begins the
region of predominant and almost universal black, and this continues,
if we confine ourselves to the low and plain countries, through all
inter tropical Africa.

Seventhly, Beyond this is the country of copper coloured and red
people, who, in Kafirland, are the majority, while in inter-tropical
Africa there are but few such tribes, and those in countries of
mountainous elevation.

Lastly, Towards the Cape are the tawny Hottentots, scarcely darker
than the Mongoles, whom they resemble in many other particulars
besides colour.

It has long been well known, that as travellers ascend mountains, in
whatever region, they find the vegetation at every successive level
altering its character, and assuming a more northern aspect, thus
indicating that the state of the atmosphere, temperature and physical
agencies in general, assimilate as we approach alpine regions, to the
peculiarities locally connected with high latitudes. If therefore,
complexions and other bodily qualities belonging to races of men
depend upon climate and external conditions, we should expect to find
them varying in reference to elevation of surface, and if they should
be found actually to undergo such variations, this will be a strong
argument that these external characters do, in fact, depend upon local
conditions. Now, if we inquire respecting the physical characters of
the tribes inhabiting high tracts within either of the regions above
marked out, we shall find that they coincide with those which prevail
in the level or low parts of more northern tracts. The Swiss, in the
high mountains above the plains of Lombardy, have sandy or brown hair.
What a contrast presents itself to the traveller who descends into the
Milanese, where the peasants have black hair and eyes, with
strongly-marked Italian and almost Oriental features. In the higher
parts of the Biscayan country, instead of the swarthy complexion and
black hair of the Castilians, the natives have a fair complexion with
light-blue eyes and flaxen or auburn hair. And in Atlantica, while the
Berbers of the plains are of brown complexion with black hair, we have
seen that the Shuluh mountaineers are fair, and that the inhabitants
of the high tracts of Mons Aurasius are completely xanthous, having
red or yellow hair and blue eyes, which fancifully, and without the
shadow of any proof, they have been conjectured to have derived from
the Vandal troops of Genseric.

Even in the inter-tropical