80 THE SCAFFOLDING LEFT IN THE BODY. 



passed before the grasp relaxed, and in three or four 

 nearly a minute. When about four days old, I found 

 that the strength had increased, and that nearly all, 

 when tried at this age, could sustain their weight for 

 half a minute. About a fortnight or three weeks after 

 birth the faculty appeared to have attained its maxi 

 mum, for several at this period succeeded in hanging 

 for over a minute and a half, two for just over two 

 minutes, and one infant of three weeks old for two 

 minutes thirty-five seconds. ... In one instance, in 

 which the performer had less than one hour s expe 

 rience of life, he hung by both hands to my forefinger 

 for ten seconds, and then deliberately let go with his 

 right hand (as if to seek a better hold), and main 

 tained his position for five seconds more by the left 

 hand only. Invariably the thighs are bent nearly at 

 right angles to the body, and in no case did the lower 

 limbs hang down and take the attitude of the erect 

 position. This attitude, and the disproportionately 

 large development of the arms compared with the legs, 

 give the photographs a striking resemblance to a well- 

 known picture of the celebrated Chimpanzee Sally at 

 the Zoological Garden. I think it will be acknowl 

 edged that the remarkable strength shown in the 

 flexor muscle of the fore-arm in these young infants, 

 especially when compared with the flaccid and feeble 

 state of the muscular system generally, is a suffi 

 ciently striking phenomenon to provoke inquiry as to 

 its cause and origin. The fact that a three-week old 

 baby can perform a feat of muscular strength that 

 would tax the powers of many a healthy adult 

 is enough to set one wondering. A curious point is 

 that in many cases no sign of distress is evident, 



