The Legal Status of the Negro in Florida

The history of the negro has been for centuries a history of enslavement. Sir Harry Johnston observed that the negro, “more than any other human type has been marked out by his mental and physical characteristics as the servant of other races.” His dominant characteristics, docility, submissiveness, cheerfulness of disposition and a short memory for sorrows and cruelties have made him largely subordinate to others. “Of this disposition the most aggressive and progressive race has taken advantage and for centuries held the black man in bondage