor. Through the influence of John W. Boehne, Sr., and the friendly

	advice of other influential citizens of Evansville Dr. Buckner was ap‘~s pointed niinister to Liberia,‘ on Woodrow Wilson‘s cabinet~jin the year 1913. Dr. Buckner appreciated the confidence of his friends in appointifl~ him and cherishes the e~perinece~ gained while abroad. He noted ~he expressions of gratitude toward cabinet members by the citizens or that African coast. One Albino youth brought an offerin~of luscious man~oeS and desired to see the minister from the United States of America. Some natives presented palm oils. ~The natives have been made to under— stand that the United States ha8 given aid to Liberia in a financial way and the customs - service of the republic is temporarily administered headed by an American.“ “A thoroughly civilized negro state does not ‚ exist in Liberia nor do I believe ~ in any part ~f West Africa. Supersti4—— tion is the interpretation of their religion, their poritical views are a hodgepodge of unconnected ideas. Strength over rules knowledge and jealousy croEds out almost all hope of sympathetic achievement and adjustment.“ Dr. Buckner recounted incidents where jealousy was apparent in the behavior of men and women of higher civilizations than the African natives. While voyaging to Spain on board a Spanish vessel, he witnessed a very refine~.,poltte Jewish woman beine reduced to tears by the taunts of a Spanish offieer, on account of her nationality. “Jeal- J ~ ~ he said, “protrudes itself into politics, religion and prevents~ educational achievement. f‘

	“During a political campaign I was compelled to pay a robust negro man to follow me about my professional visits and my social evenings with my friends and family, to prevent meeting physieal violençe to myself or family when political factions were virtually at war within the area of Evansville. The influence of political captaln3 had brought about the dreadîul condition and ignorant negroes responded to their