UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY

m

BIOLOGY

LIBRARY

G

AN ARAB WOMAN.

THE STANDARD LIBRARY

OK

Natural History

EMBRACING

Living Animals of the World
and Living Races of Mankind

EDITORS AND SPECIAL CONTRIBUTORS:

Charles J. Cornish, F. C. Selotis, Ernest Ingersoll, Sir Harrv Johnston, K.C.B.,

Sir Herbert Maxwell, F.R S , H. N. Hutchinson, F.R.G.S.,

J. W. Gregory, F.G.S., R. Lydekker, F.R.S.,

F.Z.S., and many other eminent

naturalists

Nearly Two Thousand Illustrations

Vol. IV

OCEANIA— ASIA— AFRICA

1909

THE UNIVERSITY SOCIETY INC

NEW YORK

RMOW6

COPYRIGHT, 1901-1903
By DODD, MEAD AND COMPANY

COPYRIGHT, 1908
By THE UNIVERSITY SOCIETY

COPYRIGHT, 1907
By THE UNIVERSITY SOCIETY Inc.

COPYRIGHT, 1908
By THE, UNIVERSITY SOCIETY Inc.

EftOLOGY

LIBRARY

G

THE STANDARD LIBRARY OF
NATURAL HISTORY

VOLUMES IV.-V.: LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

VOLUME IV.

VOLUMES IV-V

LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

SUMMARY OF CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION i-iv

CHAPTER I

FIJI ISLANDS, POLYNESIANS, POLYNESIAN
RELIGION, TONGA OR FRIENDLY IS-
LANDS, SAMOA, HERVEY ISLANDS, SO-
CIETY ISLANDS. PITCAIRN ISLAND, AND
SANDWICH ISLANDS (HAWAII)

FIJI ISLANDS — Inhabitants; physical type; weapons,
dress, and ornaments; food; a Fiji grass house; manners
and customs; former cannibalism and human sacrifices;
strangling of aged parents and of wives and slaves of
cliiefs; slavery of women; betrothal and marriage; super-
stitions; Christian missions. POLYNESIANS — Racial
stock; " one of the finest races in the world "; resemblance
to Europeans; orderly habits; games and pastimes;
religion; deified chiefs; priest as " medicine man"; ordeals.
TONGA or FRIENDLY ISLANDS — Lord George Campbell on
the people; Captain Erskine's account; the Tow-Tow
(religious festival); Captain Cook sees a fighting game;
funerals; Tongans Christianised; Rev. J. G. Wood's love-
story. SAMOA — Home of a handsome race; R. L.
Stevenson's attachment to them; accounts of Williams
and Pritchard; women go to the wars; marriage customs.
HERVEY ISLANDS — Strange marriage ceremony; " human

Eathway " for bridal pair. SOCIETY ISLANDS — Named
y Captain Cook; history and population; i)eople praised
by Guillemard; Tahitian etiquette; how Tamtians marry.
PITCAIRN ISLAND — Remarkable episode; a faithful
English settler; happy community. SANDWICH ISLANDS
(HAWAII) — Former and present population; natives read
and write; European customs and dress; leprosy; Chinese
and European residents; Christian missions; annexation
to the United States 1-24

CHAPTER II

NEW GUINEA, BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO,
ADMIRALTY ISLANDS, SOLOMON IS-
LANDS, NEW HEBRIDES, NEW CALE-
DONIA, AND NEW ZEALAND

Region of the black Papuans; the frizzly-haired people.
NEW GUINEA — Racial features; reminders of Kipling's
" Fuzzy-Wuzzy"; dress and ornaments; pile-dwellings;
agriculture; warriors and women; strange marriage
customs; Christianity. BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO — Mar-
riage; A. J. Duffield's observations in New Ireland.
ADMIRALTY ISLANDS — First Europeans; dress; diet;
dwellings; temples; canoes; music. SOLOMON ISLANDS —
Traders and missions; girls tattooed; marriage; delight in
dancing; tindalos (sorcerers). NEW HEBRIDES. — Volcanic
islands; missions and schools; children betrothed; sham
rights at weddings. NEW CALEDONIA — Many tribes; their
rapid disappearance. NEW ZEALAND — Minute account of
the Maoris; their racial characters, customs, and civilisa-
tion; cannibalism and head-hunting; taboo 25-48

CHAPTER III

AUSTRALIA AND TASMANIA

AUSTRALIA — Low animal and human types; views of
Wallace, Keane, and Ratzel; hundreds of tribes; varying
characters; ethnology uncertain; European corruption;
Lloyd's pathetic story; native dress and paint; scar-
ornamentation; marriage by purchase and by capture;
burden-bearing; weapons; the boomerang; dwellings and
food; amusements; superstitions; the " blackfellow
doctor"; interesting accounts by Howitt, Mathews, and
others. TASMANIA— Formerly Van Diemen's Land;
visits of Tasman and Cook; English possession; " Black
War"; the " last man"; history and description of Tas-
manians 49—72

CHAPTER IV

CELEBES, BORNEO, JAVA, SUMATRA
PHILIPPINES, MALAY PENINSULA

THE MALAYS — General characteristics; classification;
head-hunting; women; ordeals; proverbs. CELEBES—
Many distinct tribes; religious division; interesting details.
BORNEO — Political division; various tribes; numerous
facts and anecdotes regarding their appearance, manners,
customs, etc. JAVA — Elements of dense population; im-
portance of Batavia; work of the Dutch. SUMATRA—
Malay inhabitants; their civilisation; men all soldiers;
long fight against the Dutch; cannibal Battas. PHILIP-
PINE ISLANDS — Spanish classification; tribes and dialects;
Chinese element; confused types; Manila; cock-fighting-
cession to the United States; census of 1903; Negritos!
MALAY PENINSULA— Pygmy Negritos; Malay contempt
for them; Abraham Hale's account of them; Keane and
Clifford on their extinction. STRAITS SETTLEMENTS — A
British crown colony 73-96

CHAPTER V

SI AM, ANAM, CAMBODIA, BURMA

Native and Caucasian elements. SIAM — Geographical
position; population; French and English influence; Shans
and Siamese proper; accounts of European observers.
ANAM — A great population, subject to France; Anamite
type; called a repulsive people; Lord Curzon's more
favourable view; mixed religion; picturesque markets.
CAMBODIA — Ancient kingdom and famous ruins; Keane's
description of Cambodian tribes. BURMA — Burmese are
Mongolians; their peculiar social system; most interesting
people are the Chins; their character, homes, habits, and
customs in birth, death, marriage, and war; anecdotes
illustrating their peculiarities and modes of life; the
secluded Karens; simultaneous marriages and funerals;
curious courtship 97-120

CHAPTER VI

CHINA AND MONGOLIA

CHINA — Ancient descriptions; present area and popu-
lation; " Book of History "; racial stock; physical traits

of Chinese; costume; the queue; female head-dress; Tartar
power; utilitarian habits; Mongol character; government;
Emperor and mandarins; corruption; punishments; ideas
of motherhood; religions: Confucianism, Taoism, Bud-
dhism. MONGOLIA — Geographical region; Mongol con-
quests; present unimportance; Mongol type; Marco
Polo's description; summary of character and condi-
tion 121-144

CHAPTER Vli

JAPAN, THE HAIRY AINU, KOREA, FOR-
MOSA, LIU-KIU ISLANDS, AND TIBET

JAPAN — Nippon, " Land of the Rising Sun "; geography
and population; blended races; military successes; tra-
ditional origins; physical and mental traits; authentic
history; manners; amusements; dress; revolution of 1868;
graphic description of the people; Japanese art; religion;
Shinto shrines; Christian missions. THE HAIRY AINU —
Aborigines of Japan; descriptions of travellers; huts and
villages; persistent characteristics. KOREA — Mongolian
stock; the people and their modes of life. FORMOSA —
Ceded to Japan; Chinese and other inhabitants; customs
of wild tribes. Liu-Kiu ISLANDS — Japanese and Chinese
elements; Chamberlain's account of the people. TIBET —
Country and population; industries; Lassa, the sacred
city; Lamaism; praying-wheels, etc 145-168

CHAPTER VIII

THE ANDAMAN ISLANDS— THE VEDDAS OF
CEYLON— THE ABORIGINAL RACES OF
INDIA: CENSUS RETURNS OF POPULA-
TION: CLASSIFICATION OF RACES: THE
ARYAN INVASION: CASTE: KOLS, GONDS,
TODAS, KHONDS, ETC.

THE ANDAMAN ISLANDS — People of the Great Anda-
man group; dwarfish stature; scanty clothing; modes of
life as described by Man and Dobson. THE VEDDAS OF
CEYLON — People a remnant; wretchedness and dejection;
an ill-shapen race; disgusting food; Sir James Tennent's
three groups; primitive virtues and defects. INDIA —
Hindu type; Topinard's three strata; Dravidians and
Jats; alliance with Australian natives; census of India;
Keane's classification; " a great museum of races";
Willam Crooke on the so-called Aryan invasion. HINDU
CASTES — Definition of caste; four original castes and
table of chief subdivisions; description of various castes
and tribes 169-192

CHAPTER IX

INDIA (continued): WOLF-REARED CHILDREN,
KASHMIRIS, PARSIS, KHASIS: RELIGION
IN INDIA: ARYAN THEOLOGY, LITER-
ATURE, ETC.— AFGHANISTAN AND BALU-
CHISTAN

WOLF-REARED CHILDREN — Tradition confirmed; Ball's
testimony; Max Muller's interest. KASHMIRIS — One of
the finest Indian races; description of the type. PAUSIS
• — Iranians settled in Bombay; race and religion preserved
through centuries. KHASIS — Members of the Tibeto-
Burmese race; grand dances in honor of the new moon.
RELIGION IN INDIA— Statistical information regarding
the various religions and sects. ARYAN THEOLOGY,
LITERATURE, ETC.— The Vedas; belief in a future state;
Aryan migration told in Vedic hymns; the Vedic period;
beginning of the burning of widows (suttee); Aryan
character and faith; teaching of the Brahmans; unity of
God; Brahmanic literature; domination of the Brahmans;
their discipline; praise and criticism of them; religious
fanaticism; fakirs; sacrilege of killing cattle. AFGHANIS-

TAN AND BALUCHISTAN — Afghans a fine, warlike race;
tradition of their origin; Keane and Bellew on the Afghans;
Baluchis distinguished from Afghans.. 193-216

CHAPTER X

TURKESTAN, BOKHARA, SIBERIA, AND
PERSIA

TURKESTAN— History; tribes and hordes; characteris-
tics; manners; peculiar customs. BOKHARA — Practically
Russian; mixed population; Usbegs and Tajiks compared.
SIBERIA — Classification of native inhabitants; the Tun-
guses; their admirable qualities; Theel's estimate of them;
how they hunt; they live in tents; called " Frenchmen of
the tundra"; Samoyedes and Ostiaks, of Finnish stock;
full description of these dwellers in the Arctic Circle; other
Siberian tribes. PERSIA — Past and present extent,
primary types and various branches of the Persians;
physical and mental traits; family and social relations;
"great liars"; culture and industry; subtlety and polite-
ness; distinctive dress; diet; buildings; Iranians: Nestori-
ans; Kurds; Luris and Bakhtians; story of a Bakhtian
chief; Persians chiefly Mohammedans of the fanatical
Sliiah sect 217-240

CHAPTER XI

ARABIA, SYRIA, PALESTINE, ASIA MINOR,
AND ARMENIA

ARABIA — Arabs most picturesque of Orientals; race;
typical Bedouin; character; Vambery contrasts Arab
and Turk; hospitality; manners; dress; weapons; (own-
dwellers; food; discovery of coffee; animals; social classes;
customs and ceremonies; fanatical Islamites. SYRIA —
Former territory and present extent; mixed race: Moham-
medanism; the Druses. PALESTINE — Position and popu-
lation; the Hebrew race and character; their intellectual
influence; history and religion; Jewish weddings. ASIA
MINOR — Three chief elements of population, Turks,
Greeks, Armenians; interesting description of each;
Burnaby on dwellings and inmates. ARMENIANS— Dis-
tribution; race; character and habits; Armenia an Asiatic
battle-ground; comparison with Jews; female dress; once
fire-worshippers; churches and monasteries; gorgeous
ritual 241-264

CHAPTER XII

AFRICA: INTRODUCTORY-THE PYGMY OR
NEGRILLO RACES— THE PEOPLE OF
MADAGASCAR

General characteristics and classification. BUSHMEN —
Location and history; physical features; dress, ornaments,
and weapons; dwellings; drawings; food; social system;
religion; folklore; language. ANGOLA DWARFS — Ap-
pearance and habits. THE OBONGO — Described by Du
Chaillu and Lenz. THE AKKA— Best known of Equa-
torial dwarfs; referred to by ancient writers; modern
accounts by Stanley, Junker, and Schweinfurth; Schwein-
furth's Akka boy. BATWA AND WAMBUTTU — Interest-
ing observations by Stanley, Burrows, and others. Emin
Pasha's servant. PYGMIES IN ABYSSINIA AND BRITISH
EAST AFRICA— Described by Sir W. C. Harris, Rigby,
Borelli, etc. PEOPLE OF MADAGASCAR — A Malay race;
divisions; the Hova, Bara, Ikongo, Sakalava, and other
tribes; descriptions by travellers 265-288

CHAPTER XIII

THE NEGRO IN GENERAL— THE BANTU
NEGROES

Physical features; dress and ornaments; tattooing;
weapons; dwellings; food; social organisation; character;

industries; religion; classification. HOTTF.NTOTS — His-
tory; distinctive features; customs; rites; folklore;
language. THE OVA-HEHEHO — History; physical traits;
clothing; industries; superstitions. KAFFIUS — History
and general description. HKCHTAVAS — Boundaries, hi.s-
tory, ami various tribes, Zri.rs — A powerful and war-
like race. MATABILI — Location; description; their great
dance (Inj-iraln). MASHONAH — Peaceful and industrious;
skilled smiths. PEOPLE OF LORENZO MARQUEZ — Four
groups in Portuguese territories. ANOONI AND MAKOLOLO
— Angoni are hybrid Zulus; their migration; a disturbing
(.lenient; lust for carnage; Makololo led and armed by
Livingstone. NATIVES OF XYASAI.AXD — Made known by
Sir Harry Johnston; good agriculturists; fetishism and
witchcraft; unique burial custom 289-31 2

CHAPTER XIV

THK BANTU OF EASTERN AND WESTERN
AFRICA

THE PEOPLE OF MOZAMBIQUE — Wayao and Yao; char-
acteristics; Livingstone's servant. WAXKOXDE — Origin
of their name; Lugard's description. \\A\VA\IWEZI —
A group of highland tribes. WAZAUAMO — Described by
Burton. WADOA — Once powerful; tribal mark; former
brutality. WAKHUTU, WASAGARA, AND WAGOGO — Pe-
culiar traits; " a curtain of pigtails "; Wagogo in-
congruities. SfAHii.i — A hybrid race; Arab influence;
widespread language. WAGIHYAMA — Agriculturists;
stockaded villages; extreme fetish-worship. WAPOKOMO
• — An isolated race; scanty dress; secret rites and charms;
" Old Man of the Woods " propitiated; women favoured.
WAKAMHA — On the Uganda Railway; keen traders;
men's teeth "filed into pointed fangs"; family kraals;
common property; elders and chiefs; religion. PEOPLE
OF UGANDA AND ALLIES — State and government; ob-
servations of Speke. Lugard, and Baker. WAGANDA —
1'osition and population; King Mtesa; complete clothing;
Christian missions; former despotic barbarism. WASOGA
— A superior type; decent dress; polygamy; agriculture.
WANYORO — Feudalism; King Kabaregga; burial of a
king. MONBUTTU, OB MANGBATTU — Peculiar physical
characters; monarchy; metal- and wood-working; pottery;
women agriculturists. BANTU OF WESTERN AFRICA —
Three groups; foreign influence; the Bakongo give name
to Congo River; Johnston on Congo types; Stanley tells
of African shrewdness; Miss Kingsley's religious classifica-
tion; various tribes and nations 313—336

CHAPTER XV

EQUATORIAL AND NILOTIC NEGROES

THE ASHIRA, OKANDA, APINGI, APONO, ISHOGO, AND
ASHANGO — Bantu of the French Congo; interesting facts
regarding appearance, dress, homes, manners and customs,
occupations, etc.; striking descriptions by Du Chaillu.
THE KIKUYU, AZANDEH or NIAM-NIAM, and FANS —
Negroes of the Equatorial Belt; characteristics; manners;
marriage customs; religious beliefs, etc. THE DINKA,
DYUR, BONGO, LATUKA, MASAI, NJEMPSIANS, NEGROES
OF KAVIRONDO, LANGO NATION — All classed as Nilotic
Negroes; studies of each, covering geography, ethnology,
appearance, dress, homes, manners and customs, social
systems, industries, etc 337-360

CHAPTER XVI

THE SOUDANESE AND GUINEA NEGROES,

AND THE ABYSSINIAN AND ETHIOPIC

GROUPS

THE MANDINGO, TIMNI, AND KRU — Commercial su-
premacy of the Mandingo; written alphabet; Mendi tribe;
secret societies; Liberians; the name Kru; usefulness of
the Kru. THE FANTI AND ASHANTI — Described and com-

pared: the Fanti a tribe of village communities; the
Ashanti state ruled by a king; fetishism; circumcision;
religious cannibalism; moon-worship; totemism; families
Darned after animals and plants. DAHO.MEYANS — Chief
people of the Ewe group; King Gelele; Amazon corps;
human sacrifices; the Grand Custom. THE YORUBA —
Tradition of their descent; culture. THE EGBA — A
Negroid type; nose-ornament; tattooing; a large city;
mud houses; culture; religion; trade castes. GALLAS— A
Caucasian race; beautiful women; varied industries;
Gallas mainly Pagans. DA.-.'AKIL— A Hamitic people,
handsome, brave, and independent; revenue from salt
lakes. SOMALI— Hamitic; defects and merits; weapons;
Somali mostly Mohammedans; two main divisions.
ABYSSINIANS— Full description of this ancient, powerful,
and interesting people and their kingdom, and of their
peculiar form of Christianity. FALASHAS — One of the
most remarkable races in Abyssinia; their claim of Jewish
descent; social system; religion — a kind of debased
Judaism 361-384

CHAPTER XVII

THE HAMITIC AND SEMITIC RACES OF
NORTH AFRICA

THE TIBBTJS, TUAREGS, FULAH, AND tLvussA — Peoples
of the Sahara and Soudan; varied information regarding
their geographical, ethnological, physical, and mental
history, social systems, customs, beliefs, etc. PEOPLES
OF THE CENTRAL SOUDAN — Four states — Bornu, Baghirmi,
Wadai, and Darfur; characteristics of the various popu-
lations. THE COPTS, FELLAHIN, NUBIANS, BEJA,ABABDEH,
NUBA, AND DONGOLAWI — Peoples of Egypt and Nubia;
graphic accounts of each race and tribe; the Coptic
Church. THE BERBERS, NORTH AFRICAN ARABS, AND
MOORS — Moorish culture, costume, architecture, customs,
and religion 385-408

CHAPTER XVIII

EUROPE: RUSSIA, CAUCASIA, FINLAND, LAP-
LAND, NORWAY, SWEDEN, AND ICELAND

RUSSIA — Empire; peasants; vapour baths — experience
of Sir I). Mackenzie Wallace; general character and cus-
toms of Russians; illustrative anecdotes; lu'story; serfdom;
costume; food; beer and rodka; a peasant meal; smoking
by men and women; influence of Tolstoi and other writers;
humanity and hospitality; the State Church. CAUCASIA —
Various races; Svans; Lesghians; Georgians; Circassians;
Bryce on the " splendid " Georgians; Georgian beauties;
Circassian ladies; Circassian men, according to Barkley,
" magnificent"; mental incapacity of Circassians. FIN-
LAND— Finns a non-Aryan group; Swedish blood; the
Kalevala, their national epic; people mainly Lutherans.
LAPLAND — Mostly within the Arctic Circle; political rela-
tions; the name Lapland; population; shortest people in
Europe; description of them from recent study. NORWAY,
SWEDEN, AND ICELAND — Homes of the larger part of the
Scandinavian or Norse branch of the Teutonic stock;
peoples described, showing their distinctive traits, racial
resemblances, and national variations 40&-432

CHAPTER XIX

GREECE AND ISLES, TURKEY, BULGARIA,
RUMANIA, SERVIA, MONTENEGRO, BOS-
NIA-HERZEGOVINA, AUSTRIA-HUNGARY,
THE GYPSIES

GREECE AND ISLES — Geography; modem Greeks;
traits; language; social life; symbolism; ceremony;
marriages; burials; Albanians. TURKEY — European
Turks; race; physical type; mode of life; dress; birth and
marriage customs; indifference toward death. BUL-
GARIA— Territory and population; Mongolo-Tartar origin;

living Bulgarians; government and religion. RUMANIA —
Kingdom and people; Gypsies; French manners; lax
morals; costume; diet; dwellings; women in field work;
national dance (hora). SERVIA — Geography; a stalwart
race; poor dwellings; democracy; education; piety. MON-
TENEGHO — People " the flower of the Slav race"; interest-
ing account. BOSNIA-HEBZEGOVINA — Turkish provinces,
administered by Austria; one race and language; de-
scription and comparisons. AUSTRIA-HUNGARY — Dual
monarchy a political expression; variety of races; charac-
teristics; descriptions by Brown and Ratzel; remarkable
wedding ceremony. GYPSIES — Most numerous in Cen-
tral Europe; of Hindu origin; first appearance in Europe;
traits, habits, beliefs; Bosnian Gypsies described by
Tissot 433-456

CHAPTER XX

GERMANY, SWITZERLAND, ITALY, FRANCE,
SPAIN, AND PORTUGAL

GERMANY — Teutonic stock; population; High and Low
Germans: Swabians; ethnology and races; the State; the
army; education; mental traits; loyalty; family affection;
music; sentimentality; frugality; class distinctions; do-
mestic life; amusements and exercises; duelling; religion.
SWITZERLAND — Origins; main groups; government; char-
acteristics; education; industries; independence. ITALY
— Present states; racial elements; various features of
Italian life; religion. FRANCE — Prehistoric people; Ro-
mans; invading tribes; two physical types; mental quality;
the bourgeoisie; changes in government; education; sexes;
peasants; religion. SPAIN — Territory and government;
ethnology; Basques, Moors, etc.; physical type; character;
Spanish ladies; present condition of country and people.
PORTUGAL — Position and population; Moorish influence;
Jewish types; character; gayety; music; frugality; in-
dustries 457^80

CHAPTER XXI

DENMARK, BELGIUM, HOLLAND, GREAT
BRITAIN AND IRELAND

DENMARK — Physical features of the Danes; modified
Germanic traits; Malte-Brun's portrait of the people;
surprising progress; " paradise of peasant-proprietors";
superior agriculture; butter-factories of co-operative
associations; thoroughness of education; " best-instructed
people in Europe"; individualism and social rank; no-
bility numerous and poor; abolition of serfdom. State
Church. BELGIUM— Most densely populated European
country; ancient Belga; present population; Flemings
and Walloons; French and Flemish languages; charac-
teristics graphically portrayed; Belgians in history and
in the twentieth century; religious festivals; backward-
ness of education. HOLLAND — Teutonic hordes; Franks
and Saxons; refuge for the persecuted; country and popu-
lation; Dutch character and life; Golden Age of Holland;
Hallam's tribute; great men; Thorold Rogers on the re-
volt of the Netherlands; ancient and modern customs;
religious elements. ENGLAND — The English race; various
constituents; Huxley's conclusions; Caesar's account of
primitive inhabitants; Romans and Britons; Scandinavian
and Teutonic elements; physical traits of the English;
historical development of character; Ralph Waldo Emer-
son's estimate. WALES — Distinct nationality; early in-
dependence; physical and mental types; language and
literature; Eisteddfods; music; Christianity in Wales.
SCOTLAND — Highlanders and Lowlanders; Scandinavians;
family pride; the clans; Gaelic tongue; folklore, supersti-

tions, and " second sight"; crofters of the Hebrides; per-
sistence of ancient land tenure; Sir Henry Maine on
patriarchal succession; religious bodies. IRELAND — De-
crease of population; Celtic stock; Teutonic element; the
typical Irishman; Brown's summary of physical traits;
temperament and character; the Irish in other lands;
peasants; high regard for women; Erse and English
tongues; early history; giving back the lover's promise;
belief in fairies; wedding masks and dances; the "wake";
Roman Catholic and Protestant churches. THE ISLE OF
MAN — Mixed races; language; superstitions of Manxmen;
government 481-504

CHAPTER XXII

ARCTIC AMERICA AND GREENLAND

Origins, classification, and location of the various tribes;
physical characteristics; civilisation; clothing; homes;
weapons; domestic animals; industries; peculiar manners
and customs; religious beliefs; a compact and compre-
hensive account of the primitive peoples of these regions,
from the most recent observations of ethnologists and
travellers, with many curious incidents and descriptions
illustrative of life in hyperborean climes 505-528

CHAPTER XXIII

NORTH AMERICA

Indians on the American continent when Columbus
came; their disappearance; North American Indians;
their present " reserves"; extermination of the bison or
buffalo; original native isolation; physical uniformity;
linguistic variations; detailed description of American
aborigines; Mongoloid resemblances; main stocks; homes,
habits, weapons, occupations, cultures, character, cus-
toms, superstitions, etc., fully treated, with citations from
eminent scientific authorities and narrators 529-552

CHAPTER XXIV

CENTRAL AND SOUTH AMERICA (IN-
CLUDING MEXICO)

Preliminary survey. CENTRAL AMERICA — Countries
included; most interesting groups; ancient tribes; Aztecs,
Mayas, Queches, Pocomans; Maya-Quiche civilisation;
system of reckoning time; native calendars. THE
GUIANAS AND VENEZUELA — Break between north and
south; former West Indian links; three great groups of
Venezuela and the Guianas; ethnology, homes, relations,
physical and mental traits, condition, dress, habits, in-
dustries, etc.; houses on poles; self-torture; Arawak clan
system; the couvade; burials; feasts and national beverage
(paiwari). BRAZIL, PARAGUAY, ETC. — Historical, et lino-
logical, and comparative description of the principal
stock-groups; Christianised Guarani. NORTHERN ANDES —
Natives once highly civilised; the region termed by
Keane " the cultural zone"; Muyscas, Incas, and other
peoples. SOUTHERN CHILI AND ARGENTINA — " Warrior
people"; multiplicity of tribes; spirits in the Milky Way;
Gauchos, or half-breeds; expert horsemen; Hudson de-
scribes the Indian and his horse; Patagonians; Darwin and
Musters tell of them; their great stature; large boots may
have given rise to their Spanish name; various charac-
teristics and customs. TIERRA DEL FUEGO — Typical
Fuegians; various views by different observers; as seen by
Darwin; strange sounds of their language 553-576

INDEX, ETC 577-584

INTRODUCTION.

RECENT years have witnessed a great growth of interest among the people of this
in the more distant races of mankind. Until lately our relations with the rest
world seemed so remote
and accidental that colonial
expansion was a fact for
which statesmen were al-
most apologetic. Our views
of foreign polities rarely
extended beyond the Con-
tinent of Europe, and we
were content for the most
part that they should be
directed, without criticism,
by the experts in Downing
Street. The attention of
the nation was mainly
directed to internal affairs,
local government, taxation,
and the electorate. A great
change has now taken

place. The rise of new,

and the decline of old,

powers; the stress of com-
mercial competition ; the

extraordinary expansion of

Greater Britain, and the

" pin -pricks " inflicted

upon some of its long

limbs by Continental rivals;

the improved facilities for

travel; the books of certain

popular writers; and, above

all, the growth of the im-
perial spirit called forth by

country
of the

Photo by t fie t'fap]n*t Monastery, M<tn<u>n I/itl* Natal,
A SWAZI WARRIOR.

11

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

the celebration of the Diamond Jubilee of the Empress-Queen, — have awakened Englishmen
and Englishwomen to the fact that their island-home is but a small piece of the world,
or even of the British Empire. We have begun to realise that the most promising fields
of enterprise for our ever-increasing community, the most profitable markets for our wares,
may some day be found in places which are now the darkesb corners of the earth; and
that the half-clothed savage, just emerging from the brute condition, is a human being
capable of being educated, in the near future, into a customer for British trade and a
contributor to the world's wealth. The confidence of the British merchant, nursed in
a period of prolonged peace, has been rudely shaken by the successful rivalry of other

nations, which attach more im-
portance to commercial educa-
tion. It is now perceived that,
if we are to maintain a great
Imperial Policy and a lasting
supremacy in trade, it must be
through a better understanding
of the needs and characteristics
of the various peoples with
whom we are brought in contact.
It is of the highest im-
portance that the British public,
and especially those who are
responsible for moulding its
opinions and directing its affairs,
should possess the widest possible
knowledge of the peoples and
races included in its great and
worldwide empire. Sad mistakes
have resulted from our ignorance,
mistakes for which we have
suffered severely. Everything
should be done to popularise
the study of Ethnology; but,
unfortunately, we are in this
respect as yet far behind some
other nations.

A work like the present
is, therefore, urgently called for
at the present moment. What
is required is not a scientific

Pltoto btj \V. & 1}. Downey.

KRAO.

'Krao,1' whose photograph \ve here reproduce, was a very hairy female child, from the
forest of Laos, Burma, about six or seven years of age, and was exhibited in 1888 and
in 1887 at the Koyal Aquarium, London. The opinion was widely entertained at the
time that Krao possessed ape-like peculiarities inherited from wild parents, and
therefore might be regarded as a " Missing Link." The newspapers helped to spread
this mistaken view. The report by Dr. J. G. Gflrson, published in the British
Medical Journal, January 6, 1883, slio\yed conclusively that extreme hairiness was
almost the only peculiarity exhibited in Krao. Her parents did not possess this
feature. Fourteen or more cases of extreme hairiness are on record ; they may
possibly be cases of " Atavism,11 or reversion to a low ape-like ancestor of the tinman
race, but this view cannot yet be demonstrated. In some cases, as in that of "Julia
Pastrana " (p. v), the arrangement of the teeih is abnormal.

INTRODUCTION

in

treatise on Ethnology — a science as yet in
its infancy, and presenting many problems
that can only be solved by long and patient
accumulation of facts — but a thoroughly
popular book, presenting information in a
concise and readable form. The subject
is so vast that it has been found necessary
to exclude very much matter which, how-
ever interesting to the student, did not
appear to help the end in view. Hence
the text which accompanies the large series
of illustrations here presented deals chiefly
with the physical features of the races of
mankind, their clothing, ornaments, food,
dwellings, weapons, habits, and customs,
especially those connected with birth,
marriage, and death; their modes of
thought and mental characteristics; not
omitting their games, sports, and pastimes.
A few statistics of population, race, and
religion have been added for the sake of
completeness.

It is not possible to enumerate here

the many valuable papers in geographical and other journals to which the writers are
largely indebted, nor to the many important books of travel by which our knowledge has
been so vastly increased of late years. The works of Lieutenant Peary, Dr. Sven Hedin,
Dr. Gregory, Sir Harry Johnston, Stanley, Nansen, Youughusband, and others, have been of
the greatest service to ethnologists, and the writers have freely drawn upon the latest and
fullest sources of information.

With a view to simplicity, and the avoidance of the difficult problems of race-relation-
ship, the various peoples described are treated from a geographical standpoint. To a large
extent the geographical arrangement agrees with the purely ethnographical classification.
Nearly all races, however, are mixed, there being few pure types anywhere. All the ingenious
schemes of classification as yet put forward by ethnologists are provisional and temporary;
but it is convenient to retain the use of such familiar terms as Caucasian, Mongolian,
Polynesian, Negro, Negrito, and Papuan.

In the illustration of this subject an entirely new departure has been taken, and the
author and publishers claim to have produced a work which is unique. Pictures, or wood-
engravings, may sometimes be prettier, but they can never be so absolutely trustworthy as the
products of the camera, which show us the natives of other climes as they live in th'eir

J'/io/o liij H". it 1). Downey.

iv THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

natural surroundings, their dress (or want of it), their weapons, dwellings, and the tattoo-marks
on their bodies, or the flesh-wounds and scars of which Australians — and some negroes — seem
so proud. Such a collection of photographs from life — carefully selected so as to avoid half-
castes, or very mixed types, as far as it is possible— can never be entirely superseded, even
when artists of the camera discover their philosopher's stone — photography in colour. Many
standard works on Ethnology are disfigured by engravings which are far from accurate, and in
some cases are nothing less than parodies of the people they profess to portray. Even when
a woodcut is prepared directly "from a photograph," it cannot always be trusted. However
excellent the photograph may be, the engraver often entirely fails to interpret it. lie has
not studied anatomy, or the different types of human physiognomy, and to him there is very
little difference between a Polynesian or a Papuan and an African negro. If the illustrations
in so admirable and scientific a work as Ratzel's "History of Mankind" sometimes fail to
convey a true idea of the type, some others, well known to the public, are far worse. The
photographs here reproduced have been selected from a large collection gathered together
with much labour by the author from professional and amateur photographers at home and
abroad. Full acknowledgment of his obligations to many friends in connection with this work
cannot be made here. In order to get as many good photographs as possible, he has visited
the ethnographical collections of Paris, Leyden, Hamburg, Dresden, and Leipzig, besides Oxford
and Cambridge. The ethnologists of these universities have rendered much valuable assistance.

The plan adopted is to deal first with Polynesia and Australia, passing on to the East
Indies and Malay Peninsula. This affords a convenient bridge to the Continent of Asia,
each country being dealt with in turn. The races of Africa will next be described; then we
pass on to Europe, and finally to North and South America.

The writer has, in previous works, expressed his acceptance of the doctrine of Evolution,
and he can see no sufficient reason for refusing to believe that Man has ascended from some
humbler type; more than this he cannot say, because scientific problems would be out
of place in the present work.

In conclusion, the writer is greatly indebted to his friends Dr. J. W. Gregory and
Mr. Lydekker for the very kind way in which they have assisted him to carry out his task.
Dr. Gregory, whose wide knowledge of the subject is derived both from his own travels and
from his extensive study of the subject, has written the six chapters dealing with the African
races; whilst Mr. Lydekker, who is so well known by his writings and researches on Natural
History, Palaeontology, and Anthropology, has kindly contributed the chapters dealing with the
races of North, Central, and South America.

H. N. HUTCHINSON.

,

JULIA PASTRANA.

From a photo in the posst^ion of the Atithrojiological Institute, London.

'Julia Pastrana," whose photograph we reproduce above, was horn in Mexico, and died in the year I860, after giving
liirth to a child, at Moscow. Both bodies were embalmed and preserved In that city, being at present in Praiischer's
Mut<eum. Her upper eye-teeth and incisors are missing.

\ >\ > l,' i> e * n * t am. <*

A--\U--S--T-A-R---A--:VL\-— I-- A-:--

MAP SIIOW1NU U1STBIBUT10N

— Straight-haired, ligkt-lrovm Race.
(Malays, pure or mixed with Chinese,
and Indians.)

Crisp -haired, dark-brown Race.

(Melanesiane, Papuans, and Negritos.)

Wa vy~haired, brown Race.

{Separate, or mired with the two above named ;
Esi&t Malays, so-called Alfurs, Polynesians, and
Australians.)

EWi A ?.tf\LAND

170 •*>

, i—

XHK BACilS OK TUB PACIFIC OCEAN

uMivr t

Photo by Josiah Martin. Auckland. \ew Zenlnnd.

A MAN OF FIJI, WITH NECKLACE OF CACHALOT TEETH.
Viii

, tiydnty.

RACES OF MANKIND.

CHAPTER I.

FIJI IS'LANDS, POLYNESIANS, POLYNESIAN RELIGION, TONGA OR FRIENDLY
ISLANDS, SAMOA, HERVEY ISLANDS, SOCIETY ISLANDS, P1TCAIRN
ISLAND, AND SANDWICH ISLANDS.

FIJI ISLANDS.

THE inhabitants of Fiji — a group of more than two hundred islands in the South Pacific — are
properly classified as Papuans; but since they form a sort of link between the Papuans and
the Polynesians, it is convenient to describe them first before treating of their neighbours
on the east and west. They have greatly declined in numbers since white men brought them
the vices and the diseases of civilisation. In 1859 the population of the islands was esti-
mated at 200,000; and in 1897, 122,000. Of this last number about 100,000 were Fijians,
and 2,300 Polynesians. The people are dark-coloured, frizzly-haired, tall, and muscular;
altogether a decidedly fine race. Some of them exceed a height of six feet. Their com-
plexion varies from dark brown to the chocolate colour of the Papuan. Their features are
more regular than those of the latter. They use the bow and arrow, and also make
pottery, both of which arts are foreign to the true Polynesian.

The men of Fiji devote a great deal of time and attention to dressmg their hair. Nearly
every chief has a hairdresser, who operates upon him every day, sometimes for several hours.
The reader will gather from our illustrations some idea of the effect produced. The hair is
naturally strong and somewhat wiry, and therefore capable of retaining its position at a
distance of more than six inches from the head. Its frizzly nature is due to each individual
hair being elliptical instead of circular in cross section, and thus tending to twist. As might
be expected, much ingenuity is expended in devising different methods of dressing the hair.
It is dyed in various colours — black, red (in several shades), and ashy white. A chief sometimes

i

2 THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

protects his enormous mop of hair by a kind of turban, made of very delicate bark-cloth
(masi), nearly as thin as gauze. This bark-cloth is also used for dress, being wrapped round
the body so as to form a loin-cloth, and to fall behind in a kind of sash and in front like
an apron. The women wear a broad band of beautifully variegated braid work, also made of
bark-fibre. This garment, known as the liku, is fastened round the waist with a fringe
hanging from the lower edge at least three inches. Young girls wear very narrow fringe,
and at the time of marriage this is increased in depth until it reaches half-way down to
the knees, and it entirely surrounds the body. On becoming a mother, the woman wears an
apron reaching down to the knees, or rather lower. Formerly paint was largely used for
decorating the person, the favourite colours being black, white, and red. Some of the dandies
favoured very piquant devices. They are all fond of wearing flowers, weaving them into

Photo by Henry King]

A GRASS HOUSE, FIJI.

[George Street, Sydney.

strings, and passing them like belts over the shoulder and under the arm; also as chaplets
for the head. Tattooing was until recently practised, but almost exclusively by the women,
whose fringe, or apron, hid most of it, except when the fingers or the corners of the mouth
were tattooed. In the matter of ornaments the Fijians are not very lavish, and do not load
themselves as some of the Papuan tribes do. The frontispiece shows a man wearing a
necklet of the curved teeth of the cachalot, or sperm whale, more or less cut into a square
shape at the base, and probably derived from young whales. In other cases, however, bits
of tortoise-shell, dogs' teeth, or the jaws of the bat are used. A large breast-ornament of
pearl-shell is sometimes worn. The ear-ornaments are often of great size, so that it is necessary
to stretch the lobe of the ear round the ornament, as in the case of the Solomon Islanders.
The ornament itself may be a white cowry, a cylinder, disk, or large ring — some of the
rings being as much as ten inches in diameter. The natives often used to mark their bodies

Photo by Underwood & Underwood] {New York.

"CANNIBAL TOM," THE LAST UELIC OF CANNIBALISM IN TIIE FIJI ISLANDS.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

with scars, as the Australians dc
to this day. Finger-rings, armlets,
and anklets are still worn, but the
old native customs in dress are
rapidly dying out.

The Fijians have an abundant
supply of food. From the sea they
obtain plenty of fish, turtles (of
which they are very foad), crabs,
and shell-fish. The soil produces
yams, tomatoes, bananas, cocoanuts,
and bread-fruit in considerable
quantity. An intoxicating drink
is produced from the root of a tree
of the pepper tribe (Piper metltys-
ficum). They are very fond of
feasting and giving entertainments
on a large scale, and on these
occasions their manners are ex-
tremely polite, and the utmost
good-feeling prevails. Everything
is done according to a strict code
of etiquette; indeed, there is no
part of the world where etiquette
is carried to a greater extent, or
where it is more intimately inter-
woven with every action of ordinary
life.

Photo by josiak Martin] [Auckland, Xcw z,.«ian<t. There are various modes of

NATIVES MAKING FiBE, FIJI. salutation, which differ according to

circumstances. When two people of equal rank meet early in the day, the correct phrase
is "Awake!" or "You are awake!" Whereas in the evening they will say, "Sleep!" or
"Go to sleep!" When the master of a house receives a visitor from a distance, he claps his
hands three or four times, exclaiming, "Come with peace from your home." In offering a
present they modestly remark, " I have nothing to offer you but this gift as an expression
of my love for your children." Every kind of present must be offered in some set form
of words, varying according to the nature of the gift.

Although the Fijians may be said to be in many respects a civilised people, yet within
recent times they displayed a most reckless disregard of the sanctity of human life, and
cannibalism was practised on a very large scale. Almost incredible cruelties took place in
connection with their cannibal feasts, and even natives who professed to be converted
to Christianity were liable at times to break out and revert to the old customs. King
Thakomban, for example, became nominally a Christian; but on visiting in his war-canoe
a district under his rule, he was invited to walk through a double row of living victims
— men, women, and children of all ages — suspended by their feet, and placed there so
that he might choose those which were most to his fancy. The king, notwithstanding
his recent profession of Christianity, fell in with the local customs, and condescended to
accept this horrible offering, touching with his club those unfortunate wretches whom
he thus marked out for slaughter. Cannibalism was so ingrained in their nature that
some individuals proudly boasted of the number of human bodies they had consumed,
and one chief, who had "beaten the record," as we should say, was held in great respect,
and received the nickname of the " Turtle-pond," thus comparing him with a pond in which

[Auckland, Xtw Zealand.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

many turtles are kept. This man adopted a curious way of keeping his record. Every
time he consumed a human body he set up a stone, and it is said that when he died
his son counted no fewer than 900 stones. Human flesh was considered the greatest luxury,
and friends and relatives were occasionally sacrificed. At great feasts sometimes as many
as twenty human bodies were cooked. Slaves were kept for the purpose; but when a
chief demanded "long pig" nobody was safe, because his attendants would rush out and
kill the first person they happened to meet. The women were very seldom permitted to
partake of human flesh.

The reader is probably aware that the practice of cannibalism is not based simply on the
appetite for human flesh, and that the idea underlying this revolting custom, in all parts of
the world in which it has been practised, is that when a man eats another man he assimilates
the victim's qualities, it may be physical strength, courage, cleverness, or cunning. Hence it
was considered highly desirable to catch a brave enemy and to eat him, in order to partake
cf his bravery.

It is not surprising to learn that years ago human sacrifices were very frequent,
and often on a large scale. Every important event was attended by one or more
sacrifices. When a chief built a war-canoe, numbers of slaves and others were sacrificed
in order to bring "good luck." A big canoe belonging to a chief was dragged along
to the sea over the bodies of a number of men lying side by side to act as rollers. Of
course they were killed by the weight of the canoe; and afterwards their bodies were
baked and eaten. Like "Koko," in Mr. Gilbert's delightful Japanese opera, some chiefs
kept "a little list" secretly of people to whom they were not particularly attached; and
when the occasion demanded "long pig," some of these black-list men were sacrificed
without any warning.

The Fijians, like many other primitive people, have no fear of death. In heathen times,

Photo by Tlios. Andrew]

A QUIET GAME OF SPELLICANS (VAVA, TONGA ISLANDS).

[Apia, Samoa.

FIJI ISLANDS

I'holu btj Josiuh Mat'ii" \ [Auckland, New Zealand.

THE KING OF THE TONGA ISLANDS.

when a man became feeble from old age,
or any other cause, he asked his sons
to strangle him. Indeed, this act was
considered a filial duty. To be strangled
by one's children, or to be buried alive
by them, was considered a highly honour-
able way of dying. The people being
of a really affectionate nature were un-
willing to see their parents dragging
out a useless existence; death was con-
sidered preferable to infirmity, for these
people firmly believed that their condition
after death in the spirit world would be
entirely dependent on their state at
death. Therefore, however strange and
cruel such a practice may appear when
judged by our own standards, it may be
considered as simply the logical con-
sequence of firmly rooted ideas. ID
judging of the manners and customs of
alien races, it is only fair to make great
allowances for their idiosyncrasies, and to
remember always that their standpoint
is generally very different from ours.

In old days, when a chief died,
many of his slaves and favourite wives were strangled, in order that they might still continue
to attend him in the next life. One might have supposed that the women would have
objected to this practice; but so far from that being the case, they died quite willingly, in
the belief that they were securing for themselves a happy and honourable life in the next
world. Custom demanded that they should not survive their husbands, and any woman
refusing to die would only have found herself condemned to a miserable life of neglect
and insult. Such practices were common in Britain in prehistoric times, as is proved by
the researches of archreologists who have explored British barrows; and the reader is probably
aware that the same ideas prevailed not long ago in India, when suttee was practised, and
women offered themselves willingly, often lighting the funeral pyre with their own hands.
Again, in China, women frequently preferred death to widowhood.

A missionary was once invited by a young man of Fiji to attend the funeral of his
mother, and great was his surprise on joining the funeral procession to see the old lady taking
part in it, and cheerfully walking to her grave. It is related in " Erskine's Journal" that a
certain young man, on becoming very thin and weak from illness, expressed a desire to be
buried, because he was afraid the girls would laugh at him and call him a skeleton. Accord-
ingly his father buried him alive; but when the young man requested to be first strangled,
he was scolded and told to be quiet, and be buried like other people, and give no more
trouble.

The Fijian women are simply the domestic slaves of their husbands,' and they perform a
great deal of hard labour. The daughter of a chief is usually betrothed early in life. Should
her intended husband refuse to carry out the contract, it is considered a great insult, and
becomes the cause of a serious quarrel, sometimes leading to blows. Should the young man
die before the girl is grown up, then his next brother takes his place, and the child is
betrothed to him. If a young man wishes to marry a certain girl, he must obtain her father's
permission. This having been granted, he makes her a small present. Shortly afterwards he
sends to her house some food prepared by himself; this is the ceremony known as "Warming."

8

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

GROUP OF TONGA MEN ON BOARD H.M.S. "CHALLENGER."

Taken (luting the Scientific Exiierlition of 1872-6. Published by llorsburgh & Son, Edin-
burgh. Oomrmnent Copyright.

For four days the girl enjoys
a brief holiday, sitting at
home arrayed in her best,
and painted with turmeric
and oil; she is then taken
to the sea by some married
women, and all set to work
to catch fish. As soon as
the cooking of what they
have caught is finished, the
young man is sent for, and
the betrothed couple par-
take of a meal together.
Some little interval follows,
during which the future
husband is busily occupied
in building the new home.
On the completion of the
house a great feast takes
place. On the bride's de-
parture from home her
friends and relatives make
a great fuss, all showing
their affection by kissing
her.

The Fijians are by
nature very superstitious. A
Frenchman who visited them

some years ago relates that the natives of a certain island in the group evinced great
emotion the first time that they saw a European smoking a cigar. Great was the
excitement, and people were hastily summoned by their chiefs to come and see this
extraordinary spectacle. To them the white man with his cigar was a god, burning internally!
There was no room for doubt, because smoke came out of his mouth!

The people have of late years abandoned all their old barbaric customs. This great
change is entirely due to missionary enterprise. As far back as the year 1835 the Wesleyans
established a mission in the archipelago, and probably there are few places in the Pacific
Ocean where missionary effort has been more successful, or its fruits more visible. Native
teachers and ministers are trained for the work. In 1891 there were as many as 914
Wesleyau chapels, with a large number of native teachers, and about 100,000 followers.
The Eoman Catholics also have a numerous following, and twenty European Sisters are
engaged in teaching the girls. The children nearly all attend school. The Church of
England lias two churches, one in Suva and one in Levnka. The islands have been under
British rule since 1874, and the state of things at the present day offers a marvellous contrast
to the pictures drawn by the earlier travellers.

POLYNESIANS.

PROCEEDING eastwards from Fiji, we pass over the boundary-line that separates tne dark
frizzly-haired Papuans from the brown Polynesians, who inhabit most of the Pacific islands.
The Polynesians are certainly of a distinct race; but for all that the term Polynesian implies
a purely arbitrary division, not founded upon geographical or racial distinctions. Polynesia

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THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

itself is not a distinct unit. The people who inhabit New Zealand belong to the same race.
Although the Polynesians are all of one stock, and speak dialects of a common language, jet
they are far from being unmixed. However, the term is in general use, and has been
found to be more or less convenient. The Polynesians, according to universal testimony, are
one of the very finest races in the whole world. In their habits they are clean and tidy,
with a sense of order and neatness never found among barbarous peoples. The reader will
perceive, on examining our illustrations, that the type of face shows a marked approach to
that of the European. The hair, always an important feature in determining race, is dark
brown or black, smooth and curly, and quite unlike the frizzly hair of the Papuan, or the
perfectly straight black hair of the Malay. As a rule the Polynesians have not much beard.
In stature they are fully equal to Europeans. Unlike the Malay, their disposition is cheerful,
and they are fond of dancing, singing, and all kinds of amusements.

One of their games resembles draughts, but is not so simple. Perhaps it is the same
game as that which, as we see from the frescoes on temple and tomb, was played ages ago
by Egyptian Pharaohs and their wives. The board has 238 squares, divided into rows of
fourteen. Another game is to hide a stone in a piece of cloth and try to find it by
hitting with a stick; here betting is the chief excitement. Cricket has been introduced by
Englishmen, and the late Robert Louis Stevenson said that in Samoa, where he lived,
cricket matches used to be played by whole villages, some hundreds on a side, so that a
game sometimes lasted for weeks! At length the waste of time and cost of entertaining the
visitors reached such a pitch that the chiefs interfered. Ball games are very popular. In

the Hawaiian game called lain, a wheel-
shaped stone (maik«) is thrown as far
as possible; and players have been known
to stake all their property, their wives
and children, their arm- and leg-bones
(after death), and at last even their own
persons, on one throw. Boys and girls
get np races among themselves — not
separately, for the girls can run as well
as the boys. In Tahiti and in Hawaii
surf-swimming is a favourite pastime.
Children have toy-boats. New Zealanders
are very fond of flying kites. Games
with the fingers also are common.

POLYNESIAN RELIGION.

"ANIMISM," universal animation, or the
endowing of all things with a soul, is
the foundation of all Polynesian religion.
But we must guard against misinter-
preting the words "spirit" and "soul,"
as the terms are used here. " Soul "
generally means "life," a sense also
found in the Hebrew Psalms. In Tahiti,
the term for " spirit " extends to the
squeaking of rats, or the talk of children
in their sleep! Everything has its soul,
be it a tree, a stone, an implement, or
an animal. Thus arose the primitive

i'hoto by Mi'. J. J. Li*tf/\ St. John's folkf/e^ C(tlilbri<.l(jK.
A GIRL OF THE TONGA ISLANDS.

POLYNESIAN RELIGION

1 1

Pantheism of Oceanica. At/in indicates
the spiritual in its widest sense. Tne
word may be used more generically, iis
Mann Is used by Solomon Islanders. In
this lower sense it is a power or influence
expressing itself in any kind of force or
superiority which a man may possess.
It can be transferred to anything. Spirits
possess this coveted influence, whether
they be the souls of dead people or of
some beings of a higher grade. Tutelary
spirits (or deities) have an important
place; their inspiration is desired because
they are supposed to have learnt much
from the gods of the upper regions.
Should they not come willingly to
man's assistance, they must be con-
strained by prayers, sacrifices, and
incantations. But Animism often de-
generates into pure beast-worship. Thus
in the Mortlock Islands the bastard
mackerel curanx is reverenced as the
god of war.

The souls of old departed chiefs
take rank as gods, to be invoked by
prayer and sacrifice. As living men on
earth are divided into different grades,
so are spirits. A chief's spirit at once
takes a higher place than that of an
ordinary person. Some say chiefs go to
the stars, while others wait about on
the earth. Thus we see how gods originate. Heroic men are deified. The chief god of the
Gilbert Islanders was formerly a chief; now he is Hai, living above the clouds. The
legends that relate to the origin of the gods show that they were once men, and that
all religion originated by a slow evolution from the worship of ghosts. This is the view
generally held by anthropologists, but it has been ably controverted by Mr. Andrew Lang
in his recent work on "The Making of Religion." Some spirits never were human, and so
take at once a higher rank. With spiritual beings abounding everywhere, every aspect of
nature meets with a ready explanation, and thus thousands of nature-gods who are merely
localised spirits come into existence. A score or so of them rule the sea; others employ
great blue sharks to execute vengeance. In certain places sharks are fed on fish and pigs,
until they get into the habit of approaching the shore at certain times; and then the deluded
natives maintain that the fish come at a priest's bidding. Hiro, a .famous sea-god, was
originally a bold and ingenious native of Raiatea, Society Islands, and until Christianity
replaced paganism his skull was on view.

In the Gilbert Islands sacrifices are offered on one stone in a stone circle. Upright
stones are worshipped as in India. The megalithic monuments of Europe date from a distant
time, when our ancestors were no further advanced in culture. (See " Prehistoric Man
and Beast.")

In some parts of Polynesia the priest adds to his other duties that of the healer, or
"medicine man." But in the most populous districts, as in New Zealand, a separate class of
priests is created for this business, which is chiefly based on pure sorcery. One of the chief

Photo liij Mi: .7. J. Lixt

A WOMAN OF THE TONGA ISLANDS.

12

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

duties of the healer is to obtain information about the patient's illness from some god. He
puts questions to the deity, and is supposed to receive answers.

It is perhaps hardly necessary to explain that all over the world with primitive people
death, sickness, and disease are believed to be the work of evil spirits, or of human beings
who have cast a spell by some magical art. So the priest endeavours to discover the criminal,
and "ordeals" are held. In Hawaii the suspected person must hold his hands over water,
and if the water trembles in the vessel while the priest looks at him his guilt is supposed

to be proved. .

Having thus indicated

the general characteristics of
the Polynesian, we will pro-
ceed to visit some of the
islands in which he is to be
found, beginning with the

TONGA OK FRIENDLY
ISLANDS.

LORD GEORGE CAMPBELL says
in his description of the
voyage of II. M.S. Challenger:
"There are no people in the
world who strike one at first
so much as these Friendly
Islanders (or people of
Tonga). Their clear, light,
copper-brown coloured skins,
yellow and curly hair, good-
humoured, handsome faces,
their tout ensemble, form a
novel and splendid picture
of the genus homo; and as
far as physique and appear-
ance go, they give one
certainly the impression of
being a superior race to
ours." Captain Erskine,
speaking of the same people,
says: "The men were a re-
markably fine-looking set of
people, and among them
were several six feet high,
and of herculean proportions.
One stout fellow attracted
attention as soon as he
crossed the gangway, and I
found that his arm measured
above the elbow 15J- inches,
whilst that of one of our
forecastle men, probably the
stoutest man in the ship,

I'holo by Josiah Martin}

[Auckland, -V<-«' Zealand.

TANU, A SAMOAN CHIEF, WITH HEAD-DRESS AND NECKLACE OF
CACHALOT TEETH.

TONGA OR FRIENDLY ISLANDS

was but 1-4 inches. . . .
The manly beauty of
the young men is very
remarkable; one in par-
ticular, who had decked
his hair with the flowers
of the scarlet hibiscus,
might have sat for An-
tinoug. Their features
are often beautiful,
although the nose is
somewhat flatter than
with us; but this, J
believe, is done by the
mothers in the children's
early youth as an im-
provement to their ap-
pearance."

The following brief
account of the Tow-Tow,
a religious festival which
was extremely popular
before the conversion
of the Tongans to
Christianity, will serve
to show how fond the
people are of boxing,
wrestling, and fighting,
in a good-humoured
way. among themselves.
The Tow-Tow was really
a special form of thanks-
giving to the god of the
weather for ripening the
fruits. It began early
in November, when
yams are ripe, and the
proceedings used to be
continued for about
three months, with in-
tervals of about ten days.

In the first place, the people collected plenty of food, yams, plantains, and sugar-canes. These
they piled up in great heaps. The priest of the weather-god sent a stnall procession,' accom-
panied by a girl about nine years old, who was supposed to represent the wife of the god.
She resided at the temple of the god, and presided at feasts, or at &ava-driuking parties.
The men were dressed in mats, with green leaves tied round their necks. They offered up
prayers to Alo-Alo, asking him to give good weather for their crops. Some of the piles of
food went to the chief, and others were scrambled for as soon as the drums were beaten.
Then followed a regular "free fight." The men arranged for "sides," and the chiefs joined
in the game. They fought with great pluck and determination, but always observed the
rule that no one must lose his temper. It was all done in perfect good-humour.

A man who had been knocked down would get up again, smiliug blandly, even if his

2*ltotuby Titos.

A SAMOAN GIRL.

[Apia, Samoa.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

arm were broken. Boxing and wrestling matches took place on these occasions, but with
the greatest propriety and good-will. After each battle all those who had touched a chief
came to be formally pardoned for the offence they had committed in touching his sacred
person. He then, very good-naturedly, received them one by one, and pardoned them,
even if his nose had been flattened in the game. It must have been strange to those
who punched him to reflect that he had on all other occasions absolute command of their
own lives.

After a time the women took part in the game, laying aside their usual gentleness, for
which they are quite remarkable. Captain Cook, when he visited Tonga, saw girls step into
the ring and box with great spirit. Sometimes their elders found it necessary to go in
and part the combatants; but as a rule those who were beaten yielded gracefully. On one
famous occasion about 1,500 women engaged on each side, and went on fighting until the
king ordered them to cease, when it was discovered that some had sprained ankles, others

broken limbs.

When a person of
some importance dies,
his or her body is washed
and oiled; women keep
watcli over it. After-
wards the relations carry
the corpse to the house
for burial, and lay it
there in its clothes, often
in a little chest or boat,
depositing at the same
time the deceased's most
valued possessions. Then
they all go to the shore,
singing loudly as they
walk along, make baskets
out of palm-leaves, and
pour into them white
sand, wherewith to fill
the upper part of the
grave. The male
mourners remain for
twenty days in lightly
built huts near the house
of mourning, and the
women within. On the
twentieth day they go
back to the shore, and
collect basketfuls of black
and white pebbles, to
spread upon the floor of
the house.

The Tongans, when
their king, Finnow, died,
made great lamentation.
The chiefs and others
who belonged to his
household inflicted very

Photo bu Wm. Rau]

KING MALIETOA, A FORMER RULER OF SAMOA.

[Philadelphia.

1'holobij Thus, Andre, i \

TALOLO, THE LATE R. L. STEVENSON'S FAVOURITE COOK.
15

la, Samoa.

i6

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

severe injuries on themselves, using shells, sharp stones, and clubs, so that much blood
streamed down their bodies. Mariner has given examples of the dirges they chanted. Here
is a translation of one, which reveals the idea that the chief's death must have been due to
some treachery: " Finnow, I know well your mind. You departed to Bolutu [Heaven], left
your people under suspicion that I, or some of those about you, are unfaithful. But where
is the proof of infidelity? Where is a single instance of disrespect? Is not this a proof
of my fidelity? [Here the mourner inflicted violent blows on his head with a club.] Does
not this evince my loyalty and attachment to the memory of the departed warrior?" Then
others would seize the same club and say: "Behold the land is torn with strife; it is smitten
to pieces; it is split by revolts. How my blood boils! Let us make haste and die! I

Photo by Wm. Rau}

A GROUP OF HAWAIIAN GIRLS.

[Philadelphia.

no longer wish to live! Your death, Fiunow, shall be mine. But why did I wish hitherto
to live? It was for you alone; it was in your service and defence only that I wished to
breathe. But now, alas! the country is ruined, peace and happiness are at an end. Your
death has insured ours; henceforth war and destruction alone can prosper." One wonders
whether every king received such a eulogium on his death.

The Tongans are all Christians now, and every one can read, a Wesleyan mission
having been established in 1826. They are very fond of cricket, and of riding horses. We
will conclude our account of the delightful inhabitants of Tonga with a pretty little love-
story, narrated by the Eev. J. G. Wood, in his "Natural History of Man," to which we
are indebted for some of the above information. Many years ago a young chief, while
diving for turtles, discovered a sea-cave, but kept the matter secret in case he should
require a hiding-place, because he hated the principal chief of the island. Now it happened

SAMOA

PhotobyRau] \l'),iln.

FATAULEA, WIFE OF SEUMAXATAFA.

that another chief was
plotting a revolt against
the superior chief, who
was a great tyrant and
very cruel. This other
chief was betrayed, and
condemned to death,
together with all his
family. He had a beauti-
ful daughter, whom this
young man silently loved,
not daring to declare his
passion, for she was
already betrothed. On
finding that her life was
in danger, he came and
told her of the fatal
decree, offering at the
same time to save her.
So he took the girl

Photo by Kan] [Phila.

SAMOAN CHIEF, SEUMANATAFA.

quietly away in a canoe, and they both got into the cavern. There she remained, for the
affection was mutual, and the young husband brought her mats and the best of food. Then
he planned a voyage with certain other families to Fiji; but the expedition was kept secret.
On making their start one of his friends suggested his taking with him a wife, to which he
replied that he would find one on the way. On Hearing the cave he suddenly took a dive
and disappeared. Soon after he returned with his lovely young wife, greatly to the
astonishment of his friends, who took her for a sea-goddess.

The population of the Tonga group is estimated at about 17,500.

SAMOA.

THE handsome nnd well-built Samoan men generally wear onlv an apron madn of the green

leaves of the Draccena
tree; but their ceremonial
dress consists of a long
flowing robe. They tattoo
their bodies from the
hips to the knees. They
have been well described
as a nation of gentlemen ;
they are hospitable,
courteous, honest, and
affectionate. The late
Robert Louis Stevenson
was very much attached
to them. Our illustration
on page 15 is a portrait
of Talolo, his favourite
cook. Their stately and
quiet manner is in marked
contrast to the quick and
restless Papuans of Fiji,

A MAX OF TAHITI (FULL-FACE).

A MAN OF TAHITI (PROFILE).

FrompAotograpTatakm <lm\,< </ ike SdentiflcEjcpeilUlonqfH.jr.fi. " Challenger" 1872-6. Published by Hortburyh it Son, Edinburgh.

Government Copyright.

18

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

who do not welcome strangers, and used to eat them. The population is estimated at about
36,000, including 300 Europeans. Samoaus, when they come on board an English vessel, do
not steal like mauy primitive people; for honesty is one of their many virtues. All are
nominally Christians, the London Missionary Society having over 200 native missionaries in
these islands. One of their great chiefs, Malietoa by name, went on board ail English vessel
and received many presents, which were gladly accepted. The following extract from the
journal of Mr. Williams, the well-known missionary, will serve to show how the chief and his
people expressed their gratitude: "At the close of this important and interesting interview,
Malietoa informed his people, who had been gazing with wonder upon the novel proceedings,
that a large quantity of valuable property had been given to him, and that the English
chiefs, to whom he was indebted for it, would want something to eat on their return; 'for,'
said he, 'there are 110 pigs running about on the sea, neither is there any bread-fruit growing
there.' Upon hearing this, the whole company instantly arose and scampered away; and in
about an hour they returned, bringing with them fifteen pigs of various sizes, with a large
quantity of bread-fruit, yams, and other vegetables, the whole of which the chief presented to us."

Women accompany their husbands to the wars in order to nurse them and to look
after the commissariat. They have been seen in action carrying water to the wounded,
regardless of the bullets flying thick about them. Mr. Pritchard says: "After a fight the
heads of the slain warriors are paraded in the presence of the assembled chiefs and people,
when the heroes are individually thanked, and their general prowess and daring publicly
acknowledged. The excitement of the successful warrior is intense, as he passes before
the chiefs with his bleeding trophy, capering in the most fantastic evolutions, with blackened
face and oiled body, throwing his club high in the air, and catching it behind his back or
between his legs; sometimes himself carrying his dead enemy's head, sometimes dancing
round a comrade who carries it for him, all the while shouting in his loudest voice,
'I have my man, I have my man.''

In these islands marriage transactions may be said to be merely speculations in fine
mats, of which a bride's dowry consists. These are handed over to the husband's principal

Photo by Underwood & Underwood]

NATIVES OP MOOREA, SOCIETY ISLANDS.

[New York.

SAMOA

.From a photograph taken during (he Scientific Expedition of H.. M.S. " UAalleiuier," 18,";Mi. FuMi/ied tiy llorttiurgti & >So«, Edinburgh.

Government Copyright.

A GROUP OF NATIVES, HAWAII.

friend and supporter, or, as we should call him, " the best man," who arranges the match
and provides the feast. Widows follow the law of the Levirate, and marry the husband's
next brother. Each bride brings with her one or two handmaids, who may become secondary
wives. A young mail must be tattooed before he can marry. Having made his choice
from among the girls of the island he lives in, he sends his " best man" to negotiate and
make all the arrangements. The young woman usually has no choice, but is obliged
to submit to the decision of her parents. They, on their part, must obtain the chief's
consent. For a long time before the wedding takes place all the bride's relations help
in getting her dowry of fine mats and native cloths. The family of the bridegroom are
likewise actively engaged in collecting property for him, such as cloth, pigs, canoes, etc.
When the contracting parties are of high rank, the ceremony takes place in some space
devoted to public ceremonies, and surrounded by bread-fruit trees. Here the guests seat
themselves in a circle, cross-legged, glistening with oil and bedecked with plenty of beads
and flowers. At first the bride remains seated in a house somewhere near, from which
extends a carpet of native cloth reaching to the place of assembly.^ There the expectant
bridegroom is seated at the farther end of the long carpet. And now, all being ready,
the bride comes forth. Needless to say, she is gaily bedecked with beads, flowers, and shells,
and also girt round the waist with fine mats, some of which form a flowing train behind.
Her maidens follow, all bearing mats. These they spread out before the bridegroom, and
return to the house for more. This is repeated a good many times, until, in some cases,
the number reaches two or three hundred. All these constitute the dowry collected by
her relations. The bride takes her seat by the side of the bridegroom, and presently stands
up to receive the applause of her assembled guests. It is now time for the husband to
show his wealth, which he does with considerable display. The disposal of all these worldly

20

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

goods is arranged by the parents or brothers on both sides. It has already been stated that
Samoao. girls usually are compelled to submit to the arrangements made by their parents,
but elopements are not unknown. Should a chief be refused by the parents, he sometimes
abducts their daughter or persuades her to run away with him. Then his companions
gather together in the evening, and walk through the settlement singing his praises and
coupling his name with that of the young woman. After that the parents generally become
reconciled to the marriage, and give their consent.

HERVEY ISLANDS.

THE people of the Hervey or Cook Islands have a remarkable custom. Here they are not
always content to make a pathway with mats for the bride to walk along. Should she be the
eldest girl, the members of her husband's tribe lie down flat on the ground, while she walks
lightly over their backs! This street of human bodies, called in the native tongue ara
tangata, extends from the bride's house to that of the bridegroom; and should the distance
be so great that enough people cannot be found to make the pathway, then those on whom
the bride has already stepped get up and quickly run on ahead, so as to lie down again and
fill up the rest of the path. The ceremony takes place a few days after the wedding. The
husband, on the day of the marriage, goes through a similar ceremony, walking on the backs
of the people of the tribe to which his wife belongs. On that occasion the bridegroom's
friends walk on each side of the human pathway, clapping their hands, and singing songs
in his praise, not omitting to mention his ancestors.

THE SOCIETY ISLANDS.

THE Society Islands, eleven in number, of which Tahiti is one, form the chief possession of
France in the South Seas. The French have also acquired the Paumota or Low Archipelago,
the Marquesas, the Tubuai or Austral Islands, and others. New Caledonia and the Loyalty
Islands are also Frencli (see map, pages vi and vii). Discovered in 1606, Captain Cook gave
the islands their present name, and he observed the transit of Venus in 1769 from Tahiti.
This island (the Otaheite of Cook) is 35 miles long, and contains about 11,000 people. It
presents one of the most striking examples in the world of denuded volcanic rocks. "This
terrestrial Eden," says Dr. W. II. Guillemard, "is peopled by one of the finest races in the
world, whose slightly veiled, or even fully displayed, symmetrical proportions did not fail to

excite the admiration of the first European discoverers.

BE^^g^ ^^^BI Recent opinions, however, are less enthusiastic on the subject,

and Von Popp, amongst others, remarks that if we now look
in vain for the gigantic race described by Captain Cook,
their deterioration is due partly, at least, to civilisation and
brandy; notwithstanding which, the natives of Tahiti are
still a fine, well-proportioned people, tall and robust, with
dark-brown complexions, broad noses, slightly protruding lips,
beautiful teeth, black and mostly curling hair, but with
slightly developed beards. With Christianity some restraint
has been introduced amongst the islanders, who formerly
indulged in unbridled licentiousness. At present we must
visit the remoter villages to see, in their original forms, the
seductive dances of the native women, gaily decked with
flowers. But all this will soon vanish with the people
themselves, who, like the Sandwich Islanders, are decreasing

. ir. iknshaw, into, Hawaii. with alarming rapidity. The idyllic scenes of former days
A YOUNG GIRL, HAWAII. ]lave already mostly disappeared under the influence of the

f/tolo bij l/ie Daveij I'lioto. Co.]

A FISHEKMAN, HAWAII.
21

\_Uunolulu, llau-aii.

OF "

22

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

Photo by the Davey Photo Co.]

A WOMAN OF HAWAII.

[Honolulu.

missions; the short aud picturesque
national garb has been lengthened and
rendered unsightly; the Sunday songs
and dances have been prohibited; aud
to harsh treatment, intemperance,
and epidemics thousands have fallen
victims."

According to a French traveller,
the people make up for the prohibition
of their old national songs and dances
by greatly increased drinking habits.
Delicious oranges flourish abundantly
here, and the natives have now been
instructed in the art of making an
intoxicating drink by fermenting orange
juice. Men, women, and children in-
dulge in excessive drinking, and have
become greatly degraded by this habit.
Our illustrations on page 17, excellent
as they are, can hardly do justice to
these handsome people. Their forms
used to be quite classic, but the type
has deteriorated of late years. Even
judged by European standards, a Tahiti
woman would be counted beautiful, her
large full eyes and rich hair lending

charms such as no words can adequately describe. The practice of tattooing is rapidly
dying out. Men formerly were elaborately tattooed on the legs, arms, and the hands; women
mostly on the arms, ankles, and feet.

The people of Tahiti being, like other Polynesians, great lovers of etiquette, and naturally
hospitable, have invented many quaint ways of making presents, especially in giving bark-
cloth to a chief. One of these ceremonies has been described by Captain Cook, who himself
was the recipient of such a present. They wrap the cloth round a girl; the end is laid on
the ground, and then she rolls over and over until she has become a kind of living reel, not
of cotton, but of cloth. On being taken into the presence of the chief, she is laid down on
the ground, aud turns round and round until all is unwound. One wonders whether the girl
is "thrown in" as a mere detail; "take me also" would appear, on the face of it, to be the
idea, but that is only surmise.

The nobles of Tahiti naturally cling to their rank, but make no parade of it. Great
deference is paid to a chief by his own people, but he dresses very much as they do, aud
partakes of the same kind of food. Mr. Bennett says it was "usual to see Queen Amiata
clad in a loose cotton gown, bareheaded and barefooted, mingling with natives of every class.
Her meals, too, are equally unostentatious, the bread-fruit, poe, cocoanuts, and baked pig,
intended for her food, being placed on a layer of fresh leaves spread on the ground "
("Whaling Voyage Bound the Globe").

In old days there was a confraternity called the "Aroeis" throughout these islands. The
men who belonged to it believed in the immortality of the soul, and in a heaven suited to
their natures, in which every one was young aud fresh. They preached no sermons on self-
denial and discipline — quite the other way; for they proclaimed aloud that a life of
unrestrained licentiousness here was the path leading to eternal happiness hereafter.
Travelling from one island to another, they proclaimed this fearful doctrine, and were seen by
Captain Cook. Everywhere they were received with much feasting, accompanied by the

PITCAIRN ISLAND 23

utmost licence. The weak and the old were killed off, for every one must be young and
vigorous. There was only one redeeming feature of their mission; they gave recitations and
dramatic performances, and thus history and tradition were kept alive.

In Tahiti and others of the Society Islands it is not customary to purchase wives; but
there is, or perhaps we should say there was, a very curious marriage ceremony. The younger
generation have mostly abolished, under the good influence of missionary teaching, the old
barbaric practices. The particular custom in question refers to young betrothed girls, and
resembles that of Xew Ireland (Bismarck Archipelago, sec page 32). As she grows up the little
maid is carefully guarded from contact with the outer world, and this is effected by keeping
her railed up on a high platform in the home. Food is brought, and nearly everything is
done for her. Only very occasionally is she allowed to go out, and then she must be accompanied
by one of her parents. On the wedding day an altar is set up in the house, on which are
displayed the relics of her ancestors — their weapons, skulls, and bones. The presents given to
the bride are usually pieces of white cloth. If bride and bridegroom are related to the
reigning family, the party repair to the temple of two chief idols of the islands, in order
to procure their blessing. This they receive after pledging their troth, and prayers are
offered up for them. Then the relatives spread out a piece of white cloth on the floor; the
bride and bridegroom step on to it, and take each other by the hand. Sometimes the skulls
of ancestors are brought out, no doubt in order to represent their spirits, with the idea that
they should take part in such an important family affair. The bride's relatives then take a
piece of sugar-cane, wrap it up in the branch of a certain sacred tree, and, after placing it on
the head of the bridegroom, lay it down between the now wedded pair, who are still holding
each other's hands. The relatives on both sides consider that the two families are now for
ever united. Finally, another cloth is produced, and thrown over the bride and bridegroom by
the relatives.

PITCAIRN ISLAND.

IT is impossible in the space allotted to Polynesia to speak of all the groups of islands
included under that term: but we may briefly allude to Pitcairn Island, situated in the Low

PIMolijH. W. BaulMte] Jli/u, Haintil.

A FISHERMAN, HAWAII.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

Archipelago, right away to the east,
because it was the scene of a very re-
markable episode in the history of civilisa-
tion as promoted by Englishmen. In
the year 1790 nine mutinous British
seamen, with six Tahitian men and
twelve women, arrived at this little island
in the ship Bounty. Discord broke out
among the settlers, so that after some
years only one Englishman was left out
of nine, together with the women from
Tahiti, and a number of children. But
this one Englishman — whose memory
deserves at least a monument (or a
picture by some great artist) — repenting
of his evil ways and awakening to a
sense of his responsibility for those
dependent on him, set to work and
taught his companions to be indus-
trious, moral, and religious.

The colony was several times visited
in later years by English and American
vessels. In 1825 Captain Beechey
found a community of sixty-six persons
living together in perfect harmony, a
happy family — where crime was un-
known! In 1878 Rear-Admiral A. F. R. De Horsey visited the island and confirmed the
previous report; the inhabitants then numbered ninety. In his words, they continued " to
live together in perfect harmony and contentment; to be virtuous, religious, cheerful, and
hospitable; to be patterns of conjugal and parental affection, and to have very few vices."

I'/iutu l,ij 11.

A MAN WITH CALABASHES, HAWAII.

SANDWICH ISLANDS.

THE indigenous population of the Sandwich Islands is about 40,000, although at the time
when Cook was there it was said to have numbered 300,000. This great decrease in numbers
is rather puzzling. Neither the diseases nor the ardent spirits introduced by Europeans are
sufficient to account for it. Some writers consider that it is due to the missionaries, who
have been very zealous in forbidding native customs. The oppressive system of government,
the discontinuance of ancient sports, and consequent change in the habits of the people, have
been powerful agents in this work of depopulation. The natives are often called Kanakas,
but the term, a loose one, is not confined to these people. As the reader probably knows,
they have adopted European customs and dress. They all read and write. In recent years
they have excited a melancholy interest in Europe owing to the prevalence among them
of the terrible disease of leprosy; but neither disease nor drunkenness offers a satisfactory
explanation of the rapid dwindling away of this strong, healthy, and handsome race.

From 1820 to 1860 the American Congregalionalists held the missionary field in the
Sandwich Islands, and now the Anglican Church has begun work here. A large number of
Chinese coolies have been imported into the islands for work on the plantations, and there
are a good many Europeans. Honolulu is the capital. In 1808 (August 13) the islands were
annexed by the Government of the United States.

CHAPTEK II.

NEW GUINEA, BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO, ADMIRALTY ISLANDS, SOLOMON
ISLANDS, NEW HEBRIDES, NEW CALEDONIA, AND NEW ZEALAND.

WE now return to the region of Melanesia, which includes all the islands from New Guinea
in the west to Fiji in the east, a region inhabited by the black Papuan race — hence the
name (Greek melas, black) — and will describe the people of New Guinea, the Bismarck
Archipelago, the Admiralty Islands, the Solomon Islands, the New Hebrides, and New Caledonia.
The people whose manners and customs we are about to describe all have frizzly hair, as
the reader will see on inspecting their portraits. It is one of their prevailing characteristics,
and the whole head of hair has much the appearance of a mop. Hence the Malays gave
them the name papuwuli (frizzled); and so we call them Papuan (pronounced Pa-poo-an).
Travelling eastwards from New Guinea, we pass the islands of Melanesia in the following
order: the Admiralty Islands, New Britain (New Pomerania), and New Ireland (New Mecklen-
berg), the two latter having received from the Germans the names given in brackets,
and being known to them as the Bismarck Archipelago. Proceeding, we meet with the
Solomon Islands, the Santa Cruz (or Queen Charlotte) group, the New Hebrides, the French
settlements of New Caledonia and the Loyalty Islands, and, lastly, the Fiji group, whose
inhabitants we have already described. (See the map on pages vi, vii.)

NEW GUINEA.

THE people of New Guinea have been known
as Papuans ever since Europeans came to
the island, some three hundred years ago,
or more. The race, like most others, appears
to be somewhat mixed; the purest part of
it is in the north-west of the island, but
there is probably no other indigenous race
in New Guinea, unless we consider the
Karons to be Negritos (little Negroes), a
very primitive people of smaller stature,
and generally of a very low type, such as
is found in the Andaman Islands, the Malay
Peninsula, and the Philippines. Papuans
differ among themselves, although, as Pro-
fessor Keane says, "they are one of the
most strikingly distinct types of mankind."
On account of their differences, some
authorities refuse to regard them as a distinct
race. However, this much is quite certain:
that Papuans are very different from their

Photo by Rau]

A CHIEF'S HOUSE, NEW GUINEA.

[Phila.

25

26

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

From Dr. A. 21. Meyer's " Album von Pkilippirien Typen," Dresden.
YOUNG MEN OF SIAR, EAST NEW GUINEA.

hair

neighbours, the Malays. Nor
again can they be confused
either with Australians, or with
brown Polynesians, already de-
scribed. The average height
of a New Guinea native is
from 5 feet 6 inches to 5 feet
8 inches. Although strongly
built, his legs are thin. His
hands and feet are large. The
skin is dark, but never quite
black, like that of the Negro.
The skull is long, and the
lower jaw is decidedly pro-
minent, as are the brows.
The nose is large, with broad
nostrils, but deeply depressed
at the top. There is hair on
the chest and arms, but very
little on the chin. The lips
are full, but not so large as
those of a Xegro, and the
face is somewhat oval.

The physical differences
observable among the Papuans
of Xew Guinea may be
explained by a certain amount
of intermingling with other
races. Thus, Malays have
settled in some parts of the
island, Australians in others.
Brown Polynesians, too, have
put in an appearance in the
everywhere, reminding us of the

south-east. But for all that, we find the frizzly
" Fuzzy-Wuzzy " of Mr. Rudyard Kipling's ballad.

In character the Papuan is impulsive and demonstrative, in this way presenting a
great contrast to the quiet Malay. Mr. Alfred Russel Wallace says: "It appears that,
whether we consider their physical conformation, their moral characteristics, or their
intellectual capacities, the Malay and Papuan races offer remarkable differences and
striking contrasts. The Malay is of short stature, brown-skinned, straight-haired,
beardless, and smooth-bodied. The Papuan is taller, is black-skinned, frizzly-haired,
bearded, hairy»-bodied. The former is broad-faced, has a small nose and fiat eyebrows;
the latter is long-faced, has a large and prominent nose (an important characteristic
feature) and projecting eyebrows. The Malay is bashful, cold, undemonstrative, and quiet;
the Papuan is bold, impetuous, excitable, and noisy. The former is grave and seldom
laughs; the latter is joyous and laughter-loving; the one conceals his emotions, the other
displays them."

The New Guinea Papuans used to go about naked, as many of them do still, but they
sometimes wear & breech-cloth made of bark, while the women wear a fringed girdle, or
perhaps a short petticoat of woven grass. The men take much pride in their hair, which
stands up like 'a big mop, or grows in tassels arranged round the head. But they have
many fashions in hair-dressing, though we cannot here describe them all. The bright

Photo by William Limit]

[Melbourne.

DOBO OR TKEE-HOUSE FOB UNMARRIED WOMEN.

28

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

P/uito by liec. \\. U. Luwet, New Gutum.

TWO NEW GUINEA HOYS.

llinvers of tlie
liibiscus are often
placed in the hair;
plumes of the bird-
of-paradise are also
used in the same
way. A small bar
of shell, bone, or
wood is thrust
through the septum
of the nose. Nor
must we omit the
comb, which is a
long piece of split
bamboo sticking
out for a length of
two feet, or even
more, and orna-
mented with
feathers, or disks of
pith. Necklaces are

usually made of small shells, teeth, or bone. For bracelets and armlets, shells are cut and
ground into circular shape, but some are made merely of grass or fibre. The people paint
their bodies red, yellow, white, or black.

The dwellers on the coast build their houses on piles over the sea. Inland the houses
are also raised above the ground. Safety from snakes and human enemies is doubtless the
main object, but this mode of building is also advantageous from a sanitary point of view.
The illustration on page 29 shows one of these pile-dwellings. Another illustration shows a
very peculiar house built up in a tall tree; these houses are called dobos (see page 27).
If any enemy comes to attack the inmates, he receives a shower of stones, for they keep a
supply ready on the floor. There are also very large communal houses, as in Borneo,
containing many families, and often over 500 feet long. As in Sumatra and other parts,
the people have club-houses, where strangers are welcome, and feasts or festive gatherings
take place.

In the eastern part of New Guinea agriculture is largely followed; the fields are fenced
in, to protect them from the ravages of wild pigs, and the people grow sweet potatoes,
bananas, yams, and sugar-cane. In the Dutch portion of New Guinea, to the west, the
ground is not much cultivated; fish and sago are the principal diet in that large district.
Intoxicating drinks are fortunately unknown in most parts of the island. The people are
very fond of pork, and, as in New Zealand, the women make great pets of little pigs.
You may see a girl holding a young pig in her arms, caressing it and talking to it, just
as an English young lady might treat a cat or a small dog. Captain Cayley Webster
says he has seen a mother suckling a young pig and an infant at the same time. Like
the Australian Aborigines, they do not object to eating many large kinds of insects; lizards,
fish, and molluscs are also regular articles of food. The Papuan weapons of New Guinea
aie spears, knives, axes of jade, with the edges ground, clubs, and the bow and arrow.
Spears are tipped with bone or hard bamboo. The blow-pipes, which emit a cloud of dust
and smoke, appear to have been used of old in imitation of firearms; but that trick is
no longer of any use, so they have been given up. The religion is chiefly a belief in
spirits, most of whom are inclined to evil deeds. When any one dies, his relations make
a wooden image in which his departed spirit may dwell, so that it shall not wander
aimlessly about and perhaps cause all manner of sickness and disease. These images are

NEW GUINEA

often most elaborately carved. Some Papuans worship their ancestors; they certainly have no
doubts regarding a future life.

The Papuan men, being warriors, look down upon their women-folk, whom they regard
as labourers — at least to a certain extent. The wives, however, are not, as a rule, badly
treated, and by no means as mere slaves, for they somehow contrive to have a voice in the
management of affairs, both domestic and public. As in Europe in the time of Julius Caesar,
so here, it is often the women who incite the men to war, or perhaps to deeds of murder
and plunder. They have been known to arouse the fighting instinct in men by rushing
wildly into their midst and addressing them in such terms as these: "What! Are you
afraid to do this? and yet you call yourselves men and warriors! Out upon you! You have
not the hearts of men; you are more like a pack of old women! You ought to put on the
grass petticoat, stay at home, and do the cooking!" Taunts such as these usually have the
desired effect. When a man is grown up, he looks out for a wife; but there are difficulties
in the way, and the would-be husband may have to wait a long time. Wives cannot be got
for nothing, and so the man (we can hardly call him a lover) must make the best use he
can of his time, and get together no small amount of worldly goods wherewith to buy his
wife from her parents, or, if they are dead, from her guardians. The payment usually
consists of pigs, food, ornaments, pearl-shells, calico and beads, or other European articles of
manufacture, if such have found their way to his village. There is usually great variety in
the presents. Mr. William Lindt, some of whose beautiful photographs are here reproduced by

(Melbourne.

PILE-DWELLINGS, KOITAl'U, AT LOW WATER.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

his kind permission, says in his book " Pic-
turesque New Guinea": "Among other
curious sights, we were shown the price, or
dowry, of a wife, heaped upon the platform
of one of the houses. It consisted of a
quantity of all kinds of New Guinea goods
and chattels, pots, earthenware, wooden wea-
pons, birds-of-paradise plumes, baskets of
yams, bunches of bananas, and other produce.
Among the articles were two pigs tied up
underneath the house. The bride herself
sat, all smiles, on the verandah above, over
her earthly treasures, with as much pride as
any white sister might feel on exhibiting her
trousseau." The pig or pigs must on no
account be omitted. As a rule, a woman, on
her marriage, is deprived of all her hair and
ornaments. As a sign to all that she is
now married, her face is tattooed; young
girls are tattooed all over the body, their
faces only excepted. On the day of the
wedding a great feast is held, at which the
company devours yams, bananas, betel-nut,
and the fatted pig. Presents are brought by
the invited guests, and these consist chiefly
of contributions to the marriage feast. Bride
and bridegroom are dressed in all their best
garments, and decked out in feathers and
shells and bright leaves of plants. No priest
is called in to tie the knot, and as soon as
the feasting is over the young couple settle
down to married life. The marriage tie, un-
fortunately, is not considered very binding,
and it is no uncommon thing for a woman
to leave her husband three or four times
during their married life. Under these cir-
cumstances domestic life can hardly be said
to present a pleasing picture; quarrels are matters of frequent occurrence.

The manners and customs of New Guinea vary greatly in different parts of the island.
Hereditary chiefs are unknown, and there is no recognised form of government. Public
opinion, however, is strong, and the people have unwritten rules of conduct.

We may be allowed to add a few words in conclusion on mission work in this great
island (which is very much larger than Great Britain). Dutch and German missionaries have
been at work since 1856 in Geelvink Bay, on the north-west coast, Dutch territory, but with
little success. The Papuan is so self-reliant as to be almost entirely devoid of the feelings
of reverence and respect, and it seems hopeless to look for any great results in this territory —
at least with the present generation. But in British territory missionary labours have been
by no means in vain. The Wesleyan Mission began work in 1891, and the Anglican Mission
in the same year. The London Missionary Society has been established many years; it is
under the management of Mr. Chalmers and Mr. Lawes (one of whose photographs we
have reproduced by kind permission on page 28), who have both rendered great service to
science by their careful researches in Ethnology. It has over 50 stations and about 100

Jiy pennission of Dr. )f. II.

TWO ARFAK MEN.

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO

From Dr. A. K. Mtyer's "Album ion P/dlipplnen
Typen" Dresden.

MAN OF NEW BRITAIN.

native workers; some 3,500 children attend school. So
far as one can judge, the Papuan has not as yet been
deeply impressed by the truths of the Gospel. But
the success of the above Society has been recognised
by the Government, for a Colonial Office Report says:
" But if striking outward manifestation of the working
of religious feeling be rare among those under the
influence of the Mission, it can be said without re-
serve that the labours of the missionaries have to
such an extent modified the ways of thinking and the
social relations of the natives, that the good they
have done is incalculably great." Missionaries of the
Order of the Sacred Heart are also at work here,
but each society has a separate field, so that there
is no overlapping.

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO.

A LITTLE to the east of New Guinea lies the Bismarck
Archipelago, which belongs to- Germany. The people
here are Papuans. The chief islands are New Britain
(Neu Pommern the Germans call it), New Ireland

(Neu Mecklenberg), the Admiralty group, and Duke of York Islands.

In New Britain a young man contemplating matrimony confides the secret to his

parents, or, if he be an orphan, to the chief of the tribe to which he belongs, informing

them at the same time who is the maiden that he wishes for. He is then sent off into the

bush, in order, we may suppose, to be out of the way while his father goes to the girl's

relations to arrange about the dowry, or purchase-money, over which there is usually much

haggling. On the wedding day a feast is held at the bridegroom's house, with the usual

accompaniments of music and dancing. The bride does a good deal of dancing herself.

Meanwhile, the unfortunate bridegroom is still waiting

in the bush; the parents at last send some one to

bring him in. The person deputed for this purpose

may have great difficulty in finding him; for young

men, on these interesting occasions, frequently wander

away for many a mile — with the idea of escaping

from the power of departed spirits, who are supposed

at such times to exercise an evil influence. These

excursions into the "forest primeval" are not un-
attended with danger, for there is a risk of the

bridegroom being killed by some hostile tribe on the

war-path. Should a chief desire to be allied by

marriage with a particular family, he buys a child

before its birth. Should it prove to be a boy, the

presents are returned; if a girl, she becomes his

absolute property, although living with her parents

until old enough to become his wife. When married,

there is no limit to the power of her lord and master,

who can even take her life. There is a horrible story

of a chief who lived on the shore of Blanche Bay.

His young wife used to cry and beg to be allowed

to return to her own people, and, what was much

From Dr. A. D. Mfyfr's "Album von Philipplnen

TI/IIIII," JlliKili I,.

WOMAN OF NEW BRITAIN.

32

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

worse in the eyes of her brutal husband, she refused to
do any work. This he could not endure, and flying one
day into a furious passion, he told her that, since she was
of no use as a wife, he would make use of her in another
way. Seizing a spear, he killed her on the spot, cooked
her body, and called his friends together for a feast.

It is not necessary to give a separate description of
the people of New Britain, for they are very similar in
appearance to the natives of New Ireland. They are all
Papuans.

The people of New Ireland, according to Mr. A. J.
Duffield, are poor in flesh, lanky, short in stature, and
light in weight. Their usual colour is a dark brown, but
many are much lighter. Their hair is crisp and glossy.
Their power of sight for long distances is remarkable, and
they readily take to habits of cleanliness, order, and
regularity. Both men and women usually go about abso-
lutely naked; some women, however, wear a grass apron.
Tattooing and cutting of the flesh are entirely confined
to women and the head-men. The women make an
excellent bonnet from palm-leaves, and also a cloak covering
the back of the head; but this they only use in the rainy
season. The septum of the nose is perforated, to receive
rings of beads or other ornaments. Mr. Duffield saw no
mutilations, such as knocking out the front teeth or cutting
off the eyebrows. The
people put flowers and
gaudy feathers in their

hair; some paint their bodies with red and

yellow earth. Their huts are in the shape

of beehives, small, and surrounded by

palisades of bamboo. The young unmarried

men live in larger common houses. Canni-
balism is more or less general. Polygamy

is common; and here we find a very re-
markable marriage custom, young girls of

six or eight years of age being put up in

cages made of palm-leaves, which they can

never leave till the day they are married.

Old women guard them. The cage, being

small, is placed inside a larger house, but

the girl may only come out of the cage

once a day to have a wash, and the house

is surrounded by a fence made of reeds.

A somewhat similar custom is to be found

in Tahiti and in a part of Borneo. These

people construct admirable canoes, but use

no sails. With twenty paddles they can go

along at ten miles an hour. They have no

bows and arrows, but only clubs and spears;

the latter are of great length, well pointed,

and horribly barbed with birds' bones. A WARRIOR. SOLOMON ISLANDS.

Photo by Rau, Phila.

HAWAIIAN IDOL.

From Dr. .1. /.'. .!/•.'/.;•'« "Album lion I'/ti/ijiiiim /• '/'<//'•"."

MEN OF NEW BRITAIN.
33

34

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

Both clubs and spears are elaborately carved; they also
carve their earrings, combs, necklaces, bracelets, and musical
instruments, as well as canoes. Many of the men, when
Mr. Duffield saw them, bore deep scars on the forehead or
the thigh, the result of recent fighting. No one can see the
collection of their masks, weapons, etc., in the British Museum
Ethnological Gallery, without perceiving that they have the
artistic faculty well developed.

Mr. Duffield says that, on first making their acquaint-
ance, the natives proceeded to help themselves to everything
he showed them which took their fancy. On seeing a watch,
they showed no emotion; but the sight of a common screw,
when they saw it enter two pieces of wood and hold them
together, produced screams of joyous appreciation. For brass
screws they were willing to part with their most valued
possessions. The mechanism of a large clasp-knife puzzled
them, but a file or a saw they readily understood. To a
painted landscape they showed marked repugnance, but the
coloured photograph of a fair woman riveted their silent
attention. When Mr. Duffield showed them a looking-glass,
some were scared for a few seconds, but presently broke out
into a hearty laugh at recognising their own faces. Others
were struck with fear, as if they had seen a ghost. They were much pleased when their
visitor demonstrated the reflecting power of the glass by flashing sun-light about. But their
attention appeared to be chiefly occupied with scheming how to get possession of the things
which they most fancied. Some few articles were stolen, but readily given up on demand.

Photo by Rau]

A FIJI CHIEF.

(Phila.

ADMIRALTY ISLANDS.

BEFORE leaving the Bismarck Archipelago, we must say a few words about the people of the
email group known as the Admiralty Islands. It was first visited by Carteret in 1767, but his
party were attacked by the natives and did not land. The first Europeans who landed were
those on board the famous scientific exploring ship H.M.S. Challenger in 1875. The inhabitants
are mop-headed Papuans of the usual type, fond of ornament and clever at carving wood.
They make lovely ornaments of tortoise-shell, carved and cemented on tridacna shells. Metal,
fermented drinks, and tobacco were all unknown to them. They do not appear to be so nearly
related to the people of New Guinea as we might expect, and probably emigrants came in a
long time ago from the north and east. The average height of a man is 5 feet 5 inches,
and of a woman 5 feet 1 inch. They are thinner and more lanky than the people of New
Guinea. Their colour is a blackish brown, but youths and girls are lighter, sometimes light
yellowish brown. The hair is crisp, glossy, and curled in spirals, and there is a good deal of
hair on the arms and legs. The forehead is flat, with overhanging brows; nose short, with
flattened tip, and the septum perforated for the suspension of an ornament. The ear-lobes
are dragged down by ornaments.

The men wear ornaments much more than the women, who rarely do so. Those for the
ear or the nose are made of crocodiles' teeth; earrings of tortoise-shell are also worn. Waist-
belts and armlets are made of fine plaited work, with black and yellow patterns. Round
the neck and hanging down the back are carried charms, consisting of human arm-bones (the
humerus) bound up with eagles' feathers. Adult males have large scars dotted about the
neck and shoulders, which sometimes are continued down the back, in two oblique lines, from
the shoulders down to the waist. They are seldom tattooed, but the women always are.
The tattoo is of a dark blue colour, and consists of short lines forming rings round the eyes

OF "HE

UNIVERSITY

OF

ADMIRALTY ISLANDS

35

and all over the face; also diagonal lines
over the upper part of the body. The men,
however, sometimes redden their chests and
faces with burnt clay. Occasionally one sees
a face reddened on the one side, but not the
other. Some use a black manganese ore
instead; old women are often blackened.
These people, unlike some others, are ashamed
to go about naked: the men wear a piece of
bark-cloth as a bandage, about G inches wide,
and a shell in a bag hangs from the neck.
The women wear two bunches of grass fastened
to a belt — one in front and one behind, the
latter being the longer — but no ornaments.

The diet is mixed: cocoanuts and sago
are the chief vegetables; they eat pigs' flesh
and what fish they can catch. Unlike most
Papuans, they have no bows and arrows, clubs
or shields. Their houses are built on the
ground, close to the shore, not elevated, and
of an elongated beehive shape. Some are
merely a continuous wall and thatch of grass
and cocoanut leaves; others have wooden walls
cut up into billets. They are about 20 feet
long, 10 feet broad, and 15 feet high. Food,
implements, etc., are kept on shelves resting

From Dr. A. B. Meyer's " Album wn PhllipiAtien Typen.'1
MEN OF NEW IRELAND. WITH SPEARS.

From 111-. A, It. Mujri'f " Album run I'liHi/iii'iitm TIJII-H."

MEN OF NEW IRELAND, IN BATTLE-ARRAY.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

on the main supporting-posts. The latter are sometimes carved and painted, with a human
skull stuck on the top. The temples are rather larger, with carved wooden posts, one repre-
eenting a male, the other a female figure. These probably represent the guardian deities.
The canoes are more Polynesian than Papuan in form; each is formed from the hollow
trunk of a tree, with a single plank built on to it above. They have an outrigger on one
side A platform is formed with planks between the canoe and the outrigger. Of musical
instruments the natives of the Admiralty Islands have for trumpet a conch-shell perforated on
one side, a simple Jew's harp of bamboo, panpipes of from three to five pipes of different
lengths and drums. But they have no idea of a tune. In character they appeared to

From a pkotognqik by the liisltop of 'J'ltsiiumiti (by

WOMEN OF PORT ADAM, SOLOMON ISLANDS.

Mr. H. N. Moseley, of the Challenger Expedition— to whom we are indebted for the above
facts— to be excitable, rapacious, greedy, and jealous.

A few words, in conclusion, with regard to their expressions of emotion. Astonishment is
shown by placing the finger in the mouth, delight by clapping the hands. To say 'les
the head is jerked upwards. To express "No," or a negative, the nose is struck with the
right forefinger, as if the tip were to be cut off. This action is capable of modification.
Thus, a decided negative is indicated by a quick stroke; a hesitating one by rubbing the
finger slowly across the nose. The natives quite understood the action of a burning-glass, but
a looking-glass was beyond their comprehension, and they have been known to break one
in order to get at the image behind! Crowds of people came to see the man with white
arms who showed them all these things: they could not understand his arms and legs
being white.

SOLOMON ISLANDS

37

SOLOMON ISLANDS.

THE Solomon group comprises seven large islands and others which are smaller; they now
all belong to Great Britain. Formerly the natives were so treacherous that Europeans held
but little intercourse with them. But now traders come frequently, and a mission
has been established ever since 1847. Mission work is spreading fairly rapidly in the
Diocese of Melanesia, which now contains 12,000 Christians. Some biishmen in the
island of Guadalcanal', noticing the difference between their own lives and those of the
Christian teachers, who neither killed people nor stole, said : " We see that you are different
from us. What have you got inside you that makes you different from us?" The teachers
promised to tell them, and thus a mission was started there. The people are of a deep brown
colour, with a frizzly but rather loose mass of hair. They wear very little clothing. The
lobes of the ear are ofte.n greatly distended for the insertion of very large rings (see illus-
tration below). The men wear a great many ornaments, and in this respect resemble Papuans ;
but they have certain customs which (together with their brownish colour) point to a Polynesian
influence. Their large war-canoes, from 40 to 50 feet long, are highly carved and much
decorated. They have hereditary chiefs,
differing in this respect from the
New Guinea Papuans. Polygamy and
cannibalism prevail. They cultivate
the banana, taro, and sweet potato.
Besides the usual weapons, they make
beautiful shields of wicker-work.

A girl is not sought in marriage
until her charms have been enhanced
by the tattooer's art. The painful
and tedious operation is performed by
a specialist— a sort of sorcerer (called
a iintlalo], whose services are hand-
somely rewarded. It is considered
necessary to employ musicians as well ;
so he first engages a company of pro-
fessional vocalists. The concert begins
at sunset, and is kept up vigorously
throughout the night. The poor child
is kept awake by her friends in order
to hear it all. At sunrise the man
begins his operations, using only a
sharp bamboo knife, for bamboo is
very hard and frequently used for
making knives, as with the Andaman
Islanders. He makes a curious and
artistic network of patterns on the
girl's face and chest. It is a painful
process, but she suffers without a
murmur, for all primitive races train
up their young people to endure pain
silently. Next day all is forgotten in
the joyful thought that she is now
an eligible young woman. From this
time her parents keep a watchful eye

Photo by Henry King]

[tfydnry.

A NATIVE OP THE SOLOMON ISLANDS, WITH LAKOE RING IN
THE LOBE OF HIS EAR.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

over their daughter, and check any levity
on her part. Proposals follow ere long,
and her friends, who have subscribed towards
the expense of the tattooing, look forward
to repayment when she gets a husband.
The higher her rank the more her parents
demand of a suitor; consequently a needy
young man often has to wait a long time
for a wife — as in some other places. But
if a swain is known to have " expecta-
tions," he may pay down a part of the
purchase-money, and claim the girl as his
fiancee. Chiefs' daughters seldom marry
early; their fathers expect too much. Oc-
casionally it happens that the daughter of
a chief remains in single blessedness until
the death of her father, when she may be
bought " for an old song," as the saying
is, by some middle-aged widower, or an
impecunious suitor who has been waiting for
years. When a young girl is betrothed,
and her future husband has paid the
amount in full, she goes to live with his
mother until the time comes when she may
become his wife. Soon after the purchase
has been made her parents give a feast
to those who have generously subscribed
towards the tattooing; this is followed by another feast, given by the bridegroom's parents,
and there are no other ceremonies, either at betrothals or marriages.

In a small island of this group, known as Florida Island, marriage customs are somewhat
different. The money is paid to the girl's female relations. The act of giving away the
bride is rather curious; she is lifted off the ground, and carried out of the house on the
back of one of the women, who delivers her to the youth's father. For two or three months
after this she stays in the house of her future father-in-law, until the necessary presents of
pigs and food arrive. Not till then can the wedding be celebrated. And here we meet
with another curious custom. During the morning of the feast the boys of the village
harass the bride's relations by playfully shooting arrows at them. So skilful is their practice
that they can safely send arrows whizzing past the ears of a guest, over his head, beneath his
legs, or even through his hair. These delicate attentions, however, become a positive
nuisance; and after many forcible expressions of disgust the men gladly purchase immunity
from further hair breadth escapes by paying ransom. In the large island of Malauta betrothed
children pay frequent visits at the homes of their parents, and thus become well acquainted
with one another. Consequently, when the wedding day comes, the girl shows none of that
reluctance so often displayed elsewhere.

The Solomon Islanders are very fond of dancing, though they do not carry the art to
such a state of perfection as do the people of the New Hebrides, farther south. However, they
make it a professional business, on the principle that the greatest delight is to watch other
people dance. The chief and his advisers choose the dance, and select the dancers out of a
large number of aspirants. Then comes the rehearsal, which sometimes lasts for a year or
more. We will only attempt to describe one of their dances, the souruka, and that only
briefly. Thirty-six dancers are required, who take up their position in a wedge-like phalanx —
four ranks of fours, four of threes, and four of twos, one rank behind the other; the big

My permission of Messm. MansM & Co.

A MAN OF THE SOLOMON ISLANDS.

NEW HEBRIDES

39

men being placed iu front, the smaller men and boys behind. The dancers pipe for
themselves, and the dancing consists in wriggling the body, and, bent double, swaying the
head, arms, and legs, and marking time with the feet. Strings of nutshells bound on their
ankles rattle in rhythm with their movements. The leaders play a melody on panpipes, to
which less skilled musicians add an accompaniment with bamboo trumpets. The music
changes with the figures of the dance, marking the time and the change of step. The
general effect is good — the result of careful rehearsing. The chief who owns the party, like
an enterprising manager, spares no expense to make the performance a success. His dancers
are gaily decked in white cockatoos' feathers and gaudy waist-cloths, necklaces, and other
ornaments. Formerly, when the people were more under the influences of their sorcerers
(tindalos), they went through a solemn function or ceremony, iu order to place the dancers
under the protection of some powerful tindalo whose influence (or spirit) should make their
movements agile and their music inspiring. The man who presided over this ceremony was
highly paid for his services. A party of dancers and the mixed multitude attending them,
sometimes numbering more than 350 in all, and occupying a fleet of thirty canoes, make a
round of visits lasting three months. Several performances are given at each place, after
which the spectators supply them with food, while the chief pays their wages.

These dancing parties, according to the Eev. Alfred Penny, are quite harmless, and in
fact have been used for the spread of Christianity. He says: "At first the Christians held
aloof because of the tindalo influence upon the daucers, and because they would have to
give up school and prayers during the tour. But when their numbers came to be consider-
able, the idea occurred to some of us to let a Christian party go, attended by a teacher as
chaplain, if the chief would consent to forgo the tindalo part of the business. On several
occasions this has been done. A large dancing party started three years ago from Gaeta
with a contingent of fifty Christians, and went the round of Florida Island. Each night and
morning those men met together for
prayers; and though at first they had to
encounter ridicule, the ridicule in time
gave way before their pertinacity."

NEW HEBEIDES.

THE New Hebrides are a group of vol-
canic islands which received their present
name from Captain Cook, who visited
them in 1774. They have a total area of
5,000 square miles, with a population of
70,000, governed at present by a mixed
commission of officers of the British and
French warships in the Pacific. Although
the climate is ill-suited for Europeans,
missionary work has been carried on with
unremitting zeal. Erromanga, the largest
of the southern group, where the natives
were at first extremely hostile, and where
five missionaries have been murdered, now
contains over 1,000 Christians. In the
five southern islands there are more than
forty schools, thanks to the labours of
the Presbyterian Church. In the northern
group, consisting of thirty-five islands,
the natives are more friendly than in the

Photo by Wm.

[Philadelphia.

A TREE-HOUSE OF OCEANIA.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

southern islands; throughout the archipelago there is great variety of character, language,
and complexion. Thus, the people of Aoba, or Lepers' Island, seern to be true Polynesians,
with nearly straight hair and a light complexion, but as a rule the natives of the New Hebrides
are dark and woolly-haired, although probably not pure Papuans.

In the northern islands of the group only the chiefs, or other great and important
people, betroth their children in youth. A betrothed girl lives in the same house as her
future husband, who very often is taught to regard the little plaything as his sister. Girls
assume the petticoat when they arrive at marriageable age. On the wedding day guests
arrive in large numbers to enjoy the good things provided for them. The bridegroom fixes
the branch of a tree, or shrub, in the ground, and brings forward gifts of pigs, food, and

Photo by Underwood & Underwood]

[New York.

TAHITIAN J>ANCERS IN RARE COSTUMES.

nuts. The bride's father, or some special friend of the family, makes a speech, and exhorts
the bridegroom to feed his wife properly and treat her kindly. With such and similar
admonitions he hands over, or "gives away," the bride, gaily attired and wearing her new
petticoat. At the feast which follows the bridegroom is spared the trying ordeal of making
a speech; he merely strokes his father-in-law to show his gratitude and affection. Then
follows a sham fight, in which it sometimes happens that men are wounded. On one side
are ranged the bride's kinsmen, on the other those of the bridegroom. Should a brother
of the latter be injured, "compensation," in the form of a present, is required. When the
family of the bride consider that they have made enough show of resistance, to prove how
highly they value her services, they allow her to be taken away. Accordingly she is dragged
off by female friends to the bridegroom's house. Even if the poor child is willing to leave

NEW CALEDONIA

4-1

her parents, etiquette demands that, for the sake of appearances, she shall make some show of
reluctance. It sometimes happens that a hride who is really unhappy takes the earliest
opportunity of running away from her husband, and seeks a home with a man she likes
better. In such a case, if the parents perceive that nothing will induce her to return to her
injured husband, they offer him a pig as solatium, to soothe his wounded feelings; and there
the matter ends. We are indebted to Captain W. Acland, K.N., for the excellent photograph
that has been reproduced below. At the Santa Cruz (or Queen Charlotte) Islands, between the
Solomon Islands and the New Hebrides group, we find the same custom of infant betrothal.
The father, without telling the boy, seeks a bride for his son. Some time elapses before the
son is told that a girl is engaged for him. His parents do not say who she is, but only warn

Photo by L\ijjlai/t \Y. AcitinU, /.'.-V.

A GROUP OF NATIVES, PENTECOST ISLAND.

him that he must not go near the particular house in which she lives — for it is not
allowed to betrothed ones to meet. Youths sometimes show great reluctance to marry the
brides thus chosen for them.

NEW CALEDONIA.

A LITTLE to the south of the New Hebrides lies the island known as New Caledonia. Its
inhabitants appear to be distinctly Papuan, having dark skins and frizzly hair; but here again
there is evidence of intercourse with the brown Polynesian race. There are many tribes, each
having its chief. The people — Kanakas, as the French call them (though the term is used
very loosely) — wear very little clothing, have no bows and arrows, and were all cannibals

4-2

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

when the French first colonised the island. They are fast disappearing, owing to constant
warfare, the introduction of drinking habits, and the practice of abortion. Their number
now is less than 22,000, a great decrease since the middle of the present century.

NEW ZEALAND.

IN the year 1840, when the islands of New Zealand were first colonised by England, they
were inhabited by the Maori race, who were then much more numerous than now. It would
seem that the Maoris are dying out — not because they are vicious, but because they are very
filthy and do not know how to make a proper use of clothes. An appalling number of deaths
occur annually from what may be called "galloping consumption," and there is no doubt
that the misuse of clothes is responsible for much of this terrible waste of life. A Maori
woman, visiting town, parades the streets muffled np to the eyes in flannels, furs, rugs, and
wraps of every description. On returning home, these are all cast aside and replaced by
a thin cotton bodice and a chintz petticoat. Thus scantily clothed, she squats down before
a fire outside the house, and cooks the family meal. It is much the same with the men: one
day a thick woollen shirt, the next a thin cotton one. Overcoats appear, by a curious
perversion, to be worn in summer rather than in winter. The favourite place for lounging
about is one with plenty of damp grass, and the most popular building site the edge of a
swamp! We need not be surprised that habits such as these cause a heavy death-rate.

In the year 1840 the number of Maoris was probably 120,000; in 1856 it had fallen to
65,000; in 1874, to 45,740; in 1886, to 41,432; and the last census (1896) puts down the
number of natives and half-castes at 39,834, exclusive of 2,259 half-castes living with the
Europeans. Peschel remarks that English grasses are spreading with great rapidity and
supplanting the indigenous vegetation. The native rat is being replaced by the Norwegian

variety, our house-sparrow is now very common,
and nearly everything native is disappearing.
The people say, " As the white man's rat has
extirpated our rat, so the European fly is
driving out our fly. The foreign clover is
killing our ferns, and the Maori himself will
disappear before the white man!"

It is a pity that this singularly fine race
are destined to die out. They are tall, power-
ful, and well made; the colour of the skin is
brown, as with all Polynesians, and never black,
although some are darker than others. The
variation in type puzzled ethnologists until it
was perceived that there has been here, as in
most other parts of the world, a certain amount
of fusion. Thus, many Maoris are of fair com-
plexion, with straight hair, and the character-
istic features of a handsome Polynesian; but
others are to be found with a much darker
skin, curly or almost frizzly hair, the long
and broad arched nose of the Papuan of New
Guinea; or it may be with the coarse, thick
features of the lower Melanesian races. The
facts can only be explained on the supposition
that when the Maoris first came to these islands
they discovered an indigenous Melanesian race.

P/ioto fin Valentine & Sons, Ltd.] {Dundee. J

A MAORI GIRL AND CHILD. Probably the men were soon exterminated, but

A MAOUI WOMAN.
43

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

it is very likely that the better-looking women were
spared, and became wives or concubines of the
victors. Tradition confirms the anthropological theory,
and so we may consider that matter settled. While
some authorities hold that the Polynesian immigra-
tion took place about 3,000 years ago, others give
a much more recent date, and native traditions seem
to show that not more than 600 years have elapsed
since the first invasion. The earliest colonists prob-
ably came from some of the islands between Samoa
and Tahiti. The tradition is that they came from a
place called Hawaiki: "The seed of our coming is
from Hawaiki, the seed of our nourishing, the seed
of mankind." This somewhat mythical region might
be Samoa or Tonga. The language of the Maoris
appears to be most nearly related to that of Raro-
tonga, and tradition points to that island as the
place where the canoes for the expedition were built—-
double canoes they were, and their names survive.
The legend still recalls how the seeds of sweet
potatoes, together with faro, gourds, fcaraka, berries,
dogs, parrots, rats, and sacred red paint, were put on
board the canoes, which were scattered in the night
by a storm. The north island was the one first
colonised. The reason for this migration, according
to the tradition, was a civil war, which devastated
Hawaiki. A chief, Ngahue by name, was driven to
flight; after a long journey he reached New Zealand,
and returned with pieces of jade and the bones of
a gigantic bird. These evidently belonged to the
moa, now extinct, which attained a height of about
12 feet, and was something like an ostrich. (See the
writer's "Extinct Monsters.")

The Maori's chief article of dress is a long mat,
in which he muffles himself up to the neck (see illus-
tration, page 45). The mats are of various textures,
but are always made from what is called " New Zealand flax " (Phormium tenax). The fibres
of this plant (one of the Liliacece) are strong and fine, and when properly dressed have a
silky look. The mats are dyed with various colours, obtained from bark or from roots. Birds'
feathers are added for ornament. The natives also dress the skins of dogs, and make valuable
cloaks of them. The men tattoo the face and parts of the body (see illustrations, pages 45 and 47),
but the women tattoo only on the chin. The reader who wishes to learn more about the art of
tattooing as formerly practised by these people should consult Major-General Robley's interesting
work "Moko."

The Maoris have undoubtedly developed a higher state of civilisation than other peoples of the
Pacific who belong to the same race of brown Polynesians. Perhaps this may be accounted for
by the fact that life is not so easily supported in New Zealand as in tropical Pacific islands,
where bread-fruits, cocoanuts, and bananas flourish with so little attention ou the part of
man. The climate also is much more variable. The people who settled there found life
harder; and this struggle with nature was, no doubt, the means of drawing out capabilities
and talents which were previously more or less dormant. They appear to have brought with
them the dog, which was used for food, but not the pig. The only plants they cultivated

Photo by lies.}

A MAORI GIRL.

(New Zealand.

Photo iij Vaunt,,,' ,i- >...,.-. ;.• /.;

PATARAGURAI, A MAORI CHIKF.

411

[Dvndst,

46

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

were the sweet potato, tare, and the gourd; ferns and some other plants supplied edihle
roots, and certain berries and fruits were also used. The sea and the rivers yielded them
fish. Tradition says that they hunted the huge moa, above referred to, and in time they
became skilful in hunting, in fishing, and in agriculture.

The native children are very interesting, full of intelligence, quick in learning their
lessons at school, and unusually free and open in their manner; they live as much with the
men as with the women, and hence their faculties are sharpened at an early age.

Until recently the code of Maori morals was very lax. and is still to some extent, a
young girl being permitted the utmost freedom until she is married. But after marriage she
is a model of constancy. This vicious system of free intercourse, exercised at a very early
age, is very bad physically as well as morally, and checks the healthy development of the
body. But it carries no reproach, and the girls are wonderfully modest and childlike in
manner. Suicide is very common, for these people firmly hold death to be better than
disgrace, and, like the Chinese, sometimes kill themselves under very slight provocation.

Each tribe has its own great chief, while an inferior chief presides over every clan. Broadly
speaking, there are three grades of society — first the nobility, then the freemen, and lastly
the slaves. The name Ranyatira is applied to the native nobility, and by courtesy also to
officers, missionaries, and other white men who may be placed in any position of authority.

The Maori man is a very lazy mortal.
In war he is all fire and spirit, but
in piping times of peace he lounges
about, and will do no work if he
can help it. The real work is done
by women and slaves, whose drudgery
makes them grow old prematurely.
Those who preserve their beauty
longest are the daughters of wealthy
chiefs, who can afford slaves to do
the hard wrork.

Formerly the Maoris were
greatly given to cannibalism. The
real reason of this revolting practice
was, as has been stated in the
previous chapter, the superstitious
notion that any one who ate the
flesh of another became endowed
with all the best qualities of that
person. A chief would sometimes
eat only the left eye of his enemy,
that being supposed to be the seat
of his soul. To drink his blood was
to imbibe his courage and spirit
The practice must also be regarded
as symbolising a man's final triumph
over his enemy.

There was a good deal of head-
hunting in old days. Years ago a
large number of preserved Maori
heads were brought into Europe.
(A collection was recently exhibited
at a meeting in the Anthropological

Photo ly Burton Bros.} [Jtunetlin. \ T

A MAORI MAN AND HIS WIFE. Institute in Hanover Square.) In

POROTITI, A MAORI CHIEF.
47

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

response to the demand of European collectors the supply increased to an alarming extent.
No man with a well-tattooed face was safe. Slaves were frequently killed for the sake of their
heads, which were afterwards tattooed in the same way as men of high rank. A chief once
said to an English purchaser of heads: "Choose which of these heads you like best" — pointing
to some of his own people — "and when you come back I will have it dried and ready for your
acceptance." Needless to say, the offer was refused.

The extraordinary system of taboo, or tapu, which extends all through Polynesia, with
local variations, was formerly in great force among the Maoris. Briefly, it is a law of
prohibition, as the word implies. In countries where an organised government has been
established, the taboo is unnecessary (except for purely social purposes; as, for example, in
connection with clubs or social gatherings). But with a primitive people, living only under
chiefs, the system takes the place of an elaborate code of laws. The taboo in Polynesia
protects both property and morals, the former more than the latter. For example: when
a man has carefully cultivated a field of sweet potatoes, he sends for the priest, who lays a
taboo on the field, and henceforth no man, woman, or child dare to venture thereon again;
a canoe is hauled up on the beach and left unguarded, but the owner need have no fear
lest any one should steal it, because he has already placed on it the taboo mark. With .regard
to morals, a married woman is taboo to all men but her husband; so is a young girl to
all except her betrothed. Another taboo is connected with death. If a man falls overboard
from a canoe and is drowned, .that canoe henceforth may never be used again; it is taboo.

The head of a chief is so sacred that no one is allowed even to make mention of it!
Europeans have sometimes given very great offence by disregarding this strange superstition.

The Maoris have no written language, but their history has been faithfully preserved in numerous
lengthy songs, legends, and traditions, handed down with the utmost care from one generation to
another. They gave narnes to stars, to birds, plants, rocks, and even insects. They excelled greatly in
oratory. In bygone days every chief was expected to be an orator and a poet, as well as a hunter.

Photo by Burton Bros.]

[Dunedin.

A. FAMILY GROUP OF MAORIS.

CHAPTEE III.
AUSTRALIA AXD TASMANIA.

AUSTRALIA.

JUST as the wild animals inhabiting Australia, such as kangaroos and wombats, are peculiar
and always of a low type, so are its dark-coloured natives. This the reader will readily
perceive for himself on glancing at the accompanying illustrations. Their features are coarse
and repulsive. We must look upon the Aborigines of this region as a people recalling the
earlier stages in the history of the human race— a highly valuable and interesting suggestion
of primeval man. Here may we find, as it were, a series of "Prehistoric Peeps," reminding
us in passing of Mr. E. T. Reed's clever drawings in Punch a few years ago. These people
may be said to represent one of the bottom rungs of the ladder of human progress. They
are unlike the inhabitants of any surrounding islands or countries, and from their general
similarity in various parts of the Australian Continent have been regarded by some writers
as a single race, distinct from the Malay, the frizzly-haired Papuan of New Guinea, and
the Negro of Africa. Such is the view of Dr. Alfred Russel Wallace. Both Keane and
Ratzel, however, consider them somewhat mixed. Their colour is not black, but a deep
copper or chocolate. As might be expected, they are a very hairy people. The hair is
plentiful, not only on the head, but on the whole body, especially on the chest and back.
The infants are of a much lighter colour, and covered on the neck and back with a slight

Photo by Kerry & Co.}

NAT1VKS MAKING A CANOE.

4'J

Sydney.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

coat of soft fur. The hair
of the head is long, usually
wavy or curly, either black
or very deep auburn. All
the men have beards,
whiskers, and moustaches.
"You naked cheeks!" is a
taunt they commonly apply
to beardless people.

In height Australians
are not much inferior to
Europeans. They are mus-
cular, but with slender arms
and legs, owing to want of a
good and regular supply of
food. The head is generally
rather long and narrow, with
high cheek-bones. The lower
portion of the forehead pro-
jects strongly, producing the
overhanging eyebrows seen in
our illustrations; the upper
part recedes rapidly. The
lower jaw is decidedly promi-
nent, and this is regarded by
all anthropologists as a strong
characteristic of the lowest
human types, such as the
African dwarfs or the
Negritos of the Malay Penin-
sula. The mouth is large,
with thick lips. A conspicuous feature is the nose, which is so deeply depressed at the root
as to cause the eyes to appear to be drawn together; it is very broad at the nostrils.

Stokes, who was very familiar with the country, says, "The Australians vary as curiously
as their soil." Others have expressed their astonishment at the peculiar differences between
the natives of various districts. Thus, Tasman, from whom Tasmania takes it name, in the
year 1686 found dark, woolly-haired people on the north-west coast. Cook, in 1770, saw on the
north-east coast some well-built men, with straight hair, of a chocolate-brown colour, whose noses
were not very flat, nor were their lips very thick. Among the Aborigines of the south-east
there were women as light as mulattoes.

Earl has remarked that "a circle of 500 miles round Port Essington would enclose an
equal number of tribes, varying from deep black to the reddish yellow of the Polynesians."
Some are darker, some lighter; some are straight-haired like the Malays, others frizzly-
haired like Papuans. Even Wallace, however, admits that there are some signs of inter-
mixture in the north with Malays from the Malay Peninsula, and with Papuans from New
Guinea. But this has had little or no effect on the people.

It has not yet been finally decided to what branch of the human family the Australians
belong— that is a difficult problem; but they are clearly not Negroes, nor Mongols, nor
Papuans, nor Malays. Keaue and others consider them to be Caucasian like ourselves, and
identical with the Dravidians of India (see the Yeddas in Chapter VIII.). Perhaps the reader
who studies our illustrations of these people may find that they remind him, in a general
way, of the lowest and coarsest types of humanity to be found in England at the present time.

Photo by Ktn-y dt Co.)

A NATIVE OF PRINCE OF WALES ISLAND.

[Sydney.

AUSTRALIA

51

The advent of the white man in Australia has brought ruin to the blackfellows, and
the treatment they have received at our hands can only be described as shameful.

When Europeans first settled in Australia, the native population was probably about
150,000 persons. It has been rapidly diminishing ever since those days; and no wonder,
for the whites have taken the best of the land and destroyed much of the game on which
the blacks chiefly lived. Civilisation, alas! brought disease and vice in its train. Consumption,
measles, small-pox, have had a large share in the work of destruction. The adoption of
clothing, with all primitive peoples, undoubtedly induces a great deal of lung disease. This
may at first appear incredible, but it has been clearly proved. There is a right way and a
wrong way in everything; and clothing, which is a great protection if rightly used, is only
a source of discomfort and danger to the creature that is unaccustomed to it. The poor
ignorant savage does not appreciate it, and would much rather be without clothes. When he
does adopt clothes, he frequently casts them aside just when they might be of the greatest
service in protecting his body from cold. Lying down to sleep at night in a damp place
without the covering he has worn throughout the day, he courts the very diseases which are
most fatal to native races. It is just the same in New Guinea, in Polynesia, and in most of
the Pacific Islands, where consumption is working terrible havoc.

In the year 1851 the
number of Australian Abori-
gines was estimated at 55,000.
In 1893 they were put down
at from 30,000 to 40,000.
The Government has taken
some steps to endeavour to
mitigate the grave evils in-
flicted on the native popula-
tion— evils for which the
white people were clearly
responsible. But its action
came too late. Between the
years 1821 and 1842 the sum
of £80,000 was spent in the
endeavour to protect and
improve the condition of the
natives. The Society for the
Protection of Aborigines has
also been usefully engaged
in this work. Native schools
were founded in Adelaide and
elsewhere, and liberally sup-
ported. But now the Adelaide
tribe is extinct.

Inferior races must of
course give way and make
room for those that are more
highly civilised; but it is
sad to think how much
cruelty, vice, and wickedness
is involved in the process.
When Mr. Lloyd first landed
in Geelong, in the year 1837,
the Barrabool tribe numbered

Photo by \\'m. Ran]

ABORIGINAL WOMAN' A.VD CHILD.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

nearly 300; and fine-looking fellows they were. When he went away in 1853, there were
not many left. Seeing so few natives about, he began to make inquiries about some of his
dark friends of early days. The reply he received is so pathetic that we give as far as
possible the very words: "Aha, Mitter Looyed! Ballyyang dead, Jaga-jaga dead, Panigerong
dead [and many others they named]. The stranger white man came in his great swimming
vessel, and lauded with his large animals and his little animals. He came with his ' boom-
booms ' [double-barrelled guns] and his tents, and the great white stranger took away the
long-inherited hunting-grounds of the poor Barrabool coolies and their children." Then,
weeping, shaking their heads, and holding up their hands in the bitterness of their sorrow,
they exclaimed: "Coolie, coolie, coolie! Where are our coolies now? Where are our fathers,
mothers, brothers, sisters? Dead! all gone! dead!"

In most places the blacks go about almost naked in the summer season, even in Central
and Southern Australia, where the climate is changeable. What little they wear partakes
more of the nature of ornament than clothing. But during the cold season garments are
necessary. The chief article of a man's wardrobe is a girdle of plaited grass or bast;
sometimes the hair of an animal may be used for this purpose, or even the hair of another man,
in which case it is generally considered a charm. Women at times wear an apron of emus'
feathers. A man's girdle serves to carry his digging-stick, his axe, or his boomerang. Hats
are altogether dispensed with, but the head may be decorated with teeth, fish-bones, feathers,
or the bushy tail of an animal. Some twist the hair with string painted red, and
decorated with the feathers of an emu, a cockatoo, or the tail of a dog. The younger men
are particularly fond of ornaments for the neck, made of mother-of-pearl, teeth of various
kinds, crabs' claws, bits of reed or straw, but the old men despise such things. In the south
during the cold season men and women cover themselves with the skins of kangaroos, wearing
them like sacks. They have no sense of shame; clothing and modesty, in their eyes, are not
connected. There is a story of a girl who was presented by a lady with a white petticoat.
This she wore and displayed with some pride to her own people; they, however, only jeered
at her for wearing clothes like the white strangers, and the consequence was that in a few
days the petticoat was laid aside and the girl went about naked as before.

The people are very fond of painting their bodies. Red, white, and black are their favourite
colours. They paint their small wooden shields with the same colours. Some of our illustra-
tions show the stripes or
bands of colour on the body.
Red ochre is much used. The
people of the south-east used
to paint their bodies with
circles, squares, and crosses.
Corpses are painted red. In
some tribes only the elder
men are allowed to use the
red ochre, the youths powder-
ing their hair with red earth.
Instead of the tattooing so
largely practised by Malays
and many other people, we
find long oblique scars in the
region of the breast, the back,
and the shoulders, but seldom
below the waist. (See illus-
trations.)
r—. — ; — Before a girl can " come

Photo by Mr. H. Pmttipt, \ [Jjrixtol.

NATIVES OF RIVER ENDEAVOUR, NORTH QUEENSLAND. Out," as WC should Say that

AUSTRALIA

53

[New York.

is, before she can be con-
sidered a woman and
marriageable — she must go
through a very painful opera-
tion. Great gashes are cut
across her back in horizontal
lines with a sharp-edged flint
or a shell. The blood that
flows out freely is wiped off
with bunches of grass, or with
green boughs warmed near
the fire. After some weeks
the wounds have healed up,
and the cicatrices are con-
sidered to enhance her
natural charms, if she has
any. Sometimes the belly
and the arms are similarly
adorned. During the opera-
tion of making these scars
the girl's nearest relations

Photo by Underwood tfc Underwood]

A BIT OF MAORI ARCHITECTURE.

express their sympathy by shedding tears and uttering loud lamentations.

Marriage is a very simple affair, and a wife is either obtained by purchase from her
father or brother, or else carried off by main force. In the latter case the usual practice is
to lie in wait for the girl at night, stun her by a heavy blow on the head with a club, and
drag her off to a place of retreat. In accordance with customs not yet fully understood, girls
are betrothed to certain men as soon as they are born. This "engagement" is considered
so binding that a woman breaking it is killed — and often eaten; while the offending man
is punished with a severe wound from a spear. The wives have a hard time of it, and are
cruelly treated, being often beaten or speared. To kill a gin (wife) is thought no offence,
and few women are free from frightful scars. The men are not insensible to female charms.
A young woman at all
celebrated for her beauty
usually undergoes a series
of captivities to different
masters. She never stays
long with one man, be-
cause another steals her
away. It is her sad fate
to be a wanderer among
strange families, and to be
the cause, like Helen of
Troy, of .many a fight.
AVheu women are scarce,
the men make raids on
other tribes. Widows be-
come the property of the
tribe. Wives are some-
times lent to friends or
strangers.

In the dry season
many parts of Australia

I'liotu by Mr. /,'. l'/ti//i/,f]

NATIVE GIRLS OF RIVER ENDEAVOUR, NORTH QUEENSLAND.

[Bristol.

54

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

>

will iiot support human life; hence the Aborigines lead rather a wandering existence. Having
no beasts of burden, they are compelled to carry everything themselves, and sore burdens are
placed on. the unfortunate women. One woman usually carries on her back 'the following
articles: a sack containing a flat stone for crushing eatable roots; pieces of quartz for knives
and spear-heads ; stones for axes; cakes of gum from the xanthorrhcea or grass- tree, for
mending old weapons or preparing new ones; kangaroo sinews for thread, and needles of
kangaroo bone; opossum hair to make girdles; pieces of kangaroo skin for polishing the
spears; sharp shells to serve as knives and axe-heads; yellow and red ochre for painting; a
piece of bark for making "bast," ropes, girdles; ornaments; tinder for making fire; some fat
and a piece of quartz revered as a relic, having been extracted by the "doctor," or magician,
from a sick man; and besides these things, she must carry roots or fruits collected on the
road. But this is not all, for between the sacks and her own back she carries a store of
undressed hides, and in her hand a staff 5 or 6 feet long, or a firebrand. Sometimes she
carries her husband's spears also! One need not therefore be surprised that, as a rule, 16 or

18 miles is considered
a good day's march.

It can hardly be
said that the Austra-
lians are a brave race,
like Zulus, Arabs, or
Sikhs; but here and
there examples have
been found of truly
heroic determination
or of great coolness.
Self-control they
certainly have in a
high degree. To the
present day the
natives reverence the
names of certain
brave and fiery
leaders who fought
in many a desperate
battle with Euro-
peans. They seem
somewhat fond of

fighting among themselves. But such fights are not very deadly; their mode of warfare
does not, as a rule, lead to much bloodshed. One reason for. this is obvious: every death
must be avenged, and therefore they have the fear of blood-feuds constantly before their eyes.
They are very fond of pouring torrents of abuse on their enemies from a safe distance.
They prefer to attack from an ambush, and they are extremely clever at dodging spears by
a sudden and almost imperceptible movement, or at covering themselves with their small
wooden shields. They often catch a spear and throw it back at the enemy who hurled it.

The Australian shows more skill in the making of his weapons than he does in making
tents, clothing, or in cookery. Except in the extreme north, he is ignorant of the bow and
arrow used by his neighbours the Malay and the Papuan; but his spears, throwing-sticks,
clubs, and boomerangs are well made and very skilfully used. The wooden spear is found
everywhere. Of the spears used in war, some are 8 or 9 feet long. Thin stems of the
eucalyptus are used for this purpose, straightened and hardened by the action of heat. Some
have sharp flints, or pieces of quartz, fastened by gum in two grooves near the point. Want
of space forbids the writer from enlarging on the subject of weapons; but he would like to

Photo by Wm. Rau]

IN THE AUSTRALIAN BUSH.

[Philadelphia.

AUSTRALIA

55

direct the reader's attention to the epleudid exhibition of arms, clothing, and ornaments of all
the primitive peoples in the ethnographical collection at the British Museum, now under the
care of Mr. C. H. Read. The University of Oxford possesses a very fine ethnographical
collection, and that of the Blackmore Museum at Salisbury is also most admirable. Heavy
spears the Australian Aborigines can throw by hand a distance of from 50 to 70 feet;
light spears, hurled by means of a throwing-stick, may travel as far as 100 yards, for this
implement gives a powerful leverage. Their accuracy in throwing is •wonderful.

We must say a few words about that remarkable Australian weapon the boomerang. It
is a flat piece of hard wood, about as large as a scimitar (though sometimes smaller), bent in
the middle, flat on one side and a little rounded on the other. For this purpose pieces of
wood that are naturally curved are selected; hence their strength. The boomerangs used
in warfare are large and heavy, with pointed ends, and capable of inflicting a serious wound.
In hunting, and especially for killing birds, a smaller boomerang, the ends of which are
slightly twisted in opposite directions, is used. It has the remarkable property of changing
its course while in the air, and finally returning to the thrower. It is hardly necessary to
say that the boomerang,
while travelling forward
with great speed, revolves
rapidly on its own axis,
and takes a slanting
direction. In the use of
this weapon dexterity is
required rather than
strength.

Some of the Austra-
lian Aborigines are trog-
lodytes, or dwellers in
caves, like the prehistoric
men of Europe (see the
writer's " Prehistoric Man
and Beast"). But caves
are only to be found in
certain districts. More-
over, as we have already
remarked, the Aborigines
lead a rather wandering
life. They usually erect
rude huts or screens,
constructed of whatever
material happens to be
at hand — twigs and
bushes, covered with
bark, turf, or leaves.
These shelters are purely
temporary, but serve for
a few weeks or months,
until the family moves
on. In the north and
north-west, where Papuan
influence evidently comes
in, they build regular
huts, as high as a man, A .NATIVE WAKKIOH. I'Hi.M'K OF WALKS ISLAND.

Kernj it

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

and capable of holding ten per-
sons. These they construct with
stakes covered with clay. So
backward are these people in
civilisation that many of the coast
tribes know nothing of navigation.
On the north-west coast we find
only simple rafts, made of man-
grove branches tied together. In
Southern Australia we meet with
canoes made from the bark of the
eucalyptus. Though these are
very light and frail, natives will
venture out to sea in them for
several miles. In New South
Wales they use tree-stems hol-
lowed out by the action of fire,
like the neolithic men of Europe.
Cook saw boats of this kind 13
feet long.

Knowing nothing of agricul-
ture, and having no flocks and
herds, the blacks can hardly be
said to have an ample larder. Of
course they prefer animal food,
but game is not always to be had.
Sometimes they devour their
dogs, which originally were dingoes,
but now are mostly crossed with
European breeds. They are other-
wise very kind to these domestic
pets, the women even suckling the
young ones. There are very few
animals that they will not eat.
Occasionally they get a dead whale
or catch a dugong. Besides the
marsupials of their country, such
as kangaroos, wombats, and opos-
sums, they eat birds and eggs,
lizards, snakes, frogs, tadpoles, and
the larvae of insects. White ants
are eaten alive, and a certain moth,
which is very abundant, is con-
sidered a great delicacy. Snakes
are also much appreciated. Tad-
poles are fried on grass. Certain
roots and fruit are used as dessert
after meat. Many kinds of shell-
fish are eaten. Of the vegetables
one of the best is a certain wild
The roots of the bulrush are roasted and kneaded into cakes. Fruits are not abundant,

Photo by Kerry & Co.

A. NATIVE OF TWEED RIVER.

yam.

but the young leaves of the grass-tree are much eaten, as it grows abundantly. The people are

,£»!*

L

from Spencer anil UUUii'* " Tii'ns of Cmlml Aiuii-atiit" (*V JWJutwieo),

AN OLD MAN OP THE ARUNTA TRIBE.

57

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

very fond of honey (from the banksia and xan(horrhcea), and show great ingenuity in tracking
bees to their nests. A certain kind of eucalyptus provides them with "peppermint-gum," from
which they make a sweet drink by adding water. They appear to have had no intoxicating
drink before the advent of our colonists, with the exception perhaps of a sort of mead in New
South Wales, mentioned by Braim. They have no objection to rotten eggs, or even the
contents of the intestines of animals. Their capacity for eating meat is almost incredible.
When a man is fortunate enough to catch a kangaroo, he will go on eating, with short
intervals, until he has consumed it all. The lazy disposition of the Aboriginal makes him
alternate between gluttony and starvation.

Cannibalism used to be a frequent occurrence, but was not universal. Fat people were
liable to be stolen and eaten; for this reason a man who had a fat wife was unwilling to
allow her to wander about alone. An " unprotected female " of that sort might be made
away with to replenish the larder of some neighbouring tribe! Human skulls are used as
drinking-cups.

The natives have special words to denote every minutest portion of the human body.
Their language is in harmony with their low mental condition; it is rich in terms for concrete
objects or expressions of sensuous pleasure. Abstract terms hardly exist. It is said they
cannot recognise accurate portraits of themselves, but only large outlines with big heads.
They have little sense of number, few of them being able to count beyond three, or at most
five. Anything further is expressed by compounds. They are not altogether without poetry,
but their verse is of a very humble order, consisting of short, disconnected snatches of thought.
They have plenty of legends and fables.

It would not be true to say that the Australians have no kind of government beyond
what may be exerted at home by parents. Though chiefs are neither elected nor hereditary,
yet each tribe has its leader, chief, or king. It gradually recognises the greater activity and
prowess of its ablest man, who, by general consent, becomes its head. He rules partly by
selecting men who will carry out his wishes. Generally speaking, as we have already said,
women are despised; but there is one exception. In West Australia an old woman under-
takes the office of grandmother to the tribe. She settles quarrels, separates men who fight,

and summons the

tribe to war.

Every tribe is
divided into two,
four, or even six
classes, each of which
has a class-name,
taken from some
animal or lot em — as
Dog, Rat, or Emu.
These classes are
sometimes called
clans or totems, and
all the members of
each are considered
to be blood relations.
So a man of the
" Eat clan " must
not ?narry a girl of
that clan, but must,
aspins to the hand
Photo by Mr. a. nun,,*] IB^M. of, say, an " Emu "

NATIVES IN OUTRIGGER, HIVER ENDEAVOUR, NORTH QUEENSLAND. girl TllC

AUSTRALIA

59

in these classes is in the
female line only, so that
children belong to their
mothers' clans. Land, how-
ever, is inherited from the
fathers. All Australians are
very strict in following the
unwritten laws of public
opinion, and the rights of
property are strictly upheld.
In Central Australia it is
different, as Messrs. Spencer
and Gillen have shown in their
most important recent work
on the Central Tribes.

The natives are foud of
amusements, such as dancing,

t'runi Sjieiictr and (iillen's " Trilxs of Cmlml Aax/nUia" (by permitilon).
A GROUP OF THE AHUNTA TRIBE.

throwing spears, bathing and diving, and games that
tend to sharpen the eyesight, or to make the players
quick at concealing themselves. So sharp are their
eyes that they can recognise the footprints of most of
their acquaintances from some peculiarity in the foot's
shape, or the way in which the person walks. Boisterous
games are not so popular. The dances, like those of
the European " Little Folk " or fairies, usually take
place by moonlight. They may be warlike, licentious,
or in imitation of the chase and the habits of animals.
The corroloree partakes of the nature of a spectacle as
well as of a dance. It generally aims at reproducing
in a dramatic way some phase in native life that
interests both the performers and the spectators. In
its principal features it is similar all over the continent,
but the details vary according to the locality. New
features are frequently invented. It is the Aboriginal
drama, and the "Management" are naturally expected

•• '/'/•;/».-• ii f I',,,/, ii/ .liii-lrii/in."
UNCHICHERA OF I.MANDA.

6o

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

to provide novelties from time to time. Men are the chief performers; the women form
the orchestra, and make the music. Sometimes the men have boughs tied to their ankles,
feathers in their hair, the down of birds attached to their skin here and there, with drops
of blood, and other decorations. They paint themselves with coloured clays, the patterns being
horrible and fantastic. Thus a man will paint liiruself to look like a skeleton, the effect
of which by moonlight is weird, the lines of white standing out sharply against his black
body. The "figures" executed often represent warlike scenes. Sometimes the actions of
the emu or of the kangaroo are imitated. The ground is selected for the purpose, any-
thing which might hurt the feet
being removed. The scenic effect,
with the fires burning, and a forest
for the background, is very striking.
But the performance entails a great
deal of muscular exertion. The
women remain seated on the ground,
and sing the songs that properly ac-
company each " figure." An old man
stands near them, his duty being to
sing the first few words of each song,
and to beat time with two sticks
which he holds in his hands.

Mr. A. W. Howitt has written
a valuable account of the Australian
medicine-men, wizards, or doctors
(Journal of the Anthropological
Institute, XVI.). Over a large portion
of South-eastern Australia the term
"blackfellow doctor" is always used
for those who profess supernatural
powers — not merely of healing, but
others that are purely magical.
There are also " rain-makers," seers,
or spirit-mediums, and bards who
employ their poetic faculties for pur-
poses of enchantment. The wizards
are everywhere credited with the
power of conveying themselves
through the air, or of being conveyed
by the ghosts from place to place, or
even from earth to the sky. Numer-
ous accounts were given to Mr. Howitt
by natives of the "going up" of
these wizards. The reader will not be surprised to learn that the upward flights always
took place under cover of darkness, and that the return of the wizard is frequently accom-
plished by means of a tree, down which he was heard to descend and finally to jump on
to the ground; but these suspicious circumstances do not affect the faith of the Aboriginal
in the accomplishments of his wizard, who, in addition to the power of travelling to and
from the skies, is able also to hurl stones invisibly at any person or persons whom he
may wish to injure. The projectile generally employed for this amiable purpose is a piece of
the mineral known as quartz ("Bristol diamond" or rock-crystal), crystals of which are always
carried about by a "blackfellow doctor" as part of his stock-in-trade. All bright transparent
stones are sacred amulets which the doctor alone may touch or investigate. It is believed

Photo by Kerry & Co.] [Sydney.

A MAN OF THE WORKII TRIBE, GILBERT RIVER.

AUSTRALIA

61

that the sorcerers have a stone or a bone in their stomach from which they can secretly
transfer splinters into the veins of those upon whom they exercise their arts, and the cure
of diseases with them generally consists in the extraction of these stones. Magic wands are
made of acacia sticks, especially the knotted stick called plont/ge: if a sorcerer touch the
breast of a sleeping man with one of these, he causes him to fall ill. If a man has an
enemy, he plots for his death or downfall with the sorcerer, bringing him a fragment of
anything the enemy has worn, or a portion of his hair if he can obtain it, or even a morsel
of food he has left, by me-ans of which the sorcurer is supposed to be able to work any ill
upon the unfortunate victim. Many
tribes burn what food is left after a
meal, as a precaution against sorcery.
The Australian cannot reconcile his
mind to the idea that death is a
natural event. Every death not
brought about by open violence is
considered to be the result of magical
arts. Some wizard must have been
at work with his fatal spells, and the
friends of the dead man endeavour
in their own peculiar way to find out
who is the murderer. Some put
questions to the bier on which the
corpse is laid, calling it " The know-
ing one." At the funeral a relation
who does not make sufficient lamenta-
tion is liable to be suspected ! Should
the man suspected belong to another
tribe, the matter becomes a casus
belli : a few spears are thrown, and
some wounds inflicted, until the old
men declare that "Honour is satis-
fied." With many tribes, it is believed
that a man can be bewitched by the
use of his name. In order to prevent
such a misfortune, a lad, as soon as
he becomes a man (after passing
through the initiation ceremonies),
gives up his name and is described
as the son or brother of a woman;
for women, being supposed to be less
subject to witchcraft, are allowed to
keep their names.

To counteract the malevolent arts of the sorcerer, charms of various kinds are resorted to.
Mr. Ilowitt speaks of a young man of the Murring tribe who had a bagful of powerful
charms, among which was the cut-glass stopper of a bottle, supposed to be very efficacious.
When asked how such things could possibly protect him, the young man, who had for his
totem the kangaroo (on his father's side), replied: "If I were going along, and saw an old-man
kangaroo hopping straight towards me and looking at me, I should know that he was giving
me notice that enemies were about. I should get my spear ready, and I should hold my joea
bag in my hand, so that if the man [i.e. the wizard] were to chuck something at me, I
should be safe."

The Kurnai tribe also believe in kangaroo warnings ; and if one of them should happen

J'ttoto

A MAN OF THE WORKII TRIBE, GILBERT RIVER.

62

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

to dream of " old-men kangaroos'' sitting round bis camp, lie would take it as a kindly
warning of coming danger. Oue may be sure tbat the sorcerers are not induced to exercise
their powers without some material reward. They all demand payment in kind. Some of
their patrons give presents for favours received; others from fear of possible injuries. The
sorcerers are not particular, and will gladly take such nnconsidered trifles as weapons, rags,
implements, and especially game. After a " fair" they come away loaded with gifts. It is difficult
to ascertain the manner in which the sorcerers qualify themselves to practise their profession
and to impose upon their fellow-blacks, for they surround themselves with profound mystery —
as the augurs did in Rome, though Macaulay naively wondered how two of them could meet
without laughing. The tribes have innumerable tales of the manner in which the powers of
magic are acquired. Some, as the Knrnai tribe, say that the ghosts of ancestors visit a
sleeping man and communicate to him the secrets of sorcery, or take him away with them
while his spirit wanders in dreams and complete his education in the distant spirit-world.
Other tribes believe that a man becomes a wizard by meeting a supernatural being, who lives
in hollows in the ground, and who opens the man's side and inserts therein quartz crystals
and other minerals by which he obtains his powers.

Mr. R. II. Mathews has described (Journal of the Anthropological Institute} the
initiation ceremonies of certain Australian tribes. An old man, who appeared to be a wizard,
told him a curious legend connected with the initiation ceremonies of the Wiradthuri tribes
of New South Wales. The myth was as follows: — A long time ago there was a gigantic
and powerful being, something between a blackfellow and a spirit, called Dhuramoolau, who
was one of Baiame's people. His voice was awe-inspiring and resembled the rumbling of
distant thunder. At a certain age the boys of the tribes were handed over to this god, in
order that he might take them away into the bush and instruct them in all the laws,
traditions, and customs of the community, to qualify them to sit on councils, and discharge
all the duties and obligations devolving upon them as tribesmen. He pretended to Baiame
that he always killed the boys, cut them up and burned them to ashes, and then restored
them to human shape again, as new beings — doubtless much improved by the process.

But not all the boys
came back to the
tribe, for at every
initiation ceremony
some of the candi-
dates died in the
bush. Dlmramoolan
.said they had died
from natural causes;
but Baiame, becoming
uneasy at the loss of
so many of his young
men, and, suspecting
that something was
wrong, questioned
their companions. At
first they were afraid
to tell; but on being
compelled to speak
the truth, they said
that the missing boys
had been eaten by
f/,o/o by Mr. Phillip] [/1,'Moi. Dhuramoolan. It was

NATIVES OF RIVER ENDEAVOUR, NORTH QUEENSLAND. Hot trU6 that the

Photo fitj II". Li/itit,

A NATIVE, WITH WIFE AND MOTHER.
63

64-

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

survivors had been burned and restored to life. Baianic, on hearing this, became very
wroth and killed this great being Dhuramoolan. But Dhuramoolan put his voice into all the
trees of the forest, telling it to remain in them for ever. lie also made a ''bull-roarer"
(a whip used to frighten away women at the ceremonies) by splitting one of the trees, and
the tree still retained the voice. Baiamc told his chief men that in future they must
themselves initiate the youths of the tribes, using the " bull- roarers " to represent the voice
of Uhuramoolan. The women were not told of the death of Dhuramoolan or the deceit
which he had practised, and they therefore continued to believe that he took the boys, burned
them, and brought them back to life.

It is quite clear that the object of the initiatory rites is to teach the privileges, duties,
and obligations of manhood, to harden them and make them able to bear pain. Youths are
thus enrolled among the men, and removed from the care of the women. They are no longer

Photo by Ktrry <fe Co.}

RIVER LANDSCAPE, WITH HUT.

[Sydney.

"tied to their mother's apron-strings," as we should say. The ceremonies create a gulf
between the past life of the boy and the future of the man that can never be recrossed.
They also strengthen the authority of the old men. Finally, the opportunity is taken of
impressing upon the mind of the youth, in an indelible manner, the rules of conduct which
he is expected to obey. In addition to all this there is a semi-religious element which tends
to strengthen very greatly the emotional effect of the rite. It is difficult to imagine
anything better calculated to impress, to awe, and even to terrify a young Australian savage
than the initiation ceremonies of his race.

According to some writers, Australians have no religion beyond the dread of ghosts and
evil spirits. They certainly have no worship, even of idols. But llatzel and others maintain
that a good many ideas have been imported from Polynesia, Melanesia, Borneo, and other
regions. With the Kamilaroi tribe in the north-west of New South Wales, Baiame is
regarded as the maker of all things; his name signifies "maker" or "cutter out," and he
is the rewarder of men according to their conduct. He it is who sees and knows all, being
kept well informed by a lower deity who presides at the initiation ceremonies. Another deity,
whose name is Dhuramoolan, acts as mediator. The latter has a wife called the Egg, or Life.
She has charge over the instruction of women. The spirit — that which speaks and thinks

AUSTRALIA

within man — does not die with the body, but ascends to Baiame, or it may wander about
on the earth, or enter a wild animal or a white man. A native once quaintly expressed
his belief iu a future state in the following words: "When black-fella tumble down,
he jump up all same white-fella." Numbers of white men have been recognised by the
blacks as their lost relatives returned from the spirit-world, and have accordingly received
native names!

The late Dr. Bennett. F.E.S., mentions that on one occasion, when a European was
chasing a wild animal, the black who accompanied him entreated him to spare it and to take
it alive, as it was once "him brother"! The white man, disregarding the petition, killed the
animal, at which his black companion was greatly grieved, refusing to eat any of it, and
muttering all the while about "tumbling down him brother"!

According to Mr. E. Palmer, a certain tribe believe that there is a place among the stars
whither they go after death by means of a rope! When a meteorite is seen, they say it is a

Photo by Henri/ Kiiuj}

A GROUP OF NATIVE AUSTRALIANS

66

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

falling rope discarded by a spirit which has succeeded in climbing up to heaven; but if the
meteorite bursts with a loud noise, it shows that the rope has broken.

The Rev. Charles Greeuway, speaking of the Kamilaroi tribe of New South Wales, says
they have a legend that the stars forming the constellation known as the Pleiades were
young women of extraordinary beauty who once lived on earth. The young men, becoming
enamoured of their charms, pursued them. The girls prayed for deliverance, and Baiame and
his mediator, Dhuramoolan, helped them to climb to the top of some very high trees, whence
they sprang up to the sky. One of them, not being so beautiful as the rest, hides behind the
other six. The leader of the young men who pursued them now appears as Orion, with a
boomerang in his belt. The natives of Encounter Bay say that the souls up above, in the
clouds or in the stars, leave their habitations in the evening, and go about their business as
they used to when they dwelt on earth. The Milky Way is said to be a row of huts, and
natives profess to -see therein the ash-heaps and columns of ascending smoke, as from

an encampment.
Meteorites, according
to these tribes, are
the children of the
stars. The outer and
inner bands of colour
in the rainbow are
male and female. The
moon is a good in-
fluence, but the sun
a bad one.

It is always diffi-
cult to generalise
iibout the mental
characteristics of any
race of people, and
only those are justi-
fied in the attempt
who have lived among
them for a good many
years — even then they
may fall into serious
errors, so reserved are
all the lower races.
But we cannot be

far wrong in quoting the opinion of Mr. Curr, who was for many years "Protector of
the Aborigines" in Victoria. He says: "The black, especially in his wild state, is
quicker in the action of his mind, more observant, and more self-reliant than the English
peasant, but less steady, persevering, and calculating. In our aboriginal schools it has
been found that the pupil masters reading, writing, and arithmetic more quickly than the
English child. He will also amuse himself with reading stories as long as he is under the
influence of the whites. At this point, however, he stops. Could our blacks part with their
knowledge of reading and writing, I am persuaded that they would do so for a trifle. . . .
Socially, the black is polite, gay, fond of laughter, and has much bonhomie in his composition
As regards courage, he is inferior to the white man; for, though his nerve is superior, his
resolution is less. His tactics in war are such that he will never undertake an enterprise in
which the death of even one of the party is inevitable, or nearly so. Hence, no blacks,
however numerous, will attempt to rush a hut in which there is one armed man on guard.
On the other hand, a black has been known, in a place far removed from civilisation, to

Photo by Mr. 11. I'hi//</,«l [Ili-itM.

WOMEN IN MOURNING — THEIR liODIES COATED WITH WHITE CLAY.

TASMANIA

67

I'/IUtlJ IjlJ J. II. liru/llt\

WILLIAM LAN.VEY.

resist, single-banded, the advance of an exploring party
with the greatest intrepidity, though the horses must
have seemed to him goblins or devils. Touching the
moral feelings of the blacks, writers say little or
nothing; but observation has convinced me that they
are not without them nevertheless, though they are
much blunted from constant repression, and that they
discriminate between right and wrong, though unable
to formulate the difference. I believe their horror of
consanguineous marriages proceeds from a feeling of
this sort which they are unable to analyse or explain.
I am convinced from personal observation that, after
the perpetration of infanticide or massacres, though
both are practised without disguise, those engaged in
them are subject to remorse and low spirits for some
time afterwards." Ratzel speaks of the "soul-depressing
misery" that hangs over these people, rendering them
unquestionably far inferior to that beau-ideal child of
Nature, the wild North American Indian. For this the
climate is partly responsible. Rain, which is so essential

for filling the springs and maintaining both animal and vegetable life, comes so irregularly
that droughts are frequent. Certain steppe districts are oppressively hot, and the sudden
chill that follows the sunset seems to cause a stupefying effect. Where the land is desert,
the inhabitants are few in number and of a miserable appearance; where the laud is good,
they are more numerous, better-looking, and more active. The women are not so handsome
as the men, and the old women are dreadfully ugly; this is partly due to the very laborious
lives they lead, but also to the very poor food vouchsafed to them by their lords and masters.

Mr. C. S. Wake, who has contributed papers on Australian Aborigines to the Journal of
the Anthropological Institute, thus sums up his view of them: "It is evident that these
people are, as compared with more advanced races, in the condition of children. Among all
the tribes, whether the more hostile ones of the east, or those who in the west appear to
give evidence of a milder disposition, there is the same imperfect development of moral ideas.
In fact, none of them have any notion of what we

•cull morality, except the simple one of right and f ^^\

wrong arising out of questions of property. With this
moral imperfection, however, the Australian natives
exhibit a degree of mental activity which, at first
sight, may be thought inconsistent with the childish
position here assigned to them. It is evident, however,
that this activity results from the position in which the
Australian is placed. Extremely indolent when food is
plentiful, when it is scarce the greatest exertions can be
made for its acquirement, and the repeated exercise of
the mind on the means of accomplishing the all-impor-
tant end of obtaining food has led to a development of
the lower intellectual faculties somewhat disproportionate
to the moral ideas with which they are associated."

TASMANIA.

IT is to Van Diemen, governor of the Dutch possessions
in the East Indies in the year 1642, who sent Tasniau

,l. n. iii<inif\ [Safari,

WILLIAM LA.NXEY.

68

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

in command of two successive expeditions from Batavia, that we owe our first knowledge of
Australasia. In that year Tasman came in sight of the large island, which he called Van
Diemen's Land, after his patron. He guessed that the island was inhabited, but saw no
natives. The first meeting of the Aborigines with Europeans took place on March 4, 1772.
When the French navigator Marion de Fresno arrived at the spot at which the Dutchman
had touched, the blacks came down to the French boats with confidence; but unfortunately there
was some misunderstanding, and one of them was shot, and the rest fled. The first Englishman
who approached the shores of Tasmania was Captain Furneaux, of the Resolution, who in
March 1773, having been accidentally separated from the ship of his commander, Captain
Cook (then on his second voyage of discovery), coasted along the south and east shores. He
saw none of the people, but he says the country " appeared to be thickly inhabited, as there
was a continual fire along the shore as we sailed."

On January 26, 1777, Captain Cook, then on his third voyage, entered Adventure Bay.
The inhabitants were found to be distinctly below the English standard of stature. The
average height of twenty-three men gave 5 feet 3f inches; of twenty-nine women the average
was 4 feet 11£ inches. The colour of the skin was dark brown, or chocolate colour, sometimes
approaching black. The hair was very characteristic of their race — which is believed to be
Papuan or Melanesian, though modified by long isolation. Instead of being straight or wavy,
as with the Australians, it was finely curled or frizzled; when short, it had the appearance
commonly called "woolly," but when allowed to grow long it went into small ringlets, which
when covered with grease and ochre gave the appearance of a sort of mop of red strings
hanging over the head and neck. The men had good beards and whiskers. The eyes were
small but bright, and sunk beneath heavy, prominent brows. The nostrils were large and
open; the nose was short and prominent, the upper part being deeply sunk under the
projecting ridge connecting the eyebrows, and the lower part very wide. The brain -capacity
was small compared with the general dimensions of the skull and face; the projection of the
lower jaws was very marked. The people lived "like beasts of the forests, in roving parties,
without arts of any kind, sleeping in summer like dogs, under the hollow sides of trees, or in
wattled huts made with the lower branches of evergreen shrubs, stuck in the ground at small
distances from each other, and meeting together at the top." Captain Cook's ship surgeon,
Mr. Anderson, tells us that they "had little of that fierce or wild appearance common to people
in their situation, but, on the contrary, seemed mild and cheerful, without reserve or jealousy of

strangers. But," he adds, "their not expressing
that surprise which one might have expected
from their seeing men so much unlike themselves,
and things to which, we were well assured, they
had been hitherto utter strangers, their in-
difference for our presents, and their general
inattention, were sufficient proofs of their not
possessing any acnteness of understanding."
Cook's intercourse with these people was of a
perfectly friendly nature. Their treatment by
whites in the present century is, unfortunately,
a very different story.

In the year 1804 the English took pos-
session of the island, and changed its name to
Tasmania. They colonised it from New South
Wales. At Restdown, afterwards Eiedon, a
settlement was formed by a military party and
convict labourers. It was here, in 1804, that

ptuxo AI/ ./. w. Beattie\ [Hoban. the first serious conflict took place, and through

- TRUGANINA," WILLIAM LANNEY'S WIFE. a foolish misunderstanding. A party of several

TASMANIA

69

I

f

hundred blacks, men. women, and
children, engaged in a harmless
kangaroo chase, were suddenly
seen running down the side of
a hill towards the young colony.
The alarmed settlers, thinking
that they were about to be
attacked, fired volleys among the
unhappy natives, killing, it is
said, as many as fifty before the
fatal mistake was found out.
Thus began that terrible "Black
War" which makes so dark a
page in the history of our colonial
expansion. It is perhaps only
fair to say that the English
settlers consisted largely of con-
victs of the most hardened and
degraded type, who, frequently
escaping, took to a roving and
lawless life in the forests as
bushrangers, or on the islands
in the straits as sealers. From
such men as these, the very dregs
of our home population, utterly
selfish and cruel, the natives
mostly received impressions of
European civilisation and
character, which led to reprisals
upon the more peaceful settlers.
Life became almost everywhere
so insecure as to cause an urgent cry for Government interference. An attempt to divide the
country between the two races by a Hue of demarcation failed. More severe measures followed;
martial law was proclaimed against all the blacks, and the famous operation of the "Line" was
commenced. The intention was to surround all the natives by a military cordon reaching right
across the island, gradually to close in upon them, and finally to drive them into Tasman's
Peninsula on the east, and keep them there by means of a strong guard. But the blacks
were too cunning to be caught in a trap like that, and, knowing the ground much better than
their pursuers, easily eluded their vigilance, although nearly the whole of the white population,
civil and military, were employed in the chase. The experiment cost nearly £30,000, and
resulted in the capture of one wretched black. By this time the native population, robbed of
their hunting-grounds, and acquiring diseases by contact with the whites, were reduced to
little more than 300 in number. After methods of coercion, including the offer of rewards
for individual captures, had been tried, with little more success, one white man accomplished
by kindness, and almost single-handed, what all the forces of the Government had failed to
do. Mr. Augustus Ilobinson, a builder, devoted himself to the cause of the blacks at a time
when the whole island was in a panic from the attacks of a few natives. Gathering around him
at Bruni Island as many of them as he could induce to adopb settled habits, he taught them
the rudiments of European education, at the same time learning from them what he could
of their language and ideas. In this way he gradually won their confidence, and the report
soon spread through the island that there was one white man who was really a friend of the
blacks. With a few native and English friends he went about, unarmed, among the people, and

From a water-colour tlraiciii;/ Inj Mr. T. JJoclc.

A NATIVE OF TASMANIA.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

a water-colour drawing by Mr. T. Bock.
A YOUNG MAN OF TASMANIA.

persuaded them by promises of good treatment to sur-
render their freedom. In the course of three years
they all came in. William Lanney, as he was after-
wards called, was one of the last party brought into
llobart Town in 1835. He was the " last man " of this
now extinct race; and we reproduce 011 page 67 his
photograph, and on page G8 that of his wife, from
lantern-slides kindly lent by the Ageiit-General for
Xew South Wales.

The blacks were finally settled in Flinders Island,
in Bass Strait, their number then scarcely exceeding
200. Here they were fed, clothed, and educated at
Government expense, but they sadly missed the old
freedom and the excitement of the chase or of war,
and partly from melancholy and partly from diseases
they rapidly died off, until in 1847 their numbers were
reduced to forty-four. William Lanney died in 1869.
The last of the native women, Truganina, who, as the
faithful companion of Robinson's conciliatory missions,
had played an important role, and on one occasion had
been the means of saving his life, survived until 1876.
The languages of the Tasmanians were soft and musical, and quite unlike those of the
Australians. It is said that many of them were really handsome savages. The few photographs
still extant suggest quite the reverse, but it is possible that the ugliest and weirdest-looking
natives were purposely selected as subjects for the camera. In Cook's time, besides covering
their heads with grease and red ochre, the Tasmanians wore bracelets, armlets, and necklaces,
also girdles of kangaroo sinews or vegetable fibre, to which shells, bones, or teeth were often
attached. They never cultivated the ground, and had no domestic animals, not even dogs.
Of the potter's art they were entirely ignorant. No charges of cannibalism have been brought
home to them. Although it seems probable that they were acquainted with the art of
producing fire, they always took burning torches on their journeys. Their weapons were only
two, both made of wood — a simple long spear, sharpened at one end and hardened by the
action of fire, and the waddy, a short stick, which could be used either as a club or missile.
They possessed no bows and arrows, nor did they use the shields, boomerangs, and th rowing-
sticks of the Australians. Of course metal of any kind was quite unknown. The thin bone
of a kangaroo's leg served for needle, awl, or pin; their domestic utensils were stone axes
and knives of the very rudest construction; in fact, Professor Tylor shows in a valuable paper
read before the Anthropological Institute that these people may be fairly taken as representing
the primitive state of the European men of the older Stone Age (or Palaeolithic period),
when men hunted the mammoth, reindeer, wild horse, and the primeval bull. The Tasmanians
had no seaworthy canoes; they crossed a river or a small arm of the sea on logs, roughly
constructed rafts, or bark canoes.

They were divided into numerous small tribes, each speaking a different dialect, sometimes
incomprehensible to each other; and as it not unfrequently happens among rival communities
boasting a far higher condition of civilisation, these tribes were often at war with one another;
but being by no means of a savage or bloodthirsty disposition, and the weapons, as indicated
above, not being of a very destructive nature, their battles were rarely attended with many
casualties. The sanguinary side of their disposition was unfortunately developed in the
life-and-death struggle with the intruding Europeans. As with most people in a primitive
condition of society, the chief occupation of the men was hunting, while the women attended
to the concerns of the household (if such a term can be fitly employed for the domestic
economy), taking care of the children, searching for roots, shell-fish or eggs, cooking, making

TASMANIA

nets, etc. Dancing was a favourite amusement; and notwithstanding the excessively low grade
of their culture, scattered notices of their primitive mode of existence show that life was to
them not altogether without its amenities, and even enjoyments. As far as is known, they
had no system of caste, and apparently no regular chiefs, either hereditary or elective; but a
man of superior power or intelligence would sometimes acquire a temporary leadership of a
family or tribe. Monogamy is said to have been the usual rule in their marriages, but very
little is really known about their social customs; even the accounts in Bonwick's work are
greatly eked out with relations of the manners of the Australians and other kindred races, in
such a way that it is often difficult to distinguish what is really authentic with regard to the
people of whom he is especially treating.

The geographical position of these people — completely out of all the ordinary tracks of
commerce and civilisation — isolated them from all the rest of the world. Neither they
nor the almost equally barbarous natives of Australia possessed boats by which the straits
between Tasmania and the neighbouring mainland could be crossed; and there are no proofs
that they had ever been visited by or received any extraneous culture from inhabitants of
any of the Pacific islands. It is this long isolation which gives so much interest to the study
of the customs, morals, and physical condition of the Tasmanians, as we have to do with a
people unaffected by all the complicated ethnological problems arising from the mingled
influence of diverse and various races found among the nations of most other parts of the
world. Unfortunately the opportunity for a complete investigation of this interesting subject
has been allowed to pass away under our very eyes, as it were. The language of the natives
is irretrievably lost, only imperfect indications of its structure and a small proportion of its
words having been preserved. In the absence of sibilants, and some other features, their

P/ioto by J. H'. Heal lit]

[IIotKtrt.

A GROUP OF TASMANIANS.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

I'luilo Inj J. II. Jlei(//i,-l

A GROUP OF TASMANIANS.

[Unbart.

dialects resembled the Australian, but were of
| ruder, of less-developed structure, and so imperfect
that, according to Joseph Milligan, our best
authority on the subject, they observed no settled
order or arrangement of words in the construction
of their sentences, but conveyed in a supple-
mentary fashion by tone, manner, and gesture
those modifications of meaning which we express
by mood, tense, number, etc. Abstract terms
were rare, and for every variety of gum-tree or
sviittlc-tree there was a name, but no word for
"tree" in general, or for qualities, such as hard,
soft, warm, cold, long, short, round, etc. Any-
thing hard was " like a stone," anything round
"like the moon," and so on, " usually suiting the
action to the word, and confirming by some sign
the meaning to be understood." The records of

their arts, customs, and beliefs, before they were contaminated by European influence, are

far from satisfactory; and even of their physical structure far less evidence than could be

desired is at present attainable.

Anthropologists believe that the island-continent of Australia was at some distant period

inhabited by a woolly-haired race of Papuans or

Melanesiaus, from whom the Tasmanians were

derived, and that, later on, these people were driven

out of their continent by the present race of so-
called Aborigines, who are believed to be Caucasian,

like ourselves. By this explanation we escape the

difficulty of supposing that the Tasmanians could

have come all the way from Melanesia, or from

New Guinea. According to Professor Tylor, the

religion of these people was a rude "Animism";

they thought that a man's shadow was his ghost.

The echo of his voice when he spoke against a

cliff was his shadow talking. They believed in a

future state, of which the abode was some distant

region of the earth; and as in the case of

Australians, they were wont to recognise in their

white visitors the souls of dead Tasmanians returned

from the land of spirits.

" In religion " (according to the late Dr. Brown)

"they believed in a spirit who could, especially

during the night, hurt or annoy them, and beyond

this their mythology was limited. They also believed

in a world ' beyond the grave, where they were

better fed and led a somewhat easier life than in

the present one — where stockmen who set spring-
guns for them were unknown, and where neither

mutton impregnated with strychnine nor flour with

arsenic was pat in their way when they were hungry. They had great confidence in the

power of amulets. The most valued of these was a bone from either the skull or the arm of

their deceased relatives, to be sewn up in a piece of skin; this was sovereign against sickness

or premature death."

V

From Dr. A. B. Mojei^s "Album con (Jdtlx* Typ<-nC' Dresden.

A WOMAN OF CELEBES.

CHAPTEE IV.
CELEBES, BORNEO, JAVA, SUMATRA, PHILIPPINES, MALAY PENINSULA.

THE MALAYS.

WK pass from the Australian Continent to the Eastern Archipelago, which extends westward
and nortl -westward from New Guinea, and contains among its more important islands Timor
Laut, the Timor Group, the Moluccas, Celebes, Flores, Samba, Sumbawa, Java, Sumatra, Borneo,
and the Philippines. We shall include in this chapter a brief account of the very primitive
Negritos of the Malay Peninsula, although geographically they belong to the continent of Asia.
The Negritos are also found in the Philippines; but the chief race of this vast archipelago is
the Malay.

The Malay race, which gives its name to the whole region of Malaysia, is a branch of the
great Mongolian division of mankind. Its people are slim and of medium stature, some three
or four inches below the average European
height. The complexion is light brown
(with variations). The face is somewhat
square, with high and prominent cheek-
bones. The eyes are black (rarely oblique,
as in China and Japan); the mouth is
rather large, with somewhat thick but
well-cut lips, and the chin is round; the
uose is short, and quite unlike that of
either the European or the Negro. The
hair is black. The beard, when allowed to
grow, is scanty, and at first sight the men
and women appear very much alike to
European eyes.

Three distinct social groups of Malays
are recognised: (1) the "Men of the
Soil," or Orany Bemia (known also as
" Highlanders " and " Wild Men ") ; (2) the
"Men of the Sea" (Orang Laut}, a
semi-civilised floating population; (3) the
"Malay Men" (Orang Malayu), who are
the civilised Malays possessing a certain
culture and a religion. The " Wild Men "
are the raw material, or aboriginal element,
hitherto almost entirely unaffected by
foreign influence, living chiefly by the
chase, and with very little, if any, social
orgaiiisation. These principally exist in
the almost inaccessible wooded uplands of
Malacca and Sumatra, and are more or less
intimately associated with the still older SAKAHANG DYAS.

SIK Illtiil I,OW C<>LI.KtTION.

73

10

74

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

DYA WOMEN AX

race of Xegritos. The Bajans, or "Sea Gypsies," may be classed with the second group.
They were known to the Portuguese when they first reached Malaysia. De Barros then described
them as "a vile people, dwelling more on the sea than on the land," and "living by fishing
and robbing." This description may still be not unfitly applied to them.

The Malays proper, or "Malay Men," constitute that section of the race which, under the
influence first of the Hindus, who settled in Sumatra as far back as the fourth century of our
era, and then of the Arabs, has developed a national life and culture, and has founded more
or less powerful political states in various parts of the archipelago. The chief divisions of all
the civilised communities are as follows: —

Malays Proper live in Menangkabo, Palembang, and Lampong in Sumatra; petty states
of the Malay Peninsula; Borneo, Tidor Termite.

Sumatran Group : Achenese, Rejangs, Passomahs.

Javanese Group : Javanese proper, Sundanese, Madurese, Balinese.

Celebes Group: Bugis, Makassars, and others.

Philippine Group: Tagalas, Bisayans, Bicol-Sulns, etc.

Outlying Groups : Hovas of Madagascar, Formosan Islanders.

Perhaps the principal characteristic of the Malay is his easy-going and indolent nature.
He is generally gentle, quiet, extremely civil in manner, not wont to rebel against authority:
he never openly expresses surprise or fear, and in speech is invariably slow and deliberate.
Malays seldom offend one another, and never indulge in' rough behaviour or anything which
might be called "horseplay." In all matters of etiquette they are very particular, and in this
respect the upper classes behave with the dignity of European gentlemen, although they have
a natural tendency to suspicion, which causes their manners to lack the frankness which is
typical of the educated Englishman. In contrast with this there is a dark side to the Malay
character, which often manifests itself in the most pitiless cruelty and contempt of human
life. Hence murder and robbery with violence are of somewhat frequent occurrence. Many
travellers describe the Malays as gentle and peaceable, while others dwell on their brutality
and ferocity, and it is only by bearing in mind the two opposite sides of the Malay character
that we can reconcile descriptions so apparently contradictory. The Malays dislike manual

MALAYS

75

labour, and consider themselves degraded by it; but under favourable conditions, especially if
well paid, they can get through no small amount of work. Gambling is one of their worst
vices, and they bet heavily over cock-fighting, which is their chief form of amusement. They
are also very much addicted to opium-smoking. Among their virtues must be reckoned
frugality and contentment.

The barbarous practice of head-hunting is a time-honoured custom of all the Malays.
Martin de Rada speaks of its existence as early as the year 1577; and even at the present
day, in spite of vigorous opposition on the part of the colonial authorities, the custom of
taking the heads of enemies as trophies has by no means died out. All Malays appear to
worship skulls, or to regard them as sacred. Hence they naturally regard a human skull as
the most suitable sacrifice that they can offer to appease the spirits of their ancestors. Chris-
tianity and Islamism have both done something to check the practice. In Xorth Borneo skulls
now lie about like old lumber, instead of being carefully kept as of old. Among the Igorottes,
according to Hans Meyer, the only surviving reminiscence of the practice is the dance,
accompanied by derisive songs, round a bare pole, on which formerly the skull was stuck.
Among the Ilongotes, on the other hand, a young man cannot marry until he has brought
his bride-elect a certain number of heads — those of Christians being preferred. The Dya
head-hunter keeps his skulls in a beautifully carved box. When a chief wishes to ornament
his house, he demands human skulls. Heads must be placed under the posts of a house at
ita foundation. Xone but the successful head-hunter can claim to be tattooed. By a kind of
unwritten law tribal quarrels are usually settled by the cutting off of heads. The practice

-AHKHAS DYA \VO\IKN.

76

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

proceeded originally from super-
stitious motives; but ultimately it
became a fashion, and every one de-
sired to have skulls, just as in
England people like to collect old
china or ancient armour to decorate
the ancestral hall. Owing to the
innate idleness of the Malays, blood-
feuds gradually ceased, and head-
hunting became a less dangerous, and
consequently more popular, amuse-
ment. A lazy Dya would catch a
man asleep in order to take his head
off, or he would prowl about the
paddy-fields, awaiting his opportunity
to fall upon one or two helpless
women and children. The people are
too lazy to avenge the death even
of a relation killed in this way, and
Michaelsen says: "Only once has
it occurred that a Dya of Serajeu,
whose daughter had been murdered
by ahead-hunter of Katingen, followed
the murderer, and cut his head off
actually at the festival which was
being held in his honour. The deed
caused such terror that the man who
dared to do such a thing in vengeance
for his child was allowed to depart
unhindered with the decapitated
head."

Dyas conduct their head-hunting
operations in a very systematic way.
They begin by a religious consecra-
tion. They construct a hut on four

posts; the entrance is barred with coils of rattan, hung with red flowers, palm leaves, and
many little wooden counterfeit swords, spears, shields, etc. Inside the place is decorated
with spears, blow-guns, freshly poisoned arrows, and other arms. The company stay here for
several days before setting out, and consult the omens. No one not belonging to their
number is allowed to approach the hut, and any man attempting to do so renders himself
liable to a heavy fine, or even to death.

The position of women among the Malays is not very low, and those who are Moslems
treat their women-folk better than the heathen Malays do. Speaking of the island of Timor
Laut, Riedl says: "The husband never beats the wife; it is quite the other way." In all
respects the woman is highly valued, and a man must pay a heavy price for a wife.

The Malays of to-day are fond of submitting appeals to "the judgment of God" by
means of "ordeals." The commoner forms of ordeal are by ducking, pulling a ring out of
boiling oil, and licking red-hot iron. Another form of ordeal is the " trial by candle," which
the Tagals borrowed from certain Christians. In this case a candle, having been duly con-
secrated, is solemnly lighted, and watched closely by the suspected persons, for if it should
bend towards one of them he is adjudged the guilty party. When two Igorottes quarrel,
the backs of their heads are scratched with sharp splinters of bamboo, and the one who loses

sin Ilr<;n Low COLLECTION.

A KANOWIT CHIEF.

CELEBES — BORNEO

77

most blood loses also his case. Sometimes judgment is sought by testing the size of the gall
of <i hen which has been roasted to death.

The proverbs of a nation are always interesting, and those of the Malays exhibit a good
deal of mother-wit. AVe say, "Out of the frying-pan into the fire"; the Malay equivalent is,
''Escaping the jaws of the alligator to fall into the fangs of the tiger.'1 Having no pots and
kettles, they say, "The net calls the basket a coarse piece of work." Other examples are as
follows: "What use is it for the peacock to swagger in the jungle?" "Can the ground turn
itself into iron?" 'The turtle lays a thousand eggs and no one knows; a hen lays one and
tells all the world." "Even the fish which lives at the bottom of the sea comes to the net
at last." A coward is called "a duck with spurs."

CELEBES.

THI: Island of Celebes is the home of many distinct and separate tribes of the Malay race,
all in different stages of civilisation. \Ve may conveniently divide them into two groups:
the Mohammedans, who are to some extent civilised, and the Pagans, who are little better
than savages, wearing bark-cloth garments and unable to weave or to work in metal. The
Mohammedans, on the other hand, can
read and write, have fixed forms of
government, and have made no small
progress both in agriculture and in arts.
Among these people the more important
are the Bugis, the Mandars, and the
Makassars. The Bugis are good traders
and settlers, and navigate their ships, of
fifty or sixty tons' burden, from the
farthest point of Sumatra to New Guinea.
The Mandars by the Strait of Makassar
have a language of their own and are
good fishermen. The Makassars also have
a distinct language. Some of the re-
maining tribes are head-hunters and
cannibals, and either are or were very
similar to the Dyas of Borneo. In the
Moluccas we find Malays, Papuans, and
Indonesians (or pre-Malays) all very much
mixed up.

BORNEO.

THE Island of Borneo is divided for
political purposes into four territories:
North British Borneo (or Saba) in the
north, and the Raj of Sarawak in the
north-west; between these lies the small
state of the Sultan of Brunei; all the
rest of the island is Dutch. It is not
thickly inhabited, the population being
roughly estimated at 2,000,000.
Numerous ruins of Hindu temples,
scattered over this great island, prove
that Indonesians (or pre-Malays) once
came here — perhaps from Java. Then

Photo by S«j)-< lit <!• /.umbra]

A MAN OF JAVA.

[London.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

came the Malays themselves, driving inland the older population. The peoples inhabiting
the Eaj of Sarawak are Land Dyas, Sea Dyas, Milanans, Kayans, Muruts, Ukits, Bisayans,
Malays, and Chinese. The Laud Dyas, of whom there are about forty branches, are a small
race, of slender build, with straight black hair, and of the same complexion as Malays.
Although all the wild people of Borneo are by Europeans called Dyas, the name belongs
properly to one particular class inhabiting parts of the north-west coast and the mountains
of the interior. As a generic term the word appears to mean "man." Dyas of pure blood
are only to be found in the interior, and there is no doubt that for centuries they have been
marrying with Chinese immigrants. Their language differs entirely from that of either the
Malays or the Sea Dyas, and is subject to so much variation that tribes in Upper Sarawak
often find a difficulty in making themselves understood in the Upper Sadong. The Sea Dyas
are of stouter build than the Land Dyas, with well-made limbs, a subdued and calm but

Photo by Ifegretti it Zambi-a}

JAVA WOMEN.

(Lou/Jon.

resolute air, an imposing carriage, walking with a light, graceful step. The men are fine
healthy fellows; the women are often ill favoured in personal appearance. The colour of the
skin is dark brown, with a strong tinge of yellow. The teeth are stained black and filed to
a point. Love of finery is inherent in the young of both sexes, but the old people often dress
very shabbily. The male attire consists of a waist-cloth, a head-dress, and a mat to sit upon;
but for full dress a jacket and a shawl are considered necessary. The women usually wear
a short petticoat at home and a jacket out of doors. By way of ornament they wear
earrings, finger-rings, necklaces, bracelets, ankle-rings, and a curious corset, which in some
cases is simply a series of cane hoops on which a great number of brass rings have been
threaded. A few of the hoops are made larger than the rest, so as to hang loose on the hips.
The upper hoops are pinned together with brass wire. These brass corsets are rarely taken off.
A writer in The Field newspaper, December G, 1884, describing the operation of removal,
says: "The girl I saw had to hang by her hands to a bar of wood, whilst a friend slipped

BORNEO

79

A JAVA MAX.

her brass cuirass inch by inch upwards
over her head." In some cases the rings
are of solid brass. On one occasion a
girl was being conveyed by water to her
wedding feast when the boat upset, with
the result that she was drowned by the
great weight of metal she carried.

Dya houses are generally very large,
many families residing together. Every
village has a common house where the
young unmarried men sleep and travellers
are lodged. The Dyas cultivate main-
lands of fruit and vegetables, and they
arc fond of tobacco and cane sugar. In
hunting they use the sumpitan, or blow-
pipe, a wooden tube about 8 feet long,
through which small poisoned arrows are
blown.

An interesting description of a
curious method of courtship, which is
found both among the Laud and Sea
Dyas, is given by Sir S. St. John, who
says: "Besides the ordinary attention
which a young man is able to pay to
. the girl he desires to make his wife— as

helping her in her farm work, and in
carrying home her load of vegetables or
wood, as well as in making her little
presents, as u ring, or some brass chain-
work with which the women adorn their
waists, or even a petticoat — there is a very
peculiar testimony of regard which is
worthy of note. About nine or ten at
night, when the family is supposed to be
fast asleep within the mosquito curtains
in the private apartment, the lover quietly
slips back the bolt by which the door
is fastened and enters the room on
tip-toe. He goes to the curtains of his
beloved, gently awakes her, and she
on hearing who it is rises at once,
and they sit conversing together, and
making arrangements for the future in
the dark over a plentiful supply of sirrah-
leaf and betel-nut, which it is the
gentleman's duty to provide. If when
awoke the young lady rises and accepts
the prepared betel-nut, happy is the lover,
for his suit is in a fair way to prosper ;
but if, on the other hand, she rises and

Pluttti by Xegrtlti <£ Zambra]

A JAVA WOMAN.

[Luwion.

8o

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

says, 'Be good enough to blow up the fire, or to light the lamp' (a bamboo filled with resin),
then his hopes are at an end, as that is the usual form of dismissal. Of course, if this kind
of nocturnal visit is frequently repeated, the parents do not fail to discover it, although it is
a point of honour among them to take no notice of their visitor, and if they approve of him
matters take their course; but if not, they use their influence with their daughter to ensure
the utterance of the fatal 'Please blow up the fire.' It is said on good authority that these
nocturnal visits but seldom result in immorality."

The custom of burning the dead is confined to the Land Dyas. In Western Sarawak
the custom is universal; in the districts near the Samarahan, the dead may be either burned
or buried; and in the Sadoug they are always buried. Among the Silakan, the Lara, and
the true Lundu tribes the bodies of the elders and the rich people are burned, while the
others are buried.

The Sea Dyas dispose of their dead by burial. When, any one dies, the medicine-man
who has been in attendance during the illness is expected also to superintend the interment,
and for this service he is paid an extra fee. All able-bodied men in the village turn out to
assist the bereaved family, for it is expedient to have the funeral on the day of death. No
sooner has the patient breathed his last than female relatives utter loud laments; they wash

the corpse, and dress it in the
finest garments of the deceased,
and frequently add all his
weapons. It is then borne along
to the great common hall, where
friends come to mourn. In
some villages a hireling leads
the lament, which is continued
until the corpse leaves the hall
for the burial-ground. Before
this, however, the body is rolled
up in cloths and fine mats, kept
together by pieces of bamboo
tied in with rattans. The Sea
Dyas regard their burying-
grounds with superstitious terror
as the abode of spirits, hurrying
away as soon as possible for fear
of meeting ghosts. Consequently
the graves are uncared for.
Many years ago some at least of
the Sea Dyas* used to sacrifice
prisoners on the graves of chiefs.
We cannot conclude this
brief description of the people
of Borneo without some reference
to the splendid work of Eajah
Brooke in Sarawak. When the
late Mr. Brooke came in 1839,
the country was in a state of
"chronic insurrection." Two
TWO JAVA WOMEN. J™™ afterwards he was made

Photo li//

[London.

* The writer is greatly indebted to Sir Hugh Low, G.C.M.G., for his kindness in lending the valuable photographs of
Dyas and Sakais which illustrate the text of this chapter. They were collected by Sir Hugh's son, the late Mr. H. B. Low ;
and some taken by Mr. Leonard Wray, of the Perak Museum, Taiping ; others by Mr. E. J. Robertson, Singapore.

Photo by Lambert * Co.]

82

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

rajali, or king. The condition of affairs was most unpromising: Malays and Dyas were for
ever fighting among themselves, and were in a miserable condition — especially the Dyas,
whom the Malays systematically plundered. The personal courage exhibited by Mr. Brooke,
and the sagacity and firmness with which he put down some of the earlier conspiracies against
his rule, won the better class of chiefs to his side. He administered the law with a strict
justice which iu time was highly appreciated. "The success of this system," says Mr. W. H.
Guillemard, " was never better shown than during the Chinese insurrection, when, having
narrowly escaped with his life — his friends killed or wounded, his house burnt down, and
much of the town destroyed — the whole population, Malay and Dya alike, rallied round the
English rajah, drove out and almost exterminated the invaders, and triumphantly brought him
back to rule over them. In what other country shall we find rulers, alien in race, language,

From a photograph, in Leydeii Museum.

BATTAS.

and religion, yet so endeared to their subjects? And the phenomenon is still more marvellous
when we consider that these subjects were themselves of two races — a superior and an inferior,
an oppressing and an oppressed; yet both alike joined to bring back the foreign ruler who had
introduced equality and stopped oppression. It requires no peculiar legal or diplomatic or
legislative training, but chiefly patience and good feeling, and the absence of prejudice.
The great thing is not to be in a hurry; to avoid over-legislation, law forms, and legal
subtleties; to aim first to make the people contented and happy in their own way, even if
that way should be quite opposed to European theories of how they ought to be happy. On
such principles Sir James Brooke's success was founded. It is true he spent a fortune instead
of making one; but he had his reward in having brought peace and safety and plenty
where there was before war and oppression and famine, and in leaving behind him over the

v10

OF "HE

UNIVERSITY

OF

JAVA — SUMATRA

whole of Northern Borneo a reputation for wisdom, for goodness, and for honour which will
dignify the name of Englishmen for generations to come."*

JAVA.

THE Island of Java is most densely populated in its eastern part. In the year 1780 the
population was about 2,000,000, in January 1890 it was estimated at nearly 23,000,000, and
in 1892 was probably as much as 24,000,000; of these over 42,000 were Europeans, about
13,000 '; Arabs," and 233,717 Chinese. Batavia, the capital of Western Java, is the great
emporium of the vast archipelago, and traders' vessels come hither from almost every island.
In this province weaving is a great industry. The Dutch have laid down many railways, and

From a photograph in. Lei/den

BATTA WAHIUOHS.

their law compels every peasant to work a certain number of days upon the roads, with
excellent results. The customs of the Malays of Java call for no special description. It may
be mentioned, however, that, whereas among the Malays generally only the men dance, in
Java both sexes take an active part in this pastime. Another favourite amusement is fighting
with wild beasts, and even the tiger and the rhinoceros are brought into the arena.

SUMATRA.

THE natives of Sumatra are all Malays, but the different tribes have their own languages
and customs. The population is over 3,500,000. They are fairly civilised, cultivating, the laud,

* The reader who wishes to learn more about Dyas and their ways should consult the great work by Mr. Ling Roth,
on "The Sarawaks of North British Borneo" (1896).

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

and wearing garments of cloth. They have written languages; although some of the tribes are
no higher in the social scale than the Dyas of Borneo. The Achenese, or inhabitants of the
Sultanate of Ache, a province about as large as Ireland, have for a long time intermarried with
Arabs. They are Mohammedans, and their language is written in Arabic. They have a bad
name for treachery and cruelty, but the only accounts we have of them are derived from the
Dutch, whom they have been fighting for more than twenty years, and who may be prejudiced.
They are clever craftsmen, arid build good ships. Every man is a soldier.

The Battas* (see illustrations, pages 81-83), to the south of Ache, are an inland hill people,
and somewhat like the Dyas of Borneo, taller and darker than the true Malays. Their hair is
straight, and they bear no trace of the Negrito. They may perhaps have come under Hindu
influence. For centuries they have been cannibals, their victims being criminals, slaves, and
prisoners of Avar. Their marriage system is matriarchal, as in Tibet — a woman having several
husbands, and holding property in her own right.

THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS.

THE Spaniards, who long held the Philippines, themselves being Eoman Catholics, divided
the Malays into three classes : Jndios is the term applied to those who have become Christians ;
Infieles are the Pagans of the interior; while the Moros (see illustrations, page 89) are the
Sulus and other Mohammedan tribes. These Malays have olive complexions, broad noses, rather
full lips, and straight hair, which is nearly black. They are divided into a large number
of tribes, each speaking a different dialect; so that in the island of Luzon alone we find
as many as twenty different dialects. The chief tribes here are Tdfjal and Bisayan, which
together number about a million and a half, and are still rapidly increasing. The Moros are an
extremely mixed people. For centuries the Malay pirates filled their harems with women from
different tribes of Malaysia, even sometimes taking European women. The Chinese are very
numerous in the Philippines, having been there from the earliest times, and had it not been
for the Spaniards would probably have overrun the whole archipelago. From time to time

* According to Professor Keane the current form Battak is incorrect. It is plural. The singular is Batta.

P/wto bij Dr. F. II. II. QuiUetnara}

A GROUP OF MALAYS.

[ Cambridge.

THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS

wholesale massacres of Chinese have taken plaee. At different periods their numbers have
risen to more than 30,000, only to be reduced by slaughter and exile. But in spite of this
drawback they have established themselves in the islands, and at the present day their number
is computed to be more than 50,000. Very few Chinese women leave their own country, and
consequently Celestial emigrants have for some centuries taken native women as wives. In

From ilrairinijs by Dr. ll<i/i* .Writer (by pfnnitxion),

1OOROTTE TATTOOING.

looking at photographs of Philippine Islanders one is often struck with the strong resemblance
to the Chinese type. In old days, moreover, Mexicans and Peruvians occasionally established
themselves here, and in the island of Luzon one can trace also the effects of Japanese -influence.
The confusion of types is still further complicated by the fact that the Spaniards .have mixed
freely both with the native Malays and with the half-castes; indeed, there is no part of
Australasia which presents so great a confusion of races.

86

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

In a cosmopolitan city
like Manila and its suburbs,
where so many races of
humanity assemble, it is in-
teresting to observe the varied
costumes and modes of attire.
The Americans and Europeans
mostly dress in white. The
Chinese keep to their own
peculiar national dress, with
the pig-tail curled up into a
chignon. Pure natives and
many half-breeds wear the
shirt outside the trousers.
The native "lady" wears a
flowing skirt of gay colours,
bright red, green, or white.
She has not yet adopted
the corset. In her hand
she carries a fan, without
which she would feel lost, and
she makes a great display of
jewellery. Her gait is awk-
ward, quite unlike the digni-
fied and graceful air of a
Spanish lady. The peasant
women look very picturesque
in their short skirts, enveloped
in a cotton cloth of blue, red,
or black. A "first-class"
native funeral in Manila is a
remarkable display. The bier
is hideous with rude relics of
savage ornaments. A native
driver, with a tall "chimney-
pot" hat, drives the funeral team of mules, followed by a band -playing a lively march and a
line of carriages containing the deceased's relations and friends.

The chief amusement of the natives is cock-fighting, a sport carried on with a passionate
earnestness that strikes every stranger. Almost every native keeps a fighting-cock. Some men
are seldom seen out of doors without their favourites under their arms. They pay as much
as fifty dollars, and sometimes even more, for these pets; and should a native discover that
his house is on fire, he flies to rescue his bird rather than his wife and family. This passion
for cock-fighting may well be termed a national vice. Incredibly large sums, in proportion to
the means of the gamblers, are staked on the result of a match, and it has been well said
that the sport does more harm and causes more misery than the earthquakes and typhoons
together. The passion for the game leads many to borrow at usury, to embezzlement, and
even to highway robbery. Many of the pirates are ruined gamesters.

In 1898 the Philippines were ceded by Spain to the United States. The census of 1903
gave the population as 7,635,426, nearly all classed as civilized. The Spaniards conquered
the islands as much by ecclesiastical as by military power. The Christianised "Indians"
(natives) have, to some extent, grafted their new religion on to the old one. They were deeply
superstitious, but became ready converts of the Roman Catholic missionaries. The Church.

2)r. A, B.

^s "Alburn van Philiitplneri Typen," Dresden.
A NEGRITO MAN, WITH SPEAR.

THE PHILIPPINE ISLANDS

»7

appealed to their senses by its brilliant processions, rich robes, and images, as well as by the
teaching of its doctrines and the personal influence of its zealous priests and their assistants,
(ireat changes have taken place since the islands became a possession of the United States.
New ideas in government, industry, education, and religion have been introduced among the
inhabitants, and the present political relations of the Filipinos, as the people collectively ar
called, signify a new era of development in the history of their coiuitry.

The aboriginal inhabitants of the Philippine Islands are the Negritos (Aetas), a little dark
race — of whom we shall have more to say presently, when dealing with the Malay Peninsula —
with crisp black hair, and features somewhat like those of a Negro. These primitive people
are found in the islands of Luzon, Mindoro, Negros, Panay, and Mindanao, but not as a pure
race, for the Malays have intermarried with them. The pure Negrito has a stature of only about
4 feet 6 inches, the skull is round (brachycephalic), the legs are without calves, and the feet
are turned inwards. The head appears to be rather large for the small body. The man and
the woman shown in our illustrations have their bodies decorated with deep scars. By nature,
these people are gentle, timid, and affectionate. Their mental powers are of a low order,
and they cannot count beyond the number of fingers on one hand. They mostly wander
about from place to place, except in those districts where Malays and others have influenced
their habits.

The Aeta carries a bamboo lance, a bow of palm
wood, and poisoned arrows. He is wonderfully light-
footed, running with great speed after deer, or climbing
trees like a monkey. If he has any religion at all,
it is a kind of spirit-worship. Anything which to
these people appears to have a supernatural character
is deified. For the dead and for old age they have
a profound respect. They offer little encouragement
to those who endeavour to train them up to a higher
standard of life, and even when more or less domesti-
cated can never be trusted to do anything which
requires an effort of judgment.

Mr. John Foreman, F.R.G.S., was fortunate
enough to see a Negrito wedding, which he thus
describes: "The young bride, who might have been
about thirteen years of age, was being pursued by
her future spouse as she pretended to run away, and
it need hardly be said that he succeeded in bringing
her in by feigned force. She struggled and again
got away, and a second time she was caught. Then
an old man with grey hair came forward, and
dragged the young man up a bamboo ladder. An
old woman grasped the bride, and both followed the
bridegroom. The aged sire then gave them a ducking
with a cocoanut shell full of water, and they all
descended. The happy pair knelt down, and the
elder having placed their heads together, they were
iimn and wife. We endeavoured to find out which
hut was allotted to the newly married couple, but
\\vro given to understand that until the sun had re-
uppeared five times they would spend their honeymoon
in the mountains." The Negritos live principally
on fish, roots, and mountain rice, but they often
make raids on the valleys and carry off cattle: their

Photo by Underwood & Underwood, N. Y.
A FILIPINO BEGGAR.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

husbandry is of the most primitive kind; it consists of scraping the ground and throwing in
the seeds. They do not even cut down trees to make a clearing.

THE MALAY PENINSULA.

IN certain parts of the Malay Peninsula — for example, in the valley of Batang-Padang — we
meet with a very wild and primitive little race of Negritos, who are called Sakais. They may be
regarded as the pygmies of the Malay Peninsula, and doubtless come from the same very
ancient stock as the Negritos of the Philippine Islands. These Sakais, Semangs, Jakuns, or
Orang Senna ("Men of the Soil"), as they are variously called by their Malay neighbours, are
more numerous than was until recently supposed, and in the year 1890 5,000 of them were

said to live in the Vlu Pahang district alone. Almost
everywhere they have intermarried with Malays. They
speak a language which possesses names only for the
h'rst three or four numerals. When unmixed with
Malay blood, the Sakai shows the true Negrito type
even in an exaggerated form, with black woolly hair,
a large round head (too large in proportion to the
body), and a very prominent lower jaw. Among special
features may be mentioned the crisp black beard, an
inner fold to the eyelid, and the position of the three
outer toes, which are turned towards the inner two,
as in many apes. The Malays say there are two
groups of Sakais — one of which is quite wild and lives
entirely aloof in the recesses of the forest, and another
which associates freely with settled communities. One
of Mr. M. Maclay's photographs is described by Giglioli
as presenting a "highly remarkable exaggeration of
the bestial characters, exceeding even the Kalang of
Java in its prognathism [protruding jawj ... a real
chimpanzee profile, and I believe the highest degree of
prognathism possible in a human being."

The Malays, who call themselves the " Men of
the Country," a title which they cannot rightly claim,
since the Sakais are the aborigines, look down upon
the latter, calling them "Men of the Woods" (Orang-
^' utan), or "Men of the Hills" (Orang-bukit). Mr.

H..V.S. " CM- Abraham Hale, who spent some time among these
uii & SOU, Edin- primitive little people, has given much valuable
information concerning their habits in a paper read
before the Anthropological Institute of Great Britain,
and to this source we are indebted for the following information. In those districts where
they live more or less by themselves, undemoralised by Malays, they are simple-hearted,
kind, and always anxious to do their best to assist any white man who may happen to
want their aid. Mr. Hale was always received with the greatest hospitality. On entering a
house, a bed was prepared for him in the best situation, water was brought, and roots of
maize or of tapioca were placed on the ashes of the fire to roast. The people are naturally
inquisitive, and every one belonging to the house was called into see the white stranger and
his belongings. For dress the men wear a strip of bark-cloth twisted round the waist and
drawn between the legs. The women sometimes wear small cotton-cloth petticoats (sarongs),
purchased from the Malays, and the men occasionally adopt Chinese trousers; but in their
own native forests none of these luxuries are indulged in. Their ornaments are of the

Taken dun,, tc

lenger," i8re-76. Pu6n*iud by

burgh. Government Copyright.

A MORO INDIAN GIRL

THE MALAY PENINSULA

89

simplest kind; the men's
bracelets and belts are made
from a black leafless aquatic
creeper that grows in the
mountain streams. The
women make bracelets of any
curiosities they can get from
the Malays. One, which Mr.
Hale purchased from an old
woman, was made up of the
following strange collection —
nine strings of black and
white seeds, a string of old
Malay copper coins, a few
glass beads, one tip of a
squirrel's tail, two tufts of
monkey's hair, a serpent-ring
(or spiral) made of brass wire,
rive snail-shells, and part of

the brass support of the ribs
of an umbrella! Through the
septum of the nose they wear
either a porcupine quill or a
bone of a bird. Earrings are
also worn. The Sakais paint
their faces (as our illustra-
tions on pages 90-94 show)
with juice from a plant
which they cultivate for the
purpose. Their hair is gene-
rally worn in true Negrito
style, standing out from the
head all round in a great
mop; but near the Malay
villages they drop their own
primitive fashion and tie the

liair hnpk in a b-nr>(- cid fliai'i- *"'•'/* «'• s'""- K'lii'li'iuili

oacK in a Knot, as uieir cf0i.enme,lt oopyrif/u.
neighbours do. When they

A MOKO INDIAN.

12

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

dance, the women wear wreaths of
sweet-smelling grasses and leaves. A
French writer, speaking of their dress,
and ornaments, says: "The whole
effect is an indescribably strange
mixture of grace and horror, flowers
and rags, carnival aiid woodland
poetry. The little figure gives an
impression of something child-like and
fairy-like too; these little beings with
great flowering antennce are the forest
gnomes, the goblins, which for ouce
have shown, in the full sunlight, a
vision of the moonlight." In their
wild state they eat all the animal
food they can get, devouring even
snakes and lizards; but they will not
take the trouble to go in search of
•animal food until all their stock of
fruits and vegetables is exhausted.
Once in about three months a big-
fishing party is organised; but as the
art of drying fish is not understood,
the feast ends in a few days, because-
what remains uneaten is no longer
eatable.

They appear to have but two
manufactured foods. One is made
from the tubers of a wild tapioca;,
these roots, if eaten in their natural
state, are said to cause a sort of
drunkenness, or perhaps merely sleepiness. They place the roots about 4 feet deep in the
mud of a swamp. After they have lain there four nights they are lifted and brought home,
and the women set to work to rasp the now soft roots up into a pulp, using a prickly rattan,
for a rasp. At this stage they have a particularly sour and pungent smell. The pulp is then
put into a mat, and the juice most carefully squeezed out. This is done by means of a simple
lever, one end of a long piece of timber being put under the wall of the house, the bag of
pulp placed under the lever, and a woman sitting on the other end soon expresses all the
water. The dried pulp is then squeezed into a joint of bamboo and dried over the fire; it
will then keep for a month.

The Sakais rise about dawn and prepare their breakfast, probably roasted tapioca and
some sugar-cane. Fires soon begin to burn briskly, for the hill-tops are chilly. Breakfast
over, some of the men go and collect firewood and food. Others stay at home, work in the
house, or make darts for the sumpitan, or blow-pipe, used in hunting. The only other meal
is served at midnight. But those who are indoors during the day are continually eating.
About 9 p.m. they retire to rest, only to wake up at twelve, light up the fires, and take
food again, after which they sleep on till dawn. Dancing and song of a very primitive
description are reserved for the afternoon. The sumpitan (see illustration above), already
referred to earlier in this chapter as a weapon of the Dyas, is a straight tube of bamboo,
fitted with a mouthpiece something like that of a cornet. Being very thin and delicate,
it is kept inside another tube. The darts are from 8 to 11 inches long, made from the
midrib of a palm leaf. One end of a dart is sharpened and dressed with poison; the other

Pttoto by Mi'. Leonard IV/'fly, Ptrak M>i*f>iin.

TWO NEGRITOS, WITH SUMPITAN.

SIR iltuH Low COLLECTION.

THE MALAY PENINSULA

end is provided with a small hub of pith. A wad of some kind is necessary, and for this
purpose the velvet-like covering found at the base of the midribs of the leaves of some rattans
(bamboo) is used. It is a deadly weapon.

The roof of a Sakai house is supported on nine posts; these are very slight, and some of
them are crooked, but one of the number is much stouter than the others, being composed
of the trunk of a tree. All the rafters, uprights of the walls, joists, etc., are entirely made of
bamboo. Bark and leaves are often used for the partitions. Each hearth is simply a mat of
leaves, over which earth is spread. On this logs of wood are burned — two logs at a time,
arranged so that their ends are nearly touching, and small sticks burn between and under the
ends. Where a man supports two or three wives, each has her own separate hearth.

On two occasions Mr. Halo witnessed a Sakai dance. A man commences the performance
by beating a drum. This very primitive (musical ?) instrument is made from a section of a
tree trunk, hollowed out by burning. Across one end the skin of some animal, perhaps that
of a monkey, is stretched and kept taut by means of cords. This is the only instrument
used. After about five mintues of very monotonous drum-beating, to a one-two time tune,
another man gets up and performs a dance; or perhaps two men dance. It is an extremely
simple performance, consisting of certain gesticulations, the chief of which is a sort of curtsey
made once to every one-two beat of the drum. At the same time the man makes grotesque
gestures with his hands. After about an hour the men squat about on logs of wood, and
commence a dreary chant to the same tune. The song closes with a shout or cry, something
like "Heugh!" The song apparently consists of nothing more than a repetition of the names
of a number of mountains, rivers, and other natural objects in the Sakai country. Later on

Photoa by Raul

PEOPLE OF NUEVA ECU A PROVINCE, LUZON, PHILIPPINES.

[Philadelphia.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

Fivm " Le Tour <iu Monde"

A NEGRITO MAN, WITH SPEAR.

which he pronounced after

having blown the fumes

[of aromatic gum and

•wood] of his censer from

his hand, most probably to

the four winds, as he faced

to the four points of the

compass, pronouncing the

word and blowing the fumes

to each. He told me that

the word Sumlat meant

the same as Salamat means

in Malay — i.e. either ' Hail '

I asked him to whom he

Hantus. Now, Hantu in Malay may be taken to mean

either Ghost or Spirit only — not God; the spirit may

also be either benignant or malignant. I then asked

him to tell me what Hantu, and he said the Hantus

of the forest, of the mountains, of the rivers, of the

winds; also the Ilantus of Malay and Sakai chiefs who

had died; also the Ilantus of headache, of stomach-ache —

the Hantus that caused his people to gamble, to smoke

opium, and who sent all sorts of disputes, and who sent

mosquitoes. He prayed to these Hantus to be kind to

him and to his people — to send plenty of food to eat, and

not to send any evil things. lie further said that the

Sakais do not pray to Allah — that is, to God. The

question, undecided in my mind as yet, is whether this

worship was learned from the Sakais by the Malay Pawangs

of the present day who practise it, or vice versd."

the women come forward, and
go through certain evolutions,
clapping their hands frequently
and making curtseys. The
other musical instruments are
bamboo flutes and whistles, a
Jew's harp, and a simple guitar.
"My friend who accom-
panied me," says Mr. Hale,
"and I, both considered that
the effect was perfectly har-
monious. The music of the
Sukais is in fact very pretty,
much more so than the Malay
music as a rule. I took the
opportunity to question the
chief concerning his prayer,
which he delivered in a queer
mixture of Malay and Sakai,
preceding each string of peti-
tions by the expression Sumbat,

Photo by Rau]

NEGRITO MAN.

or ' Peace be unto you
prayed; he said to the

Photo ia in

FILIPINO WOMAN.

THE MALAY PENINSULA

93

As every anthropologist is aware, it is most difficult for travellers to obtain clear and true
information with regard to the religion of any savage race. According to Mr. Hale's testimony,
which he gives for what it is worth, the Sakais offer up prayers to a great variety of spirits —
spirits of the forest, of the mountains, of the rivers, of the winds, and also of chiefs now
departed.

When a Sakai dies, the friends bury with the corpse some of the articles which the
deceased used in daily life, — such as a necklace, if a woman; or a rattan tobacco-box, if a man.
The house of death is invariably burned down, and the place entirely forsaken — even if it
involves the loss of a crop of tapioca or sugar-cane. All the objects that belonged to the
dead are considered to be bartered or given away.

Professor Keane, in his latest work "Man Past and Present," says of these little people:
" Surrounded from time out of mind by Malay peoples, some semi-civilised, some nearly as wild
as themselves, but all alike slowly crowding them out of the land, these aborigines have
developed defensive qualities unneeded by the more favoured insular Negritos, while their
natural development has been arrested at perhaps a somewhat lower plane of culture. In
fact, doomed to extinction before their time, they never have had a chance in the race, as
Mr. Hugh Clifford sings in ' The Song of the Last Semangs ' : —

The paths arc rough, the trails are blind

The Jungle People tread;
The yams are scarce and hard to find

With which our folk are fed.

We suffer yet a little space
Until we pass away,

The relics of an ancient race
That ne'er has had its day.

A GKOUP OF NEGH1TO.-5.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

These peculiar Seinangs, who have hitherto succeeded in maintaining their independence,
have a weird legend of a mysterious nation of great Amazons destined one day to come and
smite the faithless Sakai people, who have gone over to the enemy's camp, and now join with
them in tracking and hunting down their own kinsfolk. These female warriors — who dwell
in the depths of the dark woodlands beyond the Gunong Korbu heights, and are stronger,
taller, bolder, and of paler colour than any men — have even been seen, and their bows and
blow-pipes also, larger and truer and better carved than any others, are found now and then
in the deep recesses of the forests. A Semang chief tells how, 'many months ago,' he and
his two brothers, when following the trail of a wounded stag, found it lying by a brook, killed
by a larger arrow than theirs, and that instant, looking up, on hearing a loud threatening cry
in a strange tongue, he beheld a gigantic pale-skinned woman breaking through the jungle,

Photo by Mr. E. J. KoberliO/t]

[Singapore

A GKOt'P OF XEUUITUS.

and then his elder brother fell pierced by an arrow. He escaped by flight, and alone lived
to tell the tale, for the two brothers were never seen again. Mr. Clifford, who relates this
story (' In Court and Kampong,' 1897, page 179 sq.), and has perhaps been more intimately
associated with the Orang-utan (Wild Men), as the Malays often call them, than any other
white man, describes those of the Plus River Valley as ' like African Negroes seen through
the reverse end of a field-glass. They are sooty-black in colour; their hair is short and
woolly, clinging to the scalp in little crisp curls; their noses are flat, their lips protrude, and
their features are those of pure Negroid type. They are sturdily built and well set upon their
legs, but in stature little better than dwarfs. They live by hunting, and have no permanent
dwellings, camping in little family groups wherever, for the moment, game is most plentiful."

Professor Keane goes on to say: "All the faculties are sharpened mainly in the quest
for food, and of means to elude the enemy now closing round their farthest retreats in the

Photo by Underwood A Underwood]

NATIVE CKAFT OX THK IMUS, NKAK IMUS, CAVITK PROVINCE, PHILIPPINES.

95

[AVtr

96

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

upland forests. When hard
pressed and escape seems im-
possible, they will climb trees
and stretch rattan ropes from
branch to branch where these
are too wide apart to be
reached at a bound, and along
such frail aerial bridges women
and all will pass with their
cooking-pots and other effects,
with their babies also at the
breast, and the little ones
clinging to their mothers'
heels. For, like the
Andamanese, they love their
women-folk and children, and
in this way rescue them from
the Malay raiders and slavers.
But, unless the British raj
soon intervenes, their fate is
sealed. They may slip from
the Malays, but not from their
own traitorous kinsmen, who
often lead the hunt, and squat
all night long on the tree-
tops, calling one to another
and signalling from these look-
outs when the leaves rustle
and the rattans are heaved
across; so that nothing can be
done, and another family group
is swept away into bondage."
A Sakai man, when looking out for a wife, goes to a considerable distance, generally to a
tribe who speak quite a different dialect. He gives the parents presents of considerable value,
which are sometimes purchased from Malays. In some cases the young man sets to work
and clears one or two acres of jungle, and plants it with tapioca and sugar-cane, in order to
present it to the parents of the girl he wishes to make his wife.

Ph ofo by Wm. Ran]

CHAIR-TRAVEL, BRITISH INDIA.

[Philadelphia.

THE STEAITS SETTLEMENTS.

FORMERLY attached to British India, the Straits Settlements now form a Crown Colony, with
a separate administration vested in a Governor at Singapore and two others at Penang and
Malacca. Perak, Selangor, Negri Sembilan, Pahang, and Johor are "Protected States." Taking
the population of Singapore, Penang, and Malacca together, we find there are roughly speaking,
213,000 Malays, 228,000 Chinese, and 54,000 Kliugs (Indians).

CHAPTER V.
SI AM, A NAM, CAMBODIA, BURMA.

THE chief inhabitants of Indo-China and Malacca are the Shans, Laos, and Siamese, the
Anamese and Cambodians. Not so long ago this part of the world was generally supposed to be
occupied only by Mongolian peoples allied to Chinese and Tibetans. Of late years, however,
a Caucasian element has been discovered in the Me Kong Valley (French Cochin-China and
Cambodia), where the people speak languages akin to those of the Malayo-Polynesian family.

SIAM.

THE kingdom of Siam (see map, page 130) embraces part of the Indo-Chinese, and part of the
Malay Peninsula. On the west lies British
Burma; on the north, as a buffer between
Siam and China, are the Independent Shan
States; on the east lies the kingdom of
Anam, under which heads are included Tong-
king and Cochin-China; and south of Siam
we find Cambodia and French Cochin-China.
The great natural and economic centre
of Siam is the delta of the Me Nam River,
which is flooded every year between June
and November. The population is estimated
by the Siamese Government at 6,000,000, or
more. Until a few years ago the eastern
frontier coincided with the mountains that
border Anam; but the French, by a display
of force, compelled the king to sign a treaty,
which surrendered to them part of his
kingdom, and shifted the eastern frontier
westwards to the right bank of the River
Me Kong. In this way the French took
possession of a region 80,000 square miles
in extent. England then intervened, and
the region from Tongking to British Burma
was left to form a "buffer state" between
Britain, China, France, and Siam. By this,
and other arrangements, Siam is now prac-
tically reduced to the Me Nam Valley. She
still retains a part of the Malay Peninsula,
which is called Lower Siam, and to the
eastward the Korat Plateau and Battambony pMii hij Vr // „ /lfl/f^

Plain. A SIAMESE GENTLEMAN.

lllangkok.

98

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

Photo tty .)/r. //.

A SHAN MAN.

Both Sbans and Siamese proper call themselves Tai
(Shan Tai), i.e. "free." Assam may be a translation of
the word Shan. The obsolete Siamese word is Slew, and
the Chinese Sien-lo, the Sien being, according to them, a
tribe which came north about A.D. 1341. The Siamese call
Shans " Great Tai," as having preceded them, and them-
selves " Little Tai." There is certainly a close relationship
between them; but the Siamese, having had much intercourse
with the Malays, and other southern races, are of inferior
physique. The Cambodian kingdom formerly extended much
farther north. Tradition says that the town of Lapong was
founded in 575, and that the half-mythical king Phra Ruang
freed the Siamese from the Cambodian yoke.

The Siamese proper are a well-formed people, with olive
complexion and black hair. They are darker than the
Chinese, but fairer and handsomer than the Malays. Their
eyes are well shaped, the lips rather prominent; the nose
is slightly flattened, the face rather wide across the cheek-
bones, the top of the forehead pointed, and the chin short.
They are dearly fond of bathing and swimming in their

rivers many times in the course of the day, a -practice rendered almost necessary by the heat
of the climate. Many of the men shave off the hair of the head, leaving only a coarse tuft
on the top. The preservation of this tuft, and the changes it undergoes under different
circumstances, are matters of considerable social importance. The tuft on a child's head
is prettily knotted, and kept together by a gold or silver pin, unless the family are poor,
in which case a porcupine quill serves instead; but it is generally wreathed with fragrant
flowers. The shaving of the hair-tuft of children is an important family festival, to
which friends and relations are invited. Displays of fireworks announce the event. Priests
recite prayers and wash the head of the young person, who is decorated with all the
jewellery the family can lay their hands on. Music is played during the ceremony;
congratulations, together with gifts of silver, are presented to the newly shorn one. One
seldom sees a bearded man, for the hairs on the chin are generally plucked out. The
passion for ornaments is universal. Scarcely a family is so poor as not to possess some
jewellery. Rings of silver and gold adorn the arms and legs of children; and rich necklaces,
earrings, and belts are sometimes worn in such quantity as to embarrass the wearer's
movements.

As among the Chinese, so here also long nails are regarded as a mark of aristocracy; and
every art is employed for making the teeth black, betel and areca being used to accomplish this
object. As a rule, the people go about barefooted. The Siamese are decidedly a sober race,
though when a man takes to strong drink he generally becomes a hopeless drunkard. Opium-
smoking, owing to severe edicts against the practice, has not increased very much of late
years. Tobacco is smoked a good deal, and tea is used almost as freely as in China.

Bishop Pallegoix, who knew the Siamese very well, was favourably impressed with the
character of these people. "They are," he says, "gentle, cheerful, timid, careless, and almost
passionless. They are disposed to idleness, inconstancy, and exaction; they are liberal alms-
givers, and severe in all matters of decorum. They are fond of sports, and lose half their
time in amusements. They are sharp, and even witty in conversation, and resemble the
Chinese in their aptitude for imitation." Serious disputes are of rare occurrence, and strangers
can rely upon being hospitably received.

Reverence for authority appears as the ground-work on which all institutions and habits
are founded, and is developed to the most absurd extremes. No man of inferior rank dares
to raise his head to the level of that of his superior; no person can cross a bridge if some

99

IOO

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

one of higher grade happens to be passing below; no mean person may walk upon a floor
above that occupied by his betters. As in China, great respect is shown to old age. The
king is treated as almost divine, and his subjects on approaching him must prostrate themselves
hundreds of times. A person of rank is approached by his attendants in a peculiar prostrate
position, the number of prostrations being determined by his rank.

The education of women is much neglected; few of them can read or write. Many,
however, are taught music; and the wives and concubines of nobles are frequently engaged in
singing and in giving concerts for the amusement of their lords and guests. A few can
embroider, many more can prepare sweetmeats and other delicacies for the table. !No sooner
has a child been bom than the mother is placed near a large fire, where she remains for
days, exposed to such intense heat that serious illness and even death sometimes ensue. So
strong is the prejudice in favour of this barbarous practice, both among high and low, that
the king himself has vainly attempted to stop it.

Marriages take place at an early age. When the necessary negotiations have been nearly
completed, the bridegroom travels by water to the house of the bride-elect, in a large boat
gaily adorned with flags, and laden with presents, such as garments for his future wife, plates,
fruits, betel-nut, etc. In the centre is a huge cake, in the form of a pyramid, and decorated
with bright colours. Musicians in the boat play as it glides along. Arrived at his destination,
the bridegroom lauds and makes his way to the house to arrange the final details and to fix
the happy day. There is no religious ceremony, only a great feast, at which the musicians
again perform.

When any one is grievously ill, the priests sprinkle holy water over him, recite passages
from the sacred books, and utter loud exclamations. When death takes place, the family
address the deceased in some such terms as these: "0 father, benefactor, why leave us?
What have we done to offend you? Why depart alone? It was your own fault; why did
you eat the fruit that caused the dysentery? 0 misery! 0 desolation!" The body, having

been washed and enveloped in white cloth,
is placed in a coffin covered with gilded
paper and decorated with tinsel flowers. A
dai's is prepared ornamented with the same
materials as the coffin, but with wreaths of
flowers and a number of wax lights. After
a day or two the coffin is removed, not
through the door, but through an opening
specially made in the wall. It is then carried
three times round the house at full speed,
in the hope that the ghost of the dead
person, forgetting the way through which he
or she has passed, will not be able to return
to molest the living. The coffin is then
taken, to the sound of melancholy music, to
a large barge, and placed on a platform
surmounted by the dai's. A procession of
small boats containing the friends and re-
lations accompanies the barge to the temple,
where the cremation takes place. The officials
charged with this duty wash the face of
the corpse with cocoanut milk. With the
poorest people, however, the body, instead
of being cremated, is cut up and given to
[Bangkok. *ne birds of prey. After a cremation, the
relations assemble, collect the principal

Photo by Mr. 11. W. Jlolfe]

A BUDDHIST PRIEST.

SIAM

101

bones, which they place in
an urn and convey them to
the family abode. The garb
of mourning is white. At a
rich man's funeral there are
fireworks, sermons by the
priests, and theatricals wherein
all sorts of monsters are in-
troduced. Tents are erected
within the precincts of the
temple, and games and gam-
bling accompany the sacred
rites connected with the
dead.

The Siamese are a
musical people and possess
a great variety of wind and
stringed instruments. They
have no written music, their
tunes being taught by ear
alone. The profession of music
is highly esteemed. In every
nobleman's house there is
music and dancing in the
evening. Cock-fighting,
though forbidden, is a
favourite sport. Crowds sur-
round the scene of combat.
A courageous game-cock is
a great treasure and the
object of special attention.
The passion for gaming and

betting seems unchecked by public opinion, but the Government is taking steps to check
these evils. Young and old also indulge in kite-flying.

The domain of the Shans and the Laos, who are of one and the same race, occupies
the whole of Northern Siam and a portion of East Burma, whence it stretches far into
Yun-nan, and down the Me Kong River to the frontier of Cambodia. . Hence the allegiance
of these people is divided between Burma, China, and Siam. Ethnographical ly, of course, they
belong to the Siamese proper, as they are all members of the Tai ("free" or "noble") race.
The Chinese have partly absorbed them, driving them southwards into Yun-nan and Further
India. Here they become more or less assimilated to the Khas, or wild aboriginal tribes
of the Indo-Chinese Peninsula. The word Kha means "man," or "savage." The physical
characteristics of the Tai race are a low stature, light yellow complexion, black hair and
eyes, small nose, dilated nostrils, and a somewhat dull expression of countenance. On the
whole, it is not a pleasing type, although the children are often pretty, and the women
may be fairly good-looking while yet in their teens. (For illustrations of Shan people, see
pages 98, 116, 117).

The domain of the Laos is divided into many provinces, ruled by hereditary princes,
under the superintendence of commissioners appointed by the King of Siam. These Lao
states were long subjected to regular slave-hunting expeditions, organised by the rulers
themselves, or by their subordinates. Dr. Harmantl, an eye-witness of one of these forays,
"The brother of the Prince of Bassac told me without any reserve that he was about to

A ROYAL PRIEST, SIAM.

RACES OF MANKIND

take a trip to the left bank of the Me Kong in order to hunt down the Khas. It seems
that when times are bad the Lao mandarins organise these expeditions against the savages.
Under some slight pretext a favourable camping-ground is selected, whence forays are made
against the surrounding villages. When a sufficient number of all ages and both sexes have
been captured, they are bound together, and led to Bassac, Sienpang, and Attopeu. Here they
are purchased by native, Chinese, and especially Malay traders, who form them into gangs,
and forward them chiefly to Bangkok, Korat, and Pnompenh, the capital of Cambodia." But
this slave-hunting has now ceased.

The traditions of the Xorthern Shans tell of an ancient and great kingdom held by
them in the north of Burma. They all speak the same language, but there are many dialects.
In the Tai or Shan language there are, according to Mr. J. G. Scott, four different characters
in use. The Western Shans nse letters very much like those of the Burmese; the Siamese
have a writing of their own, very much like Pali; the Shans called Lii have theirs, and the
Lao Shans use another. The Western Shans differ somewhat from their eastern neighbours
both in their dress and in their architecture. The men's dress, usually white, consists of a
short jacket and full trousers, but on festive occasions coloured silk and velvet trousers are
much worn, and the most fashionable shape is that which most nearly approaches a sack with
holes at the corners for the feet and arms to pass through. The women wear variegated
turbans and striped petticoats, made like a sack, open at both ends, and fastened over the
breasts and under the arms. A small jacket is worn over this. The Shans are a law-abiding
people, and loyal to the families of their rulers. A Shan of good birth is very proud of
his family.

Among the Western Shans marriage is a very simple affair. As a rule, the young people
merely eat rice together out of the same dish in the presence of their relatives and the
village elders, and the bridegroom then declares that he marries the girl and will support

her. Among the Eastern Shans, however,
there is more ceremony on the wedding
day. A feast is held, to which all the rela-
tives and many friends are invited. Liquor
flows freely on these occasions. Early in
the afternoon the bridegroom is taken to
the bride's house, accompanied by the
relatives and friends. As the procession
advances it finds its way obstructed at
various points by ropes, at each of which
the bridegroom has to pay toll. When
the governor of a district of Keng Tung
married the Sawbwa's aunt, he had to pass
twenty of these ropes in the distance of
half a mile. The Sawbwa himself had a
rope, and so had each of the royal ladies,
the bridegroom on this occasion being
mulcted of about seventy rupees. The
Sawbwa's sister demanded twenty rupees for
permission to pass, but eventually accepted
fifteen. Arrived at the bride's house, the
bridegroom takes his seat beside her, and
their hands are tied together, with a piece
of string; they eat together and an old
man pronounces them to be man and wife.
Meanwhile, the guests amuse themselves by
throwing balls of rice at each other and at

SIAMESE STREET-SINGERS. the happy COUple.

SIAM

103

The burial customs of the Shans are sufficiently interesting to be briefly described. When
a person dies, the corpse is washed, dressed in a new suit, and some money is put into the
mouth; this "passage-money" is considered to be necessary, in order to prevent any let or
hindrance to the transmigration of the soul. The priests recite prayers over the body daily,
until the day of the funeral, when the corpse is carried out in a coffin highly decorated with
coloured paper and tinsel, under a gaudy canopy. The eldest son heads the procession with a
naked sword in his hand, in order to clear the way, which is supposed to be barred by evil
spirits, and the relations dance as they go along. Presents for the priests, such as vellow
robes, handkerchiefs, and umbrellas, are carried to the grave. Arrived there, the wife or
wives, and children, and the brother's wife or wives, all go in procession round the coffin,
carrying lighted candles as a last sign of respect for the departed; the priests then recite a
few prayers, and the body is buried; sometimes a rocket is fired. Priests and chiefs are
burned, not buried, since burning is considered more honourable.

Both Shans and Burmese believe that a man's spirit takes the form of a butterfly, which
leaves him when he is asleep or unconscious. Hence they are unwilling to awaken any one
suddenly, "for fear," as they say, "that his butterfly may not return in time." Nominally
Buddhists, they are given to the worship of spirits, or Nats, the genii supposed to reside in
all natural and material objects — stones, mountains, rivers, trees, clouds, winds, etc. In some
places buffaloes are sacrificed to the spirits; and there are Nats which can only be appeased
by human sacrifices. The guardian spirit of a certain ferry, for instance, claims a victim every
year, preferably a Chinaman; and if no one is obliging enough to be accidentally drowned

Fholo by Hr. Isonaga]

A. TYPICAL SIAMESE NOBLEMAN AND FAMILY.

IO4-

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

?

at the proper season, a boat-load of
passengers is capsized in order that the
ferry may be safe for the ensuing year.
A human sacrifice is necessary to pro-
cure a good harvest; and although the
Shans dare not in these days openly
kill a fellow-creature as a sacrifice, they
endeavour to poison some one at a
State festival. The chiefs set their faces
against the custom, but cannot suppress
it altogether.

The people of Siam have for ages
intermarried with Laos, Shans, Peguans,
Cambodians, and Chinese, as well as with
slaves of the aborigines, or Khas, of
whom many quite different tribes are
found. Hence the type is varied.

Not very much is known about the
Khas. While the Laos inhabit the
mountain valleys, these people live on
ridges and heights, never less than
3,000 feet above the sea-level, and
their clearings in the forest on the
high hill-slopes are often visible many
a mile away. The Siamese name Kha
Che is generally applied to all of them.
According to Mr. H. AVarington Smyth,
F.R.G.S., author of the interesting work
"Five Years in Siam," they are a short,
thick-set people. They live in small
communities, with no chiefs, and possess
no social organisation. Mr. Warington
Smyth says: "Notwithstanding their
wild and savage mien, the Khas are
gentle, harmless folk, patient and enduring on the march, and grand climbers." At the same
time he speaks of their "singular stupidity." He has very kindly lent some of the photographs
here reproduced.

ANAM.

THE kingdom of Anam occupies the eastern side of the Indo-Chinese Peninsula, and is bordered
on the south by Lower Cochin-China and the subject kingdom of Cambodia. The French,
having established themselves on the Me Kong Delta, have asserted their authority throughout
the whole of Anam, and made it a vassal state. It consists of three divisions: Tongking, i.e.
the "Eastern Land"; Lower Cochin-China, or the "Interior Land"; and Chiampa, in the
south-east corner of the peninsula. The country has a population roughly estimated at from
10,000,000 to 20,000,000.

The civilised inhabitants of the above countries present a striking uniformity of physical
and mental characteristics. They appear to have been moulded in the course of ages, partly by
geographical and partly by political conditions, into a homogeneous ethnographical group.

The Anamite man is scarcely of middle height, shorter and less vigorous than his
neighbours; his complexion is tawny, but darker than that of the Chinese; the forehead is low,

Fiviti " Le Tour da Monde."

A YOUNG COUPLE (KHAS).

t'lioto by Mr. Jwtitt</ti\

A SIA.MK.SK 1'KINCK.
105

14

io6

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

and the skull slightly depressed at the top, but well developed at the sides. The face is flat,
with high cheek-bones; the nose is small, the mouth large with thick lips. The body is thick-set
and large. The long black hair, shaven in childhood, but never afterwards cut, is worn in
a sort of chignon at the back of the head. There is a curious swagger in the gait of the Anamite,
which has been described as theatrical, and it serves to distinguish him from all the other
Indo-Chinese races. Another peculiarity is a greater separation of the big toe from the rest
than is found in any other people that walk barefooted. The name Giao-shi, by which
the Anamites have been, known from ages before the Christian era, means "separated toes,"
and some authorities regard this as a true racial characteristic; but as Mr. Keane points out,
it may be due to the stirrup used in riding, which is gripped in the cleft between the big
toe and the others. According to ancient Chinese chronicles, this curious feature was noticed
as far back as 2285 B.C. The Anamites appear to have intermarried with Malays, Chinese, and
Cambodians, so that many cross-breeds are to be found.

It is impossible, even after making all due allowances for their surroundings, to speak
highly of these people, with their coarse and repulsive features. Morally they are the most
disagreeable of all the peoples of Indo-Chiua. M. Mouhot says: "They are headstrong,
revengeful, deceitful, thieves, and liars. Their dirty habits surpass anything I have ever seen,

and their food is abominably nasty,
rotten fish and dogs being their favourite
diet." Even Lord Curzon, who is favour-
ably disposed towards them, cannot deny
that they are tricky and deceitful; but,
on the other hand, he considers them
gentle and amiable. "They have," he
says, " the submissiveness without the
nerveless apathy of the Hindu; while
they possess industrial aptitudes, rendering
them diligent workmen, and an artistic
ingenuity which on the one hand makes
them excellent cooks, and on the other
inspires the various artistic productions,
such as inlaid work in mother-of-pearl,
embroideries, wood-carving, and jewellery.
Though not a courageous people in the
sense of inviting or voluntarily meeting
danger, they are very tenacious in re-
sistance, and make capital soldiers against
an Asiatic enemy. They are, moreover,
hospitable, polite, lively, sentimental, and
of easy temper. The women present twa
types: the wife, or concubine, who is
merely the brainless instrument of her
master's pleasure, and the active and
business-like housewife, who toils hard
either in the fields or at the oar, and
who, in the upper ranks of life, frequently
takes to business and manages all her
husband's affairs."

Polygamy is universal among the
Anamese. They dispose of the dead by

Tour au Monde." burial> not b? cremation. They show

A GROUP OF LAO PEOPLE. great outward respect for their superiors

Prom

ANAM

107

and parents, but take great delight in mocking and banter. Their attachment to the soil of
their country is very strong, and they never leave it for long. The form of government is
absolute monarchy, and the succession to the throne follows the order of primogeniture. Public
offices are open to all, and there are no social distinctions other than those due to office.
Hence all citizens who are not officials are on terms of equality.

The Auamese are not a religious people, but have great respect for the dead; their
worship consists chiefly of ceremonies in honour of their ancestors. In other respects their
religion, if so it may be culled, is a strange mixture of cults and creeds. Buddhism, the
dominant creed, is overlaid by coarse, popular superstitions, and there is a great deal of spirit-

Pfiolo by Signer Btulu\

UUKMESE DANCING-GIRLS.

worship, or crude demonology. At their pagodas incense is burned to the good or evil spirit
of the place (genius loci), or perhaps to the dreaded tiger. In Tongking there are said to be
more than 500,000 Christians.

Among the most picturesque and characteristic of Anamite spectacles are the markets,
which are thus described by the present Viceroy of India (Lord Curzon): "They are held on
stated days in the week, either in an open place in the middle of the village, frequently tiled
over, or thatched as a protection against the sun — the site being the property of the
commune and being let out in plots or stalls — or sometimes in the open country at a central
spot between several hamlets. Marketing is entirely conducted by the female sex, who may

io8

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

-

be seen for miles walking in single file along the
narrow dykes which separate the soaking rice-plots,
and carrying their produce in baskets at the end
of a bamboo pole. Others will approach in sampans
along the waterways and canals. AVrhen business
opens, there is just such a jabbering as in the
monkey-house in the Zoo. The women squat down
by the side of their wares and intersperse a ceaseless
chatter with chewing of the betel-leaf and ejection
of long splashes of scarlet saliva from their discoloured
mouths. You will see exposed for sale pigs, chickens,
and ducks in hampers, fish fresh and slimy, and
sun-dried big prawns and tiny laud-crabs, cabbages,
radishes, the areca-nut, vermicelli, cakes, sweetmeats,
and eggs. Elsewhere will be cheap articles of furni-
ture or raiment, tin lamps for petroleum, pottery,
brass-ware, opium-pipes, bracelets, necklets, amber
buttons, palm-leaf hats, turbans, Bombay cotton, and
scarves."

CAMBODIA.

THE ancient kingdom of Cambodia has long been
restricted to the lower course of the Me Kong River.
For some time it was a vassal of the Siamese
kingdom; but the king is now subject to France.
The stupendous ruins of Angkor Valit and many
other remains are evidence of the former greatness
of this old empire. The finest of these monuments,
which are now in Siamese territory, cover a space
of twenty square miles, and have been carefully
studied by French archaeologists. Lord Curzon says
they form "the most remarkable collection of rums
in the world, whether we regard the prodigious
magnitude of the ground-plan, the grandiose dimen-
sions of the principal palaces and temples, or the
artistic beauty and delicacy of the bas-reliefs and
sculptures." There is reason to believe — although the
French savants do not accept this view — that they
were built by the Cambodians under the direction
of Brahman missionaries from India, who introduced
Aryan culture among the rude inhabitants of the
country.

"Some of these wild tribes," says Keane, "are still distinguished by a gentle disposition,
a certain innate politeness and courtesy, as well as a surprising artistic taste and skill lavished
on their dress, ornaments, pipes, quivers, and other objects. These traits may well be the
faint reflection of a now extinguished culture still cherished by these children of nature, lost
for ages amid their dense woodlands, which they believe to be the centre of the universe, and
which nothing can ever induce them to leave. But the Cambodians themselves seem to have
retained little of their former greatness, except an overwhelming pride and arrogance. They
are being gradually absorbed by the surrounding Anamese and Lao populations. A strange
mystery hangs over this Cambodian race, who, fully 2,000 years ago, built cities and raised
monuments amid the swamps of Tonle-sap, vying in size and grandeur with those of the

Photo by Sigtior Beato} [Jfutulalay.

A BURMESE NATIVE, WITH TATTOOED LEGS.

Photo by livuriu. d- >/>./,/,. ,,(-,

A HAIRY FAMILY OF MANDALAY.

109

[Bombay.

no

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

DRAWING OF A GIRL TWO YEARS OLD,

Mesopotamia and Nile valleys. Their culture is certainly
of Hindu origin."

BURMA.

THE reader, after looking at the photographs of Burmese
men, women, and children reproduced on pages 107-120, will
readily perceive that they belong to the Mongolian branch
of the human family. They are stout, active, and well-
proportioned, with brown complexions, and an abundance
of coarse and lank black hair. Besides the Burmese
proper, there are in Burma numerous other tribes, such
as Paloungs, Toungthoos, and Karens. To the east and round
the northern frontier, and along the ranges that traverse
the upper regions, are great hordes of Kachius, who lead a
rough life, blackmailing the peaceful inhabitants below.

The Burmese have much in common with the Chinese.
Their women make excellent house-wives, and possess no
small aptitude for business. Previously to the annexation

WITH THICK HAIR ON NECK, BACK,' of the country by Great Britain, the labouring people, both
AND SHOULDERS. small proprietors and common labourers, were considered

as slaves of the king, who might at any time call for their services, as soldiers or as

labourers. Hence a man could not leave the country without special permission. There

were seven classes of slaves. The class of outcasts were the slaves of the pagodas, the

burners of the dead, the jailers, executioners (who were generally condemned criminals),

lepers, and other incurables, who are held in

great abhorrence, and treated with singular

cruelty. The government was a pure despotism.

The civil, military, judicial, and fiscal adminis-
tration of a province was vested in a governor,

who had the power of life and death, with

appeal to the chief council of the king at

Mandalay. No official received a fixed salary:

the higher officials were paid either by an

assignment of land, or by the labour of certain

people; the inferior magistrates by fees and

perquisites — a system naturally productive of

the worst forms bribery and extortion.

There were no hereditary honours. Any

subject, except a slave, might rise to some

important position in the State. Every article

possessed by a man, for use or for ornament,

indicated his rank, whether it were his earrings,

cap of ceremony, drinking-cup, or umbrella.

The last-named article is of general use, and

may be of brown varnished paper, red, green,

gilded, or plain white. Any one of the lower

orders using the insignia of a higher class

might be slain with impunity by the first

person he met.

In Burma proper there are no child-

* These and the two drawings on page 112 are from the Zeltschrlft fur EtJinolngie, Berlin, Vol. VIII.

JULIA PASTRANA, THE HAIRY WOMAN OF
MEXICO.*

BURMA

in

marriages, us in India, and the people seem happy in their domestic affairs. Although
girls are considered to be the property of their parents, they are very seldom constrained
to marry agaiust their will. The young men, too, make love pretty much where their
fancy leads them, obtaining first the consent of the parents. The period of day between
eight in the evening and midnight is called courtiug-time; in Burmese it is " loo-byo-lai-
tliee-kiiln." The Burmese mother is a great match-maker, but she uses persuasion rather
than compulsion. If she tries constraint, it generally results in the girl eloping with the
lover of her choice or committing suicide. The women carry on most of the trading and shop-
keeping, and are excellent housekeepers, as Mr. Rudyard Kipling shows in one of his short
stories of Indian life. Mr. E. W. Cumiug's excellent book " With the Jungle Folk in Burma"
will be found to contain a very true picture of these people.

I'hutu Inj Siyiivr JitUto}

IMandalay.

DACOITS IN PRISON.

Every jail in Burma contains a certain number of prisoners undergoing penal servitude
for life — reckless desperadoes whose presence is a standing source of anxiety to those in charge
of them. The Burmese dread imprisonment above all things. Lazy and indolent by nature,
and accustomed to the unrestrained liberty of the jungle, they prefer death itself to being
shut up within the walls of a prison. The most revolting type of human ugliness is the
Burmese jail-bird, with his shaven head and the unmistakable stamp of " criminal " on his
vicious face. The dacoits have quaint devices tattooed on their bodies as charms against
death or capture. Some have rows of unsightly warts, like large peas, upon the breast and
arms, which mark the spots where charms have been inserted — scraps of metal and other
substances inscribed with spells known only to the wise men who deal in such things.

In the north of Burma are found the Singpos and Kachins, formerly supposed to be

112

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

distinct races, but now generally regarded as one people, although
divided up into many tribes. The Singpos claim to be the
elder branch of the family. To the same group belong the
Chins of the Chin Hills and the Lushai of the Lushai Hills.
These tribes are closely related to the Nagas and the Arbors
of Assam (India), and their territory was formerly a borderland
between Burma in the east and India (mouth of the Brahma-
pootra) in the west. They are all Kuki, or " Hill Men." The
Kachins are a square-faced people, with strong jaws and
oblique eyes, like all Mongols. The Chins, who have been
fully described by Messrs. Bertram S. Carey and II. N. Tuck
in their valuable work " The Chin Hills," printed by the
Government at Rangoon, are a fine race, taller and stouter
than their neighbours in the plains on both the north and east.
Though falling short of the Pathans in height, they are taller
than the average Ghoorka. They are strong, carrying heavy loads
"SHWE MAONG," FOUNDER OF THE with ease. In their habits they are very dirty, although they

HAIRY FAMILY OF ASIA. , ,, , • 11 a r\\ • j.1 • 1 •

wash themselves occasionally. borne Chins wear their hair in

a top-knot, coiling it all into one ball well forward on the crown of the head. Others wear a
chignon on the nape of the neck. Hats and coats, made of bark, grass, bamboo, or the leaf
of the date-palm, are worn to protect the body from rain. Boots and sandals are unknown in
the hills. Fashions among the women vary greatly. Formerly the women went about half
naked — that is, bare down to the hips; now they appear in public wearing a coat which covers
the bosom. The houses are built with planks, one-storeyed and with a thatch roof; they have
no windows or chimneys, and the smoke escapes anyhow. The floor is some feet above the
ground; underneath are the pigs and cattle. The labour of building a house is enormous; it
takes from three to ten years; for not only is the amount of material used very large, but
poles and planks have to be felled and dragged some miles to the village.

The Chins endeavour to act up to their old adage, "A man should drink, fight, and
hunt, and the portion for women and slaves is work." One can hardly visit a village without
seeing an assemblage of people sitting round the liquor-pots, while the beating of gongs
announces that a feast is going on. Birth and marriage, death and sacrifice, the payment of
a debt, the courting of a sweetheart, the making of an agreement, the slaughter of an enemy,
and the shooting of a deer, all demand their feasts, and a feast means a drinking-bout of
many days' duration. Beasts are brought in and slain. Women and slaves wait on the guests,
throwing a lump of meat into any basket which is empty.
The music consists of blowing the horns and beating the
gongs in regular time; while the dancers, in a large circle
with arms locked round each other, swing the body and keep
step, singing at the same time a low, mournful tune.

If there are any lethal weapons in the house ill which
a feast is to be given, they are prudently sent to a neigh-
bour, to be out of the reach of drunken people; so that
the frequent quarrels that ensue are generally settled by a
fight with fists. But in the south, where hairpins are worn,
quarrellers often draw them and stab one another, sometimes
with fatal results. When sufficiently sober, the young men
often wrestle, an exercise in which they excel. The heads
of the animals killed at a feast are used to adorn the
verandah of the host's house.

When a child is born, its ears are bored with a quill
or a hairpin, and after about a month its hair is shaved and

From a j/holo.

" ANDRIAN," A RUSSIAN HAIRY MAN
OVER FIFTY-FIVE YEARS OLD.

BURMA

kept so for a few years. In the north the eldest boy is given part of the name of the
]>;iternal grandfather, and the eldest daughter part of that of the maternal grandmother;
but in the south the names are chosen independently of any rule.

When a Chin dies, his body rests sitting in. state, dressed and fully armed, whilst his
relations and friends dance and drink round the corpse, firing off their guns and singing songs
which set forth the number of raids in which the deceased has successfully taken a part,
the number of slaves he captured, and the number of heads which he took. The body is then
taken to an outhouse, and placed on a board, under which fires are lighted and kept burning
until the corpse dries up and becomes practically a mummy. It is afterwards rolled up in
rags and placed on a shelf in the house, awaiting the funeral feast, which is sometimes
delayed for two years. In the north the Chin people erect rude memorials to their departed
chiefs. These are simply thick planks of wood, with the head of a man carved at the top, to

THREE BURMKKK OIBLS.

represent the dead chief; underneath they carve men, women, and children, all sorts of
animals, gongs, beads, guns, etc. The figures represent the chiefs wife and family, the
enemies and animals he killed, and the slaves and booty captured. The departed hero is often
represented, as shooting an elephant or a tiger. But nowadays the Chins are ceasing to set
up these interesting memorials. "We can no longer take heads and raid slaves." they say;
" therefore the history of our lives is not worth handing down to posterity."

Those who are well acquainted with the Chins say they are all liars and thieves, and that the
most, accomplished thieves in all this district of the Chin Hills are the tribe known as Siyins,
who may in this respect be classed as criminals. The Haka people and others are also great
thieves, and, like the Siyins. will work in gangs, some distracting attention, whilst o'thers carry
off the booty, llakas, as well as Siyins, we are sorry to say, have been known to accept a
present, and then deliberately steal from the benefactor! The Falam chiefs, too, although they
are so particular in their outward conduct, and pretend that they are superior to all other Chins,

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

have been found capable of stealing iron when they
thought that they had the chance of doing so and
evading detection. Messrs. Carey and Tuck (to whose
valuable work we have already alluded) say that a Siyin
can creep into a British "post" on his stomach, and
carry off cooking-pots under the very nose of a sentry!
He can even enter a house inside the posts, and carry
off property without disturbing the inmates!

The Northern Chins, apparently, do not believe
in a Supreme Being. The Southern Chins, while
believing in a god (Kozin) to whom they sacrifice,
do not worship him, never looking to him for any
grace or mercy, except that of withholding plagues
and misfortunes. Besides this Kozin the southern
people believe in many spirits. There are the spirit
of the village (genius loci of the Romans); the
spirit of the family, or clan, residing in trees, or in
particular tracts which the clan inhabit; the spirit
of the cultivations, living in the fields; the spirit of
the air; the spirit of the stream, or the jungle,
or the hills. The Chins say there is no Supreme
God, and no other world save this, which is full
of evil spirits, who inhabit the fields, infest the
houses, and haunt the jungles. These spirits must
be propitiated, otherwise they may do grievous harm,
such as destroying the crops or making women barren.
When a man dies, his soul joins the spirit-world of
the forests; if he die a natural death, his spirit is
content; but if he has been slain, it will haunt his
relations until his death is avenged in blood. The
slain, however, becomes the slave of the slayer in the
spirit-world; so that if a man has killed many people
in this life, he will have many slaves to attend him
in the next. One can hardly expect people who cherish
such beliefs to live at peace with one another.

When a man falls sick, he attributes his illness
to some evil spirit, and accordingly sacrifices a young
fowl or a small dog. If he gets well, it is a sign
that the spirit is appeased. In all villages there
is a wise man or woman, who is believed to under-
stand what the spirits require, and who is accordingly
consulted as to what should be sacrificed.

not hesitate to ask many prying questions with regard to the
These inquiries concluded, he will probably announce
that the spirit of some stream has been insulted! Such a dire offence can only be atoned
for by the sacrifice of a red cock on the bank of the stream whose spirit claims redress.
Sometimes a pig is sacrificed; the animal is slain by the wise man himself, who mutters to
the spirit, "You have wanted a pig, and so one has been killed; now be satisfied, and remove
the sickness which you have put upon the man." It need hardly be added that the wise
man always helps to eat the flesh which he has ordered for the spirit; and generally he
chooses pig, because he is fond of pork himself, and therefore perhaps the spirit also prefers
it! So much eating and drinking accompanies all ceremonies that one cannot tell without

Photo by Sigiior Bealo]

[Mandalay.

A BURMESE PRINCESS.

The wise man does
unfortunate suppliant's recent conduct.

A liUKMKSE LILY.
115

n6

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

asking whether any given assemblage of people are
keeping a feast, a burial, or a sacrifice.

In the south of the Chin Hills they believe
that a mail can take to the next world anything
that is buried with him; hence many things are
put in graves, such as guns, gongs, and even
cooking-pots. These interesting customs throw
light on the well-known fact that in the
prehistoric burial-mounds, dolmens, etc., of Europe
and Asia weapons and utensils are found buried
with the skeleton or the ashes, as the case may
be (the present writer has dealt with this subject
in his work on "Prehistoric Man and Beast").
These superstitious people believe that evil spirits
may seize them, maltreat them, or inflict diseases
and death upon them. When an epidemic of
cholera broke out among some Chins who went
on a visit to Rangoon, they carried drawn swords
whenever they moved about, in order to scare
away the evil spirit, and spent the whole day
hiding under bushes, so that he should not be
able to find them. The Southern Chins even
begged that they might be allowed to sacrifice a
slave boy to the foreign spirit to whose influence
the outbreak was attributed; but humaner counsels
at last prevailed, and they were allowed to sacrifice
pariah dogs instead. Messrs. Carey and Tuck relate
how, owing to the belief that spirits wander about
at night, a small Burmese slave once escaped. The
boy was creeping silently towards their post at
night, when lie was detected by one of their sentries,
who at once cocked his gun. The small boy
quietly sat down in the long grass, while another
sentry seized the man's gun and cried out, "Do
not shoot; it is a spirit, and misfortune will fall
on us." Meanwhile, the boy quietly glided off, and reached the post in safety.

The chiefs have a sacred grove within which is a rock used as an altar, on which are
laid food and various odds and ends. " In dealing with a Chin, it is right to remember that
his spirit is of supreme importance in his eyes, and that his grove or his rock is as much
feared by him as the pagoda is revered by the Buddhist. Therefore, if it is possible, the
felling of trees in a sacred grove should be avoided. But care must be taken that the
cupidity of the Chin is not pandered to, as it is no sin for him to lie, and he will claim any
tree in the forest as dedicated to or inhabited by a spirit, if he wants it for his own use"
(Carey and Tuck). From time to time a man sacrifices to his own private household spirit;
and when he does so he closes his gate, setting on it a green branch to let every one know
that they must leave him alone. Sometimes a whole village will sacrifice to the village spirit,
and then the traveller must seek hospitality elsewhere.

On the original site of the Chassad Kukis, or Taksatte, as the Chins call them, are some
tall stone pillars still standing. The natives, when questioned about these monuments, were
silent; some said they did not know anything about them. But some time afterwards a
friendly Chin came up and quietly whispered, "Those stones at Taksatte were set up by the
spirits; but do not tell any one that I have told you so, as the spirits would be avenged on

Photo by Signer liea/n\

A SHAN BEAUTY.

BURMA

117

me if they heard that I have done so." Near Haka there is a grove which no one must
injure. A slave girl once fell ill, and then confessed that she had cut wood in this grove
for sale to the troops; and although sacrifices were freely offered up she died, and the comment
of the neighbours was that "it served her right."

Omens are consulted before undertaking a journey, a feast, a raid, or a sacrifice; and
the most trivial things that may happen are looked upon as omens, either good or bad.
They generally kill an animal and examine its liver. If the liver, is congested, or in any
way different from what it ought to be, they take the fact as an omen that the time is
unpropitious, and the enterprise is often abandoned. But this depends on the nature of the
undertaking. If a raid or a marriage be the object in view, or, in fact, anything which they
may be unwilling to postpone, a second animal is killed, and its liver examined; it seldom
happens that both livers give the same result. The call of a certain bird is regarded as a
most favourable omen, and he who starts on a journey proceeds boldly if he hears it.

The Chins have a great belief in witchcraft and the evil eye. The tribe known as Hakas
consider that the Siyins, Yahows, and many of the Lushais (other tribes) are wizards, whose
single glance is quite enough to bewitch them. To them such playful tricks are attributed
as causing lizards to enter

the body or balls of string -^fr*'"

to form in the stomach. In ^^^f ^^^.

1893, when a Lushai officer
•came to Haka to take over
mules, he was accompanied
by Lushai coolies, who strolled
down to the village to chat;
their approach was marked
by a stampede of the women,
who fled to the fields or hid
in the houses. They after-
wards explained that the
mere sight of one of these
Lushais was sufficient to cause
eickness and distress. Messrs.
Carey and Tuck say: "Chins
have begged permission from
us to shoot individuals who
have the misfortune to be
pronounced wizards. When
told that our customs do not
admit of the spilling of blood
except when blood has been
intentionally spilled, they
reply that our customs are
most unjust and protect the
wizard, who is allowed to
practise his uncanny occupa-
tion in peace, and who kills
people right and left, but,
because he spills no blood,
we take no notice."

Virtue in women is looked

upon rather as a "counsel fhoto by Mess^ Wa/ts d. ,S7, \Raiigoon.

of perfection." An outraged A SHAN-TALOK WOMAN.

n8

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

husband can divorce his wife for her indiscretions; but if he does so, he loses the price he paid
for her to her brother or her parents, from whom he purchased her. Consequently the affair
is usually overlooked as regards the woman; but if he can find the seducer, he will make him
pay compensation, or perhaps challenge him to fight. In this, however, he seldom succeeds,
because popular opinion is averse to the shedding of blood over the virtue of women. At feasts,
when men and women are expected to get drunk and forget themselves, adultery is considered
no offence at all, and they treat it as a mistake which any one is liable to make. However,
this sin is not so common as one would expect from the low moral tone that prevails.

The belief in witchcraft and in omens is general. Surgeon-Major Newland narrates that
a Chin man came to him complaining that a rat had entered his stomach. lie was given
an emetic, and in the morning reported that he had vomited up the rat in the night; then
went home cured and happy.

When two tribes take an oath of friendship, they meet and produce a mithun, which is
a Cross between a cow and a buffalo. The wise men of eacli village pour liquors over it, and
mutter to their respective spirits to note the agreement which is now to be made over the
blood. The chiefs of either side each take a spear, and, standing on opposite sides of the
animal, drive the weapons into its heart. If guns, and not spears, are used, the two chiefs
simultaneously fire into the animal's brain or heart. As the animal falls its throat is cut and
the blood collected in bowls; the tail of the animal is then cut off and dipped in the blood,
and with it the chiefs and elders of the two parties daub each other's faces, whilst the wise
men mutter, " May the party who breaks this agreement die even as this animal has died,
and may he be buried outside the village and his spirit never rest; may his family also
die, and may every bad fortune attend his village!" When a tribe or a clan make formal

submission to the British Government, the
ceremony is somewhat modified. The Govern-
ment representative and the chief simulta-
neously shoot the animal; the tail is cut
off, and, holding it in his hand, the chief
swears to be true to his oath, to recognise
the Government, never to cut the telegraph-
wire or shoot on the troops, and always to
pay tribute regularly; and he calls on the
spirit to kill the Government representative
if he without cause attacks the Chins, and

^^ IK Bf^^S a'so *° inn'ic'; every misfortune on himself

and his village if they break the oath.
•eft I Sad to say, however, in spite of this elabo-

rate form, the oath is of no value. The
Chin chief will only keep it so long as he
is afraid to do otherwise; and if it should
suit his purpose, he will break his vow. No
Government servant should count on a Chin
keeping his word because he has sworn over
blood to do so, and it should always be borne
in mind that a Chin does not lose caste in
this world or happiness in the next for lying
and deceiving. Chins have no records, so a
big stone is set up to remind the contracting
parties of their agreement. To make an oath
very binding they must eat some earth.

The Karens of the Tenasserim highlands
KACHINS— BOY AND GIRL. dwell in great seclusion, having formerly been

BURMA

119

greatly oppressed by the Burmese, who con-
quered them; they occasionally visit the towns
of the lowlands for purposes of trade. To
some extent they appear to approach the
European type. They live in small settle-
ments near streams in the woodlands, culti-
vating rice, bananas, betel-nut, and other
fruits or vegetables, such as sweet potatoes.
In ordinary circumstances they are a quiet
and peaceable people; but one branch of
them, the Red Karens, are the most brutal
savages, committing every atrocity except
cannibalism. The Karen girl's dress is pretty
and picturesque. The tamein, or skirt, re-
sembles that worn by the Burmese girl, but
the Karen prefers more sober hues. A dark
cloth sleeveless jacket, made like a short
skirt, cut in a low peak at the breast and
back, replaces the Burmese white jacket and
coloured neckerchief. It is decorated with
scroll designs worked in coloured threads
banded with narrow red and white braids, and
sometimes with spangles bought in bazaars.
Occasionally it is further embellished by
narrow ribbons, generally made of red
flannel, 20 inches long, which are sewn in
pairs under the armholes and at the breast
and back. The effect is very pleasing when
worn by a bright-looking Karen girl, whose
beauty, however, from an English stand-
point, is doubtful.

The Karens have a curious way of cele-
brating marriages and funerals at the same
time. AVhen celebrating one of their
"wakes," a platform of bamboo is erected
in front of the house where the dead man
lived. On this platform or stage, barbarously
adorned with pieces of cloth, a linen sheet is
placed, on which the body is laid. People from neighbouring villages come in large numbers;
but although certain funeral rites are performed, these they postpone until the young men
and maidens have done their courting and chosen their partners for life. And so the occasion
partakes more of the nature of a public courting than of a funeral. The proceedings are
somewhat after this fashion: — The young men and girls separate into two choirs, and seat
themselves on opposite sides of the remains. Family jewels are displayed in great profusion.
The young men begin with a chorus celebrating the beauties of the Karen maidens, their
charm of movement, and modest demeanour. To this the girls respond in a falsetto of the
usual drawling character, accepting the eulogy of their graces. These overtures are usually
set pieces handed down from antiquity, or rendered into the Karen tongue from some popular
Burmese play. Then the young bachelors begin, each in turn, and sing love-stricken solos,
calling on the name of some particular damsel. Among an Eastern and poetic people, a
flowery language is only what might be expected on such an occasion; so we need not be
surprised to learn that the girl is compared to a star, a flower, or a ruby. No painter could

I'kolO by Messrs. H'tll/.i ,t- 3keen\

KAREN WOMEN.

IJtunyooil.

T20

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

OUT FOB AN AFTERNOON DRIVE.

possibly do justice to her charms; she would ruin the peace of mind of a hermit! When
rejected, the suitor becomes plaintive — perhaps in the belief that "pity is akin to love "•
saying that he can neither eat nor drink, and will assuredly die before the morning! Far
from feeling embarrassed, the Karen maidens appear to be pleased at such expressions of

devotion. Their answers are usually of a somewhat stereo-
typed character. The girl will declare that it is a shameful
thing not to be married, but that to be divorced afterwards
is much worse — "to be like a dress that has been washed."
Another will declare that she is not going to give herself
away too cheaply. She lets the suitor know that she is not
like a day dim with the heat-haze, nor like a diamond that
lias lost the foil below to set it off, nor like a peacock's tail
draggled in the wet. All this means that the wrong man has
applied, and the lucky swain will be a great fool if her eyes
do not let him know that, when his turn comes, the answer
will be favourable. A girl seldom says "No" outright; she
prefers a more indirect and less crushing mode of refusal.
But these cases are exceptional; for, as a rule, the girl has
made up her mind which young man she will accept, and
the others will look elsewhere. The young people have met
before, and so matters are considerably simplified. Wheu all

Photo by wuhdm »/,<„•/,«»„«, Jierim. the courting is over they retire, and are forthwith married.
A PAIH OP DWARFS FROM BURMA.* Then th e elders go on with the funeral rites.

* The writer saw these two little dwarfs, a boy and girl, of about eighteen and nineteen years of age respectively,
and a little over three feet high, at Herr Karl Hagenbeck's Indian Exhibition in Berlin, 1898, and is much indebted to
mm lor permission to reproduce tiie pnotograph, as well as another which illustrates India in this

CHAPTER VI.

CHINA AM> MOMIOLIA:

CHINA.

AXCIKNT writers speak of the Chinese as the people of the land of Seres. The country has
been called bv different names at different eras in the past, but always by some form of the
name Sin, Simr, Chin, or China. This region was described in the classic age of Eome as a
vast and populous country, touching on the east the ocean and the limits of the habitable
world, a line beyond which, in the words of Cosmas, "there is neither habitation nor
navigation." The people, imperfectly as they were then known, were described as civilised,
mild, just, and frugal, avoiding collisions with their neighbours, and ever shy of close
intercourse, but not averse to dispose of their own products, of which raw silk is the staple —

O1INKSK fOOMKS IN RAIN-COATS.
181

122

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

a description which, although too favour-
able, might be still applied to them in
a general way.

The present area of the Chinese
Empire is 4,500,000 square miles, only
two other empires, the British and the
liussian, exceeding it in extent. But,
measuring by population, it is actually
the biggest empire on record, the number
of people subject to its rule being esti-
mated at 360,000,000, whereas that of
India is less than 300,000,000. The area
of China Proper is not more than half of
the whole empire.

The early history of the Chinese is
singularly obscure. Their own " Book
of History" records events said to have
occurred so far back as 2350 B.C., the
period from which, according to Con-
fucius, the authentic annals of China
begin. But it gives uo account of the
origin of the race. A few learned
Chinese have gone so far as to say that
the race now and for more than 4,000
years dominant in China is not the
race which first possessed the land. They
maintain that the original ancestors of
the Chinese were the Bak Sing tribes,
and that they came into the country
from the west, easily conquering and exterminating the aborigines, and so becoming undisputed
lords of the Flowery Land. The Bak Sings were in a much more advanced state of civilisation;
hence their advance was made easy.

Ethnologists divide mankind into four great families, or stocks: the Caucasian, or white;
the Ethiopian, or black; the Mongolian, or yellow; and the American, or red. The
Mongolian stock in the course of time became divided into a number of branches, which
spread over Central and East Asia. Two of the great branches from that stock are the
Mongolo-Tartar and Tibeto-Indo-Chinese, and it is with the latter important section of the
Mongol race we are now concerned. Since they became masters of their vast dominions, they
have passed through wars and revolutions which would almost certainly have divided such a
teeming population into different states if they had been of any other race. But the most
violent convulsions did not destroy their cohesion. They did not even lead to any change
in the fundamental principles and beliefs on which their social and political life was
founded 4,000 years ago, and which continue to be the guiding and controlling sources of
their government at the present time. The strength of national unity and the durability
of national institutions are the every-day boast of most peoples; but on both points history
compels us to award the highest place to the Chinese.

The physical traits of the average Chinaman may be described in a few words. The form is
well built, and, though rather short to represent what we regard as perfect symmetry, is fairly
proportionate. It is something between that of the lithe, supple Hindu and the muscular, fleshy
European. The complexion may be described as brunette, with a strong yellowish tinge. In
the south of China the people are darker in tint than in the northern provinces, but their
swarthiness is not so deep as that of the Portuguese.

Plioloby Mr. W.

A CHINESE BARBER.

Photo by Mr. Afong}

A CHINESE LADY OF HIGH RANK.
123

{Hong-kong.

124

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

The hair of the head is lank, black, coarse, and glossy; the beard is always black, and
is very scanty; while whiskers are still more scanty or wholly wanting. Very little hair
grows on the body. The eyes, distinctly typical features, are always black, narrow, and
apparently oblique. The latter appearance is cine to the very slight degree in which the
inner angles of the eyelids open, not allowing the whole iris to be seen. This Mongolian
peculiarity in the eye distinguishes the races of Eastern Asia from all other races of mankind.
The cheek-bones are high, and the outline of the face is remarkably round; the nose is
short, flat, but wide at the end; the lips are somewhat thicker tlian those of Europeans;
while the hands are small, and the lower limbs of average proportions.

The women in China are smaller than
European women; and even at the risk of
being reproached as ungallant, we must say
they possess very little of the form and the
air which we consider essential to female
beauty. The broad upper face, flat nose, and
narrow eyes are decidedly riot handsome,
though sometimes brightened with good-
humour and the animation of youth and
health.

Fashions in dress among the Chinese
are not quite so unalterable as some other
They change occasionally, as they do
less conservative lands, but far longer

Photolij Mr. It'. Ilan} [PhUadtlphia.

A CHINESE WOMAN, WITH N'AIL-PHOTECTOR (ON LEFT HAND).

things,
in

intervals elapse before any alteration will be
admitted, and then such changes are not so
thorough and so striking as those so frequently
introduced into the costume and ornaments of
our people. The Chinese dress has remained
in its main characteristics the same for
centuries. Garments of fur or velvet or silk
are handed down from parent to child for
two, three, or more generations, and no fear
is entertained that they will be condemned
as old-fashioned when seen on the form of
some sallow young lady or gentleman eighty
or ninety years after they were made. The
materials mostly used in the making of clothes
are silk and cloth, with a fabric called grass-
cloth, which is much worn in summer. Furs
and skins largely constitute the winter finery,
woollens being very sparingly used, and always
of foreign manufacture.

The costume of the Chinese is simple,
yet as fully serviceable as more elaborately
designed robes could be. Inner and outer
tunics, made of cotton or silk, according to
the social rank of the wearer, are the principal
articles. In some cases they are made to reach
only below the loins, but oftener the outer
tunic goes down to the feet. The lapel on the
right side folds over the breast and fits close
around the neck, which is otherwise uncovered.

CHINA

125

OI'irXl-SMOKEKS.

Tlie sleeves are very wide, uiui much longer than the arms. They have no cult's, ami in most cases
sleeves are made to serve the purpose of pockets. If a Chinaman accepts a present, purchases
a ball, or appropriates any small article of value to which he has no just claim — acquires
anything which an ordinary Briton would deposit in his pocket — the Celestial does not say he
'•pockets it," but '• sleeves it," as he actually does. The lower limbs are not so fully protected.
A pair of loose trousers, covered to the knee by cloth stockings, is the usual summer wear.
Tight leggings are pulled over both in winter, and fastened to the girdle by loops. As the
trousers are very loose and baggy and the tunic is short, the excess of trouser material
forced to the rear by the tight leggings protrudes behind in what' we should think a rather
awkward manner. Shoes are made of silk and cotton, the soles of felt being defended on the
bottom by hide. Quilted cotton garments are very common, and are so made as to protect
the whole person from cold and obviate the need of fires. In the north dressed sheepskin
robes serve for bedding as well as garments, and their durability makes them more desirable
than the best woven fabrics.

Nexb to the oblique eyes the plaited ''tail," or, more correctly, the queue, is generally
regarded as the most distinctive feature of the Chinaman. But that fashion of dressing the
hair is not one of the ancient customs of the Chinese, nor was it originally practised by them
for their own gratification. The ancient Chinese wore the hair long, bound upon the top of
the head in a fashion similar to that practised by the Loo-choo islanders. They took pride
in its glossy blackness, and had long distinguished themselves from other peoples as "the
black-haired race." Hut two centuries and a half ago the Manchu Tartars invaded China from
the north, and defeated the Chinese in successive battles. They wore their hair in the long
queue with which all who have seen Chinese are now familiar; and in 1027 they issued an

126

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

order that all Chinese should adopt their coiffure as a sign of allegiance on pain of death.
As they overthrew the ruling dynasty at that time with ease, and the chief of the Manchus
was made emperor, they enforced the order with such merciless rigour that the Chinese
throughout the land eventually submitted. The queue was imposed on the people as a badge
of subjection; but before the Manchu dynasty (the present rulers of China) had been fifty
years established, the "tail" had become an appendage of which the Chinese were proud, and
a long thick queue was an object of intense desire to every honest Chinaman.

The head-dress of married women is at once tasteful and becoming. The plentiful black
hair is bound upon the head in an oval knot, which is secured in its place by a pin placed
lengthwise in it, and fastened by a shorter pin thrust across and under the bow. In front of
the knot a tube is often worn, in which flowers can be placed. A widow is known by white
flowers in her hair, a maiden by one or two plaits instead of a knot; but in some parts white
flowers are worn by all women. Matrons wear an embroidered fillet on the forehead, about
an inch wide, pointed between the eyebrows, and covering the front of the hair. This fillet,
embroidered or adorned with pearls, is a favourite ornament with Chinese ladies. Along the
Yang-tse-kiang Kiver women wear a band of fur around the head. The hair of children is
unbound; but girls advancing in age allow the side-locks to grow until the hair reaches the
waist, and plait a tress down the neck. False hair is made use of by men and women, the
men particularly being fond of making their queues as long as possible.

The population of China as we know it is the result of a fusion of tribes of connected
lineage. Different classes from beyond the bounds of China Proper, as the Mongolo-Tartars

under Genghis Khan and
his successor, and the
Manchu Tartars under
Tsen-ning, at different
periods assumed the mastery
of the settled inhabitants.
But the Chinese were only
governed and plundered by
their new masters, not
destroyed. They invariably
absorbed into their own
nation intrusive neighbours
whom they were unable to
expel, for common sense
and practicality are strongly
developed traits in the
character of the people.
The Chinaman thinks
nothing is worthy of serious
regard but that which is
visibly useful or materially
beneficial. His arts and
sciences, his poems and
romances, his religions
and philosophies, all re-
volve around and minister
to the needs and pleasures
of his daily life. Abstract
virtue, the universal, the
ideal, are terms which
A CHINESE WOMAN WITH INFORMED FOOT. have hardly the shadow of

[Hony-itong.

128

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

Pholu by Mi: Afong]

[Ilo/iff-kong.

A CHINESE GARDEN PARTY.

a meaning to him. Such an action as a missionary voluntarily incurring hardship and danger
in the attempt to secure eternal felicity for men who have never done him service, and from
whom he cannot expect any compensating good, he can understand only as the result of a
wofully deranged mind. He is not endowed with much imagination, or it may be that
centuries of 'rigorous training within strictly material lines have practically clogged that mental
faculty, until it has become so torpid that it cannot become active under normal conditions.
The Mongol character, in Mr. Keane's estimation, is sluggish, with little initiative, but great
endurance; frugal, thrifty, and industrious; morality low; science slightly, art and letters
moderately developed.

Men who possess little initiative — that is, little of the bold, originative power which
constitutes genius — are naturally largely imitative, and still more markedly tenacious of that
which they have tried and approved. They will expend immense energy on the elaboration
of a work they have begun, but the mind shrinks from the attempt to conceive a new
task involving different principles and possessing a totally different character. On a given
solid base the Chinese will produce astonishing results, giving proof of tireless industry,
ingenuity, and perseverance. This fondness for elaboration of detail is displayed in nearly
every act of his ordinary life, and gives rise to the many ceremonies which the Chinaman—
a very ceremonious creature — daily practises. " Ceremony is the type of virtue," said Confucius
about 2,400 years ago; and the Chinese have not failed to preserve the axiom of the great
teach rr.

The form of government in China is decidedly patriarchal. The State is embodied in the
Emperor, who assumes towards his subjects at large the office of guide and guardian, which

CHINA

129

the head of a family should hold with relation to the minor and dependent membei3 of the
same. His title, Tien-Tsze, proclaims him "the Son of Heaven," and the people he governs
are supposed to be his children. Standing in this intermediary position, he, and he alone, has
power to mediate between his father, Heaven, and his children, his subjects. His sacrifice?
and pravers in discharging the duties pertaining to this high office are conducted with great
parade and ceremony; and the pomp, it need hardly be said, tends to impress npon the people
a sense of the greatness and dignity of their chief, who is able thus to commune on their
behalf with the Everlasting and Almighty.

But the power wielded by the Emperor is still circumscribed by certain laivs and
hampered by precedents. From the day on
which he ascends the throne, special duties
are appointed by the Board of Kites to
nearly every hour of his daily life. In all
offices of State the Emperor is assisted by
the Xinj-Ko, or Privy Council. The provinces
are mainly self-governed. Each province (in
a few cases, two conjointly) is presided over
by a Viceroy, who is supreme within his
jurisdiction, and who has, in cases of
emergency, the power of life and death in
his hands. Next to him comes the Governor,
whose authority in all matters relating to
the province is second only to that of the
Viceroy. Each province is divided into
several departments, and each department or
district has to maintain its own staff of
officials. There are prefectures and sab-
prefectures, prefects and sub-prefects. The
smallest of these divisions is again sub-
divided into districts, over each of which
is placed a magistrate, and subordinate to
the magistrate are a host of petty officials,
each and all of whom have to be maintained
and enriched at the cost of the people
whose affairs they administer.

Every occupant ' of office must be a
mandarin. Mandarins of all classes are
divided into nine ranks, each distinguished
by the button or buttons worn on the top
of the cap. These buttons are the insignia
of rank. The first and highest is a plain
red button; the second, a flowered red
button; third, a transparent blue button;
fourth, an opaque blue button; fifth, an un-
coloured glass button; sixth, a white glass
button; seventh, a plain gilt button; eighth,
a gilt button with flowers in relief; and
ninth, a gilt button with engraved flowers.
Theoretically, the system of government
practised in the provinces is nearly all that
can be desired; but, as a matter of fact,
it is as corrupt as any system regulating

photoby iir. \v.

A WOMAN OK MAMIUHIA.

^*& u^

130

CHINA

intercourse between different classes of men could be. The mandarins- 'are blamed for nearly
all the iniquity attaching to the system; and though it is beyond denial that they are as
powerful and rapacious as they are numerous, there is yet a word to be said in extenuation of
their conduct. The salaries they receive when in office — and when they are regularly paid,
which is seldom the case — are so trifling that they hardly suffice to maintain the staff which
it is necessary for each mandarin in office to keep. The mandarin thinks it is a sacred duty
to himself to remedy that state of things at the cost of the people. This becomes a more
imperative duty because there is a law which forbids that any mandarin shall hold office for
more than three years. The instant he arrives at his post all the subordinate officials hasten
to pay their respects to him. Not one of them would dare absent himself, and each vies
with his colleague in procuring a present of the utmost value he can afford to give to the
mandarin as a proof of his loyalty and devotion. Then, again, when a suitor comes with a
legal cause to the yamen, or mandarin's office, he is obliged to pay fees to the mandarin and
all the subordinate officials, or he would have but small chance of securing a hearing.

The shocking corruption which is audaciously and flagrantly practised in open day in high
places has a most demoralising effect upon the people. Dishonesty is hardly regarded as a
vice; it is practised every day and everywhere, the only deterrent being the fear of discovery
and punishment. False-speaking is as prevalent as dishonest dealing. The Chinese set little
or no value upon truth. It has been said that the Chinaman may sometimes speak the truth
by accident. The makers of the fatherly laws which the mandarins administer, and the
mandarins themselves, apparently have knowledge of the rarity of such accidents, and therefore,
to have more on their side than the chance of accident when trying to elicit truth in their
courts of justice, they employ torture.

Flogging is the kind most commonly inflicted to bring home to the mind of a prevaricating

Phulu Inj Mi

CHINESE TAKING TEA.

132

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

witness the necessity for speaking the
truth. Shocking as the application of
the lash is thought to be in England,
the Chinese method of flogging is more
painful, if not more debasing. The
witness is laid flat on his face, ami
the executioner delivers his blows on
the upper part of the thighs with the
concave side of a split bamboo. When
the strokes are heavy, the flesh rises in
ridges in the hollow part of the cane,
and the sharp edges cut the victim
terribly. This punishment is not limited
to a fixed number of blows. The sufferer
may release himself by giving the
evidence required, or the flogging is-
continued until he becomes insensible.
Many other kinds of torture are resorted
to. The Chinese display a horrible inge-
nuity in producing the greatest possible
suffering with the most apparently simple
means.

For example, one of the ordinary
punishments in China is compulsory
kneeling, bare-legged, on a coiled chain.
This does not sound shocking, and it
might be supposed that it could hardly
inconvenience people so little sensible to-
pain as the hardier Chinese are known
to be. But the agony that is caused
by this punishment is indescribable,
especially as two officers stand by the
sufferer to prevent him from seeking
even a momentary relief by changing
his position. Broken crockery is some-
times substituted for the chain, but those who have experienced the punishment find one
material as cruel as the other.

A common punishment in China is that of the cattgue, a sort of movable pillory. It is-
a collar formed of a piece of wood, four feet square and nearly four inches in thickness. It has
a hole formed in the middle, through which the culprit's head is passed. The machine opens
with a hinge. When closed around the culprit's neck, it is locked, and a placard, describing
the offence for which he suffers, is always pasted on it. As long as the canyue is worn the
delinquent cannot feed himself, so that he would soon expiate his offences by death from
starvation if he were not kept alive by occasional scraps tendered by good-natured people.
Indeed, little risk of actual starvation is run, for it is popularly thought a becoming and
meritorious action to feed a prisoner in the cangite. The principal terror of this instrument is
the pain caused by continuously carrying so much dead weight upon the neck and shoulders.

There is another mode of punishment in which the canyue is used, but in this case the
collar is fixed and does not rest on the shoulders. A tall cage is constructed, the top of
which is flat and thick, with a hole in the centre, through which a man's head may be
thrust. The top of the cage is so adjusted in height .from the bottom that the sufferer is
forced to stand on tiptoe to avoid supporting the weight of his body by his jaws, under

Pltolo by Mr. Afong]

A CHINESE NURSE AND CHILD.

[Hong-koiig.

133

134

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

which the board passes. His hands being bound behind him, he cannot relieve himself for
a moment. Iron snakes are another form of torture; they are tubes of soft metal, fashioned
in the form of snakes with open mouths. The sufferer is stripped naked and forced to
a kneeling position, with his arms extended straight out on each side. One of the metal
snakes is then coiled round each arm from the wrist to the shoulder, the mouth or orifice of
the tube appearing at the latter end. Another tube is coiled round the body, with the mouth
at the back of the neck. Boiling water is then poured into the snakes until they are filled,
and the burning torture thus inflicted can hardly be imagined.

Finger-squeezing is a torture also frequently used. Four pieces of bamboo are tied loosely
together at one end, and a string passes through the other ends, so arranged that, by pulling
the string with some force, the pieces of cane can be drawn closely together. The fingers
are placed between the pieces of bamboo, and the executioner, by pulling on the string with

gradually increasing force, can inflict excru-
ciating torment, and even break the bones
of the fingers to pieces. This torture is often
employed by the mandarins when trying to
force money from persons whom they suspect
of having concealed wealth somewhere. The
ankles are squeezed in a similar manner, only
that the implement of torture is necessarily
much larger.

Capital punishment is inflicted in several
ways. The mode that is thought to be least
terrible is to be accorded permission to
commit suicide. This is a privilege granted
only to men of very high rank, and is con-
ferred upon them by sending " the silken
cord." When the mandate is received which
intimates to the offender that he may use
the silken cord, the doomed man takes some
of his relatives and nearest friends to his
house, fastens the silken cord to a beam,
stands upon a stool, places the noose round
his neck, then leaps off the stool, and so
hangs himself. For criminals of no particular
social standing strangulation is the mode of
execution generally practised. It is inflicted
in a manner closely resembling the garrote.
The criminal is placed, standing, with his
back to a post, through which a hole is
bored at the level of his neck. The two
ends of a cord are passed through the hole,
and the loop embraces the man's neck. The
ends are then twisted round a stick, and by
a few rapid turns the loop is so tightened
that strangulation is almost instantaneous.
Beheading is another way in which criminals
are executed, but to this death the Chinese
have the strongest objection. They believe
that the spirits of the dead appear in the
next world minus any members which their

.

bodies may have lacked when they died in

Pliototni Mr. Afon/fl

[Bong-tang.

WOMAN OP SHANGHAI.

CHINA

'35

this, and they shrink with a horror which it is hard for us to conceive from appearing
hereafter as armless, legless, or, above all, as headless ghosts.

The mode of execution requires a few words. The criminal is carried to the place of
execution in a bamboo cage, and by his side is a basket in which his head will be removed.
He is effectively pinioned. The middle of a long, thin rope is passed round the back of his
neck, and the ends are crossed on the chest and brought under the arms. They are then
twisted round the arms, the wrists tied together behind the back, and the ends fastened to
the portion of rope upon the neck. A slip of paper, containing the culprit's name, crime, and
sentence, is fixed to a reed and stuck at the back of his head. On arriving at the place of
execution, the officials remove the paper and take it to the presiding mandarin, who writes on it
in red ink the warrant for execution. The paper is then replaced, a rope loop is passed over
the head of the culprit, and the end given to an assistant, who draws the head forward so as
to stretch the neck, while a second assistant holds the body from behind. In a moment the
executioner wields his broad, heavy sword, sweeps it down in one deadly, unerring stroke, and
the head is removed from the body. It is taken away, and generally hung up in a bamboo
cage near the scene of the crime for which the death-penalty was inflicted, with a label
announcing the name and offence of the criminal, and also the name of the. presiding mandarin
by whose order he was executed.

A Chinese wife is extremely anxious to present her husband with sous, who will perpetuate
his name and burn incense before his tablet after death. Female children are of so little
account that when a baby-girl is born it is often made away with. A childless woman
sometimes, however, adopts a girl from another family, believing that this course will make

Photo by Mr. Afong]

A CHINESE FAMILY GROUP OP THREE GENERATIONS

136

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

her in time a happy mother.
The idea is based on a
strange superstition, or rather
on a curious and interesting
conception of the relation
between the spirit-world and
the earthly life. The train of
thought is explained thus: —
The woman is represented by
a tree in the unseen world.
Whether she will have children
or not, and what their number
and sex will be, is indicated
by the condition of the tree, — •
whether it has flowers or not;
and if it has flowers, what is
their number and colour. If
the tree has red flowers, she
will have girls; if white
(lowers, she will have boys.
If the flowers be of different
colours, some white and some
red, she will have boys and
girls; if no flowers at all,
the poor woman will be
childless. But as in this
world men graft on one tree
a shoot from another, and
thus have the desired fruit, so the Chinese adopt a child into a childless family, in the hope
that there will be flowers on the flowerless tree in the spirit-land that represents the barren
wife. This custom is consequently known as "grafting."

There is a goddess of children, commonly called " Mother." Every year, between the llth
and 15th of the first and of the eighth months, several of the most popular temples of this
goddess are visited by childless women, who burn incense and candles before her image, vowing
to offer a thanksgiving if the goddess will grant their desire.

As the time approaches for a woman to give birth to a child, a custom is observed in
sorr.3 families for the purpose of propitiating two female demons believed to be present with
the intention of killing the woman. A table is spread with plates of food, incense, flowers,
and false money. A priest makes suitable recitations. At the end of this ceremony various
evil spirits are invited to come and receive the worship of the woman and her husband.
When a woman suffers much pain in child-birth, or if the child be not born after long
waiting, and her life appears to be in danger, friends or relations produce a kind of puppet-
show, in which is a puppet representing "Mother."' These puppets are made to dance near
the door of the sick-room; in some cases the particular puppet of the goddess is made to
walk and dance on the body of the woman herself. This treatment is supposed to relieve
pnin and hasten the birth.

In China three different religions are upheld and favoured by those in authority; these
are Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. But besides these religious systems there is the
worship of ancestors, which plays so important a part in the life of the people, from the
highest to the lowest. Two features distinguish Chinese religions from those of other
countries. In the first place, there are no human sacrifices; and, secondly, vice is not
personified or deified. No Aphrodite or Veuus is found in the list of goddesses, and it cannot

Photo by Mr. Afong}

\llonfj-kOIKJ.

A CHINESE FORTUNE-TELLEK.

CHINA

be said that the Chinese have endeavoured to lead the votaries of sensuality farther on the
road to ruin by putting immorality under the protection of a god or goddess. It may also
be remarked that it is no easy matter for Europeans to understand the Chinese religion.
The people appear to entertain such indefinite ideas on the real character of their ceremonies,
and to hold such varied opinions on religious matters, that the inquirer finds it difficult to
obtain clear and consistent accounts on this subject.

Confucianism would be more accurately described as a system of moral philosophy than
as a religion. But the belief in a Supreme Power always underlies its teachings, though it
is not so pointedly and persistently expressed as in other systems. The State worship of
"Heaven," or '"God," was, and still is, confined to the Emperor in his double capacity of
father and priest of the people. It is held that the will of God is to be learned from the
moral principles of man's nature. Government is ordained by God for the good of the people;
and when the sovereign ceases to promote the popular good, his government is antagonistic
to the divine ordinance, and therefore he has forfeited his right to the throne. Thus it is
that revolutions and changes of dynasty are always referred to as "the will of Heaven."
Associated with the worship of Heaven was the worship of heaven and earth and the powers
of nature, but they were always regarded as subordinate to God, and fulfilling His will for the
good of men. Both Emperor and people worship their ancestors. This worship is universally
practised in China. It is a perpetuation of " the duty which every one owes to his parents —
tliu first and chief of all virtues." On this Confucius laid the greatest stress, endeavouring
to derive all other virtues from it.

Tuoixm derives its name from a treatise composed by Lao-Tsze, a contemporary of
Confucius. It is called "The '/*«o,'' or " The Win/ and its characteristics." The " Way " is the

Photo tiij Mr. Afim,,]

CHIXESE MAXIl.VKIXS, CAXTOX.

i38

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

quiet, passionless discharge of all which our nature prompts and our relations require us
to do, without violent striving or crying, while steadily maintaining and preserving life.
"Heaven" in this "Way" is not a ruler or legislator, as in Confucianism, but only a pattern.
The system was older than Lao-Tsze, who, however, reduced it to method. The recognised
head of Taoism has his seat on the Lung-hu Mountain in Chiang-hsi. To Lao-Tsze belongs
the merit of having formulated the grand principle that good will overcome evil, and should
be returned for it.

The form of Buddhism prevailing in China is called Shamanism, or Hiuang Kiao
(Yellow Sect) in Chinese, from the colour of the priestly robes. A Shaman is one who
has overcome all his passions. The Dalai Lama at Lassa, in the great monastery of the
Putala, is the head of the religion, the abode of deity. Mongolia swarms with Lamas; and
the Government at Pekin, in order to maintain its influence, aids in supporting them. The

Photo by Messrs. Watts & Skeen]

[Haiigoon.

CHINESE HUSBAND AND WIFE.

ritual of the Shamans contains their ten principal precepts or commandments: " (1) Do not
kill; (2) Do not steal; (3) Do not commit fornication; (4) Speak not falsely; (5) Drink no
wine nor eat flesh; (6) Look not on gay silks or necklaces, use no perfumed ointment,
and paint not the body; (7) Neither sing nor dance, and do no sleight-of-hand tricks nor
gymnastic acts, and go not to see or hear them; (8) Sit not on a high, large couch; (9) Do
not eat out of time; (10) Do not grasp hold of living images, gold, silver, money, or any
valuable thing."

The general character of the Chinese is irreligious; they care much more for worldly
gain than for religious ceremonies of any kind. Except those attaching to ancestor worship,
they have no ceremonies they consider so binding as to be willing to fight for their preserva-
tion. These are of so domestic a nature that thousands of converts might discard them
before much would be known or done by the people in connection with the matter. The
toleration of the Christian religion has been allowed throughout the empire by imperial edicts

139

140

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

issued by Shun-chi and his son, but these have not prevented the persecution and even massacre
of missionaries. In 1844 the French envoy brought the disabilities of Christians iti China to
the notice of Ki-ying, who memorialised the throne, and received a rescript which reversed the
bloody decrees of 1722 and later years. Churches have increased since the first one was
formed in Canton, and some of them are now served by native evangelists. The future is
not without promise.

MONGOLIA.

THE primeval homo of the Mongols is the region kno-.vn as Mongolia, where every mountain
is a king and every lake or stream a national divinity. This region, over which China
nominally rules, stretches from Siberia in the north towards the Great Wall of China in the
south, and from Manchuria in the east to the Altai Mountains, the Thian-shan (i.e. Heaven
Mountains), and East Turkestan in the west. The Desert of Gobi is in its centre (see map
on page 130). The total number of Mongols under Chinese rule is estimated at 2,000,000.

The meaning of the name
Mongol is said to be " brave,"
and to have been given to the
people on account of their war-
like character. Once they were
the terror of the world. In the
year 1236 they invaded Georgia
and Great Armenia, committing
frightful atrocities, sparing
neither man nor woman, young
nor old. Tiflis was among the
cities captured by assault, and
Kars was surrendered at their
approach in the vain hope that
submission would gain clemency.
Meanwhile, in 1235, Ogdai, their
chief khan, whose troops were as
numerous as their thirst for
conquest was devouring, dis-
patched three armies in as many
directions. One was directed
iigainst Korea; one against the,
Sang dynasty, which ruled over
the provinces of China south of
the Yang-tse-kiang; and the
third was sent westwards into
Europe. This last took the
capital city of the Bulgars, and
pushed on over the Volga River.
With irresistible vigour and
astonishing speed the Mongols
made their way through the
forests of Penza and appeared
before the beautiful city of
Riazau. For five days they dis-

PMO »y Mr.

A CHINESE BRIDE, WITH VEIL OP BEADS.

from their ballistas, and carried

MONGOLIA

141

the city after making a breach. The
prince, with his mother, wife, sons, the
boyars (nobles), and the inhabitants
were slaughtered with savage cruelty.
Some were impaled, some shot at with
arrows for sport; others were flayed
alive. Priests were roasted, and nuns
and maidens ravished in the churches.
" No eye remained open to weep for the
dead." Next, Moscow fell into the hands
of the invaders, who then advanced
against Vladimir. After holding out
for several days the city succumbed, and
the horrors of Riazan were repeated.
The imperial family, with a vast crowd
of fugitives, sought shelter in the
cathedral, only to perish by the swords
of the conquerors or by the flames
which reduced the building to ashes.
An even worse fate overtook the in-
habitants of Kozelsk, near Kaluga, where
the Mongols held so terrible a "carnival
of death" that the city was called "'the
city of woe." Krief was also captured,
with the inevitable massacre. Having
desolated this portion of Russia, they
invaded both Hungary and Poland.
They even conquered China, but did not
stay there long. Brave and hardy as
the Mongols have always shown them-
selves to be, they could not gain the
allegiance of those whom they con-
quered, nor establish settled forms of government. For a time their prowess and the ability
of some of their first emperors held China in bondage; but at last the long pent-up hatred of
a foreign yoke broke out, and the invaders were driven back to their old home in Mongolia.
This took place in the fourteenth century of our era.

Since the last century the Mongols have ceased to be of any political, importance. During
centuries of migration and fighting they have mingled with other races, such as the Chinese,
Turki, Tibetans, and the non-Mongolian Iranians. The whole Mongol tribe is usually divided
into three branches — East Mongols, West Mongols, and Buriats. Captain Younghusband
noticed a distinct difference between the Eastern and the Western Mongols, the features of
the former beiug rounder and fuller than those of the Western Mongols.

The writer is greatly indebted to Mr. E. Delmar Morgan, F.R.G.S., for his kindness in
allowing him to reproduce here some of the excellent photographs taken for him during his
travels in Eastern Turkestan. The originals are in the possession of the Royal Geographical
Society, the Council of which also kindly gave their permission. Others of Mr. Morgan's
photographs appear in Chapter X.

The Mongol countenance is an exaggeration of the Chinese type: the face is flat and
broad, the nose low, and the eyes are oblique. Living most of their lives on horseback, the
.Mongols have short legs and small feet; the calves are undeveloped, and the knees bent out.
The famous Venetian traveller Marco Polo, who visited them in the thirteenth century, thus
describes their habits, in words which are equally true even now: "The Tartars never remain

S;>l IK I'

'inii of III' It'HJIll ' >*<></t lift/I '» 'III S<i

A FAMILY GUOUP OF MONGOLS, KULDJA.

142

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

fixed, but as the winter approaches remove to the plains of a warmer region m order to fiud
sufficient pasture for their cattle; and in summer they frequent cold situations in the
mountains, where there are water and verdure, and their cattle are free from the
annoyance of horse-flies and other biting insects. During two or three months they
progressively ascend higher ground and seek fresh pastures, the grass not being adequate in
one place to feed the multitude of which their flocks and herds consist. Their huts or tents
are formed of rods covered with felt; and being exactly round if nicely put together, they cau
pother them into one bundle, and make them up as packages [a process which the present
writer witnessed in Berlin at the interesting Exhibition of Kirghese by llerr Gebrink at
tho Flora Garten, Charlottenberg], which they carry along with them in their migrations
upon a sort of car with four wheels. When they have occasion to set up these again, they
always make the entrance front to the south. Besides these cars they have a superior kind of
vehicle upon two wheels, covered likewise with felt, and so effectually as to protect those
within it from wet during a whole day of rain. They are drawn by oxen and camels, and
serve to convey their wives and children, their utensils, and such provisions as they require.
The women attend to their trading concerns, buy and sell, and provide everything necessary
for their husbands and their families, the time of the men being entirely devoted to the
employment of hunting and hawking, and matters that relate to military life. They have the
best falcons in the world, and also the best dogs. They subsist entirely upon flesh and milk,
eating the produce of their sport, and certain small animals not unlike rabbits, called by our

on of the Royal Geographical Society,

A GROUP OF MON'GOI

143

144

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

people 'Pharaoh's mice,' which during the summer season are found in great abundance on
the plains. But they likewise eat flesh of every description — horses, camels, and even dogs —
provided they are fat. They drink mare's milk, which they prepare in such a manner that it
has the qualities and flavour of white wine." This is the well-known koumiss,

The Mongolian is robust, and capable of enduring great hardships. He can ride a camel for
fifteen hours at a stretch with the thermometer down at 15° below zero (Fahrenheit). But he
does not like walking, and is nearly always mounted. After 200 years of Chinese government
the race has greatly degenerated, even losing to a great extent the personal courage which
gave them the power of making rapid conquests over other peoples. Like their ancestors, they
are still nomads, and their wealth consists of flocks of sheep, herds of horses (small, but very
enduring), cattle, camels, and goats. As a rule they are hospitable, though indifferent to
personal comfort, addicted to cattle-stealing and to drink, but when sober good-hearted and
friendly. Tents are their only protection against the violent sandstorms of summer, and the
yet more terrible snowstorms of winter. Frequent pilgrimages are made to Urga, the religious
capital of the country, and to various other Mongolian and Chinese shrines. They are very
dirty people, never washing their bodies, and very seldom their faces and hands. Lamaism, a
form of Buddhism, has taken a strong hold upon them, and superstitions are very prevalent.

By permission of the Royal Geographical Society.

KHAN WANG, A MONGOL OF KULDJA.

CHAPTER VII.
JAPAN, THE HAIRY AINU, A'OA'A'.I. roHMoSA, LIl'-KIU ISLANDS, AND TIBET.

JAPAN.

THE Japanese people live in what has been aptly described as an empire of islands. Their
own native name Nippon signifies "Land of the Rising Sun." They sometimes speak of it as
Great Nippon, just as we ourselves speak of Great Britain. Geographically their country has
a very strong analogy to ours in its proximity to a vast continent, in latitude, and in having
its shores washed by a great ocean current of warm water from the tropics. The area of
the country has been estimated at 155,000 square miles, which is 34,000 square miles larger
than the United Kingdom. But besides the four large islands of Yezo, Hondo, Shikoku,
and Kiusiu, to which the above figures refer, there are in the Mikado's dominion about 4,000
small islands, among which are the Loo-choo and the Kurile Islands, not to mention the
large island of Formosa taken from China in 1895. The census taken in 1891 showed a
population of 40,719,000.

The fact that several different races are blended and combined in the Japanese type of
to-day may be reasonably explained by the geographical situation of the country. It is
connected with the Malay Archipelago by groups of islands. From the Peninsula of Korea, on
the mainland of Asia, it is separated only by a narrow strait. With Kamschatka it is more or
less connected by a chain of islands, and by another chain it is similarly connected with the
North American Continent. Hero we have at least four routes by which Japan has always been
accessible with the most primitive
means of transport. Mixed though
they are, the Japanese have not often
been conquered. Chinese attempts
to annex Japan have always failed.
In the war of 1891-95 Japan defeated
China, and in that of 1904-05 she
defeated Russia. The Japanese early
became skilful and daring navigators.
With Arabs they may have made
voyages even as far as India. Their
junks have undoubtedly sailed to the
coasts of Central America, and as I ^_
freebooters they were once the terror
of the people on the Chinese coast.

The Japanese, like ancient
peoples with hardly an exception,
have an accepted account not only
of their origin as a distinct race,
but of the creation of the island

realms destined for their habitation i-uoto ty .IA «•/•.«. A'^Umi ,i- *.<«•»
and heritage. They say that, when THHEE JAPANESE CIRL».

143

146

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

the world was being formed, and the earth was still soft like mud, or like thick oil floating on
the surface of water, there arose out of the mass the flag or rush called asi (Erianthus
jiiponicus), from which there sprang the land-forming god, Knni-soko-tatsino-mikoto. After
him arose the god and goddess whose functions are the baking of mnd-earth and the baking
of sand-earth. As the asi grows thickly in marshy places round the Japanese coast, we have
here stated the geological process of the formation of new ground. One of the next proceedings
was the special production of the Japanese islands by the god Iza-na-gi, and the goddess
Iza-na-mi. They stood on the heaven-bridge and dipped a spear in the muddy waters.
Then they raised the spear, and each drop that fell from it formed an island. Then followed
the loves of this divine pair, who descended on Dai Nippon, the larger island, which, indeed,
may be regarded as the mainland of Japan. They met near the stalk of the asi, from which
the land-forming god had sprung, and which had now grown into a tall imperial column.

A JAPANESE VEGETABLE-PEDLAH.

They regarded each other with looks of admiration. But, unhappily, the goddess was not free
from all the human weaknesses of her sex, for she spoke first, and from that fact only a
presage of evil could be drawn. The first child born to them was set adrift in an ark of
reeds, but survived many perils and became the progenitor of an illustrious race.

The physical characteristics of the Japanese type are a flat forehead with more than the
usual distance between the eyebrows, a small but well-formed nose, slightly raised nostrils, and
email black eyes, rather less oblique than the Chinese, lank black hair, little or no beard,
•short legs and low stature, the average being about 5 feet 4 inches. The complexion is sallow,
or dirty olive-yellow. "It is curious," says Dr. W. H. Guillemard, "how the face-complexion,
of these people differs from the body-complexion. In the course of two visits to Japan, in
which I travelled much in various parts of the country, I saw many hundreds of naked
Japanese, the bathing of both sexes in company being at that time the rule, and I was struck
particularly with the fact that, in spite of their sallow or yellowish complexion, their bodies

JAPAN

were whiter than those of Englishmen, or even Englishwomen. The Chinaman, however, strips
yellowish."

The mental endowments of u people can seldom be correctly inferred from a view of their
physical qualities. This truth is forcibly illustrated in the Japanese race, who appear but a
feeble folk when compared with the average Chinese and with the Koreans, who are more
closely related to them. They possess very considerable powers of endurance, but are physically
weak, with only slight muscular development and narrow chests. Nevertheless, they stand
intellectually at the head of all the peoples of Mongol stock. In recent years the Japanese have
shown that, in this respect, they can claim to rank with the more advanced European nations,
being highly intelligent, progressive, quick-witted, and brave to a degree of heroism unsur-
passed by any other people. " The sense of personal honour, so feebly developed among other
Asiatics, became a passion under the medieval feudal system, and led to astounding acts of

Taken during the Scientific Ex/xdition of 11. M.S. " Challenger" l.i7.;-T',. J'utt/Mi-il by //ur-'/miy/i <(• >«/<, Kilinlnirijli. Govern mint I. 'o/tyrigM.

THE JAPANESE MODE OF CONVEYANCE.

devotion and self-sacrifice, as well as to deeds of incredible ferocity, of almost daily occurrence.
"\Vith much enterprise and originality is combined an imitative faculty surpassing even that
of the Chinese, as shown by the fact that their first steamer with engines complete was
constructed solely from the directions given in a Dutch treatise on the subject. These varied
mental qualities explain the rapidity with which the Japanese — the barriers of exclusion once
broken down — have taken their place in the comity of the Western nations" (Keane). It is
strange that the Koreans, to whom they are so nearly related, should have failed to rise to
the same height of intellectual culture. But by no means are all the Japanese educated,
many of those living away from the towns being in a very low state of culture.

The Japanese commence their authentic history about the same time as that of Ancient
Rome began, namely OCO B.C. The first Emperor, or Mikado, established something like
systematic government in the vicinity of Kioto, not far from the modern port Osaka. For
centuries their histories speak of efforts to subdue the wild intractable aborigines (Hairy Ainu),

148

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

who obstinately clung to their independence, and who, in the second century of our era, were
driven beyond Yokohama, and subsequently to the north island of Yezo, where they still
exist, only nominally subject to tlicir conquerors. These highly interesting aborigines, of
Caucasian origin, will be described further on (sec page 152).

The Japanese of all classes are highly courteous and obliging. Personally brave, and
proud of the great deeds performed by their forefathers, they are altogether a warlike nation,
distinguished beyond others for their contempt of death and by an almost morbid sense of
personal honour. The latter sentiment leads to frequent duelling and to quarrels between
individuals and families, which are maintained with a persistency and pitiless rancour that
remind one of the Corsican vendetta. This dark side of their character is not, however,
apparent to ordinary observers. Their restless activity and good-humour are the traits most
constantly displayed, and are illustrated by the amusements which they pursue with uncommon
zest. The natives seem to be almost frivolous in their freedom from care. But they are always
polite, and this is as true of the sturdy porter who carries your baggage, and the man who
draws you through the streets in the jinriksha, as of the pretty waitress who supplies you
with the universal beverage in the tea-house. Even the beggars — and they are many — excite
interest by their professional buffoonery.

In every Japanese city a large space is set apart for amusements and called the /osJilwunt.
There may always be found performing in the streets troupes of clever acrobats, jugglers,
clowns, and strolling players. The many theatres may be visited for a trifling fee, and in
these establishments the audience remains squatted in family groups for hours. Wrestling
is even more popular than the drama, often exciting enthusiasm as frantic as that which
Spaniards exhibit at a bull-fight. Another very favourite form of amusement is the flying
of kites, and it is no uncommon sight to see quite old people amusing themselves in this
manner. On the whole, the Japanese must be described as a gay, pleasure-seeking people.
They devote the whole evening to some kind of relaxation, which is always preceded

by the cleansing and refreshing
bath.

The rapidity with which the
Japanese adopt European customs is
strikingly illustrated in their dress.
This is more particularly true of
Tokio, Yokohama, and other populous
cities where Europeans reside longest
and in greatest number, though it
applies chiefly to the wealthier and
the more cultivated classes. The real
charm of Japanese life, so different
from that of other lands, is not
to be found in its Europeanisecl
circles, but among the great mass
of the people. It is they who repre-
sent in Japan, as in all countries, the
national character, national virtues,
and national vices, and who cling to
their old customs, their Buddhist
images, their household shrines, their
fervent worship of ancestors, and their
queer, if rather picturesque, style of
dress.

O hi, j/t«». K,,ji,,iii ,(• >••/,;•«. Notwithstanding the intellectually

TWO PAH! DAI-CHTKIIS OF JAPAN. emancipating effect of the revolution

AN KI.A];oi;W KM I A TKJOK1) JAI'ANKSK MAN.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

of IStiS, which abolished feudalism and restored the Mikado to his position of almost divine
power and authority, and notwithstanding the wide adoption of Western notions since the
opening of the country to foreign merchants, missionaries, and tourists at that date, the Japan
of to-day remains decidedly Japanese. The coolies do not wear "'bowler" hats, even though
there is an apparent inclination among the humbler Japs to combine the Englishman's hat
and boots with a Japanese costume.

To the stranger in Japan who may be making his first excursion through the city in a
rattling jinrikxhtt, everything appears quaint, elfish, and pantomime-like. Everything as well
as everybody is small, quaint, and mysterious. Some shade of blue predominates. The
houses are crowned with blue roofs; the little shop-fronts are hung witli blue, and the smiling
little people have more dark blue in their costume than any other colour. A first glance
down one of the queer streets you pass creates only an odd confusion as you look through a,
seemingly endless flutter of flags and swaying of dark-blue tapestry, all made more strange
(thoiigh certainly relieved and it may be beautified) by the Japanese or Chinese lettering
which appears on them. There is no regularity of plan — at least, none which the stranger can
immediately discern. Nothing is exactly like anything else. The shops are all low and light,
with their first storeys open to the street. Above each shop-front a thin strip of roofing slopes-
back to the miniature balcony of the paper-screened second storey. The floors of the tiny
shops are well raised above the level of the street, and they are covered with matting. The
dark-blue blouses of the labouring people are adorned on the back with the same curious-
lettering which appears on the shop draperies. As the letters appear on the back of a
workman's frock — pure white or dark blue — large enough to be easily read at a great distance,
they give to the poor cheap garment an appearance of distinction and value which it is-
not possible to estimate correctly at first. The letters are the wearer's trade-mark — they
make known the name of some guild or company of which he is a member, or by which
he is employed.

Children are everywhere. In the quieter thoroughfares you may see rows and processions-
of girls, carrying funny-looking little Jap babies in hoods on their backs. One cannot be
quite sure whether the carriers are the sisters or the mothers of their burdens, for Japanese
girls marry and become mothers very early.

The women are fond of dress. All who can
afford it have the Ititomo, or under-garment of silk,
which is generally of a bright colour. Over it,
according to the season and the occasion, are worn
two or three and sometimes as many as five or
six flowing robes — called kimono — which fall down
over the feet. These are mainly of silk or crape,
those underneath of a light, the others of a dark
colour, generally blue. All are girdled round the
waist by the obi, 6 or 8 feet long, and a foot wide,
which is generally of satin or some heavy silk
material. The ends of this girdle are tied into a
large square bow behind. The feet are protected by
high clogs of elm-wood or straw sandals, according
to the weather. Tattooing, introduced less than three
hundred years ago, was once very common, but is
now chiefly practised by men of the lower class.
Umbrellas and fans are used by both sexes; but the
men, during the past thirty years, have largely
imitated the European style of dress.

It may be said of the Japanese, with far more
truth than it has been said of the Chinese, that they

AN ELABORATE JAPANESE HEAD-DHESS.

JAPAN

are a nation of artists.
A striking character-
istic of their art is
that they display it
' largely in articles of
practical utility.
There are no more
industrious people on
the earth. Having
no Sabbath, they take
a holiday only when
there is nothing to
do. Their spade in-
dustry turns the
country into a vast
beautifully kept
garden, in which one
might almost look in
vain for a weed. The
Japanese turn every-
thing to useful
account; in their
application of the
commoner and ap-
parently often worth-
less materials artistic
feeling is exercised,
together with thrift
and practical common
sense. '' Viewed in
this light," says Sir
Rutherford Alcock,
" it is not too much to

say that no nation in ancient or modern times has been richer in art motifs and original
types than the Japanese." Art in Japan is not, as in Europe, the grafting of some style upon
another, and the accumulated knowledge of all the various schools since remote antiquity. It
has been a growth unaffected by outside influences, and is self-contained, self-sustaining, and
strictly national. If we compare the decorative art of Japan with that of China, we see how
far the Japanese have left their former masters behind, and how thoroughly they have produced
a school of art peculiarly their own. Mr. Cutler has well said: "If we study the decorative
art of the Japanese, we find the essential elements of beauty in design, fitness for the purpose
which the object is intended to fulfil, good workmanship and constructive soundness, which
give value to the commonest article, and some touch of ornament by a skilful hand,
together creating a true work of art."

Pictorial art as understood in Europe can hardly be said to have any existence in Japan,
whose art is essentially decorative, most of the designs consisting of natural objects treated
in a conventional way. The flowers may not be rigidly correct botanically, and the birds
may not be absolutely without blemish in the eyes of an ornithologist, but they show a
truth to nature which declares that every blade of grass, each leaf and feather depicted, has
been the object of loving and most patient study.

In their methods of ornamentation the Japanese, like the Chinese, treat every object flatly.
It is not a picture that they produce, but a decoration full of extraordinary beauty. The

PROFESSIONAL JAPANESE WRESTLERS.

152

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

Plioto by Mew*. Kitjunti A tiitwo.

A VILLAGE SCENE IN JAPAN.

delicacy of touch is everywhere seen. The
artist specially excels in conveying an idea
of motion in the swift flight of birds and
the gliding movement of fishes, and that is
one of the most difficult triumphs of art.
The Japanese may be styled the Raphaels
of fishes, and insects, and flowers, and bamboo
stems swaying in the wind; but they have
never succeeded in adequately transferring
to canvas "the human form divine"; they
have never, like the early Italian masters,
drawn away men's hearts from earth to
heaven in an ecstasy of adoration. As has
been tersely said by Mr. Alfred East, in a
lecture on the subject, "Japanese art is great
in small things, but small in great things."
No people display greater indifference
to religion and religious teaching than the
Japanese. The accepted religions are two —
a much corrupted form of Buddhism and
Shintoism. The latter belief was professed
by the Japanese long before Buddhism and

Confucianism were introduced from Korea — about the year 552 of our era. It has emerged
from an eclipse which it, suffered when the newer doctrines were taught, its votaries again
number many millions, and it is practically the national religion, if that epithet can be applied
to any of the several doctrines at present freely taught and professed in the country. Shinto
means literally "the way of the gods." Though called a religion, it is really no more
than a system of moral philosophy. Motoori, a high Japanese authority on Shinto, points out
that it does not contain any strictly formulated moral precepts, which are unnecessary, as the
Japanese must act aright if he consults his own heart. He asserts that the whole duty of a
good Japanese consists in obeying implicitly and without question the commands of the Mikado.
According to Shinto doctrine, Japan is the country of the gods, and the Mikado the direct
descendant and representative of the Sun-goddess. It teaches a species of hero-worship, and it
strongly inculcates reverence for the dead. By it, too, spiritual agencies are attributed to the
elements or natural phenomena. The Shinto shrines throughout the country are built in very
simple style, and before each shrine stand one or more torii — archways formed of two upright
posts with a projecting cross-bar laid on their tops, and beneath that a smaller horizontal beam,
the ends of which do not project. The most marked distinction between pure Shinto shrines
and Buddhist temples is the absence from the former of images exposed for the veneration
of the worshipper; but at the same time the Shinto shrine always contains some object in
which the spirit of the deity therein enshrined is supposed to reside. The principal Shinto
shrines are maintained by Government. Buddhism, once everywhere prevalent in Japan, has
been virtually disestablished since 187-4. Since the country was opened to foreigners, various
Christian missions have been established. Their principal seats are Tokio and Yokohama.
Churches have been built, and schools opened for the children. The number of native converts
is constantly but slowly increasing, for the Japanese mind has not yet been thoroughly aroused
from its materialism and the apathy or dislike with which it regards things spiritual.

THE HAIRY AINU.

THE wild hairy aborigines of Japan referred to on page 147 have attracted a good deal of attention.
They have been fully described by Mr. A. II. Savage Landor and other travellers who use the

THE HAIRY AINU

153

pencil as freely as the pen. Although now confined to Yezo, part of Saghalin, and the
southern members of the Kurile Islands, their territory appears to have formerly comprised
a great part, if not the whole, of Japan. In the national traditions there was a time when
they could look out on their watery domain and exclaim, "Gods of the sea, open your divine
eyes. Wherever your eyes turn, there echoes the sound of the Ainu speech." The full-blooded
and half-caste survivors of this remote Asiatic branch of the Caucasian race scarcely number
20,000. They are not Mongolian, as some writers have attempted to prove ; but their low
stature, and the skulls of all shapes (long, round, and intermediate), seem to show that they
have to some extent mingled with the surrounding Mongolian peoples.

The features are not regular in the European sense; yet the faces are often handsome,
with large, slightly curved noses, clear brown or greenish eyes set straight in the head, and
olive-brown or fair complexions. Miss Bird (Mrs. Bishop), in the account of her travels in
" Unbeaten Tracks in Japan," says that the Ainu possess many excellent qualities, and take
advantage of such opportunities as they can find to better themselves. She describes them as
being "about the middle height, broad-chested, broad-shouldered, very strongly built, the arms
and legs short and muscular, the hands and feet large. The bodies of many are covered with
short bristly hair. I have seen two boys," she says, "whose backs are covered with fur as
fine and soft as that of a cat. The foreheads are very high, broad, and prominent, and at
first sight give one the impression of an unusual capacity for intellectual development. The
nose is straight but short, the cheek-bones low, the eyebrows full, forming a straight line
nearly across the face. The eyes are large, tolerably deep-set, and very beautiful, the colour
a rich liquid brown, the expression singularly soft, the skin of an Italian olive tint, and light
enough to show the changes of colour in the cheeks." The people pride themselves above all
things on their hairiness, and their name
in the language of the people signifies
" Hairy Men!"

Probably the first thing that strikes
the visitor to Yezo is the odour of dried
fish which prevails everywhere, and tells of
the principal industry. Other smells abound
too, for the Ainu are a very dirty people.
The huts are small, with hardly any furniture
or bedding. It is easy for the stranger to
gain admission, for the Ainu are a hospitable
race. Having entered, he sees that there
is only one small window, not large enough
to light the interior, and the many smells
are most disagreeable. In the dimness he
will perhaps see an old man, perfectly
naked, with a fine head, long white hair
and beard, sitting on the ground among a
mass of seaweed, which he is disentangling
as fast as he can, arranging it in something
like order. A couple of young men and
a couple of young women, with bright,
intelligent eyes, and high cheek-bones, are
assisting in the work. In their quiet, gentle
way they all bring their hands together, rub
the palms, and, lifting their arms, slowly
stroke their hair. The men stroke the
beard also with the backs of their hands,

... , FkOtO '•</ -V'.s.-ci-s. Kajima .1 sun;,

while the women draw the first finger under A DAUGHTER OP JAPAN.

154-

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

the nose from the left to the right. This is their salutation to the stranger, and, odd as it
is, it is not ungraceful.

Men and women wear large earrings or pieces of red or black cloth, which add to their
picturesqueness, but the women are nearly all disfigured by a long moustache tattooed across
the face from ear to ear. Eough drawings adorn the arms and hands of the women, who on
the whole possess comely features, though they look, notwithstanding the gentleness of their
manner, as if they could be very passionate. A traveller says of a little girl, about ten years
old, whom he saw in one of the seaside villages, that her large eyes, tanned complexion,
white teeth, the tiny bluish-black tattoo on her upper lip, her uncombed long black hair
flying around her, and her red cloth earrings, made her as quaint a study of colour and
vitality as an artist could desire.

A large number of the Ainu have settled in a line of little villages on the banks of the
Saru River, and of these villages Piratori, situated about fifteen miles from the sea, is
the largest. Near the huts in which the people live may he seen a number of tent-like
constructions of bamboo and matting, which are built on the top of posts or piles, and are
raised 6 or 8 feet above the ground. These stilted houses are the store-rooms, and are raised
so high to protect their contents from the ravages of wild animals and the destruction that
would be caused by the floods that frequently cover the land. The chief's house is larger
than the other huts. On state occasions he wears a crown made of shavings and seaweed,
having in front a small bear's head roughly carved iii wood. This he solemnly places on his
head, after which his better-half assists him to put on his imi, or regal garments, and then
hands him a large sword, which also is part of his regalia. The garments are made of strips
of red, white, and blue cloth sewn together. The materials are Japanese, but there is nothing
Japanese in the shape of the garments which have been cut, arranged, and sewn by the Ainu,
and are thoroughly Ainu in fashion, and therefore in ordinary English absolutely indescribable.
Even when royally arrayed the chief's person will be found much in need of an application of
soap and water — a fact which, an enthusiastic artist might say, adds to rather than detracts
from the picturesqueness of his appearance.*

The Ainu have very few public festivals, and none that depend upon the seasons, but it i&
on such occasions that the girls (manokos) may be seen at their best. They nearly all dress

in long yellowish gowns, descending
nearly to the feet, with rough white
and red ornamentations on a patch
of blue cloth on their backs. In a
kind of savage dance called the
lapkara they arrange themselves in
a circle, and sometimes a child or
two children are placed in the centre.
The dance or game consists in hopping
round and round in a ring, while
calling out either the name or making
some sound characteristic of their
usual occupation, and clapping the
hands so as to keep time. The dance
is in some parts somewhat like our
Sir Roger de Coverley, and though
in a barbarous form is hardly less
pretty.

The way in which the Ainu fish
for salmon in the Otsu River is

Pkulu by Jfessrs. Kcijima <£ Suwo.

A JAPANESE DOCTOR AND PATIENT.

* The writer is indebted to Messrs. Kajima & Suwo, of London and Japan, for the valuable photographs of Ainu,
taken by them, which illustrate pages 156-160.

THE HAIRY AINU

155

primitive but interesting, and often exciting. A party of travellers, not far from the river banks,
were attracted by shouts and .cries of excitement on the river. They hurried to the bank
to learn the cause. Two native "dug-outs" were coming swiftly down with the strong current,
parallel with each other and about 7 feet apart. There were three people in each "dug-out" —
a woman with a paddle steering at the prow, another woman crouched in the stern, and a
man standing up in the middle. A coarse net made of young vines, and about 5 feet square,
was fastened to two poles 7 or 8 feet long. The men who stood in the canoes each held a
pole, to the upper end of which the net was attached, and attentively watched the water. The
salmon were coming up the stream from the sea. The small net was plunged into the water
between the canoes, and nearly every time it was raised a large salmon was caught and flung
into one or other of the " dug-outs," where the woman crouching in the stern crushed its head
with a large stone. If a fish escaped, yells of indignation, especially from the women, were
heard. Both men and women were naked, and the dexterity and speed with which they paddled
their canoes down the stream, working .their net at the same time, and seldom missing a fish,
were marvellous.

As the Ainu of to-day is and lives, .so Japanese art and traditions depict him in the dawn
of history. His language, religion, dress, and manner of life are the same as of old. He has
no alphabet, no writing, and no numbers above a thousand. In character and morals he is
still stupid, good-natured, brave, peaceable, and gentle, but apparently destined soon to be
numbered among the extinct races. His religious notions are of the vaguest possible kind,
his gods being merely wooden sticks and .posts so whittled as to let the shavings fall down
in curls. But the chief divinity seems to be the bear, which is eaten as well as worshipped.
A young bear, captured in the early spring, and confined in a cage, is kept in the chief's
house, where it is suckled by an Ainu -woman, and played with by the children till it becomes

A WAYSIDE RESTING-PLACE IN JAPAN.

i56

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

strong and dangerous; then the great Boar Feast is celebrated, and the sacred animal is
immolated and eaten by its worshippers.

KOREA.

THE people of the Peninsula of Korea, numbering about 8,000,000, are mainly of Mongolian
stock, but there may be present also a Caucasian element. Their hair is black, but one often
meets with faces that look almost English. Women are not much esteemed among the
Koreans, but they enjoy a considerable amount of freedom, and it is only among the upper
classes that they are kept in seclusion. Strong affection for their children is one of the better

Pli.olo bij jj/e«.\r&. A'ajintu tfe tfuwo.

TWO AINU MEN IN DUG-OUT CANOE.

characteristics of these people. Filial piety is held in the highest estimation, and the conduct
of a son to his father is guided by a great number of rules. If he meets him on the way,
he must bow down to him with the humblest obeisance. If he writes to him, he must
employ the most respectful forms in the language. If the father is sick, his son must attend
him; if the father is in prison, the sou must be somewhere close at hand. If the father is
exiled, the son must accompany him on his journey. On the death of his father the eldest
sou becomes the head of the family, responsible for all the duties of a father towards his
brothers and sisters, who receive no assigned share in the patrimony. The houses in Korea are
of one storey only, flimsily built of wood, clay, and rice-straw, usually covered with thatch, and
very badly provided with windows. The dwellings of the commoner people are only about
10 or 12 feet square, with bare earth for floor, covered in a few instances with mats of poor

AINU MAN AND WIFE.
157

i58

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

quality. There are no beds and no
chairs. The national hat is composed
of a framework of bamboo, covered
with an open kind of hair-cloth. It
affords no protection from rain, cold,
or sun, and is altogether very incon-
venient. The shoes or sandals are
of straw.

FORMOSA.

ONE of the chief advantages gained
by Japan in her war with China was
the accession of the Island of Formosa.
The settled Chinese and mixed popu-
lation is estimated at from 2,500,000
to 3,000,000, but it is impossible to
form any correct estimate of the
number of the savage tribes of the
centre and mountainous eastern dis-
tricts. Wild Malay tribes inhabit the
eastern side of the island. The
aborigines are divided into a great
number of tribes, each of which is
governed by. a headman or chief.
Their language also is split up into
a great number of dialects very
different from each other. These
tribes exhibit great differences in
feature, complexion, and customs.
They wear large ear-ornaments of
bamboo, or of the bone of a cuttle-
fish. Circular pieces of this substance
are worn by the men in the centre
of the forehead, where they are held in place by a band of hemp-cloth tied round the head.

In many tribes the women are more interesting than the men, for the girls and young
married women often possess inherent good qualities not to be found in their brothers or
husbands, and notwithstanding their wild surroundings they are well conducted, hard and
willing workers, and good wives. A curious custom among them is that of extracting the
eye-teeth of young girls, which gives them a lisp and certainly does not add to the attractive-
ness of their appearance. On the east coast the men do the same, but the inland tribes have
no such custom. Girls are tattooed on the face before marriage, the tattoo marks and lines
being so drawn as to produce the effect of a dark blue veil stretched tightly from ear to ear
over the mouth; the men also are tattooed on the face. Over the doorway of a house are
often suspended as trophies the skulls of wild boars, deer, and apes. It is recorded of an
unusually vain-glorious savage that he made display of a tuft consisting of six pig-tails of
human hair, which his own hand had cut from the heads of as many Chinamen. Notwith-
standing their barbarity, however, the people are capable of improvement, and it is said that
Christianity is here making some progress.

THE LIU-KIU (OR LOO-CHOO) ISLANDS.

THE natives of the Liu-kiu Isles betray their Japanese origin in both their speech and physical
appearance, but there is also an unmistakable Chinese strain. Possessing all the courtesy

PTioto by Messrs. Kajimu & Sawo.

THREE AINU WOMEN.

riioto liij .Wrtsrx. Knjinui A- XHII-H.

THREE AINU MEN.
159

i6o

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

and geniality of their Japanese kindred, they appear even to excel the Chinese in their
veneration for those who have departed this life. Mr. Basil H. Chamberlain (Journal of the
Anthropological Institute, 1894) says: "It were scarcely too much to say that, if the living
dwell in hovels, the dead dwell in palaces, so imposing are the vaults, of which each family,
even the very poorest, possess one. The roofs of these burial-vaults may be seen from a
considerable distance at sea, on account of the dazzling white plaster that distinguishes them
from the surrounding vegetation. On the occasion of a death, the corpse is conveyed to the
family vault in solemn procession, a Buddhist priest leading the way, hired mourners following

with bitter wails, and the kinsmen of the
dead bringing up the rear. The religious
rites duly concluded, the body is left shut
up for two years. Then the family again
assemble for the purpose of washing the
bones and depositing them in their final
resting-place, an earthenware urn, which is
lifted on to one of the numerous shelves
that run round the vault. The name of
the dead and the date are inscribed in
Chinese characters on the urn in a space
left for that purpose." A Liu-kiu man,
when hard pressed for cash, pawns his family
vault; for every one knows that money ad-
vanced on that security must be paid back.

The usual every-day costume resembles
that of the Japanese, both men and women
wearing a simple loose robe. The men of
these islands, unlike the Japanese, wear
two large hair-pins of gold, silver, or
pewter, according to the wearer's rank. The
hair being tied in a knot on the top of
the head, the pins are stuck through this.
Young men of all classes shave clean up
to the age of twenty-five; after that age
beards and moustaches are allowed to grow.

The gait of the people is dignified, the expression of their faces usually serious, often
almost sad, but singularly sweet in the venerable old men. Their voices are soft and
low. All the women tattoo their hands; those of the lower classes roll their hair round
in a twist on the top of the head, where it is fastened with hair-pins. The native
courtesans differ greatly in their ways from those of the mainland of Japan, being very
frank and straightforward. It is said that every Japanese trader arriving in these islands
engages one of these women, to whom he entrusts everything, even to the management of
his mercantile affairs. When he departs, the girl sells to the best advantage those articles
which he confided to her charge. So that when her master comes back again, she is able
to render him a satisfactory account, in which there is never any error or prevarication,
even to the amount of a single penny.

According to Mr. Chamberlain, Buddhism, as a religion and a rule of life in these islands,
is practically extinct, for Confucianism has taken its place. He speaks of the natives in terms
of the highest praise, and says that their system of farming would put European agriculturists
to shame. Schools flourish here, but of course the women are not educated. The roads are said
to be bad, being (except in the towns) mere tracks impassable for wheeled conveyances, and
the streams uncrossed by bridges.

io by Metal's. K^iina ct Srt/cu.

AINU CHILDREN.

TIBET

161

TIBET.

THE Tibetans occupy an extensive table-land in the heart of Asia, ranging from 12,0<>0 to
17,000 feet above the level of the sea. The country is bounded on the north by the Kuen
Lun range of mountains, and on the south and south-west by the Himalayas, and is the loftiest
table-land on the face of the globe. Its area exceeds 700,000 square miles, of which a great
part is uninhabited by human beings, while a considerable portion is too mountainous and
sterile to be cultivated, and is traversed only by wandering tribes of nomads. The centres
of the settled and agricultural population lie to the south in a region named Bod-yul
by the inhabitants, and known as Bhot by the
Hindus, their immediate neighbours south of the
Himalayas.

The whole population of Tibet is estimated
at about 8,000,000, half of whom belong to
tribes governed by their own chiefs, and prac-
tically independent of or owning but a nominal
allegiance to the central authority. The people
who are under the rule of the supreme govern-
ment of Lassa occupy the southern provinces,
the valley of the Sanpo, or Upper Brahmaputra
River, in which the capital is situated. This
is the most fertile and thickly peopled portion of
the country, the true Bod-yul — that is, land of the
Tibetan race.

Several origins have been assigned to the
name Tibet, but we need note only that which
is given in ancient Chinese records. It is there
said that the king of the country is called dibit,
and is descended from an ancient race of the
Langut Tartars. In A.D 433 the historical founder
of a state in the east of Tibet gave to his
dominions his own name of Tiibat. This was a
famous family name borne by several Tartar
dynasties, and belonged to the Sien-pi race, in
whose language Tubat means "a coverlet."

There can be no doubt that the Tibetans
are a Mongol race, even though marked differences
of physical type in certain localities plainly show
that other branches of the human tree have
been grafted on the Mongol stock. The people
generally may be characterised as slender of limb,
above the average height, and strong; their eyes
are black and slightly oblique; they have large
mouths, brown hair, no beards, clear ruddy-
brownish complexions, and an intelligent ex-
pression. They have good natural gifts, are mild in temper, Kindly, ana regard their pledged
word. They are fond of music, dancing, and singing, but are entirely lacking in enterprise,
and are thoroughly imbued with superstition. Being a very social people, nearly all the
notable events in life are made occasions for friendly meetings, feasting, and enjoyment. The
Tibetans are far less industrious and skilful than the Chinese, to whom they have been
tributary and nominally subject for about 180 years. Those of their industries, that can.be
described as national, because most generally practised, are few. They have some skill in

Phtilobg Sir Waiter C. //Win; K.<:.\l.i,
A KOREAN COOLIE.

162

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

metal-working, but their statues and small bells are no more 'than creditable copies of Indian
models. They use iron of good quality from their own mines for making excellent blades for
sabres and other weapons. Although fond of precious stones, they do not know how to work
them. Their chief industries are connected with wool, which, on account of the favourable

Photo by Air natter V. Wilier, K.C.MM.

KOREAN SECRETARIES OF STATE.

climate, is their staple produce. Weaving is generally the work of women. Although they
do not excel as manufacturers, the Tibetans are born traders. Officers for the siiperintendence
and regulation of trade are appointed by the king, the ministers, and the great lamaiserais
(a kind of monastery). The two great market centres are Shigatze and Lassa, the capital,
where the caravans arrive in astonishing numbers all through December and January. Yaks
and sheep are used for transport.

A European traveller, describing a party of Tibetan tent-dwellers, says that, while the
men wore a variety of coats and hats, certain leading characteristics of dress were common to
all. One man wore a gaudy coat trimmed with leopard-skin; another had a long grey woollen
robe like a dressing-gown, taken up at the waist by a belt; and a third was clad in a loose
garb of sheep-skin with the wool inside. Yet another was arrayed in a deep red tunic,
fastened by a belt of leather, with silver ornamentations inlaid in wrought iron, the belt
holding a needle-case, tinder-pouch and steel, a pretty dagger with sheath of ebony, and other
articles. Most Tibetan men wear a sword in the front of their belts, and whether the coat
is long or short it is invariably loose, and made to bulge at the waist, where the wearer
generally carries two or three eating and drinking utensils, a snuff-box, such bags of money
as lie may possess, and one or two bricks of compressed tea. It is owing to this custom that
Tibetan men at first sight look stout, although as a matter of fact they are really very thin.
"When standing or walking, they leave one arm and part of the chest bare, letting the sleeve
hang loose. The reason for this is that the days are very hot and the nights cold; and as
Tibetans always sleep in their clothes, the garments that protect their bodies from frost during
the night are too warm in the day, and therefore this expedient is adopted. When sitting

164.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

down, both arms are drawn from the
sleeves, and the chest and back are left
bare. When on foot, one arm is slipped
in to prevent the coat and its heavy
contents from falling off.

The Tibetans have innumerable
varieties of head-gear, although many
men go about uncovered. Conical brown
and grey felt hats, not unlike filters, are
common, as also are cloth or fur caps
with ear-flaps. The ground of the head-
dress in our illustration on this page is
of cloth of a claret colour, with rough
turquoises sewn on, and silver ornaments
on the buckles in front. The appendages
at the side of the head are made of the
hair of some animal, and fastened on to
the natural hair. The mantle is lined
with sheep-skin, aud has an outer covering
of cloth, half red and half dark green.
The woman on the left wears an em-
broidered mantle-cloth.

There are two religions in Tibet —
Buddhism, in the form of Lamaism, and
an earlier creed, generally called the Bon
or Bonba religion, of which not much
is known.

Lassa, the capital of Tibet, is the
sacred city of the Buddhists, and the
centre of Lamaism, the religion which
prevails throughout that country and
Mongolia. The name of the city signifies
"Seat of the gods." The fundamental
doctrines of Lamaism are those taught
by Buddha about 450 years before the
beginning of our era; but so much has
been added to the original articles of
belief in the course of centuries, that Lamaism is really Buddhism corrupted by belief in
Siva and other spirits whose existence Bnddha did not acknowledge, while Lamaists worship
them as gods. The central point of pure Buddhism is that deliverance on the part of
man from all the evils and sorrows of life can be achieved here on earth by the practice of
self-control, self-denial, and constant intellectual self-culture. The essence of all that is sacred
in Lamaism is comprised under three heads, which they call the "three most precious
jewels." The first is the " Buddha jewel"; the second, the "doctrine jewel"; and the third,
the "priesthood jewel." The first person in this trinity, the Buddha, is not regarded as
the creator of the universe, but as the founder of the doctrine, the highest saint, though
endowed with all the qualities of supreme wisdom, power, virtue, and beauty. The second
jewel is the law, or religion, that which constitutes, as it were, the existence of Buddha
on earth after he had entered the Nirvana, or state of everlasting rest. The third jewel,
the priesthood, is the congregation of all the saints, those who are in the flesh, and those

* The writer is greatly indebted to Mr. H. C. V. Hunter, F.R.G.S., for the excellent photographs of Tibetans here
reproduced, which were taken by himself when travelling in Tibet.

Photo by Mr. 11. V. V. Jlnntti; F./t.V.x.

WOMEN AND GIRL OF LADAK.*

TIBET

165

who arc disembodied spirits. The latter comprise the five Buddhas of contemplation, and all
those myriads of pious men who became canonized after death. Inferior iu rank to these
saints are the gods and spirits, such as Iiidra, the god of the firmament; I'ama, the god of
death and the infernal regions; Siva, the god of vengeance — the avenger in his most terrible
shape; and Vaisrarana, the god of wealth. Lamaism, like Buddhism, forbids injury to life,
and does not allow the burial of the dead as practised by us. Persons distinguished by rank,
learning, or piety are burned after their death; but the general way for disposing of dead
bodies is to expose them in the open air to be devoured by birds and beasts of prey.

One of the most interesting features of Lamaism is the organisation of its hierarchy, or
priesthood. It may be said there are two heads of the national religion in Tibet. This
anomalous feature resulted from the action of a reformer, one Tsongkapa, who has been styled
"the Luther of Tibet," though his attack on the corruptions in Lamaism was effected two
hundred years before the Protestant Reformation. He died in Lassa in 1419, and there were
then in that city three huge monasteries containing 30,000 of his disciples, besides many
more in other parts of the country. In doctrine this great Tibetan teacher adhered to the
purer forms of the Buddhist school. He took very little part in church government, and did
not question the right of the Sukya Lamas to supremacy in title, though in other matters
he raised and resolutely maintained the standard of revolt till his ends were attained. So
completely did the new sect outnumber and overshadow the old, that the Emperor of China
in the middle of the fifteenth century acknowledged the two leaders of the reformed religionists
as titular overlords of the Church and tributary rulers of the realm of Tibet. These two
rulers were then known as the Dalai Lama and the Pantshen Lama, and were the abbots
of the great monasteries at Gedun Dubpa, near Lassa, and at Krashis Lunpo, in Further
Tibet, respectively. Since that time the abbots of these monasteries have continued to
exercise sovereignty over the country.

The reincarnation of a Lama's spirit is naturally regarded as an event of greater consequence

Mr. if. ('. I'. //«/./•/. P.R.O.&

BUDDHIST PRIESTS AT LEH, WITH COPPER TRUMPETS, DRUMS, AND CYMBALS.

i66

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

TIBETAN DANCERS.

\_Caictiaa.

than the restoration to flesh of an ordinary layman's soul. To ascertain when that takes place,
several means are resorted to. Sometimes the deceased had, before his death, confidentially
mentioned to his friends where and in which family he would reappear, or possibly his will
contained an intimation with the same purport. In most cases, however, the sacred books and
the official astrologers are consulted, and they, by virtue of an extraordinary wisdom amounting
to inspiration, after many ceremonies and long periods of contemplation, give all who are
interested the information they seek. It can be easily imagined that extraordinary and
startling consequences may result from the introduction of the same soul as the vivifying
principle in members of different and probably hostile families.

What must be regarded as the Lamaist clergy consists of four orders; and the lowest
of these, having no claim to holiness on the grounds of good works done by predecessors,
recruits its ranks on the principles of personal merit and theological proficiency. It has four
grades. Every member must make the vow of celibacy, and by far the greater number of
them live in convents. A Lamaist convent, or lamaiserai, consists of a temple, which forms its
centre, and of a number of buildings connected with the temple, appropriated as the meeting-
rooms, library, refectory, dwellings, and for other worldly and spiritual wants of the monks.
Lamaism has likewise its nuns and nunneries. The Lamaist Sacred Books bear the name
of the Kandjur, and consist of 1,083 distinct works, which, in some editions, fill from
102 to 108 volumes, folio. The political authority of the Dalai Lama is confined to Tibet,
but he is the acknowledged head of the Buddhist Church also throughout Mongolia and China.

The Bonba are sometimes called the " Sect of the Black," to distinguish them from the
" Red " or " Yellow " Lamaists, these appellations arising from the colour of the garments
worn by the members of the respective sects. The Bonba have eighteen principal gods and
goddesses, of whom the most popular and the one universally worshipped is the " Tiger-god
of Glowing Fire." Those Bonba who, when travelling, camp in black tents are presumably
very orthodox, and perhaps divide their worship among a dozen at least of their divinities.

P/MtU It'J .1/tW.-. ./I.///I.MI/I it U<lffllM[t\

TWO LAMAS OF XUD.

inr

(Calcutta.

i68

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

Photo by Messrs. Bourne & Shepherd]

TIBETAN WOMEN.

[Bombay.

As Mr. Andrew Wilson says, the Tibetans are "the most pre-eminently praying people in
the world. . . . They have praying-stones, praying-pyramids, praying-flags flying over every house,
praying-wheels, praying-mills, and the universal prayer '(Jm mane padme hum'* is never out
of their mouths." These four words, as Colonel Yule remarks, among all prayers on earth, form
that which is most abundantly recited, written, printed, and even spun by machines for the
good of the faithful. "They are the only prayer known to the ordinary Tibetans and Mongols—
the first words the child learns to stammer, the last gasping utterances of the dying."

Colonel T. G. Montgomerie, R.E., thus describes the " prayer- wheel" of Tibet, which, he
says, "consists of a hollow, cylindrical copper bag, which revolves round a spindle, one end of
which forms the handle. The cylinder is turned by means of a piece of copper attached to a
string. A slight twist of the hand makes the cylinder revolve, and each revolution represents
one repetition of the prayer, which is written on a scroll kept under the cylinder [sometimes it
is engraved outside]. The prayer-wheels are of all sizes, from that of a large barrel downwards;
but those carried in the hand are generally 4 or 6 inches in height by about 3 inches in
diameter, with a handle projecting about 4 inches below the bottom of the cylinder. . . .
The top of the cylinder was made large enough to allow the paper to be taken out when
required. The rosary, which ought to have 108 beads, was made of 100 beads, every tenth
bead being much larger than the others [this refers to the one used by a certain pundit].
The small beads were made of a red composition to imitate coral, the large ones of the dark
corrugated seeds, of the ridrds. The rosary was carried on the left sleeve."

* The meaning of this sentence seems to have been lost; but some say it may be translated "God the jewel in
the lotus."

CHAPTER VIII.

THE ANDAMAN ISLANDS.— THE YEDDAS OF CEYLON.— THE ABORIGINAL
RACES OF INDIA: CENSUS RETURNS OF POPULATION: CLASSIFICATION
OF RACES: THE ARYAN INVASION: CASTE: KOLS, GONDS, TOD AS,
KHONDS, ETC.

THE people of the
smaller and lower
group of islands,
known as Little An-
daman, have always
shown so much hos-
tility to strangers that
our knowledge of them
is extremely slight.
Concerning those from
the Great Andaman
Islands, it may be
said that we possess a
fairly complete know-
ledge, thanks chiefly
to the work of Mr. E.
H. Man and the late
Mr. Q. K. Dobson, to
whom we are indebted
for the following brief
description. The
average height of the
men is 4 feet lOf
inches (very few ex-
ceed 5 feet in height),
and that of the
women 4 feet 7£
inches, while the
average weight of the
former is 98 J Ibs.,
which is about half the
average weight of an
Knglishman. Mr. E.
II. Man. their English
protector and friend,
who has for many
years been in charge

THE ANDAMAN ISLANDS.

I'll, it, u 1,11 Hull]

ri'l'KK' SI\i;U.KSK, CKVLUV

(LOWER) NAT-IVK AGRICULTURE, CEYLON
169

\Phila

22

iyo

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

fhotoa by \Vm. Rau]

NATIVE GIRL. CEYLON.

KANWAN LADY, CEYLON.

of these people, says that
they are well developed.

The peculiar goat-like
exhalations of the Negro
are absent, but the odour
of their presence is chiefly
due to the unguent they
use, which is composed of
red oxide of iron, being
mixed with the fat of either
the turtle or the pig. The
general excellence of the
teeth is remarkable. Their
hair is extremely frizzly,
growing apparently in spiral
tufts; its colour is usually
quite black, turning grey
at about the fortieth year.
Their clothing is of the
scantiest description, and
what little they have serves
chiefly for ornamental pur-
poses.

They live in small encampments and in dwellings rudely constructed of branches and
leaves of trees. They have absolutely no agriculture, and keep no poultry or domestic animals.
With dug-out canoes and outriggers they navigate the numerous creeks of the islands. They
are expert swimmers and divers. Though constantly using fire, they are quite ignorant of
the art of producing it, and therefore take great care to keep up a constant supply of
burning or smouldering wood. Being entirely ignorant of metals, they use shells for many
domestic purposes, especially a species of Gyrene, found abundantly, also chips of quartz and
bamboo for knives. This wood, being very hard, produces good cutting edges, which they
even use for shaving. Anvils and hammers are of stone (as with our ancestors of the Stone
Age). Baskets, fishing-nets, and sleeping-mats are made of vegetable fibres. With the bow
and arrow they are very skilful; and, as seen in our illustrations on pages 171 and 172, they
shoot fish with arrows. The islands yield them an abundant supply of food. They feed chiefly
on pigs, dugongs, porpoises, iguana lizards, turtles and their eggs, and many kinds of fish,
prawns, molluscs, the larvae of beetles, honey, and numerous roots (as yams), fruits, and seeds.
Food is invariably cooked, and before the advent of Europeans they drank only water and
had never seen tobacco; now they are very fond of the fragrant weed.

The social life of these Negritos is enveloped in a perfect maze of unwritten law or
custom, the intricacies of which it is difficult for strangers to unravel. The relations they
may or may not marry, the food they are obliged or forbidden to take at particular epochs of
life or seasons of the year, the words and names they may or may not pronounce, their games,
amusements, traditions, and superstitions — all these and other matters have been carefully
observed by Mr. Man.

With regard to the character of these people, the reader will perhaps be surprised to learn
that they treat their women with great consideration. Self-respect and modesty characterise
their intercourse with one another. From early youth the young people are instructed in the
duties of hospitality, while the aged, the suffering, and the helpless are objects of special
attention. It has often been observed by travellers that modesty and morality do not depend
upon the amount of clothing considered necessary by so-called savages. The Andamanese
present a case in point; for in spite of their scanty clothing the self-respect and the modesty

THE ANDAMAN ISLANDS

171

which characterise their intercourse one with another have been remarked by all observers.
The curious and by no means uncommon custom of adoption prevails among these people.

Strangers introduced by mutual friends are invariably warmly welcomed by the whole
community; the best food in the encampment is set before them, and in every way they
are well treated, presents being frequently given to them, especially when about to depart.
" Speeding the guest " is an axiom with these people, and the host always accompanies his
friend to the landing-place. When bidding each other farewell, the guest takes the hand of
his host and blows upon it. When the compliment has been returned, the departing visitor
says, "I am off," to which his kind host replies, "Very well, go ; when will you come again?"
After blowing once more on each other's hands, the two friends part, shouting invitations and
promises for a future date.

Contrary to the customs of most races, no salutations pass between friends even after a

Phuto liy .!/<*•/ x. /'. Kltlr cfc CO.]

ANDAMANESE SHOOTING FISH.

[Rangoon.

rather long separation. Kissing, rubbing noses, hand-shaking, etc., are quite unknown. The
two friends merely gaze silently into each other's faces. But with relations the case is rather
different. Two relations after a long separation demonstrate their joy at meeting by sitting
with their arms round each other's necks and weeping and howling in a manner which would
lead a stranger to suppose that some bitter sorrow had befallen them. In fact, there seems to
be no difference at all between demonstrations of joy and of grief. When any one dies, the
women begin to cry in loud chorus, but the men speedily join in. Then they all weep
together, until, through sheer exhaustion, they are compelled to desist. Then if neither of
the parties is in mourning, they get up a dance, in which the families not infrequently take
part. When a husband returns to his home, his wife hangs upon his neck and sobs with joy
as if her heart would break. lie then goes to his relations, who also burst into tears.

The early stories of cannibalism among these people do not at the present day require to
be refuted. The natives express the greatest horror of such a custom, and indignantly deny
that it ever held a place among their own institutions.

Marriage is only allowed between those who are known to be not even distantly connected.
So inexorable is this rule that it applies equally to such as are merely falsely related by the
custom of adoption above referred to. A first cousin, even if only a cousin by adoption, is

172

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

regarded as a half-brother or a half-sister, as the case may be, and nephews and nieces are
looked upon almost as sous and daughters. Notwithstanding the lack of female chastity before
marriage, the girls are always modest and childlike in their behaviour, and when married
they make good wives and become models of constancy. The statement made by some
writers that communal marriage here exists is without foundation. As they have no idea of
invoking the aid or the blessing of a Supreme Being, nothing of a religious character
attaches to the marriage ceremony. It often happens that a young couple will pass several
days after their nuptials without exchanging one single word, and to such an extent do they
carry their bashfulness that they even avoid looking at each other. In fact, their behaviour
would lead a stranger to suppose that some serious quarrel had arisen.

THE VEDDAS OF CEYLON.

THE aboriginal inhabitants of. Ceylon are the Veddas,* who until a comparatively recent period
ranged over a much more extended area. They may be regarded as a remnant of the Yakkos,
who, after the conquest of the island, retired before the invaders into the wilder parts,
withdrawing themselves deeper and deeper into the jungle, so as to avoid contact with the
conquering race. For upwards of 2,000 years this remarkable fragment of an ancient race
has remained almost unaltered as regards its customs, language, and pursuits, and therefore
exhibits to the present day a living portrait of the condition of the islanders as described by
the native chroniclers before the conquerors had taught the people even the rudiments of
agriculture.

All Veddas present the same characteristics of wretchedness and dejection — namely,

* All except one of our illustrations of Veddas are from photographs kindly sent by Dr. Paul and Dr. Fritz
Sarasin, of Basle, whose valuable German monograph on the subject is adorned by very many of their photographs.
One is by the Apothecaries' Company of Colombo.

I'koio bij JJess>-s. liuanie &, H

A GROUP OF ANDAMANESE. METHOD OF SHOOTING TURTLE.

THE VEDDAS OF CEYLON

173

projecting jaws, prominent teeth,
flat noses, small stature, and every
evidence of the effects of in-
sufficient diet. The children are
unsightly objects, entirely naked,
with ill-shaped limbs, huge heads,
and prominent stomachs; the
women, as the reader will see from
our illustrations on pages 173-7,
are, to say the least, not pleasing
specimens of humanity. Some of
the men and women present a
type apparently somewhat similar
to that of the native Australian.

Those who live in the forests
subsist chiefly on roots, fish, honey,
iguana lizards, and the products
of the chase, such as the Wandura
monkey, the deer, and the wild
boar. In their choice of food they
are omnivorous, no carrion or even
vermin being too repulsive to suit
their appetite; but grain and
fruits, when procurable, are used.
Being skilful archers, they bring
down with their long arrows such
prey as bats, crows, owls, and
kites, but for some curious reason
they will not touch the bear, the
elephant, or the buffalo. The
flesh of deer and other animals
they dry in the sun and store it
away in hollow trees for use on
some future occasion. Their food
is always cooked.

Veddas may be divided, according to Sir James Tennent, into three groups: first, the
" Hock Veddas,'' who till lately dwelt almost entirely within the Bintenne forests, and lodged
in caves or under the shelter of overhanging rocks, sometimes sleeping in trees, in which a
kind of stage or platform has been constructed; secondly, the "Village Veddas," on the eastern
coast, where they cultivate some kinds of grain, and even dwell in rude huts of mud and bark.
These Village Veddas are but slightly removed from the wild tribes of the jungle, with whom
they have no dealings. Their position is somewhat intermediate between the more or less
civilised people of Kandi and the Veddas of the rock. Probably they have to some extent
intermarried with the people of Kandi. The only garment they wear is a bit of cloth larger
than that worn by the forest tribes. Some, as the reader will see from the illustrations on
pages 173-7, simply make a substitute for cloth out of leaves. The women ornament themselves
with necklaces of 'brass beads and bangles cut out of shells.

The third division, or "Coast Veddas," numbering about 300, have settled down in the
jungles, and eke out a living by helping the fishermen in their operations, or by felling timber
for the Moors, to be floated down the rivers to the sea. By the assistance of the Government
their condition has been materially improved. In the year 1844 they came in, expressing the
utmost reluctance to abandon the seashore and the water, but nevertheless gladly accepting

Photo In/ Underwood & Underwood, -V. Y

A BICE FIELD, CEYLON.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

patches of land which were cleared for them in
the forest near the beach. Cottages were built,
fruit-trees were planted, and seed was supplied.
Education has here made some progress, and as
the result of missionary enterprise the majority
of them have embraced Christianity.

The principal weapon of the Veddas is a big
bow 6 feet long, the strings of which they prepare
from the tough bark of the upas-tree. They
occasionally use their feet as well as their hands
in manipulating the bow; but it cannot be said
that their skill in archery is great, for they appear
to bring down game rather through luck than by
any adroitness.

Formerly the country was regarded by Euro-
peans with some apprehension. This was due to
absurdly exaggerated misrepresentations on the
part of the people of Kaudi, who attributed to
them a savage disposition, so that none but armed
parties ventured to pass through their fastnesses.
Of late years, however, this delusion has been
entirely dispelled, and travellers now feel them-
selves as safe in the neighbourhood of these people
as in the villages of the Singhalese. They are
constantly visited by traders in search of deer's
horns and ivory, also supplies of dried deer's flesh
and of honey. The Veddas have to a large extent
lost their former shyness and timidity, so that
now they not only come with confidence into the
open country, but even venture into the towns
for such commodities as they can purchase with
their slender means. Mr. Atherton, formerly
Assistant Government Agent, spoke in favourable
terms of the gentleness of their disposition.
Notwithstanding an apparently almost complete
indifference to morals, grave crimes, he said, were
rarely committed. In cases of theft the delin-
quent, if detected, must make restitution. Thus,

if a girl be carried off from her parents, she is claimed and brought home. The husband
of a faithless wife is content to receive her back, while his family punish the seducer by
flogging him. Murder is almost unknown. In a general way these people may be described
as gentle and affectionate one to another. They are strongly attached to both their children
and their relatives. Widows are invariably supported by the local community, receiving their
share of fruits or grain and the products of the chase. Altogether they appear to be a quiet
and submissive race, obeying the slightest expression of a wish, and being very grateful for any
assistance or attention. They consider themselves superior to their neighbours, and are unwilling
to exchange their wild forest life for any other. Their intellectual capacity is very low; they
cannot count, even on their fingers, and their memory is most defective. They never wash,
thinking it would weaken them! and they never laugh! With regard to their moral character,
it is only fair to add that another writer, Mr. B. F. Hartshorne, who contributes an interesting
paper on these people to Tfie Fortnightly' Review for 1876 (New Series, Vol. XIX., page 406),
says that they think it perfectly inconceivable that any person should ever take that which

Pliato by Doctors Paul aiul Fritz Hurasin, JJasle.
A VEDDA MAN, WITH LEAF GIRDLE.

Photo by the Colombo AiMhecariee' t'o.]

L teytvn.

TWO VEDDAS, WITH BOWS.
175

i76

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

does not belong to him, strike his fellow, or
say anything that is untrue.

The language of the Veddas, which is
extremely limited, is said to be a dialect of
the Singhalese.

They appear to have no marriage
ceremonies, although acknowledging the duty
of supporting their families. Marriages
amongst them are settled by the parents of
the young people. The bride's father presents
his son-in-law with a bow, while his own
father bestows upon him the right of chase
in any portion of his hunting-ground. The
youth presents the lady of his choice with
a cloth and a few simple ornaments, where-
upon she straightway follows him into the
forest, where they become man and wife.
They are not polygarnists, probably because
the man's slender means will not allow of
supporting more than one wife. Marriage
wi.a sisters is allowed, but never with the
eldest sister; and they are generally re-
markable for constancy and affection.

These people live in such a primitive
state that what we should call a funeral is
quite unknown. Instead of burying their
dead they simply cover them with leaves
and brushwood from the jungle.
The Yeddas have no knowledge of a God, not even of a future state, no temples, no
idols, and no altars. They have nothing which one can call an act of worship, unless it be
certain ceremonies, by means of which they hope to drive away the evil spirits which they
believe to be the cause of death and disease.

Photo by Doctors 1'aid and Fiilz £>//",-,/-. l!u*
A VEDDA MAN (PROFILE).

INDIA.*

IN describing the "Hindu type" Dr. Topiuard, in his well-known "Anthropology," divides the
population of the Indian Peninsula into three strata — viz. the Black, the Mongolian, and
the Aryan. "The remnants of the first," he says, "are at the present time shut up in the
mountains of Central India under the name of Bhils, Mahairs, Gonds, and Khouds; and in
the South under the name of Yenadis, Maravers, Kurumbas, Veddas, etc. Its primitive
characters, apart from its black colour and low stature, are difficult to discover, but it is to
be noticed that travellers do not speak of woolly hair in India. The second has spread over
the plateaux of Central India by two lines of way, one to the north-east, the other to the
north-west. The remnants of the first invasion are seen in the Dravidian or Tamil tribes, and
those of the second in the Jats. The third, more recent, and more important as to quality
than as to number, was the Aryan." The same authority, in harmony with the late Mr. Huxley,
considered the Australians to be also Dravidian, and therefore allied to the ancient inhabitants

* For permission to reproduce the photographs illustrating India, Afghanistan, and Baluchistan, the writer is
much indebted to Messrs. Bourne & Shepherd; Herr Karl Hagenbeck, of Hamburg; Messrs. Watts & Skeen, Rangoon;
Messrs. Frith & Sons; Mr. Fred. Bremner, Quetta; to the Under-Secretary of State for India for permission to use
photographs illustrating two books published by the Indian Government, which we quote in the text ; and to Messrs. 3. W.
Gregory & Co., Strand, W.C.

INDIA

177

of the Deccan. The features of the present blacks in India, and the characters which the
Dravidian and Australian languages have in common, tend to assimilate them. The existence
of the boomerang in the two countries helps to support this view. We would ask the reader
to judge for himself whether the remarkable photographs of a Yedda on pages 176-7 do not
show quite a striking resemblance to those of Australians in Chapter III.

The second general census of India, taken in 1891, gave a population of over 287,000,000;
or, including the French and Portuguese settlements, of over 289,000,000. This figure is about
equal to one-fifth of the world's entire population! Since the census of 1881 there has been
an increase of 28,000,000, which nearly ?quals the entire population of England and Wales.
And yet the rate of increase is only about 10 per cent. As abovo stated, the population has
increased under English rule, as might have been expected, but the apprehensions expressed by
newspaper writers at home do not appear to be shared by some experts.

The Kolarians, or Kols (e.g. Santhals. Kurkus, Bhils, etc.). appear tc be the oldest race
in the peninsula, but it is not known whether they were really the true aborigines. They
came first, however, and after them the Dravidians arrived. Both are in an exceedingly low
state of culture. It is perhaps undesirable to separate them in this way, ior anthropologists
now consider the Kols to be Dravidian. They were only separated by the linguists, who are
inclined to attach too much importance 1,0 language. The anthropologist rightly judges by the
physical type — shape of the skull, etc. However, for the sake of convenience, we now give '
a brief abstract of the scheme of classification given by Professor Keane in his "Asia," Vol. II.
in Stanford's " Compendium of Travel and Geography.'' The divisions of the Kolarians and tho
Tibeto-Burmans are chiefly of a tribal character; those of the Dravidians and all the Hindus
are based on languages : —

I. HINDUS (Aryan nii.i-i-il stock), classified
by laiigiKtt/rx. — Kashmiri, 2-J*; Pun-
jabi (Sikh, Jat, etc.), 17£; Sindi, 2;
Gujarati and Kachi, 10£; Marathi and
Konkani, 19; Hindi and Urdu (North-
West Provinces, Rajputana, and Upper
Bengal), K>0; Bengali, 41; Uriya, 9;
Assamese, li; Nepali, 2.
II. DRAVIDIANS (classified by languages). —
Telugu, 20; Tamil, 1C; Kauarese, 9^;
ilalayalim, 5£; Tula, 9$; Kodagu,
about |; Oraon, about f ; Rajmahal,
about jV; Khondi, about \\ Gondi, 1^;
Toda, only about 750 persons; Kota.
about 1,000 persons; (?) Singhalese, If;
(?) Vedda, supposed to number about
3,000 persons.

III. KOLARIANS (classified by tribe*).—

Santhal, 1J; Munda, f; Kharia, Mal-
Paharia, Juang, Gadaba, Korwa, Kurku,
Mehto, Savara, and Bhil, altogether
about 2.

IV. TIBETO-BUP.M A NS (.Voiiyol stock), classi-

fied by tribes. — Ladakhi, Champa,
etc., TV; Garhwali, etc., &(?); Magar,
Sarpa, etc, ^; Lepcha, etc., ^ (?);

Photo by Doctors Paul and Fritz Saimin, Basle.
A VEDDA MAX (FULL-FACE).

•The figures denote millions (approximately). To save space we are obliged to omit the geographical
distributions, but the names themselves iu some cases will give a clue.

i78

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

Photo by Plait <k Co.}

DEVIL-DANCERS, CEYLON.

[Colombo.

Llopa, etc. (of Bhutan), f (?); Miri, etc., 3^ (?); Kachari, £; Siugpo and Kuki, | (?);
Mikir, ^Vi Khasi (of the Khasia Hills), -fa (?); Naga, about \.

V. SUKDRIES (making a total of only about 2,000,000). — Shan, Malay, Negrito (Andaman
Islands), Indo-Arab, "Moormen" (Arab), Baluchi, Afghan (Afridi, Waziri, Ynsafzai, etc.),
Swati, etc., Persian, Parsi, Eurasian (half-caste), and European, about 536,000 persons.

As already stated, the last census, of 1891, gave the total population as over 287,000,000.

Speaking of the Dravidians and Hindus, Mr. Keane says: "All have long been fused
together in one common ethnical, social, and religious system, while still separated one from
another mainly by their different languages, all derived in Europe from the common Latin
stock, in India either from a common Sanskrit or from a common but now extinct Dravidian
mother-tongue." It is hardly necessary after this to point out that India presents a great
diversity of tribes and races. Some are in a high state of culture; others can only be spoken
of as savages. The great bulk of the population can be traced to two main sources — the
Aryan Hindus, chiefly in the northern plains, and the Dravidians in the Deccan.

Thrust back by the Aryans from the plains that once were theirs, the aborigines lie
hidden in the recesses of the mountains, like the fossilised remains found by geologists in
mountain caves — only these "specimens" are not dry bones, but actual living people. Thus
India is a great museum of races, in which we can study man in various stages of culture,
some very low, and in fact interesting survivals from prehistoric times, others more advanced
in the scale of civilisation.

All are fond of music and dancing. Sometimes they form a ring by joining hands, and
advance in step towards the centre, and again retire, while circling round and round. When

INDIA

179

wearied with dancing they sing. A man steps out of the crowd, and sings a verse impromptu*,
a woman there joins him, and the pair chant in alternate strains, for the most part taunting
each other with personal defects. They all seem prone to excessive drinking.

Nearly all the aboriginal hill people have the dark skin, flat nose, and thick lips which so
easily distinguish them from the Aryan race, and they mostly dress in the same way. For
men and women alike a cloth wound round the waist constitutes the chief article of attire.
Necklaces of beads, earrings of brass and iron, brass bracelets, and girdles of twisted cords find
favour in the eyes of young -men and women. They seldom wear any covering on the head,
though the women often add false hair to their own. In one of the religious 'hymns of the
Gonds their god alleges as one cause of his displeasure against the first-created Gouds that
they did not bathe for six months together. It must be confessed that, in this respect, the
hill tribes of to-day do not belie their ancestry; and though they carry their scanty costume
with a certain grace, their dirtiness, and the tattoo-marks on their faces, arms, and thighs, have
a repelling effect. For the most part light-hearted and easy-tempered, when once their shyness
is overcome they prove very communicative. But while naturally frank, and far more truthful
than the Aryan Hindus, they are nevertheless arrant thieves, though their pilfering is generally
managed in the simplest and most maladroit manner.

It may be said generally of the dark aborigines that they possess no written records,
being ignorant of letters, and even of hieroglyphics. The only works of their forefathers are
the rude stone circles, upright standing stones, and the mounds beneath which they were
buried, reminding one of a time when Europe was in an equally primitive stage of culture.
The knives and rough flint instruments found in the Narbada Valley speak of a time yet
more distant.

By IK niiiselon of llerr Karl Hagetibeck.

A GROUP OF TAMIL GIRLS.

i8o

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

The new-comers from the north prided
themselves on their fair complexion. Their
earliest poets, three or perhaps four thousaud
years ago, praised in the Rig-Veda their
gods, who " subjected the black-skin to the
Aryan man," and speak of those who, " slaying
the Dasyus, protected the Aryan colour."
The Aryan with his finely formed features
loathed the ugly and perhaps somewhat
Negroid faces of the aborigines. Vedic hymns
abound in scornful epithets for the primitive
tribes, such as "disturbers of sacrifices,"
"lawless," "without rites," " without gods."
Having been driven back into the forests,
they were painted iu still more hideous
shapes, until they became the "monsters"
and "demons" of the Aryan poets. Their
name "enemy" thus came to mean "devil."
Our friend Mr. William Crooke, a well-
known ethnologist, has formed a different
idea of the so-called Aryan invasion. He
thinks "it was never apparently an invasion
in the common sense of the word, an inroad
of a fully organised nation, overwhelming
and enslaving the indigenous races, such as
was, for instance, that of the Turkish tribes
into Europe. The colonisation of Central
Asia by the Mongol races probably took place
through the Indian Peninsula, and this was
followed by a continuous southward movement
of the Aryans which was only part of that great series of emigrations which went 011 continuously
during prehistoric times. Their incoming may have been gradual and spread over vast eras of
time; it may have taken the shape of successive waves of colonists, never very numerous, and
establishing their superiority more by the influence of their higher culture than by actual brute
force. In some places they may have become real over-lords of the races which they found in
the country; in the other parts the conquered may have absorbed their conquerors. This theory
would in a measure account for some of the most difficult problems in the ethnology of Upper
India." He goes on to point out that the Aryans did not, as has previously been supposed,
occupy the fertile plains and rich alluvial valleys, because they were covered with impenetrable
forests, swarming with dangerous beasts, and full of malaria. Eather they took the course of
the lower bills that flank the river valleys. His view is not that the Dravidians were driven
into the mountains by the Aryans, but that the former were always living among the
mountains where we find them.

Photo by M. Pitrre I'rtin [,

A TAMIL MAN OF CEYLON' (MIXED TYPE).

HINDU CASTES.

THE dark aborigines of India, Kolarians and Dravidians, were undoubtedly far more numerous
than their fair Aryan conquerors, and the latter would certainly have been absorbed by them
had not the system of caste been invented. Accordingly, by the laws of Manu, marriage with
the dark races was strictly forbidden, and a definite rank was assigned to each shade of colour
which had been already developed. Caste therefore originally meant colour, and by its means
the intruding Aryans maintained their supremacy. But already a certain amount of fusion

P/to/o IHJ .!/( *••;•». II". /.. //. 8kun it

A TAMIL GIRL.

182

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

had taken place. The subjecb is too compli-
cated for discussion in these pages, but it may
be pointed out that caste, as now known in
India, is the product of several factors — viz.
race, occupation, and religion. The four
original castes are the priests (Brahmans);
the warriors (Kshatriyas}-., citizens, traders,
and agriculturists ( Vaishyas) ; and the menials
(Sudras). These, however, have been under-
going a continual subdivision, until now there
are 2,500 main divisions. Some castes are of
political origin. Of this the most striking
example is to be met with in the hill tracts-
of the Punjab, where the rajah is the fountain
of honour, and by his word creates, enlarges, or
restricts the castes of the people in his realm.

As a rule the process is confined to the
two upper classes of Brahman and Rajput.
Lower castes may gradually acquire a higher
caste. In the Deccan a landholder who be-
comes rich may rise to a higher caste, but
as a rule the process is the other way, and
in the direction of degradation. The barriers-
of caste are supposed to be immutable, but
it is plain that the people contrive to leap
over them and to creep under them.

Mention must also be made of the-
Pariahs, or outcasts. The term originally
meant " hillmen," a fact which throws no small
light on the institution. And BO the Pariahs
were the independent highlanders who were excluded from all social privileges. One is
reminded by this of the absurd contempt with which the famous Dr. Johnson spoke of the
Scotch highlanders; in his narrow view they were simply pariahs I These hill people may
be regarded as being of the aboriginal elements of a prehistoric period. Caste, again, has
been somewhat affected by the spreading of Mohammedanism. But the sacerdotal caste
(Brahmans) have survived this and other changes, often retaining the noble cast of countenance
which is characteristic of the race.

The following table shows at a glance the chief castes and tribes: —

Photo by M. Pierre Petit]

DEVIL-DANCERS, CEYLON.

[Paris.

I. Agricultural.

Military and dominant, e.g. Rajputs.
Other cultivators.
Field labourers.
II. Pastoral.

Cattle-grazers, shepherds, etc.

III. Forest Tribes (very numerous).

Santhals, Kols, Gonds, Bhils, Todas, Kotas,
Inilas, Khasis, Kukis, Lushais, Chins, and
others.

IV. Fishers.

Kahars, Mallahs, etc.
V. Artisans.

Carpenters, masons, potters, etc.
VI. Personal Service, Food, etc.

Barbers, servants, butchers, washerwomen.

VII. Leather-workers and Lower Village Menials.
VIII. Traders.
IX. Professionals.

Priests, devotees, etc.
Temple servants, writers.
X. Arts, etc.

Astrologers, singers, dancers, actors.
XI. Carriers.
XII. Vagrants.

Knife-grinders, mat- and cane-workers,
hunters and fowlers, jugglers and
acrobats.

XIII. Indefinite Indian Castes.

XIV. Native Christ inns.

Then follow Burmese, Western Asiatics, Eurasians,
Europeans, and-Africans.

INDIA

183

THE WARRIOR OR KSHATRIYA CASTE.

THE true Kshatriya, when engaged in fighting an enemy, should give up all desire to live.
Far be it from him to think of retreating or taking to flight! On the contrary, let him advance
bravely, resolved to conquer or to die! The happiest death for a Kshatriya, the one he
should wish for most, is to die sword in hand, fighting. It procures for him the inestimable
happiness of being admitted to S\varga (Paradise). Boundless ambition is the highest virtue
a Kshatriya can possess. However vast his possessions may be already, he should never say
that he has enough. All his thoughts should tend to enlarging and improving his territories
and to making war on neighbouring princes, with a view to appropriating their possessions by
main force. lie should show faith and piety towards the gods, and should respect Brahmans
(a caste we shall speak of later on), placing the utmost confidence in them and loading them
with gifts. Truth and justice are the foundation on which all his actions should be based.

In a work like the present it would be quite impossible to describe, however briefly, all
the principal races and tribes and castes of the peninsula with its teeming population. We
therefore have selected a few, especially those of which we procured the best photographs.
These we shall now deal with as far as space permits. The reader should first consult the
brief scheme of classification on page 177.

THE KOLS.

THE Kols, or Kolarians, formerly overspread the plains of Bengal, but are now to be found
only in the hill and jungle tracts between Upper and Lower Bengal, the Nagpur Plateau,
and generally from the Ganges to about 18° N. latitude. According to Colonel Dalton, they
show much variety, and there may have been a good deal of fusion with the Aryan conquerors.

Photo by

••</:> i>to /''/ j

A CHOfl1 OF KOLS.

[Bombay,

184.

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

In colour they vary greatly, the copper tints being most common. The hair is black and
straight or wavy, as everywhere in India. They carry themselves very well. Many have high
noses and oval faces, and some of the young girls have delicate and regular features, finely
chiselled straight noses, and perfectly formed mouths and chins. However, the eyes (dark
brown) are seldom so large, so bright, and so gazelle-like as those of pure Hindu maidens.
There are also traces of some fusion with the Mongols of the North (see illustrations on
pages 183 and 185). The M.irzapur Kols appear to have lost all recollection of the sun-god
revered by the Mundas of Bengal. Still, they venerate the sun. The Kols worship demons
and spirits, whom they greatly fear, and the souls of the dead.

THE JUANGS OF ORISSA.

IN the Tributary States of Orissa there is a poor tribe of Juangs (also Kolarian), or Patuas
(literally the "leaf- wearers"), whose women wear no clothes, but only a few strings of beads
round the waist, and a bunch of leaves tied in front and behind. Her Majesty's Government,
shocked at this state of things, gave orders in 1871 that those under British influence should
be clothed. The English officer therefore called the tribe together, made a speech on the
subject of clothes, and then handed out strips of cotton for the women to put on! Obediently
they passed before him in single file, to the number of 1,900, made obeisance as a sign of
their submission, and were afterwards marked on the forehead with vermilion. But this enforced
submission to the great Mrs. Gruudy was not a success, for before long many of the Juaug
women had gone back to their leaves. These people, until quite lately, had no knowledge of
metals, and may be regarded as a relic from the Stone Age. An officer who knew them well
said their huts were the smallest ever deliberately constructed as dwellings. The head of the
family and all the females huddle together in one hut about 6 feet by 8 feet in area. The
boys and young men live in a separate building.

THE BIIILS.

THE Bhils (also Kolarian) are of small stature, slender, and very dark, but possessing great

agility and strength. Robbery
and war are their delight. As
thieves they still keep their
old reputation for adroitness.
Many tales are told illustrating
their wonderful skill in this
art, so widely practised in India.
They have been known to steal
the blanket from under a
sleeping man. although warned
that the attempt would be
made! Naked and oiled all
over, they move about without
making any noise, and it is
no easy matter to lay hold of
them. They are very clever at
hiding, and cases are on record
in which they have escaped
capture when pursued by adopt-
ing what naturalists call " pro-
tective mimicry." Their plan
when thus pressed is to throw
their black sinewy limbs into
such attitudes that they are

(by

of frit

From " Tli.e I'rimitive Tribes qf the AV</;/;M.S" by J. H.
Under-Sea etary of State for Imliii).

TWO IROLAS (FHOM THE LEFT), TWO BADAGAS, TWO TODAS, TWO KOTAS,
AND TWO KURUMBAS.

i86

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

to by Mr. E. Tkurtstou, Madron Museum.
TWO TODA GIRLS.

mistaken for the scorched and burned stumps
of trees, so often to be met with in India
on account of forest fires. Sir James On tram
won many of them over to comparative civili-
sation; and there are now two regiments
of Bhils in the native army. Their huts in
the forest are made of boughs and sticks
thatched and wattled with long grass. They
are fearful of evil omens, and worship trees,
stones, etc. They number 900,000.

THE GONDS.

THE domain of the Gonds, who are Dravidian,
is in the highlands north of the Deccan, and
called after them Goudwana. Many of them
were formerly employed in the coal-pits of
the Navbada Valley. According to Mr. Hislop,
they are darker than most of the other
aboriginal races, are of average height, and
have well-proportioned bodies, but rather ugly
features. They have a somewhat round head,
wide month and wide nostrils, thick lips, and
straight black hair, with only a scanty beard.
It is quite a mistake to suppose that any of
them have woolly hair, like a Negro. On

the contrary, both hair and features are decidedly Mongolian. Captain Forsyth says the women
differ among themselves more than the men: in the opener parts of the country, near the
plains, they are often great robust creatures; but in the interior bevies of Gond women may
be seen who are more like monkeys than human beings. The features of all are strongly
marked and coarse. As soon as their short youth is over, they all pass at once into a hideous
old age. This is not surprising, for they lead very hard lives, sharing in nearly all the men's
labours. They dress decently enough in a short petticoat often dyed blue, tucked in between
the legs, so as to leave them naked to the thigh; a mantle of white cotton covers the upper
part of the body. They have their legs elaborately tattooed. Their number appears to be
about 124,000.

THE TODAS.

THE Todas dwell quite in the south in scattered hamlets on the slopes of the Nilgiri Hills, or
"Blue Hills." They are a tall, sturdy race, with regular features, and of a dark chocolate
colour. The nose is aquiline, the lips thick, and they are very hairy, a feature which at
once distinguishes them from the Aryan Hindus and reminds one of the Australians. The
general contour of the head and cast of countenance are rather such as we are accustomed
to associate with the ancient Roman. Mr. William Crooke, however, considers them to be
probably the earliest race in India, and retaining certain Negrito characteristics. Their brown
eyes are wonderfully quick and bright, full of intelligence, often melancholy and gentle. In
some instances the physiognomy appears rather Jewish; hence they have been associated by
some writers with the lost tribes of Israel. These people are essentially herdsmen (as their
[Tamil] name implies), and herdsmen they have been for untold ages. Raised high above the
torrid plains of India, they inhabit a sort of tropical Switzerland. Secluded amongst their
pastures, taking pleasure only in their own customs, they hold aloof from all foreign influences.
The tone of voice is kind and grave, but with the women solemnity is replaced by a

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

certain playfulness. It is
impossible not to be
struck by the taste and
simplicity of their cos-
tume. Draped in a sort
of toga, with one arm
and thigh uncovered, they
have quite the "grand
air "; but it is a pity they
do not wash themselves.
Mr. J. W. Breeks says:
" \Ve could not help
liking them. They were
extremely amused at our
British idiosyncrasies, and
laughed at them un-
restrainedly, not consider-
ing themselves in any
way our inferiors.'' Their
hearty good-humour and
free, jovial manners are
no less pleasing than
their politeness, affability,
and courtesy. Dr. Shortt,
writing in 1868, made
the sweeping assertion
that most of the women
have been debauched by
Europeans, who have in-
troduced diseases to which
these innocent tribes were once perfect strangers, but which are no less surely sapping their
once hardy and vigorous constitutions. This, however, is untrue. They are sadly addicted
to strong drink, and will drink neat brandy out of a mug.

The women are treated with respect, and enjoy a largo amount of freedom. They tend
children, cook the family meals, bring water from the spring, and keep the house in order —
such as it is. The men tend the cattle and do most of the outdoor work. They are a quiet,
undemonstrative, and very domestic people. The entire family, down to the last cousin, are
regarded as one household. The men maintain their authority sensibly and without tyranny.
But sometimes a woman of superior intelligence may rule her husband. The women mark, or
tattoo, portions of the body — namely, the arms, chest, and legs; and they wear a heavy metal
ring on the arm. Though their intellect is of a very inferior order, and they possess but
little force of character, yet what they do know they know well. They may be said to be
even intelligent within certain narrow limits.

The odorous abode of the Todas is called a man/I (village, or hamlet), which is composed
of huts (see illustration on page 187), dairy, and cattle-pen. Each mand usually comprises
about five buildings, or huts, three of which are used as dwellings. These are usually
10 feet high, 18 feet long, and 9 feet broad. The very small entrance, only 18 inches
wide, is not provided with any door or gate, but is closed by a wooden plank, which forms
a sort of sliding-door. To enter, one has to go down on all-fours, and even then much
wriggling is necessary. The hut is built of bamboos closely laid together, and the roof is
thatch; only in the middle is the height sufficient to enable a tall man to walk about
comfortably. On one side there is a platform where the family sleep. Each hut is surrounded

•• '/'A* l'fi//'i<ff-' 'I'lih'xuf the
Under-Secretory of state for

J. It'. Brttks (by Jti /'ltd*.

KOTA WOMEN, MAKING POTS.

INDIA

189

by a wall of loose stones. The dairy is situated at some distance from the inhabited huts,
and strangers never attempt to approach too near, for fear of incurring the ill-will of the god
or spirit believed to preside therein. The herd of buffaloes retreats at night to a circular
enclosure with a wall of loose stones. The writer is indebted to Mr. R. Lydekker, P.R.S., who
is arranging the Anthropological Collection at the Museum of Natural History, for kindly
lending the photograph of two Toda girls on page 186. It is by Mr. E. Thurston.

THE KOTAS.

PROBABLY the Todas and the Kotas lived near to each other before the latter settled on the
Nilgiri Hills. The Kotas number about 1,200. Each village consists of from thirty to sixty
huts, arranged in rows along the street. There is no caste; the people are divided according
to the streets in which they live; people belonging to the same street may not marry. They
are, unfortunately, very fond of intoxicating liquors. They are universally looked down upon as
unclean feeders and eaters of carrion, a custom which is to them no more repulsive than
eating "high" game is to ourselves. However, they make excellent artisans. The Kota
women have none of the fearlessness and friendliness of the Todas, and on the approach of a
European to their domain bolt out of sight, like frightened rabbits in a warren, and hide
within the inmost recesses of their huts. As a rule they are clad in filthy dirty clothes, all
tattered and torn, and frequently not reaching nearly as low as the knees. They fetch water,
collect firewood, and make baskets and earthen pots. They worship rude images of wood or
stone, a rock, or a tree in some secluded place. Both the Todas and Kotas have long
(dolichocephalic) heads.

Tli' /'/ r/nifive Tribes of the iV#a<yzm," by ./. H. />'/••/,.< *l»j /« /////x.v/«// of the Under-Secrelary of State for India)-

KURUMBAS, WITH HOUSE.

190

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

THE KURUMBAS.

THE picture drawn by Mr. King in his " Aboriginal Tribes of the Nilgiris" (1870) is not a
pleasant one. Their food consisted then of wild roots and berries, or grain soaked in water,
with occasionally a porcupine or a polecat. Their dwellings were generally a few branches
piled up together like heaps of dead brushwood in a plantation, often simply holes or clefts
among the rocks. No such ceremony as marriage existed among these people, who lived
together like the brute creation. Though they have somewhat improved since those days,
and work on planters' estates for regular wages, their appearance even now is wretched. They
aro short and ill-made, with bleared eyes, a rather wide mouth, and often projecting teeth.
Spare to leanness, there is also a total absence of any apparent muscle, and the arms and legs
are as much like black sticks as human limbs. The illustration of Kurumbas on page 189
is from a photograph in Breaks' "Primitive Tribes of the Nilagiris," published by the Indian
Government at Calcutta, and the writer is indebted to the Under-Secretary of State for India
for permission to reproduce this photograph as well as those on pages 184 and 188.

THE SANT1IALS.

AMONG aborigines who have progressed to a higher stage of civilisation are the Santhals.
They still live in villages in the jungles or among the mountains of Lower Bengal. Although
still clinging more or less to their forests and keeping up the customs of a hunting forest
tribe, yet they have learned the use of the plough, and make skilful husbandmen.

JUNGLE FOLK.

MANY of the Dravidian tribes and castes live
in the jungles, and thus acquire a knowledge
of the wild animals therein which to us
seems astounding, and their faculty of ob-
servation has been very highly developed.
Speaking of this, our friend Mr. William
Crooke, whose researches in Indian ethnology
are well known, says: " One thing he [the
jungle-dweller] does acquire by this course
of life is a marvellous insight into Nature
and her secrets. His eyesight or power of
hearing is not, I think, by nature better
than ours, but he will hear or see a tiger
creeping down a ravine long before the
English sportsman will. Every sound in the
forest has a meaning for him — the grunt of
the baboon as the tiger comes beneath his
tree, the hoarse alarm bark of the stag.
From the way the vultures hover in the air
he will tell whether the tiger has finished
his meal or is still tearing the carcase. Every
footmark, a displaced pebble, a broken grass-
stalk, will tell him something — what beast
has passed there, and how long ago. We of
late hours and crowded rooms and artificial

i'/,ui.j I,,/ .i/™*. F,UI, <fe t'«.| (iMyaie. light look upon such powers as almost a

ISCARDS, SOLDIERS OF THE MAHARAJAH OF KASHMIR. miracle; but it is really only the result of

INDIA

191

the fact that he has thoroughly adapted himself to his environment, and this he must do or
starve" (Journal of tlie Anthropological Institute, New Series, Vol. I., p. 223).

THE KIIOXDS.

ANOTHER Dravidian race is that of the Khonds. In old days they practised human sacrifice,
but this custom has been suppressed. They also used to kill the baby-girls, saying that they
were too poor to support useless children. In 1835 they became subject to English rule; their
stock of human victims was delivered up, and they had to be content with sacrificing goats
and buffaloes. They have a strange belief that certain persons can change themselves into
tigers. General Campbell, when in their country, saw fourteen of their great wooden elephant-
figures on which human victims were offered, lied on to the trunk and hacked to pieces
while the whole image was spun round. He ordered these images to be destroyed; but it

Photo by Messrs. Frith ifc Co.]

NAUTCH-GIRLS OF KASHMIR.

[litigate.

was no easy matter to overthrow a practice so deeply rooted, which had existed from time
immemorial. They even believed that he wanted to sacrifice the very victims whom he
released, in order to bring back water into a certain large tank made for his elephants! One
day at this very place the English officer was told that a human •uctim was acutally being
offered up. It was a handsome girl of about fifteen years of age. Instantly, therefore, he set
off with a large party. Ou arrival they saw the aged priest ready to give the signal, and the
onlookers mad with excitement. He came to the rescue and demanded the girl's release,
which was granted — but only from motives of fear. No sooner had the soldiers gone out of
sight than the Khonds broke out into loud murmurings. They would not be disappointed;
and so, at the suggestion of one of the party, they sacrificed the aged priest himself, because,
being seventy years old, he could be of no further use! And so he was forthwith tied on to
the wooden elephant-image and cut to pieces.

They kidnapped their victims from the plains, and a thriving Khond village usually kept
a small stock in reserve "to meet sudden demands for atonement." The victim, on being

192

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

brought to the hamlet, was welcomed at
every threshold, daintily fed, and kindly
treated till the fatal day arrived. He was
then solemnly sacrificed to the earth-god,
the people shouting in his or her dying
ears, " We bought you with a price; no
sin rests with us.'' His flesh and blood
were distributed among the village lands.

Among these people the custom of
" marriage by capture " prevails. The
young man snatches up his bride, while
her friends pretend to pursue them. How-
ever, his friends come to the rescue and
prevent her recapture. As soon as his own
village is reached he is safe, and the young
couple settle down to married life.

In spite of the cruel human sacrifices
above referred to, which of course have a
religious aspect, the Khonds have good
points in their favour. According to Captain
Macphersou, their nine cardinal sins are:
to refuse hospitality; to break an oath or
promise; to speak falsely, except to save a
guest; to break the pledge of friendship;
to break an old law or custom; to commit
incest; to contract debts, the payment of
which is ruinous to the man's tribe, they
being responsible; to skulk in. time of
war; to divulge a public secret. On the

other hand, their three chief virtues are: to kill a foe in public battle; to die in public
battle; arid to be a priest.

Photo by Mtsurs. Bourne &

IBombay.

A PARSI GIRL.

THE JATS AND RAJPUTS.

AMONG the people of the Punjab the Jats and Rajputs come first, they being the most
numerous. Both may perhaps belong to the same stock, although differing in appearance.
They are considered by Sir J. B. Lyall, late Lieutenant-Governor of the Punjab, to be directly
descended from the military clans which the Indian chiefs led against Alexander the Great
when he invaded the Punjab in 325 B.C., but the latest view is that they came from
Central Asia. The Greek historians of that time described these people as eminently brave in
war, tall, and graceful. This is still true of them. In the Sikh wars they opposed us in
the hardest battles ever fought in India; and since then they have fought side by side
with British soldiers. Among the Jats those who are Mohammedan are usually not so fond
of fighting as the Hindu Jats; the most martial of them are those living in the centre of the
Punjab and belonging to the Sikh religion. It was the Jats who in the eighteenth century
gradually overturned the Mohammedan government of the Punjab ("India," British Empire
Series). Professor Keane, however, accepts Mr. William Crooke's view that they represent an
invasion of the Yu-cchi from Central Asia.

CHAPTER IX.

INDIA (continued): WOLF-REARED CHILDREN, KASHMIRIS, P ARSIS, KHASIS:
RELIGION IN INDIA: ARYAN THEOLOGY, LITERATURE, ETC.— AFGHAN-
ISTAN AND BALUCHISTAN.

WOLF-BEARED CHILDREN.

READERS of Mr. Kipling's most fascinating "Jungle-Books" will possibly not be altogether
surprised to learn that a good deal of valuable and trustworthy evidence has been collected
to establish the fact, so long denied as unworthy of credence, that human babes have been
carried off and nurtured by
wolves. Tradition, as we all
know, has said so for ages,
ever since the story of
Romulus and Remus. But
it has been the fashion
till lately to reject most
traditions. However, a re-
action in their favour has at
length taken place. In a
valuable paper entitled
"Jungle Life in India," Mr.
V. Ball, of the Indian Geo-
logical Survey, brings together
the evidence which has been
collected. It is published in
The Journal of the Anthro-
pological Institute, Vol. IX.,
page 466. The following is
the text of a letter he
received from a correspon-
dent:—

" DEAR SIR,—

"I see your name
mentioned in. the newspapers
as one who leans to the
belief that children have been
nourished by wolves. And
as there are sceptics who will
have it that you labour under
a delusion, it may be in-
teresting to you to learn
a few particulars about a

Photo by J

xliti>her<J~\
PAHARIS (HILL WOMEN).

193

[liombay.
25

194

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

i,,j .MI . ii. z. DorraA.

DANCING-MEN AT MONGKNEM DANCE, KHASIA HILLS.

being slightly raised; and he walked w
that he had as a child pro-
gressed in a stooping position,
using both hands and feet. He
lived in a corner, with his legs
brought up to his chin, and
placed his food under anything
that lie might have to lie on,
straw or old bedding. Clothes
he would not wear, but was
induced to keep on the usual
strip, and this probably because
he had been beaten at first
and made to comply with cus-
toms so far. The man is now
dead. I cannot vouch that he
had been nourished by a wolf,
but the natives of the city
believed that he had been
so brought up, etc., etc. He
had not learned to speak;
he simply grunted and looked
at persons askant, with the
cunning, silly leer above re-
ferred to.

Yours, etc."

wolf-man who was for many
\ears living in this city. Ho
was sent in by Colonel Slee-
man, and a Mohammedan
took charge of him. The
Mutiny occurring, this pro-
tector disappeared, and theu
the poor fellow came under
my notice. At the time he
might have been about twenty
years of age. I took a little
interest in him and tried to
make him work, but found
that it was not possible to
keep him at it. I tried him
with food from the table,
and he was guided by smell,
rejecting such portions as did
net please him. His recog-
nition was a grunt. The
hands were bent back, but
were not stiff; and when
taking anything these retained
the position instead of clutch-
ing. He walked on the front
portion of the foot, the heels
ith his knees bent; in fact, one could readily suppose

m

/o i,,j ,)/,.. //. z. Danak.

DANCING-GIRLS AT MOMOKXEM DANCE, KHASIA HILLS.

P/tulo btj Mt**t«. J-'ftUt (I- lv.\

IJteirjate.

196

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

Photo by Mean. Bourne & S/ie/t/iei-U]

A BRAHMAN AT PRAYERS.

[Uv/iibay.

The subject attracted the atten-
tion of Professor Max Muller, who
in the pages of The Academy pointed
out the importance of the subject,
and quoted a selection from the
recorded cases of wolf-reared children.
At the same time he strongly urged
upon sportsmen, naturalists, and dis-
trict officials the desirability of
carefully investigating on the spot
the probability and possibility of
such cases being true.

The story of Romulus and Remus
is not by any means singular. There
are many other gods and heroes of
antiquity who are stated to have
been suckled by wolves, and whose
histories are regarded as wholly
mythical in consequence of the
presence of this element. If the
case of a child being suckled and
reared by wolves can be established
as a physical possibility by a single
well-authenticated case in India, such

histories will assume a totally new aspect, and will have a chance of being accepted in their
entirety. Want of space alone prevents us from giving other examples, but the reader will
find them in the paper quoted above.

THE KASHMIRIS.

THE Hindus of Kashmir, in the north, are among the finest of Indian races. They became
Mohammedans several centuries ago. They are described as almost European in appearance,
and in Kashmir we miss the slender frames, prominent cheek-bones, and other unpleasant
features so prevalent in other parts of India. The men are of a square, herculean build, well
proportioned, and with a frank expression, while the women are fresh-looking and often
decidedly beautiful (see illustrations on pages 190 and 191), with an almost Jewish cast of counten-
ance. Those of the better classes are scarcely darker than the average natives of Italy. In
character they are shrewd, witty, and cheerful. The Tibetans of this region, who belong
to the Mongolian stock, are chiefly found in Ladak and Baltistan.
The warlike Ghoorkas of Nepaul are of mixed Tibetan stock.

THE PARSIS.

WE must not omit from this brief survey of Indian races the Parsis of Bombay. They are
Iranians (not Hindus at all in the proper sense) and descendants of the old Persian fire-
worshippers who took refuge in India in the seventh century during the Mohammedan invasion
of their country. They have ever since kept themselves aloof, thus preserving their religion
intact, and their race too (see the photograph on page 192). They are remarkable for general
intelligence and commercial ability. They seem to be more in sympathy with their English
rulers than any other race in the peninsula. They are very loyal subjects of His Majesty,
and have acquired no small wealth.

THE KHASIS.

As a specimen of the Tibeto-Burmese race, which comes last but one in the scheme of
classification given on page 177, we select the Khasis for brief description. This tribe, which

INDIA

197

dwells in the Khasia Hills of Southern Assam, numbers about 140,000. Their voices are clear
and distinct, and their cries, as they call to one another across long distances from hill-top
to hill-top, can be heard far away echoing among the valleys. They are a well-built race,
some of the men and women being perfect marvels of muscular development; as a rule, too,
they are courageous, and can fight well behind a stockade. Their women are fond of dress
and finery. According to Lieutenant Steel, R.A., who contributed a paper on these people to
The Journal of the Anthropological Institute (Vol. VII., p. 305), they have grand dances iu the

Photo by Messrs. Frith & Co.]

NATIVE PRINCES OF OHISSA.

[Seigate.

month of March in honour of the new moon. They assemble in certain places, when a ring
is formed, the girls standing two and two in the centre, facing outwards, in no particular
order; they then move slowly round from left to right, the. whole mass of them in twos,
with a sideling step, such as soldiers make in "closing" right or left, with eyes fixed on the
ground. The young bachelors run round the outside of the ring, waving fans made of
feathers; outside them again come the ring of spectators, old married men and women, with
children too young to be married. Rude music is played the whole time, and the spirit of

198

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

the proceedings is kept up by frequent and deep potations on tlie part of the male dancers
and musicians. The whole is of au orderly character, and never degenerates into an orgie.
The demure looks of the girls, some pretty enough, and the ardent glances of the youths as
they pass round and peep slyly at their lovers, make a pretty picture. The dress of the
girls is silk throughout, and the ornaments are of gold and coral, all but the crown, the feather,
and the bracelets, which are of silver. The Khasis are evidently a very primitive people who
have lingered on in their native hills from a remote antiquity.

RELIGION IN INDIA.

THE Hindus, being an essentially religious people, cling very persistently to their old beliefs,
and consequently Christian missionaries have great difficulties to contend with. The women
exert a powerful influence, and until they are converted India can never become Christian.
Another difficulty, and a very serious one, is the fact that a Hindu who gives up his old
faith becomes an outcast, and those who espouse Christianity are not always of the best. But
in spite of these obstacles it cannot be said that missions have failed. The number of native
Christians is considerably over 2,000,000, and the Protestant communities have been increasing
at the rate of 50 per cent, in each decade. Three hundred ordained native clergymen are
helping the work of evangelisation, and there are 450 mission stations, with 500 European

missionaries. The Roman
Catholic Church counts over
1,250,000 of adherents, and
is carrying on its work with
great zeal. As the reader is
well aware, caste is one of
the chief obstacles to the
spread of Christianity. " Will
it ever be done away with?"
is a very natural question,
in answer to which we give
the following quotation from
Keane: "Redemption from
this social yoke will ultimately
be found in the spread of
education, in such internal
upheavals as are foreshadowed
by the Brahmo-Somaj and
other monotheistic movements,
in the silent influences of
the higher European culture,
quickened by the development
of the railway system and
other levelling institutions."
The Abbe Dubois, a well-
known and zealous missionary,
completely despaired of the
higher castes ever becoming
Christians, though he was
ready to acknowledge that
there was a harvest-field
among the lower castes mid
outcasts. Of his own attempts
NAGAS IN FULL DRESS. to convert the Hind us, he

\BO,,,IM,

INDIA

199

remarks: "For my part, I
may not boast of my suc-
cesses in the sacred career
during the period that I
have laboured to promote
the interests of the Christian
religion. The restrictions and
privations under which I have
lived by conforming myself
to the usages of the country,
embracing in many respects
the prejudices of the natives,
living like them, and becom-
ing all but a Hindu myself
— in short, by being all
things to all men, that I
might by all means save
some of those — have proved
of no avail to me to make
proselytes. During the long
period I have lived in India
in the capacity of a mis-
sionary, I have made, with
the assistance of a native
missionary, in all between 200
and 300 converts of both sexes.
Of this number two-thirds
were Pariahs, or beggars, and
the rest were composed of
Sudras, vagrants, and outcasts
of several tribes, who, being
without resources, turned
Christians in order to form
connections, chiefly for the
purpose of marriage or with
some other interested views."

The following table shows at a glance the chief religions of India, and their relative
strength in numbers. The Brahmans are by far the most numerous, being 72 per cent, of the
population, while Mohammedans come next with nearly 20 per cent. : —

J'lmlo bij Messrs. Uournr .(•

[Bombay.

A RELIGIOUS MENDICANT.

TABLE OF RELIGIONS.

Brahmanic .
Mohammedan

Animistic

Buddhist

riiristimi

Sikh

Jain

ZoroasU'inn

I'lirctunii'd .

Jew

Minor forms

Numbers.

Percentage of
Population.

207,731,727 .

. 72.33

57,321.164 .

. 19.80

!),280,467 .

. 3.23

7,131,361 .

. 2.48

2,284,380 .

. 0.80

1,907,833 .

. 0.66

1,416,638 .

. 0.49

87,904 .

. 0.03

42,578 .

. 0.014

17,194 .

. 0.006

185 .

•

Total 287,828,481

. 100. ( KM i

200

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

We have already had occasion in previous
chapters to speak of animistic religion; this
very low and degraded form of faith prevails
largely in Polynesia, Melanesia, and Australia,
as well as in parts of Asia, where it is largely
embedded as a sort of substratum in better
religions. The term is used in a wide sense
by Dr. Tiele, who thus defines it: "Animism
is the belief in the existence of souls or
spirits, of which only the powerful — those on
which man feels himself dependent, and before
which he stands in awe — acquire the rank
of divine beings, and become objects of wor-
ship. These spirits are conceived as moving
freely through earth and air, and, either of
their own accord, or because conjured by
some spell, appearing to men. But they
may also take up their abode, either perma-
nently or temporarily, in some object, whether
lifeless or living it matters not; and this
object, as endowed with higher power, is then
worshipped or employed to protect individuals
or communities (fetishism)." The main
object seems to be to keep evil spirits in
order by means of magic, or to propitiate
them by gifts or by acts of homage. Leaving for the present this very low form of religion,
we pass on to consider the faith of the noble Aryan immigrants from the North.

Photo by Messrs, Bourne & Shepherd}
A FAKIR.

[Bombay.

ARYAN THEOLOGY, LITERATURE, ETC.

SEVERAL exquisite hymns from the Vedas show clearly and eloquently the Aryan belief in
a future state. The deceased, whose body the flames are consuming in the funeral pyre, is
thus addressed: "Depart thou, depart thou, by the ancient paths to the place whither our
fathers have departed. Meet with the Ancient Ones; meet with the Lord of Death. Throwing
off thine imperfections, go to thy home. Become united with a body; clothe thyself in
a shining form. Let him depart to those for whom flow the rivers- of nectar. Let him depart
to those who, through meditation, have obtained the victory; who, by fixing their thoughts
on the unseen, have gone to heaven. Let him depart to the mighty in battle, to the heroes
who have laid down their lives for others, to those who have bestowed their goods on the
poor." The doctrine of transmigration is unknown, so that the circle of relatives round
the funeral pyre sing with a firm assurance that their friend goes direct to a state of
blessedness and reunion with the loved ones who had gone before. "Do thou conduct us to
heaven; let us be with our wives and children," says a later hymn. "In heaven, where our
friends dwell in bliss — having left behind the infirmities of the body, free from lameness, free
from crookedness of limb — there let us behold our parents and our children." " May the water-
shedding spirits bear thee upwards, cooling thee with their swift motion through the air, and
sprinkling thee with dew." "Bear him, carry him; let him, with all his faculties complete, go
to the world of the righteous. Crossing the dark valley which spreadeth boundless around
him, let the unborn soul ascend to heaven. Wash the feet of him who is stained with sin;
let him go upwards with cleansed feet. Crossing the gloom, gazing with wonder in many
directions, let the unborn soul go up to heaven."

Photo bij Jlfntrs. Jam me ,(• .V,

A NATI\K INDIAN LADY.
201

2O2

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

The Vedic hymns reveal the Aryans on their victorious march from the North: in the
earliest examples we see them still to the north of the Khyber Pass, in Kabul; in the later
ones, as far as the River Ganges. They gradually pushed eastwards along the base of the
Himalayas, and formed settlements by the great rivers of the Punjab. Their poets praise the
rivers that gave them wealth in the form of broad fields with water. Xever did they forget
their northern home when they ceased to be wanderers and settled down into agricultural
communities. Of this period the Eig-Veda is the great literary memorial. Its age is unknown.
It may have been composed about 1400 B.C., which would probably be not very far removed from
the period of the Exodus of the Israelites. Buddhism arose in the sixth century before Christ,
and long before then the Vedas had been written. These splendid hymns were composed by
certain families of psalmists (or RisMs). The Rig-Veda, contains over 1,000 hymns, with
10,580 verses. The system of caste was unknown then. The father was the priest of his own
household. The chieftain was father and priest to his tribe; but at the greater festivals he
chose some one specially learned in holy offerings to conduct the sacrifice in the name of the
people. His title was " Lord of the settlers," and he seems to have been elected. No one
can study early Aryan literature and religion without being filled with admiration for this
noble race, from which we ourselves are sprung. Their women (as in Egypt) enjoyed a high
position, and some of the most beautiful hymns were composed by ladies and queens.
Marriage was held sacred. Husband and wife were both "rulers of the house," and drew near
to the gods together in prayer. The barbarous practice of burning widows (suttee) was quite
unknown; and it now appears that the later Brahmans were the responsible authors of this
horrible rite. They actually distorted the plain and obvious meaning of the following beautiful

A FAKIRS HOME.

INDIA

203

I'liutu l,ij Mr. II. Z. IlKrnili.

A FAKIR AND FAMILY IN DWELLING-PLACE UNDER THS WHITE It >CK, NCAK DOWLIE.

words from otie of the Veilas: "Rise, woman" (says the sacred text); ''come to the world of
life — come to us; thou hast fulfilled thy duties as a wife to thy husband."

These free-hearted tribes had a grand trust in themselves and in their gods. Like other
conquering races, they believed both themselves and their deities t;> be altogether superior to
the swarthy aborigines. Such noble confidence — of which Britons certainly inherit their full
share — is a great source of strength to a nation. Their divinities (Devata in Sanskrit, literally
'The Shining Ones") were the great powers of Nature, and some of their names still survive
in English, and can easily be traced back through Latin and Greek forms. But as the Aryans
advanced in progress they became divided into castes, directed by a powerful priesthood. Hoiv
did the priests become so completely a caste by themselves? In this way. As already stated,
in the early days a lord or chieftain called in some man specially learned in holy offerings
to conduct the tribal sacrifices. These men were highly honoured. The art of writing being
link iiown (so it is supposed), the hymns and words were handed down by word of mouth. In
this way those families who learned them by heart became hereditary owners of the liturgies
required at the most solemn offerings to the gods. Hence members of such households were
chosen again and again to conduct the sacrifices and to chant the battle-hymn, to implore the
divine aid, or to pray away the divine wrath. The simple warriors of that age came to believe
that a hymn or prayer which had once brought them victory would probably do so again.
In this way the hymns became a valuable family property for those who had composed or
learned them. It was a possession even more absolute than modern "copyright." The potent
prayer was called Brahma, and the man who offered it Brahman. These families did all in
their power to make the ceremonies solemn and imposing; and gradually a vast array of
ministrants grew up round each of the greater sacrifices, — first, the officiating priests and
their assistants, who dressed the altar, slew the victims, and poured out the libations; then,
the chanters of the hymns; then, the reciters of other parts of the service; and, lastly, the
superior priests, who supervised all the proceedings.

2O4-

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

The Brahmans had in their keeping not only the sacred books, but the philosophy and
science of the Hindus. And, moreover, they were the custodians of all the secular literature —
like the monks of Europe in early and mediaeval days. In order to understand the long
period of time that this Brahman supremacy has lasted, we must bear in mind that they were
a literary as well as a religious caste. At times this supremacy has been assailed — and for
two centuries actually overthrown — but still for twenty-two centuries they have been the
counsellors ^f princes and teachers of the people. An extract from the Rig- Veda illustrates
their power: " That king before whom marches the priest, lie alone dwells well established

in his house, to him the people how
down. The king who gives wealth to
the priest, he will conquer, him the
gods will protect.''

In time the thoughtful and re-
flective Brahmans began to perceive
that the old gods of the Vedas were
but poetic fictions. For when they
came to think the matter out, they
arrived at the conclusion that the sun,
the aqueous vapour, the sky, the wind,
and the dawn could not all be separate
and supreme creators, but that they
must all have proceeded from one great
First Cause. They therefore, in order
to appease old prejudices, accepted
"The Shining Ones "of the Vedas as
beautiful and useful manifestations of
divine power, and did not cease to
conduct sacrifices in their honour. But
among themselves they began to teach
the doctrine of the Unity of God. To
the Vedas, the Brahmanas, and the
Sutras they added a vast body of
theological literature, composed at in-
tervals between 1000 B.C. and 800 B.C.
The Upanishads, meaning the Science
of God and his Identity with the Soul;
the Arauyakas, or Tracts for the Forest
Eecluse; and the much later Puranas,
or Traditions from of Old, — all contain
mystic and beautiful doctrines incul-
cating the Unity of God and the
Immortality of the Soul, mingled with
less noble dogmas, popular tales, and

superstitions. The masses continued to believe in four castes, four Vedas, and many deities;
but the most thoughtful Brahmans taught and believed that in the beginning there was but
one caste, one Veda, and one God.

The High-born Dawn, the Genial Sun, the Friendly Day, and the kindly but confused old
groups of Vedic deities gradually gave place to the conception of one god in his three
manifestations,— as Brahma, the Creator; Vishnu, the Preserver; and Siva, the Destroyer and
Reproducer. These still form the Triad of Hindu mythology. But Brahma, the Creator, was
too abstract to be a popular god. There is only one great seat of his worship at the present
day. Vishnu, the Preserver, was more popular; in his ten incarnations, especially in his seventh

Photo b>j Messrs. Bourne & Shepherd}

THE LATE MAHARAJAH OF HOLKAR.

[Uombay.

INDIA

205

Photo by Messrs. Bourne & Sfiep/uird]

A HINDI; SACRIFICE.

and eighth, as Kama and Krishna, under many names and in various forms, he supplanted the
bright Vedic gods. On the other hand, Siva, the third person of the Triad, first as Destroyer,
and then as Reproducer, conveyed the profound conception of death as a change of state and
the means whereby the gates of heaven are opened to the righteous. Thus Siva claimed
reverence from the mystic and philosophical Brahmans, while at the same time his terrible
aspects associated him alike with the Rudra, or " God of Roaring Tempests "of the Veda, and
also with the blood-loving deities of the aborigines. Vishnu and Siva, in their diverse male
and female shapes, now form, to a large extent, the gods of the Hindu population.

In those early days religion and literature were intimately connected;1 a few words oil the
Aryan religious poetry may therefore not be out of place here. The entire religious service was
taken from the Veda, or "Inspired Knowledge,'' an old Aryan word that reappears in the Latin
vid-ere, to see or perceive (compare the Greek otSa, I know, German wissen, and English wit).
The Vedic books are four in number, and known as the Rig- Veda, the Yajur-Veda, the Sama-
Vecla, and the Atharva-Veda. Of these, the Sama consists mostly of selections from the
Rig- Veda, while the Yajur-Veda is only a collection of hymns relating to the practical details
of sacrificial rites; hence the Atharva and the Rig Vedas are the chief source from which
we can gather information of the religion of the early Aryans. The Atharva-Veda, which is
much more recent than the others, consists mainly of incantations, invocations, magic spells,
love-charms, and formulas. To the Vedas were appended long prose compositions called the
Brahmanas; these, although long and tedious, are yet of considerable interest, because they
contain the record of the oldest forms of the sacrificial ritual, the oldest traditions, and
the oldest philosophical speculation. The Rig-Veda has two Brahmanas, the Sama-Veda
has four, the Yajur-Veda has two, and the Atharva-Veda has only one. These Brahmauas
are again divided into the Arauyakas, dealing with the life of the ascetic in the forest;

2o6

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

ami the Upauisliads, which contain the
freer religious speculations of the time.
By tlie time the latter were written
the simple and lofty ideas of the Yedic
hymns had vanished, and the worship
of the gods was replaced by an elaborate
cult. Everything was done that could
be done to make the people believe
more than ever in the supernatural
origin claimed by the Brahmans both
for themselves and for their teaching.
ILL the Yedic period the Brahman
was (as the word denoted) "one who
prays,'' a '''worshipper," or "the com-
poser or reciter of a hymn." The
veneration for these priests runs through
all the life of the Hindu peasant, and
takes the practical form of either offer-
ings or food. No child is born, named,
betrothed, or married, nobody dies or
is burned, no journey is undertaken or
auspicious day selected, no house is
built, no agricultural operation of im-
portance begun or harvest gathered
in, without the Brahmans being fed.
A portion of the produce is set apart
for their use. They are consulted in
sickness and in health; they are feasted
in sorrow and in joy. Tall, erect, proud,
conscious of his superior intellect, the

Brahman walks along with an air that well expresses his inward conviction of inherent purity
and Sanctity.

The Brahman caste, having after prolonged struggles established its power, made a wise
use of it. From the ancient times when the Yedic hymns were composed, they clearly
recognised that, in order to rule their fellow-men in spiritual matters, they must renounce
temporal power — a lesson which the Roman Church has not learned. even yet. They could not
be kings, but they did become kings'' counsellors and guides. As the duty of the Sudra, or
menial, was to serve, of the Yaisya, or peasant, to till the ground or follow some handicraft,
and of the Kshatriya caste to fight, so that of the Brahman was to be priest and offer
up prayers and sacrifices. As their functions were mysterious and above the reach of other
men, so they considered must their lives be. Their whole life was mapped out for them.
On entering into manhood, the Brahman was solemnly invested with the sacred thread of " the
twice-born." Youth and early manhood were spent in learning by heart the inspired scriptures
from the lips of some older priest, in tending the sacred fire, or in attending to the personal
wants of their revered teacher. These studies completed, the young man married and brought
up a family, so gaining a practical knowledge of the world and of human nature. To this
perio-l the third stage in his life was a strange contrast; for he retired into the forest, feeding
on roots, and practising certain religious rites. The last stage was that of the ascetic or
religious mendicant, quite out of touch with mundane affairs, and striving to attain a condition
of mind which, heedless of the joys or pains of the body, is intent only on its own perfection
and the attainment of peace. He became one of the holy men so well described by Mr. Kipling
in his wonderful and enchanting "Jungle-Books" (see " The Miracle of Purun Bhagat"). He ate

Photo bij Messrs. \Yatts A-

A CORMGHI WOMAN, MADRAS.

{Rangoon.

A MA i:\v.\i: I.

A MULTAXI.

r

^

fcfiL

AN AJMIK MOHAMMEDAN.

A JIKAHMAN I'KIKST.

Photos li\i MH..-IX. llii'ii-iii .1- shepherd}

A MADItASI.

A FAKIK.
207

I

A DELHI MOHAMMEDAN.

A HKAHMAN.

•-

A I1HATIA.

[Bombay.

208

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

only what was given to him. All
through life he practised a strict
temperance, drank no wine, and set
an example to others of "plain living
and high thinking." For ''what is
the world?" said a Brahman sage.
"It is even as the bough of a
tree, on which a bird rests for a
night, and in the morning flies
away."

Doubtless a certain number of
individuals out of such a large class
would find the yoke a hard one, and
might relapse into worldliness. This
has happened to a certain extent;
and, moreover, the struggle of life
in modern times has forced very
many of these sacred persons to take
up secular pursuits. But all Sanskrit
literature bears witness to the fact
that this ideal life was constantly
before the eyes of the Brahmaus, and
that they did to some considerable
extent live up to this high standard
in its two essential features of self-
culture and self-restraint. Certain
incidents recorded in the history of
Buddha in the sixth century before
Christ show that numbers of Brahmans.
were then living according to the
rules of life laid down for them.
Three centuries later the Greek
ambassador Megasthenes found them
discoursing in their groves chiefly
on subjects such as life and death.
To this day they have their colleges,
and English visitors to these retreats
are struck with the strict discipline
enforced and the devotion of the
students to their studies.
Brahmans marry only within their caste; they become fathers when in their prime; and
not being called upon for military service, they have not lost any of their best and strongest
sons in war. Hence their best qualities have been transmitted in an ever-increasing measure
to their descendants. The Brahmans of to-day, therefore, present to us the result of nearly
3,000 years of hereditary education and self-restraint, and the result is that they have
produced quite a distinct type. Even the passing traveller in India marks them out
both from the muscular and athletic Rajputs, or warrior class, and from the dark-skinned,
thick-lipped, and short aborigines (Dravidians and Kolarians). The class has become the ruling
power, not by force of arms, but by superior mind and the effects of culture and true
temperance. Dynasties rose and fell; conquests took place; religions, such as Buddhism, have
spread themselves over the land and disappeared; but the Brahman has calmly ruled, swaying
the counsels of kings and princes, and receiving the homage of the people, as beings half

Photo by Messrs. Bourne <& Sfiepkerd]

AN EXECUTIONER OF REWA.

Photo by )!'. Gregory & Co.]

AN INDIAN PRINCE WHO ATTENDED THE QUEEN'S JUBILEE, 1897.

209

[Strand, W.C.
27

2IO

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

divine. But we have not yet awarded them the full
measure of praise which is undoubtedly their due. For
their own Aryan people they developed a noble literature.
Not only were they priests of their people, but
also their philosophers, statesmen, law-givers, men of
science, and even poets. Nor could the lower and
aboriginal race fail to share in the general upward pro-
gress. To these barbarians, survivals of the Stone and
Bronze Ages (so called), they brought a knowledge of
metals and higher religious teaching in the place of a
mere belief in demons. Within historic times the
Brahmans have largely incorporated the aborigines within
the folds of an all-embracing Hinduism, though not
without some concessions to their primeval notions.

But let us look at the other side of the picture.
A Brahman sees nothing humiliating in asking for or
receiving alms. According to his ideas, it is a right
of which he may make free use. His attitude when
begging is also very unlike that of the poor wretch
among ourselves who fawns and grovels for the smallest
trifle. The Brahman asks for alms as for something
that is his due, and not as though imploring a favour
or a benefit. The begging Brahman boldly enters a
house and states what he wants. Should he receive
anything, he takes it without saying a word, goes away
without any acknowledgment, and without showing the
smallest sign of gratitude. Should he meet with a
refusal, however, he retires without any complaint or
grumbling.

Intense selfishness is also a common characteristic
of a Brahman. Brought up in the idea that nothing is
too good for him, and that he owes nothing in return
to any one, lie models the whole of his life on these
principles. He would unhesitatingly sacrifice public good
or his country itself if it served his own interests, aud
he would stoop to treason, ingratitude, or any deed,
however black, if it promoted his own welfare. ' He
makes it a point of duty, not only to hold himself
aloof from all other human beings, but also to despise
and hate from the bottom of his heart every one who happens not to be born of the same
caste as himself; and, further, he thinks himself absolved from any feelings of gratitude, pity,
or consideration towards them. If he occasionallv shows any kindness, it is only to some
one of his pwn caste. As for the rest of mankind, he has been taught from his earliest
youth to look upon them all as infinitely beneath him. The Brahmans number more than
4,500,000.

Perhaps there is no country in the world where religious fanaticism is carried so far as in
India. Devotees are often seen stretched at full length on the ground, and rolling in that
posture all round the temples, or during the solemn processions before the cars which carry
the idols. It is a remarkable sight to see a crowd of fanatics rolling in this manner quite
regardless of stones, thorns, and other obstacles. Others, inspired by extreme fanaticism,
voluntarily throw themselves down to be crushed under the wheels of the car on which the
idol is borne (this has now been prohibited bylaw); and the crowds that witness these acts of

PliOto 4y .I/;-, Fi-nl. liniiui,r\ \qnMa.

A NATIVE FROM THE AFGHAN-BALUCH

FRONTIER.

INDIA

211

madness, far from preventing them, applaud them heartily, and regard them as the very acme
of devotion. Some devotees are to be met with who make a vow to walk with bare feet on
burning coals. Very few escape from the ordeal with their feet uninjured. Others pierce both
cheeks with silver wire. Thus bridled, the mouth cannot be opened without acute pain. Many
havo been known to travel for twenty miles with these wires in their jaws. Some fanatics will
cut out half their tongue. Again, there are others who bind themselves to go on a pilgrimage
to some distant shrine by measuring their length along the ground throughout the whole
distance. Beginning at their very doors, the pilgrims stretch themselves on the ground,
rise again, advance two steps, again lie down, again rise, and continue this until they reach
their destination.

In India there are thousands of men living a life of religious contemplation who never do
any work, but are supported by alms. Fakir is one of the names by which these holy men
are known (see illustrations on pages 199, 200, 202, and 203). They sit under trees or
among the tombs, or live together in monasteries. They are not all of one religion; for while
some are Hindus, others are Sikhs, or even Mohammedans. According to Mr. William Crooke,
however, the fakir is often an "idle, loafing vagabond, who wanders about the country begging
alms. In the North-western Provinces there are no less than 2,000,000 of these sturdy
beggars." It is only fair, however, to add (as Mr. Crooke himself informs us) that there is
another class of fakirs who
live in monasteries, devoting
themselves to religious
meditation, and who do not
beg. Many of them are
quiet and worthy people.

The Egyptians con-
sidered that to kill, even by
accident, one of their sacred
animals was the most heinous
of crimes. Whoever was
guilty of such an act was
invariably put to death. A
Roman soldier was torn in
pieces by the populace, in
spite of the terror that the
name of Rome inspired, for
having by mischance killed
a cat. Diodorus, who records
this incident, also mentions
that daring the famine the
Egyptians preferred to devour
each other rather than touch
the animals they held sacred.
The Hindus would also carry
their scruples to the same
point. In whatever straits
they may be, they would
prefer to die rather than
save their lives by killing
cattle. From this we may
conclude that, though they

daily witness the slaughter n,ito ,HJ „,. A.,,, ,.„,,„,„, ,.,
"f the sacred animals by NATIVES FROM THE AFGHAX-HALUCH FRONTIER.

212

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

Photo by Jlr. Frtd. Bremner]

AN AFGHAN WOMAN AND CHILD.

[Quetta.

Europeans without uttering
any loud complaint, they
are far from being insensible
to the insult; and although
they do not now openly
revolt, on account of the
fear inspired in them by
foreigners, their indigna-
tion is none the less
because secret. " Pious
Lingayats have often come
to me," says the Abbe
Dubois, " imagining that my
title of European priest
gives me great influence
over my fellow-countrymen,
to implore me, in earnest
terms and even with tears
in their eyes, to do every-
thing in my power to put
a stop to the sacrilege. In
states which are still ruled
by heathen princes, on no
pretext whatever is it per-
mitted to kill a cow. In
fact, this act of sacrilege,
so hateful to Hindus, is
only permitted in provinces
where Europeans or Moham-
medans hold swav."

AFGHANISTAN AND BALUCHISTAN.

THE Afghans are a fine race, tall and well built, with somewhat aquiline nose and a warlike
countenance. Within recent times many of them have migrated into the Punjab and seized
territory there; not a few of them now serve in the native army of India. Although famous
for courage, their discipline is not so good as that of Sikhs or Kajputs. If we compare the
national character and customs of the Rajputs of India with those of the Afghans in their own
country, we find a very remarkable similarity. Both exhibit a warlike spirit, are strongly
averse to control, addicted to vice and debauchery, unstable, proud, jealous of national honour
and personal dignity, and domineering. With regard to customs, we find pretty much the
same laws of hospitality, protection to the refugee, exaction of vengeance, jealousy of female
honour, and widows marrying the dead husbands' brothers. Again, in physiognomy there is a
striking resemblance, both possessing a decidedly Jewish type of countenance. According to
a native tradition, Syria was the home of the Afghans until Nebuchadnezzar carried them into
captivity and planted them as colonists in parts of Persia and Media. Hence they appear to
have migrated eastwards into Ghor, a mountainous country, whore they received the names " Bani
Afghan," or " Children of Afghan," and " Bani Israel," or " Children of Israel." This theory of
their origin seems to be confirmed by the testimony of Esdras, the prophet, who says that
the captured ten tribes escaped and took refuge in the country of Arsareh, which may be the
Hazarah country of which Ghor is a part. There is other testimony to the same effect. At
present no one can say at what period the Afghans of Ghor moved on into the Kandahar country.

AFGHANISTAN AND BALUCHISTAN

213

By the people of India, Afghans are called Pathaus, in common with all the Pukhto-
speaking peoples, who use the word in a very wide sense; but the people themselves use it
in a very restricted sense. The former include under this general term even the Tajik and
the Ilazarah, both Persian-speaking peoples. The latter apply it only to Pukh to-speaking races,
and even then with a distinction. Patliau, then, means Pukhtun. "The sections themselves
are divided into a multiplicity of minor branches, septs, and clans, offering still further obstacles
to a general amalgamation of the whole race. And the race itself is everywhere opposed to
other races speaking different languages, such as Tajiks, Hindkis, Usbegs, Siah-Posh Kafirs,
llazarus, and Aimaks, which, although numerically inferior, possess greater national cohesion,

Photo by Mr. Fred.

[(juetta.

BRAHfIS OF AFGHANISTAN.

and which in some cases have been able to maintain their independence. But for these
untoward circumstances the Afghan race, by its warlike spirit and remarkable physical
vitality, miglib seem destined to subdue the surrounding peoples. But their national resources
have hitherto for the most part been frittered away in internecine broils and struggles for the
local independence of individual chiefs and tribes" (Keane).

.Mr. Bellew, in his ''Races of Afghanistan," says: "Looking at the Afridi as we find him
to-day, it is difficult to imagine him the descendant of the mild, industrious, peace-loving,
and contemplative Buddhist, abhorrent of the shedding of blood or destruction of life of even
the minutest or meanest of God's creatures; or even to imagine him descended from fire-
worshipping ancestors, whose tender care for life was almost equal to that of the Buddhist,
and whose sincere and punctilious devotion to the observance of the minute ceremonies and
ordinances of their religion was surpassed by none. The Afridi of to-day, though professedly
a Mohammedan, has really no religion at all. He is, to a great extent, ignorant of the

214

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

tenets anil doctrines of the creed lie professes, and, even if he knew them, would in no wav
be restrained by them in pursuit of his purpose. Whatever lie may have been as a Buddhist
or as a fire-worshipper, he has now sunk to the lowest grade of civilisation, and borders upon
the savage. Entirely illiterate, under no acknowledged control, each man his own kinjr, the
nation has dwindled down to a small community of less than 300,000 souls, mostly robbers and
cut-throats, without principles of conduct of any kind, and with nothing but the incentive of
the moment as the prompter to immediate action. Even among his own nationality (t-he
Pathan) he is accounted the faithless of the faithless, and is held on all sides to be the
most fierce and stealthy of all enemies. As we know him, merely in the character of an
independent neighbour, he is a wily, mistrusting, wolfish, and wilful savage, with no other
object in life but the pursuit of robbery and murder, and the feuds they give rise to."

Photo by Messrs. Bourne & Shepherd]

AKKIDIS.

[Bombay.

The writer of the above work (published in the year 1880), so well known to all students
of Indian ethnology, makes a remarkable prophecy with regard to these Afridis, and one which
a year or two ago was so completely fulfilled that we feel sure his warning will interest our
readers. lie says: "The result of thirty years' contact with them has in no way attached the
people to us, nor has the example of British rule made any visible change in their condition,
except perhaps in enabling them, through our own neglect to protect ourselves manfully, to
become the best armed of any of our frontier tiibes. We shall have some day to conquer
this people and annex the country, and we shall then find what a born race of marksmen can
do with our own Enfields and Sniders and Martini-IIenris in their hands, — partly acquired by
a weakness the Afridi has for enlisting into our native army and then deserting, and quite
naturally taking his arms with him; but mostly by clever theft in the barracks of every
newly arrived regiment, European or native."

On the southern slopes of the Ilindu-Kush Mountains and near to Kashmir are the

1'ttotQ uy Mr. j-i»f.

CIIIKKS (IK HAI.rCHlSTAX.

815

2l6

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

territories of Kafiristan, Gilgit, Chitral, Swat, and Clulas, hitherto supposed to owe allegiance to
the Afghans. But all except Kafiristan, which the Afghans have now occupied, have come under
British rule. Very little was known of Kafiristan ("Land of the Infidel'') before Mr. (now Sir)
G. T. Robertson's expedition of 1889-90, and his journeys were in the eastern and central parts
only; but he has collected valuable information. In his opinion the people appear to be mainly
derived from the old Indian population of Eastern Afghanistan, who, rejecting Islam, took refuge
in the almost inaccessible mountain valleys of the Hindu-Rush, and mixed more or less with
the dark aborigines, who are still represented by the Presuns, Arams, and others, while they
themselves have received the name SiaU-Posli, or " black-clad," on account of the dark colour of
their clothing. The two types are still clearly to be discerned: the one (Aryan) with high and
regular features; the other coarse, flat-nosed, and with hair nearly down to the eyebrows. The
Siah-Posh are a brave and intelligent people, living under a tribal system.

The inhabitants of Baluchistan, often called Baluchis, are decidedly different from Pathans,
both in character and in appearance. They are brave and chivalrous, essentially wanderers,
not very energetic, and always needy and hungry. Though less democratic in their ideas than
the Pathaus, they are even fonder of their personal liberty. The ruling race, however, in
Baluchistan are not the Baluchis, but the Brahuis, who were in the country before them, and
are more numerous. The affinities of the Brahuis have not yet been determined. They
inhabit the eastern highlands, while the Baluchis dwell mainly in the lowlands. The latter
have migrated into the Punjab; hence we were able to obtain the excellent photographs of a
group of them by Mr. Fred. Bremner, of Quetta. Both races are Mohammedans, the Braliuis
being Suunis and the Baluchis Shiahs, like their Persian kinsmen.

Photo by Fred. Bremner']

CHIEFS OF BALUCHISTAN.

[Qttetta.

CHAPTER X.
TURKESTAN, BOKHARA. SIBERIA, AND PERSIA.

TUBKESTAH.

THE population of this great region is composed of different races, so blended together as
to produce a type differing in important characteristics from the primary stocks, both Turki
and Iranian. The Turki branch of the great Mongolo- Tartar division of the human species,
which is the predominating one, occupies nearly all Turkestan. The population is estimated
at 5,500,000, of whom Iranians, of Persian stock, constitute one-fifth, while the Galchis, another
distinct people, though related to the Iranians, number about 300,000 in Ferghana, Zarafshan,
and the valleys of the Upper Oxus.

In prehistoric times the Turki
races were nomad tribes, wandering
over the plains and uplands of
their country. Warlike and fond
of freedom, they sought only pas-
turage for their flocks and herds.
Their arable tracts and the cities
they built (as, for example, Khiva,
Bokhara, Ferghana, and Samarcand)
were of old, as they are now, the
joint home of men belonging to
the Turki and Persian races. For
centuries a considerable inter-
mingling of these races has been
going on, with the result that the
original types have become so much
modified as to be hardly distin-
guishable in the general mass,
although some typical features may
appear as strongly marked in in-
dividuals of the mixed race as in
either Turk or Persian of the purest
blood. The people of both races
are divided into a great number of
tribes, and each tribe is again split
up into clans or families.

The principal tribes of Turki
stock are the Kirghiz, the Turko-
mans, and the Usbegs (described on
page 222). The Kirghiz are divided
into two branches — namely, the
Kirghiz-Kazaks and the Kara-

2l8

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

Kirghiz, who together number about
3,000,000. The Kara-Kirghiz, or
"Black Kirghiz," who live on Great
Pamir and the Tiaushan Highlands,
number only about 300,000. The
Kirghiz-Kazaks themselves have never
used the name Kirghiz, which was
given them by the Russians in order
to distinguish them from their own
Cossaks. They are the lowlauders;
while the Kara-Kirghiz are the high-
landers, who have largely wasted their
energies in fighting among themselves
and with the Kirghiz-Kazaks, who
exercise the authority of lords and
owners over the vast steppes extending
from the Lower Volga to Zungaria,
and from the head-waters of the
streams that flow northward to the
shores of the Sea of Aral. The
Kirghiz-Kazaks are considered to fill
an intermediate position between the
Turki and Mongol races, possessing
many physical traits in common with
the Mongolian, but speaking a pure
Turki dialect. Originally they were
divided into three septs, or "hordes."
The Middle Horde retained the cities
Tashkend and Turkestan; the Great
Horde moved to the east; and the Lesser Horde to the west and north.

In the year 1734 the subjugation of the Kirghiz-Kazaks by the Eussians began; but
more than a hundred years of intermittent war and constant persecution were required to
make these wild wanderers of the plain recognise that they were in conflict with a mighty
and constantly increasing power, to which they must surrender some, at least, of their indepen-
dence. These people are generally short of stature, with round, swarthy faces, short noses,
small, sharp black eyes, and the tightly drawn eyelids which are seen in all races derived from
primary Mongolian stock. Flocks and herds are their only wealth. The summer they spend
on the higher slopes of the mountains where pasture can be found; in winter they descend
to the valleys. Members of the same tent-village, which they term an aid, are generally
kinsmen, and their flocks may graze on the same lands. So hardy are these people that they
can go without drink for a whole day and without food for several days. They are very fond
of mutton, but at their great feasts horse-flesh is eaten. Having no bread, they sometimes
make a kind of porridge of millet. Tea is a favourite beverage, but koumiss may be called
the national drink. It is made of mare's milk fermented, and is preserved in skins. Travellers,
say it is very wholesome, and many medical men in England recommend it to consumptive
patients.

The men all shave their heads and allow their small beards to grow. They wear immense
baggy breeches and a coarse shirt, the most noticeable feature of which is the wide, flapping
collar. The outer garment is like a dressing-gown, and two or three of these are some-
times worn together, according to the temperature. Men who are rich in flocks and herds
have magnificent velvet robes, richly embroidered with gold and silver. Embroidered skull-caps
are worn, and over these oddly shaped hoods of sheep skin or conical felt hats. Belts, saddles,

By permission of the Royal Geographical Hociely.

A KARA-KIRGHIZ WOMAN.

A KII«iIIIZ MAN OF TASUKEND.

A KIHGHIX MAX, DISTRICT
OF SEMIRETCHENSK.

A KAKA-K1HGIIIZ, DISTHICT
OP SEMIRETCHEXSK.

AN USItKi; MAX, DISTHICT OF
XAKAFSHAN.

AN USBEO WOMAN, DISTHICT OF
ZARAFSHAN.

A TAJIK MA.V OF TASHKKND.

A TAJIK WOMAN OF TASUKEND.

A TAK.YXCMA M\\. DISTHICT A 1AIJANCIIA WOMAN, DISTHICT

OF KULJA. OF KULJA.

/iirmitfion of the Jloyal Geographical Society.
319

22O

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

and bridles are often covered with silver, gold, and precious stones. The women dress nearly
like the men; but instead of wearing felt hats, their heads and necks are wrapped up in loose
folds of white cotton cloth, so as to make a bib and a great turban combined. The women
do most of the work, the men being lazy. Girls watch the sheep at night.

Owing to the simple conditions of their lives, the Kirghiz-Kazaks are far more truly
children of Nature than most Asiatics. The men are great riders, being able to travel
hundreds of miles without apparent fatigue. Spending their time mostly on horseback, they
acquire an intimate familiarity with all the aspects of the plains and hills. Their powers
of vision are most remarkable; and being very observant, they are invaluable guides for
travellers. They can find their way at night without the aid of the stars, and are able to
distinguish the colour of a horse on the horizon long before the stranger can discern its
presence there.

Marriage is purely a matter of barter; betrothal takes place at an early age. Sometimes
the bride costs her husband as much as 100 mares, but never less than twenty-seven. In
1868 the Russian Government gave to brides the right of withdrawing from wedlock with
bridegrooms to whom they had been engaged in extreme youth. The men for a long time

kept the women ignorant of this
law; but when it was published, a
number of brides came forward to
claim their freedom. In old days a
woman who wished to be free from
her husband was obliged to run away
from him three times. Then, if upon
inquiry it could be proved that she
had been harshly treated, the marriage
was dissolved.

At the birth of a child an
assembly of old women employ magic
rites to keep off evil spirits, and in
order to propitiate them part of the
flesh of a freshly killed lamb or sheep
is thrown into the fire. A boy baby
is greeted with joy; but the arrival
A KIRGHIZ BED. of & gjri js feit as a burden and a

misfortune.

When a death takes place, the body is well washed, dressed in clean white clothes,
wrapped in linen and felts, and carried with but little delay to the grave. The ground is
dug out to a depth of three feet, the spot is marked with a stone, and mourners visit the
grave for forty days after the interment.

Religion is scarcely more than a name. The people profess themselves Mohammedans, but
very few have any fixed religious principles. There is no settled and recognised priestly order.
They rarely pray; and such notions as are entertained concerning things supernatural are
nearly all derived from older paganism and contemporary Shamanism, which is a species of
Nature-worship, with Sharnans or wizards to officiate and to interpret signs and omens.

Prom the earliest accounts Turkomans appear as a plundering nomad race, who were never
politically organised. "We are all equal," they say; "with us every man is a king." The
title of khan among them is little more than honorary. As their name implies, they are of
Turki stock. The number of these people is estimated at over 600,000. They are divided
into nine sub-tribes, each of which is independent of the others, though all recognise a
common origin. A feeling of brotherhood prevents anarchy. The Turkoman was till recently
a slave-dealer, selling Persians, whose caravans he waylaid in Khiva and Bokhara. In 1881
the Russians destroyed the military power of the Turkomans by capturing their principal

Photo by M. Labbe]

U'an

BOKHARA

221

fortress, Geok-Tepe, when 20,000 people were slaughtered, and the "White Czar'' has since-
repressed slave-dealing. They are a brave, hardy race, naturally averse to restraint, preferring,
a free life on the steppe to the routine and method of a city.*

BOKHARA.

Ijf Bokhara we find Usbegs, of Turki stock, and Tajiks, Avho represent the original Iranian
element, differing in many respects from the Persians. Bokhara, though nominally independent,
is so completely dominated by Russia as to be practically part of her empire. Few states of
its small size contain a population so heterogeneous; for besides the Usbegs and Tajiks there
are Arabs, Persians. Turkomans, and Jews. The population has been conjectnrally estimated at
abont 1,000,000. Most of the Usbegs in Bokhara are engaged in agriculture and inhabit
towns, but a few are still wandering nomads. Their manner is bold and straightforward. They
associate with Tajiks, but as yet no real friendliness exists between the tribes, although

* The author is again indebted to Mr. E. Delmar Morgan, F.R.G.S., for his kindness in allowing him to reproduce
here some of the excellent photographs taken for him during his travels in Eastern Turkestan. The originals are in the
possession of the Royal Geographical Society, the Council of which also kindly gave their permission.

TURKOMAN WOMEN.

222

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

intermarriage takes place to a certain extent. In appearance, as well as in character, they,
are readily distinguished. The Usbegs are taller and thinner, have but scanty beards (owing
to the Mongol strain in their blood), and much more strongly marked faces. They look
upon Tajiks as effeminate and time-serving, although the latter have intellectual qualities
which make them indispensable. The government is in their hands; their soldiers are brave
and dashing. In religion all are fanatical Mohammedans. The Usbegs cultivate with great

assiduity the music and poetry iden-
tified with their race. They arrange
mock battles to celebrate great occa-
sions, and are particularly fond of
horse-racing.

The Tajiks claim to be of Arab
descent; but physical traits, and the
fact that their language is a dialect
of Persian, prove them to be a branch
of the latter race. They came from
the west, and settled on the banks
of the Zarafshan River at a time when
the country was uninhabited, and only
a jungle of reeds was to be seen
where the town of Bokhara now
stands. In that city Tajiks consti-
tute the majority of the population,
and have won a reputation as enter-
prising and skilful traders. Their
peaceable disposition is attributed by
the Usbegs to cowardice. They are
known to be avaricious, faithless, and
deceitful. The Iranian type is appa-
rent in their faces; yet they differ
in some respects from Persians who
have settled in Bokhara within recent
times. They may be described as tall,
with handsome and regular features,
rather fair in complexion, with black
hair and eyes. The men cultivate
ample beards, and try to improve their

personal appearance as much as possible; yet their faces show an expression of shrewdness
and of cunning which excites suspicion in others. Most of them speak Turki, the language
of the Usbegs. Their intellectual superiority has secured for them a leading place in Bokharan
society. (See illustrations on page !il9.)

oennlssion of Hie Royal Geographical Society.

A DUNGAN WOMAN. PROVINCE OF KULJA.

SIBERIA.

THE native inhabitants of Siberia are said to number scarcely 750,000, excluding the Bashkirs,
who dwell west of the Ural River, and both the Kara Kirghiz and the Kirghiz-Kazaks, who
live mostly south of the Aralo-Caspian region. All the numerous native races, of which we
shall only describe a few typical ones, are being rapidly absorbed by the Russians, or Slavs.
None of them appear able to hold their own, except the Yakuts of the Lena Basin, and
the Kirghiz of the West Siberian Steppes. Ostiaks, Samoyedes, Giliaks, and others are fast
dying out. All these and many more aboriginal tribes belong to the Mongolo-Tartar division,
except the "Hyperboreans," who are as yet unclassified.

SIBERIA

223

Of Mongolian stock are the Kalmuks, including Ziingurs, etc., all Buddhists, numbering
about 20,000; the Buriats (eastern and western branches) about 250,000 in number.

Of Manchu stock are the Tunguses, including Lamuts, Oroches, Golds, Duugans, etc.,
about 80,000.

Of Finnic stock are Samoyedes, including Soyots, and others, about 35,000; Ugrians, including
Ostiaks, 25,000; and Voguls, 4,500; and, lastly, mixed Fiuno-Tartars, to the number of 5,000.

Of Turki stock are Yakuts, Red and Black Tartars, etc., about 280,000.

By pwittitsio

DUNGAXS OF KULJA.

Finally (leaving out Russians, Chinese, Manchus, Koreans, and Japanese), we have some
unclassified races, such as Koriaks, Chukchis, Kamchadales, Giliaks, and Eskimo.

Kal muks are found in Eastern Turkestan (the Tarim Basin) as well as in Siberia. They are
Buddhists by religion; Lamas are their priests. At the yearly festival, held at a place called
Joh, the bones of defunct Lamas, brought from all quarters, are boiled in a huge cauldron.
On this occasion (according to the testimony of the late Sir T. D. Eraser's " Report on the
Indian Government Mission to Yarkand '') two or three aged Lamas always sacrifice themselves
by jumping into the boiling liquor. At the conclusion of the festival the liquor is distributed
among the attendant Lamas, who fill copper vessels, which they afterwards carry about
suspended from their girdles. On returning home, they distribute the liquor to other Lamas,

224

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

who again fill smaller
copper vessels with it; and
when a Lama eats, he first
dips a wood pencil into
his little copper bottle and
passes it across his tongue.
At the present day
the Kalmuks number
about 20,000. In personal
appearance they are ugly,
and those who have deal-
ings with them consider
them cunning, dishonest,
and drunken. The men
are excellent horsemen,
and breed camels for the
Tiflis market.

By i>efnti#tio/t of the lloyal (rettffrapMcul Xociefy.

A GROUP OF SARTS AND DUNCANS, WITH CART (OR " ARIiA.S ").

The Mongolian race
in Siberia is best repre-
sented by the Buriats, who possess its typical features and characteristics in a more marked
degree than the Kalmuks. Their physiognomy undeniably proclaims their origin. They have
very large skulls, square faces, and low, flat foreheads; the cheek-bones are high and wide
apart, the eyes elongated, the nose is flat, the skin swarthy and yellowish, and the hair jet
black. With the men the hair is allowed to grow upon the crown of the head, and is plaited
into a queue that hangs down at the back. The hair around the crown is cut as closely
as possible, but not shaved off. The women wear their hair in two thick braids, which fall
from the temples to below the shoulders; and the unmarried girls interweave their hair with
strings of coral.

The Buriats have been long settled on both sides of Lake Baikal. The two great
branches of the Buriats, distinguished as the east branch and the west branch, according to
the side of the lake they occupy, number 250,000, the highest number assigned to any of
the natives races of Siberia. They are divided into eleven principal tribes, each of which is
again divided into clans or families. Previously to their subjugation by the Russians all were
addicted to the old Shamanist religion of Siberia; but towards the close of the seventeenth
century those dwelling east of Lake Baikal adopted Buddhism, while most of the others
conformed to the Orthodox Greek Church and became Christian, in name at least — though, it
is said, both branches are still, at heart, genuine Shamanists.

The Buriats are of a decidedly phlegmatic temperament. They lack the active enterprise
from which greatness is usually developed, and they have such an inborn disinclination for
work of any kind that sometimes only the stimulus of hunger will move them to exertion.
Through the Russians, with whom they have long had considerable intercourse, they have,
unhappily, acquired a passionate .love of strong drink and tobacco, and now one may often
come across children eight or nine years old with pipes in their mouths.

The ordinary occupation of the Buriats is that of tending cattle. Mr. Lansdell mentions
some rich Buriats who possessed 6,000 or 7,000 sheep, 2,000 head of horned cattle, and 200
horses; while Captain Cochrane tells of the mother of a Buriat chief who owned 40,000 sheep,
10,000 horses, and 3,000 horned cattle, beside a large property in furs. Though they are
commonly unsociable and phlegmatic, there is no ground for assuming that the Buriats lack
intellectual power. The English missionaries taught some of them Latin, and prepared in
the Buriat language an elementary work on geometry, which is still much appreciated. One
class of the Lamas among the Buddhistic Buriats study and practise medicine, in which they
acquire a reputation for skill. Those of the Buriats who are Buddhists— and they are by far

SIBERIA

225

the greater number of the people — have temples, ritual, an order of priests, and a considerable
literature. Those who are Christians are not less endowed intellectually, and their number is
increasing. Most travellers glance only superficially at what has been done and what is being
done by the English Mission to the Buriats, and conclude without sufficient evidence that
its efforts must be necessarily futile. Mr. Lansdell, however, has shown that, years ago,
the English missionaries laid a solid foundation. They taught and trained several Buriat
scholars, and they translated the Scriptures into the Buriat tongue, which translation the
Russian missionaries have in their hands to-day. The Russian missionaries of the Greek
Church count their converts by thousands. It has been ascertained that on the eastern side
of Lake Baikal, among the Buddhist Buriats, 300 converts and children are baptised each
year, and on the western side, where Shamanism prevails, the number annually baptised
exceeds 1,000.

Following the scheme of classification already set forth — a scheme which is based on that
of Keane — we come to the
tribes of Mauchu stock, in-
cluded under the general name
Tunguses.

The Tunguses hold an
enormous domain, stretching
from the Yenisei River to the
shore of the Pacific Ocean,
and washed at two points by
the waters of the Arctic
Ocean. Travellers who have
lived among them enthusias-
tically praise the many ad-
mirable qualities of these
people, and Mr. Keane asserts
that "there can be no doubt
that they are one of the very
noblest types of mankind."
They are of Manchu stock,
and number about 80,000,
divided into a great number
of tribes, who wander over a
far larger area than the men
of any other race in Siberia.
Those in the Valley of the
Yenisei give themselves to
the care of reindeer and to
the chase. M. Theel ssiys
they are by far the most in-
telligent of the natives on the
Yenisei, and that their rich
women (such as the wives
of chiefs) often wear furs of
beaver, sable, and grey fox to
the value of many hundred
pounds sterling. He men-
tions, as a proof of their

intellectual cultivation and

3f ptrmiMum m tin Km/id Geographical aocUty.

their taste, a hexagonal spindle DUKANI MENDICANTS.

226

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

A KALMUK WOMAN ON CAMEL.

of ivory which was presented to him there,
upon which the days, the weeks, and the
mouths of the year were represented by signs.
The southern tribes of the race have adopted
Buddhist doctrines; the northern tribes are
mainly Shamanist, or pagan, though many have
hearkened to the teaching of missionaries and
become Christians. They are partly nomads
and partly settled agriculturists and rearers of
cattle. Cheerful under the most depressing
circumstances, persevering, candid, and trust-
worthy, they are a fearless race of hunters, yet
modest and self-reliant. Born amidst the gloom
of their dense pine forests, they are not gloomy.
Exposed from the cradle to the grave to every
danger from wild beasts, rigorous climate, and
rapacious man, they are not repelled by any
difficulty. Want and hardships of every kind
they endure with surprising fortitude, and
nothing can induce them to quit their solitary
woodlands, where they cheerfully face the Arctic
terrors of their long winter rather than take
service under the Russians.

Among the principal animals which the
Tunguses hunt — whose furs they find marketable, and whose flesh is their food — are the sable,
the common fox, the white fox, the elk, the reindeer, the wolf, the bear, the ermine, and the
squirrel. At the beginning of October they start out on their snow-shoes, with the long,
supple bow and a sheaf of arrows, or perhaps one of the common, almost worthless guns with
which Russian traders supply them in exchange for the valuable spoils of the chase. Alone or
in company the hunter goes into the virgin forest, and is followed by a little sledge drawn by
dogs. The hunting of the elk is carried on to such an extent that in some years as many as
10,000 skins are offered for sale at Yeniseisk, after the Tuuguses have taken all they require
for tent-making, clothing, and other uses.

The Tunguses have no towns, no permanent villages, but live in tents of skin or of bark,
according to the season. They have little idea of the mineral wealth with which their
country abounds, though the many tons of gold procured there prove that a great part of the
Yenisei Valley is a veritable El Dorado. They spend their lives peacefully, yet industriously,
fishing in summer and hunting in winter, and on the whole, as we are justified in concluding,
happily.

Middendorff says that the senses of these people are highly developed, their sight being
extremely keen. But he found them incapable of distinguishing kindred colours— yellows and
greens, greens and blues. They could only recognise the strongest tints, and that after long
pondering. In their eyes all dark colours appear to be confused with black. They have but
few musical instruments. Rattles made of reindeer teeth, sables' jaws, roes' feet, hang by the
cradle of the Tungus baby to keep it quiet. In summer the people celebrate in song the feats
of ancestors and heroes, the return of the sun, and other themes. AVran gel calls them "the
Frenchmen of the tundra," on account of their liveliness, sociability, and courtly manners.
Their way of life is an admirable example of the social virtues. Castren calls them "the
nobility of Siberia."

From the people of Finnic stock we select for description the Samoyedes and the Ostiaks.
The Samoyedes are perhaps the most primitive and untaught of all the Siberians. Their
domain lies within the Arctic Circle, extending from the Khatanga River westward to the

A KAI.MUK WOMAN ( HULL-FACE) .

KAI.Ml'K CHII.DKKN.

Thf il/iiKli-iiliimx nf Kuliniil.* m'f from

A KAI.MIK MAN.
l»j ^f. Irn rn 1'ilil. I'm-i*

228

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

By permission of the Royal Geographical Society.

WOMEN OF TURKESTAN.

Kanin Peninsula, one of the most northerly points of Russia in Europe. They are usually
represented as dwelling wholly on lands abutting on the Arctic Ocean; but the eastern branch,
that found near the upper waters of the Khatanga Eiver, does not appear to have quite reached
the coast. Though only a dwindling remnant of a race, some of their natural qualities,
as well as the conditions under which they are developed, render the Samoyedes an interesting
people. In physiognomy they are strongly Mongolian; the expression is pleasant, though
rather sad. "We are indebted for the accompanying photographs to Dr. J. Szombathy, of
Vienna, who took the pictures himself, and who has written an important paper on these
people (Anthrop. Soc., Vienna). Their average height is above that of the Laplanders, and
their limbs are better proportioned.

The name Samoyedes has been given them by the Russians. They call themselves
Hasovo, which is equivalent to "men," and also Nyenech, with the same meaning. Their
immediate neighbours, the Ostiaks, call them Yergan-yach; the Voguls have another name for
them. Their riches consist of reindeer, which pasture on the mosses of the tundras, or vast
marshes, scraping off the snow with their feet. When alive, the reindeer draws the Samoyede's
sledge, and after death its flesh is eaten and its skin is used for making tents and clothing.
Almost every part of the animal is used in some way.

In winter the men wear short trousers of reindeer-skin, coming down to the knees.
Their stockings are made of the skin of young fawns, with the hair worn inside. Then come

SIBERIA

229

the boots, which may almost be called boot-stockings, coming tip nearly to the thighs. The
tunic is a reversible garment, also of reindeer-skin, fastened at the waist with a girdle and
furnished with sleeves. It has a high, straight collar, which is sometimes worn so as to rise
above the top of the head. The cap is of the same material. In fine weather the tunic is
worn with the hair outside; in wet weather, with the hair inside. When a long spell of cold
weather comes, a second garment is worn.

Honesty is a marked characteristic of the Samoyedes. The merchants of Tobolsk, when
they go north in the summer to purchase fish, take with them flour and salt, place them in
the summer stations, and leave what they do not use for the following year. If a Samoyede
should pass by, and be in pressing want, he takes as much as he needs. But he leaves an
I.O.U. in the form of u notched stick. In the fishing season, when he can procure the
means to pay back, he goes to the merchant and asks for his notched stick, compares it with
a duplicate he has kept, and, having assured himself that the notches correspond, pays over
sufficient fish to cancel the debt.

Mr. Ilae, Mr. Seebohm, Mr. Lansdell, and Captain Wiggins, who have written interesting
accounts of their personal experiences among the Samoyedes, agree with other northern
explorers in describing them as a kindly and cheerful people, very hospitable, and generous
in sharing the things that
come into their possession.

The Samoyede is a peace-
able being, and eminently
sociable. He will travel a
long way out of his ordinary
course in order to visit a
tent where fellow- tribesmen
live. He is fond of gossip,
a characteristic of all races of
Mongol stock. He treats his
women with great respect.

The wealthier and less
wandering families of the
Samoyedes profess Chris-
tianity. This religion is in
fashion solely because it is
that of the Russians, who
are their masters, and whom
they dare not offend by
openly practising the rites of
the paganism which is still
cherished among them. The
difficulty of educating and
Christianising these wander-
ing tribes is exceedingly
great. A priest of the
Russian Church is sent yearly
among them to baptise
children and converts, and to
marry such of them as are
professedly Christian; but
though many go through the
form of being admitted within
the pale of Christianity, " all A GROUp OF SAMOYEDES.

Photo liij ./. Szombatliij}

[Vitnua.

230

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

alike," as Mr. Keane tersely says, "are true pagans, or idol-worshippers. Their gods are
carnivorous, and are fond of raw flesh, which is accordingly thrust between their teeth at stated
times." As long as things go well with him, the Samoyede is content to be regarded as a
Christian; but should his reindeer die or other catastrophe happen, he returns to his ancient
gods Num and Chaddi.

Of all the Christian teaching, that relating to marriage and chastity has the least influence
on converted Samoyedes, Tunguses, and others. An observer in Central Siberia writes as
follows: "The feeling of modesty seems to be entirely lacking here. Any one not accustomed
to this kind of life is so much shocked and degraded in his own eyes by what he is obliged
to see and hear, that he is ready to despise himself and the whole world. This lack of
modesty is furthered by the close contiguity in which married and unmarried persons -live."
Exchange of wives is a common form of hospitality. Brandy, the scourge of all the northern
races, makes trade very unprofitable to these peoples; for whenever it is wanted, traders and
whalers obtain any quantity of skins and walrus teeth for liquor of the very worst and
cheapest quality. Notwithstanding this weakness, Mr. Rae, who lived among them, expresses
a high opinion of the Samoyedes, considering them superior in generosity and general character
to the Russians who are found in their country.

The Ostiaks, one of the three tribes of Finnic stock inhabiting the most westerly part of

Siberia, are scattered about
in groups along the basin of
the Ob River, northward
towards the Arctic Ocean,
and eastward towards the
River Yenisei. In a wide
domain of about 400,000
square miles they do not
number more than 25,000,
though once accounted a
powerful people. Their old
national organisation is
broken up, and it is prob-
able that they will ultimately
be absorbed among the
Russian settlers, as only the
Ural Mountains, which are
comparatively near, divide
them from Russia in Europe.
They have now no towns or
villages, although they are
divided into many tribes.
Their dress is the same as
that of Russian peasants.
For food they are dependent
on the spoils of the chase
and the rlsh which are
plentiful in their rivers. The
Ostiaks are short of stature,
with dark hair and eyes and
flat faces. In complexion
and general appearance they
are not unlike some of the
Chinese. They are noted

Photo by J. SzomlMl/,1/]

A SAMOYEDE MAN AND WOMAN.

[ Vienna.

SIBERIA

231

A GROUP OF GOLDS.

among other Siberians
for the dexterity with
which they capture or
kill the wild reindeer
that roam over the
dreary tundras, or
marshes, of which their
domain largely con-
sists. They tie leathern
cords across the tops
of the antlers of tame
deer, and turn them
loose one by one when
in the neighbourhood
of a herd of wild
animals. The wild
deer attack the tame
deer, and in the con-
test which ensues their
antlers become en-
tangled in the leathern
cords, which hold them
until the Ostiak hunters come within bowshot, when the wild ones become their prey.

The wolf and the bear are regarded by the Ostiaks as highly gifted creatures, and as
such are celebrated in some of their songs. When a bear is killed, its skin is stuffed with hay,
and the people gather round their fallen enemy to celebrate their triumph with appropriate
songs of mockery; but when that ceremony has been performed, the stuffed skin is set upright
on its hind legs, and regarded with all the veneration due to a guardian power. The curious
worship of the bear, which is found among American Indians, Ainu, and others, runs through
all the Hyperboreans of the Old World. From the Tunguses to the Finns the bear takes
rank, immediately after the sky and the queen of the under-world, as a divine being, particularly
as the lord of all spirits, a god endowed with power and wisdom hidden under a bear's skin.
Many superstitions are connected with the beast, and women may not cross his trail, nor even
touch the hunting-gear.

The Ostiaks believe in a " third world," where there are no more bodily ailments; but
they cannot attain that heavenly state. They are fated to pass only into the "second world,"
a far less happy place of existence, lying somewhere beyond the frozen ocean, far north of the
estuary of their great river, the Ob. Belief in Shamanism governs their whole life. Nowhere
else does the wizard, or medicine-man, enjoy more influence than amongst them. The brave
man, they say, may possess muscular strength, but the Shaman possesses the wisdom which can
make that strength useless or effective. The man of strong sinew may draw the bow or hurl
the dart, but the course of tlie arrow or the spear is directed by the Shaman.

The people of Yakutsk, the largest province in Siberia, are of Turki stock, very energetic
and versatile. Their territory lies on both sides of the River Lena. Yakutsk is said to be the
coldest place on the face of the earth. During a part of the winter the thermometer goes
down to 58° Fahr. below zero, and the ground is frozen to a depth of 50 feet. So accustomed,
however, are the people to these low temperatures, that women may be seen with bare arms
chatting pleasantly, as if the weather were like that of an English, spring. The people are of
middle height, of a light copper colour, with -black hair, which the men cut close to the head.
Their faces express gentleness and indolence rather than the vigour and passion which they
certainly possess. As a race they are good-tempered, orderly, hospitable, and industrious.
They are capable of long-continued work, and endure privation with much patience. Their

232

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

winter dwellings are made of logs and wicker, caulked with cow-dung, and flanked with banks
of earth piled as high as the windows. The doors are made of raw hides. The windows are
sheets of ice or thin semi-transparent skin. If of ice, they are held in place by frost. Water
is poured around the edges, and quickly freezes. The fact that it takes a long time to melt
this natural fastening of ice is suggestive of what the temperature must be within the hut as
well as without. The fireplace consists of a wicker frame, plastered over with clay; the hearth
is made of beaten earth, and on it there is always a blazing fire of wood, which throws up
sparks to the roof. In summer the people live in tents.

If the Yakuts could choose their food from the limited variety the country affords, they
would prefer horse-flesh. They have an adage that it is the highest destiny of man to eat
much meat and grow fat upon it, and whenever circumstances permit they practically
demonstrate their belief in the adage by inordinate feeding. It used to be said that four

Yakuts could eat a horse!

Some travellers describe the Yakuts as pagans, but
those who have been most recently among them call
them Christians. The method of their conversion was
extraordinary. It appears that the Kussian priests of
the Greek Church being unable to make much headway
against their superstitions, a ukase was issued, setting
forth that the good and loyal nation of the Yakuts
were thought worthy, and were consequently admitted
into the Russian Church, to become a part of the
Czar's Christian family, and entitled to all the privileges
enjoyed by the rest of his children. This audacious
proclamation, it appears, was attended with extraordinary
success. The new Christians speedily adopted the faith
with which they were thus arbitrarily credited, and the
Kussiau priests have now established their sway over the
Yakuts, although the sorceries of Shamanism still in-
fluence their ordinary life.

The Giliaks, but few in number (about 5,000), are
representative of a different racial stock from that of
the more powerful tribes who inhabit adjoining lauds.
Their physique and temperament are Mongolian in
character. Their eyes are small, and sparkle with a dull
light. They have squat noses, thick lips, prominent cheek-
bones, and more beard than is generally found in people
of Mongolian stock. In stature they are diminutive.

The colour of the skin is tawny, like that of the Chinese. The hair is black, but not abundant;
it is tied up in a long tail, and neither shaven nor cut, as with the Manchus and Golds.

The country of the Giliaks is restricted to the region embraced in the Valley of the
Lower Amur to the Okhotsk Sea, and their villages are not numerous. Being farther from
the Manchus than the Tunguses, the Giliaks are wilder than the latter, and have a higher
idea of tribal and individual liberty. Acknowledging no master, they are governed wholly
by custom. They do not cultivate the land, but subsist entirely on fish. The flesh of
such animals as they may take in the chase is reserved for extraordinary occasions, when
with a little millet it converts what would otherwise be but an ordinary meal into a
sumptuous banquet.

Their summer clothing is made of the skin of salmon. The skin is stripped off the fish
with great dexterity, and by beating with a mallet the scales are removed and the skin is
made supple. The Giliak men and women dress very much alike, which indeed is true also
of the Golds, who are hardly distinguishable from the Giliaks in appearance, manners, and

GILIAK WOMAN.

A G1LIAK MAN.

A G1LIAK WOMAN.

TWO TUNGUSES.

TWO GOLDS.

234

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

customs. Among both peoples women occupy a low position. A blouse fastened in front is
the outer garb of both sexes; but a number of small metal disks, about the size of a sixpence,
fastened around the bottom edge of the garment, distinguishes the gentler sex. The blouse
of the men is confined round the waist by a belt, from which are suspended a number of
articles required for daily use. They consist of a large knife, a Chinese pipe, an iron
instrument for cleaning the pipe, steel for striking a light, a bone for smoothing fish-skins
and loosening knots, a bag of fish-skin for tinder, and a tobacco-pouch, which last article is
frequently made of the strong skin of the sturgeon.

The Russians have tried to Christianise and to educate the Giliaks, but their efforts have
not produced any satisfactory results. Neither the Giliaks nor the Golds have any written
signs, and they are as obstinate in their paganism as ignorance generally is in clinging to
the beliefs it has formed. They have many superstitions. They believe that the carrying of
fire in or out of a house, even in a pipe, is likely to bring bad fortune in hunting or fishing;
and they are fatalists. If one falls into the water, the others will not help him out, holding
that the accident is caused by a superior power, in opposition to whose will it would be both
wicked and futile to act.

The treatment of the dead varies among different sections of the Giliaks. Some tribes
burn their dead on funeral pyres, and build low frames over the ashes; others place the
bodies, wrapped in bark-cloth, into forks of trees, out of the reach of wild animals, until the
ground is prepared to receive them. The soul of the Giliak is supposed to pass at death
into his favourite dog, which is therefore fed with dainty food until the Shaman has prayed
the soul out again, when the animal is sacrificed upon the grave of its master, whose spirit is
supposed to exist in the nether-world in the same manner, following the same pursuits and
indulging the same tastes, as in the world above.

The Chukchis, Koriaks, and Kamchadales fill the Chukchi and Kamchatka Peninsulas,
and occupy a portion of Sakhalin and of the opposite mainland about the Lower Amur. In
former times the Chukchis lived almost entirely on their immense herds of reindeer, but now
so many of these have died that the people are obliged to hunt the seal and the walrus. They

are pagans and nominal
Christians, numbering
about 12,000.

The Koriaks may
be the parent stock of
all sub-Arctic races,
except the Hairy Ainu.
Some are nomads;
but others, who have
come in contact with
Russians, live in
villages. They number
about 5,000, and are
generally in poverty
and misery. Travellers
give them a very good
cbaracter. A harsh
word is never spoken
against their women,
and the children are
treated kindly. The
Koriaks rarely die a
natural death. When
no longer capable o^

A GltOUP OF GOLDS.

PERSIA

235

enduring the hardships connected with
their nomad life, they have no desire
to live; and so the aged are dispatched
(as in Fiji) by their considerate
children. The bodies of the dead
are burned. Though Shamanists in
religion, like most Siberian tribes,
they offer oblations, at least twice a
year, to ensure a plentiful catch of
fish and seals, and a prosperous season
generally. This is in addition to the
sacrifices offered by the Shamans, or
priests.

The Kamchadales, or aborigines
of the Kamchatka Peninsula, differ
both in language and in appearance
from their neighbours, the Koriaks.
They are nominally Christians, and
now number about 3,000, having been
greatly reduced by disease and famine.
Some of the northern islands of the
Kurile Archipelago also contain Kam-
chadales. Travellers speak favourably
of them. Their huts are scrupulously
clean inside. They spear the salmon
in summer, and cultivate rye, potatoes,
and turnips, and keep a few cattle.
In business they are mere children,
and a glass of spirits will tempt
them to part with the most costly
fur.*

TUXGUSES, WITH REINDEER.

PERSIA.

THE Persians once possessed an empire extending from the Bosphorus to the Indus. They
are often called Qajar, from the tribal name of the reigning dynasty. Now their country is
restricted to little more than half of the high tableland between the Tigris Valley and that
of the Indus. The total area of Persia, called by the natives Iran, is about 630,000 square
miles, and its population is estimated at 9,000,000. The Persian or Iranian group comprises
the inhabitants not only of Persia proper, but also of Afghanistan, Baluchistan, Bokhara, and
Central Asia generally. In Central Asia more traces are found of the old Persian language
than in Persia itself.

The two primary Asiatic types — viz. the Caucasian and the Mongolo-Tartar — meet in the
Persians. They are divided into so many different branches that at first sight the country
appears to be inhabited by several distinct races. The Tajiks, as the Persians call themselves,
the Kurds, the Luris, the Leks, and the Baluchis are all offshoots of the Iranian branch of
the Caucasian stem. There has been a copious blending with Turkish and Usbeg stocks, and
pure Iranian Persians must necessarily be rare.

*The author is greatly indebted to Professor Ham}', whose name is well known to anthropologists, for permission
to reproduce a number ,it valuable photographs of Siberian tribes in the Natural History Museum of Paris (see pages 2S2 to
237). Our thanks are also due to M. Pierre Petit, of Paris, for photographs of Kalmuks, as well as to Dr. J. Szombathy,
of Vienna, for the excellent photographs he kindly sent of Samoyedes.

236

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

The ancient Persians were celebrated
for manly beauty, tall stature, pleasing
faces, and the good looks of their women.
The modern Persians have not deteriorated
in this respect. In form they are tall
and graceful, with oval faces. Their
features are clearly marked and of Cau-
casian type, but suggesting delicacy rather
than strength. Their hair is black,
luxuriant, and glossy, while the eyes are
unusually attractive, being dark, full, and
luminous.

A gentleman who held a professional
appointment in Persia for many years,
and was intimate with people of all
classes, was favourably impressed by their
character. He describes the Persian as
easy-going, and always ready to make
things as pleasant as possible for every
one else. Unlike most Asiatics, he is
well disposed to the foreigner, extremely
hospitable, and fairly honest in his deal-
ings. Persians of pure blood have a quick
apprehension, a ready wit, and a persua-
sive manner. They are fluent in oratory,
and have more sense of beauty than the
Turks. As a parent the Persian is kind
and indulgent to his children, and as a
son he always pays the utmost respect
to his parents. He addresses his father
as "master," and unless requested to do
so will not sit down in his presence.
He never ceases to love and reverence his mother. So universal is the sense of filial devotion
that an undutiful son or daughter is hardly known in all the country. Respect for the aged
is general, and much charity is shown to the poor. Indeed, most of the rich have regular
pensioners — old servants or poor relations — who live on their bounty. There is no institution
in Persia corresponding to the English workhouse, yet in ordinary times death from privation
is unknown. On the other hand, it must be admitted that the Persian is a great liar. So
prevalent is lying in all ranks of society that it is hardly considered an insult for one man to
call another a liar. It may truly be said that the Oriental tendency to exaggerate is carried
to an extreme among the Persians.

Their culture, industry, readiness of address, and subtlety — in a word, the combination of
their good and bad qualities — have earned for the Persians the reputation of making first-rate
diplomatists, negotiators, and brokers. It is perhaps owing to their natural politeness and
vanity that titles are so extraordinarily common in Persia. " Mirza " (learned) is prefixed to
the name, or "Khan" or "Beg" appended. Pious people are styled " Hadji," the title given
to a pilgrim to Mecca; or " Kerbelai " or " Meshedi," from pilgrimages made to other places.
It must be admitted, however, that the Persians are cruel. For murder, theft, and political
offences savage sentences are imposed and carried out in a cold-blooded manner.

The Persian dresses so as to display his physical advantages in the best light. Men
generally wear an unstarched shirt of cotton, sewn with white silk; and when they can afford
it, elaborately embroidered round the neck. It is without collar, the sleeves are loose and

A GILIAK MAX.

PERSIA

237

without wristbands, and it seldom comes below the hips. The trousers, or zerejumah, of
the upper classes are made of cloth, while the lower classes have trousers of white, blue, or
red cotton. They are held up by a cord of red or green silk, worn round the waist. When
at work or when running, the working classes tuck up the ends of the trousers under this
cord, and leave the leg bare to the middle of the thigh. Over the shirt and zerejumah comes
the alka-luk, or closely fitting, collarless garment, open in the front and with sleeves tight to
the elbow. Above this is the coat, sometimes of coloured satin, gold-embroidered, or coloured
calico, according to the wearer's means. Like the alka-luk, it is open in front, and shows
the shirt. The length of the coat denotes the class of the wearer. The military and official
classes and upper servants of the nobility wear it short, not descending below the knee.
Priests, merchants, lawyers, doctors, and others wear it so long that it touches the heels.
The long juba, or cloth cloak, must also be mentioned. The kemmerbund, or belt, is a
characteristic article of apparel. Among priests, merchants, and traders it consists of muslin
or cotton cloth. Merchants and the literary class — the Mirzas — carry in it a pen-case and roll
of paper, while all classes use its folds as pockets. The priests generally wear a white turban,
and so also do many of the merchants. The national hat, however, is the kola. It consists
of dark cloth or sheep-skin over a pasteboard frame. The most expensive are made of the
black skin of the foetal lamb. The bulk of the people wear coloured lamb-skin or sheep-
skin hats with the wool long. Fashion in hats is constantly changing, but does not affect
their peculiar form except to increase or diminish the height by an inch or two.

The women also wear trousers, which, however, are very wide. Frequently each leg is
wider than the skirt of an ordinary gown. The trousers of ladies of high rank are made of
very rich material, such as gold brocade, and are decorated with pearls and other ornaments.
Persian ladies have been known to wear as many as ten or eleven pairs at once, one over
the other.

Chilian, (boiled rice) and pillau (also of rice), but in a greasy and pudding-like form,
are among the chief articles of diet in Persia. Fruit, sweetmeats, and sherbet are freely
taken. In spite of the Koran, which prohibits its use, wine plays a conspicuous part in
Persian life. Tobacco is consumed in large quantities by means of the narghileh, in which
the smoke is cooled
by being drawn over
water before coming
into the mouth.

In Persia air-
dried bricks are used
for building. These
bricks are often made
of earth or rubbish
from the roads, and
houses in conse-
quence do not last
very long. The bricks
of old buildings are,
however, used in the
construction of new
ones. " Houses,
palaces, and whole
villages are aban-
doned for a whim, on
account of evil prog-
nostics, or in case
of death " (Katzel). A GROUP OF GILIAKS.

238

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

The Iranians are the more intelligent part of
the population. To them chiefly are due the arts,
philosophy, science, and poetry for which Persia has
been famous for many centuries. Among them a
number of the ancient sect of fire-worshippers still
survive. These are the Guebres. They are a re-
markably pure race, for they have never intermarried
with other people. The Guebres are Parsis, the
word being derived from Pars, an ancient province
of Persia, from which the country takes its name.
Par si is the name given to the fire-worshippers
ill India, who, flying from religious persecution at
home, established themselves at Bombay.

Special mention must be made of the colony
of Nestorians, of whom there are about 30,000 in
the north-western provinces. They have become
distinguished among the sectarians of the world for
the devotion with which they have preserved the
doctrines of Nestorius, who was Patriarch of Con-
stantinople in the year A.D. 430. In Persia they
are called Nasranee. They are Chaldeans, and their
language as they speak it to-day is Chaldaic.

The Kurds of the north, one of the sub-tribes
of the old Iranic branch, are as rugged and wild in
character as the region they inhabit. They are the
most turbulent of the tribes over whom the Persian
ruler attempts to exercise authority. Their fierce
aspect is in keeping with the deeds of brigandage
and murder for which they are notorious. Though
classed as Iranian and apparently of Caucasian stock,
the Kurds are rather puzzling to the ethnologist.
Polak says of them, that in colour of hair, skin,
and eyes they are so little different from the
northern, especially the Teutonic breed, that they
might easily be taken for Germans. They are prob-
ably a mixed race. Professor Keane, speaking of
the Kurds of the Euphrates and Tigris Valley (which
is included in Turkey in Asia), says they appear to represent the aboriginal pre-Aryan race,
which at a remote period extended almost continuously from the southern slopes of the
Caucasus throughout the whole of the present Armenia, Luristan, and Kurdistan. He considers
them to be the Allophylian race spoken of by Herodotus. The word Kurd is doubtless a
corruption of Carduchi, whom Xenophon mentions as inflicting so much damage on the 10,000
Greeks retreating from Artaxerxes. The Kurds are wanderers, and to this day make their
winter quarters in the ramifying caverns where Xenophon found the Carduchi. They have a
reputation for honour as well as courage, and in Persia the Shah entrusts his safety to Kurdish
officers in preference to any others.

In Central and Southern Persia the more important of the Iranic tribes are the Luris
and Bakhtiaus. Together they number about 500,000, of whom at least 200,000 are Bakhtians.
They are brave and warlike, inhabiting the Bakhtian Mountains, and yield only a half-hearted
obedience to the Shah. They are very poor, and frugal in their diet. A former chief of the
Bakhtians broke through the primitive habits of his race. He built himself a palace at
Changanghove, and furnished it with articles imported from Europe. His style of living was

By permission of Messrs. A'twion <£ Co., 3, Fleet Street, E.G.
A PERSIAN HORSE SOLDIER.

From a f>h"i" /-/// /.y /f't^yan ACt Khun.

A PERSIAN DERVISH.
«M

240

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

By permission of Messrs. Newton tfe C'o., 3, Fleet Street, E.C.

A GROUP OF DERVISHES (RELIGIOUS MENDICANTS), PERSIA.

in strong contrast with that of his subjects, whose black goat's-hair tents were pitched in
hundreds on the hillsides and in the hollows of the surrounding country. It was his habit
every morning to take a certain pill supposed to have the power of preserving him from any evil.
It was made of ruby, the precious stone being ground fine and mixed with paste. Its virtue
failed to avert the catastrophe which closed the chief's career. He had secretly collected a
store of arms, and the Shah in time carne to suspect his ambitious projects. The chief of
the Bakhtians was accordingly invited to visit the Shah at his palace in Ispahan. Violating
the sacred rites of hospitality, the Shah caused him to be assassinated. Deprived of its
leader, the intended revolt of the Bakhtians fell through.

The Persians are for the most part Mohammedans of the Shiah sect. This is the most
fanatical of the Moslem sects. It denies the right of the first four Caliphs and their immediate
successors 'to the Caliphate, and asserts that Ali was the true successor of Mohammed. The
laws of the Persians are based on the precepts of the Koran.

CHAPTER XI.
ARABIA, SYRIA, PALESTINE, ASIA MINOR, AND ARMENIA.

ARABIA.

THE Arabs are generally regarded as the most interesting as well as the most picturesque
and romantic race of people in the East. Their country is the great south-western peninsula
of Sinai, having an area of 1,230,000 square miles. The population is about 5,000,000. These
low figures (in proportion to the vastness of Arabia) are explained by the fact that at least
420,000 square miles of the country are desert, unproductive, and uninhabitable.

The Arabs are one of the extensive Semitic families, differing from each other in some
details, but in all important racial characteristics essentially Caucasian in type. Few countries
contain a more homogeneous population. They are a remarkably handsome race, lithe and
well formed. The typical Bedouin of the desert has bronze-coloured skin, black coarse hair,
large eyes, dark and bright, aquiline nose, and features generally well shaped. The beard and
moustache are apt to be scanty. On the average the European excels the Arab in physical
strength. The inferiority of the Bedouin in height and bulk may be put down to the hardships
endured for generation after generation. The Arabs ai'e clean in their persons, and take great
care of their teeth, which are generally fine. Courage and temperance are the Arab's leading
virtues, while his chief failings are a lack of scruple in pecuniary dealings and a spirit

, m' .!/• **/-.». .V. n-Hm ,(• 1 t,, '•',. /•'"/ .v/-,,/, K.C.

PRISONERS AND JAILORS IN I'HISON-YAKD, NAR-HA-BAND, PERSIA.

241

242

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

of revenge. The basis of the Arab character is frauk and bold. His intellect is active, his
perceptive faculties acute, and his judgment sound. Vambery says, in contrasting the Arab
with the Turk, "The Turk is a man of religious sentiment only; the Arab is a religious
thinker." The jealous and fiery temperament of the Arabs has always been the source of feuds
among themselves. They are quick to resent any injury, and are extremely sensitive to the
slightest violation of established etiquette. Quarrels frequently arise which end in bloodshed.
Their code of law permits the shedding of blood to be atoned for by the payment of money
or property, otherwise the wild tribes would long ago have exterminated themselves. They
are kept back in the general march of progress by their want of organising power and
incapacity for combined action.

Hospitality is a leading trait of the Arab character; it is regarded as a sacred duty. The
most lawless Arab never fails in his obligations as a host. The life and property of a
stranger are always safe under his roof. Nothing will excuse a breach of this duty when
a guest has once rested his hand on the tent-pole of a Bedouin or tasted his bread and salt.
The Arab is eminently polite. Even the fierce nomads Lave a code of etiquette which
they rigidly observe. " Peace be with you " is the usual salutation. In towns, where
manners are naturally more ceremonious, the ordinary morning greeting is, " May your day be

white." That white is held to be
an emblem of good is further shown
by the customary answer, "May
yours be like milk."

The national dress is simple but
picturesque. The under-garment is
a long white shirt. Over this comes
a close-fitting tunic of silk or cotton,
according to the means of the wearer.
It is generally of a striped material,
and is gathered in by a girdle of
raw leather. Then comes the abba,
or cloak of camel's hair, black or
with broad white bars, through which
the arms are thrust. Eed shoes are
worn, pointed and turned up at the
toes. The head-dress is peculiar, but
highly practical and comfortable. It
is made of a piece of cotton or silk,
some 4 feet square, with yellow or
red stripes, fringed on two sides.
This is doubled triangularly and
thrown over the head, so that the
two long ends hang down over the
shoulders, and the third hangs down
the back. Round the crown of the
head is wound a double wisp of brown
camel's hair, partially twisted. The
string round the temples is a pro-
tection against sunstroke, while the
eyes can be shaded by drawing the
ends of the cloth over them. The
dress of the town-dwelling Arabs and

B» >w«n***o» qfMt«<r». Xwton & co., 3, Fleet strut, E.c of the South Arabian agriculturists

PERSIAN LADY IN iNDoon COSTUME. consists, for men, of a blue shirt

. \>tri<u, ,1- r./., :i. y-Vr,/ ,\f/,,t, i-'.t .

PERSIAN LADIES IN OUTDOOR COSTTMK.
243

244

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

, Fleet Street. E. C.

PERSIAN LADIES IN OUTDOOR COSTUME.

with loose sleeves, a white apron, and a blue head-fillet, round which is twisted a yellow
string. The women wear trousers and brightly coloured shifts. On their heads they wear
a kerchief, and over that a broad-brimmed straw hat. They are not veiled. The women are
fond of setting off their simple attire with silver earrings, and even nose-rings, and silver
bangles round the arm and aukle.

The weapons of the Arab consist as a rule of a short sword or dagger, a spear, and a
long flint-lock 'gun. He is proud of his weapons, and they are often handsomely ornamented.
In South Arabia silver mountings, often of a costly kind, are used, and the silver looks
particularly well against the dark skin of its owner.

The conditions under which the town-dwellers live naturally differ from those of their
nomad brethren. The houses in the more important towns are usually built two storeys or
more in height, with ranges of apartments opening into a square or inner court. Subterranean
rooms, called serdaubs, are occupied during the day, chiefly for shelter from the intense heat.
The flat roofs are used for the evening meal and for sleeping. "Arabia is the land of ruins.
The climate, the custom of building in stone, the need of protection, the delight in destruction,
have covered the land with the fragments of castles and walls; and no small part of the
population of Southern Arabia dwells to-day in the ruins of its forefathers' houses. There is
hardly a bit of high ground without relics of former buildings" (Ratzel). The nomads live
in tents, or in huts made of some light material, such as reeds or straw.

The food-stuffs of the Arabs consist of wheat, barley, and maize. Maize-porridge is eaten
in South Arabia. Oranges, melons, cucumbers, and many delicious fruits are abundant, but
the date is the chief article of food and the staple of commerce. It is sometimes called

ARABIA

245

"the bread of the land" and " the staff of life." Mohammed enjoined his followers to
"honour the palm-tree, for she is your mother." When fresh, the date is about the size of
a large plum, juicy and delicious. It bears no more resemblance to the date exported iu
boxes than does a fresh bunch of grapes to packed raisins. Coffee is not less associated with
the Arab's life than the indispensable date. The story goes that it was first discovered by a
wandering Arab who had made a fire beneath a wild shrub oil the edge of the desert. Soon
he inhaled a delicious fragrance which was new to him. He found that it came from the
roasted berries on the shrub, and to his curiosity we are all indebted for the inestimable
discovery of coffee.

The most important animals herded by these people are the horse and the camel. In
South Arabia donkeys are bred. These animals constitute their chief source of wealth.

Three classes of society are usually distinguished: viz. the townsfolk, who are mostly
traders and artisans; the semi-nomads, who live in tents or mud huts on the edge of the
desert; and the Bedouins, who roam about the plains. In South Arabia the distinction is
drawn between the Shereefs, who are descended from the Prophet; the families who belong to
the ruling classes; and, thirdly, the Bedouins. Below these again are the lower classes, the
Akhdams, who perform humble but necessary duties. They are generally despised, and their
work as tanners, potters, or butchers is supposed to unfit them for decent society. Ratzel
points out that even in Aden, where caste notions have no official validity, the Akhdams
inhabit their own quarter.

The sheikh is the head of the tribe among the nomads, and the title is hereditary. He
has the power of life and death, and the duty of making treaties with other tribes and
of settling disputes which arise in his own.

After rising in the morning, the Arab's first care is to perform his devotions, with much
apparent earnestness and humility. He then seats himself or squats on his carpet, where his
wife serves him with a chibouk, or pipe, and coffee with her own hands. She then retires to
a respectful distance, standing with hands crossed, till her lord's cup is ready. When it is
returned to her, she frequently kisses his hand, — a common mark of respect in the East; it
also serves to remind us that among the Arabs, as among other Moslems, woman occupies a

Photo by Le Grand.

ARAB CHILDREN.

246

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

very subordinate place. On the other hand, the Arab treatment of slaves is more enlightened.
The latter are regarded as members of the family. They dress like their masters, and are
not obliged to wear any badge of inferiority. They may acquire property, and, like the slaves
of ancient Eome, may buy their freedom with their savings.

In matters of art the Arab has not a very wide scope. He is restricted by the Prophet's
command not to imitate any living thing. It is due to this that geometrical lines are the
usual form of decoration, and very effective they are in all "Arabesque" work— e.g. the
Alhambra Palace. He has a genuine love of colour, which he displays on every possible
occasion. The earthenware pottery of which his scanty household utensils — water-jugs and
coffee-cups — are made is often handsomely decorated, and is a favourite subject for his
artistic skill.

In his courtship the Arab often displays a great deal of gallantry, though the chances for
meeting and looking upon the face of his beloved one are exceedingly few. Europeans express
their devotion by languishing and sighs. The Bedouins show the ferocity of their nature
in their love-making. They have been known to cut and slash themselves severely, just

to prove the reality and
deptli of their affections.
As might be expected,
the town-dwelling Arabs
are more temperate in
their outward demonstra-
tions. This the Bedouins
attribute to the de-
generacy resulting from
a settled life. The Arab
marriage ceremony is
simple. In the female
compartment of her
father's tent the bride is
decked out in her wed-
ding finery, previously
provided by the bride-
groom. Mounted on a
camel and accompanied
by her female relations,
she is conducted to the
camp of her husband.
The young companions of
the wedded pair indulge
in dancing, and other
sports and festivities are
kept up for some days
before the bride and
bridegroom are allowed
to settle down to married
life. They are then
escorted home, and
"marriage by capture"
survives in a sort of
pantomime which is per-
formed on this occasion.
Wives arc generally

lu bit Ltkcf/iun tfc Co.]

( aim.

AN ARAB MOTHER AND CHILD

SYRIA

247

purchased, and girls
are sometimes bartered
for, others being given in
exchange.

Some peculiar cere-
monies are practised at
Arab funerals. It is the
custom among certain
tribes to bury with the
dead man his sword, tur-
ban, and girdle. Women,
but not men, wear
mourning. In the houses
of the dead and in the
processions to the burial-
place female mourners,
hired for the occasion,
howl most horribly, beat
their arms, tear their
hair, and behave generally
like furies. Sunset is
the usual time for funerals
to take place. The
mullahs read passages
from the Koran over the
grave, in which the body
is laid on its side with
the face towards Mecca.

The Arabs are fanati-
cal adherents of Islam,
which had its starting-
place in the desert. The
Koran is the basis of
their laws. Their religion
dominates their individual
lives as well as their
political existence. The
holy cities of Mecca and
Medina are within their
territory, and the con-
stant procession of devout pilgrims to these places naturally stimulates the pride and zeal of
the Arabs in their religion.

jti) (tij Ltkeyiait tfc C'o.J

A BEDOUIN.

[ L'airo.

SYRIA.

THE word Syria is an abbreviated form of Assyria, the name by which one of the great
empires of antiquity was known. The territorial extent of the ancient empire has been
reduced even more than its name. At one time it spread over a vast region in Western Asia.
Now the country which is called Syria is restricted to a mere strip, the western shore of
which is washed by the Mediterranean, while its eastern limit is in the arid steppes fringing
the Desert of Arabia. Its utmost length is 430 miles from the Taurus Mountains in tire
north to Arabia Petraea in the south. In breadth it averages about 100 miles. Its total area

248

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

is 115,000 square miles, of which about 12,000 constitute Palestine. The population of Syria
has been variously estimated. A mean between the highest and lowest figures would be
2,000,000, which is as close to the correct number as it is possible to get.

The Syrians are a mixed race. The Bedouins have pushed their way in among them
wherever the plains extend. In the settled regions the ancient Syrian race, which belongs to
the Aramaic branch of the Semites, exists only as a rare survival. The basis of the people
has, however, remained Semitic. Syrians of the present day may be regarded as a blend of
various races, in which there are Arab, Turkish, and Hellenic elements.

Early and continuous blending with people of the Hellenic stock has certainly not
impaired the excellent physical and mental characteristics derived from their Semitic forefathers.
They are a decidedly handsome race, if we may judge them by the Christian section of the
community. They are highly intellectual and readily assimilate European ideas, while
retaining the distinctive traits of their own nationality. Their race has been celebrated from
the earliest times for its enterprising spirit, love of travel, and aptitude for trading. Syrian
merchants are to be met with in London, Liverpool, Manchester, Marseilles, and other centres
of commerce.

The national religion is Mohammedanism, and the followers of Islam are three times
more numerous than the devotees of other cults. Members of the Greek Church and Armenians
are among the latter. Of those who do not follow the Prophet, the strongest in point of
numbers and the most remarkable generally are the Druses. As another instance of the
variety of faith to be found in this small country may be mentioned the Ansariebs. They are
held in contempt by Christians and Mussulmans alike, who refuse to take their evidence in
courts of law.

The Druses are Syrian mountaineers, and number 90,000. They inhabit the northern
range of Mount Lebanon, and the Jebel Druse a mountain district south-west of Damascus.
Physically and mentally they are a fine race. Their figures are tall, sinewy, and well
proportioned. Their features, of the Caucasian type, are strongly defined and regular. Their
stern and warlike but dignified expression gives them a savage aspect. They are brave,
resolute, and industrious, and when at war with other people are cruel and even treacherous.
They are also independent, reserved, and proud.

Photo by Lekegian dt Co.\

\ Cairo

AN ARAB FAMILY.

PALESTINE

249

Nearly every Druse in the
mountains can read and write. Wine
and tobacco they never touch. Their
women are virtuous. Divorce is
almost unknown amongst them,
though it is allowed and can be
easily effected; it is only necessary
that the husband should tell his wife
three times in the presence of wit-
nesses that she had better go back
to her mother. The Druses have
carried the soil of the valleys up
and along the hillsides. These are
laid out in terraces, planted with
mulberry, olive, and vine, which
flourish under the constant care
bestowed upon them. The chief
industry is the production of silk.

The religion of the Druses is
peculiar and mysterious. It has a
Mussulman foundation, but it em-
braces Christian and Zoroastrian
elements. Their religion was first
taught in 1029, but its votaries have
done nothing to make it known
outside their own circle. Their lives
are regulated by seven great prin-
ciples, which they must profess.
One of them is veracity. This must
be rigidly observed in their dealings
with each other, but not necessarily
in their intercourse with unbelievers —
that is to say, all who are not
Druses. Another is the recognition
•of the unity of God. A third is
•complete separation from all who do
not hold their beliefs, and are there-
fore in error. A fourth is mutual protection and support. They believe that the number of souls
in existence never varies. Accordingly all the souls now in life have lived in some human
form since the creation and will continue to live till the final destruction of the world. Prayer
is looked upon as an unwarrantable interference with the Almighty.

Christian missionaries have laboured among them with very little effect. The Druses
will not accept the teachings of others, whom they regard as presumptuous meddlers. On the
•other hand, they make no attempt to extend their own doctrines by either force or argument.
It is to the remarkable nature of their religion that the Druses, according to some writers,
owe their independent and exclusive temper.

PALESTINE.

THE branch of the human family inseparably associated with Palestine is the Hebrew.
Palestine, or the Holy Land, lying to the south-west of Syria, fills the most important place
in the history of the Christian and Hebrew races. To-day it forms but a very small part of

32

J'/IU/O III/

AN ARAB SHEIKH.

250

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

the vast regions in Asia over which the Turk
holds sway. Its population is not far short
of 700,000, of whom between 80,000 and
100,000 are Jews. In Jerusalem and its
neighbourhood alone the Jews number from
45,000 to 50,000. At least 80 per cent, of
the total population are Mohammedans. The
language most general]}' spoken is Arabic.

The Hebrews may be regarded as the
best representatives of the Semitic stock.
Their physical characteristics are perhaps more
clearly defined than those of any other people.
They have regular and expressive features;
oval face and brain-cap; large and often
aquiline nose, depressed at the root; forehead
straight, but not high; black, almond-shaped
eyes; small, pointed chin; glossy black hair,
with full beard; pale white skin; and stature
somewhat below that of the average European.
The prevailing type of face is massive.

Its strong characteristics make the Hebrew
face easily recognisable in whatever part of
the world it is seen. The Jewish laws and
usages, which forbid intermixture with other
races, account for their racial purity. The
barriers have, however, from time to time
been broken down, and in many places the
marks of their intermarriage with other races
can be seen. Fair-haired, blue-eyed, and
white-skinned Jews are to be found in England.
Eed-haired and red-bearded Jews are known
in Germany, and tawny-faced Jews in Spain.
In Cochin and on the Malabar coast in India
Buchanan states that Jews are to be seen so
black as to be indistinguishable from natives
except in form and features.

The Hebrew character is almost as clearly defined as the face. It varies but little the
world over. Jews eagerly follow every occupation of a remunerative kind. They are often not
fastidious with regard to the honour and dignity of the course they pursue. They have
excellent business capacity, but are frequently grasping and avaricious. They are keenly alive
to the "main chance." Clannish within their own race, they are decidedly hospitable among
themselves, dignified, and often benevolent. They take charge of their own sick and poor
wherever they may be, and are merciful to each other in their dealings. Their wives rarely
excite scandal by laxity of virtue or levity of conduct.

The intellectual and moral strength of the Jews brought them triumphantly through the
universal oppression they underwent in the Middle Ages. To-day they are scattered about
the world, and are without atiy political status of their own. Yet they always make theii
influence deeply felt on the life of the nations with which they come in contact. Jews excel
in literature, art, and music, but finance is perhaps their special domain. In Germany, Austria,
and recently, alas! in France, a political crusade is being waged against them. Anti-Semitic
prejudice is always strong wherever the Jews become influential.

The Jews have been wanderers from the earliest times, and have always been subject to

Photo in lionftls\

A. BRIDE OP BETHLEHEM.

[Jiei/reM.

Photo by SuiTtiffii.n It

XVO.MKX OF HKTHLEHEM.
251

[Beyretit.

252

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

strange vicissitudes of
fortune. About 2000 B.C.
they emerged from
Mesopotamia and settled
in Canaan, or Palestine.
Subsequently, in conse-
quence of famine in
their adopted laud, the
patriarch Jacob, with all
his family and adherents,
went into Egypt. There
he obtained permission
to settle in the land
of Goshen. The de-
scendants of these
settlers were treated as
slaves. A deliverer arose
in the person of Moses.
By him they were led
out into the wilderness
of Sinai, where they
wandered over forty
years — according to the
Old Testament. Modern
critics, however, would
allow a much shorter
period. About 1274 B.C.,
under the leadership of
Joshua, they entered
into possession of Pales-
tine. Thirteen hundred
and forty years later
Titus, the Roman
governor of Syria, be-
sieged and captured
Jerusalem, with horrible

carnage, as narrated by Josephus. He completely destroyed the Temple, and almost razed the
city -to the ground. The Jews who survived were driven from the laud, to seek refuge and
procure sustenance as best they could among the different nations of the earth. Since the
ruin. of their city and dispersion of their race, in the words of Isaac D'Israeli, "the Jewish
people are not a nation, for they consist of many nations . . . and, like the chameleon, they
reflect the colour of the spot they rest on."

The Jews have preserved from the earliest times the striking customs which are connected
with their religion. Circumcision is performed on male infants eight days after birth. On
the thirtieth day after the appearance of the first male child the ceremony of " redeeming the
first-born" takes place. The father invites his male friends and relatives, with the rabbi, to
a supper, and the mother invites the women. Before the supper is over the baby is brought
to the father. He places it in the arms of the rabbi. Then he puts as many pieces of
silver money as he can afford on a tray. "This is my first-born," he says to the rabbi; "I
desire- to redeem him according to the commandment of God, written in the Book of the
Law." "Dost thou indeed desire to redeem this thy first-born son?" answers the rabbi.
The father replies, "I greatly desire to redeem my son, and this is the redemption money

By permission of the Controller of her Majesty's Stationery Office.
A NATIVE GUIDE, PALESTINE.

PALESTINE

253

according to the Law of Moses." The rabbi takes the money and returns the child to its
father. The latter, holding a cup of wine in his hand, gives thanks to God for permitting
him to behold this joyful occasion. The rabbi and the father take some of the wiue. After
that the rabbi lifts up the tray with the coins and holds it over the baby's head, saying,
"This is instead of this; this is in exchange for this; this is in redemption of this; and may
the child be well instructed in our holy Law, enter in due time into the marriage state, and
at the last be found full of good works. Amen." The supper is then proceeded with, and the
evening is given up to festivity.

Early marriages are the rule among the Jews. At Jerusalem girls are usually married
at the age of fifteen. Youths become husbands at eighteen. They generally have large
families. Even the very poor rejoice at successive additions when they happen to be boys.

There are three ceremonies in connection with Jewish weddings — viz. the engagement,
the betrothal, and the fiiiiil marriage rite. According to rabbinical law, a betrothal is not
merely a promise to marry, but is looked upon as the first step in the marriage ceremony.
Ten persons at least must be present, at both a betrothal and a wedding, to give the act due
publicity and solemnity. At the betrothal the amount of the bride's dowry and the date of
the wedding are settled. A provision called the kethuba is arranged at the same time. Jews
in the East attach great importance to this institution. It settles upon the bride a sum
of money which the husband must pay to her in the event of a divorce. As it is easy for
a Jewish husband to get a divorce, this arrangement protects the wife against being arbitrarily
dismissed from his house. The wedding itself is long and ceremonious, especially among the
richer Jews. The bride is taken in procession from the father's house to that of the bride-
groom's father. She is conducted to a seat under a canopy of yellow silk in the sola, or
principal room. After waiting a long time the cry is raised, " Behold the bridegroom cometh ! "
The bridegroom enters, accompanied by the rabbi and his male friends. Except for the fez,
which is commonly worn in the East, they are all dressed very much as they would be at a

Photo tni Mr. William Kau\

JEWISH LEPEHS. PALES I INK.

254

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

wedding in England. The bride-
groom takes his place under the
canopy beside a table, on which
stands a flagon of wine and some
glasses. The rabbi takes his place
on the opposite side. Over his head
is thrown a scarf of white silk, called
a talith. The bride rises from her
seat, and is led three times round
the bridegroom. This illustrates the
saying of Jeremiah, " The woman
shall compass a man." The pair then
stand facing each other opposite the
rabbi. He fills one of the glasses
with wine, and, holding it in his
hand, repeats a prayer. He then
hands the cup to the bride and
bridegroom in turn. When each
has sipped it, the man places on the
woman's finger a ring, saying, "Be-
hold, thou art sanctified to me by
this ring, according to the Law of
Moses and of Israel." Then follows
the reading of the marriage contract,
which the bridegroom and witnesses
sign. The rabbi takes another glass
of wine. Holding it in his hand,
he pronounces over the wedded pair
the " Seven Blessings." The married
couple also taste of this glass. An
empty glass is then put on the floor,
and the bridegroom stamps on it
with his boot till it is crushed to
atoms. In some parts of the East, and notably in Jerusalem, the bride steps three times over
a dish containing two live fishes, the emblems of fruitfulness. As she does so the witnesses
of the marriage repeat the command, "Be fruitful and multiply."

lly permission, of Messrs. Xewton it Co., 8, Fleet si reel, E.C.

NESTORIAN TEACHERS AND SCHOLARS, ARMENIA.

ASIA MINOR AND THE VALLEY OF THE EUPHRATES AND TIGRIS.

THE inhabitants of Asia Minor at the present day can hardly be said to possess strongly
marked characteristics of the several races from which they have sprung. Turks, Greeks, and
Armenians are the three chief ingredients of the mixed population of this country, and they
must be described in turn.

Though divided from Europe by two narrow straits, this westerly projection of Asia was
for many centuries the arena on which the most powerful peoples of the two continents did
battle to decide which was the master power that should rule the world. It now forms part
of the Asiatic empire of the Turks. It is a little larger than France, but has less than one-
fourth of the population of that country. At the same time it is the main source of the
sinew, the revenue, and the military strength of the Ottoman Empire.

If we go back to the primary sources of race derivation, the Turk must be said to belong
to the Mongol o-Tartar branch. The original type has been considerably modified by large
admixture with Aryan races. The Turkish families who settled in Asia Minor under Ertogrul

•J53

256

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

By peitnission of Messrs. Xttrlini <(• Co., 3. f'/nt Mi'nt, K.C'.

A GROUP OF TEACHERS, AMERICAN MISSIONARY SOCIETY, ARMENIA.

and Dundar, the founders of the Ottoman sovereignty, probably fused with the Seljuks.
The enormous number of their representatives at the present time cannot be put down
to natural increase, as the Turks were always a fighting and destructive race. It points to
fusion with other peoples. Osmanli, the name given to the modern Turk, covers a hybrid
race which has absorbed Asiatic, Armenian, Greek, and Arab elements. Taking the Asiatic
Turk as he appears to-day, ethnologists agree that all distinctive Mongolic features have
disappeared. His large brown eyes, bushy eyebrows, full beard, and strong white teeth
entitle him to rank as a really high-class representative of the Caucasian type. This is not
surprising when we remember that the Turkish harem is largely recruited from Circassian,
Georgian, Abkhasian, and other peoples of the Caucasus, noted for their physical beauty.

The Turks chiefly inhabit the western provinces. Here it is that the true character of
that once all-conquering people is most fully apparent. As their early history shows, they
w.ere formerly a haughty and powerful race, and possessed great aptitude for conquest. They
always needed the goad of strong feeling, however, to bring out their latent capacity. Under
the stress of necessity, and when thoroughly roused, they fought with irresistible determination.
When the spell was once broken, they sank back into a state of indolence and proud
seclusion. Against the undoubted prowess of the Turk on the battle-field must be set off
his entire want of ability to make any use of his warlike achievements. He was content to
do nothing. The trader who supplied his needs and the peasant who worked for him he
despised impartially. His past character explains much of the seeming inconsistency which
he displays to-day. Far outnumbering all other races in these western provinces, the Turks
do not enjoy unchallenged supremacy. The Greeks and Armenians even there are serious

ASIA MINOR

257

rivals. They have a more active spirit than the Turks, and they make up in energy what
they lack in numbers. Their presence makes it necessary for the Turk to be ever on
the watch, that he may even maintain himself in the land of which he is, politically,
lord and master.

The Turks form the agricultural portion of the community. The Greeks and Armenians
are found chiefly in the towns, where they are writers, artists, merchants, and financiers.
Nearly all the trade of the country is in their hands. This illustrates the non-progressive
character of the Mohammedan doctrine. When the Turk does work, he is by no means
incompetent. He is excellent as a cattle-breeder, a husbandman, or an artisan. He is,
however, uninventive and lacks astuteness; and these defects leave him far behind in the
race with his sharp-witted neighbours. His agriculture remains much as it was in the days
when Troy was besieged on the heights where its ruins can still be seen. The fig, the vine,
and the olive, bountifully supplied by Nature, furnish the Turkish peasant with his food, and
satisfy all his limited wants. Accordingly he sees no necessity for troubling himself with
any studied system of agriculture, even if by so doing he could make the soil ten times
more productive. The Turk
speaks his own language only.
The Greeks and Armenians,
on the other hand, speak at
least two from their infancy,
and are often highly culti-
vated. The backwardness of
the Turks in this respect may
be attributed partly to their
pride and partly to their
contempt for all non-Moham-
medan peoples. Their want
of enterprise and social emula-
tion also largely accounts for
their ignorance. Very few
Turks can even read and
write. This is due to the
great difference between their
language as it is written with
its large infusion of Arabic
and as it is spoken.

The Turk is earnest, re-
served, and endowed with a
fair share of intelligence, but
he will never trouble himself
to acquire the business habits
of his neighbours, whom he
has allowed to monopolise all
the trade and wealth.

In one respect the pride
of the ruling race always
asserts itself. Should a Turk
be found dead in a Greek
village in Asia Minor, all the
notables go to prison. As a

rule, a Turk who kills a Greek Jiy pfraM ,,. „,,_ ,,„.,„„ ,, ^ :, FUe, s//w ,, ,.

or Armenian is acquitted. HUTTEH-MAKINS IN GOAT-SKIN CHURNS (XESTOHIAXS, ARMENIA).

33

258

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

lly permission of Mttsrx. Xen'toii <t GV/., 3. Ffett titreel, £".('.

ARMENIANS WATER-CARRYING (NESTORIANS).

People of Turkish race
have much the same dress all
over Asia Minor and Syria.
The striped silk of the country
is the favourite material for
the upper clothing. Heavy
stuffs with gold-work are also
very popular.

Colonel Burnaby, when
going through Asia Minor,
was struck by the economical
way in which the natives
build their dwellings. When
a man is old enough to
marry, and wishes to set up
under a roof of his own, he
marks a piece of ground,
generally of an oblong shape,
on the side of a hill. He
then digs out the earth to a
depth of 6 or 7 feet. His
next step is to cut down wood
and make six stout posts, each
about 10 feet high. These he drives into the ground to a depth of 3 feet, putting three
posts on each side of the oblong. Cross-beams are fastened to the top of these uprights, and
branches of trees, laid closely and plastered down with clay, make a covering. A few planks,
with a hole made in them to serve as a doorway, compose the ends and sides of the building.
The door is formed by a broad, heavy plank, with strips of cowhide to serve as hinges. One
part is devoted to lodging such sheep, oxen, camels, and cows as the owner of the house
may possess. He and his family occupy the other part. Xo partition wall separates the cattle
from the human tenants. Colonel Burnaby may well be believed when he says that the
smell which arises at night from the confined air and the animals in the building is exces-
sively disagreeable to a European. In cold weather a hole in the roof which serves as
a ventilator is stopped up by a large stone. The inmates, sometimes consisting of twelve
or fourteen people, lie huddled together on the floor. In the poorer houses the floor is
covered with rugs made of camel's hair, and in the houses of the wealthier class with thick
Persian carpets.

The Greeks have been connected with Asia Minor from the earliest period of their
history. Emigrants went out from ancient Greece and seized upon the maritime border of
Asia, where they planted important colonies. These formed some of the brightest jewels in
the diadem of imperial Athens. The Asiatic Greek to-day still bears many of the physical
characteristics of his ancestors. Tall and slim, but well proportioned, with oval face and
arched nose, regular white teeth, animated eyes, and small hands and feet, he ranks high
among civilised races in personal comeliness. By intermarriage with Armenians and other
non-Hellenic peoples the Greeks have no doubt lost much of the purity of their race. But
their pride and individuality have always kept them from extensive intermixture with the
peoples among whom they live. Compared with their European brethren, they are probably
entitled to be considered more typical of the ancient Greeks. In Smyrna, and even inland,
the Hellenic build can frequently be seen. Greek women may from time to time have passed
into Turkish harems, but difference of faith has prevented any union of the two races. His
religion assists his deep sense of nationality to keep the Greek of Asia Minor comparatively
free from foreign elements.

260

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

The Greek all over the
world is known for his clever-
ness, subtlety, and energy.
He also has the reputation of
being- deceitful and cunning.
In Asia Minor this is especially
the case. If his faults cannot
be excused, they can at any
rate be explained. He has
long lived under Turkish op-
pression, and it is only by
superior ability that he can
hope to hold his own. • More-
over, he has had to deal with
Orientals, who regard sharp
practice in business matters
almost with admiration.

While the Turk is so
indolent, it is not surprising
that the active, energetic,
quick-witted Greek, in com-
petition with him, should
seem likely to attain the
leading place in Asia Minor
which the former has in-
herited. The Greek surpasses the Moslem in every pursuit in which both engage. He is a
skilful seafarer, an intelligent farmer, and a shrewd trader. He excels in the learned professions.
Teachers, lawyers, doctors, and bankers are in nearly every instance Greeks. The Greek is
chosen to be the broker or agent who negotiates important matters of business for "his
Turkish friend." He has secured almost exclusive control over local finances and trade. He
never forgets that he is a Greek. His pride in his Hellenic nationality is fostered by every
means. He does not acquire the manners or the creed of the masters of the land. Consequently
Asia Minor is becoming more Greek than Turkish. Smyrna, which is really the capital, is
a Greek city.

lly Jjt-t t/usfftu/t uf Messrs. Xcwtvii. d* Co., 3, fir.ct Slrttt, E.C.

AN ENGLISH MISSIONARY, WITH HIS NATIVE TEACHEKS.

THE ARMENIANS.

THE Armenian race formerly numbered 8,000,000, but is now under 3,000,000. In Turkish
Armenia there are 1,000,000; in Persian Armenia, 150,000; in Caucasia and Russia in
Europe, 850,000; in Turkey in Europe, 250,000; and elsewhere, 60,000. They are a handsome
race, though their features generally are large. Of the Caucasian type, they appear to be
one of the early offshoots of the Semitic branch. By some ethnologists they are classed
with the Iranian group, and Ratzel says that many Armenians could be described as fairer
and fatter Persians. In appearance they are strongly suggestive of the Jews. Their national
name is Hai, or Haik, or Haiken. The average Armenian is rather above the medium height.
His complexion is darkish brown or yellow. The hair is black and straight, though brown
hair is often seen, and in young people even fair hair. The nose is large and sharply curved,
and the forehead is more noticeable for width than height. The Armenian has a marked
tendency to run to fleshiness. The women are often handsome, with regular features and a
.stately carriage; they have fine, dark eyes, shaded by lashes of unusual length and thickness,
which lend their olive complexions a peculiar charm.

The Armenian is serious, industrious, clever, and hospitable. His quick intelligence

THE ARMENIANS

261

enables him to adapt himself readily to the manners and habits of the people among whom
he may happen to be living. This intellectual suppleness makes him especially qualified for
trading. Timid and taciturn, he displays at least an outward obedience to his rulers.

Their history past and present surrounds the Armenians with a halo of romance. For
centuries they have had no separate existence as a nation. Formerly independent, and at
times even powerful, they passed under the influence of Persia, which, with Turkey and in
more recent years Russia, divides the sovereignty over them. In this state of subjection their
position has been little better than that of slaves. Yet it is among the Armenians, whose
country extends into Asia Minor, that some of the best traditions and most prevailing religion*
have started out to influence the world.

f In classic times Armenia included the whole of the Van district southward to the 38"
parallel. Their land has been the arena on which the peoples of the East and West have struggled
for the dominion of Asia. Assyrians, Medes, and Persians have passed through it. The great
generals of antiquity, Darius, Xerxes, and Alexander the Great, have led their armies into it.
The Roman Empire was constantly visiting it with her legions. Arabs, Mongols, and Tartars
in more recent times overran it with their devastating hordes. In many respects the history
of the Armenians is analogous to that of the Jews. Fated to be driven from their own
homes, and the victims of every conceivable form of political mischance, they have proved
their Semitic ancestry by their remarkable power of persistence as a people. Their family
and tribal sentiment, the depth of their consciousness of nationality, and their religion have
been preserved by them for generations without the least apparent diminution. It is to
these elements of national character that they owe their survival. Even at the present time
tin- Armenians in Turkey are subject to the harassing incursions of nomad Kurds, who quarter
themselves in Armenian villages and compel their hosts to feed them and their cattle, without
the slightest payment in return except in the form of insults and blows. It is not more than
a few \ cars ago that Europe was startled and shocked by the dreadful massacres which the
Sultan's unruly subjects perpetrated wholesale in Armenia.

• ''"., :* b'lf't stmt, /-,. <'.

ARMENIAN ORPHANS RESCUED FROM THE MASSACRES.

262

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

Like the Jews, the majority of the
Armenians are scattered all over the face
of the earth. They live for the most
part in separate communities, and passion-
ately cherish the spirit of national
brotherhood. Wherever they may be,
their affections always turn to the moun-
tains and plains west of the Euphrates,
which they still regard as their home.
These contain the places which they
esteem more sacred, than any others on
earth. Armenians are to be found in
almost all Turkish provinces, but chiefly
that of Erzeroum. By no means the
most numerous part of the nation lives
in Asia Minor. A large number live in
Erivan, a province acquired from Persia
by liiissiu some thirty years ago. Alto-
gether there are about 800,000 in the
Russian Empire. Many Armenians are
merchants in Persia, where they have a
colony near Ispahan. Others, again, are
found in European Turkey, while in India
they share with Jews and Parsis almost
the entire monopoly of banking. They
appear in the great commercial cities of
the Mediterranean, in the Austrian Empire,
and in Africa. Armenians have long been
established in Great Britain, where they
are chiefly engaged in commercial pur-
since 1840. In 1862 they were numerous
enough to rent a private house for the celebration of divine worship. In 1870 they built a
church, where service is conducted every Sunday according to Armenian ritual. Armenian
merchants are established at Liverpool. In London they form a considerable community. Occa-
sionally a few Armenians study at Edinburgh and Oxford.

Creyle gives an interesting account of the national costume of Armenian ladies. The way
in which they are muffled and swathed when they appear in the streets entirely conceals their
charms. In their own homes they present a very different appearance. When not dressed up
to receive visitors, their ordinary costume consists of a pair of very loose, bright-coloured trousers,
secured tightly over the ankle, so as to expose the naked foot. The upper part of the body
is covered with a chemise, which is made in such a way as to leave the throat bare. It is
fastened tightly round the waist with a gold, silver, or velvet band. It goes down outside the
trousers as far as the knee. Over this appears a kind of embroidered waistcoat, cut square, open
in front, and secured with a string just below the bosom. These three garments complete
their costume when they are enjoying the ease and privacy of their homes. Their hair, which
is usually silky black and of abundant growth, falls down the back in a great thick plait, tied
up at the end with bunches of ribbon. When obliged to show themselves to strangers, they
sacrifice nearly all this easy grace and beauty to modern fashions. They encase their feet in
square-toed French boots, which hardly ever fit, and invariably give the wearers an awkward
gait when they move. The trousers, chemise, and embroidered waistcoat are all covered up
with a bright green, red, or yellow silk gown. This is made in such a way, and so badly put
on, that, when looked at from behind, the ladies appear awkward, misshapen, and squat.

A KURDISH MOUNTAIN CHIEF (HEAD OP TRIBE).

suits. They have been settled at Manchester

THE ARMENIANS

263

There is no nation in the East where, so it is said, women occupy so exalted a position
as among the Armenians. When a man dies leaving a widow, she becomes the head of a
community consisting of all her children, with their husbands and wives, and all her grand-
children. She is regarded by this little society in the light of a queen. It is not till her
death that the family breaks np, some of them perhaps to group themselves again under one
of her daughters as their chieftainess.

At one time the Armenians seem to have been fire- worshippers, like the ancient Persians
and the modern Parsie. However, they have long been Christians, and are devout members
of a Church which is in many ways distinctive. Some are Nestorians, while a few are Koman
Catholics, Gregoriaus, and Protestants. The Xestorians of the Euphrates and Tigris Basin,
numbering about 200,000, reject both the name and the doctrine of Nestorius. The word is
a corruption of Nossarani, from Nazareth, commonly applied in the East to Christians. The
Armenian Church has a ritual of its own, approximating more closely to the Greek than the
Latin branch. One of the oldest translations of the Bible is in the Armenian tongue. There
are also many works of great antiquity, which deal with matters of Christian doctrine, composed
in Armenia. In Erivan they have a monastery, where resides the Patriarch, whom all orthodox
Armenians regard as their spiritual head.

Other monasteries are found in different parts of Armenia and Asia Minor. Perhaps the
most celebrated Armenian monastery is on the island of San Lazzaro in Venice. This island
was handed over by the Republic of Venice in the year 1715 to the Armenian monks whom
Mekhitar had brought with
him in his flight before an
invading army of Turks. The
Mekhitarist congregation has
been permanently fixed there
ever since that time, and has
acquired a position of great
importance in the Armenian
world. The monastery hns
a library containing 30,000
printed volumes and 2,000
Armenian manuscripts, some
of which are very ancient.
There are also the first
editions of the Armenian
classics, of which the owners
are naturally proud. The
community is under the
authority of a principal, who
is styled Archbishop of
Siounic, and a chapter. The
resident brothers occupy
themselves with teaching and
composing or translating
educational, scientific, and
religions works. These books
are distributed in great
numbers among the Ar-
menians in every part of the
world. The Mekhitarists have

also founded two colleges, one Uij JltriHIMlUH UJ. „„.,„ v,,,,, , ,,, , ,, ,litl .,„„,_ Kt.

in Venice, the other in Paris, KURDISH MOUNTAIN BRIGANDS, ARMENIA.

264

THE LIVING RACES OF MANKIND

«&•

*'- - •»«£'*;•

' , v ;

PEOPLE OP TRANSCAUCASIA.

where brothers of the order, assisted by French professors, educate young Armenians. Many
of their pupils afterwards euter the service of the Turkish, Persian, and Russian Governments,
in which some of them prove the excellence of the education they have received by rising to
the highest administrative posts.

Yriarte, in his work on Venice, gives a graphic description of the gorgeous ritual for
which the Armenian Church is celebrated. Describing a high festival at San Lazzaro, he
eays that "the pontiff and his clergy, clothed in the sacerdotal vestments, intone the
sacred chants preserved for centuries by the national tradition. The robes worn by the
archbishop and clergy are of the richest materials and most delicate colours, enriched with
embroideries, pearls, and silk. . . . The costume of the archbishop consists of a pontifical robe,
hidden under the large folds of a Byzantine dalmatic; he wears the mitre ornamented with
the emblematic triangle, on the ground of which stands out the mystic eye of the Deity;
and in his hand he holds the episcopal staff, the symbol of his dignity. The second personage
is the Vartalud Ananias, vicar-general of the monastery. He wears the dress of the Armenian
doctors, the Greek cap on his head; he holds the doctoral staff, of which the top is in the
form of two serpents. Then follows the archdeacon, dressed in the alb, wearing the stole and
the sacerdotal cap; his function during the service is to hold the censer. The effect of all
this is extremely grand. The deacon also wears the alb and the stole as a scarf; it is his
duty to hold the gospel to be kissed by the clergy and assistants. The sub-deacon wears the
alb; the stole rests only on his left arm; during the ceremony he swings a metal instrument
(kechotli, in Latin flalellum), which is in the shape of a disk, ornamented in the centre with
the head of a winged angel. Eight acolytes, dressed in long albs, carry the insignia of the
archi-episcopal office, the mitre and pallium; others hold the cross, the Latin cross, the doctoral
staff, and the staff surmounted with the globe and cross, the badge of the diocese of Siounic,
of which the principals of the Mekhitarists are the titularies."

THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE
STAMPED BELOW

AN INITIAL FINE OF 25 CENTS

WILL BE ASSESSED FOR FAILURE TO RETURN
THIS BOOK ON THE DATE DUE. THE PENALTY
WILL INCREASE TO SO CENTS ON THE FOURTH
DAY AND TO $1.OO ON THE SEVENTH DAY
OVERDUE.

)|
NOV 23 1932

LD 21-50m-8,'3'J

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UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY