NATURALISTS SOCIETY. 
J^rom the "Bristol Daily Post," of Dec. 7th, 1864. 
'the thirty-second ordinary monthly meeting was held at 
the Philosophical Institution last Thursday evening, when 
Mr. W. S-mders, F.R.S., presided over a large number of 
members and friends, including several ladies. The bnn, 
secretary, Mr. A. Leipner, announced the election by the 
council of eight new ordinary members, and brought for- 
ward a resolution of the council with respect to the formation 
of a scientific library, which it was proposed to establish by 
the aid of voluntary subscriptions from members, as the 
general funds of the society were insuliicient for the purpose, 
and it was considered undesirable to increase the annual 
subscription. Some other formal business was transacted, 
after which, 
Mr. David Davis read a paper on the Natural History of 
the Inhabitants of the British Islands. He commenced by 
laying down certain principles or axiom which were the 
results of observations, and which guided tiim in his studies, 
but which he would not stop to prove, the chief of which 
•were, that climate had no influence in permanently 
altering the varieties of man ; that there was such a 
tendency in types to recur, that a type was never lost 
by admixture with others so as to form a new one; 
that the offspring of distantly - related types were 
always mulattoes, while that of tj'pes nearly related 
resembled either the father or mother ; and lastly, that phy- 
sical variations were accompanied by corresponding mental 
and moral peculiarities. Referring t<^ Macaulay's New 
Z'^alander, Mr. Davis said that the first question he would 
probably ask would be, whence arose the greatness of the 
British nation, as yet unexampled in the world's history — 
what kind of people thev were, the remains of whose works 
he was contemplating? The answer would probibly be, 
that the people were the result of a combination of races ; 
and the author contrasted the French, in which nation 
there w^ere only two races, with the English, in 
which there were six or seven. These he proceeded to 
describe in defail, physically and morally, illustrating his 
remarks with diagrams and photographs. Of the aboriginal 
race no remains were found except two skull?, one of the 
kumbucephalic type-— and a later one, brach} cephalic in 
form. The next race was the Basque, or Iberian, once 
spread over the whole of Europe, but of which remnants 
only were found in Spain and among the Lapp'', though the 
author believed that some were to be found in the west of 
Ireland and also in South Wales^ but there the race was 
overlaid by the Cimbric. The third race was the Celtic, the 
origin of which it v;as impossible to trace, records of them 
occurring upon Egyptian monuments 13 centuries before 
Ctirist, The Celts were at one time spread over the whole of 
Britain, and the oldest names in Wales were Celtic, not Cim- 
bric, After giving the physical characteristics as detailed by a 
French ethnologist, the author carried out his description to 
thtir mental and moral characters, saying that tney were of 
nervous temperaraeut,made the best solaiers,and took religion 
from their leaders. Their taste, when cultivated, was of a 
very high order, as well as their perception of wit. The 
highest oratory was confined to this race; also, that a firm 
paternal government was best suited for them. On the 
whole, it bad contributed its fair quota to British greatness. 
The fourth race was one often confounded with the Celtic, 
from which it must be carefully distinguished— it was the 
Cimbrian. The members of it came origin illy from the shores 
of the Black Sea — the Crimea, and (irove out the Celts in many 
parts of Europe. Tbey conquered all England south of the 
Thames, and opposed the landing of Cresar's legions, not 
professing to be aborigines. Physically, their strength and 
breadth of shoulder were very remarkable. Mixed with the 
lighter Cimbric race in Wales was a dark variety, possibly 
Basque, remarkable for a peculiar form of the upper eyelid. 
