338 MAMMALIA. . 



value of a characteristic feature, although even this is less con- 

 spicuous in the negroes ; nevertheless it is obvious that this feature 

 cannot be regarded as a character of fundamental importance. 



Far more important are the differences between the limbs of Man 

 and those of the anthropoid Apes. The proportions of the individual 

 regions are essentially different, although the differences are not 

 greater than those which exist between the three species of anthro- 

 poid Apes in this respect. While in Man the legs constitute the 

 sole support of the body, and greatly surpass the arms in length 

 and weight, in the Apes the .arms are longer, in various degrees, 

 than the legs ; the brachium in Apes being relatively shorter, the 

 antebrachium and hand, on the other hand, much longer than in 

 Man. In none of the three anthropoid Apes does the hand attain 

 the perfection of the human hand ; that of the Gorilla approaches it 

 most nearly, but is clumsier, heavier, and has a shorter thumb. The 

 foot also of the Apes is relatively very long, and is prehensile, the 

 sole being more or less turned inwards. With regard to the arrange- 

 ment of the bones and muscles, the human foot differs essentially 

 from a true hand, but not from the prehensile foot of the Apes. The 

 human foot presents a number of features, which are peculiar to Man, 

 and are an essential condition of the maintenance of the upright 

 posture ; these are the large and strong, but non-opposable, great toe, 

 the arched instep (articulation of the tarsal and metatarsal bones), 

 and the horizontal position of the sole upon the ground. With these 

 peculiarities of the foot are correlated the large development of the 

 calf muscle, the form of the broad shovel-shaped pelvis, the form of 

 the thorax, and the double curvature of the vertebral column. 

 However high a value we may concede to the form of the head, the 

 development of the brain and the upright position of the body, and 

 the upright gait, yet it is undeniable that Man and the Apes are 

 built upon the same type. 



The most important consideration which induced the older 

 naturalists to assign to man an entirely special place outside the 

 animal kingdom, is his high intellectual development, which, founded 

 on the possession of articulate speech, has elevated him to a reason- 

 able being, capable of almost unlimited perfection. In fact, it were 

 foolish to deny the great gap which, in this relation, separates Man 

 from the highest beast. Nevertheless, if we examine without pre- 

 judice the intellectual development of the individual in early life, 

 and of civilised humanity since the first dawn of culture, and if we 

 subject the intellectual peculiarities of the higher animals to a com- 



