MONKEYS. 21 



form, position, and function, the only absolute differences being that 

 the orang has nine wrist-bones, whereas man and the chimpanzee have 

 but eight ; and the chimpanzee has thirteen pairs of ribs, whereas 

 the orang, like man, has but twelve. AVith these two exceptions, the 

 differences are those of shape, proportion, and direction only, though 

 the resulting differences in the external form and motions are very 

 considerable. The greatest of these are, that the feet of the anthro- 

 poid or man-like apes, as well as those of all monkeys, are formed like 

 hands, with large opposable thumbs fitted to grasp the branches of 

 trees, but unsuitable for erect walking, while the hands have weak 

 small thumbs but very long and powerful fingers, forming a hook 

 rather than a hand, adapted for climbing up trees and suspending the 

 whole weight from horizontal branches. The almost complete identity 

 of the skeleton, however, and the close similarity of the muscles and 

 of all the internal organs, have produced that striking and ludicrous 

 resemblance to man which every one recognizes in these higher apes 

 and, in a less degree, in the whole monkey tribe ; the face and feat- 

 ures, the motions, attitudes, and gestures being often a strange carica- 

 ture of humanity. Let us, then, examine a little more closely in what 

 the resemblance consists, and how far, and to what extent, these ani- 

 mals really differ from us. 



Besides the face, which is often wonderfully human although the 

 absence of any protuberant nose gives it often a curiously infantile 

 aspect monkeys, and especially apes, resemble us most closely in the 

 hand and arm. The hand has well-formed fingers with nails, and the 

 skin of the palm is lined and furrowed like our own. The thumb is, 

 however, smaller and weaker than ours, and is not so much used in 

 taking hold of anything. The monkey's hand is, therefore, not so 

 well adapted as that of man for a variety of purposes, and can not be 

 applied with such precision in holding small objects, while it is un- 

 suitable for performing delicate operations such as tying a knot or 

 writing with a pen. A monkey does not take hold of a nut with its 

 forefinger and thumb as we do, but grasps it between the fingers and 

 the palm in a clumsy way, just as a baby does before it has acquired 

 the proper use of its hand. Two groups of monkeys one in Africa 

 and one in South America have no thumbs on their hands, and yet 

 they do not seem to be in any respect inferior to other kinds which 

 possess it. In most of the American monkeys the thumb bends in 

 the same direction as the fingers, and in none is it so perfectly opposed 

 to the fingers as our thumbs are ; and all these circumstances show 

 that the hand of the monkey is, both structurally and functionally, a 

 very different, and very inferior organ to that of man, since it is not 

 applied to similar purposes, nor is it capable of being so applied. 



When we look at the feet of monkeys we find a still greater differ- 

 ence, for these have much larger and more opposable thumbs, and are, 

 therefore, more like our hands ; and this is the case with all monkeys, 



