to provide for the integration of such data into the mainstream of American eduIcation and life. I believe this Commission can promote greater awareness of important contributions that Negroes have made to American civilization. TO THE EDITOR: Congratulations to the New York Times for joining with Arno Press to republish 45 books by and about Negroes in the collection entitled, "The American Negro: His History and Literature." I agree with the headline in your advertisement, which says, "Now all of us-black and white-can learn the true role of the Negro in U.S. History .. in 45 books America 'forgot"." Our history books do a credible job of recording what white Americans have contributed to society as we know it today. But most of them overlook the achievements of Negro Americans. We need to republish Negro literature, but we also need more research into original sources to discover those Negro activities which have been buried under two centuries of a conspiracy of silence. Therefore, I have sponsored a bill to establish a Commission on Negro History and Culture. It would encourage the dissemination of existing data on the role of the Negro in history. But it would also stimulate original research. For instance, I am advised by historians that more work should be done on: Meta V. W. Fuller, a well-known Negro sculptress who lived in Philadelphia during the early nineteen hundreds. Benjamin Banneker, a respected mathematician and scientist who served on the commission of three that planned the District of Columbia. The Negro inventors who were responsible for such inventions as a paper bag machine, an evaporating pan for sugar refining which revolutionized the sugar-refining industry in 1846, the first working model of a steam engine. American military records which are replete with deeds of black men in battle, such as Salem Poor, a Negro cited for his part in the Battle of Bunker Hill. Our negligence of the Negro role in American history is both the cause and the effect of prejudices today. The Negro and his fellow Americans must share full knowledge of their common past to dispel some of the myths which foster hatred and separatism. Sincerely, HUGH SCOTT, U.S. Senator. [From the New York Times, May 26, 1968] Now ALL OF US-BLACK AND WHITE-CAN LEARN THE TRUE ROLE OF THE NEGRO IN U.S. HISTORY-IN 45 BOOKS AMERICA "FORGOT" These books are being republished as a collection by The New York Times and Arno Press for schools, libraries, and concerned individuals. They make an important addition to the community relations programs of business organizations, labor unions, religious and fraternal groups. The Negro past has for the most part been suppressed, neglected or distorted. Not always deliberately . . . but by a sort of unconscious racism. Take Paul Revere's famous drawing of the Boston Massacre. It shows no Negroes, though Negroes fought there. Among them was Crispus Attucks, who died leading the patriots. One out of every six American sailors in the War of 1812 was black. Negroes were pathfinders with Lewis and Clark in the Louisiana Territory. As cowboys, they whooped it up with Bat Masterson, Billy the Kid and the James brothers. A black man planted the American flag at the North Pole on the Peary expedition. Another invented the machine that revolutionized the shoe industry. And black cavalrymen charged up San Juan Hill with Teddy Roosevelt's Rough Riders. Wherever American history has been made, the Negro was there. But you'd never know it. America has left most of his contributions out of our school books, and kept his writings off library shleves. The classics, written over the past century about the Negro have been forgotten until now. Now, the New York Times and Arno Press have made the first large-scale effort to restore this literature about the Negro to its proper place by republishing 45 of the most significant volumes by and about Negroes. These are not mere anthologies or excerpts, but complete narratives, memoirs and documents ranging from colonial times to the present, from city to farm, East to West. They were written by people who were part of the Negro experience— cowboys and statesmen, slaves and slave traders, historians and poets, blacks and whites. And they reveal a long and valorous Negro tradition. At a time when all Americans are acutely aware of the growth of Negro pride and aspirations, the need for this collection is obvious. These books help overcome the myth and distortion that surround the Negro's past. They are crucial to a full understanding of the development of America. DESTROYING SOME MYTHS The distortions of history used to justify discrimination are deeply embedded in our folklore. The popular image of Sambo laboring contentedly under a benevolent master lingers to this day. To set the record straight, the editors have given particular emphasis to contemporary reports on the facts of slave life. First-hand accounts in this collection such as the original "Confessions of Nat Turner" reveal the appalling conditions of servitude and describe the early and widespread resistance to white oppression. For teachers... these books can be a vital resource in integrating study of the Negro into American History, Problems of Democracy and other courses of study. They are useful for research, outside reading assignments and text supplements. A teachers' guide accompanies each set. For public and college librarians . . . a core of rare and unavailable materials that can be arranged by subject throughout the library or used in a special Negro collection. For business and community leaders. . . an unusual opportunity to participate directly in the integration of American history through gifts to hard-pressed libraries, ghetto high schools and youth centers in the community . . . and through circulation among employees and colleagues. "THE AMERICAN NEGRO: HIS HISTORY AND LITERATURE" The titles below are in two groups: Group I. Course Collection-books selected for readability and for use in typical secondary school social studies courses. Group II. Titles which, added to the first group, form a Complete Collection for study in depth. Slavery GROUP I. 18 TITLES: $208 American Slavery As It is: Testimony of a Thousand Witnesses (1839) by Theodore Dwight Weld. A carefully documented collection that a quarter of a century before the Emancipation revealed without doubt the brutality of slavery. Prof. D. L. Dumond, a leading authority, calls it "the greatest of the anti-slavery pamphlets; in all probability the most crushing indictment of any institution ever written." $7.00 Five Slave Narratives. A compendium of authenticated narratives written in the 19th century by escaped slaves. They offer an in-depth look at the South's "peculiar institution." $15.00 Years of Crisis My Bondage and My Freedom (1855) by Frederick Douglass. The second and most interesting of the three autobiographies written by the foremost Negro leader of the 19th Century. Its large appendix contains some of his most significant writings and speeches. Although it provides a vivid picture of Douglass' life as a slave and his role in the abolitionist movement, it has never been reprinted. $14.50 The Underground Rail Road (1872) by William Still. This significant volume is the only surviving complete record of any station of the Underground Railroad. Compiled by the Negro secretary of the Philadelphia "station," it details the hardships and dangers with which escaping slaves were faced. And it gives a moving picture of the determination of individuals to gain their freedom, whatever the cost. $25.00 The Underground Railroad From Slavery to Freedom (1898) by Wilbur H. Siebert. A white scholar's classic early study of the origins and working of the Underground Railroad. $14.50 John Brown and his Men (1894) by Richard J. Hinton. A firsthand account of the band of Negroes and whites that Brown assembled for his raid on Harper's Ferry. Hinton rode with Brown during the bloody civil war in Kansas. His book includes letters written from prison by Brown's Negro followers. $23.00 Civil War Reminiscences of My Life in Camp (1902) by Susie King Taylor. The engrossing autobiography of a slave woman who managed to get herself some schooling and went on to become a nurse with Clara Barton and a teacher to the first Negro regiment during the Civil War. $4.00 Behind the Scenes (1868) by Elizabeth H. Keckley. Perhaps the first of the "my life in the White House" books. An ex-slave who became seamstress to Mrs. Lincoln presents revealing pictures of the first family during the Civil War. $9.00 Reconstruction The Freedmen's Book (1865) by Lydia Maria Child. A volume of poetry, stories, and other materials prepared for use in schools attended by ex-slaves. $8.50 First Days Among the Contrabands (1893) by Elizabeth Hyde Botume. A Northern white schoolteacher describes the first school days of ex-slaves on the Georgia Sea Islands during and immediately after the Civil War. $10.50 The Facts of Reconstruction (1913) John R. Lynch. This work refutes the charges that Negroes abused their newly gained political power during Reconstruction. Written by a former slave who represented Mississippi in the U.S. Congress for three terms. $10.00 Black and White: Land, Labor and Politics in the South (1884) by Timothy Thomas Fortune. A leading 19th-century Negro intellectual assesses the causes and cures of the economic, political, and social problems so oppressive to the Southern Negro. $9.00 Western Frontier Days The Life and Adventures of Nat Love, Better Known in the Cattle Country as "Deadwood Dick" (1907) The only book-length autobiography left by a Negro cowboy. With typical frontier braggadocio, Love tells about his cow-punching days following the Civil War and his friendships with Bat Masterson, Billy the Kid, and Frank and Jesse James. $6.00 Conflict and Adjustment in the North Black Manhattan (1930) by James Weldon Johnson. A classic account, long unavailable, of the black man's role in New York from the time of the earliest Dutch settlements. Written by the well-known Negro poet and historian. $13.00 The Negro in Chicago: A Study of Race Relations and a Race Riot (1922) The Chicago Commission on Race Relations. This thorough documentary on the root causes and events of the bloody 1919 Chicago race riot is a landmark in the study of U.S. racial conflict. $15.00 Black Separatism Philosophy and Opinions of Marcus Garvey (1923) Amy Jacques-Garvey, editor. The speeches and writings of an important forerunner of today's black separatists, whose Negro improvement and "Back to Africa" movement united millions of blacks after World War I. $3.50 Renaissance The New Negro: An Interpretation (1925) Alain Locke, editor. A collection of poems, stories, and essays by Negroes that had a great impact on contemporary thought because it projected a prouder image of the black American. Locke was the first Negro Rhodes scholar. $9.00 New Deal Era "New World A-Coming" (1943) by Roi Ottley. A black reporter's inside story of Negroes in government and out during the New Deal. $11.50 Special discount on Course Collection for school or library.-10 sets-$180 each; 25 sets-$160 each; 50 sets-$140 each. GROUP II. THE 18 TITLES ABOVE, PLUS 27 ADDITIONAL MAJOR WORKS: $485 On the Eve of Conflict: The Anglo-African Magazine, 1859 This first publication year of a New York-based Negro magazine contains the work of leading Negro poets, spokesmen, and authors. It includes the original "Confessions of Nat Turner" plus numerous stories of resistance to slavery culminating in an account of John Brown's raid and execution. $12.50 Atlanta University Publications A selection of sociological studies of Negroes, most of which were prepared under the editorship of Dr. W.E.B. DuBois. They cover a vast array of topics, from Negro crime to the Negro in church, business, labor, and college at the turn of the century. $30.00 The Suppressed Book About Slavery! (1864) George W. Carleton, editor. An abolitionist indictment of slavery based on newspaper interviews, court testimony, and letters. $13.50 An Appeal in Favor of That Class of Americans Called Africans (1836) by Lydia Maria Child. A highly significant early defense of Negro rights. $7.00 Reminiscences of Levi Coffin (1876) Coffin, the reputed "President" of the Underground Railroad, describes his dangerous work in the South and Midwest in helping slaves escape, and provides fascinating glimpses of the dangers faced by Northern free Negroes and abolitionists. $16.50 Negro Population in the United States, 1790-1915 (1918) by John Cummings. Compiled from U.S. Census tabulations, this is the most important statistical study of the changing nature of our Negro population. $23.50 The Condition, Elevation, Emigration and Destiny of the Colored People of the United States (1852) by Martin R. Delany. The author of this early history was a brilliant and fiery spokesman for Negro rights. He was a doctor, editor, world traveler, African explorer, and scientist-and the first Negro to hold the rank of field officer in the Civil War. $6.50 The Free Negro Family (1932) by E. Franklin Frazier. A pioneering study of family origins of antebellium free Negroes by an eminent Negro sociologist, past president of the American Sociological Association. $2.50 Thoughts on African Colonialization (1832) by William Lloyd Garrison. These two volumes by the leading white abolitionist were the most influential answer to those who advocated coupling abolition of slavery with the removal of American Negroes to Africa. $9.00 Shadow and Light (1902) by Mifflin W. Gibbs. The autobiography of a remarkable Negro Californian who rose from bootblack during the Gold Rush to become publisher of the state's first Negro newspaper, Mirror of the Times. Later, in 1873, he was elected to a judgeship in Little Rock, Arkansas. $12.00 The Negro at Work in New York City (1912) by George Edmund Haynes. First published by Columbia University, this early study of Negro economic conditions was written by a Negro sociologist who was one of the founders of the Urban League. $4.50 Cheerful Yesterdays (1898) by Thomas Wentworth Higginson. The memoirs of a swashbuckling white New England minister and abolitionist who helped storm jails to free fugitive slaves. He later became commander of the first regiment of exslaves to fight in the Civil War. $11.50 Men of Mark (1887) by Reverend William J. Simmons. A monumental storehouse of biographies about eminent 19th-century American Negroes, including rare source material on early black inventors. $39.50 A Key to Uncle Tom's Cabin (1854) by Harriet Beecher Stowe. Mrs. Stowe wrote this book a year after the publication of her famous novel to answer critics who said she exaggerated the evils of slavery. This crucial volume contains facts, documents, and testimony marshaled to verify the truth of "Uncle Tom's Cabin." $15.50 Some Recollections of our Anti-Slavery Conflict (1869) by Samuel J. May. A Northern minister and reformer describes his abolitionist activities, including an early, bitter conflict over school integration in Connecticut. $10.50 Captain Canot, Or 20 Years of an African Slaver (1854) Brantz Mayer, editor. The uncut edition of the memoirs of the slave ship captain, Theodore Canot. He tells how Africa appeared to him, and how he went about collecting the cream of its people for the "civilized" New World. Never before reprinted. $14.50 Race Adjustment (1908); The Everlasting Stain (1924) by Kelly Miller. Two collections of the best lectures and letters by a noted Negro scholar who was dean of Howard University. Contains his letters to several American Presidents on racism and discrimination at the turn of the century. 2 vols. in one $20.50 The Colored Patriots of the American Revolution (1855) by William C. Nell. A pioneering work on the forgotten black heroes who helped the colonies secure their independence from Britain. The author was a Boston Negro activist and scholar. $12.00 Recollections of Seventy Years (1888) by Bishop Daniel A. Payne. Bishop Payne, born to free parents in South Carolina during the slavery era, became a pillar of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. This memoir describes his many years on the interracial firing line. $10.00 Proceedings of the Constitutional Convention of South Carolina (1868) The actual record of a Southern convention during Reconstruction, at which a majority of Negroes working with a minority of whites drew up new, exceedingly democratic laws for their state. The constitution provided far-reaching reforms including rights for women, the poor, the underprivileged. $28.00 Social Implications of Early American Negro Music A collection of mostly 19thcentury articles that represent the first efforts to evaluate the Negro's musical contribution. Included is an index to 150 songs and spirituals. $7.50 Narrative of Sojourner Truth (1878) The remarkable story of a former New York slave who, despite her lack of education and training, became a brilliant abolitionist speaker. $11.50 Autobiography of a Fugitive Negro (1855) by Samuel Ringgold Ward. The leading Negro abolitionist before the rise of Frederick Douglass vividly describes life as a slave and his labors as an anti-slavery lecturer in the U.S., Canada, and England. $12.50 History of the Negro Race in America From 1619 to 1880 (1883) by George W. Williams. A massive reference work by the most significant Negro historian of the last century, often called the "black Bancroft." Includes many primary source documents. $34.50 The Black Phalanx (1890) by Joseph T. Wilson. The important history of the role black men have played in American wars, with particular emphasis on the Civil War. $15.50 The Education of the Negro Prior to 1861 (1919) Carter G. Woodson. A prime source of information on Negro schooling before the Civil War by one of the greatest Negro historians. $14.00 The books have been selected by William Loren Katz, teacher, historian and author of "Eyewitness: The Negro in American History" and "Teachers' Guide to American Negro History." Mr. Katz is consultant on American Negro history to the New York Staff Education Department. Each work is being reprinted in facsimile on long-lasting library paper, all 45 titles are uniformly bound in cloth. Photographs and illustrations which appeared in the originals are retained. A special introduction in each book sheds new light on its author and place in historical literature. General Editor: William Loren Katz. Advisory Board: Mrs. Jean Blackwell Hutson, Curator, The Schomburg Collection, New York Public Library. Mrs. Dorothy B. Porter, Curator, Moorland-Spingarn Collection, Howard University. Ernest Kaiser, The Schomburg Collection. Doxey A. Wilkerson, Professor of Education, Yeshiva U. Mrs. Sara D. Jackson, National Archives, Wash., D.C. Benjamin Quarles, Chairman, Department of History, Morgan State College. [To be published in July, Arno Press, Inc., Box RSF, 330 Madison Avenue, New York, N.Y.] STATEMENT OF HON. HUGH SCOTT, A U.S. SENATOR FROM THE STATE OF PENNSYLVANIA, UPON INTRODUCTION OF LEGISLATION TO ESTABLISH A COMMISSION ON NEGRO HISTORY AND CULTURE "Mr. President, America is an amalgam of cultures. From the earliest settlements until today our land has absorbed peoples from all corners of the earth and welded them into a society whose strength depends in large part on its diversity. |