46 fHE COMING OF MAN 



Man arrived in Europe at some time during the glacial 

 period or great Ice Age.^ In Pleistocene times a somewhat 

 colder climate and high degree of humidity resulted in heavy 

 snow-fall and the formation of great glaciers. These covered 

 Scotland and Scandinavia, crowding well southward in Eng- 

 land, and as far as the Harz mountains in Germany. The 

 Alpine glaciers stretched northward leaving in central Europe 

 only a narrow band of unglaciated territory. 



The habitable portions of northern Europe at this time 

 were France and southern England in the west, Russia in the 

 east, and a narrow zone connecting the two. We remember 

 that parts, at least, of the Sahara desert were well watered at 

 this time, and that one or more land-bridges crossed the Medi- 

 terranean from south to north. Accordingly we find remains 

 of African animals, e. g., rhinoceros and hippopotamus, min- 

 gling with those of northern forms. This leads us to suspect 

 that the first m.en may have arrived in Europe by the same 

 route. 



We must not think of the long glacial period as one of un- 

 interrupted cold and ice. We find it broken into a series of 

 alternating glacial and interglacial epochs ending with the 

 final glacial retreat. During the interglacial epochs the cli- 

 mate was usually mild, sometimes warmer than to-day. The 

 arrival of man in northern Europe during the long and warm 

 second interglacial epoch is proven by the discovery of a 

 human jaw, near Heidelberg, and possibly by some very ancient 

 fragments found in England. Of the life, habits and attain- 

 ments of these earliest immigrant adventurers we know prac- 

 tically nothing. 



During the third interglacial epoch Palaeolithic man had 

 evidently taken full possession of France and southern Eng- 

 land, which then formed one province or region unbroken by 

 the English Channel, which is of later origin. The remains 

 of the Neanderthal race are found in other parts of Europe 

 also and are probably still more widely spread. 



What and how much did this primitive savage bring with 



^24:34. 40. 



