Secrets of Earth and Sea

by Sir E. Ray Lankester

In all animals and plants, but especially in domesticated and cultivated stocks or strains, varieties arise which, by natural or artificial separation, breed apart, and give rise to what are called "races." Such races in natural conditions may become species. Species are races or groups of individuals, which, by long estrangement (not necessarily local isolation) from the parent stock and by adaptation to special conditions of life, have become more or less "stable"—that is, permanent and unchanging in the conditions to which they have become adapted. They acquire by one device or another the habit of not breeding with the stock from which they originally diverged—a repugnance which may be overcome by human contrivance or by natural accident, but is, nevertheless, an effective and real quality. Distinct forms, which have not arrived at the stability and separation characteristic of species, are spoken of as "races," or "varieties." It is very generally the case that the "races" of one species can inter-breed freely with one another, and with the original stock, when it still exists. Comparatively little is known as to the behaviour of wild or naturally-produced "races." Practically all our views on the subject of "races" and their inter-breeding are derived from our observation of the immense number and range of "races" and "breeds" produced by man—as farmer, fancier, and horticulturist. It has been generally received as a rule, that the various races produced in the farm or garden by breeding from a species, will inter-breed freely, and produce offspring which are fertile. A special and important series of races, in which human purpose and voluntary selection necessarily have a leading part, are the races of man.

The offspring of parents of two different races is called a mongrel, whilst the term "hybrid" has been of late limited, for the sake of convenience, to the offspring of parents of two different species. Mongrels, it has been generally held, are fertile—often more fertile than pure-bred individuals whose parents are both of the same race, whilst "hybrids" are contrasted with them, in being infertile. We have seen that infertility is not an absolute rule in the case of hybrids, and it appears that there is also a source of error in the observations which lead to the notion that "mongrels" are always fertile. The fact is that observations on this matter have nearly always been made with domesticated animals and plants which are, of course, selected and bred by man on account of their fertility, and thus are exceptionally characterized by fertility, which is transmitted in an exceptional degree to the races or varieties which are experimentally inter-bred, and, consequently, may be expected to produce fertile mongrels. Alfred Russel Wallace insisted upon this fact, and pointed out that in a few cases colour varieties of a given species of plant have been found to be incapable of inter-breeding, or only produce very few "mongrels." This has been established in the case of two dissimilarly-coloured varieties of mullein. Also the red and the blue pimpernel (the poor man's weather-glass, Anagallis), which are classed by botanists as two varieties of one species, have been found after repeated trials to be definitely incapable of inter-breeding. Wallace insists in regard to crossing, that some degree of difference favours fertility, but a little more tends to infertility. We must remember that the fertility of both plants and animals is very easily upset. Changed conditions of life—such as domestication—may lead (we do not know why) to complete or nearly complete infertility; and, again, "change of air," or of locality, has an extraordinary and not-as-yet-explained effect on fertility.

"Oh, the little more and how much it is!

And the little less, and what worlds away!"

Infertile horses sent from their native home to a different climate (as, for instance, from Scotland to Newmarket) become fertile. A judicious crossing of varieties or races threatened with infertility will often lead to increased vigour and fertility in the new generation, just as change of locality will produce such a result. Physiological processes which are not obvious and cannot be exactly estimated or measured are then, we must conclude, largely connected with the question of sterility and fertility. Mr. Darwin has collected facts which go far to prove that colour (as in the case of the black pigs of Virginia, which I cited in Chapter X.), instead of being a trifling and unimportant character, as was supposed by the older naturalists, is really one of great significance, often correlated with important constitutional differences. It is pointed out by Alfred Wallace that in all the recorded cases in which a decided infertility occurs between varieties (or races) of the same species of plants (such as those just cited), those varieties are distinguished by a difference of colour. He gives reasons for thinking that the correlation of colour with infertility which has been detected in several cases in plants may also extend to animals in a state of nature. The constant preference of animals—even mere varieties of dog, sheep, horses, and pigeons—for their like, has been well established by observation. Colour is one of the readiest appeals to the eye in guiding animals in such selection and association, and is connected with deep-seated constitutional qualities. "Birds of a feather flock together" is a popular statement confirmed by the careful observation of naturalists. Thus we arrive at some indication of features which may determine the inter-breeding, or the abstention from inter-breeding, of diverse races sprung from one original stock. The "colour bar" is not merely the invention of human prejudice, but already exists in wild plants and animals.

We now come to the questions, the assertions, the beliefs, and the acts concerning the inter-breeding of human races, to the consideration of which I have been preparing the way. The dog-fancier has generally a great contempt for "mongrels." Breeders generally dislike accidental crosses, because they interfere with the purpose which the breeder has in view of producing animals or plants of a quality, form, and character which he has determined on before-hand. This interference with his purpose seems to be the explanation of beliefs and statements, to the prejudice of "mongrels." Really, as is well known to great breeders and horticulturists, a determined and selective crossing of breeds is the very foundation of the breeder's art, and there is no reason to suppose that a "mongrel" is necessarily, or even probably, inferior in vigour or in qualities which are advantageous in the struggle for life in "natural"—that is to say, "larger"—conditions of an animal's or plant's life; not those limited conditions for which the breeder intends his products. Indeed, the very opposite is the case. In nature, as Mr. Darwin showed, there are innumerable contrivances to ensure the cross-breeding of allied but distinct strains. Dog-owners who are not exclusively bent upon possessing a dog which shows in a perfect way the "points" of a breed favoured by the fashion of the moment, or fitting it for some special employment, know very well that a "mongrel" may often exhibit finer qualities of intelligence, or endurance, than those exhibited by a dog of pure-bred "race." And the very "races" which are spoken of to-day as "pure-bred," or "thoroughbred," have (as is well known) been produced as "mongrels"—that is to say, by crossing or mating individuals of previously-existing distinct and pure breeds. The history of many such "mongrel breeds," now spoken of as "thoroughbred," is well known. The English racehorse was gradually produced by the "mongrelizing," or cross-breeding, of several breeds or races—the English warhorse, the Arab, the Barb. A very fine mongrel stock having at last been obtained, it was found, or, at any rate, was considered to be demonstrated, that no further improvement (for the purposes aimed at, namely, flat-racing) could be effected by introducing the blood of other stock. The offspring of the "mongrels" Herod, Matchem, and Eclipse accordingly became established as "the" English racehorse, and thenceforward was mated only within its own race or stock, and was kept pure or "thoroughbred." Another well-known mongrel breed which is now kept pure, or nearly so, is that of the St. Bernard's dog, a blend of Newfoundland, Bloodhound, and English Mastiff.

Often the word "mongrel" is limited in its use to signify an undesired or undesirable result of the cross-breeding of individuals of established races. But this is not quite fair to mongrels in general, since, as we have seen, the name really refers only to the fact they are crosses between two breeds. When they happen to suit some artificial and arbitrary requirement they are favoured, and made the starting-point of a new breed, and kept pure in their own line; but when they do not fit some capricious demand of the breeder they are sneered at and condemned, although they may be fine and capable animals. No doubt some mongrels between races differing greatly from one another, or having some peculiar mixture of incompatible qualities the exact nature of which we have not ascertained, are wanting in vigour, and cannot be readily established as a new breed. In nature the success of the mongrel depends on whether or not its mixture of qualities makes it fitter than others to the actual conditions of its life, and able to survive in the competition for food and place. In man's breeding operations with varieties of domesticated animals and "cultivated" plants, the survival of the mongrel depends upon its fitting some arbitrary standard applied by man, who destroys those which do not suit his fancy, and selects for survival and continued breeding those which do.

What is called "miscegenation," or the inter-breeding of human races, must be looked at from both these points of view. We require to know how far, if at all, the mixed or mongrel offspring of a human race A with a human race B is really inferior to either of the original stocks A and B, judged by general capacity and life-preserving qualities in the varied conditions of the great area of the habitable globe. And how far an arbitrary or fanciful standard is set up by human races, similar to that set up by the "fancier" or cultivator of breeds of domestic animals. The matter is complicated by the fact that what we loosely speak of as "races" of man are of very various degrees of consanguinity or nearness to one another in blood, that is, in stock or in ultimate ancestry. It is also complicated by the fact that we cannot place any reliance upon the antipathies or preferences shown by the general sentiment of a race in this (or other matters) as necessarily indicating what is beneficial for humanity in general or for the immediate future of any section of it. Nor have we any assurance that what is called "sexual selection"—the preference or taste in the matter of choosing a mate—is among human beings necessarily anything of greater importance—so far as the prosperity of a race or of humanity in general is concerned—than a mere caprice or a meaningless persistence of the human mind in favouring a choice which is habitual and traditional. I have referred to this point again in the last paragraph of this chapter.

In regard to marriage between individuals of different European nationalities, a certain amount of unwillingness exists on the part of both men and women which cannot be ascribed to any deep-seated inborn antipathy, but is due to a mistrust of the unknown "foreigner," which very readily disappears on acquaintance, or may arise from dislike of the laws and customs of a foreign people. English, French, Dutch, Scandinavians, Germans, Russians, Greeks, Italians and Spaniards have no deep-rooted prejudices on the subject, and readily intermarry when circumstances bring them into association. Though the Jews by their present traditional practice are opposed to marriage with those not of their faith, there is no effective aversion of a racial kind to such unions, and in early times they have been very frequent. During the "captivity" in Babylon and again after the "dispersal" by the Romans, the original Jewish race was practically swamped by mixture with cognate Oriental races who adopted the Jewish faith. So far from there being inborn prejudice against intermarriage of the peoples above cited, it is very generally admitted that such "miscegenation" leads frequently to the foundation of families of fine quality. The blend is successful, as may be seen in the number of prominent Englishmen who have Huguenot, German, Dutch, or Jewish blood in their veins.

But when we come to the intermarriage of members of the white race of Europe with members of either the negroid (black) race or of the yellow and red mongoloid race, a much greater and more deeply-rooted aversion is found, and this is extended even to members of the Caucasian race who, possibly by prehistoric mixture with negro-like races, are very dark-skinned, as is the case with the Aryan population in India and Polynesia. It is a very difficult matter; in fact, it seems to me not possible in our present knowledge of the facts, to decide whether there is a natural inborn or congenital disinclination to the marriage of the white race, especially of the Anglo-Saxon branch of it, with "coloured" people, or whether the whole attitude (as I am inclined to think) is one of "pride of race," an attitude which can be defended on the highest grounds, though it may lead to erroneous beliefs as to the immediate evil results of such unions, and to an unreasonable and cruel treatment both of the individuals so intermarrying and of their offspring. There is little or no evidence of objection to mixed unions on the part of the coloured people with whites, no evidence of physical dislike to the white man or white woman, but, on the contrary, ready acquiescence.