1866.] Proceedings of the Asiatic Society. 95 



Mr. Beverley, while admitting the high importance attached to geo- 

 logical discoveries, nevertheless doubted whether the investigations in 

 Central Asia had been sufficiently elaborate, to warrant the conclusions 

 drawn by the Honorary Secretary. So far, however, from his having 

 started a novel idea, the theory was that which, up to the last year or two 

 had obtained universal acceptance, and the onus probandi lay on those 

 seeking to overthrow it. But there was some presumptive evidence 

 in favour of Iran, or the parts of Central Asia thereabout, being the 

 earliest seat of the human family. It was to that country that the 

 earliest traditions all pointed, and the history "of every country always 

 led us back. It was from Central Asia that successive races had 

 spread both east and west to drive on and supplant each other. In 

 the west we had the irruptions of the Huns, the Cloths and the Turks, 

 while India itself had been frequently invaded from the north-west. 

 Indeed it would seem as though, in the struggle for existence, the most 

 barbarous tribes had been driven farther and farther from the common 

 centre, and while seeking therefore for aboriginal tribes in the islands 

 of the Pacific and other out-of-the-way corners of the world, we 

 should nevertheless expect to find the cradle of the human family in 

 that region, where, apart from European influences, the race had made 

 the greatest progress in physique and civilization. 



Major Norman observed that many of the Punjab regiments offered 

 a great variety of materials for the study of the races from Central 

 Asia. In one regiment there were a number of Siah-Posh Kafirs, in 

 another, men from the neighbourhood of Kandahar. He thought 

 that an exhibition of such men would be most desirable. 



Mr. Campbell could bear witness to the extreme interest of the 

 Ethnology of many of the Punjab regiments. As a member of the 

 Statistical committee he had endeavoured to obtain a return of the 

 various tribes represented in these regiments, with tables of the aver- 

 age height, weight, and character of the men. This last characteristic 

 is especially well developed by the discipline of a regiment. 



Dr. D. Boyes Smith stated that Dr. Fayrer was unavoidably absent 

 from the present meeting, to his own great regret. 



The motion was then put to the vote and carried unanimously. 



The Chairman gave notice that at the next meeting the Council 

 would move ; " That this Meeting is desirous of placing on record its 



