898 REPOBT— 1887. 



2. The Non-Aryan and Non-Semitic White Races, and their Place in the 

 History of Civilisation. By J. S. Stuart-Glennie, M.A. 



The general thesis of this paper may be thus stated. The tirst civilisations of 

 Chaldea and of Egjpt appear to have been founded by the action on dark races of 

 white races, neither Aryan nor Semitic. The combined results of a great variety 

 of recent researches show that such white races are an important, and hitherto 

 quite inadequately recognised, element in the ethnology of Asia, and of Oceania, of 

 Africa, of Europe, and of America ; and not only in Chaldea and in Egypt, but 

 throughout the world, the civilisations of Semites and of Aryans have been founded 

 on civilisations initiated by some one of these non-Aryan and non-Semitic, or, as in 

 one word they may, perhaps, fitly be called, Archaian white races. 



The three great divisions of this paper are indicated by this statement of its 

 thesis : — 



First, classification and summary of the facts which seem to lead to the con- 

 clusion that the initiators of the Chaldean and Egyptian civilisations belonged to a 

 white stock difierent from both the Aryan and the Semitic white stock. 



Secondly, an endeavour to give an approximately complete indication, at 

 least, if not statement, of the facts only partially stated by Quatrefages (Homnies 

 fossils et honi7nes sauvages) with respect to the white races which he names Allo- 

 phylh'an, and for which the term Archaian is proposed. 



Thirdly, classification and summary of the facts which — the wide dispersion of 

 an Archaian stock of white races being established — seem to indicate that the 

 vexed questions with respect to the Hittites, the Pelasgians, the Tyrrhenians, the 

 Iberians, the Picts, itc, and with respect also, in part, to the origin of the Chinese, 

 the Mexican, and the Peruvian civilisations — the facts which indicate that these 

 questions may be solved bj- reference to the general facts with regard to the 

 migrations and characteristics of the Archaian white races. 



The bearing of these results on the questions raised by the essential identity of 

 the varying foi-nis of folklore tales all over the world are also pointed out. 



3. On the Picture Origin of the Characters of the Assyrian Syllabary, 

 By the Rev. W. Houghtox. 



All written language probably originated in pictures representing objects or 

 ideas, as in Chinese and Egyptian. At first the characters were rude figures of 

 animals or other objects. In time the resemblance would be fainter, till at length 

 aU similarity between the character and the object represented would disappear. 

 This process may be expressed by the term ' pictorial evanescence.' Of the 

 522 characters of the Assyrian syllabary, as given in Professor Sayce's Grammar, 

 very few of the simple characters exhibit theii* primitive form, but the composite 

 characters often clearly reveal themselves. "NVe must look to the older forms 

 of the characters for evidences of their pictorial origin. Thus, the character for a 

 ' fish ' in the modern Assyrian may be traced back through the hieratic Assyrian, 

 the hieratic Babylonian, and the linear Babylonian to a figure of a fish, with head, 

 body, fins and tail. The ideograph for a ' month ' is in its ancient form a figure of 

 a square with 3 x 10 inside it — i.e., thirty days within the sun's circle. The 

 ancient forms of the character denoting a * man ' are rude figures of a man with 

 head, neck, shoulders, body, and legs — such a picture as a schoolboy would draw 

 on his slate, or the North American Indians depict. 



4. Wusum and other Remains in Egyptian Arabia. 

 By Cope Whitehouse, M.A. 



In March 1887 the author accompanied Major Surtees on a poUtical mission 

 to the south-eastern frontier of Egypt, in Arabia, and the frontier of the 

 Hedjaz. It is guarded by a modern fort, whose crumbling walls were photo- 

 graphed while a gun was being fired ; and by a solid straight-curtained fortress, 



