ANIMALS. 



133 



but one at a time, seldom begin to procreate 

 till they have almost acquired their full growth. 

 On the other hand, those which bring forth 

 many, engender before they have arrived at 

 half their natural size. The horse and the bull, 

 come almost to perfection before they begin to 

 generate ; the hog and the rabbit, scarcely 

 leave the teat before they become parents 

 themselves. In whatever light, therefore, we 

 consider this subject, we shall find that all crea- 

 tures approach most to perfection, whose ge- 



neration most nearly resembles that of man. 

 The reptile produced from cutting, is but one 

 degree above the vegetable. The animal pro- 

 duced from the egg, is a step higher in the scale 

 of existence : that class of animals which are 

 brought forth alive, are still more exalted. Of 

 these, such as bring forth one at a time are the 

 most complete ; and foremost of these stands 

 man, the great master of all, who seems to have 

 united the perfections of all the rest in his for- 

 mation. 



CHAPTER XXV. 



THE INFANCY OF MAN. 



WHEN we take a survey of the various 

 classes of animals, and examine their strength, 

 their beauty, or their structure, we shall find 

 man to possess most of those ad vantages united, 

 which the rest enjoy partially. Infinitely su- 

 perior to all others in the powers of the under- 

 standing, he is also superior to them in the fit- 

 ness and proportions of his form. He would, 

 indeed, have been one of the most miserable 

 beings upon earth, if with a sentient mind he 

 was so formed as to be incapable of obeying its 

 impulse : but nature has otherwise provided ; 

 as with the most extensive intellects to com- 

 mand, she has furnished him with a body the 

 best fitted for obedience. 



In infancy,* however, that mind, and this 

 body, form the most helpless union in all ani- 

 mated nature ; and, if any thing can give us a 

 picture of complete imbecility, it is a man when 

 just come into the world. The infant just 

 born, stands in need of all things, without the 

 power of procuring any. The lower races of 

 animals, upon being produced, are active, 

 vigorous, and capable of self-support ; but the 

 infant is obliged to wait in helpless expectation, 

 and its cries are its only aid to procure sub- 

 sistence. 



An infant just born may be said to come 

 from one element into another ; for, from the 

 watery fluid in which it was surrounded, it 

 now immerges into air ; and its first cries seem 



Buffon, vol. iv. p. 173. 



to imply how greatly it regrets the change. 

 How much longer it could have continued in 

 a state of almost total insensibility, in the 

 womb, is impossible to tell ; but it is very pro- 

 bable that it could remain there some hours 

 more. In order to throw some light upon this 

 subject, Mr. Buffon so placed a pregnant bitch 

 as that her puppies were brought forth in 

 warm water, in which he kept them above 

 half an hour at a time. However, he saw no 

 change in the animals, thus newly brought 

 forth ; they continued the whole time vigorous ; 

 and, during the whole time, it is very probable 

 that the blood circulated through the same 

 channels through which it passed while they 

 continued in the womb. 



Almost all animals have their eyes closed, b 

 for some days after being brought into the 

 world. The infant opens them the instant of 

 its birth. However, it seems to keep them 

 fixed and idle ; they want that lustre which 

 they acquire by degrees ; and if they happen 

 to move, it is rather an accidental gaze than 

 an exertion of the act of seeing. The light 

 alone seems to make the greatest impression 

 upon them. The eyes of infants are sometimes 

 found turned to the place where it is strongest ; 

 and the pupil is seen to dilate and diminish, 

 as in grown persons, in proportion to the quan- 

 tity it receives. But still, the infant is in- 

 capable of distinguishing objects ; the sense of 



Buffon, vol. iv. p. 173. 



2D 



