Abstract
THE first number of Zeitschrift für Ethnologie for the current year (1872) opens with a paper by A. Bastian on “The Position of the Kaukasus in relation to the history of the migration of nations,” in which the author points out the importance of studying the hydrography and orography of a country before we attempt to trace the origin of its inhabitants. Mountains and streams afford more stable evidence in regard to ethnological centres of origin than the ever-fluctuating combinations of language. Thus, for the history of our own Continent we can have no more important standpoint than the Kaukasian range, which forms the boundary line between Europe and Asia, from which rivers open the way into the Caspian and Black Seas. Herr Bastian next traces the various directions taken by successive waves of population after they reached the Steppes between the Don and the Dnieper, which long formed the meeting-p'ace of the Scythio-Sarmatian races, and often witnessed the fierce encounter of rival hordes, whose defeat or success on that great battle-field of nations decided the fate of future races. The relation of the nomadic races of Asia to the Persian Empire is of special interest to us, since the latter by its control over the destinies of the western half of the Asiatic continent has exerted the most important influence on the ethnological history of Europe. In Asia the course of civilisation has followed the line of the Steppes; and the nomadic tribes who possessed horses have spread themselves through every pastoral district, amalgamating at times with the earlier settlers, but more generally organising themselves into hostile bands, whose leaders became the founders of equestrian dynasties, and raised thrones for themselves in Central and Western Asia. The author follows at length the progress of Parthian and Persian conquests and migrations, and, after considering the anatomical features and cranial dimensions and forms of the various races, which have given conquerors to the world, discusses the probable bastard or mixed origin of those inferior subjected races, who from time to time have risen against their masters, and asserted their right to freedom, as in the case of some of the Servian tribes against their Pannonian lords, and various Mestizoes or Creoles in Africa and America.—The remaining papers in this number arebelow the usual standard of the Zeitschrift für Ethnologie. We have a paper by Dr. E. v. Martens “On the Different Uses of the Conchilia,” originally read to the Anthropological Society of Berlin, which is little more than a résumé of what G. E. Rumph, P. Bonanni, Johnston, and Mr. Woodward have given in their semi-popular works on subjects of conchological interest. Dr. Martens also contributes a translation of a paper on the geography, history, and statistics of the Island of Puerto Rico, by S. Bello, of Espinosa. We learn that while sugar and coffee constitute the riches of the island, all the tropical fruits abound, and the excessive annual rainfall maintains a vigorous and verdant vegetation. The hot moist climate is unhealthy, and dysentery, yellow fever (vomits), and remittent fevers of various kinds prevail. The population has, however, gone on steadily increasing during the last forty years, notwithstanding the diminution in the numbers of the slaves, amongst whom the deaths have of late years exceeded the births in the ratio of from 5 to 10 per cent. In 1839 the population was 319,000, in 1870 it had risen to 646,360; in the latter year the number of the slaves had fallen to 32,000, after being, 42,227 in 1866, thus giving a diminution of 25 per cent, in four years.—M. de Quatrefages' history of Prussian aggrandisement, which first appeared in the Renue des Deux Mondes (1871), under the title “La Race Prussienne” has called forth an impassioned and indignant rejoinder in this number of the Zeitschrift für Ethnologie. We should be more disposed to concur in the line of argument adopted by the writer in refutation of M. de Quatrefages' too sweeping assertion that Prussians are Finno-Slaves with only a slight admixture of French and German blood in the higher classes, if he had not allowed personal rancour and national hate to over-weigh every consideration of courtesy, justice, and reason. We think an ethnological journal is not the place for international warfare.
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Scientific Serials . Nature 6, 93–94 (1872). https://doi.org/10.1038/006093a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/006093a0