70 ON THE PLACE OF MAN IN THE SCALE OF BEING. 



Elephant, it forms nearly a right angle ; and in several others, as the Horse, 

 Ox, &c., it forms an acute angle with the axis of the pelvis and spinal column. 



54. The lower extremities of Man are remarkable for their length ; which 

 is proportionally greater than that which we find in any other Mammalia, 

 except the Kangaroo tribe. It is evident that there could be no greater ob- 

 stacle to his prorgession in the horizontal posture, than this length of what 

 would then be his hind legs. Either Man would be obliged to rest on his 

 knees, with his thighs so bent towards the trunk, that the attempt to advance 

 them would be inconvenient, his legs and feet being entirely useless ; or he 

 must elevate his trunk upon the extremities of his toes, throwing his head 

 downwards, and exerting himself violently at every attempt to bring forward 

 the thighs by a rotatory motion at the hip-joint. In either case, the only use- 

 ful joint would be that at the hip; and the legs would be scarcely superior to 

 wooden or other rigid supports. The chief difference in their proportional 

 length, between Man and the semi-erect Apes, is seen in the thigh ; and from 

 the comparative shortness of his arms, his hands only reach the middle of the 

 thighs; whilst in the Chimpanzee they hang on a level with the knees, and 

 in the Orang they descend to the ancles. The human femur is distinguished 

 by its form and position as well as by its length. The obliquity and length 

 of its neck still further increase the breadth of the hips; Avhilst they cause 

 the lower extremities of these bones to be somewhat obliquely directed towards 

 each other, so that the knees are brought more into the line of the axis of the 

 body. This position is obviously of great use in walking, when the whole 

 weight has to be alternately supported on each limb; for if the knees had 

 been further apart, the whole body must have been swung from side to side 

 at each step, so as to bring the centre of gravity over the top of each tibia ; 

 and, as a matter of fact, it is noticed that the walk of women, in whom the 

 pelvis is broader and the knees more separated, is less steady than that of 

 men. 



55. There is a very marked contrast between the knee-joint of Man, and 

 that even of the highest Apes. In the former, the opposed extremities of the 

 femur and the tibia are expanded, so as to present a very broad articulating 

 surface; and the internal condyle of the femur is lengthened, so that the two 

 are in the same horizontal plane, in the usual oblique position of the femur. 

 In this manner, the whole weight of the body, in its erect posture, falls verti- 

 cally on the top of the tibia, when the joint is in the firmest position in which 

 it can be placed: and a comparison of the knee-joint of the Orang with that 

 of Man, will make it at once evident, that the former is not intended to serve 

 as more than a partial support. The weight of the body is transmitted through 

 the tibia, to the upper convex surface of the astragalus, and thence to the other 

 bones of the foot. The Human foot is, in proportion to the size of the whole 

 body, larger, broader, and stronger, than that of any other Mammal save the 

 Kangaroo. The sole of the foot is concave, so that the weight of the body 

 falls on the summit of an arch, of which the os calcis and the metatarsal bones 

 form the two points of support. This arched form of the foot, and the na- 

 tural contact of the os calcis with the ground, are peculiar to Man alone. All 

 the Apes have the os calcis small, straight, and more or less raised from the 

 ground ; which they touch when standing erect, with the outer side only of the 

 foot: whilst in animals more remote from Man, the os calcis is brought still 

 more into the line of the tibia; and the foot being more elongated and nar- 

 rowed, only the extremities of the toes come in contact with the ground. 

 Hence Man is the only species of Mammal, which can stand upon one leg. 

 If we look at the structure of the upper extremity of Man, we observe simi- 

 lar proofs that it is not intended as an organ of support; being destitute of all 

 these adaptations ; and having a conformation obviously designed for other 



