THE ORANG-OUTANG 



47 



of its legs and feet the orang walks entirely on the outer sides of its feet, of which 

 .the soles are turned inwards, so as to almost face one another. Although this 

 arrangement is ill-adapted for walking rapidly on the ground, it is one admirably 

 suited for climbing, in which these animals excel. 



As shown in our illustration of the adult, the orang has a tall, elevated fore- 

 head, very different from the retreating one of the chimpanzee ; and the whole 

 aspect of the face is curiously flattened, with an oval contour. Not unfrequently 

 there is a well-marked prominence in the middle of the forehead. Although there 

 are slight ridges over the eyes, these are much less developed than in the chim- 



HEAD OF ORANG. 



panzee, and have, therefore, no sort of resemblance to the enormous ones of the 

 gorilla. The extraordinary height of the crown of the head is well exhibited in 

 our figure of the head and shoulders of an immature individual, the whole of this 

 part of the head being curiously shortened and compressed from back to front. In 

 the immature animal, of which the head is figured, the jaws are not very promi- 

 nent, but they become much more projecting in old males. The bridge of the nose 

 is generally much depressed and flattened, but the whole nose is generally larger 

 than in the chimpanzee and gorilla, and not so much expanded at its termination, 

 the wings of the nose being arched and narrow, and the small oval nostrils 



