6 ANIMAL MECHANICS 



the animal body, which ought to have been marked 

 before, and which might have suggested to us the 

 improvement. It is surprising that this view of 

 the subject has seldom, if ever, been taken seri- 

 ously, and never pursued. Is the human body 

 formed by an all-perfect Architect, or is it not ? 

 And, if the question be answered in the affirma- 

 tive, does it not approach to something like infat- 

 uation that, possessing such perfect models as we 

 have in the anatomy of the body, we yet have 

 been so prone to neglect them? We undertake 

 to prove that the foundation of the Eddystone 

 lighthouse, the perfection of human architecture 

 and ingenuity, is not formed on principles so cor- 

 rect as those which have directed the arrange- 

 ment of the bones of the foot ; that the most 

 perfect pillar or kingpost is not adjusted with the 

 accuracy of the hollow bones which support our 

 weight ; that the insertion of a ship's mast into 

 the hull is a clumsy contrivance compared with 

 the connections of the human spine and pelvis ; 

 and that the tendons are composed in a manner 

 superior to the last patent cables of Huddart, or 

 the yet more recently improved chain-cables of 

 Bloxam. 



Let us assume that the head is the noblest 

 part ; and let us examine the carpentry and archi- 

 tectural contrivances exhibited there. 



