PECULIAR TO MAN. 123 



portion ; even in the orang-utang and chimpanse they are 

 short and weak, and manifestly inadequate to sustain the 

 body erect. This circumstance alone effectually disqualifies 

 the most manlike monkey from participating with man in 

 that grand attribute; and would of itself be a sufficient 

 ground for specific distinction between the two beings. If 

 the lower limbs of monkeys are weak in comparison with 

 the human, those of other animals, and particularly of true 

 quadrupeds, are much more so : the short thigh-bone is al- 

 most concealed by the muscles of the body ; and the rest of 

 the limb is slender, and not covered by any great muscular 

 masses. 



The disproportion in the respective lengths of our upper 

 and lower limbs clearly points out the different offices they 

 are destined to execute. The superior length and power of 

 the latter, so necessary for the various purposes connected 

 with our erect attitude, make us altogether unfit for going 

 on all-fours, as will be immediately shewn by a trial. In 

 such an experiment, either the lower limbs must be throv/n 

 obliquely backwards, or the articulations held in a bent and 

 very insecure position. Even children before they can 

 walk, in whom the lower limbs are comparatively shorter 

 than in adults, crawl upon their knees, or else drag the 

 lower extremities after them on the ground. 



To the long and powerful femur, to the strong tibia, to 

 the broad articular surfaces which join these at the knee, no 

 parallel can be met with in any animal. 



The breadth of the human pelvis affords an ample basis 

 of support for the trunk ; and this receives a still further 

 transverse enlargement by the length of the cervix femoris, 

 another peculiarity of human organization. This long neck 

 throws the body of the bone outwards, disengages its shaft 

 from the hip-joint, and thus increases the extent of rotation : 

 it gives the body greater firmness in standing, without im- 

 peding progression ; since the head of the bone, and not 

 the body, is the centre of motion. If the thigh-bones pos- 

 sessed no neck, but were kept equally far apart by increas- 

 ing the distance between the cotyloid cavities, the attitude 



