94: THE DELATIONS OF MAN 



est Man's skull has twice the capacity of the highest Go- 

 rilla.* 



No doubt, this is a very striking difference, but it loses 

 much of its apparent systematic value, when viewed by the 

 light of certain other equally indubitable facts respecting 

 cranial capacities. 



The first of these is, that the difference in the volume 

 of the cranial cavity of different races of mankind is far 

 greater, absolutely, than that between the lowest Man 

 and the highest Ape, while, relatively, it is about the 

 same. For the largest human skull measured by Morton, 

 contained 114 cubic inches, that is to say, had very nearly 

 double the capacity of the smallest ; while its absolute 



* It has been affirmed that Hindoo crania sometimes contain as little as 

 27 ounces of water, which would give a capacity of about 46 cubic inches. 

 The minimum capacity which I have assumed above, however, is based upon 

 the valuable tables published by Professor R. Wagner in his " Vrostudien zu 

 einer wissenschaftlichen Morphologie und Physiologie des menschlichen Ge- 

 hirns.' As the result of the careful weighing of more than 900 human 

 brains, Professor Wagner states that one-half weighed between 1200 and 1400 

 grammes, and that about two-ninths, consisting for the most part of male 

 brains, exceed 1400 grammes. The lightest brain of an adult male, with 

 Bound mental faculties, recorded by Wagner, weighed 1020 grammes. As a 

 gramme equals 15 4 grains, and a cubic inch of water contains 252.4 grains, 

 this is equivalent to 62 cubic inches of water ; so that as brain is heavier than 

 water, we are perfectly safe against erring on the side of diminution in taking 

 this as the smallest capacity of any adult male human brain. The only adult 

 male brain, weighing as little as 970 grammes, is that of an idiot; but the 

 brain of an adult woman, against the soundness of whose faculties nothing ap- 

 pears, weighed as little as 907 grammes (55.3 cubic inches of water) ; and 

 Reid gives an adult female brain of still smaller capacity. The heaviest brain 

 (1872 grammes, or abont 115 cubic inches) was, however, that of a woman; 

 next to it comes the brain of Cuvier (1861 grammes), then Byron (1807 

 grammes), and then an insane person (1783 grammes). The lightest adult 

 brain recorded (720 grammes) was that of an idiotic female. The brains of 

 five children, four years old, weighed between 1275 and 992 grammes. So 

 that it may be safely said, that an average European child of four years old 

 has a brain twice as large as that of an adult Gorilla. 



