Speaking in general terms one may say that the simian groove is most frequent in the Negroes, Australians, and the black races generally. The infantile condition is common among Negroes, the yellow races, and Southern Europeans. The fosse prenasales are also frequent among the yellow races, while the forma anthropina is characteristic of the Northern Europeans.'

1 Since the above was in type, Professor A. Macalister has written a paper on "The Apertura Pyriformis" (Journ. Anat. and Phys., xxxii., January, 1898, p. 223), in which he describes these four conditions, to which he gives the following names: Orygmocraspedote (simian groove), Amblycraspedote (forma infantilis), Bothrocraspedote (fossæ prenasales), Oxycraspedote (forma anthropina).

I

CHAPTER V

THE ETHNOGRAPHY OF THE Dordogne
DISTRICT

HAVE previously alluded to the brilliant ethnographical work done by Dr. Collignon,' and I have made an abstract of his researches in the Dordogne District of West Central France in order to demonstrate the lines upon which such inquiries should be conducted, and to illustrate the results that follow from a blending of anthropological investigations with the records of history. We have here a very happy example of an anthropological analysis which supplies the data for a subsequent historical synthesis.

The region under consideration consists partly of the calcareous beds and partly of primitive rocks of the Central Plateau of France; the limiting line between them is shown on the map (Fig. 19); to the east it passes into the mountainous mass of Auvergne. The five Departments which constitute this region are traversed from east to west by the gradually decreasing elevations of the Limousin Mountains, which serve as barriers between the three basins of the Dordogne, or rather of its right affluents, the Dronne, Isle, Vézère, and Corrèze; of the Charente and of the left affluents of the Loire, the Vienne, Gartempe, Creuse, and Cher. A line running roughly north and south, starting at the junction

1 R. Collignon, "Anthropologie de la France: Dordogne, Charente, Corrèze, Creuse, Haute-Vienne," Mém. Soc. d'Anth. de Paris (3), i., 1894.

of Charente and Haute-Vienne and passing not far to the east of Périgueux, would separate the fertile district to the west from the poor lands to the east. At certain points in the latter, as in the Limousin, the valleys are rich, but the uplands are infertile, and produce only chestnuts and scanty

The physical features of the population studied by Dr. Collignon are mainly those of the conscripts for the xii Corps d'armée, who are recruited from these five Depart

ments.

The characters are given in the order of importance that Dr. Collignon allocates to each.

CEPHALIC INDEX.

This index is the ratio of the breadth of the head to its

greatest length, the latter being taken as 100. In dealing with skulls, anthropologists usually arrange the indices in three groups: (1) Dolichocephals, with an index of less than 75; (2) Mesaticephals, with an index between 75 and 80; (3) Brachycephals, having an index of over 80. It is the practice of some anthropologists to deduct two units from the corresponding index of the living head so as to reduce the cephalic to the cranial index.

There is a tendency at present not to lay too much stress upon these purely empirical divisions, and some would raise the upper limit of dolichocephaly two or three units.

The following table gives the distribution of the cephalic indices in the five Departments; in the case of Dordogne a further analysis is made, which proves that the southern part of that Department is much more brachycephalic than the northern. The mean index of this Department, if alone considered, gives extremely little information.

CEPHALIC INDEX-PROPORTION PER CENT.

It is evident that this table indicates considerable differences in the ethnic constitution of each Department. Taking the extremes, we have, on the one hand, North Dordogne with its 8.5 per cent. of indices below 75, or Charente with 5.7 per cent. and only .5 per cent. of ultrabrachycephals, and Corrèze on the other, which has no dolichocephal below 75, but has 8.1 per cent. of indices over 90.

Taken as they stand, the great majority of these indices fall into the brachycephalic division, while very few are dolichocephalic.

The mean index of the French population being 83.57, Dr. Collignon, in order to simplify matters, describes as brachycephals those indices above 83. The cantons which come under this grouping form a compact mass to the south and south-east, as is seen in the map on the following page. To the north there are two islands in which the index does not exceed 83.8.

Inversely, and as a matter of convenience, he regards as dolichocephalic all the regions in which the index is less than 80. Two large groups of dolichocephalic cantons are isolated by this means; the more important covers two-thirds of the Department of Dordogne (the valleys of the Isle and of the Dronne), and about one-half of Charente, mainly to the south. and south-east. The other has Limoges for a centre and the seven cantons that surround it.

In the narrow band of country between these two groups the index is 81.

This clearly defined distribution is of the greatest importance, for alone it provides a key to the local ethnography.

Another point not less worthy of attention is the clear manner in which these two head types are separated: (1) between the two Departments of Dordogne and Corrèze; (2) between the two portions of Dordogne which are separated by the rivers Vézère and Dordogne.