principles of which, I think, date from the time of Aristotle, and have stood their ground very well until the present day. I think, also, that the science of craniology-if that is a separate science by itself— should walk side by side with zoology and with osteology, and, in fact, with physiology. Cerebral physiology is at the present in so uncertain a state that it is impossible to decide perfectly that the brain is the seat of the mind. It has been stated by Mr. Bain—and he has supported his statements by very ingenious arguments—that the brain is not the sanctum sanctorum in which all our thoughts are locked up, and from which new thoughts are evolved. He holds, on the contrary, that the whole of the nervous system, in fact the whole of the system altogether is what constitutes the human mind. Till that theory is disproved, it certainly is incumbent upon us, as an anthropological society, to ascertain how far there is a correlation between the skull, the brain, and other regions of the body; and to ascertain also, if possible, what that so-called temperament may be which enables one man, who appears any larger than another, to do frequently more while he lives, and to do it frequently better.

Mr. HUGH J. C. BEAVAN, M.A.*: I listened with a great deal of interest to the very valuable paper read by my friend, Dr. Hunt, at our meeting, and I also carefully followed the discussion which ensued. Now I am always sorry to find one side of a question alone argued, for it tends neither to instruction nor real utility; but I am bound to say that I have not noticed that any arguments were brought forward tending to disprove the theories advanced by Dr. Hunt. The truth, or an approximation to it, can only be obtained by discussions pro and con.; and, although it seems that, in the present state of our knowledge, nothing very definite can be determined on the subject, I consider that Dr. Hunt's side of the question has been fairly proved, so far as we can go in our present ideas concerning Anthropology. The theory of two different races is one which caused some attention to be paid to it many years ago, and several well-known masters of ethnology have subscribed to it, with certain reservation, as Dr. Hunt told us. We must look upon it, however, as a purely scientific question, without any touch of sentiment. To say that a Negro is a man and a brother partakes largely of sentiment, and it may be all very well in its place; but we must forget such ideas in an anthropological debate. To a certain extent, the questions we have been discussing resolve themselves into a matter of feeling. I do not say but that they are, and must be considered in a scientific manner, but feeling, and even politics, will unconsciously force themselves upon our minds in speaking of such an important question. As Dr. Hunt said, those who uphold his theory will be charged with encouraging slavery. Perhaps it may be so I would rather that took place than that we should resign our opinion for the mere sake of agreeing with the abolitionist party, or of appearing to be philanthropic. Scientific truth is to be upheld in spite of all sentiment or party feeling. It seemed to me

It was Mr. Beavan's intention to have delivered these remarks; but, in con. sequence of the lateness of the hour, it was only possible to hand them to the

reporter.

that, at the last and present meetings, two or three gentlemen spoke as if they thought Dr. Hunt and Mr. Reade wished to make out the Negroes to be worse than they really are; as if they had some curious, unaccountable, and mysterious desire to asperse the character of these ill-used individuals. Now that cannot possibly be the case, seeing we have reliable data concerning the Negro character with which to work, and those authorities can be referred to by all. Those who have experience in the matter state that the Negro character is sensual, tyrannical, sullen, indolent, etc. That their life is a purely sensual one, and that it is no use trying to obtain an insight into the mind of the Negro, because he has very little of it, and it is never worth the trouble. Whether character has much to do with races I leave to others to determine; at all events, if it has, we cannot quite consider the Negro to have the same intellect and moral nature as ourselves. I quite agree with our President as to the horrors of the slave trade, and, like him, protest against being thought to favour it. Discussing the faults of the natural Negro, however, is far from advocating slavery. But it is curious how our opinions alter. I happened to meet a day or two ago with a pamphlet, dated 1744, and entitled The African Trade in Negroes, the Great Pillar and Support of the British Plantation Trade in America. It purports to be written by a merchant to a member of the English ministry, but names are not mentioned. Among other things, the author says, "Are we not indebted to those valuable people, the Africans, for our sugars, tobaccos, rice, rum, and all other plantation produce? And the greater the number of Negroes imported into our colonies from Africa will not the exportation of British manufactures among the Africans be in proportion, they (the Negroes) being paid for in such commodities alone? and as Negro labour hitherto has, so that only can support our British Colonies, as it has done those of other nations. It is that also will keep them in a due subserviency to the interest of their mother country, for while our plantations depend only on planting by Negroes, and that of such produce as interferes only with the interests of our rivals, the French and Dutch (who at that time dealt largely in Negroes), not of their mother country, our colonies can never prove injurious to British manufactures, never become independent of these kingdoms, but remain a perpetual support to our European interest, by preserving to us a superiority of trade and naval power." Again, after observing that it had once been proposed to abolish the slave trade by Act of Parliament, our author continues: "But the consequences of such reflections are of so melancholy a nature to every man who has the least regard to the interest of his prince and his country, that we will drop these gloomy apprehensions of abolition, and rather please ourselves with the agreeable idea of seeing such a glorious spirit appear in a British parliament for the support of this most important commerce and navigation, as will transmit our African and plantation trades with security to latest posterity." These ideas are rather different to those propounded in the present day, and circumstances have slightly altered the "independence" of some of our colonies; but although not quite explanatory of our present subject, I think the

VOL. II.-NO. IV.

e

extract interesting, as giving the trader's idea on the subject. In the article "Negro," in the third edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica, date 1797, which article, strangely enough, is not to be found in the last edition, we read: "Vices the most notorious seem to be the portion of this unhappy race,-idleness, treachery, revenge, cruelty, impudence, stealing, lying, profanity, debauchery, and intemperance are said to have extinguished the principles of natural law, and to have silenced the reproofs of conscience. They are strangers to every sentiment of compassion, and are an awful example of the corruption of man when left to himself." Concerning the island of Santo Domingo, where the great insurrection is now raging, showing the bloodthirstiness of the Negro in a rather powerful light, Mr. Evarist, a Wesleyan missionary, wrote in 1821: "Every door is shut against us, and we are deprived in every possible way of liberty to act according to the Gospel, our own conscience, or the light of truth. This life is a burden to me, on account of the fearful and horrible things that I see." In an official letter from the same place, date 1823, we also read: "The unsophisticated denizen of the African wilds (and we know what he is like) is ennobled by comparison with the wretched degradation of his Haytian brethren, not merely relapsing into barbarism, but sinking fast under an odious combination of the darkness, ferocity, vices, and superstitions of all colours and all nations, unredeemed by the virtues of any." (Hampden On Clarkson's Letter, 1824.) I have not made these observations with any view of defaming the character of the Negro; but Dr. Hunt's paper has led me to examine into the subject. and I have satisfied myself on the points which he wishes to prove. Nothing decided can, of course, be discovered on such a point. It will take much time and both long and patient inquiry to do that; but, as I have no doubt Dr. Hunt's paper will be discussed and opposed by many societies, both at home and abroad, I hope we shall be able to obtain reports of their meetings, and be able also ourselves to add, in some slight degree, to the study of Anthropology. I may also express a hope, that the discussions which may hereafter take place on important papers may be to the point, and not ramble over such a wide space of ground as philanthropy, Darwinian, and other theories, instead of answering or upholding the stated views expressed by the author of a paper.

Dr. HUNT. I will not detain you long, but I think that the time has now come when I had better reply to the remarks that have been made. And first I would say that I did not expect that the harmony we had at the last meeting was likely to continue to the end of the debate. The speakers then, without one exception, supported the views I advocated. To-night I have listened with very great interest, in the expectation that I should hear something on the other side of the question. I am sorry, however, that the discussion this evening has not been so much to the point as it was on the last occasion. Indeed, many of the speeches we have heard this evening have wandered very far from the paper which I read. Three of the principal speakers, indeed, do not appear to have heard a word of my paper, and apparently have not even read the conclusions to which I

have arrived; therefore we cannot wonder that they have made speeches that are entirely foreign to the object of my paper and even to its title. I will, however, go over a few remarks that were made at the last meeting. And, first, with regard to the entozoa and other parasites being distinct. As Mr. Blake has said, all our present knowledge is given in a volume, Waitz's Anthropology, published by the Society. All observers have noticed that they are distinct, but whether that amounts to a difference of species, is a question to which, in the present state of our information, no answer can be given. Mr. Pusey reminds us that the Negro, when in contact with the European, has generally been in a state of slavery. That of itself suggests the inquiry, whether the whole course of history, for the last five thousand years, has been one gigantic wrong, or whether there has not been more justice in history than we may imagine; whether, really, it is not natural that he should be in subjection to those who are born wiser. I most fully admit the fact that the Negroes have always been slaves when in connection with Europeans, and I cannot admit that history has been one series of wrongs. Mr. Pusey tells us that the Negro can be made a skilled artizan. I doubt this very much of the pure Congo Negro, from the thickness of the skin of the fingers, and the well-known fact that all the skilled intelligent artisans in America are Mulattoes. I will not touch upon that, however, as it will come into another discussion, when we will go into the question of Mulattoes, and when I shall be able to show that the cases produced by the Abbé Gregoire were Mulattoes. With regard to hybridity, I am sorry that those gentlemen who have spoken on the subject to-night were not here on the last occasion to hear Dr. Seemann's observations on the dying out of mixed races. Reade very properly directed our attention to the fact that Africa is not exclusively inhabited by Negroes. We know perfectly well that it is not so. If we go to the extreme south of Africa we get a perfectly distinct type of man, represented by the Hottentot. The Negro gradually improves till we get about ten degrees above the equator, until we get to the Foulahs and Mandingoes, which are perhaps the highest type of that race. It has been said, and not without truth, that the intellect of all the people below the tenth degree is as dark as their skin. Now, we do not know enough of Central Africa to say much about it. The Nubians, the Ethiopians in the north of Africa, are all distinct from the typical Negro. In East Africa there are some pure Negroes so much lower than those in the West, that they are refused by the slavers. Prichard made a very good generalisation when he said that the darker the colour, and the nearer the approach to the typical Negro of the West Coast, the more brutal and unintellectual they are. That I believe is one of the best generalisations that Prichard ever made. It is in perfect accordance with what we might expect from their physical organisation, and is, I believe, entirely borne out by all the recent researches in ethnology. Then we have been told that the shape of the brain could be altered, but I have really not heard a single anatomical or physiological fact brought forward in the paper seriously criticised. We know of no facts to

Mr.

support a theory that any agencies can alter the shape of the brain. I recently had a chance of seeing a native of Haussa. I was told I should find European features, and I went expecting to do so, but, on the contrary, I found that in all the great characters the projection of the teeth, the colour of the hair, and though the proportions of the limbs were not so bad as in some other African tribes, yet in all these particulars there was the Negro race. We hear anatomy and physiology spoken of as if they were separate-as if they had not always been combined. Now I, for one, have not based my conclusions solely on anatomical grounds. I say that in America years of observation have shown us that, up to about twelve years of age, the Negro children are very intelligent, but that you can make no progress after the second generation; they then arrive at about the highest point you can ever bring them to. It seems to me a much more philosophic view to suppose that there is a certain amount of permanence of type in the various divisions of the human family, to accept the teaching of historical facts, and to believe that the various races which are found are not descended from one another. I shall not go into the principles of classification, because that comes into another question-how many races are there in Africa. I fully admit that there are a large number of races in Africa, but I take the Negro as represented by the Negro of the Congo. I don't consider the classification of African Negroes at all satisfactory. There is no doubt that a great many of those European-featured men that have been seen, have European, or rather Arabic, blood in their veins. With respect to one of Mr. Reade's remarks, I am thankful he was not up at Newcastle when I brought forward some simple facts in anatomy and physiology. I was then met with a considerable amount of hisses, I assure you; but when my friend said that the Negroes should be flogged occasionally, that corporal punishment was necessary, and that taking them out of Africa to America was like taking them from hell to paradise, I thought that if he had been at the British Association, I would not have answered for his life. (Laughter.) I must leave his opinions without any criticism, except that I think we shall not be much inclined to doubt their truth. Dr. Murie, who has travelled very largely in Africa, and is a very good observer, agrees with the opinions I have brought forward. He says, "Have we any right, however, to enslave our brother?" Now, of course, we do not say we have any right to enslave our brother; but the question still remains, "Is the Negro our brother?" I did not say that he was, and it is rather begging the question to assume that he is. The six deductions I brought forward are quite independent of one another. The proposition that the Negro is always happiest in subordination to the European, does not necessarily include slavery, as we understand it. Then Mr. Reddie made some remarks to the effect that the Negroes are supposed to be the refuse of the population. Mr. Reade, I believe, agrees with it; but I must say I do not. I believe that the Negroes represent a race, and not a class; and though there are many Negroes who pass from one tribe to another, yet slavery is an institution that belongs to Africa. Some races are selected for