History of Human SocietyBlackmar, Frank W. (Frank Wilson)
History
History of Human Society
Blackmar, Frank W. (Frank Wilson)
Civilization; Progress; Sociology
The horse was domesticated in Asia, and Clark Wissler[1] shows that to
be one great centre of cultural distribution for this animal. It
spread from Asia into Europe, and from Europe into America. The llama
was early domesticated in South America. The American turkey had its
native home in Mexico, the hen in Asia. The dog, though domesticated
very early in Asia, has gone wherever the human race has migrated, as
the constant companion of man. The horse, while domesticated in Asia,
depends upon the culture of Europe for his large and extended use, and
has spread over the world. We find that in the historic period the
Aryan people everywhere made use of the domesticated goat, horse, and
dog. In the northern part of Europe, the reindeer early became of
great service to the inhabitants for milk, meat, and clothing. The
great supply of milk and meat from domesticated animals added
tremendously to the food supply of the race, and made it possible for
it to develop in other lines. Along with the food supply has been the
use of these animals for increasing the clothing supply through hides,
furs, skins, and wool. The domestication of animals laid the
foundation for great economic advancement.
_The Beginnings of Agriculture Were Very Meagre_.--Man had gathered
seeds and fruit and berries for many years before he conceived the
notion of planting seeds and cultivating crops. It appears to be a
long time before he knew enough to gather seeds and plant them for a
harvest. Having discovered this, it was only necessary to have the
will and energy to prepare the soil, sow the seed, and harvest a crop
in order to enter upon agriculture. But to learn this simple act must
have required many crude experiments. In the migrations of mankind
they adopted a little intermittent agriculture, planting the grains
while the tribe paused for pasture of flocks and herds, and resting
long enough for a crop to be harvested. {94} They gradually began to
supplement the work of the pastoral with temporary agriculture, which
was used as a means of supplementing the food supply. It was not until
people settled in permanent habitations and ceased their pastoral
wanderings that real agriculture became established. Even then it was
a crude process, and, like every other economic industry of ancient
times, its development was excessively slow.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account