i8o RACE 



of race, environment, and culture, is exceedingly 

 difficult. But there are few problems which raise 

 questions of more practical interest in attempting 

 to explain, or to forecast, the history of mankind. 

 For a peculiarity that has become innate and 

 heritable cannot be eradicated except by a change 

 of breed or, perhaps, of environment whereas 

 one that is freshly implanted in each individual 

 may be modified by a change of culture. By 

 styling a peculiarity " racial " we imply that it 

 is heritable. Peculiarities that are derived from 

 culture are, we shall see, not heritable : those 

 that proceed from environment appear to be in 

 some cases heritable, in others not. 



RACE. The racial peculiarities that force them- 

 selves upon attention are those which are mater- 

 ialized in distinctive bodily features, such as the 

 dark hair and complexion of tropical peoples, 

 the prominent jaws and woolly hair of negroes, 

 the oblique eyes, flattened and hairless faces and 

 high cheek-bones of the Mongols. According 

 to our theory these distinctions arise from peculi- 

 arities of impulse, of which, indeed, they are the 

 manifestations. Other peculiarities of impulse 

 affect the character : man's instinctive impulses 

 are so numerous that character may vary very 

 widely if some of them are innately stronger or 

 weaker than the average. Character may be 

 further modified by variation in the strength of 

 aptitudes. We all know that these differ con- 

 siderably from individual to individual : some 

 men have a peculiar aptitude for learning lan- 

 guages, others for mathematics or games of skill. 

 Individuals vary, moreover, in the delicacy of their 

 senses : some are unable to appreciate certain 

 shades of colour, are deaf to the charms of music ; 



