52 THE MAN-LIKE APES I 



he runs, are but little bent, raise the body of the 

 Orang remarkably, so that he assumes much the 

 posture of a very old man bent down by age, and 

 snaking his way along by the help of a stick. In 

 walking, the body is usually directed straight for- 

 ward, -unlike the other apes, which run more or 

 less obliquely ; except the Gibbons, who in these 

 as in so many other respects, depart remarkably 

 from their fellows. 



The Orang cannot put its feet flat on the ground, 

 but is supported upon their outer edges, the heel 

 resting more on the ground, while the curved toes 

 partly rest upon the ground by the upper side of 

 their first joint, the two outermost toes of each 

 foot completely resting on this surface. The hands 

 are held in the opposite manner, their inner edges 

 serving as the chief support. The fingers are 

 then bent out in such a manner that their fore- 

 most joints, especially those of the two innermost 

 fingers, rest upon the ground by their upper sides, 

 while the point of the free and straight thumb 

 serves as an additional fulcrum. 



The Orang never stands on its hind legs, and 

 all the pictures, representing it as so doing, are 

 as false as the assertion that it defends itself 

 with sticks, and the like. 



The long arms are of especial use, not only in 

 climbing, but in the gathering of food from boughs 

 to which the animal could not trust his weight. 

 Figs, blossoms, and young leaves of various kinds, 



