has been dispersed according to the capabilities afforded by its structure, and the aid of external agencies." The phenomena connected with the vegetation of islands are also thought by Prichard to be strongly confirmatory of the dispersion of species from particular central points. In opposition to the hypothesis that the vegetable tribes, independent of any centres of propagation, will spring into existence wherever the physical conditions are congenial to their nature, he adduces also the negative evidence that similar climates on each continent, notwithstanding a general analogy, have dissimilar vegetation. But if we reject the theory of equivocal production, that is, of the spontaneous generation of the same species in many and remote localities, how are we to account, by the means of dispersion above enumerated, for the existence of similar aquatic plants in the marshes of distant countries? We find, for example, that under the same physical circumstances, the Nymphæa Lotus will spring up in India and in Hungary, and the Potamogeton Natans in Europe and in St. Domingo. To what other theory can we refer the phenomenon observed by Humboldt, that the same subterranean cryptogamous plants are seen in the mines of New Spain, which are known to grow in deep excavations of the earth in Europe? How else are we to explain the fact that when those mountains of Italy, which are of comparatively modern origin, were upheaved, their upper regions became covered with the vegetation of Lapland, whilst the intermediate country is de void of those plants? In ascending Mount Ararat, according to Tournefort, we observe at its foot the plants of western Asia; a little higher up, the vegetable forms of Italy are recognized; next, those of central France; at a still higher level those of Sweden; and beyond this last point, the flora of Lapland and the Alps. Besides, geological investigations prove that subsequent to the era of the secondary formations, there has been a new develop ment of vegetation on the surface of the earth. These facts favor the hypothesis that plants, independent of original dispersion from certain centres, will spontaneously arise wherever physical conditions exist adapted to their

nature.

Reference may here be made to the

fact that seeds may actually lie concealed in the earth for ages without losing their vitality. Thus, seeds found at Stirling, Scotland, in a bed of clay, which had been buried under fourteen feet of peat-earth, produced, upon being sowed, a crop of chrysanthemum septum! The circumstance that the pine forests of our western States, when burnt or cut down, are succeeded by forests of oak trees, is an analogous fact. It would seem, then, that where both the soil and the atmospheric conditions are equally suitable for many social plants, the strongest will choke the others, and finally obtain the complete mastery: but that the seeds of the weaker plants will for ages preserve their vitality in the earth, and spring into visible existence as soon as the proper conditions arise.

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Dispersion of Animals.-One of the most powerful supporters of the theory of the spontaneous origin of animals is Rudolphi. "As mould and various fungi," he says, generate themselves under the necessary conditions, so likewise do infusory animalcules; and the most unbridled fancy can hardly imagine that the infusoria were produced in Asia, and from thence have been spread over the world." But whether or not these lower orders of animals, whose diminutiveness baffles all accurate researches into their mode of origination, spring into existence without parentage, we know at least that the opinion derives no confirmation from the argument of analogy among the higher order of animals, whose structure admits of more satisfactory investigation.

As the existence of insects is closely connected with that of the plants and animals on which they subsist and often live, it follows that the laws of their dispersion must be much dependent upon those of the latter. According to M. Latreille, who has given much attention to the geographical distribution of the insect tribes, it appears that they are very distinct in countries separated by seas, vast deserts, and lofty chains of mountains, of which the locality, soil, temperature, and other physical conditions, are apparently similar. But although the same tribes of insects may not be found under the same parallel and similar local conditions, yet it has often been observed by naturalists that they are replaced by analogous groups.

Notwithstanding the adaptation of birds for extensive migration, we find that their geographical distribution bears an analogy to the rest of organized nature. Thus, in regard to the vulture tribe, we discover peculiarities in Europe and America, whilst in New Holland they are entirely unknown. Again, the parrot tribes found in Asia, Africa, and America, are each peculiar. Although the inhabitants of the ocean are not, like those of the land, confined to particular regions, yet even among them we find a geographical distribution. If there do exist any cosmopolites in the ocean, it is some species of whales, which, according to the testimony of whale-fishers, traverse the globe from pole to pole. In regard to fishes it is known that those of the Mediterranean differ entirely from those of the Red Sea; that the silurus electricus appertains exclusively to the rivers of Africa, and the electric gymnotus to those of America; that flying-fishes are almost unknown beyond intertropical seas, and that among a vast assemblage of antarctic animals, none is found which is known to the waters of the northern hemisphere. The phenomenon of the same species of fishes being found in inland collections of water, however distant from one another, is very analogous to the fact of the diffusion of aquatic plants under the same circumstances. Those opposed to the theory of equivocal generation explain this fact by reference to the inundations attested by historical and geographical proofs, or on the supposition, as is done by Lyell, that the minute eggs of fishes are occasionally transported from lake to lake among the feathers of birds.

Having now reached that part of our inquiry which refers to the mammifers and reptiles of the land-animals confined by their limited powers of locomotion to the regions that gave them birth-the facts presented will lead to more positive conclusions, than in the case of the animals that cleave the air with wings, or elude our view in the ocean's depths, or in the researches of the botanist who may mistake for original centres of diffusion plants whose seeds have been transported to a distant shore by an oceanic current. In regard to tellurian animals, we may divide the surface of the earth into zoological provinces, each the abode of a particular group of animals, illus

trating an admirable conformity between the organic capabilities of each and the surrounding physical circumstances. Thus, in the Old World, in analogous climates north and south of the equator, the species, notwithstanding many genera exist in common, are entirely different. The horse and the ass found in the northern hemisphere, are represented in the southern by the zebra and the quagga. On comparing the two continents, if we except the northern regions which approximate, the same law is discovered. When the Spaniards landed in the new world, they did not find a single quadruped of Europe, Asia, or Africa. For instance, the elephant, the rhinoceros, the camel, the dromedary, the hippopotamus, the giraffe, the lion, the tiger, the horse and the ass, were not found in America. On the other hand, the lama, the peccari, the tapir, the jaguar, the agouti, the sapajous, the sloth, and others, were equally unknown in the eastern hemisphere. We read, it is true, of the American lion, but he is widely different from the lion of Africa -a remark that applies equally to the monkey tribes. As the continent of New Holland is remotely separated from all the other extensive tracts of land, so it has an assemblage of animals not less peculiar than its vegetation. Of the marsupial or pouched animals, which are so exceedingly rare in other countries, there are here more than forty species. In the class of reptiles, the same law obtains. Thus, the crocodile of the Nile is totally different from the alligator of America, and so of the boa of India and the python of the New World; and, as regards the poisonous species, the hooded snake is peculiar to Asia, the cerastes to Africa, and the rattlesnake to America. The peculiar adaptation of organic structure to local conditions is apparent in the camel of the sandy deserts, in which he is placed, as his stomach has cells for holding water; and also in the circumstance that the hoofed animals of South America are suited to the precipitous Cordilleras, whilst the solidungular quadrupeds of southern Africa are equally adapted to its vast sandy plains. With the exception of the extreme north, where the two continents so approximate that the distance between them, which is broken by islands, is partially frozen

over in winter, the researches of the zoologist have not yet discovered that any individual species are common to distant regions. Nevertheless, particular groups are represented in parallel climates of distant countries by analogous tribes; for example, the tribes of the simiæ, and the dog and cat kinds, and other terrene animals, which, how ever, are very differently organized in the three great continents; and, notwithstanding this diversity of organization in the monkey, (an animal supposed by some to have a close affinity to man,) all the tribes, in the natural state, are confined almost wholly to the intertropical zone. As regards the zoology of islands, we find that small ones, remotely situated from continents, are in general quite destitute of land quadrupeds, whilst those near to continents have mostly the tribes which belong to the main land.

From a general view of the facts above adduced, the inference may be fairly drawn that each species of animal had an original centre of existence, to which it was by nature peculiarly adapted, and from which point they have dispersed themselves in proportion to their capabilities of enduring a change of physical circum

stances.

Lest these conclusions, in regard to the distribution of organized beings, should be deemed hostile to the sacred records, a word of explanation may be necessary. If we follow the words of Scripture literally, maintaining that a pair of all living species was gathered from all the climates of our globe and preserved in the ark of Noah, we become involved in a zoological inconsistency, unless we call in the aid of supernatural agency; for, as animals are adapted by their structure and functions to the local conditions of food, soil, temperature, &c., all could not have existed on the same spot. Moreover, either the carnivorous animal must have perished in the ark, or some other species have been annihilated. Independent of this, the same supernatural agency was demanded in restoring these animals to their natural and primitive abodes; for how else could the polar bear, whose organization is adapted to a frozen region, retrace his steps through the torrid zone? But it is unnecessary to call in the aid of such a suspension of the ordinary

laws of nature; for the meaning of the passage, in reference to the submersion of the "universa terra"-the whole earth-may be fulfilled by rendering it in the words, "the region inhabited by man," inasmuch as the destruction of the depraved human race was the end proposed by the deluge. Hence the tribes of wild animals belonging to remote regions may have been spared.

We have now reached the main object of the inquiry before us-Do the various races of man belong to a single species? In the general classification of mankind, we find that nearly every author has some peculiar views. Thus, whilst Cuvier makes the distinction of three races, Malte-Brun has no less than sixteen. As the division of Blumenbach, consisting of five varieties, viz., the Caucasian, Mongolian, American, Ethiopian, and Malay, is the one most generally adopted, it may be well to present here their general distinguishing characters. Among their principal characteristics, those of the skull are most striking and distinguishing. It is on the configuration of the bones of the head that the peculiarity of the countenance chiefly depends.

In the Caucasian race, the head is more globular than in the other varieties, and the forehead is more expanded. The face has an oval shape nearly on a plane with the forehead and cheek-bones, which last project neither laterally nor forwards as in other races; nor does the upper jawbone, which has a perpendicular direc tion, to which the lower jaw corresponds, give a projecting position to the front teeth, as in the other varieties. The chin is full and rounded. The skin may be described as generally fair, but it is susceptible of every tint, and in some nations is almost black; and the eyes and hair are variable, the former being mostly blue, and the latter yellow or brown, and flowing. It is the nations with this cranial formation that have attained the highest degree of civilisation, and have generally ruled over the others; or, rather, as we will attempt to show more fully, it is among these nations that the progress of civilisation and the development of the anterior portion of the brain, each exercising on the other a mutual influence, have gone hand in hand. Of this variety of the human race, the chief families are the Caucasians proper,

the Germanic branch, the Celtic, the Arabian, the Lybian, the Nilotic, and the Hindostanic.

In the Mongolian variety, the head, instead of being globular, is nearly square. The cheek-bones project from under the middle of the orbit of the eye, and turn backwards in a remarkable outward projection of the zygoma. The orbits are large and deep, the eyes oblique, and the upper part of the face exceedingly flat; the nose, the nasal bones, and even the space intermediate to the eye-brows, being nearly on the same plane with the cheek-bones. The color of this variety is olive or yellowish brown, and the hair is blackish and scanty. This variety of the human family has formed vast empires in China and Japan, but its civilisation has been long stationary.

The Ethiopian variety, which recedes the farthest from the Caucasian, presents a narrow and elongated skull, the temporal muscles, which are very large and powerful, rising very high on the parietal bones, thus giving the idea of lateral compression. The forehead is low and retreating. The cheekbones and the upper jaw project forwards, and the alveolar ridge and the teeth take a similar position. The nose is thick, being almost blended with the cheeks; the mouth is prominent and the lips thick; and the chin is narrow and retracted. The color varies from a deep tawny to a perfect jet; and the hair is black, frizzled, and woolly. It is not true, as is remarked by M. Cuvier, that the people composing this race have always remained in a state of barbarism. On the contrary, we will adduce facts showing that many negro tribes have made considerable advances in civilisation, and that in proportion to this improvement do they approximate to the physical characters of the Caucasian.

These three constitute the leading varieties of mankind, the American and Malay being no more than mere intervening shades. In the American race the head is less square and the face less flattened than in the Mongolian. The color resembles that of copper, and the hair is black, thick, and straight. "Although the Americans," says Morton, possess a pervading and characteristic complexion, there are occasional and very remarkable deriations, including all the tints

from a decided white to an unequivo cally black skin." This race was originally spread over nearly the whole of the Americas south of the sixtieth degree of north latitude. From this point, towards the Arctic circle, our Indian manifestly belongs to the Mongolian variety; from Greenland, we trace the same family of men to the north of Europe, comprising the Finland and Lapland coasts; and thence to the polar races of Asia, which are part of the Mongolian tribes, covering the immense region extending from the line of the Ural and Himmaleh mountains to Behring's Straits.

As the American variety seems to form a middle point between the Caucasian and Mongolian, so may the Malay be said to hold a similar relation to the Caucasian and Ethiopian. The forehead is more expanded than in the African, the jaws are less prominent, and the nose more distinct. The color is blackish brown or mahogany, and the hair is long, coarse, and curly. This variety is found in New South Wales and the South Sea Islands in general.

To these great races, more especially the first three, it has been customary to refer all the ramifications of the human family. Taking the country of the Georgians and Circassians as the radiating point of the Caucasian race, we may trace out its principal branches by the analogies of language. The Armenian or Syrian division, directing its course to the south, gave birth to the Assyrians, Chaldeans, and untameable Arabs, with their various subdivisions. In this branch, science and literature have occasionally flourished, but always under fantastic forms. Another division embraced the Indian, German, and Pelasgic branch, in whose four principal languages we recognize a striking resemblance. The first is the Sanscrit, now the sacred language of the Hindoos; the second is the Pelasgic, the common mother of the Greek and Latin, and of almost every language now spoken in the south of Europe; third, the Gothic or Teutonic, from which arose the German, Dutch, English, Danish, and Swedish languages, and their dialects; and fourth, the Sclavonian, from which are derived the Russian, Polish, Bohemian, &c. This division is the most respectable branch of the Caucasian variety; for among

them have philosophy, the arts and sciences, been carried to a degree of perfection unknown to any other race. This subject, by tracing out the analogies of language, has been followed up into its minutest ramifications. Much credit is due to Prichard for his indefatigable researches in this respect in reference to Europe, Asia, and Africa; but it too often happens that the affinities of languages in the last two are not sufficiently known to lead to undoubted results. Among the American variety, it has been generally believed that the languages are as innumerable as the tribes, it being impracticable to establish any analogies among them, or with those of the eastern continent; but this opinion is manifestly founded in error. "With respect to the American languages," Morton says, "it may be sufficient in this place to observe, that they present resemblances not less remarkable than those we have noticed in the physical and moral traits of these people." (p. 85.) This analogy, it would seem, is not of an indefinite kind. It consists mostly in peculiar conjugational modes of modifying the verbs by the insertion of syllables. The supposed infinite variety of North American tongues has been reduced by the late researches of Dr. Heckewelder and other American archaiologists, to three or four radical languages; and the belief in the affinities between these languages and those of Eastern Asia has been strengthened by the researches of Klaproth and other German philologists. This affinity with the people of Eastern Asia, it may be here added, is confirmed by the inferences drawn from physiognomy. Thus Sidi Mellimelli, Tunisian envoy to the United States in 1804, on seeing the deputies of the Cherokees, Osages, and Miamis, assembled at Washington city, was instantly struck with the resemblance between their general physiognomy and that of the Asiatic Tartars.*

But the question still recurs-Whence proceed the remarkable diversities ob

served among the different nations of the earth?

If we pursue an analogical mode of investigation in reference to the various branches of the human family, we will arrive at certain results, the aggregate of which will throw much additional light upon the question, whether they all belong to a single species. These conclusions will now be summed up under distinct heads.

From an extensive survey of various nations in reference to the proportionate duration of human life, it is evident that there exist no well-marked differences in this respect among the different families of man. If the comparison, however, is extended to the simiæ, notwithstanding they approxi mate to man very closely in physical structure, the contrast is very great. The greatest longevity of the troglodyte is no more than thirty years. As we discover no difference in this respect between the Negro and the European, there is little ground, as was done by Linnæus, Buffon, Helvetius, and Monboddo, for introducing the ourang-outang into the human family. Moreover, we find as attributes common both to the Negro and the European, the erect attitude, the two hands, the slow development of the body, and the exercise of reason. On the other hand, the whole structure of the monkey, who is four-handed, proves that to him the erect attitude is not natural. The striking characteristics of the predominance of the fore-arm over the upper arm, and the great length of the upper and the shortness of the lower limbs, are peculiarly adapted to his climbing habits. How beautifully is the majestic attitude of man, which announces to all the other inhabitants of the globe his superiority, described in the words of Ovid:

Pronaque cum spectent animalia cetera

terram,

Os homini sublime dedit; cælumque tuer Jussit; et erectos ad sidera tollere vultus.