FLORIDA
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FLORIDA
Florida which lies east of the Apalachicola River; this
was constituted a separate vicariate in 1857 under the
Right Rev. Augustin Verot as vicar apostolic and
erected into the Diocese of St. Augustine in 1870, with
Bishop Verot, who had occupied the See of Savannah
since 1861, as first bishop. Bishop Verot's unwearied
activity and zeal in promoting religion and education
soon bore fruit; schools were opened by the Christian
Brothers and the Sisters of Mercy in 1858, but the out-
break of the Civil War frustrated all hopes of success.
In 1866 the Sisters of St. Joseph were introduced from
France, and despite the most adverse conditions, they
had several flourishing schools and academies in op-
eration before many years. The era of progress
inaugurated by Bishop Verot continued under the
administration of Bishop John Moore (1877-1901),
whose successor, the Right Rev. William John Kenny,
was consecrated by Cardinal Gibbons IS May, 1002, in
the historic cathedral of St. Augustine. The Catholic
population of the State, including 1750 coloured Catho-
lics, is (1908) about 30,000._ The Diocese of St. Au-
gustine, wholly included within the State, contains
about 25,000 Catholics; there are 49 priests with 40
churches and several missions, and 2897 young people
under the care of religious teaching orders. That por-
tion of the State situated west of the Apalachicola
River forms part of the Diocese of Mobile since 1829;
the Catholic population is about 5000, there are five
churches with resident priests and 6 Catholic schools
with 807 pupils; Pensacola, founded 1696, is the
Catholic centre.
Other Religious Denominations. — The Methodist Church South has the largest membership. The Florida Conference was set off from the Georgia Con- ference in 1844. The session of December, 1907, re- ported 341 churches and 155 ministers; estimated membership 40,000. The Baptists report 35,02 1 total membership, 548 churches, 370 ministers. The Epis- copalian denomination, comprising the Diocese of Florida and the Missionary District of Southern Florida, organized 1892, has 7737 communicants, about 12,000 total baptized, and 66 ministers. These three denominations display considerable activity and efficiency in missionary and educational work. The Baptist State Mission board supports 40 missionaries; while the Episcopalians, with but 10 self-supporting parishes, maintain nearly 200 missions, including 14 churches for negroes and 10 parish schools with 540 pupils. In 1894 the Episcopal Church started mission work amongst the Seminole Indians of the Everglades, who number about 300, but as the chiefs who are arbiters of all individual rights have hitherto held aloof, the result has been very discouraging. Presby- terians North and South number 6500 with 95 minis- ters, Congregationalists 2500; other denominations represented in the State are: Adventists, Christians, Lutherans, Unitarians, Campbellites, Jews, Christian Scientists, and Mormons. Reliable religious statistics of the coloured people are difficult to obtain owing to multiplicity of organizations and mobility of religious temperament. Five distinct branches of Methodists report 635 preachers, 400 churches, and 7470 mem- bers. Baptist organizations approximate the Metho- dists in strength, while the coloured membership of other denominations is very small.
Fhiriita Indians. — The early explorers found the Indians distriljuted over the entire peninsula. To the north-west the populous tribes of the Apalachee in- habited the country watered by the Suwannee and Apalachicola Rivers; the Timuquanans occupied the centre of the peninsula, with numerous settlements along the St. John's; the Calusa in the south-west ranged from Cape Sable to Tampa Bay; on Biscayne Bay the small settlement of Tegestas seems to have come originally from the Bahamas and contracted kinship with the Calusa; along the Indian River south of Cape Canaveral lived the Ays, also comparatively
few in numbers and mentioned only in connexion with
early missionary labour, probably having become ab-
sorbed in the Timuquanans under the unifying
influence of Christianity. Sufficient data for an ap-
proximate estimate of population are wanting; prob-
ably the entire population of the tribes mentioned
exceeded 20,000 but not 40,000. These tribes per-
tained ethnologically and linguistically to the great
Muskhogean or Creek family, though some philologists
consider the Timuquanan language, which "repre-
sents the acme of polysyn thesis", a distinct linguistic
stock.
The Timuquanans lived in great communal houses, fortified their villages, practised agriculture to some extent and a few rude industries. They are described as being of fine physique, intelligent, courageous, gen- erally monogamous, very fond of ceremonial, and much addicted to human sacrifice and superstition. Their settlement near St. Augustine furnished the first Indian converts, in all probability prior to the ad- vent of the Franciscan missionaries in 1577. In 1602 Governor Cango estimated the number of Christians amongst them at 1200. A catechism in the Timu- quanan language by Father Francisco Pareja was printed in Mexico in 1612 and a grammar in 1614 (re- printed at Paris, 1886), besides other works. These were the first books printed in any of our Indian tongues. The baptism of twelve Timuquanan chiefs in 1609 at St. Augustine cleared the way for the con- version of the whole nation to C'hristianity. English and hostile Indian raids diminished their numbers (1685-1735), and by 1763 they had all but disap- peared. The Apalachee Indians, closer related to the Creeks, resembled the neighbouring Tiinu(|uanans in general disposition and manner of life. It is not men- tioned that they practised human sacrifice, and in other respects, especially after their conversion to Christianity, they exhibited a superiority of charac- ter over the other Floridian tribes, being docile and tractable to religious teaching and training. Towards Narvaez (1528) and De Soto (1539) they assumed a surprisingly hostile demeanour, in view of the ready response accorded sub.sequently to the efforts of the missionaries. In 1595 Father Pedro de Chozas pene- trated to Ocute in the Apalachee country, and his mis- sion proved so fruitful that the Indians appealed in 1607 for additional missionaries, and by 1640 the whole tribe was Catholic. The Apalachee country was invaded and devastated by hostile Indians and English under Moore m 1704. Of thirteen flourishing towns but one escaped destruction, missionaries were tortured and slain, 1000 Christians were carried off to be sold as slaves, and of 7000 Christian Apalachee only 400 escaped. One of the last items recorded of the tribe is the testimony of the French writer Penicaut to the edifying piety with which a fugitive band that had settled near Mobile adhered to the practices of religion. The Calusa or Carlos Indians, with whom Menendez in 1566 endeavoured to establish friendship and alli- ance, in order to pave the way to their conversion, showed a persistent spirit of hostility to Christian teaching. They were cruel, crafty, though recklessly brave, polygamous, and inveterately addicted to hu- man sacrifice. The Jesuit Father Rogel laboured fruitlessly amongst them (1567-8). The Franciscans in 1697 were even less successful. In 1743 the Jesuit Fathers Monaco and Alana, who obtained some little success, described them as cruel, lewd, and rapacious. The remnant of the tribe moved to the western reser- vations about 1835. The Seminoles, also allied to the Creek stock, came into Florida about 1750; very few of them became Christians, as missionary activity ceased on the English occupation in 1763. Their refusal to withdraw to reservations resulted in the Indian War of 1835-42. On the conclusion of the war 2000 were conveyed to Indian Territory. About 300, defy- ing every effort of the United States, retired to the
