*3^ The Upright Attitude of Mankind. [March, 
ways not open to brutes, he, too, might have become extineft. 
As it is, this exposure of so large an artery is a fruitful cause 
of trouble and death. 
We may here mention some other disadvantages of the 
upright position which Dr. Clevenger has omitted. Fore- 
most comes the liability to fall due to an ere<5t posture sup- 
ported upon two feet only. Four-footed animals in their 
natural haunts are little liable to fall ; if one foot slips, or 
fails to find hold, the other three are available, ff a fall 
does occur on level ground there is very little danger to any 
mammal nearly approaching man in bulk and weight. Their 
vital parts, especially the heart and the head, are ordinarily 
so near the ground that to them the shock is comparatively 
slight. To human beings the effects of a fall on smooth, 
level, ground are often serious, or even deadly. We need 
merely call to mind the case of the illustrious physicist 
whom we have so recently and suddenly lost. 
lhe upright attitude involves a further source of danger. 
In few parts (if any) of the body is a blow more fatal than 
over what is popularly called the “ pit of the stomach.” In 
the quadruped this part is little exposed either to accidental 
or intentional injuries. In man it is quite open to both. A 
blow, a kick, a fall among stones, &c., may thus easily prove 
fatal. 
Another point is the exposure and prominence of the 
generative organs, which in most other animals are well 
protected. Leaving danger out of the question, it may be 
asked whether we have not here the origin of clothing ? 
The assumption of the upright posture may have made 
primitive man aware of his nakedness. 
Returning to the illustrations furnished by Dr. Clevenger 
we are reminded that another disadvantage which occurs 
from the upright position of man is his greater liability to 
inguinal hernia. In quadrupeds the main weight of the 
abdominal viscera is supported by the ribs, and by strong 
peCtoral and abdominal muscles. The weakest part of the 
latter group of muscles is in the region of Poupart’s liga- 
ment, above the gioin. Inguinal hernia is rare in other 
Veitebiates because this weak part is relieved by the pressure 
of the viscera. In man the pelvis receives almost the entire 
load of the intestines, and hence Art is called in to compen- 
sate the deficiencies of Nature, and an immense number of 
tiusses have to be manufactured and used. It is calculated 
that 20 per cent of the human family suffer in this way. 
Strangulated hernia frequently causes death. The liability 
to femoral hernia is in like manner increased by the upright 
position. 
