PROGRESSION ON THE LAND. 



61 



will take fewer steps than a short man, in the same way that 

 a large wheel will make fewer revolutions in travelling over 

 a given space than a smaller one. The relation is a purely 

 mechanical one. The nave of the large wheel corresponds to 

 the ilio-femoral articulation (hip -joint) of the tall man, the 

 spokes to his legs, and portions of the rim to his feet. The 

 nave, spokes, and rim of the small wheel have the same rela- 

 tion to the ilio-femoral articulation (hip-joint), legs and feet 

 of the small man. When a tall and short man walk together, 

 if they keep step, and traverse the same distance in the same 

 time, either the tall man must shorten and slow his steps, or 

 the short man must lengthen and quicken his. 



The slouching walk of the shepherd is more natural than 

 that of the trained soldier. It can be kept up longer, and 

 admits of greater speed. In the natural walk, as seen in 

 rustics, the complementary movements are all evoked. In the 

 artificial walk of the trained army man, the complementary 

 movements are to a great extent suppressed. Art is conse- 

 quently not an improvement on nature in the matter of walk- 

 ing. In walking, the centre of gravity is being constantly 

 changed, — a circumstance due to the different attitudes assumed 

 by the different portions of the trunk and limbs at different 

 periods of time. All parts of the trunk and limbs of a biped, 

 and the same may be said of a quadruped, move when a 

 change of locality is effected. The trunk of the biped and 

 quadruped when walking are therefore in a similar condition 

 to that of the body of the fish when swimming. 



In running, all the movements described are exaggerated. 

 Thus the steps are more rapid and the strides greater. In 

 walking, a well-proportioned six-feet man can nearly cover 

 his own height in two" steps. In running, he can cover with- 

 out difficulty a third more. 



In fig. 28 (p. 62), an athlete is represented as bending 

 forward prior to running. 



The left leg and trunk, it will be observed, are advanced 

 beyond the vertical line (x), and the arms are tucked up like 

 the rudimentary wings of the ostrich, to correct undue oscilla- 

 tion at the shoulders, occasioned by the violent oscillation 

 produced at the pelvis in the act of running. 



