Mr. Booker T. Washington while in Europe received much social attention. In an interview in the _Morning Post_ he said that the race problem in the South is becoming more and more reassuring. On landing in America Mr. Washington announced that the Negroes in the United States were better off than the poor classes in Europe. * * * * * A Carnegie Library for Negroes will be built in Montgomery, Ala. * * * * * The need of a reformatory for Negro youth is being agitated in Georgia. * * * * * Colored state fairs are being held this fall in Virginia, Kentucky, Georgia and other states. * * * * * Governor Hadley, of Missouri, has appointed a Negro tuberculosis commission consisting of six Negro physicians and one lady. * * * * * That powerful Negro empires of great size and some culture existed in the Sudan before the white races entered Africa is the conviction of a French scientist, M. Zeltner, who reports in _La Nature_ on the results of his archæological investigations in the basins of the rivers Niger and Senegal. Within a triangle formed by the towns of Timbuctoo, Kayes and Bamako he located fifty-two archæological deposits consisting of ruins of unknown cities. M. Zeltner’s most interesting finds were made in caves on the upper Senegal. Here an abundance of runic signs and drawings were found traced on rocks. They were similar in character to those discovered in South African caverns. The writings have some resemblance to those signs found on ancient ruins further eastward in the Sahara desert, and are believed by M. Zeltner to be related to the present Tuareg alphabet. The discoveries made have yet to be thoroughly studied. M. Zeltner thinks that the archæological exploration of the African continent is yet in its infancy and will doubtless yield surprising results in establishing the advanced state of development attained by the black races in early times.--_N. Y. Sun._ * * * * * ORGANIZATIONS AND MEETINGS. Clark University has held an interesting conference on the East and Africa. The subjects discussed were Turkey, Persia, Bulgaria, Arabia, Egypt and Africa. Among the speakers were: Dr. A. T. Chamberlain, on “The Contributions of the Negro to Human Civilization;” G. W. Ellis, F. R. G. S., on Liberia; the Rev. L. P. Clinton, on West Africa; Professor Frederic Starr, on the Congo, and E. A. Forbes, on French Africa. Messrs. Ellis and Clinton are colored. * * * * * Colored people in Ohio and Maryland have held celebrations commemorating the issuance of Lincoln’s preliminary Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. * * * * *