We are pained to hear of the death of Dr. James Hunt, beyond doubt the best, or at all events the most useful, man in England, if not, indeed, in Europe. The man that leads all other men in knowledge essential to human well-being, that thus extends the bounds of human happiness, and best illustrates the wisdom and beneficence of the Almighty Creator to His creatures, is, per se and of necessity, the best man of his generation; and such a man was the late Dr. James Hunt of England.... Dr. Hunt, in his own clear knowledge and brave enthusiasm, was doing more for humanity, for the welfare of mankind, and for the glory of God, than all the philosophers, humanitarians, philanthropists, statesmen, and, we may say, bishops and clergy of England together.... His death at the early age of thirty-six is a great loss to England, to Christendom, to all mankind; for, though there are many others labouring in the same great cause, especially in France and Germany, there was no European of this generation so clear and profound in the science of humanity as Dr. Hunt.
A serious discussion of the anatomical and psychological relation of the negro to the European is still to the fore, especially in the United States of North America. But even as late as 1900 a book was published in America with the following title, and we have been informed that it has had a very large sale in the Southern States:—
The Negro a Beast; or, “In the Image of God.” The Reasoner of the Age, the Revelator of the Century! The Bible as it is! The Negro and His Relation to the Human Family! The Negro a beast, but created with articulate speech, and hands, that he may be of service to his master—the White man. The Negro not the Son of Ham, neither can it be proven by the Bible, and the argument of the theologian who would claim such, melts to mist before the thunderous and convincing arguments of this masterful book. By Charles Carroll, who has spent fifteen years of his life and $20,000.00 in its compilation. Published by American Book and Bible House, St. Louis, Mo., 1900.
The publishers are “convinced that when this book is read ... it will be to the minds of the American people like unto the voice of God from the clouds appealing unto Paul on his way to Damascus.”
This preposterous book could appeal only to the ignorant and bigoted, and we mention it merely as an extreme instance of the difficulties against which science has sometimes to contend when dealing with burning social questions.
The latest word on this subject is by Professor F. Boas, who believes that the negro in his physical and mental make-up is not similar to the European. “There is, however, no proof whatever that these differences signify any appreciable degree of inferiority of the negro ... for these racial differences are much less than the range of variation found in either race considered by itself.... The anatomy of the American negro is not well known; and, notwithstanding the oft-repeated assertions regarding the hereditary inferiority of the mulatto, we know hardly anything on the subject.”[[50]] The real problem in America is the mulatto, since “the conditions are such that the persistence of the pure negro type is practically impossible.”
[50]. Franz Boas, “Race Problems in America,” Science, N.S. xxix., p. 848, 1909.
Chapter IV.
THE UNFOLDING OF THE ANTIQUITY OF MAN