466 LEPTHANDEDNESS. 



among the antliropoid apes ; and tlie occasional occurrence of leffc- 

 handedness should be easily accounted for. If, on the other hand, it 

 has its origin in a habit engendered by enforced usage resulting from 

 combined action, as in the reaping field, at the oar, at the forge, or 

 in concerted military action, this involves only the concurrent use 

 of either hand ; and it need no more surprise us to find lefthanded 

 races, than to observe that our usage in writing from left to right 

 reverses that of ancient Semitic nations. On the latter assumption 

 indeed it would seem opposed to all probability that, alike in the Old 

 and the New World, nations living apart, in utter ignorance of each 

 other, should be found uniformly manifesting a preference for the 

 same hand. But no example of a lefthanded race is known, unless a 

 vague reference previously quoted from Stobseus can be accepted in 

 proof of it ; while the preferential vise of one hand, long anterior to 

 any historical evidence of righthandedness, is proved by terms for 

 right and left hand occurring in the vocabularies alike of ancient 

 civilized nations, and of untutored savages, such as those of New 

 Zealand, Polynesia, and Australia ; as well as among the rudest 

 tribes of the New World. It only remains to detei-mine whether in 

 every case the so-called right hand has been the member of that side 

 of the body to which we apply the term. If the superioiity of one 

 hand over the other is no more than the result of acquired habit, 

 consequent on the necessity for uniform action in many combined 

 operations, then it is inconceivable that among races isolated, and 

 without intercourse throughout the historic period, as in the Pacific 

 Islands, Australia, and America, all should have chanced to adopt the 

 same hand. But if, on the contrary, the dexterity of the right hand 

 is dependent on organic causes common to man, then the exceptional 

 and abnormal character of lefthandedness becomes obvious. Hence 

 the desirableness of observing the manifestations of any prefei'ential 

 use of "one or the other hand among savage races. The Maories of 

 New Zealand, as already noted, manifest a prevalent righthanded- 

 ness, especially in the use of the musket in their war dances; The 

 musket, it has to be borne in remembrance, is purposely consti-ucted 

 for a righthanded people ; and hence, as a righthanded instrviment, 

 it would have sufiiced to determine the bias, among any people 

 previously using either hand indifferently ; but the Maori tongue 

 proves the existence of a native righthandedness altogether prior to 

 Em'opean intercourse ; and the same appears to be chai-acteristic of 



