Aberdeen herald. [volume] (Aberdeen, Chehalis County, W.T.) 1886-1917, 1899-08-17
WAS ADAM A NEGRO?
WHAT COLOR WAS our EARLl-
EST ANCESTOR
Curiosities of Human Coloring Which
Are Now Commanding the Attention
of Scientis.s- that Original
Man Was n Mongol.

In the first of a series of articles
upon anthropological data which Prof.
Arthur Thompson IS writing for
Know ledge he discusses the original
color of mankind and weighs some evil
dence bearing upon the question
whether the earliest races were black
or white.
At the same time he mentions Alfred
Russell Wallace's idea that primitive
man was a Mongol. This would infer
that our original color was yellow,
and when we consider the civilization
of remote times which existed among
the Chinese. that the people Of Europe
sprang from Aslatic stock, and that
the identity of the earliest cave dwell
crs in this country and in France with
the Eskimos (also Mongols) has been
demonstrated, this view does not seem
SO very unlikely. Prof. Thompson
characteriZes the theory rs suggestive
but goes into none of these outside de-
tails, combining himself to a study of
skin, hair and their pigments.
Sorby, he says, isolated three pig
ments, using hair as the most conven-
lent subject for experiment. In light
colored hair ii brown red and Il yellow
pigment occur, to which in black hair
a black coloring matter is added, and
it is remarkable fact that there may
be in a negro's wool" as much red
pigment rs in the European variety
sometimes alluded to rs "carrots.'
Again, when n piece of white skin is
grated Gas is often done in modern
surgery upon black man. 1t becomes
black. while black upon n white man
loses its pigment. This, Prof. Thomp-
son thinks, supports the theory that
man has developed white skin from
IL black, rather than the other alterna
tive
Other interesting points are brought
forward. For instance, there IS always
a certain amount Of pigment IN the
skin of even fair people, that is, of the
red and yellow kinds found in their
hair. but not enough to prevent the
blood In the vessels which do not como
nearer the surface than the true skin
showing through the mi-transparent
layers of the epidcrmis.
Eronzng through exposure to the
sun Is due to an increased blood sup
ply and corresponding development.
freckles and pigmcnted spots, similar
in structure to the general skins of
darker races. while dark-complcNioncl
people among Us have, in addition to
the ordinary pigments, trace of the
black color oe the negro, more COM
monty present in our hair. There is
not, however, enough to destroy the
radical fairness of our skin, though in
exceptional situations (Such as in the
arm PITS its presence may be very ey-
dcnt.
AS 10 the use of black skin. Oar
win limited that it might have been de
velOped in correlation with the immu-
nifty from maaria diseases which
"darEies" enjoy, as it is true that
white sufferers acquire a darker CON-
pleXion
In support If the idea that the an
ccstors of negroes and white men more
nearly rescmblcd the latter in color. a
point not mentioned by Prof. Thomp-
son, might be brought forward, and
that IS that 'pckaninnies" at their
birth are not black in color, but of a
dirty gray. If original man were black,
just rs the original lion was spotted,
we should expect to find In the negro
infant the black color as we find in
the Young cub the traces Of spots
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