LECTURE VI. 153 



in the form of a dish. Whilst the form of the superior portion 

 of the pelvis, as already observed at the beginning of this 

 lecture, seems to be regulated by the burden of the bowels, the 

 lower portion is closely connected with parturition and the 

 form of the head which is to pass through its aperture. Now 

 the long, narrow, and thin head of the young ape can easily 

 pass through a narrow pelvis, whilst the more rounded human 

 head requires a wider diameter in every direction. 



On examining now the Limbs we find both in their propor- 

 tions and their relations to each other a marked difference. 

 Whilst the leg of man, as the sole organ of support, is heavier 

 and more massive in its component bones, the leg of the ape 

 resembles the anterior limb. In man the thigh bone (femur) 

 is the longest and heaviest of the whole skeleton ; in the chim- 

 panzee the humerus equals it in length, in the gorilla it slightly 

 exceeds it, and in the orang it does so greatly. The chimpan- 

 zee in a forced, erect position, which he, like the other apes, 

 never assumes, can reach the knee with the end of the middle 

 finger ; and the orang can reach its ankles without bending. 

 The difference becomes still greater when we study the propor- 

 tion of the parts. Assuming the length of the humerus to be 

 = 100, the length of the radius in the white man is ^ 75 '5, in 

 the chimpanzee == 90"8j the length of the hand in the white 

 man = 52'9 ; in the chimpanzee, 73*4 ; and in the other apes, 

 specially in the orang, these proportions are still more striking. 

 The humerus is therefore proportionately shorter in the ape 

 than in man, but the forearm and the hand are longer. Accord- 

 ing to Professor Aeby^s measurements, which have not yet 

 been published in detail, the gorilla alone among the apes 

 entirely agrees with man as regards the dimensions of the upper 

 extremities. The other anthropoid apes, however, differ greatly 

 from man in this respect. Now compare the hand of the chim- 

 panzee (fig. 54) with its long, naiTOw fingers, thiu, insignifi- 

 cant thumb, long, narrow, flat palm, in which the ball of the 

 thumb scarcely projects, with your own broad hand, its power- 

 ful thumb and weE developed ball, the projecting cushions on 

 the lower surface of the fingers' ends ; and you will at once, 

 even without examining the skeleton, perceive the great differ- 



