and baboon, I will not pretend to determine ; 

 but I am certain that common mortals, after 

 studying this description of their nature, are 

 not likely to rise in their own estimation, or to 

 attempt * " the apparently impracticable task 

 " assigned by the poet, 



" Go, wond'rous creature ! mount where science guides, 

 " Weigh air, mete earth, and calculate the tides." 



To be serious, Sir, these attempts to charac- 

 terise man by his animal, rather than by his 

 mental functions, will always appear ludicrous 

 to those who are not initiated into the art of de- 

 grading their own species. We carry about 

 with us a firm conviction, that these are the 

 mere accidents, not the essentials of our nature; 

 and that however proper it may be to mention 

 them as the technical statements of physiology, 

 yet that they are totally inadequate to the de- 

 scription of a being who feels himself " but a 

 " little lower than the angels." 



You have an easy method, however, for de- 

 termining the superiority of our species, as 

 compared with other animals. A pair of scales, 

 with a few small weights, is all the apparatus 

 which is required, f " The largest brain of a 

 " horse weighs one pound seven ounces; the 

 " smallest brain in an adult, two pounds five 

 u ounces and a quarter." Indeed, Sir, these 

 are noble discoveries, whether they originate in 



* P. 235. f p. 193. 



