536 



The Journal of Heredity 



little toe has suffered." Similar con- 

 ditions are noted in various other sav- 

 age races, and are found in Egyptian 

 mummies (see Fig. 5). 



As a rule, the terminal ioints of the 

 toes are the first to degenerate. "One 

 very curious evidence of this skeletal 

 condition is seen in very many feet, 

 even when the big toe is far in advance 

 of all the rest. Although a line joining 

 the top> of the toes slopes without in- 

 terruption from the first to the fifth, 

 a line joining the bases of these toes 

 does not follow the same course. From 

 the first cleft it rises to the second, and 

 from the fourth cleft it rises to the third, 

 and there is thus produced a sharp 

 angle in the line which usually falls 

 opposite the middle of the base of the 

 third digit. This line has exactly the 

 same contour as in the hand, and is 

 the typical one seen in the monkey's 

 foot." It is the outer toes which are 

 undergoing atrophy, and the atrophy 

 begins at their outer ends, hence it has 

 not yet affected the jjrimitive outline 

 of the foot. 



CHANGES IN THE FACE 



Accompanying the liberation of ihe 

 forelimb and the use of the hand for 

 feeding, there went a recession of the 

 snout which has produced some well 

 known changes, particularly' in the 

 teeth. The preparation of food by the 

 hand is carried farther and farther; the 

 teeth no longer have bones to gnaw or 

 nuts to crack "and it is not to be 

 denied that, slowly, of course, but still 

 surely, they are undergoing atrophy. 

 Among existing races of mankind the 

 fact is patent, the observation is a 

 commonplace of anthr()])()l()gy. The 

 possession of an ample jjalate and large, 

 well-formed teeth by the black races 

 is a matter of common knowledge (as 

 is the fact that in the crania of the pre- 

 historic inhabitants of Iuiro])e the size 

 and quality of the teeth were superior 

 to those at present obtaining in the same 

 geographical area). It is therefore im- 

 possible to overlook the inference that 

 reduction in the size of the teeth is at 

 least attendant (if not deixMident) upon 

 the acquisition of higher grades of 



civilization and directly upon diet and 

 the preparation of food. 



"This, from the writings of Dr. 

 Duckworth, may be taken as an ortho- 

 dox ftatemcnt of the general position 

 as .summed up in modem anthro- 

 pology. The more primitive races have 

 larger and better fomied teeth, rooted 

 in more roomy palates, than members 

 of more civilized races can boast of." 



The third molars, wisdom teeth, 

 being the last to be erupted in the al- 

 ready diminished jaws, show the maxi- 

 mum effect. In modem civilized Man 

 these teeth are erupted late, sometimes 

 not at all, or in only one jaw. They 

 are always small, and frequently do not 

 meet and bile together. They are 

 liable to early decay. "In primitive 

 races they are rarely absent, they are 

 cut earlier, and are but little if any 

 smaller than the other molars, and they 

 bite and grind together in a perfectly 

 even manner." 



The recession of the snout has already 

 been mentioned; the recession of the 

 chin is equally to be observed. "The 

 dawn of a chinlcss aristocrac}' is no 

 pleasing picture in the later stages of 

 human e\-olution; and yet the recession 

 of the modern jaw is not to be denied." 

 One of the effects is to overcrowd the 

 teeth, so that while man has fewer 

 teeth than his relatives, they are closer 

 together. "Alan is the only living pri- 

 mate that has its teeth arranged in a 

 continuous .series, and it is one of his 

 distinctions that there are no gaps be- 

 tween them. The process of the short- 

 ening of the snout, outstripping the 

 process of reduction of the dental series, 

 gives rise to one of the great problems 

 of modern dentistry — the proper treat- 

 ment of the many ex'ils arising from 

 overcrowded jaws." 



A H D CM I N A L !•: 1' F E C T S 



In the vague general idea that man, 

 from walking on all fours, suddenly 

 began to walk upright, this sup])oscd 

 change is thought to have had many 

 evil consequences by forcing a read- 

 justment of all man's viscera. The 

 tendency to ni])ture is one of numerous 

 such supposed conscciucnccs. Jiut Pro- 

 fessor \V()od Jones points out that this 



