XVII 



PEESIDENTIAL ADDKESS TO THE SECTION OF 

 ANTHEOPOLOGY 1 



IT is not usual for the President of a Section of this Association 

 to think it necessary to give any explanation of the nature of 

 the subjects brought under its cognisance, or to emphasise 

 their importance among other branches of study ; but so 

 general is the ignorance, or at all events vagueness of 

 information, among otherwise well-instructed persons, that I 

 will ask your permission to devote the short time accorded 

 to me before the actual work of the Section begins to giving 

 some account of the history and present position of the study 

 of Anthropology in this country, and especially to indicate 

 what this Association has done in the past, and is still doing, 

 to promote it. 



It is only ten years since the section in which we are now 

 taking part acquired a definite and assured position in the 

 organisation of the Association. The subject, of course, existed 

 long before that ti^ne, and was also recognised by the Associa- 

 tion, though with singular vicissitudes of fortune and position. 

 It first appeared officially in 1846, when the " Ethnological 

 sub-Section of Section D " (then called " Zoology and Botany ") 

 was constituted. This lasted till 1851, when Geography parted 

 company from Geology, with which it had been previously 

 associated in Section C, and became Section E, under the 

 title of "Geography and Ethnology." In 1866 Section D 

 changed its name to " Biology," with Physiology and Anthro- 

 pology (the first occurrence of this word in our official 

 proceedings) as separate " Departments " ; but the latter 

 does not seem to have regained its definite footing as a 



1 British Association for the Advancement of Science (Oxford Meeting), 

 9th August 1894. 



