to the French.

Ethnologically the Chinese are classed among the Mongolian races (in
which division the Manchus are also included), although they present
many marked contrasts to the Mongols. The Tatars, Tibetans, Burmese,
Shans, Manchu and other races--including the Arab and Japanese--have
mingled with the indigenous population to form the Chinese type, while
aboriginal tribes still resist the pressure of absorption by the
dominant race (see ante, _Population_). The Chinese are in fact
ethnically a very mixed people, and the pure Mongol type is uncommon
among them. Moreover, natives of different provinces still present
striking contrasts one to another, and their common culture is
probably the strongest national link. By some authorities it is held
that the parent stock of the Chinese came from the north-west, beyond
the alluvial plain; others hold that it was indigenous in eastern
China. Notwithstanding the marked differences between the inhabitants
of different provinces and even between those living in the same
province, certain features are common to the race. "The stature is
below the average and seldom exceeds 5 ft. 4 in., except in the North.
The head is normally brachycephalic or round horizontally, and the
forehead low and narrow. The face is round, the mouth large, and the
chin small and receding. The cheek-bones are prominent, the eyes
almond-shaped, oblique upwards and outwards, and the hair coarse, lank
and invariably black. The beard appears late in life, and remains
generally scanty. The eyebrows are straight and the iris of the eye is
black. The nose is generally short, broad and flat. The hands and feet
are disproportionately small, and the body early inclines to obesity.
The complexion varies from an almost pale-yellow to a dark-brown,
without any red or ruddy tinge. Yellow, however, predominates."[13]

A few words may be added concerning the Manchus, who are the ruling
race in China. Their ethnic affinities are not precisely known, but
they may be classed among the Ural-Altaic tribes, although the term
Ural-Altaic (q.v.) denotes a linguistic rather than a racial group. By
some authorities they are called Tung-tatze, i.e. Eastern Tatars---the
Tatars of to-day being of true Mongol descent. Manchu is the name
adopted in the 13th century by one of several tribes which led a
nomadic life in Manchuria and were known collectively in the