Evidences of Progress Among Colored People

by G. F. Richings

MR. EUGENE BURKINS.

EUGENE BURKINS,
Inventor of the Burkins Automatic Machine-Gun.

Eugene Burkins, inventor of the "Burkins Automatic Machine-Gun," was at one time a bootblack in the city of Chicago. He never had any education outside of learning how to read and write. Nor had he ever been a soldier, or had any experience with guns of any description; and for that reason his invention is all the more wonderful. He began first to make a careful study of the picture that appeared in the papers, showing the guns on the "Battleship Maine." Mr. Burkins saw in what way he could improve the machine-gun by increasing its rapid-firing capacity, and along that line he began to work. His first model was mostly made with a pocket-knife. Some of the leading colored people helped him secure his patent. Mr. Madden, a wealthy man in Chicago, furnished over $3,000 to make a perfect model. Admiral Dewey said it was "by far the best machine-gun ever made." It shoots seven times more a minute than the Gatling gun, and will doubtless take the place of other machine-guns. Several foreign countries have offered large sums for the right to manufacture it for their navies; but Mr. Burkins and Mr. Madden, his partner, proposed to control the manufacturing interest in this country.

MR. GEO. E. JONES.

MR. GEO. E. JONES.

Mr. Geo. E. Jones, of Little Rock, Ark., is beyond doubt one of the most successful business men among the colored people. He began life a very poor boy, without friends or capital, and has by hard work and close economy placed himself among the most prominent business men of his city. Mr. Jones is engaged in the undertaking business, and can say what no other colored man engaged in that line of work in the South can say, and that is—he has about as much patronage among the white people as he has with his own race. Mr. Jones first started in business as a merchant on a small amount of money, and finally worked into the undertaking business. He owns now in Little Rock quite a large amount of property, and among the different buildings there he has two large brick blocks, one on Main street, where he has his undertaking establishment, and one on West Ninth street, which is rented. In the Ninth street block Mr. Jones has in one room a fine drug store, which he employs a young druggist to attend to. He owns a fine lot of horses and carriages used in his business as an undertaker. His residence is by far the best furnished home I ever saw owned by a colored man. Mrs. Jones, his wife, is a very refined and cultured lady.

MR. G. W. HIGGINS.