1 '- 4 The Polynesians and their Migrations. [ApriL 



"The Hawaians are strong, well-made, and active, in height 

 rather above the average of Englishmen. . . The Hawaians possess 

 the virtue of courage in an unquestionably high degree. . . . They 

 are now as peacefdla people as any upon earth; they are mare free 

 from crimes of violence than any nation that can he named. . . The 

 natural disposition of the Hawaians is everything that is opposite to 

 the gloomy and morose. The pleasant universal 'aloha* or saluta- 

 tion, the merry ringing laughter of the women wherever found, 

 proclaim the people to he a light-hearted race. 71 



Taking the whole of these differences, they appear to indicate 

 a radical diversity of race, not to he overcome hy any mere similarity 

 of colour and some common words in language, which is all that 

 really exists to prove identity of race. The one single feet of 

 stature is conclusive against any such comparatively recent common 

 origin as !M. Quatrefages argues for. A race which averages 

 5 ft. 10 in., and has many men 6 ft 2 in. or more, can hardly 

 have heen derived, at such a recent period as to have retained com- 

 munity of language, from a race averaging 5fL5in.or5ft6 in., 

 and among whom a single individual of 5 ft. 10 in. is rarely, 

 perhaps never, found. Again, the hair of the Malay is of the true 

 Mongol type — black, coarse, and perfectly straight. The least 

 approach to wavy or curly hair is never found among the unmixed 

 Malay. I cannot find evidence that the Polynesians ever have this 

 character of hair, while it is undoubtedly often as frizzly as the 

 most decided Papuan. Again, the mental character of two races in 

 a parallel state of civilization and inhabiting very Rimilar countries, 

 -irely of great importance; yet, what contrast can he greater 

 than between the phlegmatic, suspicious, undemonstrative Malav, 

 and the active, frank, and joyous Tahitian ? Are we to throw 

 down all these barriers of diversity for the sake of solving by main 

 force a problem that is probably insoluble ? 



'Geological and Zoological Evidence. — M. Quatrefages dis- 

 misses with a very brief notice the proofs of a former much greater 

 extent of land in the Polynesian area than now exists. These 

 proofs are of two kinds : first, the existence of numerous groups of 

 coral islands, which are admitted to indicate sunken land; and 

 secondly, the distribution of animals in the existing islanda, That 

 coral reefs and atolls are proofs of a subsidence of the land, has 

 never been seriously denied ,since Darwin 's work on Coral Beefs 

 was published ; and as immense areas of the Pacific are occupied by 

 such coral islands alternating with volcanic groups and such as 

 show signs of elevation, it is only a question of time as to whether 

 roan could have inhabited these sunken lands. 



Can we form any notion how long it is since the Pacific lands 

 have disappeared ? This can perhaps be approximately determined 

 by the existing distribution of animals in these islands. The only 



