The Atlanta University Publications, No. 1 1 The Health and Physique of the Negro American A Social Study made under the direction of Atlanta University by the Eleventh Atlanta Conference Price, 75 Cents The Atlanta University Press Atlanta, Georgia 1906 n The proper study of mankind is man" STUDIES OF NEGRO PROBLEMS The Atlanta University Publications No. 4, Mortality among Negroes in Cities ; 51 pp., 1896. Mortality among Negroes in Cities; 24 pp., (2d ed., abridged, 1903). No. 2, Social and Physical Condition of Negroes in Cities; 86 pp.; 1897. No. 3, Some Efforts of Negroes for Social Betterment; 66 pp., 1 898. No. 4, The Negro in Business; 78 pp., 1899. No. 5, The College-bred Negro; 115 pp., 1900. The College-bred Negro; 32 pp., (2d ed., abridged). No. 6, The Negro Common School; 120 pp., 1901. No. 7, The Negro Artisan; 200 pp., 1902. No. 8, The Negro Church; 212 pp., 1903. No. 9, Notes on Negro Crime; 75 pp., 1904. No. 10, A Select Bibliography of the Negro American; 72 pp., 1905. No. 1 1, Health and Physique of the Negro American; 1 12 pp., 1906. We sludy the problem that others discuss Th« Health and Physique of th< Negro American Report of a Social Study made under the di- rection of Atlanta University; together with the Proceedings of the Eleventh Conference for the Study of the Negro Problems, held at Atlanta University, on May the 29th, 1 906 Edited by W. E. Burghardt Du Bois Corresponding Secretary of the Conference The Atlanta University Press Atlanta, Georgia 1906 IT is the cranial and facial forms that lead us to accept the consanguinity of the African 'Hamites, of red- brown and black color, with the Mediterranean peoples; the same characters reveal the consanguinity of the primitive inhabitants of Europe, and of their remains in various regions and among various peoples, with the pop- ulations of the Mediterranean, and hence also with the Hamites of Africa. Sergi Analytical Table of Contents Page Page Plates 3. The Negro Brain 24 Weight of the brain < Denniker). Numbers A-H, 1-48. Typical Negro-Americans. Memorandum of M. N. Woek : Brain weights. Number 49. Unwarranted conclusions. Typical Negro drug store. (Topinard), (Hunt), (Bean), 25 ( Donaldson). Preface Structure of brain. 26 The Atlanta studies. Convolutions. 27 Changes in structure. Data on which this study is based. Future work of Conference. 4. The Negro American The slave trade. Bibliography of Negro Sources of slaves 28 Health and Physique 6 The Negro-American type. Bryce on the backward races. Bibliography of bibliographies. Race Mixture. 29 Bibliography. Census of Mulattoes. Negro Health and Physique 13 Degree of mixture. ;:o Types of Negro-Americans. 31 1. of Races Men Description of types. Ripley: The Aryan myth. A. Negro types. 33 The New Anthropology. 14 B. Mulatto types. 34 European Races. C. Quadroon types. 35 The Mediterranean Race. 15 D. "White types with Negro blood. Sergi's Conclusions: Conclusions. 36 Greek and Roman types. Future of Race Mixture. 37 African populations. Brazil. 38 16 2. The Negro Race 5. Physical Measurements 39 The typical Negro (Ratzel). Average height of men (Denniker). Color (Ripley), (Sergi). 17 Cephalic index. 40 Hair (Ripley). Measurements of army recruits. 41 The cranio-facial skeleton. 18 Age and height. 42 The size of the head. Age and weight. 44 The facial angle (Denniker). Age and chest measurement. 46 History of human races. "Washington school children. - 48 First steps in human culture (Boas). Kansas city school children. 50 The Negro and Iron (Boas). 19 Conclusions. 51 Psycho-physical measurements. Egyptian civilization. Dietaries of Negroes. 52 African agriculture ( Boas). African culture (Boas): 20 6. Some Psychological Consid = Markets. Handicaps. erations on the Race Problem 53 Inferiority of the Negro. 21 (by Dr. Heebekt A. Miller). Negro development (Ratzel). Psycho-physical comparison. Climate of Africa. 22 Environment. Geography. Psychology. 54 Slave Trade. Psycho-physics. Present inhabitants (Denniker). 23 Indians and Negroes. 55 Composition of population ( Ratzel ). Weissman. ELEVENTH ATLANTA CONFERENCE John Morley. 56 Age and death. Inner life of Negroes. Infant Mortality. 79 Psycho-physical tests. 57 Improvements in infant mor- Quickness of perception. tality. Disconnected memory. Changes in rates by age periods. 81 Logical memory. 58 Effect of environment. Color choice. Normal death rates. Meaning of results. 59 Army statistics, 1890-1900. Music. 1900-1904. 82 of kind. Consciousness Memorandum by R. R. Wright, Jr. : 7. The Increase of the Negro Mortality in cities: American 60 Death rates North and South. Corrected death rates. 83 Increase 1791-1900. Consumption North and South. 84 Wilcox's estimates. Infant mortality. Birth rate. 61 Climate. 85 Comparison of children and wo- Season. men of child-bearing age. Philadelphia. Comparison of children and pop- Causes of death. 87 ulation. 62 Sickness. child-bearing Children and wo- Social condition. men in cities. 63 Improvement. 90 Conclusions. Age composition. 10. Insurance 91 Median age. Discrimination vs. Negroes. General age comparison 64 Experience of Insurance Compa- Sex distribution. nies. 92 8. The Sick and Defective 65 True Reformers. 92 Race and disease (Ripley). 11. Hospitals 93 Consumption. Distribution of Negro hospitals. Syphilis. Statistics of Negro hospitals. 94 Alcoholism, Army recruits. 12. Medical Schools 95 Causes of rejection 6 Negro medical schools: 1901-1902. Meharry. 1903-1904. 67 Howard. Racial differences 68 Leonard. Disease in army. Flint. 96 Specific diseases. 69 Louisville. Venereal diseases. 70 Knoxville. Malarial diseases. Insane. 13. Physicians Feeble minded. 71 Census returns. Incomplete records. Age. The Blind. Distribution of physicians. 97 Schooling. 72 The Deaf. 1895. 1905. 9. Mortality Schools barring Negroes. 98 Schools without Negro students. 99 General death rate, 1890 and 1900. Graduates of Northern schools. 100 Chief diseases. 73 Reports from Northern schools. 101 Infant Mortality. Success of physicians. 102 Death rate by races, registration Mob violence. 105 area, city and county. Death rates, 1725-1860. 74 14. Dentists and Pharmacists 106 Mortality of freedmen 1865-1872. Census returns. Tendency of death rates. 75 Graduates in dentistry. Causes of deaths. 76 Conclusions. Graduates in pharmacy. 107 stores. Deaths by diseases: Drug Consumption. Statistics. 108 Reports. Pneumonia. 77 Heart disease and dropsy. 15. The Eleventh Atlanta Con= Diarrheal diseases. 109 Diseases of nervous system. ference Suicide. 78 Programme. Alcoholism. Resolutions. 110 Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2013 http://archive.org/details/healthphysiqueof1906dubo n n Preface A study of .human life today involves a consideration of human physique and the conditions of physical life, a study of various social organizations, beginning with the home, and investigations into occu- pations, education, religion and morality, crime and political activity. The Atlanta Cycle of studies into the Negro problem aims at exhaustive and periodic studies of all these subjects as far as they relate to the JN"egro American. Thus far we have finished the first decade with a study of mortality (1896), of homes (1897), social reform (1898), economic organization (1899 and 1902), education (1900 and 1901), religion (1903) and crime (1904), ending with a general review of methods and results and a bibliography (1905). The present publication marks the beginning of a second cycle of study and takes up again the subject of the physical condition of Negroes, but enlarges the inquiry beyond the mere matter of mortality. This study is based on the following data: Reports of the United States census. Reports of the life insurance companies. Vital records of various cities and towns. Reports of the United States Surgeon General. Reports from Negro hospitals and drug stores. Reports from medical schools. Letters from physicians. Measurements of 1,000 Hampton students. General literature as shown in the accompanying bibliography. Atlanta University has been conducting studies similar to this for a decade. The results, distributed at a nominal sum, have been widely used. Notwithstanding this success, the further prosecution of these important studies is greatly hampered by the lack of funds. With meagre appropriations for expenses, lack of clerical help and necessary apparatus, the Conference cannot cope properly with the vast field of work before it. Especially is it questionable at present as to how large and important a work we shall be able to prosecute during the next ten-year cycle. It may be necessary to reduce the number of conferences to one every other year. We trust this will not be necessary, and we earnestly appeal to those who think it worth while to study this, the greatest group of social problems that has ever faced the nation, for substantial aid and encouragement in the further prosecution of the work of the Atlanta Conference. • Bibliography of Negro Health and Physique A large part of the matter here entered is either unscientific or superceded by later and more careful work. Even such matter, however, has an historic interest. Bibliography of Bibliographies Catalogue of the Library of the United States Surgeon General's Office. See Negro. Bibliography Abel, J. J., and Davis, W. S.—On the pigment of the Negro's skin and hair. J. Exper. M. New York, 1896. Alcock, N. and others.—Negroes; why are they black? Nature, 30:501; 31:6. Angerbliche (Die) Inferioritat der Neger-Rasse. Atlanta University Publications.— Mortality among Negroes in Cities. Atlanta, 1896. Social and Physical Condition of Negroes in Cities. Atlanta, 1897. Atwater, W. O., and Woods, Chas. D. Dietary studies with reference to the food of Negroes in Alabama in 1895-1896. Washington, 1897. (U. S. Dept. Agri.) Babcock, J. W.—The colored insane. New Haven(?) 1895. Baldwin, Ebenezer.—Observations on the physical, intellectual, and moral qualities of our colored population. New Haven, 1834. Ball, M. V.—The mortality of the Negro. Med. News, LXIV, 389. Vital statistics of the Negro.