Page:History of the Indian Archipelago Vol 3.djvu/289

 EUROPEAN NATIONS. 278 ed races, is no better than a prejudice. The dif- ferent races of men appear to preserve their dis- tinctions wholly independent of climate. In hot countries, the first settlers feel, indeed, the incon- veniences of heat, but the constitution of their de- scendants immediately adapts itself to the climate which they are born to inhabit. Were it other- wise, the extensive table lands and mountain tracts of the great islands, elevated at 5000 and 6000 feet above the level of the sea, would afford a tempera- ture cold enouo-h even for an inhabitant of north- o ern Europe. * After this sketch of what appears the most ma- terial and expedient method of extending the in- the human species enjoys a longevity perhaps greater than what we observe in the temperate zones. This is especially the case whenever the temperature and climate are neces- sarily variable. The Europeans, who transport themselves at an age somewhat advanced into the equinoctial part of the Spanish colonies, attain there, for the most part, to a great and happy old age. At Vera Cruz, in the midst of the epidemical black vomitings, the natives, and strangers seasoned for several years to the climate, enjoy the most perfect health." — Political Essajj on Nerv Spain, Vol. I. — In another of his works, Baron Humboldt tells us that there are in the hot plains of America, near the equator, men of the genuine European race, who are as athletic as the pea- santry of Spain, and perform all sorts of field labour in the sun without inconvenience. VOL. III. S
 * "In climates very warm, and at the same time very dry,