1 1 8 Distinctive characteristics of the 



Society at its Anniversary meeting ; and that a copy be requested 

 for publication. 



It was also 



Voted, That the charge of procuring and publishing the same, be 

 assigned to the Publishing Committee. 



When these votes were communicated to Dr. Morton, he immedi- 

 ately complied with the request of the Society, and placed his ad- 

 dress at the disposal of the Committee. 



To the Members of the Boston Society of Natural History. 

 Gentlemen, — On receiving the highly flattering invitation to 

 deliver your Annual Address, it occurred to me that nothing would 

 be so appropriate as a review of the present state of Natural Science 

 in this country : but having almost simultaneously received the Ad- 

 dress of Mr. Teschemacher for the past year, I found it so full and 

 satisfactory on this question as to leave little or nothing for further 

 discussion. I have therefore been induced to seek another field 

 of inquiry, and in so doing, have very naturally turned to a subject 

 which has long occupied my leisure hours, and which, though fre- 

 quently examined, may yet, I trust, be recurred to with pleasure and 

 instruction. I propose to take a rapid glance at what I conceive to be 

 the peculiar traits of the Aboriginal race of America, as embraced in 

 five principal considerations, viz : — their organic, moral and intellec- 

 tual characters ; their mode of interment and their maritime enter- 

 prise ; and from these I shall venture to draw a few definite con- 

 clusions. I am aware that it may appear presumptuous to attempt 

 so wide a range within the brief limits of the present occasion, 

 especially as some points can be touched only in the most general 

 manner ; but my object has been to dwell rather upon some of these 

 which have hitherto received less attention than they obviously 

 deserve, and which are intimately involved in the present inquiry. 

 With this explanation I submit to your indulgent consideration the 

 contents of the following memoir. * S. G. Morton. 



Address. 

 Anthropology, the Natural History of Man, is essentially a mo- 

 dern science. At a time when the study of Nature in her other 

 departments, had been prosecuted with equal zeal and success, this 



