Richmond dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1884-1903, 1890-04-20

OF endurance n excelled only by the Medi-
terraneans. In hot climate the negro
even suTpasses the white man. The most
noticeable peculiarly in the figure of tho
negrois the structure and position of the
peivis. This - smaller and narrower than
with whites. u isalso moro wedge-shaped
and tilted slightly backward: thence
the peculiar walk of the negro. with
stif upper body aud projecting seat.
which is initiated so dro1iy in
the presentations OF the negro dandy on
the minstrel stage. The arms Of the negro
are long, especially tho forearm ia develop
ed more than with other races. On the
othor hand the thigh and the calf Of the
leg are weaker than with superior rscea.
The feet are. long. broad, and fiat. The
American Indian knows the difference be-
tween the trail OF the white man and the
negro-the impression left on the ground
by the fiat foot of tho latter is sufficiently
characteristic to his practiced eve. The
great toe of the negro is separated from the
rest somewhat hike thumb.
THE SKIN OF THE NEGRO.
The skin If thicker than that OF the
whites; II is also softer, smoother. and less
hairy. Very characteristic is the peculiar
pungent smell which it exhales. The
average white man regards this a. the least
pleasant peculiarly of the race. The
color - more or less dark, always darker
than that OF the South Europeans. II is
very variable IN various tribes. dark olive,
reddish brown, brown, dark brown, passing
into ebony-black. A very pointed race
popularity is the difference between the
palm OF the hand and the rest of the sur
face of the body. The skin Of the palm is
thicker and less sensitive than that Of the
superior races The color of the palm is
lighter than the rest of the body. Whe1
Blumenbach, the anthropologist, saw KEN
bic play Othello he IS said To have COM
planned that the entire Illusion was spoilt
for him; his anthropologlcal eye was or
Tended because Keinble was made mp rs
usual with blackened face and dark gloves.
paying no regard to the lighter color Of the
palms.
LIPS. NOSE, AND MOUTH.
The lips of the negro are bullying, so we
soy for lack OF better term. Perhaps the
somewhat pedantic word intumescent"
describes their form best. We cannot imi-
tate the negro's lips By mere pointing, but
we must push the edges. up and down
with tho fingers to show more of the
inner lip. The thin, close-Gtting lips
Of the Aryan offer the other ex-
IRENE in the shape of the lips. The
nose Of the typical negro is turned up, e1-
posing the openings Of the nostrils III the
face. This also we can initiate TO some OK
tent by pushing the tips of our own noses
upward. The base of the nose is very
broad. the nostrlls very thick. The mouth
is wide: very characteristic are the shining
white teeth, which are bent forward Rlight-
~. and are generally set obliquely IN the
gums.
SKULL AND JAWS.
The skull Of the negro is heavy, thick
and hard. TIE seams, or Sutures %
they are called scientifically, of the skull
tighten more firmly and AT an earlier age
than IN the white. The volume of the
brain of the negrois smaller than that of the
white man. To this particular circum-
stance some ascribe tho fact that
the negro children learn as easily
"a their white contemporaries up TO
certain age, but are afterwards lett IN the
lureh by the white youth rs they grow up
TO manhood. The formation OF the skull
Is distinctly neutrality-suspicious. ClOng-
skulledD: the back of the head extends
lar out. and the forehead IS harrow and
spherical. The Jaws are very protruding
(prognathous). There is no race on earth
which presents this Characteristic IN 50
marked degree.
THE HAZE OF TIE MICRO.
The hair OF the negro presents the APP
uearauce OF q fleece: short layer Of II
bites into the skull. evenly ct all points.
1t cannot be parted except under coercion.
The cause of this 1eeclness lies IN the
structure of each individual hair, which IS
fat and ribbOn-like; a cross section OF 1t
under a microscope is q nuch-elongatcd
eclipse. Connected with this tiatness IS
the fact that it frequently splits longitu-
dinallv. The color of the hair Is dusty
black: in old age it loses its pigment and
becomes white.
LONGEVITY OF THE NEGRO.
The age of the negro is largely matter
of myth. Fabulous reports of individual
cases of longevity are heard from time to
time. Old negroes manifest so strong
tendency to emphasize fondly their OK
IRENE hoariness that we may well doubt
their own reports. As many families boast
of half-grown grandchildren, we, may sup
pose that their age does not fall much be,
low the biblical ideal of three-score and
ten.
THE TYPICAL NEGRO.
What kind of negro Is this that we
have been depicting? 1t Is not TO be sup.
posed, of course, that every specimen Oh
the race. even if of absolutely unmlXed
characteristics with equal clearness.
There are even those who lack one
or the other of them entirely. A single
nortrait. such as we have attempted to
sketch, can represent only type. What
we look for in such race portrait IS as
near an approach as possible to the general
race character. Travellers have frequently
observed that European on first landing
among people unlike his own, Tor IN
stance The Chinese, thinks them all alike.
Only after great deal of contact with
them and pretty careful observa-
ton does he begin to make out
their individual pcculiarities. Ratu;
rally his attention at brst was occupied
with the broad typical peculiarlties OF the
foreign race. Now it If just this broad type
that the ethnologist must sketch and de-
scribe. and therefore ne selects for his por-
traiture a case somewhat extreme, ana only
occasionally to be met in that completeness,
In other words, we have sketched the 'ded!
African negro.
MIXED TRIBES OF NEGROES.
Fxen in Africa this type prevails only IN