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Show '224 THE DESCENT OF MAN. PART I. single act of variation, as is general with ruonstrosities,14 .and this race is crossed with another not thus characterised, the characters in question do not commonly appear in a blended condition in the young, but are transmitted to them either perfectly developed or not at all. As with the crossed races of man cases of this kind rarely or never occur, this may be used as an argument against the view suggested Ly some ethnologists, namely -that certain characters, for instance the blackness of the negro, first appeared as a sudden variation or sport. Had this occurred, it is probable that mulattoes would ·often have been born, either completely black or completely white. We have now seen that a naturalist might feelltimself fully justified in ranking the races of man as distinct species; for he has found that they are distinguished by many differences in structure and constitution, some ·being of importance. These differences have, also, remained nearly constant for very long periods of time. He will have been in some degree influenced by the enormous range of man, which is a great anomaly in ·the class of mammals, if mankind be viewed as a sinO'le species. He will have been struck with the distribution ·of the several so-called races, in accordance with that "'f other undoubtedly distinct species of mammals. Finally he might urge that the mutual fertility of all the races has not as yet been fully proved; and even if -proved would not be an absolute proof of their specific identity. On t.he other side of. the question, if our supposed naturahst were to enqmre whether the forms of man kept distinct like ordinary species, when minaled too 14 ' The Variation of Animal~,' &c., vol. ii. p. 92. Cn.AP. VII. THE RACES OF MAN. 225 gether i1~ large numbers in the same country, he would immediately discover that this was by no means the case. In Brazil he would behold an immense mongrel population of Negroes and Portuguese ; in Chiloe and other parts of South America, he would behold the whole population consisting of Indians and Spaniards blended in various degrees.15 In many parts of the same continent he would meet with the most complex crosses between Negroes, Indians, and Europeans ; and such triple crosses afford the severest test, judging from the vegetable kingdom, of the mutual fertility of the parent-forms. In one island of the Pacific he would find a small population of mingled Polynesian and English blood; and in the Viti Archipelago a population of Polynesians and N egritos crossed in all degrees. Many analogous cases could be added, for instance, in South Africa. Hence the races of man are not suffi- · ciently distinct to co-exist without fusion ; and this it is, which in all ordinary cases affords the usual test of specific distinctness. Our naturalist would likewise be much disturbed as soon as he perceived that the distinctive characters of every race of man were highly variable. This strikes every one when he first beholds the negro-slaves in Brazil, who have been imported from all parts of Africa. The same remark holds good with the Polynesians, and with many other races. It may be doubted whether any character can be named which is distinctive of a race and is constant. Savages, even within the limits of the same tribe, are not nearly so uniform in character, as has often been said. Hottentot women offer certain 15 1\I. Jo Quatrefages has given (' Anthropolog. Review,' Jan. 1869, p. 22) an interesting account of the mccess and energy of the Paulistns in ~razil, who are a much crossed race of Portuguese and Indians, with a muture of the blood of other races. VOL. I. Q |