Influences of Geographic Environment | Page 2

a time when Herbert Spencer exercised a wide influence upon European thought. This theory, now generally abandoned by sociologists, had to be eliminated from any restatement of Ratzel's system. Though it was applied in the original often in great detail, it stood there nevertheless rather as a scaffolding around the finished edifice; and the stability of the structure, after this scaffolding is removed shows how extraneous to the whole it was. The theory performed, however, a great service in impressing Ratzel's mind with the life-giving connection between land and people.
The writer's own method of research has been to compare typical peoples of all races and all stages of cultural development, living under similar geographic conditions. If these peoples of different ethnic stocks but similar environments manifested similar or related social, economic or historical development, it was reasonable to infer that such similarities were due to environment and not to race. Thus, by extensive comparison, the race factor in these problems of two unknown quantities was eliminated for certain large classes of social and historical phenomena.
The writer, moreover, has purposely avoided definitions, formulas, and the enunciation of hard-and-fast rules; and has refrained from any effort to delimit the field or define the relation of this new science of anthropo-geography to the older sciences. It is unwise to put tight clothes on a growing child. The eventual form and scope of the science, the definition and organization of its material must evolve gradually, after long years and many efforts of many workers in the field. The eternal flux of Nature runs through anthropo-geography, and warns against precipitate or rigid conclusions. But its laws are none the less well founded because they do not lend themselves to mathematical finality of statement. For this reason the writer speaks of geographic factors and influences, shuns the word geographic determinant, and speaks with extreme caution of geographic control.
The present volume is offered to the public with a deep sense of its inadequacy; with the realization that some of its principles may have to be modified or their emphasis altered after wider research; but also with the hope that this effort may make the way easier for the scholar who shall some day write the ideal treatise on anthropo-geography.
In my work on this book I have only one person to thank, the great master who was my teacher and friend during his life, and after his death my inspiration.
ELLEN CHURCHILL SEMPLE. LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY, January, 1911.

CONTENTS
PREFACE
CHAPTER I.
OPERATION OF GEOGRAPHIC FACTORS IN HISTORY
Man a product of the earth's surface--Persistent effect of geographic barriers--Recurrent influences of nature-made highways--Regions of historical similarity--Persistence of climatic influences--Relation of geography to history--Multiplicity of geographic factors--Evolution of geographic relations--Interplay of geographic factors--Direct and indirect effects of environment--Indirect effects in differentiation of colonial peoples--General importance of indirect effects--Time element--Previous habitat--Transplanted religions--Partial response to environment--The larger conception of environment--Unity of the earth and the human race.
CHAPTER II.
CLASSES OF GEOGRAPHIC INFLUENCES
Four classes of influences--Physical effects of environment--Stature and environment--Effects of dominant activities--Physical effects of climate--Pigmentation in relation to heat and light--Pigmentation and altitude--Difficulty of generalization from geographic distribution--Psychical effects--In Religion--In mind and character--In language--The great man in history--Economic and social effects--Size of the social group--Effects on movements of peoples--Segregation and accessibility--Change of habitat.
CHAPTER III.
SOCIETY AND STATE IN RELATION TO THE LAND
People and land--Political geography--Political versus social geography--Land basis of society--Morgan's _societas_--Land bond in primitive hunter tribes--In fisher tribes--In pastoral tribes--Land and state--Strength of the land bond in the state--Evolution of land tenure--Land and food supply--Advance from natural to artificial basis of subsistence--Land basis in relation to agriculture--Migratory and sedentary agriculture--Geographic checks to progress in economic and social development--Native animal and plant life as factors in progress--Density of population under different cultural and geographic conditions--Its relation to government--Territorial expansion of the state--Artificial checks to population--Extra-territorial relations of state and people--Theory of progress from the standpoint of geography--Progressive dependence of man upon nature.
CHAPTER IV.
MOVEMENTS OF PEOPLES IN THEIR GEOGRAPHICAL SIGNIFICANCE
Universality of such movements--The name Historical Movement--Its evolution--Its importance in history--Geographical interpretation of historical movement--Mobility of primitive peoples--Civilization and mobility--Migration and ethnic mingling--Cultural modification during migration--The transit land--War as form of historical movement--Slavery--Military colonies--Withdrawal and flight--Natural regions of asylum--Emigration and colonization--Commerce as a form of historical movement--Movements due to religion--Historical movement and race distribution--Zonal distribution--Movements to like or better geographic conditions--Their direction--Return movements--Regions of attraction and repulsion--Psychical influences in certain movements--Two results of historical movement--Differentiation and area--Differentiation and isolation--Geographic conditions of heterogeneity and homogeneity--Assimilation--Elimination of unfit variants through historical movement--Geographical origins.
CHAPTER V.
GEOGRAPHICAL LOCATION
The importance of geographical location--Content of the term location--Intercontinental location--Natural versus vicinal location--Naturally defined location--Vicinal location--Vicinal groups of similar or diverse race and culture--Thalassic vicinal location--Complementary locations--Continuous and scattered location--Central versus peripheral location--Mutual relations between center and periphery--Inland and coastward expansion--Reaction between center and periphery--Periphery in colonization--Dominant historical side--Change of historical front--Contrasted historical sides--One-sided historical location--Scattered location--Due to adverse