, 1884-09-19
CLIMATIC INFLUENCES,
And Their Potency in Bringing
About Race Changes,
The English Race a OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES
waited vandals and GothA-New
England's Distinct Race
CalifornIa'A Type


EnSlaudfs Distinct hnce-
CaIitornia's Type.
Isan Francisco Chronicle
All nations would like to t1ace their origin
bacl TO the ancient Greeks or Latins- None
care 10 claim kinship with the Hotteltots or
CATER The turfman does not count more
on @blOod liz the horse than the upper crust
Of thu English society on race ~ man.
Every blue blood in that country wants 10 he
considered a descendant Of the Normans, Us
In Spain of the Castlians, in Virginia Of the
Cavaliers, ia New England ~ the Pilgrims
and Puritans. No Spaninrd cares To trace
his blood back b. the Moors, though there is
probably far more Of that ;han OF the Cas-
tilian blood ia Spain. Race pride and preju-
dice. like the pride ami prejudice Of caste IN
India, art tho most stubborn characteristics
of MANKIND.
CREATING NEW OFT - pLD aAClS.
And yet it is among the fhrts OF history
that climate has 80 potent hn iniinriue on
race that il may he fairly ssnt L, moaify it
out of all recognition and to create Now uut
Of old racts. The illustrations ara nuint.r-
less. The present English race g. fHr ihe
most a fusion of Briton, Danish. ave.
NoIseman and Collie. But even where fh. =
has lecn no fusion, Lui "a preservation OF ouc
or another vi the original stocks it. purity
as among the Highlanders OF Scotland or tie
lower strata OF society in Wales-the la
tiuence Of climate In. 50 modified the char
acter that it cunirrsts NOR sttikngiy
with the original tir1n sfUi the
present average FrcnchilaA bog Nor
mandy ,rt.i af Ireland. r. mar
Of tliis gees. llti'u Is more TO-. rage
English e.. n Trace than h.r b .igic-
Gaul. T. YIN lie is popuAi Il to
hay. he German 81, pod,
how. md distinct opt,
aftri ntions in k'nc ardly
dish one from Do rr. 1t
bee pe or race. . ..4.at from
it, the Greek 20 Tie Germans
becani their Indo pIogenttors. The
softeai,- ...4enca Of the climate of India
disappeared entirely among tine Indo-Ger
mnnics, and was modified out Of recognition
in the character OF the ancient Greeks. This
may ave resulted in part from a fusion OF
the India stock with an aboriginal race, both
in Greece and in Germany, but there Is no
history to substantiate the hypothesis.
II yANDALs \ ITALIANS.
Other experience within tho historic era
supports the theory that climate changes the
race character. When tho Nandals entered
Spain from the north as conquerors they pos
sessed all the characteristics of tho hardy
Norsemen. After a few generations in that
warm climate these characteristics softened
and another wave Of conquerors from the
north supplanted them, and after two cen
turtles residence in Africa every original
northern quality was lost and Gen. Belisarius
found il as easy TO subjugate them as it was
for Aurelian to conquer the efeminate Pal
myreans. The Gauls, Goths, Lomhards and
Huns, who in their turn flooded Italy with
mfurafory WIVES either ue rouptf-s.r- mr.
tolerated settlers, each in turn, after Il few
generations. became in all respects Italians,
a new race, quite distinct from those whence
they sprung. Doubtless something Of this
change was due TO intermarriage with the
Italian stock, but not as much as To the
change Of climatic conditions. for tho Of
spring Of the fusion soon became as ener-
waited as the Syrian stock, Of which tho
Romans complained centuries before that it
was destroying the vigor OF Roman CHAR
acter.
THE sPAN1sH-AMERICAN RACE
The Spaniards who conquered and settled
in Mexico, Central and South America.
nearly a century before the English colo.
nized in North America, were not discounted
in vigor, energy, courage aud resolution by
any race that ever existed. But after
the second or third generation had passed
there remained hardly a vestige OF the origi-
nal qualities imported from Spain. The
Spanish American race, under the onervat.
ing influence Of the south and central Ameri.
can climate, was sunk out Of all comparison
below that of the English and Celtic stock
that planted themselves in the invigorating
climate Of North America. Something Of
this remarkable change may also be attri-
buted to intermnrringe with the native races
and to the rapid decline of Spain herself Us u
great power among nations after the death
of Philip IL. But not SO much "a to the
effects Of climate. The fusion race was not
up to the standard Of the Aztecs in the valley
of Mexico, or the Incas in the Peruvian pla-
teau, either physically or intellectually.
IL THE UNITED STATES.
The contrast is almost as striking between
the descendants Of the races that originally
settled the American states as between the
Spanish and the English blood as we now
find it on this continent After two CEN
turtles and half the people Of New England
and New York not only compare favorably
with the present condition of the races
whence they sprang, but nave improved the
blood in many respects and originated a dis
tinct race superior to anything found la the
Old World. In the same generations the
softening influence Of climate ia the states
south Of the Roanoke has reduced precisely
the same original blood to a condition that
TO say the least, does not compare favorably
with that Of the foremost people OF the Old
World to-day. It may be said, and perhaps
with truth, that slavery is partly the cause
of the southern inertia. The answer to that
is that the climate invited slavery and is
therefore the underlying cause.
II TRUTH OF EXPERIENCE.
1t is the truth OF experience that the men
and women Of Ne's England, the middle states,
the west and he south who emigreted to
California thirt' years ago have become dis
tinctively Californians; and the American
who migrates nto Guatemala or Nicaragua
will in a stu more more marked degree be-
come a Guatemalan or N-icaraguan in charac-
ter. TIT same stream Of migration from the
states to this Pacific coast from 1916 to
1856, which, dividing at old Fort Hall. went
one division 70 Oregon or Washington terri
tory, the other to California, has, from eli
matte causes, produced differences in charac-
ter as marked as ARE found between the peo-
pie Of Maine and the people Of Florida.
Thirty years after the food Of emigration
shall have set in motion from this state and
Oregon and Washington into the province of