52 A F T E R I D E N T I T Y
of the crisp or negro curl.’’11 Dr. Wilcox conceded that he could not say that there was ‘‘no negro blood’’ in Gary. Yet, since his eyes were blue, ‘‘his hair straight and light, his complexion sandy’’ no such ‘‘blood’’ was to be discerned ‘‘from external appearance.’’12 For his part, Dr. Dibbrell thought that Gary might have a ‘‘small amount of negro blood, not more than a sixteenth, perhaps not so much’’ and ‘‘would not positively swear that he had any at all, so vague are the signs of the admixture of the negro race, in one so remotely removed from the African blood by crossing with the white.’’ Indeed, he admitted that he had ‘‘no definite rule’’ and knew of no ‘‘reliable one’’ by which to judge cases such as Gary’s. Despite such ‘‘expert’’ opinion, the Arkansas Supreme Court ruled against Gary’s suit for freedom. Its justification lay in the race of the woman, Susan, who it determined was his mother. Although she had ‘‘a very light complexion’’ and straight hair, she had never objected to her enslavement; moreover, she was swarthy with ‘‘rather thick lips and coarse features.’’13 These facts were sufficient ‘‘to repel any presumption in freedom in favor of the complainant, even upon the supposition that the evidence, otherwise, left it as a matter of grave doubt, whether he belonged to the white or negro race.’’ Indeed, doubt was ‘‘the utmost that could be claimed for him’’ and more than what the court thought he was ‘‘entitled to,’’ for, as it continued, no one could read the evidence and come to the conclusion that it made it appear that ‘‘he belongs to the white race, or descended from that race on his mother’s side.’’14 For its part, although the Virginia Supreme Court relied on hair texture in the Wrights case, it did not always do so. In 1877, a lower court found Rowena McPherson and George Stewart guilty of ‘‘illicit intercourse’’ even though they were husband and wife. According to 11
12 13 14
Gary v. Stevenson 19 Ark. 580 (1858) p. 583. Also see Jason A. Gilman, ‘‘Suing for Freedom: Interracial Sex, Slave Law and Racial Identity in the Post-Revolutionary and Antebellum South,’’ North Carolina Law Review, January 2004, p. 538. Gary v. Stevenson, p. 583. Gary v. Stevenson, p. 585; Gilman, ‘‘Suing for Freedom,’’ p. 608. Gary v. Stevenson, pp. 586–587.