JULY 23, 1897. ] 
piled away in the attic, or even, worse still, 
in the bottom compartments of the exhibi- 
tion cases, there to grow mouldy or to be 
eaten up by the moths. But in the real 
museum such duplicate specimens, and 
those not suitable for exhibition purposes, 
are carefully assorted and those which 
may be of interest to the student or investi- 
gator are arranged in ‘suitable compart- 
ments in well lighted rooms, where they 
may be readily available for study. Such 
series represent the ‘stack’ of a great 
Library ; they make possible rearrangement 
and extension of the exhibition series, and, 
best of all, they give to the museum, in di- 
rect proportion to their fullness, complete- 
ness and permanency, and serve the pur- 
pose of awakening nota local, but a na- 
tional interest. Such series would contrib- 
ute largely to obviate the necessity of 
American students going abroad for mate- 
rial for study. 
(d) The Importance or Value of Physical An- 
thropology. 
And now, last of all, we have to consider 
this question : Is the study of anthropology 
worth the time, and is its proper exhibition 
worth the cost and labor? In other words, 
what is the ultimate aim of physical an- 
thropology, what can it teach, what is its 
value? 
The aim of physical anthropology is to 
know physical man, to unravel the myster- 
ies of his nature. It follows the individual 
throughout the entire course of his life. It 
enquires into his origin and his evolution 
down to the present day. It enquires into 
the varieties of man and asks for the causes 
which have made these varieties; why are 
some men black, why are others white, 
and, more difficult to answer, it asks why 
the black remain black and the white re- 
main white. Its aim is to enquire into the 
condition of physical progress, to study the 
effects on man of soil and climate; in short, 
SCIENCE. 
11) 
of environment. It enquires into the laws 
of heredity and descent, into the laws of 
health and disease, and it asks for the fac- 
tors which make for longevity and robust- 
ness, a sound mind in a sound body. 
Physical anthropology teaches us that 
all men are not born equal; that every 
child at birth is “endowed with the heri- 
tage transmitted from innumerable ances- 
tors, and is already rich in personal experi- 
ences from its prenatal life; that these 
combined decide the individual’s race and 
strain, and potentially incline, if they do 
not absolutely coerce, his tastes and am- 
bitions, his fears and hopes, his failure or 
success.’”* It teaches us that man has ac- 
quired, and only recently, his upright po- 
sition, and that he is not yet perfectly 
adapted to it; that the evolution of sex has 
gone on further in man than in other mam- 
mals; that the entire structure is slowly 
and progressively modified from birth to 
adult age; that then retrogressive changes 
set in which, in some respects, are infantile 
in character. It teaches not only that there 
has been a gradual evolution of man’s physi- 
cal nature, but that influences are still at 
work which will produce yet further changes 
and modifications; that the man of the 
future will not be like the man of to-day. 
The aim of physical anthropology is to 
know physical man, and herein lies its 
value; for when we know man then can 
we answer some of the problems which con- 
front man, and on the proper solution of 
these problems rests the destiny of nations 
and the ultimate destiny of man himself. 
These problems are many, and demand im- 
mediate answer. Morphology, the study 
of variation, is the hand-maid of pathology, 
and a knowledge of the causes of disease 
will aid materially in its prevention. With 
a larger and more enlightened view of the 
effects of environment, we can hope to see 
* Brinton : The Aims of Anthropology, SCIENCE, 
Vol. 11., 1895, p. 241; Proc. A. A. A. S., Vol. 44, p. 2. 
