MONKEYS. 39 



fingers either singly or when they are combined ; and the perfection 

 of its muscular arrangements assists the digits in the work of grasp- 

 ing large or small objects with precision, and also expedites the 

 performance of the most delicate manipulations which mankind can 

 undertake. Now, the hand of the monkey is constructed on a type 

 essentially similar in all respects to that seen in the hand of man. 

 There are certain monkeys, it is true the genus Ateles or that of the 

 " Spider Monkeys" of the New World, and the African genus 

 Colobus in which the thumb is imperfect and rudimentary ; but in 

 ordinary monkeys, the hand is as truly a " hand," of wrist and fingers, 

 as is the "manus" of man. Conversely, the foot of a monkey 

 possesses all the structures which we find in our own pedal ex- 

 tremities. The anatomist finds ankle-bones, instep-bones, and toe- 

 bones in the foot of the ape, exhibiting the closest similarity to those 

 of man. In function alone, is the foot of the ape removed from that 

 of mankind. For in the monkey-tribes, whilst the animals rest upon 

 their feet, these extremities become also utilised for grasping, as we 

 have seen. 



That the hand of the monkey is applied to purposes allied to 

 those for which man uses his hands is, of course, a well-known fact. 

 Whoever has watched a monkey, such as the Bonnet Monkey 

 {Macacus radiatus), carefully separate the diseased parts of an apple 

 from the eatable parts, or pick out the kernel of a nut from the shell 

 piece by piece, with care and dexterity, must have been struck by the 

 close approximation to the human means of effecting like tasks. 

 Some writers have denied that the hand of the monkey, is, in any 

 way, utilised as is that of man. It has been stated that a monkey will 

 not seize a nut with the forefinger and thumb as we do. But from 

 close and long-continued personal observation of such a monkey as 

 the "Bonnet" species, I can certainly affirm that a nut or object of 

 small size is received in quite a natural fashion judged, that is, by 

 human standard by forefinger and thumb. The truth is, there are 

 exhibited amongst monkeys, as amongst men, very varied degrees of 

 manual dexterity and intelligence ; and it is always unsafe to lay down 

 general rules concerning the habits of one or a few species as if these 

 rules represented exact axioms applying to the class at large. Of 

 the intelligence of the ape-tribe the same remark holds good ; and I 

 may add that I have seen enough in my personal study of the 

 monkey-race to convince me that the variations noticeable between 

 the mental traits and powers of different species of monkeys, are as 

 great as any which exist between different races of men, or between 

 ignorant and cultivated individuals of the same race. 



With regard to the assumption of the erect posture, it may be 

 said that the familiar and typical human attitude is seldom assumed 

 by monkeys, and then only temporarily, or by the aid of fictitious 



