DARWIN 321 



After remarking that negroes and mulattoes enjoy 

 an immunity from certain tropical diseases, he ob- 

 serves, firstly, that all animals tend to vary in some 

 degree, and, secondly, that agriculturists improve 

 their domesticated animals by selection ; and then, he 

 adds, but what is done in this latter case "by art, 

 seems to be done with equal efficacy, though more 

 slowly, by nature, in the formation of varieties of 

 mankind, fitted for the country which they inhabit. 

 Of the accidental varieties of man, which would occur 

 among the first few and scattered inhabitants of the 

 middle regions of Africa, some one would be better 

 fitted than the others to bear the diseases of the coun- 

 try. This race would consequently multiply, while the 

 others would decrease ; not only from their inability 

 to sustain the attacks of disease, but from their in- 

 capacity of contending with their more vigorous 

 neighbours. The colour of this vigorous race I take 

 for granted, from what has been already said, would 

 be dark. But the same disposition to form varieties 

 still existing, a darker and a darker race would in the 

 course of time occur ; and as the darkest would be the 

 best fitted for the climate, this would at length be- 

 come the most prevalent, if not the only race, in the 

 particular country in which it had originated." 



This is certainly the most complete of all the 

 anticipations of Darwin's theory of natural se- 

 lection. 



In 1831 Patrick Matthew published a work 

 entitled Naval Timber and Arboriculture. It 

 contained, in an appendix, a brief statement of 



