172 THE STORY OF ANIMAL LIFE 



as Dr. Robinson's remarks would lead one to 

 suppose. I have seen instances in which they 

 were quite clearly marked. It must be added 

 that anyone who wishes to confirm my observa- 

 tions in this respect must be careful not to mis- 

 take lines of disfigurement, caused by the pressure 

 of boots, which are sufficiently common, for the 

 primitive lines of the foot. 



The child, as it grows, ceases to remind us of 

 the ape. Its nose gets bigger as its toes cease to 

 wriggle and learn to stand. But, for years of its 

 life, it is only too apt to remind us of the savage. 

 How greedy it often is ! How readily it snatches 

 that which does not belong to it ! How quick it 

 is to quarrel with its playmates, and to fight! 

 How noisy when at play ! How cross when it 

 meets with disappointment ! How fond of tawdry 

 things! In all these qualities we see the history 

 of the race, repeating itself in the life of the 

 individual. The savage has preceded the civil- 

 ised family the child shows us the faults of a 

 lower race. With the elapse of years they disap- 

 pear, and are replaced by the more amiable and 

 gracious manners of the adult human being. 



Nor do we need to go into the nursery to find 

 links with our inferiors. Much, indeed far too 

 much, has been written of late years about 

 " atavistic degeneracy " ; that is to say, degen- 

 eracy which imitates the characteristics of our 

 forefathers. Many things which are classed as 

 diseases, whether of the body, mind, or moral 

 nature, may be explained in this way. Take 

 the gills, which, as we have stated, exist in all 

 vertebrates, but not in the adult of the highest 

 groups. In a sickly individual, even among the 

 highest vertebrates, traces of these are sometimes 



