956 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XXXII. No. 835 



a moment that it was the ultimate possible 

 term in the series. The use of " fitter " is 

 pedantic, and it is a pity to put it into a 

 text-book. 



Part II., The Relation of Man and Natural 

 Conditions, is in its point of view and horizon, 

 a distinct contribution. It is by aU means 

 the best part of the book. Here the human 

 element, with a decidedly biological perspect- 

 ive, is made the theme, with very suggestive 

 treatment. Tet a number of criticisms are 

 invited: To notice only a few of them: On p. 

 126 it is said " Every alteration of any impor- 

 tance in their environment sets before the 

 animal or plant, as has just been seen, a series 

 of alternatives: death, degeneration, flight, or 

 adaptation." There should be but three al- 

 ternatives. By any analysis, degeneration 

 must be considered one phase of adaptation. 

 Further down this page a misapprehension is 

 certainly provided when it is stated that no 

 change in the human physique is of record. 

 The Neanderthal and Spy and other early men 

 most certainly could not " well be duplicated 

 among men of to-day." On p. 130 there is a 

 very patent shrinking from being identified 

 with " determinism," which is almost humor- 

 ous. The whole point of such a book as this 

 lies in the constant, specific evidence it brings 

 of " determinism." Why shrink ? On p. 144 

 we find : " Life in deep forests is passed in a 

 sort of gloom ; — the impenetrable ' scrub ' of 

 Australia occupies the surface of the earth to 

 man's almost total exclusion ! " Shades of 

 Schimper and Sehomburgk! On the nest 

 page the statement " the microscopic fauna, 

 the living germs of disease," puts plague, lep- 

 rosy and tuberculosis among diseases due to 

 animal parasites, while every one should know 

 that these diseases are due to bacteria. On 

 p. 146 our freedom from small-pox, and our 

 lack of fear of it is made due to an immunity 

 we have acquired by long association with it! 

 (not to vaccination). On p. 149 cocaine is 

 made the essential principle of the " cocanut." 

 As a matter of fact Erytliroxylon coca has no 

 "nut," only a seed in a capsule, which is not 

 used as a source of cocaine. It really sounds 

 as if the author's cocaine comes from a coco- 



nut. On p. 157 we read " Practically all the 

 grains but maize, all the fruits, all the spices 

 and condiments, all the textile products, vege- 

 tal and animal, and practically all the domes- 

 ticated animals come from this region (Eu- 

 rasia)." This is too inclusive. The pine- 

 apple and a number of other tropical fruits are 

 natives of America; so is allspice; so are 

 vanilla and cocoa; cotton was native here as 

 well as in Asia; the alpaca and vicugna wool 

 was extensively used in prehistoric Peru; and 

 the dog and llama were the servants of the 

 native Americans before 1492. The word 

 " controlling " (p. 179) is much too strong. 

 Most of the geographic influences referred to 

 are merely modifying. 



The authors have trouble with the race ques- 

 tion and with the tropics. One might infer 

 (p. 188) that there is such a thing known as 

 a " pure " race. What is there more " mon- 

 grel," to use the offensive term, than the Eng- 

 lish or Spanish or Italian or Japanese stock? 

 It is quite unfair to charge the whole record 

 of the Spanish-American republics to race 

 mixture. It is worthy of note that one of 

 these governments with the proudest of rec- 

 ords, Chile, has about the most complete blend 

 of Spanish and Indian. The authors have no 

 right to speak for America when they say 

 " we do not reckon the mulattoes of this coun- 

 try as an important element of our national 

 strength." It is safe to say that they are 

 quite as important as an equal number of 

 " poor whites " or of several other elements 

 of the middle and lower classes. As to the 

 tropics, on one page we find " The yellow race 

 seems to have little difiiculty in acclimatiza- 

 tion in any region " ; and again, " The Chinese 

 have made effective coolies and are now the 

 best free-labor force applicable to the develop- 

 ment of the hot regions " — and yet the para- 

 graph is ended with the obsolescent suspicion 

 that the tropics can never be fully utilized, 

 because the western nations can not thrive in 

 the tropics with their mid-latitude habits and 

 ways of life. The Chinese will teach us a les- 

 son in the development of the tropics one of 

 these days, in spite of our " strong prejudice, 

 partially justifiable and mainly not." 



