148 LESSONS FROM NATURE. [CHAP. YT. 



afforded by international communication, to realise the dif 

 ferent effects which would probably result from an absence of 

 such assistance and stimulus. This difficulty is perceived by 

 Mr. Tylor, who remarks :* &quot; In striking a balance between 

 the effects of forward and backward movements in civilisa 

 tion, it must be borne in mind how powerfully the diffusion 

 of culture acts in preserving the results of progress from the 

 attacks of degeneration.&quot; Therefore, at an early period, 

 when there was little diffusion and no intercommunication 

 between groups which had become isolated, degeneration 

 might very easily have taken place, and these isolated groups 

 may have become the parents of tribes now widely spread. 

 Indeed, our author adds, 



&quot; Degeneration probably operates even more actively in the lower 

 than in the higher culture. Barbarous nations and savage hordes, 

 with their less knowledge and scantier appliances, would seem pecu 

 liarly exposed to degrading influences.&quot; 



After giving an instance from West Africa, he continues : 



&quot; In South-East Africa, also, a comparatively high barbaric culture, 

 which we especially associate with the old descriptions of the kingdom 

 of Monomotapa, seems to have fallen away, and the remarkable ruins 

 of buildings of hewn stone fitted without mortar indicate a former 

 civilisation above that of the native population.&quot; 



But actual degradation is a fact which is directly attested, 

 and which the ruins of Central America demonstrate. Our 

 author quotes Father Charlevoix to the effect that the 

 Iroquois, having had their villages burnt, 



&quot; have not taken the trouble to restore them to their old condition. 

 .... The degradation of the Cheyenne Indians is matter of history, 

 and Lord Milton and Dr. Cheadle came upon an outlying fragment 

 of the Shushway race, without horses or dogs, sheltering themselves 

 under rude temporary slants of bark or matting, falling year by year 

 into lower misery. &quot; Primitive Culture, vol. i. pp. 41, 42. 



With respect to the question of the degradation of savage 

 races, Mr. Albert J. Mott, in a remarkable address (delivered 

 before the Literary and Philosophical Society of Liverpool 



* Primitive Culture, vol. i. p. 39. 



