Mat 28, 1909] 



SCIENCE 



841 



is erroneous. It is only necessary to look 

 at a map illustrating the racial types of 

 any European country — like Italy, for in- 

 stance—to see that local divergence is the 

 characteristic feature, uniformity of type 

 the exception. Thus Dr. Ridolfo Livi, in 

 his fundamental investigations on the 

 anthropology of Italy, has shown that the 

 types of the extreme north and of the ex- 

 treme south are quite distinct— the former 

 tall, short-headed, with a considerable 

 sprinkling of blond and blue-eyed indi- 

 viduals; the latter short, long-headed and 

 remarkably dark. The transition from one 

 type to the other is, on the whole, quite 

 gradual, but, like isolated islands, distinct 

 types occur here and there. The region of 

 Lucca in Tuscany and the district of 

 Naples are examples of this kind, which 

 may be explained as due to the survival of 

 an older stock, to the intrusion of new 

 types, or to a peculiar influence of envi- 

 ronment. 



Historical evidence is quite in accord 

 with the results derived from the investi- 

 gation of the distribution of modern types. 

 In the earliest times we find on the penin- 

 sula of Italy groups of heterogeneous 

 people, the linguistic relationships of many 

 of which have remained obscure up to the 

 present time. From the earliest prehis- 

 toric times on, we see wave after wave of 

 people invading Italy from the north. 

 Very early Greeks settled in the greater 

 part of southern Italy and Phoenician in- 

 fluence was well established on the west 

 coast of the peninsula. A lively inter- 

 course existed between Italy and northern 

 Africa. Slaves of Berber blood were im- 

 ported and have left their traces. Slave 

 trade continued to bring rew blood into 

 the country until quite recent times, and 

 Livi believes that he can trace the type of 

 Crimean slaves who were introduced late 

 in the Middle Ages in the region of Venice. 

 In the course of the centuries, the migra- 



tions of Celtic and Teutonic tribes, the 

 conquests of the Normans, the contact with 

 Africa, have added their share to the mix- 

 ture of people on the Italian peninsula. 



The fates of other parts of Europe were 

 no less diversified. The Pyrensean Penin- 

 sula, which at present seems to be one of 

 the most isolated parts of Europe, had a 

 most checkered history. The earliest in- 

 habitants of whom we know were presum- 

 ably related to the Basques of the Pyre- 

 nees. These were subjected to Oriental 

 infiuences in the Pre-Mycensean period, to 

 Punic influences, to Celtic invasions, 

 Roman colonization, Teutonic invasions, 

 the Moorish conquest, and later on to the 

 peculiar selective process that accompanied 

 the driving-out of the Moors and the 

 Jews. 



England was not exempt from vicissi- 

 tudes of this kind. It seems plausible that 

 at a very early period the type which is 

 now found principally in Wales and in 

 some parts of Ireland occupied the greater 

 portion of the islands. It was swamped 

 by successive waves of Celtic, Roman and 

 Anglo-Saxon migration. Thus we find 

 change everywhere. 



The history of the migrations of the 

 Goths, the invasions of the Huns, who in 

 the short interval of one century moved 

 their habitations from the borders of 

 China into the very center of Europe, are 

 proofs of the enormous changes in popu- 

 lation that have taken place in early times. 



Slow colonization has also brought about 

 fundamental changes in blood as well as 

 in diffusion of languages and cultures. 

 Perhaps the most striking recent example 

 of this change is presented by the gradual 

 Germanization of the region east of the 

 Elbe River, where, after the Teutonic mi- 

 grations, people speaking Slavic languages 

 had settled. The gradual absorption of 

 Celtic communities, of the Basque, in an- 

 cient times the great Roman colonization. 



