BIMANA, OR MAN. 45 



PECULIAR CONFORMATION OP MAN. 



The foot of Man is vei-y different from that of Apes : it is large ; the leg bears vertically upon 

 it ; the heel is expanded beneath ; his toes are short, and but slightly flexiljle ; the great toe, 

 longer and larger than the rest, is placed on the same line with and cannot be ojiposed to 

 them. This foot, then, is proper for supporting the body, but cannot be used for seizing or 

 climbing*, and as the hands arc unfitted for walldug. Mail is the only animal truly biinaiious 

 and biped. 



The whole body of Man is modified for the vertical position. His feet, as we have already 

 seen, furnish him with a larger base than those of other mammalians ; the muscles which re- 

 tain the foot and thigh in the state of extension are more vigorous, wdience results the swelling 

 of the calf and buttock ; the flexors of the leg are attached higher up, which permits of com- 

 plete extension of the knee, and renders the calf more apparent. The pelvis is larger, which 

 separates the thighs and feet, and gives to the trunk that ])yramidal form favourable to equi- 

 librium : the necks of the thigh-bones form an angle with the body of the bone, which increases 

 still more the separation of the feet, and augments the basis of the body. Finally, the head, 

 in this vertical position, is in eauilibrium with the trunk, because its articulation is exactly 

 under the middle of its mass. 



Were he to desire it, Man could not, with convenience, walk on all fours : his short and 

 nearly inflexible foot, and his long thigh, would bring the knee to the ground ; his widely sepa- 

 rated shoulders and his arms, too far extended from the median line, would ill support the 

 fore-part of his body ; the great indented muscle which, in quadrupeds, suspends the trunk 

 between the blade-bones as a girth, is smaller in Man than in any one among them ; the head 

 is heavier, on account of the magnitude of the brain, and the smallness of the sinuses or cavi- 

 ties of the bones; and yet the means of supporting it arc weaker, for he has neither cervical 

 ligament, nor are the vertebrje so modified as to prevent their flexure forward; he could 

 therefore only maintain his head iu the same line with the spine, and then, his eyes and mouth 

 bcrng directed towai-ds the ground, he coidd not see before him ; the position of these organs 

 is, on the contrary, quite perfect, supposing that he walks erectly. 



The arteries which supply his brain, not being subdivided as in many quadrupeds, and the 

 blood requisite for so voluminous an organ being carried to it with too much violence, fre- 

 quent apoplexies would be the consequence of a horizontal position. 



Man, then, is designed to be supported by the feet only. He thus preserves the entire use 

 of his hands for the arts, while his organs of sense are most favorably situated for observa- 

 tion. 



These hands, which derive such advantages from their liberty, receive as many more from 

 their structure. Their thumb, longer in proportion than in the apes, increases the facility of 

 seizing small objects; all the fingers, except the annularis [and this to a certain extent], have 

 separate movements, which is not the case in any other animal, not even in the apes. The 

 nails, covering only one side of the extremities of the fingers, form a support to the touch, 

 w ithout in the least depriving it of its delicacy. The arms which support these hands have a 

 solid attachment by their large blade-bone, their strong collar bone, &c. 



Man, so highly favoured as to dexterity, is not so with regard to strength. His swiftness 

 iu running is much inferior to that of other animals of his size; having neither projecting 

 jinvs, nor sahent canine teeth, nor crooked nails, he is destitute of offensive armature; and 

 the sides and upper part of his body being naked, unprovided even with hair, he is absolutely 



• It is certain, b^wcver, thnt liv murli practice from early youth, 



o|ierati()iis, wliich it would not lifive been supposed capable of by those 

 wliosc feet have been enveloped from the tin.c they first walked in 

 close investments. Individuals, in particular, who have been born 1 



with the anterior extremities imperfect, have illustrated this p 

 cability the most remarkably. The inllueuce of habit in training 

 the band to perform its functions, will be appreciated by those 

 cannot use tlicir left hand with the same freedom as the right.— 



