Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 2.djvu/621

 REVIEWS 607

"organic concept" would hardly be equal to the strain if it actually did sanction such deductions. Happily the "organic concept" and British aristocracy have no more relation to each other than the world order has to any other accident of human institutions.

Apart from this fantasy, which does not affect the substance of the argument, the book is suggestive and helpful. It expounds facts of social consciousness in a way which very fairly covers the territory of social psychology. It is objective and concrete in treatment. It finds its phenomena not in prehistoric times but chiefly in the modern world. Tammany Hall, and President Cleveland's Venezuela message furnish illustrations, and the presence of such material makes the book seem to be dealing with reality much more than is usually the case with works upon like subjects. I should say that this is the most important of M. Novicow's works, and I place it confidently in the list of books with which every sociologist must become familiar.

ALBION W. SMALL.

Tlitories Moderties sur les Origines de la Famille, de la Soctitt et de ftat. Par ADOLPHE POSADA. Translated from the Spanish by F. de Zeltner. Paris : V. Giard et E. Briere.

THIS work presents a very clear and concise survey of the modern researches, opinions, and speculations in respect to the prehistoric forms of the family and regulative institutions. The author starts from the principles assumed by all schools. Man is not the only social being, and the study of animal societies furnishes materials for a clearer conception of human associations. The psychology of primi- tive man must be studied in order to comprehend the remains of his institutions. The data for such study are gathered from relations of travelers, ancient laws and usages, myths, traditions, and archaeologi- cal remains. All society begins with barbarous conditions. All races have something in common at the same stage of evolution. Degener- ate races disappear ; progressive races survive. There are fundamental analogies between primitive man and modern savages. Truth is reached from a rational interpretation of phenomena, not from mere historical description. Upon the basis of these principles the various theories of the origin of households and political organization are discussed.

The theory of the patriarchate, as held by Ma st analyzed.