RACIAL PURITY

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 83, Issue 245, 17 October 1939, Page 9

RACIAL PURITY

DOES NOT EXIST THREE MAIN STRAINS ROTARY CLUB ADDRESS That according to ethnologists there are no Basque or Aryan races was a statement made by Mr. G. F. Saunders, of the staff of the Wanganui Technical College, when speaking to members of the Wanganui RotaryClub. “When the Basque-speaking people were being driven from their homes as a result of the civil war in Spain, Mr. Lloyd George, in one of his speeches on behalf of the Basque refugees, claimed that he himself was a Basque. “More recently we have become familiar with Herr Hitler's insistence that in the interests of German nationalism true Germans are Aryan. Yet ethnologists tell us in no uncertain voice that there is no Basque race and that there is no Aryan race. These two claims are typical of the confusion which exists in the minds of men on the subject of race. In some vague way we associate race with nationality ana with language, whereas neither is an index of race.” Ethnologists, said Mr. Saunders, recognised in Europe three main strains, The first was a small, dark long-headed type with oval faces, waving hair and dark eyes whose original home seemed to be North Africa but crossed to Europe in the neolithic period to colonise the northern fringe of the Mediterranean. In the west they spread northward along tho Atlantic coast as far as Scotland and to this day had left their mark in the peoples of Spain, West France, Cornwall, Devon, Wales, Ireland and Scotland. They spread eastward to the Upper Danube and south-east over Egypt, Arabia and Somaliland, Alpine Stock The second strain recognised as an element in European people was the so-called alpine stock —broad-headed, of medium height, thick set, chest-nut-brown or black hair and hazelgrey or brown eyes. They were thought to have come into Europe from the high plateau country of Asia Minor shortly after the last, ice age. They spread from the Balkans along the alpine belt and appeared in the Highlands, Central France anu extended into Brittany, the British Isles, Czechoslovakia and parts of Germany. The third racial type was known as the nordie type and was associated with the northern part of Europe as the name implied. This type was rather loiig-headed, tall, fair haired and had a reddish complexion with blue and grey eyes. It was impossible to say where their original home was. “It must not be supposed that the people of Europe consist merely of a mixture of these three races with one or two others predominating,' said Mr. Saunders. “Not only can none of the strains be found anywhere in its original, pure state but most of the nations of Europe contain very mixed populations indeed.” The Aryan Race In spite of Hitler there was no Aryan race but only an Aryan language, which was spoken by nearly all the people of Europe. There must at one time have been an Aryan race but where it was located no one knew. In Europe there was a number of nations all of mixed descent and consisting, for the most part, of these three strains intermingled in different proportions, but in such a way that one or the other predominated although sometimes two or all three could be recognised. With a few exceptions their languages were closely related and were derived from a common parent language. During the course of centuries, because of climatic and other conditions, these languages had become so differentiated as to mark the people of Europe into distinct language groups. This division had no basis in scientific fact. Differences of speech had raised artificial barriers between peoples which were more or less akin. Language was no test, of race, but depended on environment. The differences among the nations of Europe to a great extent were the result of environment and not heredity, speech or race. Jeus Not a Distinct Race “Contrary to the accepted opinion the Jews do not constitute a distinct racial type,” said Mr. Saunders. The ancient Jew was formed from the crossing of several distinct types anc later there was a great deal of crossing between Jews and non-Jewish peoples among whom they dwelt. The result was that not only wert the Jews different in racial elements (genetically) but the Jewish population overlapped with the non-Jewish Concluding, Mr. Saunders said that claims to race purity and race unity had no basis in fact. There was no reason why differences of speech should make for disunity and conflict. The spirit of nationalism must go and with it the prejudices and antipathies which it engendered and a more tolerant international outlook must take its place.” The speaker was accorded a hearty vote of thanks on the motion of Rotarian D. G. O'Toole,