THK ATLANTIC SLOPE NATURALIST. 



7i 



variations which are favorable for 



their existence ; and, on the other hand, 

 others will exhibit certain character- 

 istics which are unfavorable for their 

 existence and for the performance of 

 their life functions. In the struggle 

 for existence between these two groups, 

 which in a state of nature probably 

 cannot be as clearly separated as we 

 have done here, which will survive? 

 Certainly those possessing the favora- 

 ble variations. These variations may 

 be of various kinds and, in many in- 

 stances, they may be rather difficult 

 to appreciate. The greater the dif- 

 ferences in the animals compared the 

 easier becomes the recognition of the 

 variations; and, conversely, the closer 

 the resemblances betw T een the animals 

 compared, the more difficult it is to 

 recognize the variations. 



In the study of mankind we must 

 never lose sight of the fact that man 

 is an animal, an organized being; and, 

 being such, is subject to the same laws 

 and conditions of other animals or or- 

 ganized beings. In certain respects 

 he is the superior of all other animals, 

 but in other respects he may be their 

 inferior. 



The great superiority of mankind 

 over the lower anin als lies especially 

 in the wonderful development of his 

 brain, in which particular he so far 

 surpasses any of the lower animals 

 that psychologically a comparison can 

 hardly be made although anatomically 

 we do find a similarity, but not an 

 identity, of structure in the brains of 

 some of the anthropoid apes which is 

 quite interesting. 



In the consideration of mankind it 

 lias been found that the different va- 

 rieties of the human species may be 

 grouped into several sections or as 

 they are designated races. 



The members each race strongly re- 

 semble one another physically and 

 mentally, and while differing very 

 materially in geograhical distribution, 

 language, habits and customs at the 

 same time their affinities are such that 



they are grouped together as consti- 

 tuting a race, the salient points of 

 differention being based upon physical 

 criteria, which are as valid as any of 

 the criteria used in zoological classifi- 

 cation. 



In the classification of mankind 

 the factors, or criteria, used are both 

 physical and psychological, to those 

 considering the latter to be entirely de- 

 pendent upon the former it might be 

 said that for present purposes it mat- 

 ters not what view is held. 



In anthropological classification, 

 as in botanical or zoological classifica- 

 tion, physical, or anatomical varia- 

 tions are recognized to be of far more 

 importance than any or all other vari- 

 ations. 



The classification of mankind, which 

 somewhat modified, is now usually 

 adopted, is the one proposed in the 

 jear 1775 b.y Johann Friedrich Blu- 

 menbach (1752-1840), who is generally 

 considered to have been the founder 

 of modern anthropology and who for 

 a period of nearly sixty j 7 ears lectured 

 on natural history, comparative anat- 

 omy, phj'siology, and the history of 

 medicine in the University of Gottin- 

 gen. 



This classification divides mankind 

 into five varieties or races, based 

 mainly on the color of the skin. 

 These being the Caucasian, or White 

 of Europe; the Mongolian, or Yellow, 

 of Asia; the American, or Red, of the 

 Americas ;the Ethiopian, or Black, of 

 Africa, and the Malay, or Brown. 



The Malay, owing to their decided 

 admixture of blood, is no longer giv- 

 en separate status as a race; and the 

 American Indian, owing to the circu- 

 lar cross seqtion of their hair, in com- 

 mon with the Mongolian peoples, and 

 only the Mongolian peoples, are con- 

 sidered to have been of Asiatic origin. 

 This, however, is another matter 

 which does not concern us in this con- 

 nection other than to state that, by 

 eliminating the Malay and the Indian 

 we have left as the three very distinct 



