B16 Dr Prichard 07i the Varieties 



em Ocean, in order to account for the existence of woolly-haired 

 people in the countries above mentioned. A second human race 

 in his system are the Mongolians or Kalmucs, whose origin he 

 thinks may be deduced from the high mountains of Altai. The 

 other great division of mankind, consisting of men with oval and 

 symmetrical skulls, to which European nations belong, are in 

 like manner supposed to have drawn their first breath on Mount 

 Caucasus, and are hence termed the Caucasian race. 



" On surveying the manner in which nations are distributed 

 and associated together in these three departments, we met with 

 some facts which are staggering anomalies to those who judge of 

 the affinity of races by that of languages. We shall take, for 

 example, the enumeration of tribes reckoned by Baron Cuvier 

 as belonging to the Mongolian race. He says : — 



*' ' To the eastward of what has been termed the Tartar 

 branch of the Caucasian race; that is, to the northward of the 

 Caspian, is found the commencement of the Mongolian stock, 

 which prevails from thence as far as the Eastern Ocean. Its 

 branches, still nomadic, the Kalmucs and the Kalkas, wander 

 over vast deserts. Their ancestors three times — under Attila, 

 under Genghis, and under Tamerlane — carried far the terror of 

 their name. The Chinese are the branch, the most anciently ci- 

 vilized, not only of this race, but of all nations that are known. 

 A third branch, the Mantschoos, have lately conquered China, 

 and still govern it. The Japanese and the Coreans, and most 

 of the hordes reaching to the north-east of Siberia under the do- 

 mination of the Russians, belong, in great part, to this stock : 

 except some of the Chinese literati, the whole Mongolian race 

 is addicted to the worship of Fo.' 



" Here we find two classes of nations, identified and repre- 

 sented as branches of one stock, who differ from each other in 

 the most decided and remarkable manner, in every respect in 

 which one nation can differ from another, with the single excep- 

 tion, that they bear a degree of resemblance in the shape of their 

 skulls. The Mongoles and Kalmucs are tribes of nomades or 

 wandering shepherds, who roam about the lofty saline plains of 

 Central Asia, living in waggons and under moveable tents, as 

 their ancestors are said to have lived in the time of ^schylus. 

 They are incapable of changing their habits for those of settled 



