THE ORIGIN OF VERTEBRATED ANIMALS 193 



their own development, and on our skill in de- 

 ciphering this record. 



The Descent of Man. 



And now we turn to the last stage in our inquiry, 

 the zoological position of man. 



Man is distinctly an animal — i.e., neither a plant 

 nor a mineral — requiring organised food, for which 

 he is dependent on other animals or on plants. He 

 is distinctly a vertebrate, as proved by his backbone, 

 the relations of his nervous system, brain, heart, 

 and sense-organs. Further, he clearly belongs to 

 mammals — the presence of hairs instead of scales or 

 feathers would alone be sufficient to show this ; but 

 he also possesses all the other characteristics of the 

 group — viz., two condyles to the skull, seven cervical 

 vertebrae, and a left aortic arch. Of the different 

 groups of mammals, it is allowed on all hands that 

 he is most closely allied to that of monkeys. The 

 general shape of his body ; the form of his limbs ; 

 the number and nature of his fingers and toes ; the 

 power of pronation and supination of the fore-arm ; 

 the shape of his head ; the structure and size of his 

 brain, and the form of his teeth, all prove this incon- 

 testably. 



Further inquiry shows this correspondence to be 

 a very close one. It is seen in every detail of 

 structure of the human body, bone for bone, muscle 

 for muscle, nerve for nerve, and even tooth for tooth. 

 Man and monkey can be compared, and the most 

 exact correspondence pointed out. This correspond- 



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