Haitian physician, public official, diplomat, ethnologist, and historian of his country's sociological and intellectual development and of the contribution of Haitians to the culture of the Americas.

Among his ethnological writings is Ainsi parla l'oncle (1928; new ed., 1954; So Spoke the Uncle), a collection of essays intended to “restore to the Haitian people the dignity of their folklore.” He also wrote La République du Haïti et la République Dominicaine (1953; “The Republic of Haiti and the Dominican Republic”), a history of the relations between the two countries of Hispaniola. He served as Haitian chargé d'affaires in Washington, D.C. (1908–11); national inspector of public education (1912–15); and minister to France (1915–16).