ANTAEUS THE GIANT. 591 



The countries most favorable to longevity are Sweden, 

 Norway, Denmark, England, Scotland, Ireland, France, 

 Greece, Hungary, and Germany. General conclusions from 

 chapters on longevity synopsized are : age of world no in- 

 fluence on man ; " people may still become as old as in the 

 time of Abraham;" at periods men lived longer, not from 

 the world, but man himself. "When men were in a savage 

 state,* simple, laborious children of nature, and much ex- 

 posed to the open air, as shepherds, hunters, and farmers, 

 great age was very common among them ; but when they 

 despised the dictates of nature, studied refinement, and in- 

 dulged in luxury, the duration of life became shorter. The 

 same people, restored to a rude state and manner agreeable 

 to nature, may regain their ancient longevity." May attain 

 to great age in almost all climates. High situations, with 

 pure air, favorable ; too great height not favorable ; nothing 

 more unfavorable to duration of life than very sudden 

 changes;^ "in cold climates men older than in warm," ex- 

 cept in extreme cold ; uniformity as to gravity and light- 

 ness, heat and cold, therefore small variations of barometer 

 and thermometer, favorable ; too dry or too moist unfavor- 

 able ; life on islands and peninsulas favorable ; they are 

 "cradles of old age;" thus, "longer life on islands of Archi- 

 pelago than near countries of Asia ; in Cyprus than Syria ; 

 in Formosa and Japan than China ; in England and Den- 

 mark than Germany." Much depends on ground and soil; 

 cold soil unfavorable ; where all these favorable elements 

 exist combined, men of course attain the greatest age. 



" The more a man follows Nature, and is obedient to her 

 laws, the longer he will live ; the further he deviates from 



* Diderot and Rousseau advocated a return to the savage state as 

 the surest way of attaining the macrobiotic life. 



f "The zone which presents this inconstancy in the highest de- 

 gree is that comprised within the 34th and 44th parallels, having mean 

 temperatures varying from 60 to 45. This, however, is the zone 

 of densest population and greatest activity ; demonstrating that vicis- 

 situdes of temperature are not unfavorable to human development." 

 DRAKE, p. 485. 



