the ante-monumental Egyptians could have borne no affinity towards
the latter. Lepsius, Birch, and De Rouge — our highest philological
authorities in this question — coincide in the main principle, that the
lexicology deduced from the earliest hieroglyphics exhibits two elements:
viz., a primary, or African; and a secondary, or Asiatic,
superimposed upon the former. It is also certain that, Syro-Arabian
engraftments being deducted from the present Nubian and the Berber
vernaculars spoken above and wfestward of Egypt, these languages
are as purely African now as must have been the idiom uttered by
the Egyptian ancestry of those who raised the pyramids of the 'IVth
dynasty, 5300 years ago.
Such are the results of archaeology, applied by that school of Egyptian
philologists which alone is competent to decide upon the language
of the hieroglyphics. They harmonize with the physiological conclusions
we have reached through monumental iconography. But,
requesting the critical reader to accompany us upon a map of the
African continent, such as those contained in the Physical Atlases of
Berghaus, or Johnston, we propose commencing at the Cape of Good
Hope, and following the African races from Table Rock to the Mediterranean.
Our limits do not permit a detailed analysis, nor is such
necessary, as the few prominent facts we shall present are quite sufficient
for the purpose in hand, and will at once he admitted by every
reader who is at all competent to pursue this discussion.
What is now called Cape Colony lies between 30° and 35° of south
latitude. It rises, as you recede from the coast, into high tablelands
and mountains, and possesses a comparatively temperate and
agreeable climate; nevertheless, it is here that we find the lowest and
most beastly specimens of mankind: viz., the Hottentot and the Bushman.
The latter, in particular, are hut little removed, both in moral
and physical characters, from the orang-outan. They are not black,
but of a yellowish-brown (tallow-colored, as the French term them),
with woolly heads, diminutive statures, small ill-shapen crania, very
projecting mouths, prognathous faces, and badly formed bodies; in
short, they are described by travellers as hearing a strong, resemblance
to the monkey tribe. They possess many anatomical peculiarities,
known to physiologists if not recapitulated here. L ic h t e n s t e in , one
of our best authorities, in describing this race, says: •—
“ Their common objects of pursuit are serpents, lizards, ants, and grasshoppers. They
will remain whole days without drinking; as a substitute, they chew succulent plants:
they do not eat salt. They have no fixed habitation, but sleep in holes in the ground or
under the branches of trees. They are short, lean, and, in appearance, weak in their
limbs; yet are capable of bearing much fatigue. Their sight is acute, but their taste,
smell, and feeling, are feeble. They do not form large societies, but wander about in
families.”
The Hottentots have been supposed by many to belong to the same
race as the Bosjesman or Bushmen; and although we do not partake
of this opinion, the point is too unimportant to our purpose to justify
critical discussion here. In most particulars, the physical characters of
Bushmen and Hottentots do not differ greatly — the Hottentots exhibit
much of the orang character of the Bushmen, and their females
often present two very remarkable peculiarities or deformities: viz.,
humps behind their buttocks, like those on the backs of dromedaries,
and a disgusting development of the labia pudendi. (See an example
in the Hottentot Venus, figured in our Chapter XEH.)
The complexion of the Hottentots is compared by travellers to that
of a personaffected with jaundice ” — “ a yellowish-brown, or the
hue of a faded leaf” —“ a tawny buff, or fawn-color.” Barrow
relates that—
“ The hair ia of a very singular nature—it does not cover the whole surface of the
scalp, hut [grows in small tufts, at certain distances from each other, and when clipped
short has the appearance and feel of a hard shoe-hrush, except that it is curled and
twisted into small round lumps, ahout the size of a marrowfat pea. When suffered to
grow, it hangs on the neck in hard-twisted tassels, like fringe.”
The Hottentots are also very strongly distinguished from all other
races by their singular language. Their utterance, according to
Lichtenstein, is remarkable for numerous rapid, harsh, shrill sounds,
emitted from the bottom of the chest, with strong aspirations, and
modified in the mouth by a singular motion of the tongue. The
name for it is commonly “ gluckings.” The peculiar construction of
the vocal organs of this race greatly facilitates the formation and
emission of these sounds, which to other species of men would he
very difficult. [] W e had the pleasure, two years ago,' at a meeting of the
Ethnological Society in Hew York, to hear some specimens of this
language from Prof. H a l d em a n n , of Pennsylvania, who possesses an
extraordinary talent for imitating sounds, and we can readily believe
that the Hottentot vocalization has no affinity with any other in
existence. — J. C. H.]
The next race we encounter, after leaving the Cape, is the Kafirs,
or Caffres. They are not only found along the coast to the northeast
in Caffraria, but extend far beyond, into the interior of Africa.
They display certain affinities with the Fulahs, Foolahs, or Fellatahs,
who are prolonged even into ^Northern Africa — whence an opinion
that the two races are identical; hut the fact,.to say the least, is a
matter of great doubt. The Caffres are traced northward, under
various names; and their language and customs are very widely
spread. Though they are now encountered in considerable numbers
near the Cape, their original seat is doubtful. In geography, Central