John L. Waller

John Lewis Waller (January 12, 1850 – 1907) was an American lawyer, politician, journalist, publisher, businessman, military leader, and diplomat whose rise culminated in his becoming the United States consul to Madagascar.

In 1888, Waller became the first black presidential elector,[citation needed] supporting the Republican ticket of Benjamin Harrison and Levi Morton.

He strongly supported Queen Ranavalona III and British and American communities in their efforts to hold off colonial encroachment by the French.

The queen granted him a concession of 150,000 acres (610 km2) on the southern end of the island, lush with mahogany, ebony, rosewood, and rubber trees.

Later that year, with threats of French invasion looming, Waller had his wife and daughter — now pregnant with the baby who would grow up to be Andy Razaf — sent back to the United States for their safety.

French authorities arrested Waller and accused him of having been a spy who provided military information to the Hovas in their attempts to maintain their country's monarchy and independence.

[5] Congressional resolutions and pressure from John Mercer Langston led American president Grover Cleveland to demand that Waller be set free, and he was released after ten months' incarceration in Marseille and Maison centrale de Clairvaux.