[Proc. Roy. Soc. Victoria, 24 (N.S.), Pt. II., 1911.] 



Art. XXV. — The Trojoics and Pigment : The Physical 

 Properties of Pigment, and its Physiological Im- 

 portance in the Protection of Living Organisms, 

 JEspecially Man. 



By WM. LOWE, M.B., B.S. 



[Eead 14th December, 1911.]. 



In 1906 I set out on a world's tour, which extended over a 

 period of three years, and embraced in its itinerancy the eastern 

 part of Australia as far as Port Darwin, Java, Malay States, 

 Eastern China, and Mongolia, Japan, Canada and the United 

 States, the Countries of Europe, Asia Minor, Egypt, Nubia and 

 India. 



I made the object of my travels the solution of the Race 

 •Question, which resolved itself into three divisions of enquiry", 

 viz : — 



1. The physiological importance of colour in man. 



2. The relation of man to his environment. 



3. The purpose of Race. 



It is with the first of these questions that we are now con- 

 cerned, which enquiry has been extended to include all living 

 organisms. 



Before proceeding to discuss the subject, it is advisable to give 

 some account of the current literature upon it. The Interna- 

 tional Scientific Catalogues up to 19 iD record many contribu- 

 tions upon pigmentation, but such as I can obtain in the Mel- 

 bourne libraries deal chiefly with the anomalies of pigmentation 

 or the questions of climatology, and with these may be included 

 Keane, Scholes, and the Report of the last Race Congress held 

 in London in 1911. The only work that need seriously demand 

 our attention is Woodruff on " Tropical Light." 



On page 85 he truthfully states: — - 



" Man is invariably covered with pigment which acts as an 

 armour to exclude the more harmful short rays, and, moreover, 



