_The Haitian Revolution, 1791 to 1804_. By T. G. Steward. Thomas Y.
Crowell Company, New York, 1915. 292 pages. $1.25.
In the days when the internal dissensions of Haiti are again thrusting
her into the limelight such a book as this of Mr. Steward assumes a
peculiar importance. It combines the unusual advantage of being both
very readable and at the same time historically dependable. At the
outset the author gives a brief sketch of the early settlement of Haiti,
followed by a short account of her development along commercial and
racial lines up to the Revolution of 1791. The story of this upheaval,
of course, forms the basis of the book and is indissolubly connected
with the story of Toussaint L'Overture. To most Americans this hero is
known only as the subject of Wendell Phillips's stirring eulogy. As
delineated by Mr. Steward, he becomes a more human creature, who
performs exploits, that are nothing short of marvelous. Other men who
have seemed to many of us merely names--Rigaud, Le Clerc, Desalines, and
the like--are also fully discussed.
Although most of the book is naturally concerned with the revolutionary
period, the author brings his account up to date by giving a very brief
resumé of the history of Haiti from 1804 to the present time. This
history is marked by the frequent occurrence of assassinations and
revolutions, but the reader will not allow himself to be affected by
disgust or prejudice at these facts particularly when he is reminded, as
Mr. Steward says, "that the political history of Haiti does not differ
greatly from that of the majority of South American Republics, nor does
it differ widely even from that of France."
The book lacks a topical index, somewhat to its own disadvantage, but it
contains a map of Haiti, a rather confusing appendix, a list of the
Presidents of Haiti from 1804 to 1906 and a list of the names and works
of the more noted Haitian authors. The author does not give a complete
bibliography. He simply mentions in the beginning the names of a few
authorities consulted.
J. R. Fauset.
_The Negro in American History_. By John W. Cromwell. The American
Negro Academy, Washington, D.C., 1914. 284 pages. $1.25 net.
In John W. Cromwell's book, "The Negro in American History," we have
what is a very important work. The book is mainly biographical and
topical. Some of the topics discussed are: "The Slave Code"; "Slave
Insurrections"; "The Abolition of the Slave Trade"; "The Early
Convention Movement"; "The Failure of Reconstruction"; "The Negro as a
Soldier"; and "The Negro Church." These topics are independent of the
chapters which are more particularly chronological in treatment.
In the appendices we have several topics succinctly treated. Among these
are: "The Underground Railroad," "The Freedmen's Bureau," and, most
important and wholly new, a list of soldiers of color who have received
Congressional Medals of Honor, and the reasons for the bestowal.
The biographical sketches cover some twenty persons. Much of the
information in these sketches is not new, as would be expected regarding
such well-known persons as Frederick Douglass, John M. Langston, and
Paul Laurence Dunbar. On the other hand, Mr. Cromwell has given us very
valuable sketches of other important persons of whom much less is
generally known. Among these are Sojourner Truth, Edward Wilmot Blyden,
and Henry O. Tanner.
The book does not pretend to be the last word concerning the various
topics and persons discussed. Indeed, some of the topics have had fuller
treatment by the author in pamphlets and lectures. It is to be regretted
that the author did not feel justified in giving a more extensive
treatment, as the great store of his information would easily have
permitted him to do.
The book is exceptionally well illustrated, but it lacks information
regarding some of the illustrations. Not only are the readers of a book
entitled to know the source of the illustrations but in the case of
copies of paintings, and other works of art, the original artist is as
much entitled to credit as an author whose work is quoted or appropriated
to one's use.
_Negro Culture In West Africa_. By George W. Ellis, K.C., F.R.G.S. The
Neale Publishing Co., New York, 1914. 290 pages. $2.00 net.
This study by Mr. Ellis of the culture of West Africa as represented by
the Vai tribe, is valuable both as a document and as a scientific
treatment of an important phase of the color problem. As a document it
is an additional and a convincing piece of evidence of the ability of
the Negro to treat scientifically so intricate a problem as the rise,
development, and meaning of the social institutions of a people. Easy,
yet forceful in style; well documented with footnotes and cross
references; amply illustrated with twenty-seven real representations of
tools, weapons, musical instruments and other pieces of handwork;
containing, incidentally, a good bibliography of the subject; and
finally, with its conclusions condensed in the last four pages, it is a
book excellent in plan and in execution. The map, however, which has
been selected for the book is overcrowded and, therefore, practically
useless.
As a scientific study, its value is suggested by the topics emphasized,
viz., "Climate," "Institutions," "Foreign Influence," "Proverbs,"
"Folklore," and "Writing System." Referring to the climate the author
says: "In West Africa the body loses its strength, the memory its
retentiveness, and the will its energy. These are the effects observed
upon persons remaining in West Africa only for a short time, and they
form a part of the experience of almost every person who has lived on
the West Coast. White persons,--with beautiful skin, clear and soft, and
with rosy cheeks,--after they have been in West Africa for a while
become dark and tawny like the inhabitants of Southern Spain and Italy.
If we can detect these effects of the West African climate in only a
short time upon persons who come to the West Coast, what must have been
the effect of such a climate upon the Negroes who for centuries have
been exposed to its hardships?"
The moral life of the Vais appears to be the product of their social
institutions and their severe environment. These institutions grow out
of the necessities of government for the tribe under circumstances which
suggest and enforce their superstitions and beliefs. This is not so
with respect to education. It seems that the influence of the "Greegree
Bush" (a school system) is now considerably weakened by the Liberian
institutions on the one hand, the Mohammedan faith and customs on the
other. So that now this institution falls short of achieving its aims,
and putting its principles into practice.
The study as a whole gives evidence of the author's eight years of
travel and research, and can be read with profit by all friends of
mankind.
Walter Dyson.
_The Education of the Negro Prior to 1861_. By C. G. Woodson, Ph.D. G.
P. Putnam's Sons, New York, 1915. 460 pages. $2.00 net.
The very title of Dr. Woodson's book causes one who is interested in the
race history to ask questions and think. There are comparatively few people
who know anything about the efforts made to educate the Negro prior to
1861. Consequently, from the first page of the book to the last, the reader
is continually acquiring facts concerning this most interesting and
important phase of the Colored-American's history of which he has never
heard before, and some of which seem too wonderful to be true. But it is
not possible to doubt anything which is found in Dr. Woodson's book. One
knows that every statement he reads concerning the education of the Negro
prior to 1861 is true, for the author has taken pains to substantiate every
fact that he presents.
It is difficult to imagine any phase of race history more fascinating and
more thrilling than an account of the desperate and prolonged struggle
between the forces which made for the mental and spiritual enlightenment
of the slave and those which opposed these humane and Christian efforts
with all the bitterness and strength at their command. The reasons
assigned by those who favored the education of the slaves and the
methods suggested together with the arguments used by those who were
opposed to it and the laws enacted to prevent it furnish an illuminating
study in human nature.
One is surprised to find that very early in the history of the colonies
there were scholars and statesmen who did not hesitate to declare their
belief in the intellectual possibilities of the Negro. These men agreed
with George Buchanan that the Negro had talent for the fine arts and under
favorable circumstances could achieve something worth while in literature,
mathematics and philosophy. The high estimate placed upon the innate
ability of the Negro may be attributed to the fact that early in the
history of the country there was a goodly number of slaves who had managed
to attain a certain intellectual proficiency in spite of the difficulties
which had to be overcome. By 1791 a colored minister had so distinguished
himself that he was called to the pastorate of the First Baptist Church
(white) of Portsmouth, Va. Benjamin Banneker's proficiency in mathematics
enabled him to make the first clock manufactured in the United States. As
the author himself says, "the instances of Negroes struggling to obtain an
education read like the beautiful romances of a people in an heroic age."
Indeed the reaction which developed against allowing the slaves to pick up
the few fragments of knowledge which they had been able to secure was due
to some extent to the enthusiasm and eagerness with which they availed
themselves of the opportunities afforded them and the salutary effect
which the enlightenment had on their character. The account of the
establishment of schools and churches for slaves who were transplanted
to free soil is one of the most interesting chapters in the book. The
struggle for the higher education shows that tremendous obstacles had
been removed, before the race was allowed to secure the opportunity
which it so earnestly desired. In the chapter on vocational training the
effort made by colored people themselves to secure economic equality,
and the determined opposition to it manifested by white mechanics are
clearly and strongly set forth. In the appendix of the book one finds a
number of interesting and valuable treatises, while the bibliography is
of great assistance to any student of race history.
In addition to the fund of information which is secured by reading Dr.
Woodson's book, a perusal of it can not help but increase one's respect
for a race which under the most disheartening and discouraging
circumstances strove so heroically and persistently to cultivate its
mind and allowed nothing to turn it aside and conquer its will.
"The Education of the Negro Prior to 1861" is a work of profound
historical research, full of interesting data on a most important phase
of race life which has hitherto remained unexplored and neglected.
Mary Church Terrell.