The Polynesians
The Polynesians are not a pure race -- all descended from the same ancestors. Like the English, the French, and the Americans, they are a mixed race made up of men and women of different races who came from different places at different times. By intermarriage since they came into the Pacific these people have become more mixed. It is possible to recognize four types of people among the natives of the Polynesian islands; the Polynesians themselves recognize the differences and have terms to describe them. The people known as "typical Polynesians "live in all the islands, but more of them in southern than in northern Polynesia. They resemble the Caucasians and in several respects are like the race from which Europeans have sprung. They are unlike the Melanesians, and are quite different from the Negro.
The Micronesians
The Micronesians are a combination of races. Among them are some people who resemble the Polynesians; but most of them show mixture with the Japanese, the Filipinos, and the Melanesians. The people on the different islands -- Marshall, Caroline , and Marianas -- although all Micronesians, are almost like different races. The Micronesians are said to lack the courtesy and hospitality of the Polynesians. They are able warriors, skillful fishermen and navigators, and make fine mats and clothing by weaving bark and leaves. As farmers and gardeners the Micronesians are much less skillful than the Polynesians and the Melanesians.
The Melanesians
he Melanesians differ widely among themselves in bodily form, language, and customs; but as a race they differ much from both the Polynesians and the Micronesians. Their features resemble the Negro. Their color varies from brown to black, and their hair is crisp, curly, or even tufted. They are ferocious warriors and once practiced cannibalism to an extent beyond that of other Pacific peoples. They are less intelligent than Polynesians, but their skill in carving and decoration is remarkably good.
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