Anthropological expedition to the Kalmuk steppes--Affection of the
eyes--Second expedition to the steppes--The eggs of the _Geophilus_.
After the misfortune which had befallen him Metchnikoff placed his
only hope in work, and the condition of his eyes was therefore for
him a source of great preoccupation. He applied to the Petersburg
Geographical Society for an anthropological mission in order to
undertake researches less trying to his eyesight than microscopical
work.
As he went deeper into anthropology, he was struck by the fact that
this science lacked a leading thread and was guided by no general idea
but reduced to mere measurements, very precise and detailed, it is
true. Metchnikoff wondered whether it would not be advisable to apply
to anthropology the methods used in embryology and to establish an
analogy between the diverse human races and the different ages of the
individual. In order to solve this problem he had thought at first of
visiting the Samoyedes as being the most primitive of the aboriginal
peoples of Russia. But the project was not realisable and he determined
to visit, at his own expense, the Kalmuks of the Astrakhan steppes,
also a primitive Mongol race.
Before his departure he went to see his family and that of his late
wife. Long afterwards his sister-in-law, Mlle. Fédorovitch, wrote me
the following account of that interview:
He was still suffering from an inflammation of the eyes. This man,
whom I cannot picture to myself without a microscope or a book, was,
at that sad period of his life, reduced to complete inactivity.
We had always been struck with his power of becoming absorbed in
scientific reading, even during meals; it inconvenienced no one, for
he heard at the same time the conversation that was going on and even
took part in it from time to time. Now, the day after his arrival,
I came to call him to tea and found him seated in his darkened room
with scissors in his hands and the floor around him littered with
small pieces of paper ... such was the occupation to which he was
reduced.
He told me that, if I liked, he would come to live in Moscow and
devote his life and his work to our family. I refused and told him
why; my refusal grieved him, but I was right. Besides a feeling of
generosity, his offer was actuated by a desire for an immediate
object in life. Soon after that, he started for the Kalmuk steppes in
order to undertake anthropological researches. I was often haunted by
the thought of his sad figure in the midst of the steppes.
The journey was difficult and fatiguing. Metchnikoff did not know the
Kalmuk language and had to depend on interpreters. From the very first
he was painfully impressed by the brutality of the Russian officials
towards the natives. At every halt the Kalmuks declared that they had
no horses; the Cossack who convoyed Metchnikoff would then begin to
swear and to play with his "nagaika" or leather-thonged whip, and the
required horses appeared as by magic. After a while Metchnikoff became
used to such scenes and looked upon them as a custom of the country.
He found it more difficult to put up with the indescribable dirt, the
smell of mutton fat which impregnated the food, and the continual
barking of dogs during the night, details which destroyed the charm and
poetry of primitive life. In spite of these unfavourable conditions,
Metchnikoff worked indefatigably. The physical measurements of the
Kalmuks led him to conclude that the development of the Mongol race
was arrested in comparison with that of the Caucasian race; he found
that all the relative proportions of the diverse parts of the Kalmuk
skeleton corresponded with that of youth in the Caucasian race: a large
head, a long torso, short legs, absolutely the relative dimensions of
our children. This conclusion was further confirmed by the structure of
the eyelid in the Kalmuks, of which the fold (epicanthus) in the adult
corresponds with that of the fold of the eyelid in our children.
These interesting results somewhat raised Metchnikoff's _moral_,
the more so that his eyesight began to improve; he returned to
Odessa but found that he was still unable to use a microscope. He
therefore decided to go back to the steppes in order to proceed with
his researches, and, this time, began his journey by the Stavropol
province. The steppes there are very fine, with tall, luxuriant grasses
and a profusion of flowers filling the pure atmosphere with perfume;
the infinite space and absolute calm offer a peculiar and powerful
charm. But the population is depressed and apathetic, as is the case
with that of the Astrakhan steppes. The reason must be that the Kalmuks
consume milk which has undergone alcoholic fermentation, and that
provokes a slight but chronic intoxication. Yet a few among them are
extremely intelligent and of fairly high culture. Thus, in the course
of his ethnographical researches Metchnikoff came across a priest
(bakshâ) who imparted to him such instructive facts on the principles
of the Buddhist religion and on the organisation of its clergy that he
even planned to go with him to Thibet, where no stranger can penetrate
without the help of an adept. This plan, however, was never executed.
After he had collected numerous anthropological data, Metchnikoff went
again to the Astrakhan steppes in order to verify and to complete his
observations of the preceding year. Whilst traversing some oases where
the Russians were making experiments in artificial forestry, he had the
pleasant surprise of finding some Myriapoda (_Geophilus_) bearing a
number of eggs. The history of the development of those creatures was
still unknown--a notable lacuna in embryology. Delighted at the idea
of filling it, Metchnikoff did not hesitate to undertake a long and
difficult extra journey and repaired to Astrakhan, taking with him his
precious material, in order to fetch the necessary apparatus for his
researches. But during the long journey several eggs perished and he
had to return to the oasis with a borrowed microscope to study other
eggs on the spot. In spite of very difficult conditions and of the
persistent weakness of his eyesight, he succeeded in filling the lacuna
in the embryology of the _Geophilus_.
He had at the same time collected very interesting anthropological
data. His hypothesis as to the necessity of applying to anthropology
the comparative methods of embryology was fully justified, for, thanks
to that process, he was able to establish a definite correlation
between the Mongol race and the adolescence of the Caucasian race. He
presented a report on the subject to the Anthropological Society of
Moscow, but, his attention being afterwards turned in other directions,
he never came back to this subject.