DISTRIBUTION OF THE HUMAN KACE. 605 



square-faced skull, of which the Mongols afford a fair specimen, and the Esquimaux an 

 exaggerated one. 



The inquiry now recurs, whether these varieties are compatible with a view of the 

 human race as a species, the offspring of a common stock ; and observing what transpires 

 in the case of the lower animals, especially of the domesticated kind, the reply will be 

 clearly in the affirmative. In fact, the diverse structure which arises in the same 

 animal species is far greater than that apparent between one nation of men and another. 

 The horse, ox, dog, sheep, and hog kind furnish indubitable examples of the truth of the 

 assertion. "What a difference," says Blumenbach, "is there between the horses of 

 Arabia and Syria and those of northern Germany ; between the long-legged oxen of the 

 Cape of Good Hope, and the short-legged breeds of England ;" and he asserts that 

 " there is less difference in the form of the skull in the most dissimilar of mankind, than 

 between the elongated heads of the Neapolitan horse and the skull of the Hungarian 

 breed, which is remarkable for its shortness and the extent of the lower jaw." Professor 

 Pallas remarks, that a series of skulls, from the large head of the wild horse, to the short 

 head of the Hungarian breed, or the slender head of an English racer, would display 

 more remarkable deviations than any that can be found in the crania of the human races. 

 Blumenbach states of the hog tribe : " No naturalist has carried his scepticism so far 

 as to doubt the descent of the domestic swine from the wild boar. It is certain that 

 before the discovery of America by the Spaniards, swine were unknown in that quarter of 

 the world, and that they were first carried thither by Europeans. Yet, notwithstanding 

 the comparative shortness of the interval, they have in that country degenerated into 

 breeds wonderfully different from each other and from the original stock. These 

 instances of diversity, and those of the hog tribe in general, may therefore be taken as 

 clear and safe examples of the variations Avhich may be expected to arise in the 

 descendants of one stock. The whole difference between the cranium of a Negro and that 

 of a European is by no means greater than that equally striking difference between the 

 cranium of the wild boar and that of the domestic swine. Those who have not observed 

 this in the animals themselves, need only to cast their eyes on the figure which 

 Daubenton has given of both." Similar instances of variation of structure arising in 

 species, in the case of the inferior animals, might readily be adduced in abundance, and 

 must be accepted as evidence that diversity of structure in the human race is consistent 

 with the doctrine of its unity. 



3. The other principal physical variations observable between different nations refer to 

 the proportion of the limbs, to stature, to the texture of the skin, and to the character of the 

 hair. Large hands and broad and flat feet are among the peculiarities of the Negro ; 

 and in general, the arm below the elbow is more elongated in proportion to the length of 

 the upper arm and the height of the person, than in the case of Europeans. But 

 among the latter, individual examples of the same constructions occur, while among the 

 former, instances of structure after the European type may be found. As it respects 

 stature, the variations are not remarkable in relation to the majority of mankind, but a 

 striking discrepancy appears upon comparing a few isolated tribes. America exhibits 

 the extremes of stature, in the Esquimaux who are generally below five feet, and in the 

 Patagonians who are usually more than six, and frequently as much as seven ; but 

 individual specimens of both extremes are observed among the inhabitants of almost every 

 country. Europe has often presented the human form developed in gigantic and dwarfish 

 proportions. The contrasts are striking with reference to the texture of the skin, that 

 of the Ncgros and some of the South Sea islanders being always cooler, more soft, and 

 velvety than that of the Europeans. Connected probably with varieties of the skin in 

 texture are the various odours which it is well-known belong to different races. " The 



