small of stature, singular of form, and with coun-tenances as savage as their manners.

These people have large flat faces, the nose broad, the pupil of the eye of a yellow brown, inclining to a black, the eyelids retiring towards the temples, the cheeks extremely high, the mouth very large, the lower part of the face narrow, the lips full and high, the voice shrill, the head large, the hair black and sleek, and the complexion brown or tanned. They are very small, and squat, though meagre. Most of them are not above four feet, and hardly any exceed four feet and a half. The Borandians are still smaller than the Laplanders. The Samoides more squat, with large heads and noses, and darker complexions. Their legs are shorter, their knees more turned outwards, their hair is longer, and they have less beard. The complexion of the Greenlanders is darker still, and of a deep olive colour.

The women, among all these nations, are as ugly as the men; and not only do these people resemble each other in ugliness, size, and the colour of their eyes and hair, but they have similar inclinations and manners, and are all equally gross, superstitious, and stupid. Most of them are idolaters; they are more rude than savage, wanting courage, self-respect, and modesty.

If we examine the neighbouring people of the long slip of land which the Laplanders inhabit, we shall find they have no relation whatever with that race, excepting only the Ostiachs and

Tongusians. The Samoiedes and the Borandians have no resemblance with the Russians, nor have the Laplanders with the Finlanders, the Goths, Danes, or Norwegians. The Greenlanders are alike different from the savages of Canada. The latter are tall and well made; and, though they differ very much from each other, yet they are still more infinitely different from the Laplanders. The Ostiachs seem to be Samoiedes something less ugly, and dwarfish, for they are small and ill formed.

All the Tartars have the upper part of the countenance very large and wrinkled, even in youth, the nose short and gross, the eyes small and sunken, the cheeks very high, the lower part of the face narrow, the chin long and prominent, the upper jaw sunken, the teeth long and separated, the eyebrows large, covering the eyes, the eyelids thick, the face flat, their skin of an olive colour, and their hair black. They are of a middle stature, but very strong and robust; have little beard, which grows in small tufts, like that of the Chinese, thick thighs, and short legs.

The Little or Nogais Tartars have lost a part of their ugliness by having intermingled with the Circassians. As we proceed eastward, into free or independent Tartary, the features of the Tartars become something less hard, but the essential characteristics of their race ever remain. The Mogul Tartars, who conquered China, and who were the most polished of these nations,

are, at present, the least ugly and ill made; yet have they, like the others, small eyes, the face large and flat, little beard, but always black or red, and the nose short and compressed.

Among the Kergisi and Teheremisi Tartars there is a whole nation, or tribe, among whom are very singularly beautiful men and women. The manners of the Chinese and Tartars are wholly opposite, more so than are their countenances and forms. The limbs of the Chinese are well proportioned, large, and fat. Their faces are round and capacious, their eyes small, their eyebrows large, their eyelids raised, and their noses little and compressed. They only have seven or eight tufts of black hair on each lip, and very little on the chin.

The natives of the coast of New Holland, which lies in sixteen degrees fifteen minutes of south latitude, and to the south of the isle of Timor, are perhaps the most miserable people on earth, and of all the human race most approach the brute animal. They are tall, upright, and slender. Their limbs are long and supple, their heads great, their forehead round, their eyebrows thick, and their eyelids half shut. This they acquire by habit in their infancy, to preserve their eyes from the gnats, by which they are greatly incommoded; and, as they never much open their eyes, they cannot see at a distance, at least, not unless they raise the head as if they wished to look at something above them. They have large noses, thick lips,

and wide mouths. It should seem that they draw the two upper fore teeth, for neither man nor woman, young or old, have these teeth. They have no beard; their faces are long, and very disagreeable, without a single pleasing feature; their hair not long, and sleek, like that of most of the Indians, but short, black, and curly, like the hair of the Negroes. Their skin is black, and resembles that of the Indians of the coast of Guinea.

Let us now examine the natives inhabiting a more temperate climate, and we shall find, that the people of the northern provinces of the Mogul empire, Persia, the Armenians, Turks, Georgians, Mingrelians, Circassians, Greeks, and all the inhabitants of Europe, are the handsomest, wisest, and the best-formed of any on earth; and that, though the distance between Cachemire and Spain, or Circassia and France, is very great, there is still a very singular resemblance between people so far from each other, but situated in nearly the same latitude. The people of Cachemire are renowned for beauty, are as well formed as the Europeans, and have nothing of the Tartar countenance, the flat nose, and the small pig's eyes, which are so universal among their neighbours.

The complexion of the Georgians is still more beautiful than that of Cachemire; no ugly face is found in the country, and nature has endowed most of the women with graces, which are no where else to be discovered. The men also are

I

very handsome, have natural understanding, and would be capable of arts and sciences, did. not their bad education render them exceedingly ignorant and vicious; yet, with all their vices, the Georgians are civil, humane, grave, and moderate; they seldom are under the influence of anger, though they become irreconcileable enemies, having once entertained hatred.

The Circassians and Mingrelians are equally beautiful and well-formed. The lame and the crooked are seldom seen among the Turks. The Spaniards are meagre, and rather small; they are well shaped, have fine heads, regular features, good eyes, and well arranged teeth; but their complexions are dark, and inclined to yellow. It has been remarked, that in some provinces of Spain, as near the banks of the river Bidassoa, the people have exceedingly large

ears.

M. Lavater here makes this digression: Can large ears hear better than small? I know one person with large, rude ears, whose sense of hearing is acute, and who has a good understanding; but, him excepted, I have particularly remarked large ears to betoken folly; and that, on the contrary, ears inordinately small appertain to very weak, effeminate characters, or persons of too great sensibility.-Thus far Lavater, let us now return to Buffon.

Men with black or dark-brown hair begin to be rather uncommon in England, Flanders, Holland, and the northern provinces of Germany;