558 ANTHROPOLOGY IN THK LA8T TWENTY YEARS. 



dent that they differ more from each other than is the case with skulls of 

 certain Slavonic or German tribes. Consequently we must give up the 

 idea of an original consanguinity in respect to each one of the historic 

 nationalities. We do not possess as yet any known conclusive series of 

 observations by means of which it can be demonstrated that from dolicho- 

 cephalous families there have been developed brachycephalous individ- 

 uals, such as we find among Slavonic or Germanic tribes. It may ])e 

 possible by means of cross breeding to develop in jirocess of time from 

 a dolichocephalous family a brachycephalous one; but actual proof of 

 this has not as yet been produced. Hence we are compelled to adopt 

 as a solution the theory of " mixed races." A mixed race is one whose 

 elements are people of different blood, not of one blood : it is one which 

 ca-n not appeal to a common origin but which in the course of time was 

 made up of elements of different original races. This theory causes 

 us, as you easily see, to attach but little importance to nationalities as 

 such existing at present. It will be our task to determine the localities 

 of the original elements of this mixture, and to ascertain whence came 

 these brachycephalous and these dolichocephalous peoples. Somewhere 

 there must be a starting point for each of these categories, since upon 

 an anthropological map these distinctions are marked with geological 

 clearness. This difhculty not only exists in Germany or Austria but 

 also in Russia. What are now called Russians are made up of a very 

 composite mass of elements, derived from the farthest parts of Asia, 

 from Turanian and Mongolian stocks. Hence our colleagues in the 

 East are in no less a quandary than ourselves. They too meet wide 

 differences between north and south, east and west. 



In the popular mind these questions are very easily considered to be 

 concerned merely with a single nationality, but we must not only try 

 to solve them in respect to one nation, but for the whole of Europe. In 

 attempting to do this our investigations carry us further and further 

 from a consideration of their special relation to individual nations. I 

 may be permitted to say right here, that we are all especially interested 

 to see such investigations carried on in this Austrian Monarchy ; for 

 Austria in its i)eculiar development has preserved in greater purity the 

 remnants of old nationalities, than any other state in Europe. Every- 

 where else the change of former environments has gone on to a larger 

 extent, the remains of antiquity have been crowded back so far that at 

 present it is very difticult to make collections of the very oldest remains. 



We are now occupied with the establishment of a museum in Berlin 

 for German costumes and domestic utensils ; we intend to preserve in 

 it everything that can yet be saved from destruction. In some locali- 

 ties the very last relic has been secured for our museum. Here and 

 there we meet with lingering recollections of primitive days, but these 

 can not be compared with the living realities in so many districts of 

 Austria. 



A reference to dead and living languages will make plain this con- 



