ld　form　three　great　groups：　one　comprising　Australia；　Timor；　and　Tasmania；　another　New　Guinea；　with　the　islands　from　Bouru　to　the　Solomon's　group；　and　the　third　comprising　the　greater　part　of　the　Pacific　Islands。
  The　relation　of　the　New　Guinea　fauna　to　that　of　Australia　is　very　close。　It　is　best　marked　in　the　Mammalia　by　the　abundance　of　marsupials；　and　the　almost　　complete　absence　of　all　other　terrestrial　forms。　In　birds　it　is　less　striking；　although　still　very　clear；　for　all　the　remarkable　old…world　forms　which　are　absent　from　the　one　are　equally　so　from　the　other；　such　as　Pheasants；　Grouse；　Vultures；　and　Woodpeckers；　while　Cockatoos；　Broad…tailed　Parrots；　Podargi；　and　the　great　families　of　the　Honeysuckers　and　Brush…turkeys；　with　many　others；　comprising　no　less　than　twenty…four　genera　of　land…birds；　are　common　to　both　countries；　and　are　entirely　confined　to　them。
  When　we　consider　the　wonderful　dissimilarity　of　the　two　regions　in　all　those　physical　conditions　which　were　once　supposed　to　determine　the　forms　of　life…Australia；　with　its　open　plains；　stony　deserts；　dried　up　rivers；　and　changeable　temperate　climate；　New　Guinea；　with　its　luxuriant　forests；　uniformly　hot；　moist；　and　evergreenthis　great　similarity　in　their　productions　is　almost　astounding；　and　unmistakeably　points　to　a　common　origin。　The　resemblance　is　not　nearly　so　strongly　marked　in　insects；　the　reason　obviously　being；　that　this　class　of　animals　are　much　more　immediately　dependent　on　vegetation　and　climate　than　are　the　more　highly　organized　birds　and　Mammalia。　Insects　also　have　far　more　effective　means　of　distribution；　and　have　spread　widely　into　every　district　favourable　to　their　development　and　increase。　The　giant　Ornithopterae　have　thus　spread　from　New　Guinea　over　the　whole　Archipelago；　and　as　far　as　the　base　of　the　Himalayas；　while　the　elegant　long…horned　Anthribidae　have　spread　in　the　opposite　direction　from　Malacca　to　New　Guinea；　but　owing　to　unfavourable　conditions　have　not　been　able　to　establish　themselves　in　Australia。　That　country；　on　the　other　hand；　has　developed　a　variety　of　flower…haunting　Chafers　and　Buprestidae；　and　numbers　of　large　and　curious　terrestrial　Weevils；　scarcely　any　of　which　are　adapted　to　the　damp　gloomy　forests　of　New　Guinea；　where　entirely　different　forms　are　to　be　found。　There　are；　however；　some　groups　of　insects；　constituting　what　appear　to　be　the　remains　of　the　ancient　population　of　the　equatorial　parts　of　the　Australian　region；　which　are　still　almost　entirely　confined　to　it。　Such　are　the　interesting　sub…family　of　Longicorn　coleoptera　Tmesisternitae；　one　of　the　best…marked　genera　of　Buprestidae　Cyphogastra；　and　the　beautiful　weevils　forming　the　genus　Eupholus。　Among　butterflies　we　have　the　genera　Mynes；　Hypocista；　and　Elodina；　and　the　curious　eye…spotted　Drusilla；　of　which　last　a　single　species　is　found　in　Java；　but　in　no　other　of　the　western　islands。
  The　facilities　for　the　distribution　of　plants　are　still　greater　than　they　are　for　insects；　and　it　is　the　opinion　of　eminent　botanists；　that　no　such　clearly…defined　regions　pan　be　marked　out　in　botany　as　in　zoology。　The　causes　which　tend　to　diffusion　are　here　most　powerful；　and　have　led　to　such　intermingling　of　the　floras　of　adjacent　regions　that　none　but　broad　and　general　divisions　can　now　be　detected。　These　remarks　have　an　important　bearing　on　the　problem　of　dividing　the　surface　of　the　earth　into　great　regions；　distinguished　by　the　radical　difference　of　their　natural　productions。　Such　difference　we　now　know　to　be　the　direct　result　of　long…continued　separation　by　more　or　less　impassable　barriers；　and　as　wide　oceans　and　great　contrast：　of　temperature　are　the　most　complete　barriers　to　the　dispersal　of　all　terrestrial　forms　of　life；　the　primary　divisions　of　the　earth　should　in　the　main　serve　for　all　terrestrial　organisms。　However　various　may　be　the　effects　of　climate；　however　unequal　the　means　of　distribution；　these　will　never　altogether　obliterate　the　radical　effects　of　long…continued　isolation；　and　it　is　my　firm　conviction；　that　when　the　botany　and　the　entomology　of　New　Guinea　and　the　surrounding　islands　become　as　well　known　as　are　their　mammals　and　birds；　these　departments　of　nature　will　also　plainly　indicate　the　radical　distinctions　of　the　Indo…Malayan　and　Austro…　Malayan　regions　of　the　great　Malay　Archipelago。
  CHAPTER　XL。
  THE　RACES　OF　MAN　IN　THE　MALAY　ARCHIPELAGO。
  PROPOSE　to　conclude　this　account　of　my　Eastern　travels；　with　a　short　statement　of　my　views　as　to　the　races　of　man　which　inhabit　the　various　parts　of　the　Archipelago；　their　chief　physical　and　mental　characteristics；　their　affinities　with　each　other　and　with　surrounding　tribes；　their　migrations；　and　their　probable　origin。
  Two　very　strongly　contrasted　races　inhabit　the　Archipelagothe　Malays；　occupying　almost　exclusively　the　larger　western　half　of　it；　and　the　Papuans；　whose　headquarters　are　New　Guinea　and　several　of　the　adjacent　islands。　Between　these　in　locality；　are　found　tribes　who　are　also　intermediate　in　their　chief　characteristics；　and　it　is　sometimes　a　nice　point　to　determine　whether　they　belong　to　one　or　the　other　race；　or　have　been　formed　by　a　mixture　of　the　two。
  The　Malay　is　undoubtedly　the　most　important　of　these　two　races；　as　it　is　the　one　which　is　the　most　civilized；　which　has　come　most　into　contact　with　Europeans；　and　which　alone　has　any　place　in　history。　What　may　be　called　the　true　Malay　races；　as　distinguished　from　others　who　have　merely　a　Malay　element　in　their　language；　present　a　considerable　uniformity　of　physical　and　mental　characteristics；　while　there　are　very　great　differences　of　civilization　and　of　language。　They　consist　of　four　great；　and　a　few　minor　semi…civilized　tribes；　and　a　number　of　others　who　may　be　termed　savages。　The　Malays　proper　inhabit　the　Malay　peninsula；　and　almost　all　the　coast　regions　of　Borneo　and　Sumatra。　They　all　speak　the　Malay　language；　or　dialects　of　it；　they　write　in　the　Arabic　character；　and　are　Mahometans　in　religion。　The　Javanese　inhabit　Java；　part　of　Sumatra；　Madura；　Bali；　and　Bart　of　Lombock。　They　speak　the　Javanese　and　Kawi　languages；　which　they　write　in　a　native　character。　They　are　now　Mahometans　in　Java；　but　Brahmins　in　Bali　and　Lombock。　The　Bugis　are　the　inhabitants　of　the　greater　parts　of　Celebes；　and　there　seems　to　be　an　allied　people　in　Sumbawa。　They　speak　the　Bugis　and　Macassar　languages；　with　dialects；　and　have　two　different　native　characters　in　which　they　write　these。　They　are　all　Mahometans。　The　fourth　great　race　is　that　of　the　Tagalas　in　the　Philippine　Islands；　about　whom；　as　I　did　not　visit　those　Islands；　I　shall　say　little。　Many　of　them　are　now　Christians；　and　speak　Spanish　as　well　as　their　native　tongue；　the　Tagala。　The　Moluccan…Malays；　who　inhabit　chiefly　Ternate；　Tidore；　Batchian；　and　Amboyna；　may　be　held　to　form　a　fifth　division　of　semi…civilized　Malays。　They　are　all　Mahometans；　but　they　speak　a　variety　of　curious　languages；　which　seem　compounded　of　Bugis　and　Javanese；　with　the　languages　of　the　savage　tribes　of　the　Moluccas。
  The　savage　Malays　are　the　Dyaks　of　Borneo；　the　Battaks　and　other　wild　tribes　of　Sumatra；　the　Jakuns　of　the　Malay　Peninsula；　the　aborigines　of　Northern　Celebes；　of　the　Sula　island；　and　of　part　of　Bouru。
  The　colour　of　all　these　varied　tribes　is　a　light　reddish　brown；　with　more　or　less　of　an　olive　tinge；　not　varying　in　any　important　degree　over　an　extent　of　country　as　large　as　all　Southern　Europe。　The　hair　is　equally　constant；　being　invariably　black　and　straight；　and　of　a　rather　coarse　texture；　so　that　any　lighter　tint；　or　any　wave　or　curl　in　it；　is　an　almost　certain　proof　of　the　admixture　of　some　foreign　blood。　The　face　is　nearly　destitute　of　beard；　and　the　breast　and　limbs　are　free　from　hair。　The　stature　is　tolerably　equal；　and　is　always　considerably　below　that　of　the　average　European；　the　body　is　robust；　the　breast　well　developed；　the　feet　small；　thick；　and　short；　the　hands　small　and　rather　delicate。　The　face　is　a　little　broad；　and　inclined　to　be　flat；　the　forehead　is　rather　rounded；　the　brows　low；　the　eyes　black　and　very　slightly　oblique；　the　nose　is　rather　small；　not　prominent；　but　straight　and　well…shaped；　the　apex　a　little　rounded；　the　nostrils　broad　and　slightly　exposed；　the　cheek…bones　are　rather　prominent；　the　mouth　large；　the　lips　broad　and　well　cut；　but　not　protruding；　the　chin　round　and　well…formed。
  In　this　description　there　seems　little　to　object　to　on　the　score　of　beauty；　and　yet　on　the　whole　the　Malays　are　certainly　not　handsome。　In　youth；　however；　they　are　often　very　good…looking；　and　many　of　the　boys　and　girls　up　to　twelve　or　fifteen　years　of　age　are　very　pleasing；　and　some　have　countenances　which　are　in　their　way　almost　perfect。　I　am　inclined　to　think　they　lose　much　of　their　good　looks　by　bad　habits　and　irregular　living。　At　a　very　early　age。　they　chew　betel　and　tobacco　almost　incessantly；　they　suffer　much　want　and　exposure　in　their　fishing　and　other　excursions；　their　lives　are　often　passed　in　alternate　starvation　and　feasting；　idleness　and　excessive　labour；and　this　naturally　produces　premature　old　age　and　harshness　of　features。
  In　character　the　Malay　is　impassive。　He　exhibits　a　reserve；　diffidence；　and　even　bashfulness；　which　is　in　some　degree　attractive；　and　leads　the　observer　to　thinly　that　the