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On the Ancient Inhabitants of the Canary Islands. By TuOMAS 

 HODGKIN, M.D.* Communicated for the Edinburgh New 

 Philosophical Journal by the Society. 



I have no pretension to be able to solve the ethnological 

 problem presented by the uncertainty which exists as to the 

 origin and affinities of the ancient inhabitants of the Canary 

 Islands ; yet I trust that a few observations and reflections 

 bearing on this subject may not be uninteresting to the mem- 

 bers of the Ethnological Society, although I am not prepared 

 to say whether my remarks are more likely to lead to the so- 

 lution of the question, or to serve truth in the opposite direc- 

 tion, by preventing the adoption of erroneous inferences. 



It is many years since the inspection of Guanchee mummies 

 induced me to believe that the ancient inhabitants of the Ca- 

 nary Islands were a diminutive people. It was, however, only 

 a passing observation, which led to no particular inquiry at the 

 time. It happened, however, that at the same period I was 

 examining many of the animal productions of Northern and. 

 Southern Africa, in conjunction with my friend Dr Knox of 

 Edinburgh ; and we were both of us impressed with the many 

 points of resemblance between these productions in the remote 

 parts of the Continent. The notorious fact of the existence 

 of a once numerous, though now greatly reduced, race of 

 diminutive human beings in the south of Africa — the Hotten- 

 tots and the Bushmen — seemed to find their counterpart in the 

 obscure, and, undoubtedly, in part fabulous, relations of Tro- 

 glodytes, formerly supposed to exist towards the north-east 

 of the Continent. I could not avoid associating these two 

 points with the former existence of a small race in the islands 

 of the western coast of the same Continent. I merely noticed 

 the coincidence, without attempting to pursue any inquiry into 

 the subject, or even supposing that materials could be collected 

 subservient to the iavestigation. 



At a somewhat later period, having occasion to classify a 

 considerable collection of human skulls, including specimens 

 from various parts of the globe, those of Africans, and their 

 descendants, naturally formed a distinct group. ': This group 



* Read before the Ethnological Society of London, 21st May 1845. 



