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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6833f05 --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,3 @@ +* text=auto +*.txt text +*.md text diff --git a/78733-0.txt b/78733-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..503ef45 --- /dev/null +++ b/78733-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,8978 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 78733 *** + + + + + THE MASTER OF DESTINY + + + + + BOOKS BY + FREDERICK TILNEY + + THE BRAIN FROM APE TO MAN + + IN COLLABORATION WITH + HENRY ALSOP RILEY + + THE FORM AND FUNCTIONS OF THE + CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM + + + + + THE MASTER OF DESTINY + + A BIOGRAPHY + OF THE BRAIN + + BY FREDERICK + TILNEY, M.D. + + WITH A FOREWORD + BY AUSTEN FOX + RIGGS, M.D. + + [Illustration] + + DOUBLEDAY, DORAN & COMPANY, INC. + GARDEN CITY MCMXXX NEW YORK + + + + + [Illustration] + + COPYRIGHT, 1929, 1930 + BY FREDERICK TILNEY + ALL RIGHTS RESERVED + PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES AT + THE COUNTRY LIFE PRESS + GARDEN CITY, N. Y. + + FIRST EDITION + + + + +FOREWORD + + +Race after race of man has appeared on this earth, lasted but a short +span of time, and then met disaster and extinction. Our modern race is +of this series. We have reason to believe that it differs in quality +from its forerunners chiefly in its cerebral endowment. That its +progress from animalhood to civilization is due to this endowment, is +not questioned, for its victory over environment, its ascendency over +all other animals is plainly due to its superior brain power. + +How did this race originate? Like all the other races preceding it? Or +by some aberrant, instantaneous freak of creation? How did it acquire +its characteristic brain? As the bird its wings, as the elephant its +trunk, as the camel its hump, or by a divine act of separate and +special creation? Those who maintain the quarrel over man’s origin are +not those who have familiarized themselves with the history of the +world and its creatures; they are not the astronomers, the geologists, +the biologists, the anthropologists or the archeologists. They are +clearly those who prefer believing to thinking, the traditionalists, +good men mayhap but not necessarily wise. In the earlier days of +science (it is only four or five hundred years old), its devoted +labourers were persecuted by Church and State. They had to give +respectful attention to criticism or else perish by fire and sword. +But, as we have advanced slowly from religious persecution and the +auto-da-fé to mere intolerant and wordy remonstrance, the scientist +has paid but scant attention to these quarrels. He feels that as they +are not of his making, neither are they his concern. Perhaps he is +not quite right there. To be sure, he is criticized, not wisely but +too well, and for the most part not quite fairly. We have criticized +him for an assumed lack of reverence, but even more for his obvious +indifference to our criticism. This has justice in it for, though his +indifference to criticism may be excused, the ignorance upon which +this criticism is founded should be his first concern, for the man +of science is the teacher and ignorance is his very opportunity. +Heretofore, however, he has seen his opportunity too narrowly, for he +has been content to teach only the few embryo scientists apprenticed to +his own particular field. He has not, until very lately, realized that +his hard-won knowledge is far more needed and therefore far more owed +to those who are most ignorant of it, in short, to the great mass of +men and women outside the scientific world. + +“You are irreligious,” said his critics. “You have been weighed +and found wanting in that devotional attitude we find essential to +humanity. You do not even listen to our reproaches. You are irreverent!” + +For the most part, there has been no answer. The men of science have +been strangely preoccupied with their own business of finding out +all they can of their fellow man, of his nature, his origin, his +difficulties, his dangers, and of his predictable future, all in the +faith that such knowledge will ultimately benefit mankind. + +Now at length one of them has made rejoinder to these protests. +He admits that he has been preoccupied, especially so in the past +twenty years, with laborious but fascinating research into just these +questions so vitally concerning his fellow man. He admits that he had +not thought his scientific gleanings would interest any but scientists, +but he denies irreverence and insists that neither he nor any other +who spends his life in studying man and his place in nature could lack +reverence. He cannot find himself entirely in accord with any of the +eleven surviving religions which guide the lives of many men to-day. +The twelve extinct religions of the past also leave him unsatisfied. +Nevertheless he worships devoutly, though in a temple transcending in +significance and beauty any wrought by the hand of man. His devotion is +no mere lip service expressive of the self-protective instinct, but one +that takes form in labour. In spite of disappointment and hardship, he +has persevered through years in that labour, with the single object of +gaining a deeper understanding of man and his place in nature. + +It is now our turn to admit error and ask if we may not share in the +fruits of his research--even though our understanding has thus far been +alien to his field of labour, even though our path has not led us to +his temple, even though we have not been aware of his devotion. We +urge him to speak to us, not as to scientists, but as to his fellow +creatures, fellow citizens and fellow sufferers. We urge him to speak +to us plainly, believing that whatsoever has value in human knowledge +may be simply told. + +With some hesitation he has consented. He has chosen to speak to us +of the brain, as the most direct approach to the comprehension of the +nature of man. He points out that this master organ of life holds the +secret of human success, that its function is human progress, its +neglect human disaster. + +The immensity of the retrospect of his story will create in us the +wholesome effect called humility. The prospect he pictures is fraught +with the terror of what may happen, but it also holds forth inspiration +to courage and is golden with hope. No man can follow this account +without being inspired by a vision of the dawning of a new era of +progress, not an era of greater possessions but of better use of those +already possessed; of better relations between peoples and races; and +being sobered by a realization that this hope lies in developing still +further the efficiency of the master organ of destiny, through training +and education. + +The scientist speaks. He tells what he has seen and heard and read +through the long pilgrimage of years, searching for the truth, and +he gives us the fruit of these labours, simply and accurately. But +scientific accuracy and matters of fact are only his raw material. They +are woven into the fabric of a true story, vibrant with adventure, +warmed by the love and reverence of the humanitarian, and illumined by +the prophetic imagination of a poet. + +This tale of man’s emergence is fascinating, inspiring, stimulating, +but when it brings us to the climax of the present it becomes a +challenge. We are faced by an awful question. Shall the glorious race +of modern man sink into oblivion, as all the preceding races have sunk, +or may he save himself from chaotic ruin? If he is to be spared for +further progress to greater heights of happiness, he must take heed +of his own history, he must value his forebrain as his master organ +and set himself diligently to develop its powers more fully than ever +before. To this end he must discard the last bit of fundamentalism, +and the false security of all superstition; he must learn to depend +courageously on his own power to understand and control himself; he +must give up superhuman sanctions for evils that his intelligence has +long since discarded. Knowledge must replace superstition--else the +embattled hosts of the world will again be at their bloody work of +extinction, praying to the same god, using the same old prayers. It is +only by increasing the scope of his forebrain through self-knowledge, +training, and education that man can save himself from the old pitfalls +from which neither the old nor the new religions have heretofore saved +him. It is only thus, through understanding, that he can ever hope +to make full use of the forces of growth and change which we call +evolution. But our scientist gives us reason to hope that through +intelligence, itself a product of evolution, man may yet not only +escape destruction by these forces but may even go far toward gaining +a mastery over them which will insure the progress of his race toward +planes of usefulness and happiness as yet undreamed of. + +It is indeed time that we think of ourselves as men in the making +and cease to consider ourselves as gods and the lords of a finished +creation. + + AUSTEN FOX RIGGS. + + Stockbridge, Massachusetts, + October, 1929. + + + + +CONTENTS + + + PAGE + + FOREWORD v + + CHAPTER + + I. PRIMITIVE ANCESTORS 1 + Origin and Early Days of the Brain + + II. ANCESTORS BEFORE THE APES 24 + The Brain from Fish to Man + + III. MAN IN THE MAKING 51 + Human Progress from Prehistoric to Modern Times + + IV. EDEN OR EVOLUTION 85 + Genesis and the Origin of Species + + V. BIRTHPLACE AND EARLY BEGINNINGS OF MAN 107 + Influences of Forest and Plain on Brain Development + + VI. DAWN OF THE PRIMATE BRAIN 129 + The Lowest of the Monkey Kind + + VII. ON THE WAY UPWARD 152 + Brains of the Old World Monkeys + + VIII. MANLIKE TENDENCIES 168 + Brains of Gibbon and Orang-Outang + + IX. HUMAN IN MINIATURE 186 + The Brain of the Chimpanzee + + X. ALMOST HUMAN 212 + The Brain of the Gorilla + + XI. HUMAN AT LAST 239 + The Brain of Prehistoric Man + + XII. IMPLEMENTS OF HUMAN SUCCESS 267 + How the Hand, Foot, and Brain Led the Way to Humanity + + XIII. ESTIMATES AND VALUES 301 + Assets and Liabilities of the Human Brain + + XIV. THE FINAL TEST OF THE BRAIN 330 + World Coöperation and Recivilization + + + + +THE MASTER OF DESTINY + + + + +CHAPTER I + +PRIMITIVE ANCESTORS + +ORIGIN AND EARLY DAYS OF THE BRAIN + + +Since every well-arranged biography should start at the beginning, we +may first inquire into the origin of the brain. The early history of +such an important organ must be closely interwoven with the genesis of +man. If man were the result of a separate creative miracle, so also was +his brain. + +But we are not obliged to accept this view which attributes the +universe and all living things to creative miracles. There is another +and equally reasonable possibility. We may, for example, assume that +man and all else came into existence by that process of continuous +change and progressive development called evolution. We have excellent +grounds for accepting such an assumption. Astronomy, geology, biology, +chemistry, and all of the sciences relating to mankind have revealed +the essential facts. Any other interpretation must disregard or +repudiate this convincing record. With such a record as this to guide +us we may turn our attention to the origin of the brain. + + +_Earliest Forms of Animal Life_ + +The inception of life on our planet was simple in the extreme. The +earliest animals, although well organized, possessed no special organs +in the strict sense. In the beginning there was nothing which could be +specifically called a stomach or a heart, a lung or a kidney. Certainly +there was nothing even remotely resembling a brain. The business of +living was transacted within a single cell. This cell was so small +that it could not be seen by the naked eye. Each of these cells was +sufficient unto itself. Each played its own separate part with a simple +programme of existence. Each was required to get its own food, to carry +on its own chemical activities of digestion and elimination. Finally, +after it had been successful in this remarkable process, it was called +upon to produce offspring, to perpetuate its species. This last act +was the crown and climax of its life, for in this way it conferred a +material immortality upon its kind. + +The amœba, among living animals, is a good example of this simple +life. It is wholly intent upon carrying on within itself the earliest +traditions of existence. All of its life is conducted within a +single microscopic cell, which is at once its office and workshop. +It has nothing in its make-up that could in the ordinary sense be +called an organ. In such amœban animals as these there seems to be +nothing progressive, nothing to suggest the possibilities of further +advancement. Each amœba might, if such a thing were possible, look back +over a long line of ancestors exactly like itself. In looking forward +it might see no great possibility of progress. Perhaps it might reach +the more specialized conditions of its present-day relatives with +contractile threads in their substance and vibrating hairs by which to +move themselves about. At best the outlook of the amœba for progress +was restricted within very narrow limits. + + +_Familiar Animals of Earliest Type_ + +Certain events in the long history of these little animals have +acquired much human interest. At times some of these simple lives +become strikingly dramatic. Their monotonous existence is changed +and they pass through certain exciting phases. Such a drama is often +enacted when certain amœbæ gain entrance into the body of another +animal and there become parasites. The other animal may be some +huge beast or even man himself. One unpretentious amœba (_Amœba +histolytica_), if it gains entrance into the intestinal tract of man, +may cause amœbic dysentery and abscess of the liver. Another single +cell animal (_Trypanosome Gambiense_) living in the blood of certain +cattle is often conveyed by the tsetse fly to human blood where it +produces the fatal disease known as “African sleeping sickness.” +This small animal claims hundreds of thousands of victims a year. In +tropical Africa its devastations go on unchecked over an area of more +than a million square miles. In this region sleeping sickness kills +as many persons as all other diseases combined. From five to seventy +per cent. of the inhabitants in different localities are stricken. +Cattle, horses, and other domestic animals cannot be kept because of +this disease. On this account, and also because the area in which +the sickness rages is extremely fertile, it has been said that the +conquering of this malignant protozoan would be equivalent to the +discovery of a new continent. + +Even better known are the several acts in the cycle of the _plasmodium +malaria_. This protozoan animal is often borne by the Anopheles +mosquito and injected into the blood of man. Then follows the familiar +series of pathological events consisting of chill, fever, and sweat, +called malaria. In certain respects it seems like retributive justice +when this animal is injected into the body of man to cure the effects +produced by another microörganism. The other organism is the spirochæte +which causes syphilis. It often produces changes which destroy the +human brain in consequence of a disease known as paresis. Many other +protozoan animals are parasites, but in the main they live and have +lived simple, unobtrusive lives. + +Notwithstanding their apparent simplicity of structure and action, +these minute animals, like all other things, have been subject to +the influence of continuous change. They have responded to this +influence in different ways. In many instances, through generations of +reproduction, they have effected combinations and recombinations of +their essential constituents out of which have emerged modifications of +their original structure. Often these changes have proved progressive +and contributed to more complex modes of living. Often they have been +regressive or non-progressive. It was the progressive modifications in +these earliest animals that were of utmost importance to the origin of +the brain. This organ was not yet in sight, but adaptations working +toward it were soon to appear. + + +_Critical Changes in Animal Existence_ + +In the course of time certain critical changes took place in the +lowly scheme of animal existence. These were distinctly progressive +changes. Some of the single-cell animals began to live in colonies. +Circumstances thus conferred upon them a community life. They began to +exist in close contact with others like themselves and were compelled +to forego their simple, independent habits. They were, in fact, +actually joined to each other by rather slender bonds of their own +vital substance--protoplasm. This was an epochal stride forward. It +was the first step which led to progress. In some instances it brought +about entirely new relations between these animals and the world in +which they lived. Now, since these small cells were grouped together as +colonies, each individual cell lost much of its own independence. Its +interests became, in some degree at least, the interests of the group. +If, as a single cell by itself, it had been thoroughly self-contained, +now it was necessary for it to follow the needs and inclinations of +its neighbours. It was forced to observe the conventions and habits +of its colony. This condition of affairs exists in what are known as +the colonized protozoans. In addition to the advantages of community +life there was another and far more important reason why this new kind +of existence was a critical step. It introduced for the first time +the principle of differentiation or class distinction. A division of +labour was thus made possible. Some of the cells in each group were +forced to take up positions on the outer surface of the colony. Others +occupied places inside of the group. This arrangement immediately +created a distinction between “outer cells” and “inner cells.” It was +destined to have far-reaching consequences because it established a +difference in the responsibilities of two great classes. The outer +cells made an immediate and direct contact with the world. They were +nearest to the water, to the light, and to all of the outer chemical +substances necessary for living. They were like guards and outposts +about a camp, defending the colony from adverse influences. They might +be likened to the first line of battle in the aggressive struggles for +life, acting as foragers and procurers of food. The rôle of the inner +cells was different. Their contacts with the world were more indirect +and established largely through the outer cells. Their offices were +especially confined to the inner workings of the colony. They became +the germ cells whose function it was to insure the immortality of the +species. This arrangement was a momentous advance in the direction of +progress. It was particularly momentous because it laid the foundations +upon which all of the great developments in the animal world were to +be built. In a certain way, it was also a prophecy, for it foretold +the coming of animals that were to follow the protozoans. These +newcomers, the metazoans (animals which came after the first forms of +animal life), were to possess a body with outer cells engaged chiefly +in the efforts of life, while the inner cells would be particularly +concerned with the essence of living, such, for example, as digestion, +assimilation, and circulation. + +This remarkable process of class distinction among cells developed new +and useful methods in living. It brought about a division of labour in +the business of life. Different parts of the animal now had different +obligations to fulfil. Some parts served to move the body about, some +were employed in digesting food, some in eliminating waste, some in +breathing and circulation, some in reproduction. In the end, this +division of labour resulted in the formation of a body made up of many +different organs, each having its own particular responsibilities. +We may find an excellent example of the very earliest stages of this +division of labour in Volvox, one of the colony-forming protozoans. +Most of the colonized cells of this minute animal are on the outside, +forming a hollow sphere. These cells are equipped with minute hairs +or flagellæ which, by their constant motion, keep the animal rolling +around in the water like a hollow rubber ball. In this manner it seeks +and finds its food, and thus also it may escape when threatened. But +all of the cells of Volvox are not on the outside. A number of them are +tucked away from the actual surface of the animal. These are the sex +cells to which is entrusted the important duty of reproduction. + + +_Early Influences at Work to Form the Brain_ + +Even by this time in the history of the earth, although animal life had +been developing for millions of years, there was no sign of anything +like a brain. The forces, however, which would eventually bring such +an organ into existence were already at work. Perhaps from this great +distance it may be difficult to recognize the exact nature of these +forces as they began to act at this particular stage of life. They were +present nevertheless, faintly discernible like the first streaks of +dawn which precede the sunrise. This figure of speech may seem to imply +that in the end the brain was the actual sun destined to rise above +the horizon of animal life and ultimately to dominate all progressive +achievement. The rest of this biography must prove whether this is an +extravagant figure or not. One important influence behind those forces +that eventually produced the brain stands out clearly. It seems to have +been the direct result of that class distinction among cells which +caused such effectual division of labour. With this subtle influence at +work it required one further critical step to set in motion the events +which were to end in the formation of a brain. This step was taken +when the sponges (_Poriphara_), the simplest of metazoan animals, came +into existence. They differed from the protozoans, even the colonized +protozoans, because their bodies were more complexly organized. +The individual cells forming them had lost most of their separate +independence. All of these cells were now incorporated in a single +living individual, and each cell was subordinate to the interests of +the whole. + +Cell distinction had become still more important because of the +increase in size of these animals. The outer cells now formed a +covering or skin called the “ectoderm.” The inner cells constituted +the wall of a cavity, which might be likened to the lining of the +stomach. The lining is called the “entoderm.” Many minute openings +or pores in the outer covering established communication by means of +small canals with the inner cavity of the animal. Through these pores +water is inhaled and carries with it particles of food into the inner +chambers. These particles are absorbed, and the water is then exhaled +through a larger opening called the “osculum.” + +It was at this critical point that a decisive factor leading to the +formation of the brain made its appearance. Some of the deep cells +around the pores and outlets of the sponge formed “muscles.” In many +respects this was a new device, and the sponges become especially +interesting because of this innovation in animal life. The innovation +itself resulted in a special machine for producing motion; namely, the +muscle cell. Such muscle cells in the sponge are extremely simple. They +form rings around the pores and the outlets which, by contracting, +regulate the flow of water through the animal. But such muscle action +as this is extremely important because if the water in the sponge +contains an abundance of food particles, muscular contraction prevents +too rapid outflow. This slowing of the ex-current stream, among other +things, allows more time for absorption and digestion. The muscles in +different parts of the sponge act independently. Each one is, so to +speak, a free agent, occupying its position at its own particular pore +or outlet. If, however, it became necessary for all of these muscles +to contract at the same instant in a concerted effort, let us say, to +make the sponge move, there would be no mechanism to assure harmony +of action. The muscle cells at each outlet would react according to +their own inclinations--some relaxing, others contracting. Confusion +of action could scarcely fail to result. The sponge, however, does +not need to move about in order to get its food. Being stationary, it +obtains its nourishment by sucking the water through its pores, and by +regulating the flow the muscle cells do all that is required of them. + + +_A New Motor Device_ + +Simple as is this muscular equipment, it possesses great possibilities +for further development. It clearly indicates how such mechanisms for +producing motion might be expanded to create all of the surprising +varieties of motors which in time enabled animals to move about over +the earth, in the water, and through the air. It is true that the +simple strands of muscle in the sponge are far from powerful; but when +a number of muscular strands are collected together they may take form +in such muscles as the biceps of the arm, the great extensors of the +leg, or those covering the entire body. + +The presence of the muscle cells created the need for a nervous +system to control and regulate their activities. In order to act +together muscles require a supervisor. The first important step in +this direction was taken when certain simple animals like hydras +and sea anemones (_Metridium_) made their appearance. These animals +are equipped with muscles in several parts of their bodies. Some of +them, unlike the sponges, have the power to move about a little, +crawling slowly like snails. They are also capable of moving their +many tentacles, and thus are able to reach out and grasp food. All of +these movements call for the action of the many different muscles. The +sea anemone has thirteen different sets of such muscles, the exact +coöperation of which requires the closest harmony of action. Each part +must be mutually adjusted to the others. It must act in the right +rhythm and with the proper force. Such delicate adjustment as this +could not be left to chance. It needed an adjuster and regulator. It +required also a system of communication between the cells in order +that each might sense how the others were acting during any given +interval of time. In consequence of these requirements many cells were +specialized as timers, signallers, and dispatchers. They acted like +independent telephone stations, each serving separate districts; such, +for example, as the individual tentacles of hydra or of sea anemones. +These separate stations were known as nerve cells. _In them the first +elements needed for the origin of the brain made their appearance._ At +first they were scattered and had limited communication by means of +slender strands, the nerve fibres. There was as yet no central operator +for receiving and routing their messages which were transmitted rather +diffusely by a loose nerve net. + + +_Foundation Stones of the Brain_ + +In spite of this apparent simplicity, these nerve cells were the +foundation stones of the brain. Scattered as they were, they lacked +that unity of action which is the real secret of nerve power. A more +constructive plan for utilizing their capacity was requisite at this +stage. Such a plan was eventually forthcoming. It was exactly what +might have been expected in the progressive development of any good +business concern; namely, consolidation. In effect, it was a merger +uniting the separate nerve units into one centralized system. How +this merger was brought about may be recognized in such animals as +the jellyfish (_Cœlenterates_). In them the body equipment consists +of an outside layer called the “exumbrella,” and an inner layer, the +“subumbrella.” In the latter the older arrangement of the nerve cells +as scattered, more or less independent stations still persists. These +stations form a net of communication on the under surface of the +animal. But where the subumbrella joins the exumbrella, making the rim +of the jellyfish, the nerve fibres and the nerve cells form a nervous +ring entirely surrounding the animal. This is the first time in the +history of animal life that an actual central nervous system makes +its appearance. This ring of nerve fibres and cells acts as a central +receiving and dispatching station. It is a central office for receiving +information from the outside world and a dispatcher for sending +orders to different portions of the animal so that all parts may +coöperate harmoniously. Certain special organs develop along the rim +of the jellyfish, whose functions have some bearing upon the sense of +direction. These structures are known as the marginal sense organs or +“lithocysts.” They are in direct communication with the central nervous +system. Certain other sense organs are also present in the form of red +or black specks of pigment at the bases of the tentacles; they are the +“ocelli,” which are sensitive to light and are, in fact, the simplest +form of eyes. Thus, in such low forms of animal life as the jellyfish, +the first signs of special sense organs made their appearance, and the +nervous elements were for the first time organized to form a central +governing mechanism for the animal. + + +_Nerve Concentration in Forming the Head_ + +Following the merger of the scattered nerve cells to form a central +system, the process of developing a brain had opportunity to advance +along another new line. The circular nervous system of the jellyfish +passed through many modifications as it adapted itself to the form +of different types of lowly animals. The great impulse thus imparted +toward the formation of the brain veered off in numerous directions +until a new and decisive change occurred in the arrangement of the +muscles. At this juncture certain animals appeared whose bodies were +much elongated and slender. Their muscles were arranged in straight +rows, one behind the other. Such an arrangement had definite advantages +for transportation, and these advantages were utilized by such animals +as the flat worms (_Platyhelminthes_). Many of the nerve cells and +fibres became concentrated in the head end of these animals. This head +region in a general way took the lead in directing the activities of +motion and transportation. It also had centralized in and about it +many of the most important structures of life. The animal at this +critical stage now possessed a head and a body. In the broadest sense +the development of such a head may be likened to the creation of a +definite executive office within which was established a supreme organ +to preside over the rest of the body. + +Further concentration of nerve cells in the head of the animal was the +next step in this constructive process. This advance added materially +to the centralization of nerve power, which was the keynote in the +formation and growth of the brain. + +If this process of successive upbuilding seems mysterious and almost +miraculous, especially from its feeble beginnings in a single cell, +it is scarcely more remarkable than the commonplace miracle that has +resulted in the development and birth of every newly created animal +since the dawn of time. The offspring of each species--fish or fowl, +beast or man--has its beginning in a single cell. It passes through +stages of cell colonization, of class distinction among cells, and of +specialization of organs for the various functions of life. + +In the main, these two processes have run parallel in their programmes +of construction--the beginning and development of life on our planet, +the beginning and growth of every new life created. Summarized thus +briefly, these successive stages necessary to bring the brain into +existence may appear unimpressive. But when we consider that each +forward step required ages for its achievement, we may appreciate that +this was indeed a marvel of progress. From nerve cell to brain is a few +short words in print; but it required millions of years for the slow +advances to attain even the humble level of the flat worms. + + +_Development of Better Brains_ + +With the head at length in its proper place and the most simple +kind of brain installed within it, vast horizons of life still lay +ahead. Better mechanisms were needed for a more successful struggle +with existence. More capable motors were required for more efficient +locomotion. These improvements came after the passage of long intervals +of time. By degrees more highly developed animals, such as bees, ants, +beetles, or other insects, lobsters, crayfish, and shrimp, began to +appear. Their brains were much better organized than those of the lowly +worms. The special senses of sight, smell, and taste became highly +important, while the central organ which presided over all activities +acquired a remarkable complexity in its structure. + +How much these animals gained from their better brain power is clearly +seen in their behaviour. The achievements of ants and bees and beetles, +as well as many other insects, have long been a matter of wonder, a +theme of interest and fascination. If we credit these animals with +highly capable brains, it is their just due. One detail in their +organization, however, became a serious handicap to them in their +further development. The passageway from the mouth to the stomach ran +directly through the centre of the brain. If the brain grew extensively +it would encroach upon the gullet, ultimately shutting off the only +channel for food. This embarrassment actually overtook many insects +like the mosquito. Here the brain became large. The tube connecting +the mouth and the stomach was thus reduced to a fine calibre, and +the animal was forced to depend upon the highly concentrated fluid +diet obtained by sucking blood. Coarser forms of food could not pass +the œsophageal ring which the brain forms about the gullet. Thus the +stomach and the brain came into serious competition with each other. +If the brain grew larger the stomach would be deprived of food. In +consequence, this situation created a dangerous hazard to life. + + +_Advent of Backboned Animals_ + +In addition to this stomach-brain dilemma, animals such as the insects +suffered from another handicap because of the outer skeleton which +protected their bodies. This skeleton was in the form of a more or +less rigid shell, as in the lobster, crab, or crayfish. It was to +overcome the effects of such handicaps, according to some authorities, +that the great race of backboned animals came into existence. In any +event, such animals seem to have circumvented the difficulty of having +a brain which surrounded the gullet. They also overcame the necessity +of carrying a heavy shell about on the outside of their bodies. An +inner skeleton did away with this embarrassment. It is not altogether +clear how or when this transition took place. Many students of this +matter believe that the basis for this change is to be found in the +starfish group of lower animals (_Echinoderms_). Others maintain +that the change began with some creature not unlike the horseshoe +crab (_Limulus_). It is also believed that the animals which served +as the intermediate forms for this advance were the ostracoderms, a +group which has long since become extinct. They are known to us only +through fossil preservations. They possessed, however, so many fishlike +features that they may well have served as the forerunners of the +earliest animals with backbones. Whatever else is in doubt, one detail +of this transition is definite. The brain, already well developed in +certain lower creatures, now received a fuller opportunity to advance +along more advantageous lines. The first gains of this kind are seen in +the fish. Judged by outward appearances the object of such new brain +development was to provide a more efficient regulator for a new and +more efficient kind of animal. The fish, in one particular at least, +showed higher specialization. It was built for speed in locomotion. +The shape of its body, the arrangement of its muscles, the position +of its fins, the design of its head, and the form of its tail gave it +many advantages over lower animals. Equally important were the special +organs by which it sensed the world. The fish possessed powerful and +remarkably constructed eyes. It had most delicate organs for smell, +and an effective apparatus for taste. In fact, all of the senses of +the body were now so thoroughly organized that each one of them had +its own special department in the brain. According to this new type of +administrative organization, an endbrain, an interbrain, a midbrain, +and a hindbrain were established for distinct departmental purposes. + +In spite of this better arrangement, there were still decided +limitations in the brain. The most serious of these deficiencies lay +in the mechanism regulating the energy turnover. The fish had little +power to withhold its reactions. Its impressions from the outside world +produced almost immediate responses. Such rapid reactions precluded the +wide range of acts which characterizes more deliberate behaviour. + +The brain machinery for the most ample kind of living was not yet +present at this stage of animal development. It did begin to make +its appearance, however, when certain of the fish assumed partial +adjustment to life on land. These adventurous pioneers managed to +crawl out of the muddy waters at times when there was a lack of +oxygen or when the supply of food was insufficient. They set on foot +those progressive changes that gave rise to fore and hind limbs in +such amphibians as the frogs. When these latter animals made their +appearance nearly all of the fundamental problems of the vertebrate +brain had been solved. Nevertheless, there was still the need of +certain expansions in brain power and these, in some part, were +supplied during the age of reptiles. + +As yet, however, that handicap of almost instantaneous reaction which +seriously limited the life of fish had not been entirely overcome by +the amphibian or by the reptile. These animals still lacked the brain +mechanisms needed for the deliberate and varied actions of the most +efficient life. They had not yet altogether escaped from the ancient +tyranny of automatic or reflex reaction. + +At length the mammals, throughout the different periods of their long +progressive age, introduced the final detail of brain perfection. The +secret of this perfecting detail was the addition of a new mechanism to +the brain never possessed by animals before this time. The great and +new areas of the cerebral hemispheres now came slowly into existence. +With them developed new and greater capacities for action together with +far more effective adjustments to life. + + +_Vast Ages of Animal Life_ + +All of these developments reach back a great distance in time, so +great that it is difficult to calculate its exact duration. According +to modern estimates the first animals came into existence about +1,000,000,000 years ago in the Proterozoic period. This period was +followed by the Palæozoic, which began approximately 300,000,000 years +ago, and is known as the Age of Fish. Then came the remarkable Age of +Reptiles, beginning about 200,000,000 years ago, followed by the Age of +Mammals, which commenced in the neighbourhood of 65,000,000 years ago. +The present Age of Man has had a short duration, extending back only +about 1,000,000 years. + +Two methods have been depended upon in determining these figures and +the age of the earth. The first is based upon the rate of deposit and +upbuilding of sedimentary rocks. The estimated period required for the +development of each rock layer has provided a time-table for the age of +the different strata of the earth’s crust. The second method calculates +the rate at which common salt is extracted from the land and deposited +in the oceans. Imprints of fossil animals upon the several rock layers +also reveal the age of different strata. The discovery of radium +afforded the latest gauge for estimating geologic time. The physicists +now tell us that former calculations have been far too modest and +that we must go back still further to reach the actual beginnings +of our earth. Their “radioactive clock” indicates that the earth is +1,600,000,000 years old. + +During all this vast interval there has been a succession of great +changes in the earth and its waters. Continents have risen above sea +level, to be submerged again. Great inundations of continental oceans +have swept inward and made vastly different land divisions from those +which exist to-day. North America has been more or less widely flooded +by great oceans at least fifteen times. Other continents have been +similarly inundated. Mountain ranges have risen and crumbled away by +erosion. In point of geologic time most of the present mountains are +relatively young. The oldest of these is the Appalachian range which +was formed during the Permian period approximately 230,000,000 years +ago. The Rocky Mountains appeared at the close of the Cretaceous, +100,000,000 years ago, while the Swiss Alps are of much later +development, having been formed at the close of the Miocene about +15,000,000 years ago. Even the Himalayas are relatively young when +compared with the earth’s antiquity. They had not taken on their full +gigantic proportions until the close of the Eocene about 45,000,000 +years ago. + +According to many authorities, great continental land connections +once existed between Africa and what is now part of South America. +This connecting continent disappeared beneath the ocean long ago. So +also did the land connection between Asia and North America in the +region of the Bering Sea. An important land connection existed between +England and the Continent, across what is now the English Channel, in +Pliocene times. It was present, therefore, at some time within the last +6,000,000 years. Immense inland seas have drained off or evaporated and +left in their places great desert spaces, like the Bad Lands of the +West. + + +_The Long Upward March Toward Humanity_ + +While these changes were in process marked alterations in climate +affected the surface of the earth. Glacial ice caps descended from +the poles, later to recede and leave the earth invested in tropical +warmth. Time and again these changes recurred. The crust of the earth, +chilled by intense refrigeration for protracted ages, grew warm again +for equally long periods when tropical vegetation crept up toward +the poles. These changes in vegetation have been accompanied by many +changes in the animal inhabitants of the globe. Species of animals +in profusion have come into existence only to follow the path which +led to extinction. In many cases the forms of life began simply and +progressed by graded stages to greater structural complexity. Man is an +outstanding example of this rule. He began in much simpler form than +that in which he now exists. This relative simplicity is particularly +true of his brain. + +Thus, as if descending a long stairway, we may pass by the successive +terraces of the earth’s history toward the beginnings of geologic +time. The expanse of this time is difficult to conceive. From the +inception of animal life in the long Proterozoic Age, throughout the +ages of Fish, Reptiles, and Mammals, man’s brain was in the making. +Irresistible forces molded the various stages of its progress. Species, +genera, families, and even entire orders of animals came into existence +and disappeared as wastage in a great experiment. Yet, through all +vicissitudes of time and change, the long upward march toward humanity +held its place. Ultimately it became the dominant feature in creation. +The advent of man introduced a new era. It remains to be seen whither +the forces moving in this Age of Man will take us. They may be leading +to extinction. The way to such a termination is clearly open to our +race. On the other hand, the brain has made man what he is and may +save him for better things. Its interesting pioneer ancestry, although +extremely remote, has left a well-established record. The history of +its development through the process of evolution in the backboned +animals is still more interesting. + + + + +CHAPTER II + +ANCESTORS BEFORE THE APES + +THE BRAIN FROM FISH TO MAN + + +_Practical Significance of Evolution_ + +There are many who still harbour resentment against the ape, especially +in explaining man’s origin. As a result, hostilities often flare up +against evolution. It cannot be denied that the unattractive ape is +at the root of these reactions. He is the bar sinister and the real +stumbling block in the evolutionary theory. He is also, to many people +at least, the entire gist of it. That we are descended from monkeys is +rather generally accepted as the meaning of evolution. This view, at +best, is a superficial explanation of what evolution really means. No +scientist to-day believes that any one of the living apes is ancestral +to man. These animals belong to families totally divergent from the +human family. They have ascended well up into the trees. Here doubtless +they will remain, quite as unconcerned in human origin as they are +innocent of participation in it. Our interest in evolution should not +centre upon the ape kind. The line of our ancestry reaches far back of +them through millions of years. We were in the making long before there +were any apes on earth. They, in their tree life, merely afforded the +last finishing touches which shaped our course toward humanity. If we +wish to acknowledge our hereditary indebtedness properly, we would be +compelled to recognize in our family tree that highly important line of +mammals which first introduced the custom of arboreal living. Back of +them are still older lines which deserve equal ancestral credit. Here +are found those animals without the existence of which we should never +have arrived. Among these is the vast assortment of reptiles, together +with mammal-like reptilians which appeared in the Age of Reptiles. All +of these reptilian forms were in their turn indebted for existence to +earlier amphibians and fish, their progenitors during the long Age of +Fish. Thus the true line of evolutionary descent leads us from fish +to man. Not until we appreciate the meaning of this long vertebrate +lineage through all its various phases does the vital significance of +evolution become clear. If we view it in this way it is possible to +sense the irresistible force that has carried animal life onward and +upward through the ages from the earliest times. This force may still +carry us onward. In its broader applications such a viewpoint should +make an urgent appeal for thoughtful consideration. It offers many +suggestions concerning further advances and readjustments in human +behaviour. + + +_Evidence of Evolution in Our Bodies_ + +The brain is one of the best witnesses testifying to this long +evolutionary development of man. It contains convincing evidence of +this process in three striking particulars. First, it gives numerous +signs indicating its primitive origin from the lowest of the +vertebrates, the fish. Second, it bears identifying marks of intimate +association with animals of its own class, the mammals. Third, it +has a large number of details in its special mechanisms possessed in +common with all of the primate order, to which man belongs together +with the lemurs, tarsiers, monkeys, and apes. This evidence is not +circumstantial. It is direct and unimpeachable. It leaves no point in +the line of man’s long descent to be decided by inference. It embodies +factors which led, step by step, to the upbuilding of the human brain. + +Other tissues and organs of the body tell the same story of slow, +steady progress upward, from some low and simple phase of life, through +many graded stages of improvement until the human form at length came +in sight. + +The blood has been an especially positive witness concerning this +progressive development. Tests with many different kinds of animals +show that the blood of man is much nearer to that of the great apes +than to the lower Old World monkeys. The relation between the human +blood and that of the New World monkeys is still more remote. In +general, these blood tests are among the most convincing proofs of +evolution. + +The bony system of the body is another decisive witness. The skeleton +of the fore and hind limbs sheds much light on the changing adjustments +which have been made in the motor apparatus. The use of the limbs as +fins, paddles, wings, hoofs, paws, claws, hands, or feet, indicates +the broad family relations and kinship of various animals. The size and +shape of the skull and the character of the teeth reveal the manner in +which this evolutionary process has passed through its several stages. +The muscular system, the system for eliminating waste products of +the body, the heart and the lungs, all afford important evidence of +vertebrate kinship and evolution. The increase in the complexity of the +breathing apparatus, from the early gill stages of the fish to the lung +of the mammal, through all its many intermediate phases, discloses with +astonishing clearness the course of this progress. + + +_The Embryo as a Witness_ + +Testimony from another source also stands undisputed. This +corroboration comes from the manner in which all vertebrates are +conceived and formed. The witness in this case is the embryo, which in +all animals begins in the same way. Embryonic existence starts from a +single cell. It holds true to the earliest beginnings of animal life +that first appeared in a single cell such as the amœba. In the higher +animals this cell is called the ovum. From it, after fertilization, +two cells are derived, then four, then eight, then sixteen, until it +has an appearance closely resembling some of the colonized protozoan +animals. Here again, even in man, is seen that decisive stage in which +a critical cellular distinction is made between outside and inside +cells. From this time specializing progress in the growing individual +goes forward. Each new phase repeats in a general way a stage of +development previously attained in the evolution of life. All embryos +of vertebrate animals pass through such phases. The fish embryo carries +the process up to the stage characterized by those improvements which +developed during the Age of Fish. The amphibian embryo takes the +process one step farther. It adds new features essential to living +on land. Embryos of reptiles and of birds introduce the progressive +advancements peculiar to their kinds. The mammal embryo takes the +final step, prior to which it passes successively through the several +phases of the lower grades of life. The human embryo follows the +mammalian plan and puts the finishing touches of development upon what +the mammal has gained from all the stages below it. Fish, amphibians, +reptiles--all have their beginning in a single cell. Regardless of the +differences in body form, in mode of life, and in behaviour, all are +cast in a mold of development based on a common design. Thus, while the +blood, the bony system, the muscles, the teeth, the eliminating system, +the heart, and the lungs tell the story of progressive development, the +embryo gives a summary of this process by disclosing the general plan +which underlies the manner in which every backboned animal is formed. + +The brain contains a comprehensive record of this progress. There are +reasons why this is the case. Brain influences pervade and dominate all +other systems. This organ is the great transformer of energy, which so +assembles other parts in operation that the body as a whole becomes +a smoothly acting machine. It receives sensory impressions from its +environment. It controls the reactions incited by these impressions. +In this dual capacity the brain has been especially sensitive to +those influences of change and adjustment, of action, reaction, and +interaction that have affected animal life during its long existence. +It has responded to these changes and has retained the impression +of such responses. In many cases it has been structurally improved. +Gradually it became capable of sensing the world more effectively. It +acquired the capacity to react on a broader scale. Developing along +certain progressive lines it has served to transform impressions +received from the senses in such a way as to produce an increasingly +more effective turnover of nervous energy. For this reason it is +necessary for us to estimate the value of such senses as were utilized +in this way. Without going too extensively into detail, it may be said +that, with extremely few exceptions, vertebrate animals possess four +chief varieties of sense. Each of these supplies the brain with stimuli +necessary to its proper reaction. + + +_Value of Our Senses_ + +First, chemical sense, through special organs for smell and taste, +conveys information concerning certain chemical conditions in the +surroundings. The sense of smell derives its impressions from gaseous +or volatile substances which, among other things, may create a pleasant +or a disagreeable odour important in selecting food. The sense of taste +gathers its information from substances in solution. It depends upon +acid, sweet, bitter, salty, or other similar stimuli. The primitive +headquarters for taste are in the hindbrain, while the endbrain serves +in this capacity for the sense of smell. + +Second, body sense furnishes information concerning what transpires +within the body, as in the heart and lungs, in the stomach and +intestines, and in other special organs. It also supplies equally +important information concerning what contraction is occurring in the +muscles, how the bones are being moved, what postures the different +parts are assuming, and how the body as a whole is being balanced. + +Third, contact sense makes known what is going on immediately outside +the body. It depends upon many things which touch the body surfaces, +such as the touch and pressure of a handclasp, the temperature of +water upon the hand, the vibration of a heavy vehicle running over the +ground. Body and contact senses had their original headquarters in the +midbrain and interbrain. + +Fourth, distance sense supplies information concerning objects in the +world outside of the body more or less remote from it. The information +which this sense brings is news from abroad. It is gathered by the +sense of sight and the sense of hearing. Sight, in a way, is touch at a +distance. When an animal sees its enemy a long way off it, so to speak, +touches this enemy with its eyes and thus gives the brain the needed +information while there is yet time for escape. Sight depends upon +light waves, and hearing upon sound waves. By such means these two +highly specialized agents of distance sense gather their information. +The central offices of sight and hearing were at first situated in the +midbrain. + +All impressions obtained from these senses were and still are the raw +materials utilized in the energy turnover produced by the brain. + +Improvement was not always the result of the great struggle for +adjustment. There were many ups and downs, many trials, many failures. +Yet a certain insistent tendency toward progress was constantly in +evidence. By means not entirely clear, this tendency ultimately +succeeded in finding some way to become effective. It appears to +have exerted its influence by selecting definite parts of the animal +machinery for emphasis or repression. + +Often some highly selective improvement was developed in the brain to +meet special conditions. Such is the expansion in the bird’s brain by +which the sense of sight is greatly amplified. This special increase +makes it possible for the bird to see its prey from great distances in +the air, as the hawk sees the fish in the water, or the vulture detects +the presence of carrion by its keen eyesight. The sense of smell in +birds is much less developed than vision. + +In scenting animals, like the dog, the fox, and the cat, selective +improvement has affected the sense of smell. In a few instances the +addition of a relatively new sense was the means by which improvement +manifested itself. Such an addition is seen in that transition when +fish life first began to assume the characters of living upon land. At +that juncture the sense of hearing was added in some amphibious animals +belonging to the same class as the frog. These and other methods for +getting a better supply of raw materials through the senses contributed +to progressive development in the brain. + + +_The Sense Combiner_ + +Still more effective was the improvement which came as a new mechanism. +It provided a special apparatus that may for convenience be called the +“sense combiner.” The office of this mechanism was to assemble sense +impressions in the brain, to make composite pictures of sight, hearing, +taste, smell, and all other senses. This sense combiner served also +as an effective depository for impressions already received. It held +them in readiness for use as a background of experience that would be +needed for new or subsequent situations. At a glance it is evident that +the brain having the best sense combiner would outstrip all others +in its efficiency and output. In the earliest vertebrates this new +mechanism did not acquire a centralized headquarters. Its operations +were controlled from several scattered stations in the brain. Obviously +such division of responsibility could not be considered an efficient +method of control. Centralization was needed, and certain stages in +the development of the brain from fish to man illustrate how this +improvement was gradually brought about. + +The first or fish stage, as might be expected, expresses the beginning +of this process of improvement in simplest terms. There are many who +do not credit the fish with such a thing as a brain. These animals, +however, are equipped with an effective organ of this kind. Its +efficiency is not high according to human standards, yet, as we shall +presently see, it has many characteristics of the human organ and +reacts to similar stimuli. + +In the fish brain there are nearly all of the working departments +found in man. Much variation exists even among fish. Some of them have +very simple brains. This is true of the earliest forms, but the more +advanced types acquired brains thoroughly efficient for the special +complexities of existence in which they had to live. The several +departments in these brains are adjusted to their requirements. The +sense of smell in the fish is particularly well developed. It has +certain limitations, however, due to the fact that it must depend +upon substances borne by the water. The department of this sense, +nevertheless, occupies the major portion of what in these descriptions +will be called the endbrain. The sense of taste is also well organized +in fish. In certain of them, like the catfish, it has received special +emphasis, because in addition to taste organs in the mouth there are +organs of this kind scattered over the entire body from head to tail. +The primitive central office of the sense of taste in fish is located +in the hindbrain. Body sense is highly developed because most of the +fishes are able to control their muscles and joints in an amazing way +as they dart about in the water. Balancing of the body in swimming is +another important problem in the locomotion of the fish. It is solved +by means of certain highly specialized water levels (semicircular +canals). The body sense department occupies the interbrain. The sense +of sight in most fish is fairly well advanced, although it has distinct +limitations. Being placed on the side of the head, each eye acts more +or less independently of the other, and the fish, so to speak, gets a +two-eyed picture of its surroundings. It will subsequently become clear +that one of the most important events in the progress of the brain has +been the development of that kind of vision in which both eyes receive +the impression of an object at the same time. Then again, the medium +in which the fish lives is in many respects less favourable for the +passage of light rays than the air. The retina of the fish’s eye which +first receives the light rays also indicates a relative simplicity in +the organization of vision. For these and other reasons the fish’s +sense of sight cannot be as effective as in the higher forms of life. +This sense department is located in the midbrain. + + +_Starting with the Fish_ + +The fish stage in the development of the brain shows a striking +deficiency in its lack of provision for a sense of hearing. Strictly +speaking, fish have no ears. It is believed that the ability to hear +which the human being possesses is denied to them. In still another +respect, however, a more obvious deficiency makes itself apparent. +The brain is poorly equipped in mechanisms that could specifically +be called sense combiners. Some slight degree of combination between +the senses does take place, but this at best is meagre and simple. +Consequently the brain’s output, that is to say, its productive +turnover, is limited. It confines itself to those reaction patterns +with which we are familiar in the habits and behaviour of fish. The +limitations by which these patterns are restricted are evident in the +fact that the animal’s entire life programme is carried on largely +under water. If an attempt were made to estimate the capabilities of +the fish as a machine compared with other animals, it would almost +certainly receive a low rating. The justification of this low estimate +is obvious. The reasons for it are twofold: first, the relatively low +degree of development in each of the sense departments including the +lack in one department (sense of hearing); second, the poorly developed +sense combiner. + +Professor Gregory has devoted much time in the American Museum of +Natural History to the study of the progressive stages from fish to +man, and especially to those changes which appear in the head. He has +shown that in this fish stage the animal at first had no lower jaw and +no teeth. Its mouth served as a sucking organ, which thus obtained food +in the form of minute organisms and small particles of organic matter. +Certain new patterns were introduced with the appearance of primitive +sharks. These animals had a lower jaw impregnated with lime salts, +thus made effective for supporting many successive rows of formidable +teeth. Such sharks also had well-developed gills. Certain lobe-finned +fishes of a somewhat later period (_Crossopterygian_) began to live in +streams and swamps. By means of their peculiar fins they were able to +crawl over the surface of the land, and thus they were the forerunners +of the next more completely air-breathing stage determined by the +appearance of the amphibians. + + +_The Beginning of Life on Land_ + +The second or amphibian stage came after those steps had been taken +which led certain modified forms of fish life to attempt a partial +adjustment to living on land and to breathing air. True amphibians +then made their appearance. Animals called tetrapods, or four-footed +creatures, were the result of this change. They were the forerunners of +all higher animals. By the slow conversion of their fins and paddles +into legs they acquired a new kind of transportation machinery. With +the aid of these four legs the animal could now hop about on land and +also swim in the water much as do the frogs. Such a transformation +had a profound effect upon the entire body, which became greatly +shortened and in many instances no longer possessed a tail (except in +the polliwog stage). The head also changed. New devices were necessary +for the purposes of air-breathing, which replaced the old method of +getting oxygen out of the water. One of the most important changes, +however, was the addition of the new sense of hearing. The amphibians, +living partly on land, were now able to receive useful information by +means of air waves. The advent of this new sense was destined to have +momentous effects upon the further development of the brain. Each of +the several sense departments is well represented in the frog. The +sense of smell is highly organized. It contains some improvements over +the fish for the reason that the animal is now able to scent odours +borne by the air. The sense of taste shows little if any improvement. +Compared with many of the fish it has actually receded. Body sense is +well provided for and shows certain refinements due to the fact that +it has taken on the new responsibility of sensing four legs. It also +has the duty of supervising what is going on in the muscular machine +when the animal performs its new kind of motion, hopping about over +the ground, leaping into the water, or using the new frog-method of +swimming. The department of the sense of sight shows some improvements +when contrasted with that of the fish. The frog is able to adjust its +vision both to air and water. While on land it is able to see many +things that never come into the range of the fish’s field of vision. +Some of the frogs even go so far as to have what is called a third +eye in the middle of the forehead. This organ, however, is but poorly +developed and serves more for light perception than for actual seeing. +The introduction of the sense of hearing, by establishing certain +innovations in the frog brain, provides an advantage over the fish. It +is, however, in furthering the development of the sense combiner that +the frog’s brain shows its most distinctive advance. The two great +hemispheres are now clearly outlined. The endbrain, in consequence of +land-living and air-breathing, has taken an important step forward. In +all further advances this part will bear the chief burdens of progress +and improvement. + +The frog and his kind represent a machine that in many respects is +not much better organized than the fish. But amphibians did serve to +introduce advantages that were utilized in new adjustments to life; +such, for example, as living on land, breathing air, getting about on +four legs, and being able to hear. Besides this, the way was now opened +for a better type of sense combiner. There was promise, if not actual +profit, in these new amphibian endowments. Professor Gregory has shown +that among the most important changes in the amphibian head were those +which ultimately led to the formation of the ear. The skin in this +region was already beginning to act as a tympanic member or eardrum. + + +_Epoch of Giant Reptiles_ + +The third or reptile stage witnessed that critical advance that came +with the fully established habit of living on land. The amphibians, +both those which retained and those which lost the tail, took the +first somewhat hesitating steps in this direction. They were, however, +essential predecessors to the next higher order, the reptiles, which +upon their arrival stepped out boldly. During the remarkable Mesozoic +period these reptiles covered the earth with their dominating and +often hideous presence. No period compares with this one for the +awe-inspiring inhabitants that peopled the world. It was then that +the gigantic dinosaurs were the overlords of creation. Some of these +monstrous creatures were composed of many tons of flesh and bone. They +became the most terrific fighting machines ever produced by nature. +Even the tail, which had disappeared in many of the amphibians, became +prominent as part of the offensive equipment in these reptile monsters. +Gigantic size was an outstanding structural feature. But these huge +dimensions carried their own penalties. They were extremely hazardous +and destined to bring catastrophe. Even if some of the great reptiles +might have been thoroughly efficient fighting machines, they lacked +the essential advantages of progressive brains and brain power. In +this respect they had improved but little. That tremendous monster +_Tyrannosaurus rex_, the most destructive engine ever created, had a +body weighing many tons, with a brain of less than a pound. + +The prolific Mesozoic reptiles inhabited the land and infested the +waters of the earth, its oceans and inland seas, its lakes and rivers. +They also for the first time attempted to realize the advantages +of another mode of life. Having adjusted their weird bodies to +the water and to the land, they next took to the air. Late in the +Permian or Triassic times (150,000,000 years ago) some lizard-like +reptiles, partially biped in habit and distantly related to the great +two-legged dinosaurs, assumed habits of life adapted in part to the +trees. Specialization of their fore limbs led to wing-like structures +for purposes of volplaning to the ground. Such modified fore limbs +eventually acquired the character of wings, and thus, according to +some authorities, the most ancient of known birds had their origin in +the Age of Reptiles. Many students of this subject believe that bird +life may have begun at an even earlier period. + +More conservative and also far less conspicuous was another tendency +which developed in this reptilian age. For a long time it remained most +unpretentious. The spectacular development of huge animals for land and +sea held the centre of the stage. Mere size, however, is not always +sufficient for success and progress. In any event, a certain number +of relatively small reptiles began to show changes along entirely +different lines. At first it was difficult to discern the signs of +progress in them. Slowly, however, significant modifications came about +in two important details: First, in the readjustment of the fore and +hind legs, so that acting together they began to lift the body of the +animal clear off the ground. The second great change was an alteration +in the teeth, which were gradually specialized until they assumed the +characters recognized in those later animals known as mammals. These +two new traits, developed by relatively inconspicuous reptiles, led in +time to animals that became the actual forerunners of the mammals. They +are known as the pro-mammalian reptiles (_Cynodont_, _Theriodont_). + + +_Reptile Forerunners of the Mammals_ + +It is probable that while these momentous changes were in process an +equally important modification had begun. This change affected the +blood. It caused the blood cells to become smaller and at the same +time better conveyers of oxygen. These cells also began to lose their +nuclei. As a result, certain animals passed from a cold-blooded, +scaly reptilian condition to that of the warm-blooded, hair-covered +mammal. The constant warm temperature of the blood in these mammalian +forerunners must have been a decisive influence favouring the further +development of the brain. + +In many respects the reptilian brain is inferior to that of the +mammals. All of its sense departments are fairly well represented. +The senses of smell and taste have made slight advances over the +amphibian stage. Body and contact senses have perhaps gained some +slight advantage over the previous period. In sight and hearing there +were some improvements. Collectively the reptilian mechanisms for +managing impressions obtained through the senses are considerably +better than those of such animals as the amphibious frog. At least one +of the reptiles (_Sphenodon_) developed a third eye in the middle of +the forehead. This is not, however, a highly efficient visual organ. +The sense combiner in the reptile also shows some advantage, although +in the main the reptilians appear to have acquired little more of +practical value, except greater speed and more power, than their +predecessors, the amphibians. + +Even when reptile development took that bent which led to the +appearance of birds, the brain received but a slight benefit from this +adjustment to the air. Selective progress in the bird’s brain is +unquestionably found in that marked expansion involving the department +of sight. Body sense also expanded to meet the requirements of sensing +and balancing the body in flight. But to offset these advances both +the sense of smell and the sense of taste have undergone considerable +recession. Adaptive progress here, as in many other instances, +emphasized one department with some apparent loss of advantage in other +parts. Consequently the sense combiner, which ultimately produces +the most effective combinations of sense impressions, has shown no +conspicuous advantage among the birds. + + +_Disappearance of the Great Reptiles_ + +The reptile stage of life, especially in its most imposing phases, +witnessed but little advance in the progressive development of the +brain. During this period all of the great departments of brain +structure, such as the endbrain, the interbrain, the midbrain, and +the hindbrain, were retained and somewhat expanded. But that highly +important mechanism that was finally to act as the superbrain, +technically known as the neopallium (new outer coating of the brain, +the cortex), had not yet been acquired. It may be in part for this +reason that, as the Mesozoic period advanced, catastrophe was rapidly +overtaking many of the great reptilian groups. Of the eighteen orders +of reptiles that once filled the world, all but five were mysteriously +swept into oblivion. Why they passed is not yet clear. It may have +been due to great changes in the surface and climate of the earth +at different times. It may have been that the gigantic size of these +reptiles made the struggle for existence too severe or the food +supply too precarious. Whatever the cause, they all seem to have +paid the penalty of excessive specialization. The five orders which +have survived these destructive catastrophes include the snakes, the +crocodiles, the lizards, the turtles, and the lizard-like tuateras of +New Zealand. + +Notwithstanding this wholesale destruction, there was a priceless +heritage handed down from the Age of Reptiles. This heirloom was the +beginning of the warm-blooded mammal, which slowly developed from +the humble pro-mammalian reptiles. It endowed the animals that were +to rule the next great period of the earth’s history with power to +get about on four feet, with increased ability to withstand great +changes of climate, with added capacities in preparing their food for +digestion. This last advantage depended upon a new kind of teeth which +the mammals inherited from their immediate reptilian ancestors. All of +the teeth possessed by primitive reptiles were fang-like (laniary), +used for seizing their prey or tearing their food. These reptiles +had no grinding teeth, and this condition left the responsibility of +digestion to the stomach and other organs. In most of the mammals +digestion begins in the mouth with actual mastication. The early +pro-mammalian reptiles (_Cynodonts_) were equipped with grinding teeth, +and their dental apparatus, as in all mammals, included incisors, +canines, pre-molars, and molars. Teeth such as these were important +items in the legacy received by the mammals from their ancestors, the +pro-mammalian reptiles. + + +_When the Warm-blooded Mammal Appeared_ + +In the fourth or mammalian stage, life entered upon the Age of Mammals +with all of these new endowments. Almost at once it began to show +signs of progress. It was in the brain that this progress became most +apparent. A new mechanism long in the making now came into existence. +This new structure may be rightly called the superbrain (neopallium), +since it soon proved to be the most decisive step yet taken in the +development of the sense combiner and in the further expansion of all +the senses. At first it did not make its appearance in any preëminent +manner. It came as an outer covering over the ancient parts of the +endbrain. Within it, however, were possibilities of expansion such +as were possessed by no other part of the brain. Ultimately it added +about twelve billion cells to be used in many different kinds of +brain activity. This addition was especially characterized by the +orderly arrangement of the cells, layer upon layer, almost as if each +successive layer imparted some new capacity for the management of life. +In its fully developed form this structure constitutes the cortex of +the hemispheres, and with its fibre connections makes up as much as +eighty per cent. of the entire brain. + +It could hardly be expected, even after the first arrival of the +mammals, that this new brain addition would at once attain its +fullest development. In fact, the first attempts along this line were +feeble. A new and great production of weird mammals was in process. +It might almost seem as if the imposing shadows of the previous Age +of Reptiles still hung over these early mammalian experiments. Huge, +ungainly proportions were still the fashion. In many instances the +primitive mammals themselves developed gigantic and awkward bodies. +They were strange, unsightly beasts as we know them now from their +fossilized skeletons and from reconstructions of them. Were it +possible to reassemble them, what a sensation they would create in +our modern world. Even the best efforts of our foremost showmen would +be ineffective to describe those strange monsters of most unfamiliar +appearance, with their peculiar armours, their long unsightly horns and +tusks, their strange hoofs and claws. The mammoth, the mastodon, the +amblypod, the titanothere, the creodont, the sabre-toothed tiger, and +many others would be among them to excite wonder. + + +_The Paths to Extinction and Progress_ + +But all of these have passed, in part at least, because, like the +dinosaurs, they possessed inferior or unprogressive brains. Indeed, +many of the earliest mammals had brains that in some particulars +resembled those of the reptiles. They grew in size and power until they +became repulsive brutes, although their brains improved but little. +In many of them the superbrain developed only in a small way. It was +notable not for its size but for the position it occupied above more +ancient structures. In their struggle for life these huge beasts seemed +to be unable to adjust themselves to changing environment; so probably +when the conditions became too severe, not having the capacity to adapt +themselves, they failed to survive. Many orders of these animals became +extinct in the early part of the Age of Mammals (Oligocene and Eocene, +thirty million to sixty-five million years ago). Others, showing more +progressive tendencies, continued to advance, and their descendants +have come down into modern times. One striking difference between these +progressive and unprogressive mammals was certainly in the brain. +Wherever this organ remained primitive, wherever the superbrain was +only feebly developed, the fate of extinction seems to have been a +foregone conclusion. Such animals soon reached the end of their line. +But wherever the superbrain expanded, there the signs of progress were +unmistakable. One extremely important factor in the survival of most +of the mammals alive to-day was the progressive development in the +most recently acquired portion of the brain. Great practical results +were brought about by its expansion in the administration of brain +power. It produced, so to speak, the final consolidation of all the +sense departments under one roof. Reactions connected with the sense +of smell and of taste, which had so long depended upon the primitive +endbrain, marked this structure as the most advantageous location +for centralization. Whatever may have been the influences that +established this preference, here the departments of body and contact +senses, of sight and hearing, were finally organized. The effects of +this consolidation were immediately felt by the endbrain. It at once +became a superbrain in the truest sense. Rapid expansions in the actual +size of the hemispheres were the first signs of this new development. +Then came the process of convolution and folding to obtain more brain +room, and this for the same reason was followed by still more complex +convoluting. These advantages especially favoured contact sense, the +expansion of which was largely due to the fact that the mammal body +was now covered with a highly sensitive skin equipped with hair. Such +a skin was a new sensory device by which finer impressions of touch +might be conveyed to the brain. In this manner the animal was able to +form more complete judgments concerning objects with which it came +in contact. Little by little, these judgments of touch became more +critical and discriminating. A great range of understanding of the +world through touch sense was made available. One critical impression +of touch was added to another until complex judgments in this sense +were constructed. Similar expansions in the powers of vision, hearing, +and body sense led to their localization in this new part of the +brain. Their most effective activity soon required still further +extension, which ultimately, by the development of the frontal lobe, +made provision for the highest faculties. The mammals have thus shown +their progressive tendency in the acquisition of an efficient sense +combiner. Through their better sense capacities they have been able +to understand their surroundings more thoroughly than lower animals. +Consequently their energy turnover in the brain has resulted in a +better output by means of which they have made more ample adjustments +to life. All of this they have been able to accomplish because they +possessed a mechanism of incalculable value, the superbrain. Yet the +mammals have not in all cases utilized this mechanism to its full +extent. Its advantages have been applied in different ways and for +different purposes. In some instances they have been utilized for the +special adjustments of the hoofed animals, or in the hunting craft of +the great meat-eaters, or in that furtiveness of the moles, which seek +their protection by burrowing in the ground. The advantages of the +superbrain were applied to many other diverse specializations, such as +the adjustments of bats for flying, or of beavers, seals, whales, and +porpoises for living in the water. + + +_The Superior Brain of Mammals_ + +The mammalian brain has made possible a wide range of behaviour and +adjustment. This range exceeds that of the fish, amphibian, reptile, or +bird. Concerning the increased capacity of the mammals as a class there +seems to be no doubt. But this greater power of adaptability is also +true of every mammal. The differences in this respect between the lower +mammals, like the rat, the opossum, or the sloth, when compared with +the bird, the snake, the frog, or even the fish, may not be striking. +But when we contrast the actions and capabilities of such mammals as +dogs, horses, elephants, or any of the cat family with those of the +bird or snake the vast differences speak for themselves. A dog, for +example, has by comparison with lower vertebrates a greatly increased +capacity for getting on in life. He is capable of adapting himself to +many complications incident to his associations with man. He has a much +more ample repertoire of performances. He is capable of learning many +intricate accomplishments. In general, such learning is also true of +most of the higher mammals; it is particularly true of those having a +highly developed superbrain. Even aquatic mammals like the seals show a +remarkable degree of adaptability. They are among the most interesting +of trained performers. A casual glance is sufficient to reveal what an +excellent superbrain they possess. Elephants, in spite of their huge +proportions and awkwardness, are capable of remarkable adjustments. +Their brains are also highly developed. + +Yet, however decisive the mammalian superiority in brain power may be +over the lower vertebrates, most of the mammals are held down by many +handicaps, restrictions, and limitations. They all possess a capacity +for broad adjustments to strictly limited conditions. For life in the +water, in the air, upon the plains, underground, or in the forest, +they may be well adapted. But the specializations of their own bodies +hold them to their specifically restricted adjustments. With trunk and +head, with hoof and paw, with wing and flipper, they may do the things +which these implements make possible. Here their opportunities cease. +In this way even the progressive mammals are confronted by serious +obstacles. These mammalian obstacles were difficult to overcome. Some +of the mammals, however, became specialized for a more varied kind +of life. They manifested a strong tendency to live chiefly in the +trees. This fact influenced their further adjustments profoundly. It +opened the way for new specializations in their limbs. It gave a new +direction to progress, which finally called upon the brain for its +supreme development. These important tree-living animals are the monkey +kind and the manlike apes. All of the events in adjustment preceding +this great epoch might be likened diagrammatically to a succession of +plateaus. Each plateau, beginning with that of the fish, then rising +to the level of the amphibians, of the reptiles, and finally of the +mammals, contributed some important elements to progress. From these at +length came the upper level of the apes, that plateau destined to give +rise to many varieties of primates, and also to afford those footholds +essential to the further upward climb of man. + + + + +CHAPTER III + +MAN IN THE MAKING + +HUMAN PROGRESS FROM PREHISTORIC TO MODERN TIMES + + +_Arrival of Man_ + +Long before man appeared upon the scene the brain had passed through +certain preliminary grades. Its basic patterns had been perfected. Its +most important mechanisms had been improved. All manner of animals +inhabited the earth in those preparatory days--fishes, amphibians, +reptiles, birds, and mammals of many varieties. They were the stepping +stones of progress. When at length the first members of our family +arrived their brains were barely human, and they themselves were crude +human beings. There was a certain triumph in their advent, however, for +at last there were men. The Age of Man which they inaugurated was to +differ from all preceding ages in the products of human achievement. +This great inaugural event, however, made no particular stir in nature. +Its beginnings were insignificant and humble, just as the brain of +these earliest men was a far less imposing organ than that possessed +by modern people. It was still a crude brain, unrefined in many of its +structural details and small in its capacity. Hundreds of thousands +of years were still necessary for such a brain to attain its highest +efficiency. + +To most of us who are accustomed to count time as the hours between +breakfast and dinner, or, at the most, as the proverbial threescore +years and ten, these long periods sound fabulous and fantastic. In +contemplating the past our vision usually stops short at the beginning +of history, about five or six thousand years ago. Such a focus is +unfortunately nearsighted. It leaves us insensitive to the much longer +prehistoric period. Through all this unrecorded time man struggled +upward to achieve those successes which at length established the Age +of the Frontal Lobe. + +Much evidence of this great prehistoric period is now available. +Examined carefully and without prejudice it reveals what man must have +been when his human journey first started. It tells us much of how he +lived and acted; also by what means he succeeded in lifting himself up +step by step from his lowly beginnings. + + +_The Duration of Human Existence_ + +It is natural that our first inquiry should be concerning the length +of time during which the human race has inhabited the earth. The +exact figures, as might be expected, are a matter of much dispute +and difference of opinion. All authorities, however, agree that the +several stages of human progress must have required a remarkably long +period. None of the modern estimations of this period is less than +five hundred thousand years. Many calculations, such as those of Sir +Arthur Keith, far exceed this figure and place the origin of man as far +back as a million years or more. The beginnings of the human species +are usually attributed to the early part of the Pleistocene, or the +late part of the Pliocene. Keith, however, believes this does not +permit of sufficient time for that development which produced all of +the effects evidenced in the known features of modern man, as well as +those of certain extinct varieties that have long since passed from +the human stage. Concluding his famous work, the _Antiquity of Man_, +Keith expresses the opinion that “There is not a single fact known to +me which makes the existence of the human form in the Miocene period +an impossibility.” This view would set the origin of man back to an +astonishingly remote period in the neighbourhood of twelve or fifteen +million years ago. + +Professor Osborn has recently revised his original estimations +concerning the beginning of the human race. He now attributes the rise +of man to a time one and a half million years ago. + +In all his races, both living and extinct, man constitutes the sixth +family in the primate suborder, _Anthropoidea_ (manlike). This family +is known as the _Hominidæ_ (men of all types). The progenitors of the +human family split off from a common primate stock at some time early +in the Oligocene. At this critical juncture, probably twenty-five +million years ago, two great branches of the suborder parted company. +Thenceforth they developed independently of each other. The first +branch from this common stem gave rise to human races. From the +second branch arose the great modern anthropoid apes, including the +orang-outang, the chimpanzee, and the gorilla. The vast difference +that exists between man and all other living creatures is evident in +the complexity of human affairs. In size and form of body there are +many notable resemblances between man and the apes, particularly the +great apes. But here the similarity ends abruptly. Man has created a +new world, which he strives to control both by laws of his own making +and by subjugating more or less completely all other creatures to his +will. His races to-day throughout the world are collectively known as +the species _Homo sapiens_ (man of wisdom). This species comprises the +African, the Australian, the Mongolian, and the European varieties of +mankind. + + +_Four Extinct Races of Men_ + +Study of human fossils and ancient implements has revealed the former +existence of at least four prehistoric races of man. These races took +their parts in the human drama and then, in consequence of factors +not altogether clear, became extinct. It is not surprising that man’s +obscure prehistoric beginnings are all but lost in the great geological +ages which lie behind his recorded history. There can be small wonder +that such insignificant traces of his remains have yet been brought to +light. The search for these remains has been in progress for little +more than a century. Doubtless when this exploration becomes more +extensive, also when more people are engaged in its organization, a +considerable collection of relics revealing man’s primitive stages will +be discovered. Nothing more than a meagre record could be expected +because so little effort was originally made to preserve the remains +of the earliest prehistoric men. In those long-distant days the bodies +of the dead were either disposed of by burning, or merely cast out to +be devoured by beasts and birds of prey. + +The principal criteria for estimating the antiquity of human remains +are four in number. First, the age in geological time of the strata +within which the remains are found. Second, the fossil remains of +the animals associated with the fossil remains of man, whether these +be of still living forms, or entirely extinct species. Third, the +human artifacts, that is, implements, ornaments, and other objects +produced by human hands, found with the remains. Fourth, the structural +characteristics as to skull and other parts of the skeleton, which +distinguish these fossil men from living races. + +Quite as important as the fossilized bodily remains of prehistoric man +are those ancient works of human hands that have been slowly collected +as a result of untiring search and scientific industry. It is now +possible to classify this great body of evidence. Besides revealing +the actual presence on earth of prehistoric man, this classification +clearly demonstrates the occurrence of certain cultural stages prior to +the historic period. The extinct races of men already brought to light +appear to vary considerably from the modern man; so much so, in fact, +that a question has been raised concerning the wisdom of creating for +each of them a new genus within the human family. One reason for this +distinction is that no one of the extinct races may properly be called +the ancestor of living man. Some arrangement in the chronological order +of man’s appearance on earth is desirable. The exact period of each +extinct race cannot be given. But within certain broad limits we are +able to assign each prehistoric man to his proper time and place. + + +_Javan Ape Man_ + +Probably the oldest, most primitive of extinct races is the ape man +of Java (_Pithecanthropus erectus_). This ape man belonged to what is +called the Trinil race, which, according to Keith, originated more than +one million years ago. The ape man, although definitely human in type, +had many simian qualities. He was also so similar to man as to justify +the view that he represents some transitional stage in human evolution. +He possessed a head and a face not unlike those of an ape, but his +brain was nearly twice the size of the brain of any simian including +the largest of the great apes, the gorilla. It was this transcendent +advantage that lifted him above all of the anthropoids and assured him +an unassailable place as a member of the human family. + +The fossil remains of the ape man were discovered in 1891 by a Dutch +army surgeon. Dr. Eugen Du Bois made the discovery on the Bengawan +River in central Java where he had been excavating in the hope of +finding pre-human fossils. He actually did find a number of mammalian +bones, including a single upper molar tooth, which he regarded as +those of a new species of ape. On carefully clearing away the rock +and gravel at this site on the bank of the river, the top of a skull +came to view about a yard from the spot where the tooth had been found. +Further excavation brought to light a second molar tooth and a left +thigh bone. Both of these were about fifteen yards from the place where +the skull had been discovered. These scattered parts were carefully +studied by Du Bois, who, in 1894, published a description of a new +animal--_Pithecanthropus erectus_ (_Pithecus_, ape; _Anthropus_, man). +The entire term was meant to signify an upright standing ape man. The +word “_erectus_” refers to the thigh bone concerning which Du Bois +observes: + + We must therefore conclude that the femur [thigh bone] of + _pithecanthropus_ was designed for the same mechanical functions as + that of man; the two articulations [upper and lower joint surfaces] + and the mechanical axis correspond so exactly to the same parts in + man that the law of perfect harmony between form and function of a + bone will necessitate the conclusion that this fossil creature had + the same upright posture as man, and likewise walked on two legs.... + From this it necessarily follows that the creature had the free use + of the upper extremities--now superfluous for walking--and that + these last [the arms and hands] were no doubt already far advanced + in the line of differentiation, which developed them in mankind + into tools and organs of touch.... From a study of the femur and + the skull, it follows with certainty that this fossil cannot be + classified as a simian ... and as with the skull so with the femur + the differences that separate _pithecanthropus_ from man are less + than those distinguishing it from the highest anthropoid [great + ape].... Although far advanced in the course of differentiation this + Pleistocene [Age of Man] form had not yet attained to the human type. + _Pithecanthropus erectus_ is the transition form between man and the + anthropoids which the laws of evolution teach us must have existed; + he is the ancestor of man. + +More extended study of the brain of this ancient fossil creature shows +that he was in reality human. This man did, however, retain so much +that was ape-like in his make-up that it is difficult to agree with Du +Bois in his view that _pithecanthropus_ was a direct human ancestor. +He was, of course, able to walk upon both feet much like his modern +successors. It also seems probable that in stature this primitive man +was not greatly inferior to the human races of the present. It is +likely that he employed his hands in the use of weapons and certain +crude implements. It also seems probable that he depended upon very +primitive means for protecting himself against the numerous enemies +that beset his path and lay in wait about his camping places. His time +doubtless was fully taken up by the arduous task of gaining sustenance +for himself. So busy was he in these obligatory pursuits that he had +little opportunity for developing industries or cultural activities. +This human creature with his ape-like appearance was closely related +to many beast-like contemporaries in the animal kingdom. He managed to +hold his position among them only by a narrow margin of superiority. +His ascendancy was derived from a dawning ingenuity, which enabled +him to equalize the struggle by the cunning of his hand. He took +advantage of primitive shrewdness and contrivance to outwit his natural +antagonists that far excelled him in power and speed. + +However manlike _pithecanthropus_ may have been in respect to the +posture of his body and the general character of his locomotion, it is +certain that he was much below any of the known races of man in his +brain power. His face and head each bore a closer resemblance to the +ape than to man. His brain indicates that he had probably acquired some +mode of speech, primitive no doubt, yet sufficient for the purposes +of simple human communication. It is likewise probable that he lived +in tribes and, being gregarious, had learned some of the advantages +accruing from community life. He may have had some crude notion at +least of the division of labour and its compensations in sharing the +results. + + +_Dawn Man of England_ + +From certain flints, which seem to have many features indicating their +use as instruments, Professor Osborn believes that there were primitive +men living in England at a time earlier even than that assigned to the +ape man of Java. These prehistoric people are called “Subcrag Dawn +men.” It is his opinion that they made use of certain flint instruments +called “rostro-carinates.” Dr. Osborn, believing that these primitive +people are close to the beginning of the human race, places their +origin in the Pliocene, 1,300,000 years ago. In consequence of the +discovery of certain somewhat different flint instruments, he is of +the opinion also that the Subcrag men were followed at a little later +period by the Foxhall Dawn men (antiquity about 1,200,000 years). +Disputes about these early prehistoric Englishmen arise from the +fact that no actual human remains of them have yet been found. This, +fortunately, is not the case with the now famous English Dawn man of +Piltdown, attributed by Professor Osborn and other authorities to the +last part of the Pliocene (a little over a million years ago). Piltdown +is a town in the weald of Sussex not many miles from the English +Channel, between two branches of the Ouse River. To the east of it is +the plateau of Kent upon which have been found many flints of earliest +prehistoric times. It was at Piltdown that the most famous of English +Dawn men was discovered by Mr. Charles Dawson. The fossilized remnants +consisted of a number of fragments of this extinct man’s skull. Because +of the fragmentary condition of this fossil, it was necessary to give +each piece its proper relation to the head in order to reconstruct +the skull. A reconstruction of the Piltdown skull was first presented +to the Geological Society of London, in December, 1912, by Sir A. +Smith-Woodward of the British Museum, and its discoverer, Mr. Charles +Dawson. The announcement of this remarkable discovery deeply stirred +the interest of scientific circles. An unknown phase of the early +human existence was about to be revealed. The reconstructed skull as +pieced together impressed all who saw it as a strange blend of ape and +man. It seemed that the missing link for which the early followers of +Darwin had ardently searched was at length forthcoming. But whether +this was the long sought-for missing link or not, the Piltdown strata +in Sussex told of a race of human beings who inhabited England long +before history had made its feeblest beginnings. Dr. Smith-Woodward +believed that the Piltdown fossil dated back to the early part of +the Pleistocene period, but Sir Arthur Keith and Professor Osborn +now advocate an antiquity far more remote going back to some portion +of the Pliocene. Although it is impossible to be more exact in these +estimations of prehistoric time, it is clear that a very primitive +race of men lived in England long before Cæsar’s invasions; in fact, +ages before the ancient Britons claimed the land that was to produce +many of the most brilliant lights of history. By some the Piltdown man +is regarded as the direct ancestor of modern races; by others he is +held to be an independent branch of the human family of quite unknown +affiliations. + + +_Neanderthal Man_ + +Some time early in the Pleistocene, variously estimated from 800,000 to +900,000 years ago, another race of man made its appearance in Europe. +This was the Heidelberg race (_Homo Heidelbergensis_). These people +manifested many traits distinctly more human than the ape man. It is +believed from the implements found in the neighbourhood of his fossil +remains that the Heidelberg man made use of crude implements both of +wood and stone. This man, although he became extinct before human +progress had made great advances, appears to have been the ancestor +of the Neanderthal race (_Homo Neanderthalensis_). This latter is the +third race of prehistoric men recognized up to the present time. Much +more than all others who had gone before him, Neanderthal man has left +traces of himself. Many of these relics are the stone implements that +he employed. From these implements it is evident that the organization +of his life had made long strides in the direction of his more modern +successors. His advances in industry and in cultural development laid +the foundation for all the stages that progressively evolved as the +human race rose through the Old Stone Age. Yet the fate of Neanderthal +man was not unlike that of other prehistoric men. In time he also +became extinct. His disappearance occurred about fifty thousand years +ago, when a fourth and even greater race of primitive men came into +Europe. These were the Cromagnons. After they had completely replaced +the Neanderthals they flourished for a long time, in the end to be +replaced by the races of Neolithic men which continued dominant up to +the time when man gained mastery over the metals. + +It seems clear, then, that the earliest human beings began as simple, +nomadic hunters. After the passage of great intervals of time and +an actual succession of races, men acquired the crude essentials of +manufacture and then gradually, as in the Cromagnon period, developed +the dexterity and æsthetic sense of the artist. Finally, in the New +Stone Age, they learned the practices of agriculture. + +The past of prehistoric man has been subdivided into periods +characterized by the presence of implements employed in his several +activities. In general, these periods bear the name of French stations +or towns near which the discoveries of the implements have been made. +French archæologists have so successfully devoted themselves to the +efforts of classifying the flint implements that they have established +a chronological order in the development of human progress during the +long periods of man’s prehistoric existence. + + +_The Old Stone Age_ + +Man’s first great epoch on earth was the Old Stone Age (Paleolithic, +900,000 years ago). In this era, which began at some time in the first +interglacial period, the only implements were devised from flint or +stones of other kind, from wood, carved ivory, and bone. The Old Stone +Age was followed by the Neolithic (New Stone Age), which began in +postglacial times and rapidly led up to the thresholds of history, +through the Bronze and Iron ages. + +Long before the Old Stone Age it is probable that man was at work in +the slow development of industries that later were to assume great +importance. Hunting was the great incentive out of which all of +his early industries were evolved. Little is known of his cultural +development, although it seems fairly clear that the Subcrag Dawn +men used certain implements called rostro-carinates, while the Dawn +men of Foxhall and Piltdown employed very primitive implements known +as eoliths. These were so crude in appearance that they are looked +upon by many as merely accidental forms. With such simple and limited +instruments, man’s struggle for existence in these earliest days must +have been most severe. Even at the time when the Old Stone Age began, +the primitive flint implements manifested considerable development. +For example, in the Pre-Chellean cultural stage (beginning 700,000 +years ago), the chase is represented almost exclusively by a simple +flint knife. This knife, although extremely crude, in conjunction with +other equally crude combinations of stone and stick, gave man a slight +balance of power over other animals inhabiting the field and forest as +his competitors. His simple equipment furnished the means to gain his +daily food, and to establish that footing by which he rose step by step. + +War in this period was not among man’s highly organized pastimes. +He appears to have had no implements for warlike pursuits. He had, +however, invented certain instruments for industrial and domestic +purposes, such as a flint scraper, a planing tool, a drill, and a stone +hammer. Nothing among his primitive equipments appears to have answered +the purposes of art or artistic production. + +In this early Pre-Chellean period, man was a vagrant hunter. He +lived without the protection of habitation and was thus exposed to +the devastations of the great meat-eating animals that followed his +wanderings. He had not acquired sufficient constructive ingenuity to +protect himself against these dreaded marauders. They stalked him in +his marches by day and lay in wait on the outer edges of his camps +to find him an easy prey when he slept at night. The less fortunate +members of his tribes were within easy reach of these night prowlers +that waited only for darkness to help them in the capture of their +human quarry. Man’s slow imagination required ages to show him that he +held in his own hands the power to subjugate the beasts of prey. For a +long time he struggled on this low level of intelligence. He lived a +hand-to-mouth existence, passing his days like other animals, getting +his food supply as he dared, and protecting himself as best he could. +Doubtless some critical occurrence like the discovery of fire and its +uses may have furnished a new incentive for his advance. Some great +change in climate with increasing cold may have stimulated him to more +vigorous exertion, may have forced him to become a more persistent +hunter of animals, both for their meat and the warmth to be had from +their protecting skins. Long winter seasons when game was scarce may +also have taught the wisdom of storing his supply of provisions and +thus aroused in his imagination some conception of the advantages in +thought for the future. Living along with him was an imposing host +of other mammals. Among them were the lion, the wolf, the cave bear, +the deer, and the wild boar. Over the plains roamed the Etruscan +rhinoceros, the Mosbach horse, and the ancient elephant. Following +this game he wandered from station to station, always living near the +course of the great rivers, but showing little tendency to establish a +permanent abode. A restless migrant, he was moved by the dictates of +the seasons almost as instinctively as the migratory birds and beasts. +He had not learned the secrets which later enabled him to stand +against the severe vicissitudes of climate. The idea which gave him +that self-assurance to stake out his own claim, to assert his right to +his own angle of earth, was still in embryonic state. + + +_Neanderthal Progress_ + +The foundations of that possessive sense destined to become the chief +characteristic of the human race and at length the ruling passion of +humanity had as yet been laid down only in their simplest form. It +was Neanderthal man who introduced the first real advances over this +primitive level of life. In the Chellean cultural period (500,000 +years ago), even more in the Acheulean period (400,000 years ago), +his race developed rapidly. His progress is shown by a great increase +and considerable refinement in all of the small implements which he +employed. + +He now developed a chisel or adze-like tool for shaping his wooden +implements. He made flint points to form darts and spear heads to +aid him in the chase. But for all these advances, it was not until +Neanderthal man passed into his wonderful Mousterian stage of culture, +about 300,000 years ago, that the human race took a most decisive step +forward. This step was in every sense critical and epoch-making. It +may also be looked upon as a highly profitable step. The effects of it +have made themselves felt with increasing force upon all the subsequent +development of the human race. It was a new departure that, taken so +long ago, actually led the Neanderthal man to the threshold of an +idea in many ways quite original. Ultimately the expansion of this +idea was to become one of the keystones of all social organization. It +may indeed be regarded as the fundamental principle in the upbuilding +of human society. This notable step forward gave the Mousterian man +the first real conception of property holding. It implanted in his +mind that germ out of which grew the rights of possession. This was an +idea which was handed down by him as an heirloom to all the remainder +of his race, and to all other races of mankind. The conception of +property holding developed from the fact that the Neanderthal man in +Mousterian times became a cave dweller. He sought shelter from the +elements in these rude dwellings fashioned by nature. Why he had not +availed himself of these shelters long before is not difficult to +understand. The caves which he might have found to his liking were +already inhabited by dangerous tenants, such as the cave lion, the +leopard, the hyena, the wolf, the great cave bear, and perhaps even +the dread Machærodus or sabre-toothed tiger. All of these were his +natural enemies. For the most part they had been successful enemies. +Man had scarcely dared to dispute the right of way with them, far +less the right of possession. Through all his long periods of upward +progress, he had not yet learned the means by which he could contend +with these beasts of prey on anything like an equal footing. They took +from him at will and his retaliation at best was feeble. They, rather +than he, were the real masters of the situation. This state of affairs +was bound to continue until some critical discovery revealed a new +instrument whose deadliness placed in human hands a supremacy over +these creatures. Some strategy, some modification of the old flint +instruments, perhaps some new combination of them with fire, at length +gave Neanderthal man the needed advantage and then he drove the hostile +beasts out of the caves. In time he established there his own dwelling +places, and there proclaimed his inalienable right of possession. Such +a hazardous undertaking undoubtedly required a hardy courage and an +unwavering persistency. Yet a hard-fought contest of this kind could +not fail to have a marked influence on the final outcome. Once man had +gained the right of ownership, all of the struggles incident to it +served to emphasize his final sense of possession. This triumph did +much to stimulate human desire for gain. It seems fairly clear that +from it arose the incentives of conquest. Since Mousterian times man +has expended much of his energy in exploiting this new advantage. He +has made laws to justify and regulate it. The rights of possession +have had a dominating influence over all of his economic and political +organizations. Most of his moral code has been built up around these +rights. States and empires have been founded upon them, while the +governing principle in the life of the individual has been the right to +have and to hold. In a word, this newly expanded sense of possession +started by Neanderthal man has become an essential element in all the +achievements of mankind. It has no less been the cause of much woe and +maladjustment in the race. + + +_Mousterian Success and Character_ + +It is difficult to estimate the importance of this contribution to the +development of human progress. We may at least give Mousterian man due +credit for establishing this new assertiveness. He likewise deserves +recognition because this achievement was an outstanding milestone on +the road toward higher humanity. For this reason it is worthy of a +special commemorative date. As chronicled by Professor Osborn, this +memorable occurrence, the beginning of cave dwelling, took place about +300,000 years ago. In more senses than one it was a red-letter day for +humanity. It was especially a red-letter day because of the recurring +bloodshed of innumerable wars destined to arise out of the lust and +greed inspired by this expanded sense of possession. This, however, is +the most unfavourable aspect of the Mousterian’s new idea. He himself +should not be made to appear too black on this score. He was actually a +considerable personage and introduced many other new ways of looking at +life that have been highly advantageous to us all. + +Living in dark caves as he did, especially in the long bleak winters, +as the glacial periods crept down upon him, he must have found much +of mystery in those dim recesses to stimulate his imagination. It is +probable that he became a believer in occult forces of nature, and +perhaps even developed a system of magic. These suppositions become +more probable from the fact that he, for the first time in human +experience, established the custom of burying the dead. The men who +lived before him belonged to what may be called the pre-burial period. +This fact unquestionably accounts in part for the scanty human remains +before Mousterian times. The Neanderthal Mousterian not only buried his +dead but he developed an elaborate burial ceremony. The general nature +of this ceremony is shown by the position of the body and of the limbs +as they were found folded and flexed in the fossilized remains of these +men of the Old Stone Age. With certain primitive people this is still +the custom. Even in the case of some of the ancient Egyptian kings +many personal belongings were buried with the dead. Favourite weapons +of the chase, useful implements of one kind or another, ornaments and +other trinkets presumably dear to the departed ones, have been found +with the skeletons in these Neanderthal sepulchres. Special attention +was given to prevent pressure upon or crushing of the head by means +of placing large flat stones upon either side of it. There are some +indications that even as far back as the Old Stone Age man, as part +of his burial service, deposited certain articles of food beside the +body of the departed. All of these facts clearly reveal that as long +ago as 300,000 years man had acquired his first religious ideas. There +is every suggestion about these burial ceremonies that the Mousterian +cave man believed in another life after death. He appears to have had +a strong conviction that the body was but a temporary container of +some intangible spirit that in its time passed on into another world. +It seems probable that he also believed in the return of the departed +spirit to its earthly habitations, else why did he place food in the +sepulchres? In his crude way of thinking he seems to have had certain +well-fixed ideas of the pursuits and occupations in the life hereafter. +For this reason he left a useful collection of weapons and other +implements close at hand, ready for the spirit that had left the body. +The Mousterian idea of immortality may have been simple, but there is +no doubt that it existed. Whether there was a belief in God or not is +difficult to discern. It is probable, however, that the Mousterian, +like all other primitive people, did have some conception of a supreme +being, and that he had thus laid the foundations of religion. + +It is for these reasons that the cave-dwelling Mousterian man +especially deserves our attention. The features of his face and the +character of his body as reconstructed by scientists make him appear +to be a particularly formidable human being. Everything about him +indicates that he was powerful and aggressive. In a word, he was +a splendid fighting machine with heavy, protruding lower jaw, low +beetling brow, thick and short neck, long and heavy-muscled arms, +short, powerful legs slightly bent at the knees. He was a fierce +and dangerous antagonist; one, from all we know of his history, as +courageous as he was powerful. It is probable that in consequence +of his cave dwelling he had begun to live in fairly large organized +communities. Such life as this had many influences upon his social +activities. It developed his use of language. It stimulated his +interest in industries other than those of the chase. It caused +expansion in his imagination, leading to the establishment of racial +tradition. It produced the spirit of individual competition as well +as the pursuits of tribal rivalry. War up to this time seems to +have been limited very largely to individual encounters. Now for +the first time differences of opinion and controversies between one +community and another were most likely settled by group combat. Here, +therefore, were laid the foundations of war that was to prove one +of the most irresistible and costly of all human indulgences. The +self-assertiveness, which must have resulted from the cave man’s +realization that he had finally gained the upper hand in many details +over the natural world, caused him to change his attitude. Instead +of being a fugitive, he now became a conqueror. It was this positive +self-feeling that gave rise to most of his more expansive ideas. The +multiplication of these ideas easily led him on into the realm of fancy +and brought him many illusory interpretations concerning the workings +of nature. + +During the Mousterian period Neanderthal man did not make many material +changes in the implements used before his time. In some instances +there was a distinct improvement of the old ideas; in others there was +a distinct decline or even suppression of some of the most effective +instruments. The cave man’s aims, however, were considerably modified +by his new mode of life. His sheltered existence lessened his physical +powers to resist disease. The making of clothing from the skins of +animals also grew out of this more sheltered type of life. In the end +it produced a people less accustomed to the elements than those earlier +and hardier races that had lived in the open. The effects of this need +for clothing made themselves felt not only in the industry of producing +garments but quite as much in the production of implements necessary +for such work. Cave dwelling permitted disease and imperfect hygiene to +go their full length in producing inroads upon this great Mousterian +race. The ravages of infection and contagion had better opportunity to +exert their baneful influences. These and other insidious factors were +secretly at work. In course of time the Mousterian culture began to +show signs of a steady deterioration. For some mysterious reason these +men of the Old Stone Age slowly began to lose ground. The prominence +held by the Neanderthal race during lower Palæolithic times was +distinctly on the wane as this period approached its end. + + +_Cromagnon Ascendancy_ + +Finally a profound change came over the inhabitants of western +Europe. For some as yet unknown reason the Neanderthal race entirely +disappeared from the earth. Its place, however, was taken by another +and a greater people, the Cromagnons. Without question this was a +replacement of a lower race by one of much higher development. The +Neanderthal was on a distinctly lower plane than any now existing +human type. The Cromagnon ranks high among the races of mankind in +intellectual attainment and in known capacities for production. +He belongs to the species _Homo sapiens_, that same species of man +which has made modern history. He held sway during the last part of +the Old Stone Age, appearing in Europe about fifty thousand years +ago. Like those races which had gone before him, he passed through +many interesting phases of culture and growth. All of these were +characterized by the development of stone implements, thus making him +still a man of the Old Stone Age. He added many new attainments as a +result of new human capacities. He stands out particularly as the first +artist of mankind, and sets a mark as one of the most splendid examples +of humanity both for his superb physical appearance and for his +remarkable mental qualities. But he, too, like all others who preceded +him, was destined to decline and then to disappear. + +The Cromagnon is interesting to us because he was the probable +conqueror of the great Neanderthal race. What secret power he had +to achieve this conquest, to subdue and destroy these fierce cave +dwellers, is still unknown. It may have been that he brought with him +some new implements for warfare, such as the bow and arrow, and that +he had many other advantages of this kind. In any event, he showed +no quarter to the Neanderthals, whom he seems to have destroyed +completely. He did not even follow the custom of many conquerors, +of intermarrying with the women of the conquered race. No generally +admitted sign of Neanderthal features or characters persists among the +race of men after the last Mousterian days. Beyond question it was +the increased brain power of the Cromagnons which gave them their real +advantages. This opinion is based on the appearance of the large brain +case of this race and the development of the almost modern forehead +and forebrain. In the main, our admiration for the ancient Cromagnon +people depends upon something entirely different from their powers +of conquest. They may have been great as warriors, but they were far +greater as artists. This is the aspect of their lives that interests +and influences us most. + +The Cromagnons were a race that developed somewhere in Asia and +migrated westward into Europe. They came in contact with the +Neanderthals and probably destroyed them. They had no ancestral +connections of any kind with this other race. They possessed a brain +capable of more complex ideas, greater comprehension, more reasoning +powers, a wider, more facile imagination. Still more they were endowed +with a highly artistic sense and were capable of advanced education. +Their society was differentiated along the line of capacity and talent +for work. Their artistic productions as shown in the mural decorations +of their caves were so excellent as to place them among the truly great +achievements of mankind. In the pursuits of industry and domestic life, +the Cromagnons added little in the way of innovation. They adapted and +perfected what the Mousterians had previously used. They did introduce, +however, what no other people had ever employed; namely, tools and +implements for sculpture and engraving. These tools in the main were +small and delicate instruments made of flint. Among these was a fine +drill, an engraver, an etcher, a carving chisel, a mortar, a hammer +stone, and a polisher. + + +_Cromagnon Cultural Periods_ + +The Cromagnon, like the Neanderthal, passed through certain cultural +phases. Each of these periods lasted many thousands of years and +each of them was much longer than the Christian Era. The first of +these cultural steps was the Aurignacian period, in which the great +awakening of artistic enthusiasm occurred. The peak of artistic +devotion, however, came in the Solutrean period, which was the acme +of achievement in the flint industry. Decline set in during the next, +the Magdalenian period, which brought the closing stage of Cromagnon +culture. And then in the Azilian period the last survivors of the +greatest race in the Old Stone Age, grown old in their industries and +feeble in their art, saw the setting of the Cromagnon sun and the +passing of their kind into the darkness. Many changes came about in +Cromagnon industries, due to the influences of trade invasions and new +inventions, but in their art these people showed one continuous and +sustained development. + +The impressive feature about Cromagnon art, especially in the +Aurignacian period, is the absence of that period of infantilism and +crudity almost always observed in the artistic development of primitive +races. The Cromagnon first reveals his artistic effort in a state of +sturdy youth. His art passed directly into a relatively mature stage. +Its treasures preserved in the art galleries of the ancient caves, +comprising remarkable drawings, sculptures, and paintings, fully +warrant the title of “Palæolithic Greeks” conferred upon the Cromagnon. +Indeed, they resemble the Greek and Egyptian artists in many ways. +Like them, the Cromagnon resorted to painting his reliefs whether they +were of the bison, the horse, the deer, or the great mammoths. The +relative simplicity of his technical skill depended upon the employment +of fewest possible lines and boldest of strokes. To his accuracy of +reproduction and his simplicity of style he imparted a third great +quality. This added artistic element, which has made his art live in +a class well up to the standards of later periods, was a feeling of +motion, particularly of locomotion. With this he vividly endowed the +animals carved upon the walls of his cavern, upon bone or ivory. + + +_Motives of Cromagnon Art_ + +It is clear that the Cromagnons were cave dwellers like the +Neanderthals, but they also depended largely upon the chase for their +living. Why, then, did they in the dark recesses of their caverns +resort to these remarkable artistic activities? These efforts could +scarcely be meaningless diversions. They must have been more than +pastimes, for hours not devoted to the hunt or combat. Such arduous +pursuits as these surely had some serious and pertinent object in +their lives. Many explanations have been offered for the remarkable +outburst of artistic enthusiasm in Cromagnon times. The one most +generally accepted is that the art of these people was a part of their +hunting magic. In the history of primitive races it has repeatedly +occurred that drawing and design have a special significance in the +actual maintenance of life. For example, the Australians draw pictures +of animals they use for food. Sitting on the ground about these +pictures, they perform certain ceremonies which they believe will +insure a plentiful supply of the food they need. The American Indians +are in the habit of carving images of animals. They also draw the +signs representing rain. In the presence of these emblems they make +incantations and believe that by this means they will secure abundant +harvest and complete success in their hunting expeditions. Images and +pictures act as a sort of magic talisman by means of which to exercise +an influence over those animals which serve for food. + +But we do not need to go back into the pre-history of the Old Stone +Age, or to the superstitions of people still in a primitive stage. Not +so long ago the picture of a man was supposed to represent his spirit, +and the possessor of such a picture could exert a magic power over his +person. Only a few centuries ago learned judges condemned to death men +and women on the evidence that they possessed images or pictures of +people they were accused of bewitching. Until quite recently there were +certain sorcerers and magicians in Sicily who for a price would destroy +a hated enemy by the simple executionary method of sticking pins into a +wax image of this undesirable person. + +It seems to require no further explanation to understand the pictorial +efforts of the Australian natives and American Indians. Like them, +the Cromagnons drew for the most part the animals which they employed +for food. This may not in all respects be a satisfactory answer to +the question: Why did man of the Old Stone Age resort to art? It is, +however, a good working theory. It shows a real motive for his efforts +in this direction. To his mind, all of his works of art assured him +some peculiar magical control over the animal life that was necessary +for his living and well-being. + + +_Men of the New Stone Age_ + +The fate of the Cromagnon race was no exception to what had gone before +or what would follow many times thereafter. Race after race, nation +after nation, rose and became master, declined and passed into final +extinction. As the day of Cromagnon ascendancy waned a new race invaded +western Europe. The Old Stone Age came to its end approximately ten +thousand years ago with the advent of the more vigorous Neolithic (New +Stone Age) man. He developed a great innovation in manufacturing his +implements, making his instruments better and more useful by polishing +the stone. Neolithic man was far more practical and thoroughly +utilitarian than his predecessors in the Old Stone Age. He introduced +many economic advantages and substituted the benefits of applied +science for the delusions of magic and sorcery. The man of the New +Stone Age, unlike his Cromagnon predecessor, did not alone pray for +his crops. He tilled the soil and planted seed. Perhaps he believed +in a magic ritual for his hunting expeditions, but to make his food +supply as secure as possible, he domesticated many animals that he +liked to eat. He was unwilling to depend solely upon hunting magic and +art sorcery. He had discovered the true magic of agriculture and sought +to control nature by the toil of his hands rather than by mysterious +incantations and pictorial art. As a farmer and a cattle raiser he +required a permanent home, and in consequence the New Stone Age gave a +fresh impulse to the upbuilding of man’s possessive sense. Neolithic +man became a land holder, and this advance was a long, provocative step +in the direction of modern humanity. Because of it man had to learn +new ways and means of defending his claim and of asserting his right. +Very quickly this new assertiveness led to the more sanguinary ages +of Bronze and Iron with their effective equipments for offense and +defense. Its influences finally reached historical times. Ultimately +these more aggressive tendencies created all of the armed camps that we +are pleased to call civilization, ancient, mediæval, and modern. + +At the close of the New Stone Age all of the direct ancestors of modern +European races were established in Europe. During the Bronze Age man +rapidly learned those new capacities which enabled him to make a +permanent record of himself, and thus he entered upon his real historic +period. Some authorities set the beginning of this period only so far +back as the beginning of the Egyptian calendar. In round numbers this +is five or six thousand years ago. + +The dawn of history was followed by a procession of great events which +began in the early Egyptian dynasties. The development of Pharaonic +art and culture, the regal splendours of Babylonia and Chaldea, the +incomparable achievements of Greece and Rome, followed in rapid +succession. Each of these civilizations in its turn contributed to the +development of the race. Then came the long eclipse of the Dark Ages in +mediæval times, and at length the brilliant light of the Renaissance, +the illuminating influences of which have been carried forward in that +steady progress of material accomplishments characteristic of modern +times. + +A brief review of man’s progress in his prehistoric existence shows the +following races in his advancement, known by fossil remains: + + 1. Ape man of Java (_Pithecanthropus erectus_). Professor Osborn + prefers to consider him the Dawn man of Trinil. Probable antiquity + about one million years. Probably employed crude stone implements and + was a nomadic hunter. Had a poorly developed human brain; nothing + known of his cultural development. Chief contributions to human + progress: human frontal lobe, human speech, and a complete erect + posture. + + 2. Dawn man of Piltdown, England (_Eoanthropus dawsoni_). Antiquity + over a million years, probably employed crude instruments known + as eoliths and thus belonged to the Dawn Stone Age. Had a fairly + well-developed human brain. Was a migrant hunter. Nothing known + concerning his cultural development. Chief contribution to human + progress: further development of the brain. + + 3. Heidelberg man of Germany (_Paleoanthropus_). Antiquity about + 800,000 years. Fairly well-developed human brain and frontal lobe. + Probably employed crude stone implements. Little known of his + cultural phases. Chief contribution to human progress: first man of + the Old Stone Age and probable progenitor of the Neanderthal race. + + 4. Neanderthal man (_Homo primogenius_). Probable antiquity 600,000 + years. A well-developed human brain and frontal lobe. Made and + improved many flint implements. Hunter and cave dweller. Had definite + cultural periods known as the Chellean, Acheulean, and Mousterian. + Chief contributions to human progress: established idea of permanent + abode, became dominant over other animals of the earth, introduced + human burial, laid the foundations of religion. Founder of human + assertiveness and supremacy. + + 5. Cromagnon man (_Homo sapiens_). Probable antiquity 50,000 years. + Well-developed human brain and frontal lobe of modern type. Hunter + and artist, employed somewhat refined flint implements of the Old + Stone Age. Had definite cultural periods known as the Aurignacian, + Solutrean, Magdalenian, and Azilian. Chief contribution to human + progress: the conqueror of Neanderthal man; the world’s first great + artist. The founder and introducer of art. + + 6. Neolithic man (_Homo sapiens_). Probable antiquity 10,000 years. + Human brain and frontal lobe of modern type. Employed polished flint + implements of a highly developed kind. Was a hunter, herdsman, + and farmer. Chief contributions to human progress: introduction + of agriculture, culinary art, domestication of animals; also + establishment of more permanent abode. + + 7. Bronze and Iron Age men (_Homo sapiens_). Probable antiquity 7,000 + years. Human brain and frontal lobe of modern type. Used implements + made of bronze and iron. Chief contribution to human progress: + introduction of the metals for human utility. + +In addition to these prehistoric races of men, certain other early +members of our family have been recognized in the latter part of the +Pliocene and early part of the Pleistocene. These races include the +Subcrag and the Foxhall Dawn men who appear to have employed the +rostro-carinate flints. Still another race was the Cromerians, who made +and used the giant flints found embedded in the cliffs of Cromer. + +Prehistoric man is thus gradually emerging from his long obscurity. +His skeletal form is known from more than 350 specimens of his fossil +remains. In Java, in central Asia, in Rhodesia, central Africa, in +Gibraltar, in the Island of Jersey, in France, in Germany, in England, +in Austria, and in Galilee, Palestine, these remains have been found. + +All phases of man’s early existence are important to our modern thought +and development. As the curtain of the past is lifted to reveal the +long, prehistoric vista of human existence, it is possible to sense the +vast distance that man has come since his journey began. It is also +possible to see how he has made his way and why he has progressed. From +its earliest appearance on earth the race has grown in humanity as the +brain expanded. In man’s first struggles brain power endowed him with a +capacity to develop and to hand down certain cultural activities. The +earliest instruments that he fashioned gave rise to an uninterrupted +stream of human achievements which has passed on as the main current +of culture and knowledge. It was this capacity for progressive and +racial learning that distinguished the human brain. Estimated by his +accomplishments, it seems necessary to assume the existence in man of +some special power different from all other living creatures. This +distinguishing endowment is variously called the soul, the psyche, the +spirit of man, or human genius. Its name may be immaterial, but its +source is the secret of our supremacy. If we acquired this power as the +divine gift of a creative miracle, that is one thing. If we earned it +through a long and tedious process of evolution, that is even a more +promising and an altogether different thing. + + + + +CHAPTER IV + +EDEN OR EVOLUTION + +GENESIS AND THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES + + +_Early Beliefs in Creation_ + +Although we may entirely reject the evidence of man’s presence on +earth long before the dawn of history, even so there still remains a +perplexing question that must be answered. What was man’s origin? It +is surprising how many people have attempted to solve this troublesome +problem. It seems to be one of the first questions that primitive man +tried to answer for himself when he began his earliest speculations. +He was naturally anxious to know who made the land and the water and +the sky and all that is in them. He was especially interested, when he +thought about such things, in deciding how he came to be what he was +himself. And so, from earliest times, beliefs concerning the beginning +of things have sprung up all over the world. They constitute a mass of +speculation, which is called cosmogony (beliefs or theories about the +creation of the universe). Only a few races or tribes of mankind have +failed to indulge in speculations leading to such beliefs. Appearing as +they do in the infancy or early life of a race, these beliefs must be +the fruit of the primitive human mind. In peoples who have failed to +progress and have always remained primitive, such beliefs, like many +other traits and customs, continue for generations almost unchanged. +Sometimes they become an important part of the religion of the race. If +they are looked upon less seriously they form themes for folklore. + +This searching question about man’s origin has always been present and +is, in fact, still with us. In times gone by, when man was primitive, +or at least more primitive than he is to-day, he tried to answer the +question as best he could. He was hampered by lack of facts because +his knowledge and understanding of his own surroundings were limited. +His racial experience in the world had yet been too brief for him to +do more than see the great generalities of nature. At best he could +merely surmise the truth of the universe. He had neither the training, +the methods, nor the instruments necessary to disclose the intimate +details upon which reasonable theories might be based. Being so largely +destitute of facts, he relied upon intuition or drew heavily upon his +imagination. It is a matter of wonder that his beliefs often took such +noble form. + +Not infrequently a common central theme runs through the beliefs of +primitive people, even though they may belong to different races and +are separated from each other by long distances. Such, for example, is +the belief in the manlike appearance of the Supreme Being held by the +Hebrews, Greeks, Romans, and many other ancient civilizations. Early +ideas concerning _creation_ illustrate this common or central theme +still more vividly. Doubtless the conception of creation has its +supreme expression in the opening chapters of Genesis in the Hebrew +Testament. But other primitive people had exactly the same ideas about +creation and the origin of man. This way of solving the problem must +have been one of the inherent tendencies of the human mind in its +earliest beginnings. Isolated peoples in far-distant parts of the earth +could not have shared such similar ideas as a result of racial contacts +or propinquity. Time and distance set them widely apart. The similarity +might be ascribed to traditions handed down from a common stock. In +any event, an identical theme runs through the creation story of many +different peoples. The most effective record of this theme is given in +Genesis, especially in the first chapter, the King James version of +which is accepted by many as the highest literary mark ever set by the +English language. It is of particular interest for us to follow the +sequence of events in this incomparable chapter which depicts creation +with such grandeur that it may well be called inspired. + + +_Early Accounts of Creation_ + +According to this record, creation proceeded as a succession of +separate miracles. First came the miracle creating heaven and earth, +then the creation of light, of the firmament, of the earth set apart +from the waters, of vegetation upon the earth, of the sun, moon, +and stars, of fish and fowl, of beasts and cattle and all creeping +things, of man and woman together in the image and likeness of the +Creator. The second chapter of Genesis repeats the story of creation, +but this time in a minor key, with certain striking differences and +discrepancies. The grandeur of the original description and its +sublime intuition are missing. The master mind which conceived it has +obviously been replaced by one at once much more naïve and manifesting +a thoroughly parochial interest in the affairs and frailties of +humankind. This second narration largely reverses the original order +given to creation. By it man is created before all other animals and +woman last of all. This account produces man from the dust of the +ground, into which the Creator breathes the breath of life and gives +him a living soul, while the rib taken from man is used to create +woman. The discrepancies in the two accounts are obvious at once. To +explain them the second chapter is attributed to a very early writer +(Jehovistic document). The first chapter is ascribed to a much later +writing (Priestly document) made during the Hebrew captivity in Egypt. + +Earlier than this Biblical record was the Babylonian idea of creation. +These people also conceived that man was molded out of clay. According +to the Babylonian version of creation, the god Bel cut off his own +head, and the other gods, catching the flowing blood, mixed it with +the dust of the earth, and from this bloody paste molded the forms of +men. The Babylonians believed that men were wise because their mortal +clay was thus tempered with divine blood. According to the Egyptians, +the father of the gods molded men out of clay on his potter’s wheel. +A Greek explanation of man’s origin contains the same idea, in that +Prometheus is said to have molded the first men out of clay at Panopeus +in Phocis. These naïve conceptions about the origin of mankind, +common to the Hebrew, the Babylonian, the Egyptian, and the Greek, +were doubtless handed down to these ancient civilized people by their +savage or barbarous forefathers. Legends of creation of exactly this +kind are current among savages and barbarians of the present day. It +is particularly interesting to note the different forms in which this +story has made its appearance in many distant places of the earth. + + +_Creation Beliefs of Barbarous People_ + +The Australian blacks, near Melbourne, held that the Creator cut +large sheets of bark with his big knife. He placed on one of these a +mass of clay and prepared it with his knife until it had the proper +consistency. Then he set a portion of the clay on another piece of +bark and fashioned it in human form, making first the legs and then +the trunk and arms and finally the head. Having finished his molding, +he took stringy bark from the eucalyptus tree, made hair of it, and +attached it to the heads of his models. When all was finished he blew +his breath into the mouths and noses and navels of these clay men until +they rose and spoke as full-grown human beings. + +In New Zealand the Maoris believed that a certain god took red +riverside clay, kneaded it with his own blood into a likeness of +himself, with eyes, legs, and arms exactly similar to his own. When +this model was finished he breathed into it the breath of life through +its mouth and nostrils, with the result that the clay man at once came +to life and sneezed. + +Among the Tahiti there is a tradition that the first man and woman were +made by the chief god, who created them out of red earth. In Netherland +Island, one of the Ellice Islands, a great deity is supposed to have +made models of man and woman out of the earth and brought them to life +by lifting them up. Similar in general conception is the tradition of +creation among the Pelew Islanders who believe that certain of their +deities made man and woman out of clay by kneading it with the blood +of various animals. This feature is a new detail and somewhat of a +departure from the general story. It shows, moreover, the interest +which these primitive people had in explaining the different behaviour +of their fellow men. Thus they believed that the characters of these +first men as well as their descendants were due to the characteristic +traits of the animal whose blood was mingled with the clay. Men, for +instance, who had rats’ blood in their clay were thieves. Those who had +serpents’ blood were sneaks and informers. Those who were vitalized by +cocks’ blood were brave and daring. + +According to a Melanesian legend in one of the Banks Islands, the great +hero Qat molded men from red clay taken from the marshy riverside. At +first he made men and pigs to appear alike, but subsequently he forced +the pigs to go upon all fours and caused men to walk upright. This +distinction indicates man’s early recognition of the subtle meanings of +the erect posture. Qat also constructed a female out of flexible twigs. +Finally she smiled at him, and by this unfailing sign of feminine +allurement he immediately recognized her as the first woman. + +Inhabitants of the Kei Islands believe that their ancestors were +fashioned out of clay by the supreme god who breathed the breath of +life into the clay models. The Dyaks of British Borneo claim that the +first man was made by two birds. After several failures in attempting +to hew him out of rock they at length molded him out of damp clay and +infused into his veins the red gum of the Kumpang tree. When they +called him he answered, and they gave him a name which in the Dyak +tongue means “molded earth.” + +In India also the same kind of legend explains man’s origin. The Kumis +who inhabit the hill tracts in eastern India believe that a powerful +god made the world and the trees and the creeping things first. After +this he made a man and a woman, shaping their bodies from clay. When +he had finished his work a great snake came while the god was sleeping +and devoured the two images. This occurred several times, so that the +deity was much perplexed. Feeling that after his day’s work he needed +a good night’s sleep, it was impossible for him to sit up to protect +his handiwork. At length he conceived the plan of making a dog out of +clay before he created his next models of man and woman. This device +solved the problem in a satisfactory manner. The god was now able to +sleep in peace after his hard work of modelling human beings, since the +dog, watching over them, would bark and frighten away the destructive +serpent. To this day the Kumis believe this is the reason why dogs howl +when a man is dying. + +Africa has similar legends about the creation of mankind. Many of the +natives on the White Nile believe that men were modelled out of clay. +They even go so far as to explain the different complexions of various +races by the differently coloured clay out of which they are molded. +Their great creator, wandering about the world, found pure white earth +or sand and from this he fashioned the white man. Returning to Egypt he +molded red and brown men from the mud of the Nile. Finally, coming upon +black earth far in the depths of Africa, he created black men. + +The story of man’s creation out of clay also occurs in America among +the Eskimos and the Indians from Alaska to Paraguay. Many of the +Eskimos have the belief that a certain spirit made a man of clay. Then +having set him upon the shore to dry he breathed into him and gave him +life. Certain Indians of California conceive of an all-powerful being +who created man out of a deposit of clay which he found on the shores +of a lake. From this clay he made both male and female, and the Indians +of the present day are descended from this original clay man and woman. + +The Mayas in Central America believe that their gods first made men out +of clay, but that these clay models lacked vitality because they were +dissolved by water. Then the gods created man out of the wood of one +tree and the woman from the sap of another. Unfortunately these human +beings could neither move nor propagate their kind, and for this reason +the gods caused a shower of pitch to produce a flood, which destroyed +this wooden race. A few of them survived, however, and from them are +descended the small monkeys. The Maya gods at last created four perfect +men out of yellow and white maize, and, wishing to confer the greatest +boon, while these four perfect beings slept, four women were created +for them. + + +_Primitive Ideas Foreshadowing Evolution_ + +It is interesting also to find that all savage people did not believe +in the legend that ascribed the origin of man to clay models or to +effigies made by some supreme being. Many primitive races appear to +have preferred the theory of evolution to this other idea of creation. +In any event, even if they did not fully recognize the nature of their +belief, their idea was that man evolved from some lower form of animal +life. The particular form of animal from which this evolution started +varied considerably with the local colour, with the character and with +the opportunities of different people. + +Some California Indians believe that they are descended from coyotes. +In their early stages of evolution all members of their tribe walked on +all fours. Slowly they acquired some of the features of human beings, +one toe or one finger at a time. Then came an eye or an ear, until at +length these animals grew to be perfect human beings by losing their +tails. This loss, which was regarded as deplorable, came from the habit +of sitting upright. + +The Iroquois, belonging to one important clan, hold that they are the +descendants of mud turtles that formerly inhabited a certain large +pool in their territories. The Choctaw Indians believe that they +were descended from crayfish, while throughout the Osage Indians it +is generally understood that their ancestors were a male snail and a +female beaver. A great flood carried the snail down the Missouri River, +leaving him upon a bank, where the sun ripened him into a man. In time +he met and married a beaver maid, and these two were the ancestors of +the Osages. The Delaware Indians call the rattlesnake their grandfather +and would on no account destroy one of these serpents. + +Certain Indians of Peru claim to be descended from the puma or American +lion, and this animal is worshipped as their god. Some natives of East +Africa look upon the hyena as one of their ancestors. The death of this +animal is mourned by the whole people with great funereal ceremony. On +the Gold Coast of West Africa certain tribes believe that they were +descended from the horse mackerel. + +Natives of Borneo think that the first man and woman were born from a +tree which had become fertilized by a creeping vine that waved to and +fro in the wind. Some of the primitive inhabitants in the northeastern +extremity of Celebes believe that they are descended from apes and +that the parent stock of these animals still inhabits the woods. The +aborigines of western Australia considered that their ancestors were +swans, ducks, or various other kinds of water birds, which were later +transformed into men. + +All of these illustrations of the creation idea among primitive people +show that man has held at least two widely different views about his +own origin. One of these is the idea of separate miraculous creation; +the other corresponds to or foreshadows the theory of evolution. In +accordance with the view of separate creation, a god or a tribal hero +was the great creator who fashioned the first members of the race +in their present form. According to the other view, man was evolved +from lower forms of animals, or even from vegetable life. These two +viewpoints of man’s origin still divide the peoples of the world. It +is probably true, as Sir James Frazer has said, that “by weighing one +consensus against the other, with Genesis in the one scale and the +Origin of Species in the other, it might be found, when the scales +were finally trimmed, that the balance hung even between creation and +evolution.” + +The development of the evolutionary theory among civilized people has a +long history. This theory has already passed through many interesting +phases. Doubtless other equally interesting phases lie before it. At +present there are many who still believe that Darwin was the originator +of the evolutionary idea. This belief is in no sense true. The origin +of the doctrine long antedates Darwin’s time. It may be traced back to +the age when the human race first began to think clearly. Like many +other things of high cultural value, it had its earliest recognizable +beginnings in the Greek period--in those days when man sought to gain +an intelligent understanding of himself and the world in which he lived. + + +_Growth of the Evolutionary Theory_ + +The basic conception of evolution is as old as Empedocles (450 B. C.). +Aristotle (384-322 B. C.) was the originator of the theory of animal +descent, which he formulated with remarkable clearness. A strong +inhibiting influence fell upon this conception of life as a result of +mediæval scholasticism. This influence restrained further developments +until the subject was again reopened in the Eighteenth Century. The +works of Leibnitz and Buffon (1707-1788) reawakened interest in this +problem. Modern constructive efforts to formulate the theory of +evolution did not begin, however, until the early Nineteenth Century. +By a strange coincidence, the real founding of this theory occurred in +the year of Darwin’s birth, 1809. Up to this time, with few exceptions, +it was thought that man’s body was the result of special creation. Some +savage people, as we have seen, have believed that man was derived from +lower animals. But this belief was only a fantastic forerunner of the +evolutionary concept. The birthplace of the theory was in Paris. It +may appear strange that such a doctrine did not originate in the great +schools of learning, and that it first saw the light in the quiet, +out-of-the-way location of the Museum of Natural History. The names +of three scientific immortals are associated with this revolutionary +conception of the animal kingdom. All three of these distinguished men +lived at the same time, worked together at the same place, and together +profoundly influenced our modern views of man’s place in nature. + +The most noted of this famous trio in his own day was Cuvier +(1769-1832). He was a professor of comparative anatomy and though only +forty years of age was accumulating the material for his epoch-making +work, _Ossements Fossiles_. This work was to show conclusively that the +great ages of time, filled with multitudes of strange, extinct animals, +had passed over the earth before the dawn of our modern era. Cuvier +believed that each group of these extinct animals represented a series +of separate creations. It was doubtless his energetic and brilliant +insistence upon this point that denied to the French nation the first +place of distinction in advancing the theory of evolution. Although +he held vigorously to the old creative interpretation of life, Cuvier +was in a sense an unconscious promoter of the evolutionary idea. His +recognition of a succession of epochs in the earth’s history and in +the animal inhabitants of the globe was an important step toward the +modern theory. Besides this, his keen powers of observation had enabled +him to discern one of the chief principles underlying evolution. This +principle is known as the law of “correlation of parts.” In consequence +of this law there is a definite relation of one part of the body to +another, as well as a combination of these parts in the habits of the +animal. Thus, horns belong with hoofs, and hoofs are associated with +complicated grinding teeth, which latter in their turn are possessed by +animals having complex stomachs and feeding on plants. + +The second great pioneer in the discovery of life’s true origin was +somewhat younger than Cuvier. This was Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire. He +was intent upon seeking the common plan upon which all animals with +backbones were built. In this way he was laying the foundations of that +broad conception of life which holds that all living things have a +common descent. + +The third of these great French contemporaries was more obscure +than either of his associates in the Museum. In his own period the +public heard and knew little of him. He was a retiring person, but +an indefatigable student. As time passes it is he who stands as the +towering figure of this famous trio. In 1809, when he was already +sixty-five years of age, he made his remarkable contribution to +knowledge. His careful studies of nearly fifty years were then +published in two small volumes entitled _Philosophie Zoologique_. This +was a milestone in human progress. In consequence of this work alone +the name of Jean Baptiste Pierre Lamarck will stand as one of the most +eminent figures of science. From his long and laborious researches he +had reached the conclusion that all living creatures were the outgrowth +of a common tree of life. In this treatise of his there appears the +first clear declaration that man has been evolved from some anthropoid +ancestor like the chimpanzee, and that man’s erect posture has been +derived from one which was ape-like. + + +_The Lamarckian and Darwinian Theories_ + +The Lamarckian theory of evolution holds that progress takes place by +the imperceptible transformation of one species into another through +the efforts of the organism to adapt itself to new conditions. It also +maintains that, by inheritance, the changes thus produced are handed on +from one generation to the next. These changes may be slight, almost +insensible variations produced by the use or disuse of certain parts +and organs. Through their accumulated effects they are capable of +transforming one species into another. The following quotation from +Lamarck’s _Philosophie Zoologique_ (Vol. 1, p. 349) furnishes some of +the more important details in the concept by which he explains the +evolution of man: + + Indeed, if any race of primates (quadrumanes) whatsoever, + particularly the more highly evolved of them, were to lose, either + from force of circumstances or any other cause, the aptitude for tree + climbing and of grasping the branches with their feet, as with their + hands, for security of grip, and if the individuals of this race, + for a series of generations, be obliged to use their feet only in + walking, and cease using their hands as feet; then there is no doubt, + from the evidence produced in the foregoing chapters, that these apes + would finally be transformed into man (bimanes) and that the great + toe would no longer be separated from the other toes like a thumb, + the feet merely serving the purposes of progression. + +Despite the fact that Lamarck was a pioneer he did not, in so far as +the evolution of man is concerned, induce a single anatomist of his +own time or of a succeeding generation to follow in his footsteps. +In this respect his great work remained strangely ineffective. The +more persuasive introduction of the evolutionary theory was made by +an illustrious English naturalist, Charles Darwin. After a somewhat +mediocre university career, for which he received the degree of +Bachelor of Arts, Darwin devoted himself to the natural sciences. In +his early manhood he spent five years on the famous barque _Beagle_ +in which he made a trip around the globe. Twenty-three years later +(1859) he published his renowned _Origin of Species_, which proved to +be one of the most revolutionary books ever written. In an educational +sense, Darwin was far more fortunate than Lamarck. Almost at once he +obtained the ear of the public and started the theory of evolution +on its strenuous course around the world. Twelve years later (1871) +he published his second monumental book, _The Descent of Man_, which +proved to be the most telling step in our modern knowledge of man’s +evolution. These two great books set forth the Darwinian theory. Like +Lamarck, Darwin believed that progress from lower to higher forms of +animal life took place as a result of insensible variations. These +variations were due to what Darwin and one of his contemporaries, +Alfred Russell Wallace, called natural selection. This factor was the +prime and sufficient cause of evolution. Through its operations new +species arose by the selective action of external conditions upon +individual variations. Natural selection, as a law, implies the effects +of those forces which separate living creatures into two groups--those +which survive and those which, being ill equipped to make the struggle +for existence, perish. The selective effects of external conditions +on an organism or its parts operate in such a way that individual +variations or peculiarities of advantage are perpetuated in the race +and thus give rise to the survival of the fittest. Darwin in his +_Descent of Man_ makes clear his opinion of the manner in which natural +selection has operated in human evolution: + + As soon as some ancient member (elsewhere defined as some species + of anthropoid like the chimpanzee) in the great series of the + primates came to be less arboreal, owing to a change in its manner of + procuring subsistence, or to a change in the surrounding conditions, + its habitual manner of progression would have been modified and + thus it would be rendered more strictly quadrupedal or bipedal.... + Man alone has become a biped and we can, I think, partly see how he + has come to assume his erect attitude which forms one of his most + conspicuous characters.... As the progenitors of man became more + and more erect and their hands and arms more and more modified for + prehension and other purposes, with their feet and legs at the same + time transformed for firm support and progression, endless other + changes in structure would have become necessary. The pelvis would + have to be broadened, the spine peculiarly curved, and the head fixed + in an altered position, all which changes have been attained by man. + It is very difficult to decide how far these modifications are the + result of _natural selection_ and how far of the _inherited effects_ + of the increased use of certain parts or of the action of one part on + another. No doubt these means often coöperate. + +Comparing the explanations given by Lamarck and by Darwin it is +clear at once that they have much in common. Both suppose that man +was evolved from a chimpanzee-like anthropoid. Both agree that the +transformation had been initiated by a change from an arboreal to a +terrestrial mode of existence. Both believe that the results of habit +or of function acquired by one generation may be inherited by the next +generation. Darwin made certain important additions to this theory. +He applied the law of natural selection--the tendency of successful +individuals to survive and prosper. He also recognized the effects of +sexual tendencies and perceived that there was a law of correlation of +parts. By this latter mechanism a number of structures were modified at +the same time to suit some particular function of the body. + +Since Darwin’s time, although the general principle involved in the +theory of evolution has been accepted by scientists everywhere, +there has been much discussion concerning specific details of the +evolutionary process. Simultaneously with the conviction that evolution +was a fact in the animal life there arose an eager desire to discover +its underlying causes. Many students of the problem have arrived at +independent explanations of their own. To some the theory of Lamarck +has been considered satisfactory; to others Darwin’s interpretation +is most convincing. Such differences of opinion as do exist among +those who have seriously pursued this matter centre primarily upon the +causes of evolution. For this reason a number of different theories are +recognized to-day. It is probable that these theories do not represent +all of the differing shades of opinion concerning this subject at +present. They may be said, however, to express the high points of +difference. Their chief interest lies in the fact that they indicate +the degree of energy and determination devoted to the solution of +this problem. Recent students of the Darwinian theory have modified +and extended it in such a way as to make the law of natural selection +entirely sufficient to explain evolution. Such students, with Weismann +the most prominent among them, deny the inheritance of acquired +characters. This view is known as the neo-Darwinian theory. + +Lamarck’s original conception was also modified and became the basis of +the neo-Lamarckian theory. This view recognized all of Lamarck’s ideas, +including insensible variation, use and disuse of parts, and hereditary +transmission. But it added to these causative factors certain +influences of consciousness and the will, thus introducing an internal +and psychological principle in the evolutionary process. In America +this newer view of Lamarck’s conception has been vigorously upheld by +many naturalists (Cope and Hyatt) who attempted to explain evolution +according to the fundamental laws of growth plus the inherited effects +of use and disuse. + +Explanations such as these seem to lose sight of many influences acting +upon animal life from without and along certain determinate lines. +These influences were highly specific in their character and embraced +definite chemical and physical factors. Their effects were concentrated +upon limited organic areas, such, for example, as the eye, but they +spread to correlated organs like the brain, the muscles, and the bones, +all of which are functionally continuous with the visual apparatus of +vertebrates. Such a spread of modifying influences from a determinate +focus like the eye throughout the entire body caused a widespread +tendency to variation and thus afforded the opportunity for progressive +development. This explanation is known as the Orthogenetic Theory +(Eimer, 1897). + +Still more recently the pendulum has swung away from this extremely +materialistic viewpoint in what is called the Creative Theory of +Evolution (Henri Bergson, 1907). According to this explanation the +variations that bring about evolution from lower to higher forms of +life require some good genius to preserve and collect the effects in +the interest of progress. This presiding genius working from within +is the original impetus of life, the _élan vitale_, or vital impetus +(entelechy), which like some internal perfecting agency passes from +one generation of germs to the next and through the developed organism +bridges the interval between generations. + +Philosophy, with its conception of an internal creative power common +to all life and biology, pinning its faith to physicochemical factors, +have vied with each other in bringing to light the causes of evolution. +Among the latest explanations is the Energy Theory (Henry Fairfield +Osborn, 1918). This interpretation holds that the life of every animal +is due to the action, reaction, and interaction of four types of +energy. The first type arises from chemical elements and compounds +surrounding the animal (inorganic environment). The second is the +energy derived from the body substance of the developing organism +(protoplasm and body chromatin, the chief substance in the nucleus +of body cells). The third source of energy is from the sex cells, +especially those parts of them which contain the hereditary elements +(hereditary chromatin). The fourth type of energy comes from the +living matter surrounding the animal (life environment). Selection and +adaptation are constantly at work upon the reactions of these four +types of energy. Divergence in the form of different animals depends +upon adaptations to special conditions of life as seen, for example, +in the whales and the meat-eaters. Altogether there are twelve major +environments for living, like the plain, the forest, the air, the sea, +which require special adaptations. All life has tended to radiate out +into such habitat zones, and the four types of energy represented by +each living creature have been adjusted to a particular environment. +This spreading out of life into many different zones of existence is a +recognized principle in natural selection (law of adaptive radiation. +Osborn). + +The most recent interpretation is that offered by the Emergent +Theory of Evolution (C. Lloyd Morgan, 1928). Evolution, according to +this explanation, is the name given to the plan of sequence in all +natural events. Orderly sequence presents from time to time something +genuinely new. In the physical world emergence is exemplified by the +advent of each new kind of atom, each new kind of molecule, each new +form of life. Emergence is not the mere addition to or subtraction +from existing properties. It is the appearance of something new and +unpredictable from the combination of properties already in existence. +A true emergence of this kind is produced by the combination of carbon +and sulphur out of which the gaseous carbon bisulphide arises. This gas +is totally different from either sulphur or carbon, its two combining +ingredients. It is something genuinely new and hence an emergent. This +principle affects all spheres of life in such a manner that it is +possible for new characters, new structures, new activities to appear +as emergents from preëxisting elements. Variations and progressive +development may be thus explained as the result of orderly sequence. + +In spite of the differences in opinion among scientists concerning +the evolutionary process, there is an almost unanimous agreement with +regard to the correctness of the general theory of evolution and the +principle underlying it. To attempt a critical estimation of these +several theories would be futile and far removed from our present +purpose. Doubtless each one of them contains some portion of the truth. +It is, however, their large number that is of striking significance, +inasmuch as these theories indicate a widespread, profound, and growing +interest concerning evolution among intelligent people. Whatever their +minor differences, such theories demonstrate a determined effort in the +search for truth and manifest tendencies in thinking which cannot fail +eventually to reshape the intellectual outlook of mankind. + + + + +CHAPTER V + +BIRTHPLACE AND EARLY BEGINNINGS OF MAN + +INFLUENCES OF FOREST AND PLAIN ON BRAIN DEVELOPMENT + + +The place of man’s origin is a matter of little significance if he came +into being by a creative miracle. Any one of a hundred natal sites, +chosen for reasons of local pride or racial prestige, might have served +the purpose. Eden undoubtedly was most colourful, but otherwise it had +no exceptional advantages. Once created and upon his feet, man had the +world before him to conquer and possess. Such was the beginning and end +of his story. + +If, on the other hand, the human race came through evolution from lower +forms of animals, then man’s homeland is of utmost significance. It +must have exercised a strong influence not only upon his origin but +also upon all his life and progressive development. + + +_Africa, Europe, or Asia_ + +Some students of this subject have regarded Africa as the most likely +birthplace of man. According to this view the human form first appeared +as certain Nilotic negroes. From this homeland man spread throughout +the world. On the other hand, the accumulating fossil evidence of man’s +existence seems to be strongly in favour of western Europe as a centre +of human dispersal. Professor Osborn points out that between the years +1823 and 1925 there were discovered in this part of the world alone no +less than 116 individuals belonging to the Old Stone Age or to the Dawn +Stone Age. Two of these were members of the Piltdown race. Fossils of +forty other individuals belong to the Neanderthal race. Seventy-four +are accredited to the Cromagnon and other races that lived in late +Stone Age times. Remains of 236 individuals belonging to races that +lived between the end of the Old Stone Age and the beginning of the New +Stone Age were also found. These fossil men, in all 352 individuals, +have been discovered within the last hundred years. During the same +period, a little more than a century, only one human fossil has been +found in the entire continent of Asia, one in the Holy Land, and two +in Africa. Such a great preponderance in numbers clearly favours +Europe as the home of primitive man. Africa, Asia, and those parts of +Oceania formerly connected with the Asiatic continent, have borne no +such abundant evidence of man’s early presence. Both the northern and +southern continents of the New World have revealed nothing as yet that +may be accepted as representing man in his early prehistoric period. +This survey of the globe seems to limit the first appearance of man to +European regions. In this connection it should be borne in mind that +the various countries of Europe have been carefully explored in the +search for early human fossils, while in other parts of the world the +search is little more than just begun. + +Northern Asia has also been regarded as likely to contain the site of +man’s birthplace. This has been the view of certain French authorities +who consider the Eskimos as the most ancient northerly race of mankind. +From this homeland there was a progressive southward migration of +primitive tribes under the influence of the severe conditions imposed +by northern glaciation. More recently attention is being directed to +central Asia as the birthplace of man. This locality was suggested long +ago by the great American scientist, Joseph Leidy, and this viewpoint +has been supported by Professor Osborn. Dr. Matthews in considering +the matter of climate and evolution discussed the origin and migratory +history of man. He believes that Asia was the centre of dispersal +for human migrations, which were among the last of great migratory +movements of animals in the history of the world. It is his opinion +that most scientists to-day would place this centre in or about the +Great Plateau of central Asia. In this region, now barren and very +sparsely inhabited, are probably the remains of civilizations more +ancient than any yet recorded. Immediately around this region and lying +upon its borders are the territories of the earliest civilizations +known to man. Chaldea, Asia Minor, and Egypt lie to the west, India to +the south, China to the east. From this central region came successive +migrations, which overflowed into Europe during prehistoric, classical, +and mediæval times. The history of India shows that similar invasions +poured down upon it from the north. Toward the east, invasions in +successive waves entered the Chinese Empire and North America by way +of Alaska, spreading southward over the two continents of the New World. + + +_The Top of the World_ + +Since his recent visit to Mongolia, Professor Osborn is strengthened in +his conviction that central Asia will prove the homeland not only of +man but of all the greater forms of mammal life. Here, he believes, in +the Gobi Desert, were the ideal surroundings for the early development +of Dawn men who were the direct ancestors of the human race. His +belief in this part of the world as the birthplace of man depends +upon certain characters in the terrain which are essential to racial +development, concerning which he reasons as follows: Man’s earliest +existence was mainly in the open either along river bottoms and river +drifts or on uplands and plateaus. Such a life developed the finest +physical qualities of the race. The earliest man could not have been a +forest-living animal. Such parts of the human race as lived in forested +lands have either been exceedingly slow in their development or have +gone backward. Thus, the South American Indians, living in the forests, +are much behind those who live in the open. Of the latter, those who +live in the uplands are further advanced than those who lived in the +river drifts. An alert, progressive race cannot develop in a forest, +and it would be impossible for such country to serve as the centre of +human radiation. Higher types of men do not develop in a lowland river +bottom country, because food is plentiful and vegetation luxurious. It +is upon the plateaus and the high uplands that life is most exacting +and calls for exertions which are most beneficial for development. +Mongolia was probably a region forested only in part, certainly not +a country of dense forests. It was a most favourable upland country +throughout the entire Age of Mammals. Here the conditions of life +were apparently ideal, and since all other indications point to Asia +as the place of man’s origin, Professor Osborn looks to Mongolia and +Tibet, which he calls the top of the world, as the most favourable +centre offered by nature for the birthplace of man. Here he has hopes +of finding our remote human ancestors. He is, however, guarded in this +view, which he feels must be treated merely as an opinion. It is not +yet a theory, but is, however, an opinion sufficiently sound to warrant +further extensive investigation. In consequence, several great Asiatic +expeditions have been sent out by the American Museum of Natural +History into the Gobi Desert. Under the leadership of Dr. Roy Chapman +Andrews this exploration was undertaken in the search for fossil men. +One of the explorers, Dr. Nels C. Nelson, soon made the remarkable +discovery that in the wide expanse of this ancient desert there had +lived, ages ago, certain people whom he called “dune dwellers of the +Gobi.” His discovery included a great collection of flint implements +of the Mousterian type, closely resembling those found in the cavern +of Le Moustier in France, and thus belonging to the Old Stone Age. +These newly discovered implements reveal the existence of man at a +much earlier period in the Gobi Desert than the Mousterian period in +Europe. Indications of an earlier Stone industry were also found in +Mongolia. Some of these ancient implements show that long ago there +were probably men living in this part of the world who belonged to the +Dawn Stone Age. + +The latest evidence in favour of Asia as the home of primitive man +was supplied by a surprising fossil discovery made by Turville-Petre +(August, 1925). This new find consists of a skull of Neanderthal type, +discovered in Palestine and known as the “Galilee skull.” The rapidly +accumulating discoveries of the past three years sustain Professor +Osborn’s view that central Asia is the homeland of the human race. +He concludes that “while the anthropoid apes were luxuriating in the +forest and lowlands of Asia and Europe, the Dawn men were rising in the +invigorating atmosphere of the relatively dry plateaus of central Asia.” + + +_Home Surroundings Necessary to Human Evolution_ + +If, as a result of evolution, man took origin from lower animals, +these must of necessity have been mammals nearly like himself. They +must have borne and nursed their young as he did. Mammals other than +the primates differ so much from man that they could scarcely stand +in the direct line of his origin. How different from him are all of +the great races of hoofed animals, including the great varieties of +cattle, horses, deer, camels, giraffes, and elephants. All of these +are highly specialized and seem at once to exclude themselves even +as remote relatives of man. So it is also with the pawed animals, the +great families of dogs, cats, rats, and hares. These are definitely +quadrupeds, clearly designed to meet the issues of life upon four +legs. They fail to disclose anything resembling a near approach to +man, either in form of body or mental capacity. The winged animals +like the bats, strange specializations of the mammal kind, bear little +resemblance to the human form and offer a poor beginning from which +such a form might start. The swimming mammals, like seals, whales, and +porpoises, also exclude themselves from direct connection with the line +of man’s ancestry. In fact, all mammals must be put to one side in +considering this question, except a single remarkable group. The apes +and their kind alone bear an undeniable semblance to men both in body +and in behaviour. Many of their parts are similar to the human, such +as their hands and feet, fingers and toes all equipped with nails, as +well as their thumbs which may be held against each finger in turn. +The apes have acquired a more or less erect posture. Some of them, +called manlike apes (anthropoids), possess so many characteristics +in common with man that they alone of all animals might be regarded +as connected with the direct line of origin. If this relationship be +true, then the nature and location of man’s original homeland is of +profound significance. Wherever this place may be, it should bring into +combination two distinctly different types of home surroundings. It +should provide this combination in order that the apes might supply the +last long step by means of which man has ascended into humanity. These +two different but essential types of abode are: + +1. Home surroundings favourable for ape life. + +2. Home surroundings favourable to human life. + +A third condition must bring these two elements into final combination. +These specialized surroundings must be relatively near together, so +that transition from one to the other may readily take place. Does +Mongolia and particularly the Gobi Desert fulfil all of these three +conditions? + +According to Professor Osborn’s theory, the uplands and plateaus are +the most favourable places for human development. Such being the case, +we must also agree, then, that the forests are equally essential to +the life of apes. Only a few of these animals have adjusted themselves +to life outside of wooded country. Living in the trees, therefore, +is the existence that favours the life of the subhuman primates +(lemurs, monkeys, and apes). The forest provides the home surroundings +favourable for ape life, just as the plains afford those conditions +favourable to human life. Does such proximity of these two essentials +exist in the region of the Gobi Desert? Mongolia is not a densely +wooded country. It is a territory forested only in parts. In this light +it does not seem to be an ideal locality for the final transition from +ape to man. To explain this defect, Professor Osborn at present holds +that man in evolving had but a brief and very distant phase of tree +life. He believes that the quadrumanous arboreal stage was extremely +remote in geologic time. It was never a profound or exclusive mode +of life. There are those, on the other hand, who firmly maintain that +in this ape to man transition a long intermediate period of tree +living was necessary in order to bring about those changes in the +primate stock which laid the foundations for human existence. This +life in the trees was essential to determine the erect posture of man, +to free his hands ultimately for purposes other than locomotion; in +fact, to free them so that they might become the chief incentives in +the further development of the human brain. Even from this viewpoint, +Mongolia may still be considered the homeland of mankind. The forested +lands throughout its extent and upon its borders might well serve as +adequate surroundings for the development of life during that critical +intermediate phase when the first ancestors of men had parted company +with the apes and had at length become humans. + +With many animals there has been a strong tendency to take refuge in +the trees. The chief object of this tendency was to make life more +secure either by escaping danger or by obtaining food. But with the +coming of the ape kind this arboreal habit took a somewhat new turn. It +furnished the early members of the monkey kind a permanent abode. Such +a change to a more or less fixed dwelling in the trees produced marked +modifications in the animals themselves. It created a new type of home +and developed a new kind of thoroughfare over highways in the tree +tops. In order to acquire a proper equipment for such transportation, +both fore and hind paws became grasping organs. In consequence these +animals developed four hands. They gradually gave up the older pattern +of paw and claw, and by developing a new instrument connected with +the arms and legs they acquired a supreme facility for grasping the +branches of the trees. The tail also, in some cases, acquired similar +grasping powers. Thus, as the trees became the home and the highways of +these animals, their four grasping hands and their grasping tails gave +them a mastery over the forest which they used to their own peculiar +advantages. + +The forest background of their lives played an important rôle in the +molding of their behaviour. The perpetual semidarkness of their home +surroundings exerted a subtle influence upon them. It might be that +the forest in which they lived stood on the edge of a wide plain with +a clear opening from which to look into the farther distances outside. +Undoubtedly there must have been an alluring temptation in the green +plains and their inviting freedom. Yet for these tree-living animals to +venture into this open space was a hazardous undertaking. There were +many dangers lurking in the plain and over it. Fierce creatures of +every kind were there. Reptiles, mammals, and birds, all of them beasts +of prey, were lying in wait for just such an adventuresome excursion. +So for the time at least, and until they were better prepared to cope +with the enemies outside, the semidarkness was safer, even though the +view were limited and many interesting things were left unexplored. + + +_Effects of Tree Life_ + +The lemurs were probably the first of these new tree-living animals. +Their bodies were still slender and furry, their heads long and +fox-like, their eyes widely separated, and their tails long and bushy. +But in their hands and in their feet they showed the real beginning of +fingers and toes. This stage marks the transition from some lower form +of mammal to the primates (lemurs, monkeys, apes, and man). It was a +profound change, and in it the new order of primates had its origin. +The steps preceding this important one we shall consider subsequently. +But with this advance there began a period of tree living which +influenced all of these animals as they and their successors passed +through their many stages upward. The little animal known as Tarsius, +perhaps even more than the lemurs, shows the effects of these new +influences caused by tree-living habits. The monkeys of South America +reveal the manner in which the next step forward was taken. The effects +of it appear in the shape of the head, in the almost human expression +of the face, in the closer relation of the eyes to each other, and +in the shape of the nose and the position of the mouth. All of these +features prophesy the coming of the still more manlike apes. Above +everything else, these South American monkeys are conspicuous in the +history of development because of their almost human hands, and also +because of their hand-like feet. Most of the members of this group +acquired prehensile or grasping tails. With the appearance of the Old +World monkeys, this tail began to wane in importance. It lost all of +its grasping power and was reduced to much the same condition as in +other animals not of the monkey tribe. Some of the Old World apes, such +as the gibbons, developed the ability to stand and walk upright. In +addition to this erect posture these apes had passed through another +phase that brought them nearer to man. They had lost their tails. +This had come about, doubtless, from their habit of sitting upright. +The erect posture of the gibbons, however, was most important as a +forerunner of further developments in the great manlike apes, the +orang-outang, the chimpanzee, and the gorilla. These animals had grown +so large that for most of them living in the trees was a matter of +some inconvenience. It was necessary for them to come to the ground +at times, because they found it difficult to swing from tree to tree +like the smaller monkeys. Of the great manlike apes, the orang-outang +still adheres rather closely to the forest. The chimpanzee, which +has developed even greater cleverness in climbing, seeks the ground +oftener. He has learned to walk upon all fours, using the knuckles +of his hands as a support in this act. Like the orang-outang, he can +stand up quite erect and walk like a man. Finally the gorilla, the +largest of the manlike apes, often attains the size of nearly four +hundred pounds in adult life, and standing erect may reach the height +of nearly six feet. He also is able to walk upright. But the influences +of tree living are so strong even with the gorilla that he has not +yet made a good adjustment for life upon the ground. If it were not +for the prodigious strength in his great arms it would be difficult +for him to take to the trees, and he thus shows a betwixt and between +specialization, not entirely suitable for the ground and too large for +security among the trees. + +All of the manlike apes are capable of standing and walking in the +upright posture, but in this posture they are awkward and inefficient. +Their awkwardness is due to the fact that the foot in all three of +them retains many characters of a hand. None of them has a good foot +for effective heel and toe walking on the ground. Yet in spite of the +handicaps in their poor feet, in spite also of their long, ungainly +arms, these apes are able to venture beyond the limits of their forest +home. Some of them live in the plains or on the mountain sides. By +their great strength they are equipped to cope with many of the dreaded +enemies outside of the forest. The orang-outang seems to have no +natural enemies because of its own great offensive power. Only two of +the larger reptiles presume even to attack it--the crocodile and the +python. According to the natives of Borneo, the orang always succeeds +in killing the crocodile through main strength by standing upon its +back and opening its jaws until he is able to tear out its throat. +It is reported that if attacked by the python, the orang seizes the +reptile with both hands, squeezing it with such force and biting it +so ferociously that the outcome of the combat is soon decided in +favour of the anthropoid. The gorilla also has conquered most of its +antagonists in the animal world, and is regarded as the most powerful +and the most dangerous brute enemy of man. All of these apes have +acquired a certain freedom in using their hands, which are thus made +available for acts of self-defense and even for a considerable degree +of exploring their surroundings. + +Progress in the direction of mankind had its beginning when the +tree-living tendency of the apes began to recede. The recession of +such tree life paved the way for those first indecisive but promising +steps which took the great apes out of their ancient forest homes into +the inviting plain. Finally with the complete passing of tree life +there began that long and adventurous journey which was to lead over +every sea and into every land, until no region of the earth remained +for further conquest, until the full development of the hand and the +upright posture had more and more bent the forces of nature to the +designs of the races of man. + + +_Stages in Developing the Erect Posture_ + +The advances made toward mankind through the intermediate stepping +stones of the great apes and smaller monkey kind may be traced through +successive stages of tree life up to the time when the fully erect +posture became an accomplished fact. These stages have been recognized +as a result of exhaustive studies made by Professors Gregory and +Morton. They consist of gradual changes which finally gave rise to the +human foot. This structure permitted man at length to stand upright and +thus gave him the free use of his hands for constructive purposes. + +The first stage came in the Eocene (beginning of the Age of Mammals, +about 65,000,000 years ago). At this time certain four-footed +land-living animals began to live in the trees. This arboreal life had +profound effects upon the fore and hind paws. In order to climb among +the branches a clinging grip was necessary. Long, sharp claws developed +in consequence of this requirement. The digits of the paw were short +and the palms well padded. The thumb also was short but not opposable. +As yet there was no squatting or half-sitting posture. The toes were +likewise short and clawed. The heel was lifted off the ground. The sole +was well padded and the great toe large. These four-footed animals +made only an imperfect adjustment to tree life. Their movements were +slow and their range of action correspondingly limited. The tree shrew +is a good living example of such animals, while certain fossils of +the Eocene belonging to this type have been described by Professors +Matthews and Gregory. + +The second stage in developing transportation came with certain light, +lemur-like animals. They were still slow and cautious in getting +about and depended upon a clutch-like grip. This new kind of grasping +produced long digits like fingers. The toes were changed in the same +manner, so that the feet began to look more like hands. (Living +examples of this stage, _Loris_ and _Lemur potto_.) + +The third stage was a more decisive advance since transportation +through the trees now combined the advantages of climbing and leaping. +Locomotion was swifter and more effective. A tendency to a partially +erect posture developed, and squatting or sitting up was tentatively +established. All of the fingers became much longer. Most of them had +finger nails, so that these animals at last possessed what might be +called a hand. Changes of the same type took place in the toes. The +thumb and the great toe became more powerful and both were opposable. +They could be brought in contact with each of the other fingers or +toes in turn. In these animals the hands were now well formed and the +feet looked much like hands. It is for these reasons that such animals +are called quadrumanous (four-handed). (Representative animals of this +stage, _Lepidolemur_ and _Notharctus_.) + +The fourth stage was but a short step from leaping and climbing to +swinging from branch to branch or running along the branches. This +swinging by the hands is called brachiation. It had far-reaching +influences upon all subsequent stages. Such swinging naturally +lengthened and strengthened the arms. It produced a better grasping +grip around the branches and caused the fingers to grow longer. The +thumb did not participate in this increase of size. It actually was +reduced in strength and prominence. This is true in most of the New +World monkeys. In some of these, like the spider monkey, the thumb +has disappeared altogether. It should be remembered that most of +these animals had a prehensile tail which they used much like a +fifth hand. The foot also developed a grasping grip and looked if +anything even more like a hand than before. All of the South American +monkeys, besides their ability to swing from the limbs of trees, can +run along on the top of the branches in what is known as “pronograde” +locomotion. But their swinging propensity probably had the greatest +influence upon the final developments of transportation. It tended to +bring the body in a close approach to the upright position. Many of +the Old World monkeys sat in a semi-erect sitting posture, and from +their habit of squatting developed thick pads (ischial callosities) +over their buttocks. The leg became lengthened but was yet too much +flexed at the hip to permit of the most complete erect posture. This +stage is represented both by the New World and Old World monkeys, with +the exception of the baboons. These latter animals are an interesting +variation. They more or less deserted the old custom of living in the +trees. Their bodies and heads assumed many dog-like characters, and +they returned to a four-footed ground-living type of locomotion. In +consequence their limbs became shortened, as was also true of their +fingers and toes. All of these important changes took place in the +early part of the Oligocene (second period in the Age of Mammals, +probably 30,000,000 years ago). + +The fifth stage occurred much later in this period when another +decisive advance was introduced. For one thing, the tail entirely +disappeared. The legs became more extended at the hip. Swinging from +branch to branch was the chief means of getting about. This produced +extremely long arms and hands, and because this swinging mode of +transportation was predominant it kept the trunk more and more in the +upright position. Such straightening up of the body introduced the most +positive influence toward standing erect up to this time. The legs +did not grow in proportion to the arms, and the feet retained a close +resemblance to hands. On the ground such animals as these could make +their way with considerable speed, standing upright and running much as +man runs. The only difference between this kind of gait and that of the +human was due to the great length of the arms and the poor feet. + +This stage in the development of the upright posture is often seen in +motion pictures of those animals which portray this particular phase +of locomotive advance. These are the remarkable apes known as gibbons. +Those familiar with them in the zoölogical gardens, or in moving +pictures, will remember the peculiar way in which they run upright, +holding their long arms stretched out much like balancing poles. Thus +erect, they speed about in getting their food or playing with other +monkeys. Their upright gait is awkward but extremely interesting. +Once, however, they get into the trees their locomotion has all the +grace of a bird in flight. This gibbon stage of development was one +of extreme importance, since it gave the primates preceding man their +first chance to stand upon two feet and to run about in something +like human fashion. It is this stage that many authorities consider +indispensable in the final working out of the human erect posture +and human locomotion. Many students of this question also believe +that the upright posture could never have been attained unless animal +life had passed through that particular phase in the development of +transportation called brachiation. It seems certain that this stage +itself was dependent upon a preceding and extremely long period of life +in the trees. + +The sixth stage developed early in the Miocene (third period of the +Age of Mammals, about 15,000,000 years ago). One of its chief factors +was a great increase in the body weight of the apes. This greater +weight caused the animals to come nearer to the ground, as is the +case of the chimpanzee and the gorilla. These animals actually spend +much time upon the ground. In consequence, it was necessary for them +to make certain transportation adjustments. Their locomotion in the +trees was still of the brachiating type--that is, they depended largely +upon their arms for swinging. The arms thus became long and powerful. +When the gorilla stands erect his hands hang below his knees. The legs +are relatively short, but the feet in consequence of living so much +on the ground look less like hands than in the lower apes. They have +well-recognized broad heels, but flat soles without much of an arch. +The lesser toes are human in appearance. They are much shortened and +have little resemblance to the fingers of a hand. The great toe is +shorter and only in a slight degree opposable. This is especially so in +the mountain gorilla, in which the great toe bears a striking likeness +to the same part in man. The flexion of the leg at the hip is somewhat +decreased and as a result the gorilla is able to stand upright in +almost human fashion. All of these changes appear, to a less degree, +in the chimpanzee also. Both gorilla and chimpanzee are able to stand +erect, to walk, and even run in this posture. Their gait, however, is +awkward. They are greatly hampered in their locomotion by the extreme +length of their arms. Usually in getting about on the ground they run +upon all fours, using their arms somewhat like crutches and coming +down at each step on the knuckles of the flexed hand. When aroused +or charging to the attack, the adult male gorilla usually stands +upright and beats its fists upon its chest, at the same time emitting +a terrifying growl. When it is necessary for the animal to make speed +in flight or for other purpose, it usually comes down upon all fours. +Arboreal locomotion in all of the three great apes still retains much +of the brachiating type. It thus requires the retention of the hands as +part of the locomotor apparatus. Tree life in the chimpanzee and the +gorilla, combined with partial use of the ground, did much to develop +the essentials of the erect posture. It did not, however, free the +hands to that extent which permitted their exclusive use for purposes +more constructive than transportation. However strong the inclination +toward life upon the ground may have been in the manlike apes, they +were committed long ago by their predecessors to a life in the trees. +This commitment still kept them true to their kind and to their simian +inheritance. If they were to be more than apes, it was necessary for +them to shed the stigma that tree life stamped upon them. This the +modern apes were never able to accomplish. + + +_The Parting of the Ways_ + +At length, however, in spite of many obstacles, the tendency toward +the erect posture found a new opening. It was the foot that led the +way to this great opportunity. It provided an efficient supporting +structure with a well-developed heel, a non-opposable great toe, and a +sole containing an effective longitudinal arch. Man could at last stand +upright and be secure upon a capable pair of feet. At some period late +in the Miocene two branches from the stock of those animals, which had +managed to get into something approaching the upright posture, parted +company. This was a critical juncture. Thenceforth one branch proceeded +one way and the other followed an entirely different course. The apes +accepted the trees as their lot. Man, because of his two human feet and +what they supported above them, acquired the earth and all it contains. +Thus with tree life a thing of the past, with a true ground-gripping +foot, with longer legs, with an actual erect posture, the hands were +finally liberated for the purposes of human success. + +The development of the human foot, which must have been in progress +through vast periods of time, marks the decisive parting of the ways +between the apes and the races of men. It is doubtless true that the +specialization of the hand has been a potent influence affecting the +expansion of the brain and of brain power. The hand itself, however, +was ultimately dependent for its free and unhampered use upon the +development of the foot. This great factor was the forerunner of all +those elements in structural organization which finally brought about +the erect posture, which set the head upon the shoulders so that the +eyes might look forward and upward, and at length made it possible for +the eyes to guide the actions of the hands. + +Step by step, the brain has kept pace with these progressive +alterations. Old and new parts of it alike bear the imprint of +adaptive change. The combinations determined by life in the trees and +by the development of four hands have been worked out through graded +stages, from the humblest of the monkey kind up to man. Beginning +with the lowly tarsius and lemurs, this advance may be traced through +intermediate phases to its ultimate goal in the human brain. Mongolia, +as many authorities agree, may have been the land that saw man’s +earliest beginnings. Whatever his homeland, a long period of tree life +was necessary to develop in his predecessors those specializations by +which he rose to his allotted position. It is in the tree-life part +of man’s history that we see the dawn of the primate brain; for it +was then there occurred the earliest exploits of that great order of +mammals, the primates, to which all the monkeys, the great apes, and +man belong. + + + + +CHAPTER VI + +DAWN OF THE PRIMATE BRAIN + +THE LOWEST OF THE MONKEY KIND + + +We are now approaching a critical period in the history of the brain. +It is a period that contains many incidents of the utmost importance. +Particularly noteworthy are the episodes which favoured the production +of human characteristics in the animal kingdom. These characteristics +showed many manlike tendencies that much later were to appear full +fledged in the human race. They were from the first limited to a +single, highly interesting order of mammals. And this seems especially +strange because from the beginning of the Age of Mammals (65,000,000 +years ago) a great variety of new animals came into existence. The +fact that a single group out of all this vast number was picked out +to develop human resemblances must hold the secret of some potent +selective influence. Such an influence was definitely at work. Its +operations were slow but steady. Little by little it changed and +reshaped the structure of the body until at length there appeared a +race of animals so human in their organization that they might well +have been the forerunners of mankind. + +It would be difficult to conceive the kind of modification in structure +that could produce the form of man from a horse, from a whale, or +even from a dog. But this difficulty becomes far less in the case of +the animals usually referred to as the monkey kind. In many features +of their structure these animals resemble men. Existing in a great +variety of forms, they manifest numerous modifications in the different +parts of their bodies and exhibit a wide range of behaviour in their +habits. Only a superficial acquaintance with them is necessary to +reveal their many progressive traits. But their progress, like all +other progress, had its humble beginnings. At first the apes were +very simple creatures. Their coming, however, marked the dawn of a +new day in animal life. We shall be interested to follow the advances +that occurred in their mental capacities as they slowly made their +progressive strides forward. We shall be particularly struck by those +changes which gradually led up to the development of a brain capable to +control all of the complex activities of human behaviour. + +Naturally we may expect to find a simple controlling organ in the +lowest of the monkey kind. As we pass upward, however, into the higher +families of the apes, we shall not only observe a pronounced increase +in manlike tendencies but, as the great anthropoids at length become +human in miniature and then almost human, we shall recognize in these +animals a brain which very closely resembles that of man. + + +_Class Distinctions in the Monkey World_ + +In the ape world there are animals of high and low degree. Some are +so humble that it is hard to decide whether they actually belong to +the monkeys or not. With few exceptions they all prefer to live in the +jungles and tropical forests. We could not fail to be impressed by +the striking resemblance that many of them bear to man. Yet there are +such marked differences among them that they cannot all be regarded as +members of the same family. If we grouped them as we do human races, +we might most advantageously assign them to certain large classes +according to their nearness to man. + +Monkeys of lowest degree include the lemurs, the tarsiers, and all of +the New World monkeys. + +The intermediate monkeys in the next higher grade are those which live +in the Old World, with the exception of the three great manlike apes. + +The higher anthropoids occupy the top rank and are the nearest to man +both in their appearance and in their habits. + +These three ranks in apedom did not appear at the same time. One rank, +so to speak, successively developed from another. By a process of +selection and adjustment the higher forms arose from the lower. The +ranking great apes owe their superiority to many traits and characters +which they inherited from more humble forerunners and which they +improved by the process of progressive development. The lowest monkeys +likewise had their day of upward progress, during which they emerged +from some mammal still lower in the animal scale. These forerunners of +the earliest primates, the lemurs and tarsiers, had in all probability +been gradually specializing during the latter part of the Age of +Reptiles. Their ancestors came from that stock of mammal-like reptiles +which started from lowly beginnings and remained modestly in the +background during the reptilian period. + + +_The Lemurs_ + +In the endeavour to get some conception of these distant predecessors +of the monkeys and apes, it is believed that the tree shrews possess +those simple characters necessary for the proper starting point. +The shrew is an insect-eater and lives in the trees. It has many +specializations in its legs, in its head, and in its trunk. These +special adjustments might serve as the beginning of those important +changes in the body which later distinguished the monkey kind. In +the first place, the small size of the tree shrew was particularly +favourable for this purpose. Then, in the second place, its habit of +living in the trees foreshadowed advantages of great promise. Such an +epoch-making adjustment made its appearance when paws were replaced by +hands and when definite hand-like feet appeared. If an animal like the +tree shrew were the forerunner of the monkeys, it is not difficult to +appreciate how the lemurs arose from this stock. They and their kind +may be looked upon as the first chapter in the history of the ape world +and the ape brain. At present they live exclusively in Madagascar and +its small adjacent islands. They are not known in any other part of +the world, although fossils of them indicate that they were widespread +throughout the globe in earlier times. The reasons for their present +exclusiveness and their insular homes are not clear. Geologists claim +that the parts in which they live originally had land connection with +the continent thus permitting their wide dissemination. The later +disappearance of this connection accounts for their present isolation. + +There is much in the appearance of the lemurs that distinguishes them +from the monkeys and apes. Their most distinctive feature, the head, +is much like that of a fox and is drawn out in a long pointed muzzle. +Many characters appear in lemurs not seen in monkeys. They have no +cheek pouches. Their tails, never prehensile, are usually furry. They +develop no gluteal pads, which many apes possess in consequence of +their squatting postures. It is in their hands that they resemble +monkeys most strikingly. They have fingers and toes with finger nails +and toe nails. The thumb and great toe are always well developed, but +the second or third digit is often greatly modified. They also have +mammary glands like the monkeys. In the female these glands assume +certain definitely human characters. The lemur is a little smaller than +the domestic cat. Its fur is thick and woolly. Its large and prominent +eyes are more widely separated than in monkeys. The ears are long and +have tufts of hair on their upper portions. The arms are not quite so +long as the legs. The tail is long and often bushy. Fleshy pads appear +on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet, as well as upon the +palmar surface of the fingers. These enable the animal to grasp the +branch of a tree with great tenacity. + +Little is known of the lemur’s habits in the wild state. It is not +strictly nocturnal, for some of these animals are known to seek their +food during the day. Often they travel about in troupes consisting of +many individuals. Most of them live in the forest. Their food consists +of fruits, insects, birds’ eggs, and birds themselves, which latter +they are most skillful in catching. During the heat of the day they +sleep with the head beneath the arm and the tail curled about the neck. +When walking they go upon the hands and feet, both when on the ground +and in the trees. The tail is used in the manner of a balancing or +steering organ. Sometimes they assume a semi-erect posture on the hind +legs, or sit in a half-crouching position. Both hands and feet are +employed primarily for climbing or running about on the ground. + +The lemur has great ability in leaping from tree to tree. Its movements +are so rapid that it can only with difficulty be followed by the +eye. Hunters say that it is easier to kill a bird on the wing than a +lemur when leaping. If pursued and shot at it has a habit of dropping +suddenly from the topmost branches into the bushes, giving the hunter +the impression that he has succeeded in killing the animal. This +impression is soon dissipated upon seeing the lemur in another tree +at a considerable distance from the spot where it fell. When wild the +animals are said to subsist largely upon bananas. They also seem to be +fond of the brains of birds. After fracturing the bird’s skull with +their teeth, as they might puncture a nutshell, they suck the brain out +of the brain case. The lemur, however, does not eat the rest of the +bird. We may see from this description that this is an animal of great +agility. Not only does it possess much speed in its locomotion, but it +also manifests the utmost nicety in balancing and remarkable precision +in all movements. + + +_Tarsius_ + +Another of these lowest monkeys is a strange little animal called +tarsius, which has acquired a notable reputation. Several learned +authorities have singled it out as the standard bearer of human origin +from some lower mammal. The tarsius is about as large as a small +squirrel. Its appearance is peculiar because of its closely set bulging +eyes, its long tufted tail, its protruding ears, and the small circular +pads on the end of each finger and toe. Tarsiers have two curious +habits that attract attention at once. They can leap with astonishing +swiftness from tree to tree, often in pursuit of insects, and when they +turn their heads they seem at one instant to be looking forward and the +next directly backward. Their eyes, though very large and prominent, +do not seem to give them the best of eyesight. The animals can see +well at night, but during the day they appear to be almost stupid +because in the sunlight their vision is imperfect. Tarsius lives in +the jungle, usually in the low countries of the Malay Islands. During +the day it passes most of its time clinging in a vertical position to +the trunks of the smaller trees and underbrush. The way in which it +supports itself is interesting and peculiar. With its fingers and toes +it firmly grasps its slender support, at the same time pressing inward +with its long tail, which acts like a spring against the tree. If its +tail is pulled away from this support the tarsier at once tends to slip +backward. The tail, which has no grasping power, is used like a rudder +for balancing and steering when the animal is in motion. + +In some respects tarsiers are quite human. They go about in pairs and +are not gregarious like most of the monkeys. Furthermore, they give +birth to but a single offspring at a time. After the breeding season +the female and her young find a home by themselves. There are no +indications that these animals build nests or even live in holes of +trees. The tarsier often falls asleep in its characteristic clinging +position, and the head then sinks downward much as that of an old +man asleep in his chair. Often the young tarsius will perch upon the +mother’s head while she is asleep, and in this position fall asleep +itself. The general behaviour of the animal is extremely stereotyped +and limited. It learns but little under training. In captivity it is +able to make but few new adjustments. During the day its enormous +bulging eyes give it an almost ridiculous appearance as it gropes +awkwardly for food. This no doubt is due to the fact that its eyes are +constructed for hunting at night and do not contain the specialization +essential to the sharpest kind of vision. On the ground tarsius leaps +like a frog but is very awkward. In the trees, however, it is extremely +agile, and is probably the quickest jumper of all mammals. While +grasping a small branch it can turn its head so as to look directly +backward and jump more quickly than the human eye can follow. It seems +to be looking in one direction and jumping in another. This is due +to the great rapidity with which it turns its head. In captivity it +is pugnacious and cannot be tamed. It performs its toilet much as a +cat does and thus keeps itself scrupulously clean. It is not known +to make vocal sounds indicating fear or anger. On rare occasions, +and particularly when young, it has been heard to squeak. The infant +tarsius clings to the hair of the mother’s chest like other young +monkeys. The eyes are open at birth, and many reactions appear at once +that are long delayed in such animals as the rat, cat, dog, and higher +apes. + + +_The Marmosets_ + +Another lowly monkey is the marmoset. It has less renown than tarsius +but is nevertheless an interesting animal. It is often carried +around in the pocket of its owner and fits conveniently inside of +the old-fashioned fur muff. The marmosets belong to the group of the +New World monkeys. They inhabit South America and Central America. +Their chief interest arises from the fact that they represent one of +those moments of faltering experienced by the monkeys in their upward +strivings. These little animals have an almost pathetic expression +and features that are in many ways quite human. Yet in spite of this +human-like appearance they indicate an actual backsliding in the +attempts at progress. This backsliding is most apparent in their +fingers and toes. In fact, the entire hand and foot have lost most of +their human resemblance. The finger nails are now replaced by sharp, +talon-like claws, and the toes are equipped in the same way. The +marmosets, both because of their diminutive size and the imperfections +in their hands and feet, are now looked upon as monkeys that show signs +of retrogression. + +The marmoset is as large as a small squirrel and covered with a thick, +silky fur. It is naturally very timid but soon becomes friendly to +those with whom it is familiar in captivity. The female produces +two or three young at a birth and in this respect is unlike most of +the monkeys. The marmoset’s facial appearance and shape of head are +certainly more ape-like than the lemur’s. The eyes are set much closer +together, and are separated by a flat, narrow nose suggesting that +vision now depends on the simultaneous operation of both eyes. The +animal has a long, bushy tail. It lives in the tree tops or small +underbrush and climbs the trees in a manner similar to the squirrel. +Although it has a cat-like agility, it does not make the long and +daring leaps characteristic both of lemur and tarsius. It often loses +its grip on the branches and falls from a considerable height to +the ground. In captivity it shows little inclination to develop new +actions. It is not easily trained, and to teach it to do tricks of any +kind is most difficult. It lives upon worms, insects, and fruit. It is +known also to invade birds’ nests and suck the eggs. Very rarely does +it prey upon bird life and then only when it is able to overpower one +of the smaller birds or unprotected young. + + +_South American Howling Monkeys_ + +In this group of lower monkeys we encounter one with a highly +interesting personality, known as the “red howling monkey of South +America.” He is a real monkey, noisy and disagreeable, often attaining +the size of a fox-terrier. He always seems to be in an unpleasant +mood, showing his teeth and howling on the slightest provocation. In +spite of all this ill temper, he belongs to the progressive party +of the monkeys. There is not the slightest doubt that he has made +definite advances along the lines of progress. If we should question +this progress we would soon have our doubts set at rest when we saw +the astonishing manner in which he uses his tail like a fifth hand. +Even more convincing in this respect is the almost human appearance of +his hands. Not long ago a young woman visiting the ape house in the +zoölogical gardens was struck by these human similarities. She was +still more impressed when a large howling monkey thrust his long tail +through the bars and deftly tossed her hat into the air. + +The howling monkeys enjoy this gift of a capable, grasping tail in +common with most of their fellows who live in South America. The +prehensile tail is especially well developed in the spider monkeys +and in the woolly monkeys. At its end this tail looks like a long, +tapering finger. It is a highly developed sense organ and gives the +monkey a new instrument for locomotion and for exploring. These monkeys +are able to swing themselves from the branches by their tails and thus +leave the hands and feet free for other purposes. + +In addition to this highly efficient tail, the howlers have developed +a larynx and vocal cords with which they produce awe-inspiring sounds. +Their mournful howlings are often audible for miles around, and it +is supposed that they employ their cries as a means of defense to +intimidate their enemies. The howling monkeys possess a slightly +opposable thumb and well-developed fingers. While they are described as +being the most ferocious of the South American monkeys, they are also +credited with a low degree of intelligence. The face of this monkey is +naked with the exception of a heavy beard that hangs beneath the chin. +In captivity they are practically untamable and soon die. Their fur is +usually black, but in some cases is brown or reddish brown. They live +largely upon fruit, although like other South American monkeys they +feed upon caterpillars and insects. + + +_Measuring the Mentality of New World Monkeys_ + +Professor Thorndike, of Columbia University, has made careful studies +concerning the behaviour of several South American monkeys. He was +chiefly interested in the manner in which monkeys differ from other +animals in the mental capacities and methods of learning. In making his +tests he devised certain experiments which utilized boxes with pegs, +bolts, bars, and hooks. The object of these tests was to find out how +the animal learned to release itself from confinement, or gain access +to a goal containing food. Professor Thorndike concluded that these +monkeys did not learn by reasoning. They do, however, form more and a +greater variety of associations than other mammals. Their combinations +of this kind are remarkably slow and ineffectual in providing any new +behavioural accomplishment. Concerning the general mental development +of the South American monkeys, Dr. Thorndike believes that they +represent a certain advance from the generalized type of mammals +toward man. This is particularly true of their sense equipment and +their localized vision. All of this, he believes, is in reality an +advance due to the brain acting with increased delicacy and bringing +into line those activities which distinguish human mental faculty from +that of all other animals. Here, at length, among the lower monkeys is +well-attested proof of some progress toward the development of human +capacity. + + +_Monkey Behaviour_ + +The way in which these lower members of the monkey kind behave deserves +particular attention. It gives us the opportunity to observe certain +striking resemblances to our own human behaviour. This question +is one of primary importance. It acquires especial interest as we +compare the brains of the monkeys and apes one with another. As the +brain continues to improve from one stage to the next, we should be +on the lookout for new developments in behaviour. It might perhaps +be impossible to appreciate all of these minute changes among the +monkey kind. It is even somewhat questionable whether such an exact +comparison at the present time is necessary or possible. Yet there +are certain outstanding traits of conduct that may be easily traced +from stage to stage. One of the most important of these traits depends +upon the development of the tail from the time when it first acted as +a rudder-like organ for steering and balancing the animal until it +acquired all of its great facilities as a fifth hand. After this it +began to recede in importance and finally disappeared. The tail thus +created a special cycle of behaviour which had important bearing upon +the final outcome of man’s adjustment. + +Another group of reactions centre upon the manner in which the hand +made its appearance, including the progressive changes in behaviour +when the monkeys first became four-handed. All of these changes +were dependent upon living in the trees and gradually found their +culmination in an animal that could stand upon two feet and use its +hands. Such usage as this foretold the beginning of human skill, of +human right-handedness, and of human speech. + +Very important were the changes in behaviour that made their appearance +as the eyes worked more in harmony with each other. They produced a +kind of vision better able to guide the movements of the hand and +give more complete information concerning distance, direction, +and perspective. But far exceeding all other changes for getting a +better control over the surroundings were those progressive advances +introduced for making the fullest combinations of sense impressions. +These advances favoured the development of better powers for learning +and for profiting from experience. Progress in all of these particulars +concerning the behaviour of the monkeys may be clearly traced in +corresponding expansions in their brains. + + +_Brains of the Lower Monkeys_ + +In the brains of these four very simple members of the monkey kind +we may readily see the expansions that promoted development in the +governing organ. It will be apparent at a glance that progress followed +no direct or easy path. It met many rebuffs and obstacles. Often it +faltered and even stumbled. But struggling on it finally reached solid +ground and then went forward to real advances. + +Placing the brains of the lemur, tarsius, marmoset, and howling monkey +side by side we may see how this progress began. To guide our way in +following this advance, certain signposts and milestones will prove +serviceable. Three of these landmarks are deep grooves or clefts. They +appear in the superbrain and indicate the places in which progress has +been particularly active. Around these grooves the outer covering of +the superbrain has been folded to make room for more brain cells. This +folding produces convolutions with the result that the more convoluted +a brain is, the more cells it has for the development of brain power. +Each of these three grooves has its own special meaning as a landmark: + +1. The “Sylvian groove” is a fissure that runs between the department +for the sense of hearing, called the “temporal lobe,” and the +department for body and contact sense, called the “parietal lobe.” + +2. The “central groove” is a fissure between the department for body +and contact senses and the department of supreme brain activity, called +the “frontal lobe.” This lobe of the brain is situated immediately +above the eyes and behind the bone of the forehead (frontal bone). A +small frontal lobe means a low brow with a correspondingly inferior +mentality. As this lobe of the brain increases from ape to man, the +forehead gradually becomes higher and more prominent. + +3. The “ape groove” separates the occipital lobe in the back of the +head from the parietal lobe. In the occipital lobe is situated the +department for sight. + +The three grooves form the boundary lines between the four chief +departments of the superbrain, each of which is known as a lobe; +namely, (1) the parietal lobe, department of body and contact senses; +(2) the temporal lobe, department of hearing; (3) the occipital lobe, +department of sight; and (4) the frontal lobe, department of the high +mental faculties like judgment and reason. + +Further advances from this point will occupy our attention in tracing +the brain of the monkey kind upward. Two other landmarks in the +brain have special value. One of them is the bridge (pons) which +connects the larger brain (cerebral hemispheres) with the lesser +brain (cerebellum). This lesser brain acts as the chief muscle timer +and adjuster. It balances one muscle’s action to that of another and +adjusts the force of such action. All of our most exact movements, +whether in walking or writing or speaking, depend upon the little +brain. If it is injured or destroyed the movements of our hands and +feet, head and trunk, become shaky, unsteady, and very irregular. For +an animal to become highly skillful requires high development in the +little brain. The animal having the highest intelligence also possesses +the greatest capacity for skill in its actions. The size of the bridge +reflecting the degree of this skill is a good index of the intelligence +possessed by the animal. + +The pyramid is another important indicator of progress. Like the +bridge, it is found on the base of the brain. It is called pyramid +because of its somewhat pyramidal shape. It acts as the main trunk +line for getting the orders of the superbrain out to the muscles. +It transmits, so to speak, the highest commands of the brain in +controlling the motor machinery. By means of it we act according to the +dictates of our wills. If both of these great pyramidal trunk lines +are interrupted, we become completely paralyzed. The pyramids conduct +the highest output of the brain’s activity and increase in direct +proportion as the animal’s behaviour becomes more and more complex. + +The brains of low monkeys are of small size: lemur, 18 grams; tarsius, +6 grams; marmoset, 6.2 grams; and howling monkey, 24.5 grams. + +Size and weight of brain, we must bear in mind, vary to a considerable +degree with the size of the body, so that certain other signs of +expansion in the brain are more impressive. These signs clearly +indicate that progress is under way as follows: First, the large +superbrain begins to cover over the lesser brain. In lemur this +extension backward has only just begun. It is only slightly more +marked than in many of the lower animals, like the cat and the dog. +In tarsius the large brain has extended backward over the lesser +brain to a considerably greater degree. This is an important change +because the tarsier has transferred much of its business of sight to a +new department in the occipital lobe of the superbrain. The marmoset +shows this transfer carried a little farther, for the large brain now +overhangs the lesser brain. The great advance shown in the howling +monkey reveals the way in which the superbrain has taken complete +control of the situation. It now covers over the lesser brain entirely. +All of this change in the superbrain has been mainly in the interest of +making a better department for sight, but the departments for the sense +of hearing and for body and contact senses have not been behindhand in +expanding in these lower monkeys. + +Another pronounced sign of progress is the gradual change in the +position of the groove of Sylvius. In lemur it is almost vertical, +as in the cat, in the dog, and other lower mammals. The arrangement +of other smaller grooves around it is also similar to that in lower +animals. In the tarsius this groove is equally primitive. It is +beginning to tip backward a little in marmoset. Finally, in the howling +monkey this groove has become quite oblique, as it is in most of the +apes and man. + +All of this change has occurred as a direct result of perfecting the +organization in the department of hearing. The more tilted the Sylvian +groove becomes, the better developed is the temporal lobe which carries +on the business of hearing. The tilting backward of this groove also +results from an increase in that part of the superbrain which lies +immediately about the groove. This is the parietal lobe, the department +of contact and body sense. It is in this department that the especially +important information concerning the movements in the hands and feet +is registered. Thus the tilting backward of the Sylvian groove plainly +tells the story of improvements in the departments of hearing and of +body and contact sense. + +Still another sign of progress appears in the central groove, which +has an equally interesting history. In the lemur this groove is just +discernible as a faint dent. In position it resembles a corresponding +groove in animals like the cat and dog. Lemur in this respect suggests +that in its striving to part company with the lower animals, to break +away from ancient contacts, and to get on an independent new line of +its own, it has not been entirely successful. This central groove +shows where the chief department of the superbrain begins, that is, +the frontal lobe. In the lemur this department is poorly developed. +In tarsius it is impossible to find anything that looks like a central +groove. This animal’s brain is an example of some of that hesitation +which was encountered in the path of progress. The same faltering +is also seen in the brain of marmoset, which has no central groove +whatsoever. These little South American animals, it must be remembered, +are thought to be backsliders, and this particular defect in their +brain strongly supports that conclusion. + +In the brain of the howling monkey we find the central groove now +well developed. The superbrain shows that it is at length pursuing +some definite policy of expansion in its most responsible department. +Emphasis in growth is now obviously given to the frontal lobe for +advancing the capacity to transact all higher mental faculties. In the +howling monkey this department may not have attained any high degree of +development, but its presence is undoubted, and from this relatively +simple beginning it is only a matter of further expansion to bring +into existence the most productive mechanism of the brain. The howling +monkey shows its superiority over all lower monkeys in another respect. +It has developed the ape groove, and by it the boundary between the +department of sight and the department for body and contact sense is +fully established. + +Viewed as a whole, the brains of these four lower monkeys show distinct +progress in the interests of developing a more efficient superbrain. +Each of the sense departments has gradually become better defined in +its boundaries, and doubtless correspondingly better organized for +the administration of its duties. Rising supreme above them all there +finally appeared the controlling department of the chief executive +in the frontal lobe. We see this in its earliest stage in lemur. It +assumes still more importance in the howling monkey. The departments of +sight (occipital lobe), of hearing (temporal lobe), of body and contact +sense (parietal lobe), show the effects of steady improvement from +lemur up to the howling monkey. If there have been some hesitations, +even some slipping back in the organization of efficiency, it is +because some of these animals were rather uncertain disciples of +progress. They may have been, as is probably true of tarsius, too +close to the starting point where the real advances of the monkey kind +began; or perhaps, like the marmosets, they ran into early difficulties +along the upward climb. It seems probable that they were not able to +extricate themselves with credit from these hazards or to overcome +the obstacles that confronted them. For this reason their brain shows +some actual backwardness. With these exceptions, however, the evidence +of progress is undisputed. It seems sufficient to convince the most +sceptical. The purpose of the progress is also sufficiently plain. It +clearly appears to be that effort toward promoting organization in +the superbrain so that the offices of the supreme executive might be +established in the permanent quarters of the frontal lobe. + + +_Measurable Improvements_ + +Any doubts due to lack of measurable proofs may be easily overcome +by several comparative measurements of the bridge and the pyramid. +The size of these structures, both of which reveal the behavioural +capacities of animals, has been carefully estimated. Accordingly the +bridge has been assigned the following values: lemur, .055; tarsius, +.057; marmoset, .095; howling monkey, .103. Thus the bridge, called +by some authorities an index of intelligence, shows distinctly the +advances made among these simple monkeys. + +Quite as striking are the figures for the pyramid, which indicate the +degree of voluntary control that the superbrain has over all actions: +lemur, .110; tarsius, .032; marmoset, .064; howling monkey, .137. + +From these figures the howling monkey stands in advance of his monkey +associates in the index of his voluntary control. Doubtless much of +this advantage is due to the high degree of hand-like specialization +in this animal’s hands and feet. But the grasping tail of the howling +monkey should not be overlooked. If tarsius and the marmoset appear to +stand lower than the lemur, it is because one of them is a primitive +type of animal with a much restricted repertoire of reactions, and the +other, the marmoset, is a backslider less richly endowed in the more +effective motor capacities. + +All of these features in the brain seem to coincide with progress +in the behaviour of the lower monkeys. They show the path which +progressive advance has pursued. In the beginning, emerging from those +strivings of lower mammals and with much of the mammalian heritage +handed down by them, the lemurs took the first step of the monkey kind +toward a new type of brain. There was prophecy in these early attempts +made by the lemur. In some degree at least they foretold what this new +kind of brain was to be. Obviously they had as their distant mark the +ultimate upbuilding of the superbrain until an adequate department for +the supreme executive of life was produced. If tarsius hesitated in +reaching out toward this objective, it was none the less travelling in +the right direction. The destination of this course was clearly visible +in the brain of the howling monkey and other similar monkeys of the +New World. In this manner the first primate steps toward a more highly +efficient type of brain were taken. The conditions of tree life both +incited and successfully urged them onward. + + + + +CHAPTER VII + +ON THE WAY UPWARD + +BRAINS OF THE OLD WORLD MONKEYS + + +We have seen that the first steps leading to improvements in the +primate brain were taken by certain humble creatures living in distant +parts of the earth, and by the great tribes of the New World monkeys +inhabiting South America and Central America. These steps did not lead +far along the path of progress. They were only a beginning, the first +harbingers of man’s arrival. Many lowly animals in the ape house at the +zoölogical gardens reveal numerous features suggestive of the human +being. Such features not only include their fingers, finger nails, toes +and toe nails, but even more their facial appearance. Many of these +monkeys look like diminutive old men. They snarl and show their teeth +when angry. Their way of indicating displeasure is almost human. They +make certain expressive gestures, like nodding or tilting of the head +to one side in a quizzical or even pathetic manner. They make plaintive +cries or sounds, in some cases almost like the notes of a bird, or they +scream out loudly in anger. All of these New World monkeys are notable +for one other reason. They do not make any of those humorous grimaces +that are so amusing in the Old World monkeys. These latter manifest a +certain drollness in their constantly changing facial expression. + +The Old World monkeys include about three quarters of all living +species. They are embraced in one great family, but the members of this +family show many differences ranging from the huge dog-faced baboon to +the small bonnet monkey. Some of them are gentle and affectionate, some +are savage, pugnacious, and treacherous. This entire family is spread +out over the hot or semitropical regions of the world. Many of its +members live in the damp, tropical forests; others prefer rocky, almost +barren country, and a few seek their homes in temperate climates. Some +monkeys are found among the lower ranges of the Himalayas and may be +seen in the winters playing among the branches of snow-laden trees. Two +varieties seem to have a surprising endurance in really severe cold. +They inhabit the elevated regions of eastern Tibet. + +In picturing to ourselves the characteristics of a monkey we are apt +to have the conception of an animal that can hold on and hang by its +tail. None of the Old World monkeys has this kind of tail. The greatest +number of them live in the trees, and the tail, while generally short +and stumpy, in some cases is decorative and almost plume-like. Most of +the Old World tribes are especially interesting and amusing because of +a large elastic pouch in each cheek. This pouch the monkey greedily +crams with food in his haste to get his meal into safe-keeping. When +the cheek pouches are filled both cheeks are bulged out and give the +animal somewhat the appearance of a gourmand embarrassed by a mouthful +of delicacies. Later on, at his leisure, the monkey chews and swallows +the food. + + +_Baboons_ + +By far the largest of the Old World monkeys are the baboons. They may +be recognized at once by three characteristics. The head and face look +much more like those of a dog than is true of other monkeys. They have +long and dangerous fangs in the upper and lower jaws. They go about, +like most four-legged animals, upon hands and feet which have much the +appearance of paws. + +Further acquaintance with the baboon shows him to be a surly, +unmannerly, savage, and thoroughly undependable creature. All of his +tribes have fleshy pads over the buttocks, which in some cases are +large and brilliantly coloured. Some members of his clans, such as +the mandrill, have faces which look like gruesome masks or hideously +painted savages. The skin over the nose is a fiery red, while the +cheeks are swollen, ribbed, and of a vivid blue colour. A beard of +golden hue hangs beneath the chin in contrast to the dull olive drab +of the body. Protruding over the lips are savage canine teeth, long +and dagger-like. These baboons are about as large as a good-sized +dog. The colouring of the face adds considerably to the repulsive +unattractiveness of the animal. They run along on their hands and feet, +with their eyes directed downward, so that they are obliged to elevate +the large overhanging eyebrows in order to look upward and forward. +They go about with the palms of the hand and soles of the feet laid +flat upon the ground. The mother is often seen walking or scampering +around with a young baboon clinging to her back. Sometimes the mother +will sit up on top of a rock just like a human being. Her offspring +often perches on her neck after the fashion of a well-trained acrobat. + +All of these monkeys are gregarious. They travel about in large +numbers. Often as many as a hundred individuals collect in one herd. +Because of their aggressive disposition, they are dangerous enemies, +especially when irritated or disturbed. Their long, sharply pointed, +canine teeth are capable of inflicting severe wounds. Although they +have no actual speech, they utter certain sounds that seem to be +thoroughly understood by all members of the herd. There is quite a +variety in these sounds. Some of them resemble barks, grunts, or +even screams. Often they make low and subdued murmurs with various +inflections, the meaning of which all the baboons seem to understand +immediately. Sometimes the slightest murmur from one of the members of +the herd will act as a signal or warning. This is particularly true +when the baboons are out on an expedition of pillage or mischief. +On such occasions they always station a lookout or outpost at some +favourable point from which the signal may be given upon the approach +of danger. The faintest murmur made by one of these lookouts will start +the marauding baboons scampering away to safety. + + +_Disposition of Baboons_ + +For the most part they live in rocky places near ravines, crags, or +hilly promontories where grass and trees are scanty. Their favourite +abodes are usually places surrounded by wide plains. This kind of home +enables them to lie in wait for the right moment to perpetrate some +thieving expedition upon a garden or field and at the same time to have +every opportunity of escape. They are much given to mischief of this +kind. Consequently they are feared and despised by the inhabitants of +the country which they infest. If attacked, they often turn upon their +pursuers and inflict serious wounds upon their assailants. Some baboons +prefer to live in the dense forest and climb readily about even in the +tallest trees. Those that live in more open country are very agile +in clambering among the rocks and are able to reach lofty heights or +positions of safety. The baboon eats a little of everything, although +its chief diet consists of roots, fruits, reptiles, and insects. +To procure their food they are continually searching, turning over +stones beneath which the desired food may be concealed. When young the +baboon is often quite gentle and affectionate, but with most of them +this disposition changes when they grow up. In captivity baboons are +surly and unfriendly. Even those born and reared in captivity are more +difficult to approach and teach than other apes. They are vindictive +and treacherous. Their disagreeable dispositions accord well with +their unpleasant and often repulsive facial expressions. Their savage +reactions and lack of intelligence have earned for them the reputation +of being the lowest of the Old World monkeys. Baboons seldom assume +the erect position for standing or walking. They do, however, sit upon +their haunches in a somewhat crouched position, but not so freely as +many other Old World monkeys. They all live in Africa, with a slight +extension into Arabia. It is well that these animals never grew to the +size of the great apes, for had they done so they certainly would have +been among the most dreaded and frightful creatures ever known on earth. + +Dr. Ditmars, who has spent much time in observing monkeys, reports +many interesting studies and experiments concerning their behaviour. +Apparently the habit of throwing missiles when enraged is not uncommon +among baboons. Any angry monkey may in its rage grasp and hurl an +object such as a drinking pan, but there is usually no accuracy in +its aim or intention in its act other than an expression of irritated +feelings. None of the monkeys has ever been known to use a stick or a +club in attacking others or defending itself. Although the throwing +of missiles is almost unknown among monkeys, the baboon marks an +exception. As an instance, one day Dr. Ditmars found the visitors to +the ape house almost in a panic, due to the savage behaviour of a +big yellow baboon. A part of the cement had fallen out of the wall +of his cage and broken up into sharp pieces. These pieces the baboon +was hurling at the visitors through the bars in a most deliberately +offensive manner and with effective aim. The crowd in consequence had +retreated to various points of safety. Later a shovelful of coal was +placed in the cage of this same baboon. The pieces of coal he also used +as missiles, throwing them with calculating aim at the keeper and other +attendants. The baboon seems to have an excellent throwing arm, and +Dr. Ditmars credits him with good control and much speed. During this +experiment a baboon of a different species acted in precisely the same +way. In both of these animals their pitching capacity was demonstrated +without any previous practice or instruction, and from these +observations it would appear that baboons are natural-born pitchers. + + +_Macacus, the Indian Monkey_ + +Another one of the Old World monkeys, the macacus, shows a different +side of the picture. He is more friendly, more gentle, more full of +fun, and forever up to some sort of monkeyshines. Many of these monkeys +live in India. Mr. Kipling has described them in his famous “Road Song +of the Bandar-Log”: + + Jabber it quickly and all together! + Excellent! Wonderful! Once again! + Now we are talking just like men. + Let’s pretend we are ... never mind, + _Brother, thy tail hangs down behind!_ + +These monkeys have their homes throughout the Indo-Malayan regions. +They extend northward into China and Japan and eastward into Tibet. The +macaques have a stout body and a proportionately large head. There is +considerable variation in the tail, which ranges from a long, sweeping, +plume-like appendage with a tuft at the tip, as in the lion macaque, +to a thick, stubby tail much like that of a dog which has been docked. +The pigtail monkey has a curled appendage. One of the macaques of +Japan has a mere stump, while the Barbary ape has no tail at all. The +macaques are the typical monkeys about which most of the favourite +stories concerning the ape kind have had their origin. Their enormous +cheek pouches, their facial grimaces, and the motion of their lips +make them unusually fascinating to watch. They are extremely noisy, +jabbering most of the time. They seem to have an extensive vocabulary +of sounds, consisting of shrill calls, grunts, low mutterings, barks, +chattering noises, and almost ear-splitting yells, which they emit +in moments of rage. They are playful and quarrelsome, and these two +phases of their behaviour pass without sharp line one into the other. +They never become involved in serious combats because they seldom +remain at one thing long enough to be effectual fighters. In their +quarters at feeding time they usually make a real pandemonium in their +frenzied efforts to stuff their cheek pouches as full as they can. +They have absolutely no consideration or courtesy on these occasions. +Their table manners are not only rough but actually ruthless, and the +most delicious morsels go to the strongest. The weak, the young, and +the female obtain what is left or go without. These monkeys are often +docile and affectionate. They make the most amusing kind of pets. No +animal is more mischievous or more destructive about a home where there +is anything within reach to break. Sometimes when they grow up they +develop the unpleasant tendency of being too strictly a one-man animal. +To protect their owner against an imaginary danger they will often +attack strangers or visitors. + + +_Behaviour of Macacus_ + +The head of the macaque is much less dog-shaped than that of the +baboon. The eyes are set closely together, and the animal sits on its +haunches a good deal of the time holding its head upright, so that +the eyes are directed forward. Its posture in sitting is quite human, +while its attentive gaze gives the impression that it is watching +intelligently all that is going on. Its nose is short and has a fairly +good nasal bridge. The lips are thin and the upper one is particularly +long. The hands and feet closely resemble human hands, except that the +palm is not so broad, the fingers are longer, and the thumb shorter. +In its movements the macaque is remarkably deft. It changes from one +position to another with surprising swiftness. These monkeys go about +in herds, often of considerable size. If captured young the animal is +easily trained and quickly learns many amusing tricks. It is full of +mischief and curiosity. Macacus monkeys frequently become a nuisance +in the neighbourhood of towns where they live in large numbers. When +full grown they are sometimes quite ill tempered and often savage even +to the extent of attacking the inhabitants without much provocation. +For the most part they live in cultivated tracts along the banks of +streams. They seem to seek rather than avoid the habitations of +man. They manifest little fear for their human neighbours and take +a real delight in molesting them by many annoying pranks. Sometimes +their attentions are vigorously resented and their human neighbours +turn upon them. Their behaviour on such occasions is like that of +tantalizing small boys who take an almost idiotic delight in the +vain efforts of their pursuers to overtake them, and continue their +aggravating antics in order to prolong the excitement of the futile +pursuit. If one happens to be captured, a number of them will turn +back to take the part of the unfortunate captive. In their native +haunts they are constantly on the move. Repose is totally foreign to +their daily programme. Scampering, swinging, chattering, screaming, +they go among the trees all day long. Either their actions are without +design, or else their purpose changes so rapidly and frequently that +their behaviour has the appearance of ceaseless motion. When together +they are very quarrelsome, constantly nagging or teasing each other, +but here, as in all of their activities, the object of their anger, +the victim of their jest, is as quickly shifted as their fleeting +attention. Having no fear of the water, they are able to swim for long +distances and greatly enjoy it. They feed upon spiders and many other +insects, besides fruits and berries. As compared with the baboon, they +show a greater mental alertness. + + +_Mental Tests_ + +Considerable psychological study has been made of the macaques, +particularly concerning their ability to learn and their mentality. +Dr. Kinnaman, who has made some of these studies, believes that they +have attained a higher level of intelligence than that ascribed to +the New World monkeys by Professor Thorndike. He thinks there is some +evidence that the macaques have powers of reasoning, although of a low +order. Dr. Hobhouse agrees with this view and adds that the macacus +monkey seems to be possessed of definite ideas. Professor Yerkes, +after a longer and more systematic study with experimental methods +better suited to the problem, agrees with Professor Thorndike that the +macacus may have a certain number of limited ideas. It is clear to him +also that there are extreme differences in the mentality of different +species of monkeys. The slow process which they display in the solution +of problems is quite surprising, in many instances being actually less +rapid than in some of the lower mammals. + +One question is certain to arise at this point: How do the Old World +monkeys compare in mentality with lemur and tarsius and with the +monkeys of the New World? Perhaps the best answer to this question may +be obtained by watching the actions of these different animals in their +cages at the zoölogical gardens. Looking at a lemur as he jumps about +restlessly among the supports of his cage, it is quickly concluded that +this animal, not unlike a diminutive fox, is interesting only because +of his remarkable agility. Tarsius would probably not be found in +most zoölogical gardens because these animals do not survive long in +captivity. The marmosets would attract little more attention than the +lemurs, not only because of their small size, but also because of their +lack of interesting reactions. Howling monkeys, spider monkeys, and +woolly monkeys are more interesting because of the remarkable way in +which they use their tails like a fifth hand. Their facial expression +and their general behaviour, however, are somewhat monotonous. + +The Old World monkeys, especially the macaques, hold the attention and +create a real interest. Here is to be seen a busy world of jabbering, +mischievous, tricky, athletic monkeys whose antics easily rival the +best of human clowning. There can be no doubt that these Old World +monkeys are on a higher mental plane than those of the New World. +The main fault to be found with them is that they never get anything +really done, except perhaps filling the pouches in their cheeks just +as full as they can. Even the grouchy baboons show some signs of +better mental powers than the South American monkeys. They have a +thoroughgoing hostility for their human contemporaries which they have +never changed, and their powers of organized banditry show a degree of +mental capacity that is foreign to the lower monkeys. This capacity we +should consider all the more noteworthy because the baboon manifests +a distinct tendency to lose some of the benefits derived from living +in the trees. It almost seems as though, to a certain extent, it had +retrograded. This retrogression appears in the fact that many of the +baboon’s characteristics are less ape-like and more dog-like than +other Old World monkeys and also because its hands and feet seem to +be specialized more in the direction of paws. Yet, in spite of this +backsliding on the part of the baboon, the monkeys of the Old World are +as a whole eminently more efficient in their actions and capacities +than any of the New World monkeys, the lemurs or tarsiers. + + +_Brains of the Old World Monkeys_ + +A question may arise concerning the relation in point of time which the +Old World monkeys bear to those of the New World. All of the evidence +supplied by fossils indicates that lemurs and tarsiers, as well as +the monkeys of South America and Central America, came into existence +long before those species which inhabit Africa and Asia. According to +most reliable records, the monkeys had their start some time early in +the Age of Mammals. It is correct, therefore, to look upon the Old +World monkeys as a later and higher stage of development in apedom. +This conclusion is borne out when we view the brains of the macaque +and the baboon. In this comparison we may be able to detect many signs +indicating improvements in the brain; in fact, all doubts may be set at +rest concerning the superiority of Old World monkeys. + +If we look at the baboon’s brain we are impressed by the fact that it +has many more grooves and many more convolutions than the brain of the +South American monkey. The convolutions and the grooves of the brain +indicate the amount of cell space which the superbrain provides for +developing brain power. As between the baboon and the macaque, the +difference in this respect somewhat favours the former. This difference +is small and may perhaps be discounted by the fact that in macacus +the grooves have a slightly more advanced arrangement in consequence +of which certain departments of the superbrain show more progressive +tendencies than in the baboon. This is particularly true of the +department of hearing (temporal lobe) and the department of body and +contact senses (parietal lobe). Comparing the groove of Sylvius, whose +general angle furnishes such an important standard in rating a brain, +there is more of a backward tilting seen in this groove of the macaque +than in the baboon. Such an inclination is characteristic of higher +races. The central groove appears to be about on a par in both brains, +and the ape groove is likewise well developed both in the macaque and +the baboon. These three great boundary lines separate the four major +lobes of the superbrain. The department of sight in the occipital +lobe in macacus has no real advantage over the corresponding area in +the baboon. As already noted, the departments of hearing and of body +and contact sense are better organized and somewhat more expansive in +macacus than in baboon. But when we come to the preëminent part of +the superbrain, that portion in which the chief executive function is +located, namely, the frontal lobe, the baboon actually seems to have +some real advantage. Recalling the ugly disposition and ferocious +nature of this animal, we may question why he is superior in this +highest part of his brain to the lively and humorous little macaque. +It is unfortunate that we have not as yet any good psychological +studies of the baboon by which we may compare him with his more nimble +associates. Doubtless it is the disagreeable nature and uncompromising +aversion which the baboon has for mankind that make it so difficult to +estimate him psychologically. Yet there may be something of an enviable +consistency in the baboon’s aversion to man that implies a better type +of mental power than one might infer from the jabbering, ceaseless +activities of the macacus and all of the other bandar-logs. Some +explanation of this sort must at present suffice until we are possessed +of better standards for psychological comparison. + +The two important structures on the base of the brain furnish a +definite idea of an animal’s rating. Accepting their evidence, it +appears at once that the bridge (_pons_) bears out our previous +observations concerning the powers of the superbrain. This evidence +gives the baboon a higher standing in intelligence than the macacus. +The value assigned to the bridge in the baboon is .164, while in the +macacus it is .150. This contrast gives an interesting corroborative +estimate of the superior mental powers of the baboon. From the figures +indicating the relative size of the pyramid, it would seem that the +macacus is somewhat more richly supplied in his variety of skillful +movements than the baboon. The figure in macacus is .147 and baboon +.143. While this is not a marked difference, it seems to indicate an +advantage probably derived from the more nimble and acrobatic actions +of the macacus. This animal has acquired a more highly efficient +mastery of tree life as compared with the more sluggish tendencies of +baboons, most of which prefer to live upon the ground and go about +like other four-legged animals. These contrasts between the Old World +monkeys are interesting for what they show in themselves. They give +rise to many questions which we would be glad to see answered by more +exact and extensive study. The reasons why the baboon or the macacus +should be endowed with superior qualities in one particular or another, +or why there should be corresponding improvements in the brain, are not +clear. There can be no doubt, however, that in the Old World monkeys as +a whole both behaviour and brain are in many respects superior to the +monkeys of the New World. We cannot fail to discern the special points +of this superiority in the brain. It seems impossible to avoid the +conclusion that when the Old World monkeys made their appearance they +definitely advanced the cause of progressive improvement and that from +this progress the brain profited as much as or even more than any other +part. + +Turning back for a moment to the brains of the New World monkeys +and comparing them with those of the Old World group, we will find +sufficient evidence to convince us that the chief organ of the body was +surely on the way upward, and that the first humble steps taken by the +earliest members of monkey kind had been supplemented by further and +bold advances. + + + + +CHAPTER VIII + +MANLIKE TENDENCIES + +BRAINS OF GIBBON AND ORANG-OUTANG + + +There is little about the Old World monkeys, either in their mode +of life or in their appearance, to inspire respect or confidence. +The savage fierceness of the baboon, the mischievous nonsense of the +macaque, seem like flimsy foundations upon which to build a race +of intelligent human beings. When these animals first made their +appearance they were but vague foreshadowers of what mankind might +be. It is not alone their form and structure that interests us; their +actions, habits, and behaviour must be carefully studied at the same +time. + + +_The Anthropoid Gibbon_ + +Had the human eye been able to observe all that transpired in the early +days of the monkey kind, it would have been difficult to believe that +a race of men was in the making. It would have seemed incredible that +from these chattering, restless monkeys change and modification could +eventually bring forth that development necessary for the human form. +And yet in the course of time changes of this kind did bring into +existence an ape which bore a much closer resemblance to man. It was +then possible to foresee how, from this new kind of animal, certain +human features might be derived. This particular member of the ape +world is the gibbon. All of his tendencies make him somewhat shy and +inconspicuous. At the zoölogical gardens he is generally sitting high +up on a perch in his cage with his long arms folded over his head, +peering quietly about him. His fur is usually dark, although some +members of his family are quite light in colour. The most impressive +thing about the gibbon is the fact that he can stand up, walk, and run +upon two legs. This he does a little awkwardly, but not unlike a human +being. In a certain memorable moving picture, an unusually interesting +silvery gibbon nearly usurped the rôle of leading man. His marvellous +feats earned for him universal applause, and whenever he appeared he +was the centre of attention. Among its most stirring moments, this +picture shows a dramatic scene in which a great Indian elephant whose +young one has been captured demolishes the dwelling of the jungle +native who has trapped her offspring. Shortly after the native with his +wife and children has escaped to safety, the gibbon emerges cautiously +from the wreckage of the home. Through the darkness of the forest he +discerns the glistening eyes of a tiger that is about to spring upon +him. Realizing that retreat is cut off, he takes to flight. In escaping +he stands upright and runs like a man, screaming in his fright in a +thoroughly human manner. Fortunately for the gibbon, the branch of a +tree comes opportunely in his path, and then, with a single upward +bound, he is off like a bird through the trees to safety. + +Gibbons are gentle, affectionate creatures. They are also timid and at +the first sign of danger hurry away through the forest as far up in +the trees as they can go. The gibbon’s body and head are relatively +small, being only a little larger than some of the smaller macaques. +The animal’s legs are short and it has no tail. A prominent feature is +the exceptional length of the forearm and of the fingers. The hand is +slender and longer than the foot. The female bears one young at a time, +which the mother carries under her body, the young one clinging to the +fur on her chest with hands and feet. This burden does not embarrass +her in the slightest as she swings her way from tree to tree through +the forest. She makes as good time in this transportation as the +unincumbered males. + +In the wild state the gibbons never leave the jungle, and live for the +most part throughout southern Asia and the adjacent islands. A few of +them venture from the inland forests to the vicinity of the coast. +All of the gibbons are highly developed for life in the trees. This +specialization is important not only for the effects it has had upon +these apes but also for those developments in them which were to be of +subsequent and substantial advantage to the rise of man. + +There are many different varieties of gibbons such as the white-handed +gibbon, the silvery gibbon, the white-cheeked gibbon, the slender +gibbon. The animal that we shall consider is the hoolock gibbon of +India. He gets his name from a peculiar sound or cry which he makes. +If it were at all possible to imitate this cry it might be expressed +as “hooloo! hooloo! hooloo!” Mr. Candler has studied this interesting +animal at close quarters, and his account of its habits is well worth +quoting: + + The Hoolock swings along the thinnest part of a bough or to the + slender end of a bamboo, until it bends to its weight, then with + a swing and a sort of a kick-off he flies through the air seizing + another branch, and swinging along it with the accuracy of a + finished trapeze performer. I fancy he does very little walking in + the wild state, for I have never seen a wild Hoolock on the ground. + Moreover, they are only found in the dense jungle where the ground + is everywhere covered with tangled vegetation. The Hoolocks are + extremely shy and it is difficult to watch them as they are concealed + by leaves high up on the bamboo clumps or tops of forest trees. The + cry of the Hoolock is characteristic. It is a very pleasing note, + rising and falling in intensity, and reminding one somewhat of a + pack of beagles giving tongue on a scent, which is waxing and waning + in strength as a larger or smaller number of the band join in the + chorus. It is heard chiefly in the early morning, then through all + the heat of the day there is silence, but towards evening as the sun + sets you may hear it again. + +One might almost think that their early morning cry was like a rising +bell, and their cry toward evening was their curfew. + + +_Manners of the Gibbon_ + +Gibbons live in fairly large communities. They are constantly on the +move. From what is known of their intelligence it seems probable that +their movements are guided by definite plans. They even seem to have +some simple sort of governmental system. Tea planters in India often +keep these gibbons as pets for years. They run about the compound +quite freely. At times they suddenly disappear and are gone for several +months. Eventually they return quite unconcerned, as if nothing had +occurred to interrupt their pleasant human associations. For the most +part the gibbon is sociable. After he has become acquainted he will +often sit on the arm of a person’s chair at breakfast. Whatever his +appetite, he will never reach out for food at the table, although his +long arms give him much advantage over his human host. Nor will he +ever snatch things off the table. His manners are above reproach and +he keeps himself scrupulously clean. As the day is drawing to a close +it is his habit to get ready for the night. At sunset he settles down +to sleep, safely seated in the fork of a tree, usually with his long +arms over his head. He is never boisterous, mischievous, or noisy. +Oftentimes he seems to be more in sympathy with children than with +grown-ups. + +The diet of the gibbon includes a long list of foods, such as fruits, +leaves, and young shoots, spiders, birds’ eggs, insects, and young +birds. If captured young the gibbon is readily tamed. He is never sulky +or ill tempered and shows marked intelligence both in learning many +tricks and adjusting himself to the rules of the home. + +The locomotion of these animals among the trees is totally different +from that of the monkeys. The latter climb about using both hands and +feet. Gibbons employ their arms almost exclusively, swinging from +branch to branch, with the legs tucked close to the body. This is such +an important change in the transportation methods of apedom that we +should give it particular attention in order to note what effects it +had produced upon the gibbons themselves. In the first place, swinging +from one limb to another by the hands greatly elongated the forearm and +the fingers. This kind of locomotion gives the gibbon the appearance of +taking tremendously long strides with his arms. The right hand, first +grasping a branch, permits the animal to swing twelve or more feet to +the next branch which is grasped by the left hand. In the next step the +forward stride is taken by the right hand. Thus the animal alternates +the right and left hand just as we alternate the right and left foot. +It is probably for this reason that the gibbons have been called “tree +walkers” (_Hylobates_). + +The second effect produced by this kind of swinging locomotion, called +brachiation, is even more decisive in the final outcome. Transportation +such as this swinging by the hands drew the body more and more into the +upright position. It brought about many of those fundamental changes +which made it possible for the gibbon to stand upright, walk, and run +upon two legs. Compared with other animals of this class, the gibbon +is the most two-legged of all the apes. He walks rather quickly in +the erect posture. His gait is waddling, and if pursued he will make +every effort to reach some support by which he can swing himself to +safety. In walking he turns his leg and foot outward, which gives him +a bow-legged appearance, added to which the shortness of his legs +makes his movements in walking and running far less graceful than +these acts ultimately came to be in their highest exponent, man. Here +undoubtedly may be discerned important elements for the inception of +human locomotion. They appear in an animal which can stand, walk, and +run upright, and also possesses well-developed hands. + + +_Gibbon’s Resemblance to Man_ + +The gibbons are said sometimes to scoop up water in the hollow of the +hand in order to drink. At other times they stretch out their long arms +among the foliage and lick off the dew which adheres to their hair, in +this way quenching their thirst. + +In view of these facts our estimate of the gibbon may credit him +with certain manlike traits. Yet his resemblance to human beings, +considering the animal as a whole, is at best sketchy and vague. Casual +observation of the gibbon does not bring any clear association with +the human being at once to mind. Only after watching him, after noting +the manner in which he gets about, after seeing him walk and run on +two legs, is it possible to recognize certain tendencies which point +in the human direction. It is for this reason that the gibbon is said +to represent a stage preceding the manlike apes. Some students of +this question class the gibbon with these anthropoid apes. It seems +better judgment, however, to consider him rather an animal showing +dispositions which serve as a starting point for the anthropoids. +These tendencies, as they are crystallized in the gibbon, represent an +introductory chapter in the history of all those animals which later +became notable because they walked more or less upright and had the +use of hands. Thus the gibbon is often spoken of as pro-anthropoid. +He himself is a modern animal. One of his venerable ancestors, very +much like himself, lived long ago--_Propliopithecus_ of the Oligocene. +The descendants of this ancient extinct ape with the long name, +whose fossil remains have been found in Egypt, followed two lines of +development. One line led up to the modern anthropoid apes and man, the +second to the modern gibbons. The first offshoot from this line gave +rise to a great ape which in many features looks much more like man +than does the gibbon. This is the orang-outang. He is one of the big +apes seen in the large primate cages of the zoölogical gardens. He may +be recognized by the brownish-yellow hair which covers his body, by his +face which bears a humorous caricatured resemblance to man, and by the +erect posture which he assumes much of the time. Although he climbs +about his cage and its supports like a skillful acrobat, this manlike +ape lacks the grace and agility of the gibbon. He is wild and shy, but +possesses enormous strength, which makes him more than a match for the +most able-bodied man. + + +_The Orang-Outang_ + +The orang lives in Borneo and Sumatra. He has not been found elsewhere +in the world. In his island home he enjoys a deserved reputation +because of his prodigious strength. When full grown he stands a little +over four feet in height. He has a heavy body, short thick neck, +receding forehead, thick lips, and a face uncovered by hair. His muzzle +protrudes to form a thick and heavy upper jaw, with a large mouth and +large teeth. In the full-grown male the cheek pouches become greatly +enlarged, so that they look like an old-fashioned ruff around the head. +This feature gives him a hideous and gruesome appearance. The arms are +long, reaching almost to the ankles when the orang stands upright. +The hands are long and narrow, the thumb is short, the fingers are +united by webs at their bases. The legs are short in comparison to +the length of the body and considerably bowed. The feet are long and +narrow. The great toe is short, but it can be used for grasping the +branches. Fleshy pads over the buttocks are present in the adult male, +but the orang has no tail. He is easily distinguished from the other +great apes by his bulging muzzle and his light yellowish-brown hair. +He seldom exceeds four feet two inches when standing upright, but his +outstretched arms together measure nearly eight feet from finger tip +to finger tip. Some specimens killed by hunters have been reported to +stand five feet three inches high. + +Among the first accurate accounts of the orang-outang’s life is that +of Alfred Russell Wallace appearing in his famous book _The Malay +Archipelago_, from which the following description is an extract: + + The orang has a wide distribution, inhabiting many districts along + the coast of the island [Borneo] where it appears chiefly confined + to the low swampy forests. It particularly affects a country which + is low and level with a few isolated mountains, on some of which + the Dyaks have settled and planted many fruit trees which are a + great attraction to the orang, as his most desirable food seems to + be unripe fruit. The habitual habitat of the animal is in the lofty + virgin forests, in which they can roam in every direction with as + much facility as the Indian on the prairie, passing from treetop to + treetop without being obliged to descend to the earth. The orang + makes his way leisurely through the forest, with remarkable ease. + He walks deliberately along the larger branches, in a semi-erect + attitude which his great length of arm and the shortness of his legs + causes him naturally to assume. But this proportion between his limbs + is increased by his walking on his knuckles and not on the palm of + his hand. He chooses those branches which intermingle with those + of an adjoining tree. In approaching these he stretches out his + long arms, seizing the neighboring bough with both hands and then + deliberately swings himself across to the next branch, on which he + walks along as before. He never jumps or springs nor even appears to + hurry himself, yet he manages to get along almost as quickly as a + person can run through the forest beneath. The long powerful arms are + of greatest use to the animal, as they enable him to climb easily the + highest trees, to seize fruit and young leaves from slender boughs + which will not bear his weight and to gather leaves and branches from + which to form his nest at night. When wounded he endeavors to make + a nest in which to remain quiet, and similarly at night prepares a + resting place in the tree to sleep. He likes this place low down in + the tree, not over 20 or 30 feet from the ground, probably because in + this position it is warm and less exposed to the wind. + + The orang, it is said, makes a new nest for himself every night + or perhaps remakes an old one. In rainy weather the animal covers + himself with leaves or large ferns, and this may have led to the + belief that he actually builds huts in the trees. The animal does not + arise from his bed in the morning until the sun is well up and has + dried the dew upon the leaves. He seldom returns to the same tree two + days in succession. + + They have no particular fear of man, and only retreat slowly after + a considerable period of scrutinizing inspection. They do not have + so much of the gregarious tendencies as do the other large apes. Two + full-grown animals are seldom seen together, but males and females + are sometimes accompanied by half-grown young ones. At other times + three or four young animals are seen together. Their food consists + almost exclusively of fruits, leaves, buds and young shoots. They + seem to prefer the unripe fruit, even when very sour or intensely + bitter, the red fleshy arillus being a particular favorite. The orang + rarely descends to the ground except when pressed by hunger, when + it seeks the succulent shoots at the riverside. In very dry weather + it also comes down from the trees in quest of water, of which it + generally finds sufficient in the hollow of the leaves. They have + been seen upon the ground playing together, at which times they + assume the erect posture and grasp each other with their arms. + +Wallace believes that the orang seldom stands or walks erect unless +when using its hands to support itself by the branches overhead, or +when attacked. He also thinks that the representations of it walking +with a stick are quite imaginary. In its general demeanour the orang +would impress one as dull and apathetic. When seated among the branches +its back is bent, its head is bowed, and its long arms either reach +up to grasp a branch overhead or hang listlessly by its sides. Some +explorers have maintained that the animal builds huts for itself in the +trees. This is largely an exaggeration, but the orang has developed +an interesting technique for building itself a nest in the trees as +night approaches. Small branches are first laid crosswise to form a +framework, and over this a thick bed of leaves is placed. The orang is +quite fussy about the construction of its bedroom and takes good care +to cover itself up when the wind is chilly or the night stormy. Even in +captivity the animal is particular about the details of its bedchamber +and always manages to cover itself with straw or newspapers if it +happens to find them in the cage. + +The orang has other constructive tendencies. He often manifests some +engineering skill in devising supports for himself in his cage. With +these he will amuse himself by the hour, climbing upon the support, +dropping to the floor, and repeating the entire performance time after +time in as many different ways as he can. In one instance a young male +orang found a long rope hanging from the roof of his cage. He clung to +the rope by his left hand and both feet. With his free right hand he +passed the end of the rope around the bars, turned it through a right +angle, and pulled it tight. In this way he made an interesting perch +for himself. If anyone detached the rope he at once replaced it and +thus remade his perch. + +On the ground the orang is clumsy. He usually goes on all fours, and +his walking gait has been likened to that of a very old man bent down +by age, hobbling along with the aid of a cane. It is interesting to +note that in walking he goes on the outer borders of his feet. His +stride is short and shuffling. Even when hurrying he lopes along +rather than runs. Unlike the gibbons, the orang does not use his hand +as a drinking cup. His lower lip protrudes in a capacious trough for +collecting rain water. If given a pail of milk or water the orang lifts +the pail and pours the fluid into this trough and then swallows it. +When captured young the animals can be trained and taught to obey many +words of command. In time they get over their shyness and seem to like +human companionship. They are, however, easily frightened. Females when +pregnant separate themselves from the others and remain more or less in +seclusion until the young are born. The offspring grow slowly and, like +human infants, require the care of their mothers for a long time. When +the mother moves about the young one clings to the hair of her chest. +This is a marked characteristic of child care throughout the ape world. + + +_The Orang in Infancy_ + +Wallace recites an interesting experience which he had with a baby +orang whose mother was shot and killed by him in the forest the +preceding day. This experience is especially interesting because of +its many human resemblances. When Wallace stooped to pick up the +helpless infant orang that lay sprawling on its back, his long beard +was immediately seized by the grasping hands and feet of the youngster. +It was a long and painful ordeal to get away from this clinging infant. +The baby orang had but a single tooth, but soon its milk teeth began +to appear, much as in a human infant. The lack of milk on the island +made it difficult to feed the young ape. When a finger was placed in +its mouth it would suck with great vigour, drawing in its cheeks in +a vain effort to extract milk. After persevering for a long while it +would give up in disgust and start screaming, much as would a human +baby under similar circumstances. When handled or nursed it was always +quiet, but if laid down by itself it would invariably cry. It enjoyed +being rubbed after its morning bath and was quite happy while its hair +was being combed and brushed. + +For the first few days it clung desperately by all four hands to +everything it could reach, and Wallace remarks that it was necessary +for him to be cautious in keeping his beard out of the way. He felt +that the infant ape was lonely and needed companionship, so a little +harelipped monkey of the macacus variety was obtained as a playmate. It +was curious to see the difference in the actions of these two animals, +the one an offspring of a humbler monkey, the other born of one of +the great manlike apes. The two young ones were about the same age. +The orang, just like a human baby, would lie upon its back helplessly +rolling from side to side, stretching out all four hands into the air +and striving to grasp something, although hardly able to guide its +fingers to any desired object. When dissatisfied it opened wide its +almost toothless mouth and expressed its discomfort in an infantile +scream. The little macacus monkey, on the other hand, was constantly +on the go, running and jumping about, examining everything in sight, +taking hold of objects with greatest precision, balancing itself on the +edge of its box and searching everywhere for food. There could scarcely +be a greater contrast. One could hardly escape the conclusion that in +the orang, as in man, a long period of slow growth is necessary for +its final development. The advantages of such growth are sufficiently +apparent and need no further comment. + + +_Psychological Tests_ + +The orang-outang has not yet been so extensively subjected to +psychological study as its more sociable fellow ape, the chimpanzee. It +is fortunate, however, that at least one of this species has come under +the critical observation of an astute student of animal behaviour, +Professor Robert M. Yerkes, of Yale University. In his notable +contribution on the mental life of monkeys and apes, Professor Yerkes +has described certain tests devised for estimating the intelligence of +lower animals, and applied to the partly grown orang known as “Julius.” +These tests were devised on what is known as the “multiple choice +basis.” Julius, after many unsuccessful efforts to solve his problems +by the method of trial and error, quite unexpectedly seemed to get the +idea of what was wanted. He suddenly responded to the test without a +single mistake. He seemed to solve his problem quite as if he knew what +it was all about. It took him a long time, but at last he showed that +he was capable of some kind of thinking. The curve of learning as it +was charted day by day from the actions of Julius indicated that if he +had been a human subject his mental process would possibly have been +described as rational. Professor Yerkes feels justified in concluding +from this evidence that the orang solves his problems ideationally. +In general, Julius appeared to be far superior to other monkeys in +his intelligence. His mental processes were slow, but the method of +learning by ideas seemed to replace the simpler way of trial and +error which is common throughout the monkey world. Julius persistently +endeavoured, and often vainly, to gain some insight into a situation. +Even though slow, he showed nevertheless that the brain had at length +attained the development necessary for the production of real ideas. +However questionable this attainment may be in the monkeys or in other +lower animals, there seems to be little doubt about its existence in +the orang. + + +_Brains of the Gibbon and Orang_ + +Upon reviewing the facts concerning the gibbon and the orang, we may +ask certain questions. For example, does the real progress which these +two members of the ape world show in their capacity to do things +manifest itself as a measurable difference in their brains? Would it +be possible to maintain that these were indeed the brains of more +capable and more intelligent animals than the monkeys? Certain features +about the brain of the gibbon and the orang are striking. In the first +place, the pattern of their convolutions is more complicated. The +orang especially has more grooves and convolutions upon the surface +of the superbrain. It is believed, and many facts sustain the belief, +that convolutions indicate in a general way the capacity of an animal +to develop brain power. In the gibbon the increase in convolutions +is not so pronounced as in the orang, although it is not difficult +to see that in this respect the gibbon’s brain is much improved when +compared with lower monkeys. Upon identifying the familiar landmarks, +it is obvious that the groove of Sylvius, the central groove, and +even the ape groove form more decisive boundaries and outline more +prominent lobes than in macaque or baboon. The superbrain departments +for sight (occipital lobe), for hearing (temporal lobe), for body +and contact senses (parietal lobe), are all more extensive. Each +lobe, by the presence in it of smaller secondary grooves which do not +appear in the lower monkeys, shows how its capacity has expanded. The +grooves of the brain, in their arrangement, number, and relations, +now begin to assume an appearance similar to that of the human brain. +Each sense department in the orang is well organized. Each has gained +in prominence, thus indicating how the senses of sight and hearing, +and body and contact senses, have increased their capacity. By means +of its amplified sensory combinations the superbrain was eventually +capable of producing intelligent reactions. The area in front of the +central groove manifests the chief improvement. This is the part of +the brain in contact with the frontal bone. It has made some advances +in the gibbon but is still more prominent in the orang. At this stage +it is possible to speak of a well-developed frontal lobe acting as the +headquarters of all higher mental functions. The large increase in the +size of the orang’s brain is in some degree proportional to the size of +the animal’s body. Many other factors have actuated this expansion and +will receive special consideration in a subsequent chapter. + +If it were possible to reduce the difference in intelligence between +the orang and the gibbon to actual figures, the contrasts would be +marked. Certain estimations of this kind are significant. The bridge +(_pons Varolii_) on the base of the brain, which may be regarded as +an index of intelligence, has a value of .200 in the gibbon and .300 +in the orang. The pyramid, indicating the degree of skill in movement +attained by the animal, as well as the degree of controlling itself by +the dictates of its will, also shows a considerable difference. This +difference is again in favour of the orang, whose pyramid is estimated +at .160, while that of the gibbon is .138. + +Many other points indicating similar advantages held by the orang over +the gibbon might be cited. They have the same general meaning, namely, +that the orang possesses a better brain. In fact, all of the evidence +gathered from this animal reveals many manlike tendencies. Such +tendencies, both in brain and behaviour, first became notable in the +gibbon. At this stage they were not prominent features. They were, so +to speak, in a preparatory or pro-anthropoid phase. In the orang those +manlike tendencies foreshadowed by the gibbon became more definite and +better developed. They formed the foundations for new combinations out +of which was to emerge a still higher type of animal. + + + + +CHAPTER IX + +HUMAN IN MINIATURE + +THE BRAIN OF THE CHIMPANZEE + + +The chimpanzee has a well-established reputation for many sterling +qualities. He is a comedian of no mean talent, and often as a buoyant +fun maker earns a large salary. He is also famous as an acrobat. + +Depending upon his species, the chimpanzee varies in height from four +feet to four feet five inches. As a class these apes are spread out +over more territory than any of the other great anthropoids. They live +in West and Central Equatorial Africa ranging from Gambia in the north +as far south as Angola. In colour they are black with thick hair over +the entire body, except the brow and face. In some species the scalp +is bare, as in the bald-headed chimpanzee. All varieties are powerful +but lightly built animals. They possess great strength and agility. In +spite of his relatively short stature, the chimpanzee is a dangerous +enemy even for the strongest man. His head is flattened in the region +of the forehead, which has a thick bony ridge above the eyes. The ridge +of the nose is flat. The mouth is large and the lips thick. The ears +are especially large and project upward almost as high as the vertex of +the head. The lower jaw protrudes considerably. The teeth in general +are large and formidable, the canines in particular being prominent. +The skin over the face is usually dark, but in some species it is +lighter than surrounding areas. This is particularly true in the region +of the mouth and nose. The body is short and the abdomen pendulous. +The legs are shorter than the arms. The foot is short with a great toe +that is thick and opposable. The other toes are united by a web near +the base. The arms are long, with finger tips reaching a considerable +distance below the knees when the animal stands erect. The hands are +broad, the thumb is short, and the fingers webbed near their bases, as +in the case of the toes. As is true of the other great anthropoids, the +chimpanzee has no tail. The female bears one young at a time, which she +carries when passing through the forest and along the ground in the +manner characteristic of other apes. + + +_Intelligence of the Chimpanzee_ + +Concerning the habits of the chimpanzee in its native state little +is known. Fortunately, many of these animals have been captured when +young. Some of them have become noted circus performers, or famous +moving-picture actors. A number of them have been studied from the +standpoint of their behaviour and psychology. One of the best records +of the chimpanzee comes to us as an echo of the Great War. It furnishes +another instance of German thoroughness and scientific enterprise. + +Some years ago the Prussian Academy of Science established at Teneriffe +in the Canary Islands a special station equipped for the study of +the great manlike apes. It was here that Professor Köhler found +himself during the Great War and here he remained interned with nine +chimpanzees for two years. During this time he lived with these animals +largely shut off from the rest of the world by the naval blockade. +The report of his experience and studies is given in a delightful +narrative published both in English and German called _The Mentality +of Apes_. The following descriptions of the chimpanzee are taken from +Professor Köhler’s book. In this work his chief purpose was to test the +intelligence of the larger manlike apes. To this end it was necessary +to devise certain methods which he called “roundabout tests” because +they complicated ordinary situations in such a way as to require +intelligence on the part of the animal for their solution. + +Early in the study one of the most quick-witted chimpanzees in the +collection was given the following problem: From the roof of the +animals’ playground a basket of bananas was suspended by means of a +string passed through an iron ring. The end of this string was tied +in a noose and placed over the limb of an old tree at a height of +nine feet from the ground. When all was ready, the chimpanzee called +“Sultan” was sent out into the playground. He, of course, was familiar +with this basket and associated it with feeding time. On entering the +enclosure Sultan saw the basket at once and then began to manifest +signs of agitation because, contrary to custom, he was all alone in the +open. He began at once to show his feelings in true chimpanzee style. +Jumping about he expressed his extreme disapproval at being alone by +making a thundering noise with his feet against the wall of the ape +house. It seemed as if he were calling upon the other chimpanzees to +come out and join him. He even tried to get in communication with the +other animals by climbing up and looking in at their windows. But +all of this was to no avail. Presently he appeared to take a renewed +interest in the bananas. He looked up at the basket, and having sized +up the situation made for the tree, climbed quickly to the noose, +pulled the string until the basket bumped against the roof, released +the string, pulled it a second time even more vigorously, until a +banana fell to the ground. Sultan then left the tree, but soon ascended +once more, now to pull violently upon the string until it broke and the +entire basket fell. Immediately he scampered down, took the basket, and +went off in a corner to eat the fruit. Thus Sultan, in a comparatively +brief time, solved this roundabout problem by obtaining the objective +in spite of the obstacles put in his way. + + +_The Chimpanzee’s Use of Implements_ + +Many experiments were made to see how much the chimpanzees make use +of implements, but in the main these experiments were not necessary. +The chimpanzee, as if by nature, handles many objects in his immediate +surroundings in a variety of ways. His powerful hands serve in a +most natural manner as a useful link between him and the world of +things outside. His feet, although far more than a second pair of +hands, may be used in emergencies when the human feet would be quite +useless. The jaws and teeth are also serviceable, and are employed as +among many African tribes and other primitive people. The handling +of everyday objects by the chimpanzee comes almost entirely in the +nature of play. Sometimes under the pressure of need it appears that +new knowledge acquired from using objects at play will be put to still +better use in gaining some desired objective. In the main, however, +what the chimpanzee may use in this way is without the slightest idea +of immediate gain and serves only to increase the joy of living. +Thus jumping with the aid of a stick or pole, invented by one of the +brightest chimpanzees, was imitated by all the others as a means of +entertainment. Later it was put to more practical use for obtaining +food which was suspended above them and out of reach. In order to get +this food it was necessary to resort to some means of lifting their +body toward the desired goal. In the end the jumping with a stick in +play was converted to a sort of pole vaulting by means of which the +chimpanzees all acquired a thoroughly businesslike method for getting +such food as was out of reach over their heads. These chimps also used +straws and twigs as we use spoons. At first this was more or less in +play during mealtime, especially after their first thirst had been +quenched. Then they liked to amuse themselves by dipping the water up +with a straw and sucking the straw. Once some red wine was poured into +the drinking water which they shared in common. At the first taste of +this new mixture they all paused for a moment and looked at each other; +then one of the chimpanzees began to spoon up this wonderful drink +with a straw, and all the others immediately followed his example. In +learning to use twigs and straws for spoons there was no possibility of +imitation. None of the chimpanzees had a chance of seeing a human being +use a knife or spoon while eating. The twig or stick was also employed +quite deftly in other ways, adding to its usefulness as a table utensil +some of the properties of a weapon for the chase. In the summer time a +species of ant infests the part of the Canary Islands where these great +apes were housed. These ants passed in a wide stream, moving along +over the beams, around a wire netting which encircled the playground. +The chimpanzee has a great liking for acid fruit, which he prefers to +all others. It is no doubt for this reason that he relishes the formic +acid in the ants. Usually upon seeing the ants the chimpanzee simply +rolled his tongue along a beam over which they were crawling and thus +gathered them in to himself. If the wire netting came between him and +this coveted delicacy, such a method of capture would not suffice. In +consequence, all of the chimpanzees soon learned to use sticks and +straws, which they thrust through the wire netting and held in this +position until covered by ants. The straws were then withdrawn, and +the insects promptly licked off and devoured. This method of capture +proved most satisfactory and entertaining. Their attention was entirely +absorbed in the process of overcoming the obstacle between them and +the delicate morsels which they craved. + + +_Strong Human Resemblances_ + +If a mouse, a lizard, or some small crawling animal entered the +playground, the chimpanzees at once became greatly excited. They +manifested all of the hunting interest apparent in the human species +under like circumstances. There was also evidence of fear and timidity +on these occasions, not, however, confined to the female alone. Even +the bolder chimpanzees that evinced the greatest hunting interest did +not give chase with any creditable show of courage. They manifested +caution and hesitation throughout the entire performance. Nearly +every movement on the part of the poor quarry was followed by nervous +gestures of the chimps. The largest ones hesitated to make a capture +by a sudden snatch with the naked hand. It was amusing and almost +laughable to see these powerful apes stretch out their hands with the +evident intention of catching the prey, with fingers all pointed in +anticipation, then suddenly, on the slightest movement of the mouse +or lizard, quickly withdraw the hand again. A firm grasp upon one of +these little wriggling animals appeared almost as impossible for the +chimpanzees as for many people. Despite the great excitement which the +presence of invaders occasioned, the little animals would often escape +because the chimpanzees lacked that last degree of daring necessary to +make a successful capture. Presently they learned to use sticks upon +the small intruders of their domain. With these weapons, if the victim +did not escape, they would at length dispatch it. This they did in no +spirit of cruelty but rather in sheer excitement of the chase. + +Professor Köhler took great pains to observe the rapidity with which +the chimpanzees adjusted themselves when confronted by new conditions +for the first time in their lives. One of the most striking tests +of this kind was their introduction to the electric current. It was +decided to observe how the chimpanzees would act when they made the +acquaintance of this entirely new circumstance. For this purpose one +wire from an electric induction coil was attached to a metal basket +filled with bananas and suspended from the roof. The other wire from +the battery was made fast to a metal netting upon the ground beneath +the basket. In a short time all of the chimpanzees became intensely +interested in the fruit above their heads. They were particularly +eager to reach the bananas. To do so it was necessary for them to +stand upon the wire netting on the ground. At first one chimpanzee +approached cautiously. Having taken up his position with both feet +upon the wire netting, he reached slowly up to the metal basket. +This of course immediately made a connection which delivered an +electric current through his hand. The reaction of the chimpanzee was +astonishingly human. Immediately upon touching the basket he felt the +shock of the current and with a cry of dismay bounded off in great +surprise. His curiosity, however, was not yet satisfied. He still +had a hungry longing for the bananas. Everything about the situation +looked thoroughly familiar and innocent to him. He could see no reason +why the basket on this occasion should treat him so rudely or why he +experienced such an unpleasant sensation in trying to get his food as +he had done a hundred times before. Appetite and curiosity finally got +the upper hand, and stealing up cautiously he made a second attempt. +This time he was less hasty in grasping the basket and spent several +moments in hesitating attempts to touch it, drawing his hand back now +and again. At length, with a sudden grasp, he reached for the goal, +only to receive another shock. In apparent indignation he hopped away +in much the same manner as might any human being who had inadvertently +touched a hot stove. Nothing would do, however, but that all of the +chimpanzees in turn should follow the example of their leader and try +to get the bananas away from this strange thing that seemed to be +outwitting them. One after another they made their futile attempts +until it became a pathetic sight to see them sitting around in a +mournful ring, sometimes looking at their hands, sometimes shaking +them resentfully, and always gazing wistfully at the inaccessible +delicacies. Most of the chimpanzees during this test reacted in a +manner which might easily be called human. It was rather impressive to +observe that all of their reactions under these conditions were actual +counterparts of human behaviour. + + +_Chimpanzee Sports and Nest Making_ + +In handling other objects the chimpanzees showed a strong tendency to +develop new habits. After a time they did not confine themselves alone +to thrusting and hitting with sticks. They soon began to throw them +around. In moments when they were greatly pleased (and chimpanzees +have a joyful, buoyant nature) they showed their delight in a new way, +especially when very good food was being provided. On such occasions +one of them would seize another and shake him violently out of sheer +pleasure and approval. Under such provocation a large chimpanzee +developed the habit of taking a stick and flinging it forcefully +at some comrade in his vicinity. This frequently happened in play +also. One female, a remarkable athlete called “Chica,” developed the +amusing pastime of stealing up behind her companions as they sat +quietly at rest, and from fairly close quarters hurling a stick at +them. Immediately she would scurry off, apparently much delighted by +the discomfort that she had caused. From throwing sticks it was but a +short step to throwing handfuls of sand at one another, and finally +stones of varied size and weight. At first their aim was poor, but soon +throwing stones became a ruling passion among them, and some of them +became dangerously expert, especially the wily Chica. She practised so +continuously that she soon acquired great skill and an excellent aim. +From this pastime she appeared to derive much satisfaction, whether +hurling stones at her fellow apes or at her human associates. Both +ape and man acquired such a genuine respect for her ability in this +regard that whenever they found her in this mood they quickly retired +to safety and permitted the expert marksman to find her amusement on +less sensitive targets. All of these hurling activities, which were in +the nature of play, might for a few moments determine an exciting stone +battle. But the sharpshooting Chica was so obviously superior that the +fray was certain to be short lived. + +Almost all of the chimpanzees made nests for themselves, even from the +earliest infancy onward. In these operations, as might be expected, +the full-grown chimpanzee made the best beds. It may not be altogether +clear why the adult female was the best chambermaid of all. Her +efforts in bed making did in fact show a precision in tidiness that +was unequalled by any of the others. Usually in the evening, as the +strenuous play of the day subsided, all of the apes began to gather +heaps of straw. In the centre of each heap a chimpanzee would sit +quietly and begin to twist the ends of the straw together. This work +continued all around the edge until a natural nest, not unlike that of +the stork, was formed. The younger animals in their nest making were +less exact. They seldom made so neat a turning down of the outer edges, +but on some occasions, when they apparently took more pains with their +handiwork, their movements during the preparation of the nest were +exactly like those of the older females. Nests were often made during +the day in pure fun, and many different materials, such as string, +grass, branches, rags, ropes, and even wire, were collected for this +purpose. It was quite evident that in their nest-making activities the +younger chimpanzees imitated the actions of the older ones. + + +_Clowning and Masquerade_ + +Objects of many kinds interested these apes. They seemed particularly +fond of carrying quite a variety of rubbish about on the body in one +way or another. Nearly every day some of the animals began walking +around the playground with a piece of rope, a bit of rag, a blade of +grass, or a twig upon the shoulders. Some of them if given a bit of +metal chain would put it proudly around their necks like a necklace. +Bushes and brambles were often carried in considerable quantities +spread out over the entire back. In these actions they affected a +manner that revealed tendencies familiar to human masquerading in +grotesque or fantastic costumes. One of the chimpanzees contracted the +habit of carrying around empty preserve cans by grasping the lid of the +can between his teeth. All of this occupation was done as diversion +or entertainment, from which the chimpanzees derived much visible +pleasure. The clowning actions of these apes clearly held the attention +of those not actively participating in the performances, and many of +them, like little children, attempted to imitate the antics of the +leader. When dressed up in these various ways the chimpanzees often +displayed an almost impish self-important audacity, strutting about +among their companions or advancing upon them in a menacing way. One +of the older females, attired for play, would trot around in a circle +with several of the smaller animals following closely at her heels. +Sometimes the entire company playing in this fashion would march around +in a circle, one behind the other. The largest animal would stamp its +foot at each step, as though beating time for the parade. The other +animals followed suit by an accentuation of the marching movements. + + +_Manufacture and Building_ + +Not only did the chimpanzees acquire many ways for employing objects +which they encountered, but some of them actually went one step +farther. They manifested a degree of ingenuity in constructing special +implements for themselves. The results of this constructive industry, +it must be admitted, were relatively simple. On the other hand, there +can be no doubt that the chimpanzee does manufacture instruments, in a +modest way, which help him to gain his ends. One of the most talented +apes learned to fit a small piece of bamboo into the cavity at the +end of a larger piece. In this way he built a long bamboo pole, which +was especially useful for procuring food hung above his head and out +of reach. All of the chimpanzees ultimately developed some degree of +constructive or engineering ability. They actually became builders on +a small scale. This ability grew out of their learning to use boxes +in order to reach objects over their heads. Using one box led to the +advantage of piling one box on top of another and thus constructing +a tower. They were not all equally expert as builders. As might be +expected, the more quick-witted and alert members of the group learned +how to build first, and this they did entirely of their own initiative. +After they had built a tower of this kind, the long bamboo stick came +in handy as a means to bring the suspended banana to the ground. +Here two modes of solving a problem were combined--that of building, +and that of using the long pole. Building operations soon became a +favourite pastime; yet in spite of the fact that they were given every +opportunity they never developed an efficient labour organization. +However helpful united efforts may have been toward their ultimate +aim, the chimpanzees failed to realize the advantages of a mutual aid +society. There was doubtless a reason for their lack of intelligence +in developing higher efficiency in this respect. Almost invariably +their building operations were dictated by a desire to obtain food +that was out of their reach. Among the chimpanzees this goal was in no +sense a mutual interest. It was a matter of the utmost selfish concern +to each chimpanzee. So whatever advantage there might have been in a +division of labour, there was never a thought of dividing the spoils. +When the chimpanzees gravely assembled in the presence of a basket of +food hung up over their heads, they gazed about for proper materials +to use as tools in reaching the desired goal. One would bring a pole; +another would drag up a box. These were put in position preparatory to +constructing a tower. The building would then begin in earnest. When +the first stages of construction were complete several of the animals +at the same time would show great impatience to clamber up. Each one +of them acted as if either he or she were the sole proprietor of the +structure. Often, too, the box already in position would be snatched +away by some competitive group in the building industry and dragged off +to be used in the construction of a rival tower. This would usually +result in a wrangle among the architects. In fact, the entire company +of builders might come to blows over this infringement of property +rights. After the subsidence of these Babel-like controversies the +building would be resumed and the structure would continue to grow +in height until it became an object of ever-increasing excitement to +the assembled workers, each manifesting a keen desire to mount it. In +consequence of this highly individualistic competition and due to their +restless efforts, the tower would sometimes tumble over and the result +of their labours be destroyed. Then it was necessary to begin all +over again. Usually in this renewed effort only the more diligent and +patient of the chimpanzees adhered to the original purpose. The others +became interested in more trivial occupations. Eventually the tower +was finished, and the more diligent as well as the more patient of the +toilers quietly mounted to the summit of the structure and, either +with or without the aid of the pole, obtained the coveted bananas. +Sometimes, however, just when the diligent one was ready to reap the +just reward of his efforts, some member of the group endowed with +unusual athletic prowess rushed up stealthily and with great speed to +the top of the tower and seized the prize before the rightful winner +had time to protest or retaliate. In all of this building enterprise +there is something so fundamentally human, so reminiscent of modern +methods, that it seems inaccurate to class these reactions too rigidly +in the category of ape behaviour. + + +_Emotions of the Chimpanzee_ + +The chimpanzee, according to Professor Köhler, has a range of +expression of emotion even greater than that of the average human +being. The chimp shows his feelings by his entire body, not merely +by his facial expressions. It is his custom to jump up and down both +in joyful anticipation and in anger or annoyance. In extreme despair +or disgust, which the animal shows on slight provocation, he has the +habit of flinging himself upon his back, rolling wildly to and fro, +swinging and waving his arms about his head in a frantic manner not, +on the whole, very different from the way in which some non-European +races manifest their disappointment and dejection. The chimpanzee is +not known to weep, nor does he laugh in quite the human sense of the +term. There is something approaching human laughter in his rhythmical +gasping and grunting when he is tickled. While quietly watching objects +that seem particularly pleasing (and his greatest delight comes from +observing little children) the face of the chimpanzee, especially +around the mouth, has an expression not unlike a human smile. When +perplexed or in doubt, he has a way of scratching the surface of his +body, especially the arms, breast, or upper portions of the thigh. +It has not been stated that during these moments of perplexity he +scratches the head, as is the common human custom. He conveys his +meaning not only of emotional distaste but also of definite desires. +The expression of his wishes is in large part shown by direct imitation +of the actions desired. Thus, when one chimp wishes to be accompanied +by another, he gives the latter a nudge and pulls him by the hand. If +one chimpanzee wishes to receive bananas from another, he imitates the +movement of snatching or grasping accompanied by pleading glances. The +summoning of another chimpanzee from a considerable distance is often +accompanied by a beckoning that is very human in character. Their many +actions in all instances are characteristic enough to be understood by +their comrades. + + +_Surgical Interests_ + +The chimpanzee is especially prone to pay close attention to the wounds +or injuries received by his fellows. The motive of this attention may +scarcely be called mutual aid. The removal of splinters from each +other’s hands and feet is a favourite clinical operation. In this +pursuit the chimpanzee employs methods usually in vogue among the human +laity. Two finger nails are pressed on either side of the splinter, +which is thus elevated until it may be caught and removed by the teeth. +Professor Köhler himself, once having suffered from such an accident, +ventured to allow one of the chimpanzees to remove the splinter from +his hand. On perceiving the condition, the chimpanzee’s face at once +assumed an expression of eager intensity, and his attention became +concentrated in preparation for his surgical efforts. He seized the +hand, examined the wound, forced out the splinter with two somewhat +powerful squeezes of his finger nails, and then closely examined the +hand to be satisfied that his work was well done. + + +_Morals Among Chimpanzees_ + +There is much of interest in the experiences of another distinguished +observer, Dr. Charles F. Sonntag, formerly Prosector of the Zoölogical +Society of London, who has called attention to the fact that the +chimpanzee is said to be filthy in its habits. He observed that many +of these animals in captivity do not manifest such traits, nor do they +show any tendency toward immoral behaviour as has been claimed. It +seems unfortunate even to imply that such a delinquency as immorality +exists among chimpanzees or, for that matter, any of the lower mammals. +But since the point has been raised, it may be well to recall that +morals are of human making. They are designed to modify, to restrain, +or to prevent the development of certain animal tendencies which are a +human heritage from the great animal kingdom. If the chimpanzee in any +of its actions tends to depart from the code of morality established by +man in one part of the world or another, this can be no reproach to +the ape, since man himself has not yet been completely successful in +building up a system of restrictive laws to protect himself from the +devastations of his own animal inheritance. + +Professor Köhler, from his long studies of the chimpanzees, concluded +that these apes manifest intelligent behaviour of a general kind +familiar in human beings. Not all of their intelligent acts are similar +to human acts, but by means of well-chosen tests the character of +intelligent conduct can always be traced in the chimpanzee. These apes +differ among themselves just as much as people do, in their mentality +and intelligence. Some of them may be mentally deficient, just as +there are mentally deficient human beings. One remark of Professor +Köhler’s is a keen social criticism with a wide application to life +in general. He maintains that the tests designed for the chimpanzee +serve two purposes: First, they determine the intelligence of the +apes; and, second, they test the intelligence of the examiner. This is +eminently true in all intellectual contacts between human beings. It is +a fact that the chimpanzees stand out among all other animals in their +form, in their actions, and in their understanding. In these respects +they come much closer to the human standard than any other ape, with +the possible exception of the gorilla. All of these observations +agree well with the theory of evolution, and in particular with the +close relations existing between the growth of intelligence and the +development of the brain. + +Many other chimpanzees have been studied from time to time. The +conclusions drawn from them have been closely similar to those already +cited. Romanes some years ago studied the trained chimpanzee, Sally, +which was famous for her high degree of intelligence. Under training +this animal acquired the ability to count. She could draw a number of +straws to six or seven, and upon request would indicate with straws +the exact number she had been instructed to show. This achievement, +in combination with many other extraordinary performances, reveals +certain striking likenesses to man, particularly as to the degree of +the chimpanzee’s power to learn. + + +_The Chimpanzee’s Social Traits_ + +Others besides Professor Köhler are willing to give the chimpanzee +credit for unusual good-fellowship. All admit that he is a most +friendly creature. Often an affectionate attachment exists between him +and his owner or keeper. He is never loath to indulge in his clowning +performances to please and entertain his human friends. His actions +on these occasions have doubtless been the models for the ludicrous +mimicry of olden times now generally referred to as “aping.” In many +of the army encampments in Africa, monkeys and apes have been the +much-prized pets of the officers. It was not uncommon to find among +these pets the highly sociable chimpanzee. Frequently the officers +manifested much zeal and interest in training their charges and felt +a real pride in exhibiting them. Sometimes on gala occasions these +simian pets occupied places at the table beside their owners. They +partook in most approved style both of food and of drink. Not a +few of them have shown a distinctly human characteristic in their +strong liking for intoxicating liquors. The chimpanzee has always had +a decided penchant in this direction. At mess dinners and on other +occasions he not only manifested a keen liking for good wines but took +his share with the rest. Often he, like his human companions, rose to +hilarious heights. Often, too, it was necessary to lead him off to +bed in such a deplorable condition that he would appear next morning +with a shaky hand on his brow and that sad expression which plainly +told the consequences of festive revelry. One of these chimpanzees had +a particular fondness for afternoon tea and would join the officers’ +group at this time as a matter of course. His manners were altogether +agreeable. He acquired all of the airs essential to such occasions even +to certain banal chatterings. + + +_In Prophecy of the Human Brain_ + +If doubts should remain concerning the superior and almost manlike +capacities of the chimpanzee, these may be soon put at rest by +inspection of his brain. In this organ there are indications of the +means by which the chimpanzee has acquired his new and extensive +powers of learning, his greater understanding, his higher capacity for +adjustments to life, and his many reactions which are so nearly human. + +Every sense department in the superbrain has shown pronounced +improvements. A survey of the chimpanzee’s brain shows it to be a +mechanism better organized for the purposes of efficient output than +that of other apes and monkeys. It is a larger brain. It also has a +greater richness in grooves and convolutions showing that its capacity +for developing brain power has been much increased. The groove of +Sylvius has been tipped backward in consequence of expansions in the +department of hearing and the department of body and contact senses. +In the department of hearing (the temporal lobe) the convolutions are +more complex than in any other lower apes or monkeys. In fact, the +entire pattern of coil arrangement in this part of the superbrain +is similar to that seen in man. It has, perhaps, a simpler design, +but the essential features of the pattern may all be identified. In +the department of sight the same principle of expansion has been at +work. The convolutions in the occipital lobe have increased both in +number and complexity of arrangement. There are more grooves and more +convolutions in this region than we have yet encountered. Such also is +the case in the department for body and contact senses (the parietal +lobe), in which the grooves and convolutions manifest an arrangement +identical to that of man. The lesser brain, lying as it does tucked +away beneath the occipital pole of the superbrain, also shows marked +increase in size, so that the subsidiary department essential to +postures of the limbs and body, and also to balance, has kept pace +with the superbrain. Appraised on the value of its great working +departments, a brain like this reveals the manner in which progressive +development has advanced. + +The organization for transacting the functions of hearing has been +greatly improved, if we judge by the enlargement of the temporal lobe. +Furthermore, it appears that certain sub-departments for handling +these transactions have been established. They doubtless have to do +with a better filing system for auditory impressions and especially +for correlating the impressions of things heard with similar records +of things seen. This method of cross reference produces a better +understanding of all objects encountered in the surroundings. A +practical illustration may assist in visualizing the manner in which +such associations operate. If in their home life the chimpanzees +are suddenly startled by the report of a gun, which they have never +heard before, the entire family may be greatly perturbed by the +harsh and unfamiliar sound. The sound alone might be startling and +disagreeable, but the sound cross referenced by the sight of the +hunter and gun comes to mean peril. Instances of this kind might be +multiplied to show how essential to success in life this system of +cross reference is. In fact, it is the amplification of this system +that underlies our progress as individuals or as a race. The structural +signs of this progress are to be found in the region of the brain +that we have been discussing. We may recognize them in the increased +number of convolutions which provide for better development of brain +power. Equally pronounced are the advances that have taken place in +the organization of body and contact senses. This department lies +immediately above the Sylvian groove in the parietal lobe. It receives +all communications transmitted from the outside world by the sense +of touch and by the various movements of the body. The convolutions +in this region indicate a highly organized department which we might +expect in view of the remarkable performances of the chimpanzee. +Walking a tight rope, eating his food with a certain degree of good +manners, drilling to music, or driving an automobile, the chimpanzee +clearly demonstrates how expert he has become in the use of his hands +and feet. His cleverness depends upon his ability to sense the things +he touches and to appreciate the finest grades of motion made by his +arms and legs. In addition to this high degree of sensing in his hands, +he has also acquired greater capacity for appreciating movements and +postures of his entire body. Unless the chimpanzee had this expanded +department for body and touch senses, it would be impossible for him +to learn many of the performances which he does so skillfully. He also +would be unable to apply this skill under the direction of his masters +or according to the dictates of his own wishes. It is not difficult to +understand, therefore, why all the great departments of the senses have +increased so much in size in the chimpanzee. Obviously, by amplifying +and refining the raw materials received as sense impressions, the +output seen in the chimpanzee’s behaviour has been correspondingly +amplified and extended. The significance of growth in the parietal, the +occipital, and the temporal lobes in this light becomes clear. + +One important detail in the superbrain of the chimpanzee we have not +yet considered. It will be recalled that the central groove is one +of the salient landmarks in the brain. Its outstanding importance +arises from the fact that it is the boundary line of the frontal +lobe. All of the territory lying in front of this groove represents +the last acquired department of the superbrain, the one having the +highest authority. It is here that all of the highest brain functions +are located. Judgment and reason are included in this list. But to +these should be added the ability to profit by experience in the +better guidance of life, the upbuilding of personality, and the +proper adjustment in all courses of action requiring initiative, +insight, restraint, and self-control; and, finally, recognition of +responsibility and appreciation of opportunity. + +The frontal territory in the chimpanzee is more extensive than in the +orang or any other of the lower apes. It shows an additional amount of +convolution. The frontal coils for producing the brain power of this +highest department have attained a development not far below that of +man. The counterpart of each human convolution is present, the only +difference being that each individual convolution in the chimpanzee is +less complex than in man. These facts about the frontal lobe, which we +must regard as the permanent headquarters of the chief executive of +the superbrain, are in harmony with what Professor Köhler and other +students of animal psychology have told us about the chimpanzee’s +intelligence. Man’s frontal lobe is a highly complex facsimile of the +chimpanzee’s, just as human intelligence is a more complex development +of the higher mental powers. + +These improvements in the superbrain are borne out by both the +bridge and the pyramid. The bridge, recognized as a reliable index +of intelligence, has the value of .400 in the chimpanzee, a rating +much above the orang or any of the lower apes already considered. The +pyramid also shows a corresponding increase, having a value of .172, +and thus indicating a greater development in skilled acts and in the +voluntary control over the actions of the body. These two structures +show that the superbrain has, in fact, become a more efficient governor +for the guidance of a larger, a more complex, and a more effective +machine. Every detail in the brain of chimpanzee clearly demonstrates +the marked advance that has been made in the steady upward climb. We +are able to identify all of the chief features characteristic of the +human brain. + + + + +CHAPTER X + +ALMOST HUMAN + +THE BRAIN OF THE GORILLA + + +The largest member of the ape world is the gorilla. There is much +dispute to-day concerning the place he occupies in relation to man, +and also as to what rating his intelligence deserves. Neither of these +questions can be settled at present. His case, in fact, requires much +more study than has yet been given to it. Recently the gorilla has +been befriended by several famous African explorers like the Bradleys +and the late Mr. Carl Akeley. They have given him a rather favourable +recommendation as an inoffensive and retiring animal. In spite of this +vindication, however, most persons who have any acquaintance with him +regard the gorilla as a dangerous, savage brute. Standing upright, he +is nearly as tall as the average man. Sometimes his height reaches six +feet, and often the adult male attains the great weight of nearly four +hundred pounds. + + +_A Superlative Fighting Machine_ + +The body of the gorilla is stout and large. His legs are short but +his arms are extremely long. When standing erect the tips of his +fingers reach to about the middle of the leg below the knee. His huge +and grizzly head, flat, broad nose, prominent muzzle, large mouth, +very large canine teeth, and protruding ears all give the animal a +terrifying appearance. + +The manner in which he rises on his hind legs and makes the forest +reverberate with his roars when attacked is one reason why the gorilla +is considered the most savage of all beasts. His hands are large and +thickly covered with black hair on the back. The palms of the hands +have no hair. They possess many grooves and markings with strong human +resemblances. The thumb is somewhat short for the size of the hand, +but is thick and bears a broad nail. The animal’s body as well as the +head up to the brow line is covered with thick, black, shaggy hair. The +skull is massive and heavy. The eyes are surmounted by a heavy ridge +of bone, and a thick bony crest extends from the bridge of the nose to +the back of the skull along the middle of the head. All of these bony +structures provide the gorilla with a most effective fighting helmet. +The massive head, the short neck, the powerful arms, and the savage +teeth create the impression of a superlative fighting machine--a sort +of dreadnaught. But this machine has one inherent weakness. The feet +and legs are inadequate for a finished fighter. The gorilla is able +to assume the upright position and walks thus in an awkward manner, +using the arms in balancing. In the main, however, he goes on all +fours, especially when making speed through the underbrush or climbing +among the trees. He rises upon his hind legs largely for purposes of +inspection in order to make a survey of the surrounding territory. + +Many species have been identified. They all live in Africa. One variety +inhabits the Gaboon in West Africa. It also extends into regions of +southern and northern Cameroon, near the border of the French Congo. +This variety of gorilla is especially adapted for forest life. Another +type, sometimes spoken of as the mountain gorilla, inhabits mountainous +localities in the Belgian Congo. + + +_The Gorilla’s Ancient Disrepute_ + +The gorilla has been long and unfavourably known to mankind. Ancient +rumour of him spread abroad many unsavoury reports about his savage +disposition. In the Fifth Century B. C. gorillas were first spoken of +as wild, hairy men living in Africa. The Carthaginian Admiral Hanno, +in his famous voyage to the Pillars of Hercules, appears to have been +the first white man to encounter them. He and his comrades unexpectedly +came upon a group of these wild people. All of the men fought so +savagely that they made their escape, but Hanno and his friends were +able to capture three of the women. These females were so ferocious +and unfriendly that it was necessary to kill them. Their skins were +preserved, taken to Carthage, and there placed in the Temple of Juno, +where they were held sacred until that city was destroyed. + +The famous explorer, Paul Du Chaillu, in his _Explorations and +Adventures in Equatorial Africa_ describes the gorilla as gregarious. +He found them going about in companies of eight or ten. Sometimes the +older males become superannuated. Then they live solitary lives apart +from these small communities. When grown old they appear actually +grizzled with age, and the hair, which in youth is black, becomes +almost white. Du Chaillu was probably the first European to kill a +gorilla in its native forest. His description of their habits was +thought to be an exaggeration, but later information largely upholds +his opinion. He believed that the gorilla did not, as often claimed, +lurk in the trees just above the roadside in order to reach down with +his great arms and snatch up the unsuspecting passer-by. He discredited +the ancient story that these animals attack elephants and beat them +to death with sticks, and that they carry off native women to devour +them in the depths of the forest. He did not even believe that the +gorilla built itself houses or nests from twigs among the trees, or +that large bands of them made attacks upon men whose homes were in the +neighbourhood of the forest. Du Chaillu reported that the gorilla lives +in the loneliest portions of the dense African jungle. It is seldom +found in the same place two days in succession. It prefers deep wooded +valleys or rugged heights and roams about over a large area in search +of food. It consumes a large amount of food, such as pineapple leaves, +berries, wild sugar cane, and other vegetable matter. The animal sleeps +sitting on the ground with its back against the trunk of a tree, and +when full-grown seldom ascends high among the branches. The young sleep +in the trees, and possibly the females may occasionally do so. + + +_Like Some Monster of a Nightmare_ + +In spite of their reputation to the contrary, the gorillas are in +reality shy. The female will run to shelter at the first sound of +alarm, carrying her young one with her. The male, however, is less +hurried in his retreat. In fact, he seems to act upon the theory that +the best defense is an attack. He rises up on his hind legs for a +moment, showing his savage face among the underbrush. Then, glaring at +the intruder, he begins to beat his chest with his closed fists, at +the same time uttering a deep, terrifying roar. This sound begins at +first as several loud barks like those of a dog and then changes to a +deep-throated growl, which is emitted with redoubled force, causing +echoes in the forest like distant thunder. Du Chaillu said that the +horror of the animal’s appearance at this time is beyond description. +It seems like some monster of a nightmare, an indescribable piece of +hideousness. + +In walking, the gorilla waddles from side to side as he proceeds upon +his hind legs. Meanwhile, in order to balance himself, he swings his +great arms at his sides, which makes him appear more determined and +awe-inspiring. When attacking, his features are distorted by hideous +wrinkles, and his lips are drawn back revealing long fangs in the +powerful jaws by which a human limb could easily be crushed. + +The celebrated African explorer, Mr. Akeley, has pointed out that there +is no difficulty in shooting the gorilla. In fact, against modern +firearms this animal is as defenseless as a crippled woman. Such +hunting is thoroughly distasteful and seems to be an atrocity closely +akin to murder. It was due to Mr. Akeley’s efforts that the King of +Belgium recently set aside a large territory in the Congo as a gorilla +sanctuary, in which all hunting of this animal is prohibited. Here, in +the vicinity of the three extinct volcanoes, Mt. Keno, Mt. Karissimbi, +and Mt. Visake, Mr. Akeley hoped that a biological station might be +established for the further study of the gorilla’s behaviour. In this +sanctuary, now known as Albert National Park, he believed it would +be possible to gain a footing on close and intimate terms with this +gigantic ape. Mr. Akeley was convinced that the gorilla’s reputation +for ferocity was greatly exaggerated, and that the animal was actually +a timid and retiring beast. This new estimate of the gorilla’s +disposition gives encouragement to the expectation that in time this +fast-disappearing offshoot of the prehuman stock may furnish its full +testimony concerning the evolutionary process. + + +_Training the Young Gorilla_ + +In adult life the gorilla is untamable. If captured young, as much may +be done with it as with many other apes in captivity. The following +account of a gorilla’s life in civilization, given by Miss Alyse +Cunningham, of London, testifies to this fact. It is the story of the +young gorilla called “John Daniel the First.” The record was made by +Miss Cunningham herself. At first she had no fancy for this animal; in +fact, she felt rather a dislike for anything in the shape of a monkey +or an ape, but she soon became interested in the young gorilla and took +his education seriously in hand. The animal was presented to her by her +nephew, Major Penny, shortly after the end of the Great War. He was +much interested in apes and bought the gorilla with the idea of seeing +how much mentality it possessed and how much it could be developed. +John Daniel was captured when very young in the French Gaboon country +and came to England when he was about three years of age. Major Penny +first saw the young gorilla on exhibition, during the Christmas +holidays, in a large show window of a well-known shop in London. The +animal attracted much attention and large crowds gathered daily to +watch him. As a dry-goods advertisement he was a splendid investment, +but unfortunately at that time he was suffering from rickets. With +the severe changes of weather in the Christmas season he contracted +an attack of influenza. On this account his owners were compelled to +retire him from his advertising post and found themselves at their +wit’s end to know what to do with this sick infant gorilla. When he was +finally sold to Major Penny his original owners did not think he would +survive for very long. In this respect their calculations went astray. +Miss Cunningham took the sickly gorilla, nursed him as she would a +child, brought him through his influenza, and so successfully cared +for him that during the next three years he reached the weight of 112 +pounds and the height of three feet four and a half inches. Meanwhile, +he acquired many of the habits and adjustments necessary to fit him as +an interesting if somewhat unusual member of the household. + + +_John Daniel the First_ + +We are indebted to Miss Cunningham for the excellent account of his +life, which indicates the extent to which this great ape may be +trained and educated. Little John, immediately after his recovery from +influenza, began to show some singularly childlike emotions. He was +gentle and affectionate in response to the tender care he received. But +he became too much attached to his new and kind friends. His devotion +in this respect created some difficult situations in the household. +If he were left by himself at night he would shriek from fear and +loneliness. Perhaps he remembered the long and cheerless nights when +he was a Christmas exhibit in the department store. In any event, +Miss Cunningham was forced to treat him just as she would any little +child. She coaxed and soothed and petted him until she had allayed his +fears. Then he would become quiet and fall asleep. But even this was +not sufficient. It soon became necessary to place her nephew’s bed +in the room adjoining the cage of the gorilla. Apparently he craved +companionship of some kind and at length became quite happy under this +new arrangement. + +John soon began to grow and to put on weight. He gradually got over his +rickets. At first he was taught to be clean in his habits by a system +of rewards and punishments. At the end of six weeks he was thoroughly +housebroken. At this time he was taken out of his cage and allowed the +freedom of the house. Thereafter, John would always run upstairs to the +bathroom of his own accord. He would turn the knob of a door and took +pains to see that he always left it closed behind him. He showed strong +likes and dislikes in the matter of food. There was one feature that +always puzzled Miss Cunningham in this respect. Generally speaking, +John was not a thief. He manifested average honesty, but when it came +to food he much preferred to steal it than have it given to him. It +was difficult to understand the motive underlying this course of +action. There were some things about it that seemed to indicate a real +satisfaction derived from stealing, due, perhaps, to an outcropping of +his native cunning. Perhaps it was the consequence of a well-recognized +quality of natural aloofness characteristic of the gorilla in general +that made John Daniel averse to receiving favours from others. He would +always avoid any food that had been exposed to the air for long. He +was particularly fond of oranges and apples, but would never eat them +if they had been cut a few hours. John had what almost amounted to a +passion for eating roses. The more beautiful they were, the more he +seemed to like them, but nothing would induce him to eat faded roses. +Nuts he did not much care for, although at times he showed a liking for +walnuts. A cocoanut was always a problem to him. It was most amusing to +see how he went about this problem. He understood that it was necessary +to break the cocoanut. First he would throw it upon the floor, but +failing to break it this way he would finally bring it to one of the +members of the family with an appealing look for help. If given a +hammer he would use it viciously on the nut, but never effectively. +After several failures John would take the nut and the hammer to +someone, indicating what he wanted. + + +_John’s Social Behaviour_ + +John had a good understanding of tools, almost too good, in fact. In +consequence, hammers, chisels, and saws were kept in hiding, and if +John happened to find them he was apt to indulge in a somewhat ruthless +carpentry on the household furniture. From his babyhood, and while he +was growing up, he was always fond of people. He liked to have them +come to visit him at his home. Far from being timid and shy, he was +quite the reverse. Whenever there were visitors he always liked to show +off, just like a child. He would take the visitor by the hand and lead +him round and round the room. This amused John greatly, and if his +guest responded playfully all went well, but if there was any sign of +nervousness or fear John took an impish delight and would run by the +visitor, giving him a smack on the leg. Then, perching himself on a +chair, he would grin foolishly at his own mischief. This was the only +blemish on his company manners, and he always appeared a bit shamefaced +when rebuked for such misbehaviour. He did not, however, go the length +of making apologetic overtures to his offended visitor, but kept +himself aloof with an air of injured innocence. + +Miss Cunningham had few misgivings about John when she had company in +the home. He was always very obedient to her and seemed to recognize +that her wishes were law. It hurt him apparently to be guilty of +any act which caused her displeasure, and while sometimes he would +perpetrate some mischief on the sly he would always be on his best +behaviour when he felt Miss Cunningham’s eye upon him. His table +manners were rather good. He always sat at the table, and when the +meal was ready would pull up his chair to the designated place. He +never cared for great quantities of food, and his actions at table +required little, if any, more reproval than did an ordinary child. He +was especially fond of drinking water from a tumbler. He always took +afternoon tea with the family. He had a particular liking for this +beverage and with it would eat a thin slice of bread with plenty of +jam. He also liked his demi-tasse of coffee after dinner. The family +estimate of him was generally high. He was regarded as the least greedy +of all the animals that had ever come under the observation of his +owners. He would never snatch for anything at the table, and he always +ate slowly. He was accustomed to drink large quantities of water, +which he got for himself whenever he wanted it by turning on the tap. +Strangely enough, he always turned off the water when he had finished +drinking. + + +_A Gorilla with a Sense of Humour_ + +John Daniel had a very good opinion of himself. He was quite well +poised and self-contained. Nothing seemed to ruffle him, and he could +amuse himself in simple ways by the hour. He seemed to believe that his +own estimate of himself was shared by others and appeared confident +that everyone was delighted to see him. Often he would stand on the +window sill and throw up the shade. In a short time a large crowd +would collect on the street below to watch this unusual sight at the +window. He enjoyed such publicity immensely and would stand watching +the people for a long time. Once in a while, if the crowd grew very +large, he would pull the shade down deliberately in their faces and run +away shrieking with laughter, in a way which seemed to indicate that +he was conscious of having perpetrated a huge joke upon his audience +outside. Of course, this entire reaction and the motives underlying it +are open to several interpretations. Skeptics will say that the version +here given endows the gorilla with attributes more human than he could +possibly possess. However that may be, those who actually observed +these performances were impressed by the fact that John Daniel did act +in a seemingly human manner. + + +_Fondness for Little Children_ + +John was especially attached to Miss Cunningham’s three-year-old +niece, who often came with her mother to stay at the house. They +would play together by the hour. The gorilla seemed to know just what +this little girl wanted him to do. If she cried for any reason, when +her mother came to pick her up, John would give the mother’s hand a +nip with his teeth or slap her with the full weight of his palm, +apparently thinking that she was the cause of the child’s grief. One +day Miss Cunningham was dressed for going out, and John Daniel wished +to sit on her lap to bid her good-bye. It chanced that her gown was a +light-coloured one, and she pushed him away, saying that she feared he +might soil her dress. Poor John was deeply distressed. At once he lay +down on the floor and cried like a baby for a moment. Then he looked +around the room, found a newspaper, laid it on Miss Cunningham’s lap, +and climbed up on it. This was the cleverest thing he had ever done. +Those who saw it said they would not have believed it had they not +themselves been present. + + +_Like a Child in Play_ + +John Daniel apparently could stand a good deal of cold weather. He +would often climb out on the roof when the thermometer was below the +freezing point. He did not seem to mind how cold it was so long as he +could come back into a warm room when he wanted to. Then he would go +directly to the fire, rub his chest, and sit down with his feet cocked +up on the fender. Exercise was necessary to keep him in good health, +and John got much of this by playing hide-and-seek with Major Penny. +In the morning before breakfast and in the evening before dinner the +Major would run up and down stairs, in and out of all the rooms. The +game appeared to delight the gorilla, who would giggle and laugh while +being chased. He never took any chances about going into a dark room, +however. Invariably he would make sure to turn on the light first. + +It was his habit to retire each night at eight o’clock, and it was not +necessary to tell him to do so more than once. He had his own little +room adjoining that of Miss Cunningham’s nephew, in which he had a +spring bed of his own, with blankets and pillows. At night he would +get up out of bed by himself, go back to bed, and pull the blankets +up over himself quite neatly. One of John’s greatest pleasures was to +stand on the top rail at the foot of the bed and jump on the springs, +just like a little child. He was never taught any tricks, but simply +acquired knowledge by himself. In the summer time John was taken by +train to the family’s cottage in the country. He occupied his seat in +the railway coach like any other passenger, without so much as a chain +around his neck. When out of doors the broad fields and open country +seemed to terrify him, but he was singularly happy and contented in the +quiet garden or in the woods. He seemed to fear full-grown sheep, cows, +and horses, but colts, calves, and lambs attracted and amused him. It +seemed to those who cared for him that he recognized youth and was +sympathetically drawn to it. + + +_John Becomes Famous_ + +As the years passed he became more devotedly attached to the family. +If left alone he would make a great noise, shrieking and crying. This +tendency increased, so that after three years it was necessary to make +some other arrangement for him. Through a misunderstanding which his +owners have always regretted, John was sold to a circus. He was taken +across the Atlantic to New York. Here, after a month’s separation from +his devoted friends during which time he refused to take food and +showed every sign of real homesickness, he died in the tower of the old +Madison Square Garden, in April, 1921. + +Many of the New York daily papers published a notice of this remarkable +ape’s death, telling how the gorilla, John Daniel, homesick and +disconsolate without those who had befriended him, died of a broken +heart. The skeleton and taxidermic preparation of this gorilla, who has +contributed so much to our knowledge and understanding of the great +apes, may be seen in the anthropoid collection in the American Museum +of Natural History, bearing the label “John Daniel.” + + +_A Gorilla at Afternoon Tea_ + +As an interesting sequel to this history of what appears to be the +first gorilla raised under the conditions of such intimate domestic +life, it may be added that Miss Cunningham secured another gorilla, +which she called “John Daniel the Second.” John Daniel the First was +a little over six years old when he died and was then less than half +grown. These two great apes resembled each other closely in their +emotional reactions and in their responses to training. Both were about +of the same age. John the Second was perhaps a less likable individual +and had a disposition more in keeping with the ancient reputation +of gorillas. Several years ago, while he was visiting in New York, a +number of scientists were invited to have afternoon tea with him at a +certain fashionable hotel. On this occasion the troglodyte host was +found seated in a comfortable chair. He displayed much gravity and +apparent enjoyment as he drank from a cup of tea. During the course of +conversation John the Second was for a moment not the actual centre +of attention. Suddenly he dashed across the room with unbelievable +swiftness and attacked one of his visitors with repeated rapid blows of +both fists in the neighbourhood of the solar plexus. Just as quickly +he hopped over the foot of the bed and from this point of vantage +watched the discomfiture of his guest. A moment later, when less +sharply watched, he hurled his full weight in most approved football +style against a distinguished professor of zoölogy, who, as a result, +was thrown from his chair. In the intervals between these presumably +playful diversions this powerful gorilla sat quietly. Yet, in spite +of his innocent demeanour, one was suspicious that he was casting +about for the next piece of mischief that he might perpetrate. There +was a degree of roughness and sudden strength in the playfulness of +this young gorilla that afforded some idea of the terrific power these +animals must possess when full grown. + +The attractive prospect of a biological station in Africa, as +suggested by the late Carl E. Akeley, for the study of the gorilla is +inspiring. It should be possible under these circumstances for one +scientifically inclined to saunter into the jungle of a morning, call +to some particularly promising gorilla, and with the troglodyte spend +many profitable hours in biological study. If the full-grown gorilla, +however, is anything like John Daniel the Second, this studious +occupation might not prove so simple. Indeed, it seems probable that +only the most hardy of human adventurers will ever enjoy the privileges +of anything approaching a familiar acquaintance with these giant apes. +Such adventurers may live to report that the great brutes have acquired +no marked degree of gentleness even in their own gorilla sanctuary. + + +_The Art of Capturing Young Gorillas_ + +On a number of occasions young gorillas have been captured alive. Mr. +Ben Burbridge, using some clever tactics, has succeeded in capturing +several small gorillas. The approved style of such hunting is to lure +the young animal away from the older gorillas; then, grasping the +throat, force it to the ground until helpers arrive to slip a stout +bag over its head. On one occasion Mr. Burbridge succeeded in artfully +luring a gorilla from the rest of his family. He at once proceeded to +seize him in the usual manner. Immediately he realized that he had +caught a tartar. The young gorilla was much stronger than any man, and +grasping both of Mr. Burbridge’s hands he forced them into his savage +mouth. Nothing but iron nerve and quickness of wit would have saved a +man under these circumstances. Realizing his inability to overpower the +gorilla or free himself from its vise-like grip, Mr. Burbridge did the +only thing left for him to do. He thrust his hands down the animal’s +throat as far as they would go. Several natives finally succeeded in +overpowering and binding the young giant. The first burlap bag put +over his head he split asunder like a piece of gauze. At length he was +bound and carried off to camp. But this young monarch of the volcanic +mountain sides would not accept captivity. He was unapproachable and so +actively hostile that he soon died. Later, Mr. Burbridge succeeded in +capturing and bringing home to Florida a small female gorilla, weighing +sixty-five pounds, which he called “Congo the Second.” + + +_Professor Yerkes Studies “Congo the Second”_ + +We are extremely fortunate that this gorilla has been studied by +Professor Yerkes, who in a book recently published, called _The Mind +of a Gorilla_, has given us another of his brilliant works on animal +behaviour. This is a most readable account of Congo’s actions, and +those who wish further information will derive much pleasure from +Professor Yerkes’s story. All of his observations are illuminating and +helpful in understanding the brain of this great troglodyte. + +The mountain gorilla, as Professor Yerkes points out, is built for +strength rather than speed. Congo, although still in her childhood, +and weighing only sixty-five pounds, was amazingly strong. She could +lift weights and overcome resistances that required the full strength +of a grown man. In her play with a young Airedale terrier she became +so rough that the dog finally avoided her. Her climbing among the +trees, about which she seemed eager, was scarcely any better than that +of an active small boy. It was easy to outrun her and throw her off +her balance. The tremendous strength of the gorilla must, therefore, +be looked upon as the real secret of his success in life. Without this +strength he probably would not have survived, since he has neither the +skill in climbing nor the speed upon the ground to escape his deadly +enemies. His deadliest foe is the leopard. This stealthy and powerful +cat often steals up to a gorilla family and snatches away the little +ones. The gorilla’s sole defense against the leopard is his gigantic +strength. If at present this great ape is threatened with extinction it +is because his natural enemies are increasing in number. Man with his +modern equipments must be listed among these hostile contemporaries. +For ages the struggle between the gorilla and his enemies in the jungle +has been going on relentlessly. The great ape has been able to maintain +that margin of superiority which permitted his kind to come down into +modern times. + +Professor Yerkes devised a series of tests for determining the mental +capacity of the young gorilla, Congo the Second. These were arranged in +several groups such as the following: + +1. The use of the stick as an implement. + +2. The use of simple mechanisms showing adaptive ability. + +3. The uses of boxes and piling boxes. + +4. Tests for memory. + +5. Observations of social relations. + +6. Study of emotions and incentives to action. + + +_The Mind of a Gorilla_ + +In all, twenty-four tests were employed in the experiments to fathom +Congo’s mind. Among them were the stick used as an implement, a +buried jar of food, food suspended and made accessible by using the +stick, food suspended and made accessible by piling boxes one on top +of another, the use of hammer and nail in imitation of a man using +the same implements, the mirror test and the animal’s reaction to +the looking-glass. Professor Yerkes carried on his studies through +a number of weeks on two different occasions. The first series was +conducted in January, 1926, and the second series, largely repeating +the conditions of the first, in January, 1927. During this time the +little gorilla had grown and prospered. She had doubled her weight in +twelve months and she manifested many changes in her behaviour. In +the first place, she had become somewhat destructive, although when +she first came to Shady Nook in Florida this was not the case. Her +curiosity had increased as had also her powers of imitation and her +emotional expressions. She was much more self-reliant and likewise more +coöperative. She showed a very considerable improvement in her ability +to solve the problems of the several tests given to her. In using +the stick she manifested greater cleverness and adaptability, with +some indications of real insight into the situations that confronted +her. There were signs also that she had gained a greater degree of +adaptability in the use of simple mechanisms. These appliances in her +earlier tests baffled Congo, but upon repetition a year later she not +only gave evidence of memory concerning the tests but also had more +ability in solving the problems which she had previously failed to +master. She showed much improvement, particularly in piling boxes one +upon another. Certain memory tests, which were unsuccessful in January, +1926, were quite successfully performed in January, 1927. Heretofore, +no animal except man has been capable of correct response in these +particular memory tests. Congo’s success possibly demonstrates the +existence of a mechanism in the gorilla brain that is possessed by the +most highly organized animals only. It is this mechanism, doubtless, +which distinguishes man and the great apes from all other mammals. +Buried food tests also demonstrated an ability to remember after +intervals of one or two days. Congo’s emotions likewise had changed. +At first she appeared aloof, independent, and inexpressive. She still +remained reserved, and although playful she was highly self-controlled. +Her emotional expression by voice, face, and attitude was rare, and +seldom appeared in response to definite provocation. Her incentives +and motives seemed much more complex than in lower animals, like rats +and guinea pigs. Congo was moody, having her good days and bad days in +doing the tests. The inducements offered her to perform certain acts +did not have the same certainty that they have with lower animals. In +her social relations she was extremely simple. She apparently gained +an increased interest in those with whom she was familiar and also with +strangers. She enjoyed visitors and acted in a limited way to entertain +them. Seeing herself in the looking-glass, she had a marked interest +in her image. In the second series of tests her interest in the mirror +seemed more intelligent than the first. In sexual interest Congo showed +a marked development. At first she manifested nothing resembling +sex play, but in the course of the year this became evident in her +relations with her dog companions and other objects. Ultimately she had +a decided preference for the male dog. + + +_Mental Comparisons of the Great Manlike Apes_ + +Professor Yerkes’s comparison of the behaviour of the three great apes, +the orang, the chimpanzee, and the gorilla, is particularly interesting +and important. He carefully guards his statement by acknowledging that +these are rough comparisons based on the intimate study of only a few +individual apes. The physical differences between these anthropoids may +have a definite bearing upon their mental characters. The chimpanzee +is well but lightly built. The orang, in contrast, is loosely built, +with arms that seem much too long and liable to be in the way. The +gorilla is stocky, somewhat clumsy, but of impressively strong build. +The general disposition of these three apes varies somewhat according +to their physiques. The chimpanzee is sanguine, buoyant, alert, and +snappy. The orang-outang is melancholy and taciturn. The gorilla is +reserved and aloof almost to the point of manifesting a superiority +complex. In their attitude toward others and things in general this +same difference is observed. The chimpanzee is preëminently a leader +in playfulness and invention of ways to amuse himself. He is quick, +impulsive, energetic, and comical. He has much enthusiasm and optimism, +all of which makes him the showman’s prize. The orang is more slow +and cautious, with little impulsiveness and no show of optimism. He +seems more stable and dependable than the chimpanzee. He is certainly +more readily depressed and discouraged than his livelier cousin. The +gorilla is calm, reserved, cool, and calculating. His disposition +is quite the opposite of that of the chimpanzee. The terms sullen, +morose, ferocious, and unrelenting did not, however, apply to Congo, +who was placid, self-dependent, and usually superior to the incidents +of her artificial life in captivity. In curiosity the chimpanzee heads +the list. The orang is a close second. The gorilla may be stirred to +curiosity, but under such circumstances usually acts as though he +considered himself superior to such childish indulgence. The manner +and methods of learning in these three great apes are remarkably +interesting. In learning by imitation from man, the chimpanzee has +a long lead. The orang is not entirely unsuccessful in this matter, +but the gorilla, especially as typified by Congo, shows an actual +resistance to learning by imitation of man. The ability to acquire +new habits and adjustments to life by means of trial and error +shows that the great apes rank as follows: Chimpanzee first, orang +second, gorilla third. Learning by ideas, experience, insight, and +understanding seems to reverse this order and puts the gorilla at the +head of the list. + +Professor Yerkes appears to think that, as compared with chimpanzees +and orangs of like age, Congo was remarkably slow in adapting herself +and was more limited in initiative, originality, and insight. He +concludes that the general tendency to rate the gorilla in a mentally +higher class than the chimpanzee or orang finds no support from his +study of Congo. He also believes that conclusions based on a single +specimen of this great ape are not sufficient to determine the mental +rating of the gorilla. This animal, like the chimpanzee and the orang, +indeed like man himself, has great individual variations in mental +development. + +Such records as those of John Daniel, First and Second, made by +observers little trained in the technical methods of behavioural study, +must of course be accepted with some reservations. Viewed in the light +of Professor Yerkes’s studies on Congo, they do afford an illuminating +picture of the gorilla’s mental capacity, disposition, and ability to +learn. To say the least, in all of these qualifications the largest +of the great apes is strikingly human. Its brain, which weighs and +measures more than that of other apes, is in many respects nearer to +the brain of man. In the gorilla’s brain it is possible to discern +the process by which the progressive development of this organ has +made great strides. All of the landmarks of the superbrain are more +distinctly human in their arrangement and disposition than in the +chimpanzee or orang. If the chimpanzee’s brain is a human miniature, +the resemblance to man in gorilla has become still more striking. The +position of the Sylvian groove and of the ape groove marks the boundary +of the two great departments of sight and hearing. In the gorilla +both of these have increased the area for radiating brain power. The +convolutions in both of these regions bear a close resemblance to those +of the human brain. This similarity is likewise true in the department +for body and contact sense, where the convolutions have increased in +complexity as well as in relative size. The central groove forms the +boundary for a well-defined frontal lobe. If it were possible to make +a measurable contrast of this permanent headquarters for the higher +faculties in gorilla to that of chimpanzee, it seems fair to say that +the gorilla would show some slight advantage. This advantage may +account for the gorilla’s greater reserve, which in some ways indicates +a more mature attitude toward life, especially when compared to the +restless and more childlike behaviour of the chimpanzee. + + +_Secret of the Gorilla’s Survival_ + +Professor Yerkes would perhaps be unwilling on the strength of his +studies to admit any measurable degree of superiority on the part of +the gorilla’s mentality over the chimpanzee. Unquestionably this is a +proper point of view in the light of those great apes which have been +available for experiment and investigation. In the main, such gorillas +have been both too young and too few in number to permit any just +estimate of their real ability. One fact in their history does speak +forcibly in behalf of their mental superiority over all other apes. In +form and physique the gorilla occupies an intermediate position. He is +not well adapted for great successes living upon the ground. He is too +heavy to capitalize the full advantages of living in the trees. Added +to this is the fact that he is both slow and clumsy. His one physical +asset in the struggle for life is his gigantic strength. By means of +this advantage he has been able to meet all comers of the wild, to +contend with such deadly enemies as the leopards and other members +of the great cat family. He has eked out an existence in a territory +filled with all manner of hazards. Yet in spite of his handicaps he has +not only held his place in nature but he has kept his line a vital and +going concern with all the increasing odds against him. This success +in adjustment must depend upon something more than mere chance. We are +perhaps fair in assuming that added to his chief asset of brute-like +strength there have been certain superior mental qualities derived from +a superbrain and particularly from a frontal lobe which surpassed that +of all his animal competitors. + +The index of his powers to adjust himself to a strenuous life is shown +by his bridge (_pons_). This gives him a rating of .480, which is +still higher than in the case of the chimpanzee. Most interesting in +this connection is the fact that the pyramid in the gorilla is .161, +which is considerably less than in the chimpanzee. The pyramid, as +will be recalled, indicates the degree of skill that an animal has in +controlling its voluntary movements; that is, in making its muscles act +in many and varied ways according to the dictates of the will. That the +agile, speedy, and acrobatic chimpanzee should surpass the clumsy and +slow-moving gorilla in this particular might be expected. In almost +every other detail of its development the brain of the gorilla is +nearer to man than is the brain of any other ape, great or small. Those +who have studied this question are fully convinced of the near approach +in brain structure which all three of the great manlike apes make to +the human brain. If any final estimation is justified at the present +time, the gorilla’s brain appears to be the most advanced of all the +apes and is, in fact, almost human. + + + + +CHAPTER XI + +HUMAN AT LAST + +THE BRAIN OF PREHISTORIC MAN + + +Those individual characteristics which distinguish the orang, +chimpanzee, and gorilla may be easily recognized. Yet, notwithstanding +their striking differences, these animals all belong to the same +family, called the _Simiidæ_. As a family this was and still remains +the highest in the ape world. All of the great apes manifest certain +pronounced manlike tendencies. Up to this point they were progressive, +but beyond it they did not go. They were not equipped to reach the +upper footholds or to gain the vast plateaus on the top of the world. +This last achievement remained for another, who, being freed from many +simian restrictions, had already outstripped the anthropoids. + + +_Human Superiority_ + +As a machine, this newcomer in the animal world was more effective than +any of his forerunners. His human superiority was not due to higher +speed, greater strength, or better staying powers. Many of his animal +competitors could far outdistance him, could easily overpower him, +could surpass him in endurance. He did, however, have an exceptional +advantage. He was able to combine these essential qualities with +many others in a variety of ways and thus gain an ultimate supremacy. +In the end it was better brain power that raised man above his lower +contemporaries and set him on his path toward human success. This new +power of his did not come all at once. It needed the steady effort of +ages to reach its present development. Compared with the existence +of other species, the human race is relatively young. In point of +geologic time so also is the human brain. Many students are agreed +that temporally and in other respects our brain has scarcely outgrown +its childhood. The brain power of to-day may require further ages of +development to attain its highest possibilities. + +When man first appeared on earth he had much in common with the +great apes. Although not descended from them, he had inherited with +them many qualities from a common ancestor. It is now settled beyond +question that in earliest times the human brain possessed all of the +basic patterns and mechanisms still to be found in the gorilla, the +chimpanzee, and the orang. It had one fundamental advantage that +greatly improved its capacity for developing its power. Expansion was +the secret of this advantage. It was apparent in all parts of the +superbrain, but most prominent in the department of the highest mental +faculties, the frontal lobe. We may discern this great advance at a +glance by comparing the sloping, narrow foreheads of the great apes +with the high and prominent brow of man. The frontal lobe gradually +pushed forward over the eyes, and in consequence the forehead slowly +rose above them. It seems fair to say that as the brow grew higher +through successive stages the race gradually rose in humanity. We are +still much in the dark concerning the early phases of this slow rise +to power. Some of the stages, it is probable, we shall never know. On +the other hand, a large number of human fossils have been found during +the past century. From these it is possible to decipher what the human +brain must have been like at certain critical periods of man’s long +journey. The brain, like all other soft parts of the body, disappears +in time after death. How is it possible, therefore, to speak about the +brains of men long since dead, or of races long ago extinct? + + +_The Fossil Records of Man_ + +It is true that only the bones of ancient peoples remain to tell us +what they were like. Many of these bones have become fossilized by +impregnation with minerals and are, so to speak, turned into stone. +Thus they make an enduring record of man’s bony framework. From these +petrified bones we can read many things about the people of the past to +whom they belonged. We can measure their height, determine the manner +in which they held their bodies in walking, and estimate their muscular +strength. We may even rebuild their bodies about their skeletons by +using certain standard measurements and so gain a fair idea of what +these men must have looked like when alive. From the shape of the head +it is possible to decide whether the jaw was massive and protruding, +or of modern type; whether the cheek bones were heavy and prominent +or relatively inconspicuous; whether the forehead was low and receding +or high and broad; whether the nose was flattened or had a high nasal +bridge; whether the chin was weakly developed or large and firm; +whether the brain case was small, round, and narrow, or long, high +vaulted, and capacious. + + +_Brain Casts of Extinct Races of Men_ + +Many other characters of extinct races may be determined by means +of exact measurement. So much has already been accomplished in this +way that it is possible to reproduce a reasonable facsimile of races +that vanished long ago. It is possible also to reproduce a reasonable +likeness of their brains. Reproductions of this kind depend upon the +use of the fossil skulls as molds from which plaster of Paris casts +are made. Upon the inner surface of the skull the brain makes certain +definite impressions. It leaves grooves in the bone where great +arteries run. It shows deep indentations caused by the convolutions. It +contains other landmarks indicating the size and position of certain +prominent features in the brain. These casts do not show the brain +characters in all their sharp details because within the skull the +brain is covered by three layers of membranes and surrounded by a thin +jacket of fluid. In consequence, all of the prominent characters, +although easily recognized, are somewhat veiled. It is for this reason +that we are unable to detect every coil and groove in a brain cast +of a fossil skull. We may, however, discern many important features +and thus form an accurate estimate concerning the brain characters +of several prehistoric races of man. Many casts of this kind are now +available for study. + +It is probable that a number of distinct species of prehistoric races +have passed away leaving no trace of themselves. Even the bones of +man’s body gradually crumble into dust unless, by some fortuitous +circumstance, they are slowly converted into stone through the +deposit of mineral salts. It seems likely that only a few of man’s +skeletal remains have been preserved for us in this manner. By far +the vast majority have gone the way of all flesh and most bones. The +few precious relics that we thus far have had the good fortune to +discover are treasured as rare possessions. They tell us in a somewhat +disconnected way of many ancient people who have lived long before our +times. Yet, however disconnected this story may be, however wide its +gaps, however serious its omissions, it would be improper to overlook +the fossil evidence of these early people. The fossilized relics must +be permitted to set forth the story which they have to tell while we +endeavour to keep our interpretations within the bounds imposed upon us +by the nature of the evidence. + + +_Brain of Java Ape Man_ + +The brain cast representing the most ancient race of men yet discovered +is that of the ape man of Java (_Pithecanthropus erectus_). Dr. Eugen +Du Bois, when he made his wonderful discovery in Java, found almost +the entire skull cap of this primitive man, who lived somewhere between +500,000 and 1,000,000 years ago. His brain was remarkably small. It was +not nearly so large as our modern brain or even as the brain of many +other prehistoric people. Its capacity was only 940 cubic centimetres. +This is small for a human brain, which ranges between 1000 to 1400 +cubic centimetres. But if it is small for a man, it is much larger +than any ape brain. An interesting comparison as to the size of the +ape man’s brain is afforded when the brains of a large gorilla, of the +Java ape man, and of a modern man are placed side by side. At once the +differences are apparent. The brain we are now considering clearly +occupies an intermediate position between the gorilla and modern man. + +The striking feature about the brain of the lowly ape man is the +great expansion which has taken place in the department and permanent +headquarters of the highest mental faculties--the frontal lobe. +Compared with the brain of the gorilla, there can be no dispute as to +the great advantages held by the ape man in this part of his brain. The +convolutions are plainly shown in this frontal area. In fact, these +coils are more prominent in this region than elsewhere. This fact does +not imply that the convolutions in the brain are supreme in the frontal +lobe of the ape man. If they seem less prominent in the other lobes +it is only because the frontal coils in all cases make more positive +impressions upon the skull. It is fortunate, though, that these coils +may be so clearly seen in that region of the superbrain which reveals +the development of the highest faculties. We should also bear in +mind that this department of the chief executive in the frontal lobe +is preëminently a human possession. A comparison with the gorilla’s +brain shows at once the great expansion which has occurred in the most +responsible portion of man’s superbrain. In consequence of such frontal +growth the human race distinguished itself in creation by acquiring all +that is implied in the title _Homo sapiens_ (man of wisdom). + +Another decisive feature appears in this frontal region. The left +convolutions are slightly larger than those on the right side. In +all probability this difference in size indicates that a highly +characteristic human quality has already been introduced. In the ape +man the right hand already appears to have become the leader in all the +varied skillful performances of manual achievement. + + +_Speech_ + +In this early period it seems likely that man was using his hands +for constructive purposes. Of far more significance and bearing +more decisively upon the destiny of humanity is the appearance of a +well-marked coil in the lower portion of this frontal lobe on the left +side. In all living races of man this convolution is associated with +the control of spoken language. From this specialization it is apparent +that the ape man had acquired the powers of speech. Even if his frontal +lobe were small, it far surpassed that of any ape however highly +developed. + +It is clear from these facts that the primitive ape man of Java had +risen to a plane far above the gorilla, although he was still much +below that of modern man. Visualized from his brain, this Java man must +have had increased powers of reasoning. He must have been capable of +making better adjustments to life than the gorilla or any of the great +manlike apes. He possessed the ability to build up a greater sphere of +experience and make some approach to human personality. His tendency +to right-handedness was a distinctly human character, around which are +built many of man’s most productive specializations. In all of his +qualities the Java man was much below his later human successors. It is +difficult to estimate how much skill he had acquired with his hands, +but it seems almost certain that he added one supreme advantage to the +motor equipment of animal life. HE HAD LEARNED TO SPEAK--to communicate +in verbal language. The animal machine had acquired a new means of +expressing itself. It was capable of developing a new output in the +production of which it became highly prolific. + +Several theories have been advanced to explain the development of human +speech. One of these attributes the origin of language to gestures, +especially those made with the hands. Gestures indicating direction, +location, distance, size, shape, motion, number, and many other +specifications became associated with vocal expressions. These symbols +were the basis of language, which required special speech centres in +the brain for its control. + +This means of communication laid the foundation of all human knowledge. +Doubtless the linguistic ability of the Javan ape man was extremely +crude, but he had taken a decisive step in a direction necessary to the +further development of mankind. + + +_More Effective Use of the Senses_ + +In the department of his body and contact senses the ape man’s brain +shows marked advances over the apes. The expansions here must be +regarded as particularly connected with the free use of the hands and +arms and the assumption of the erect posture. A much richer supply +of raw materials in the way of sense impressions from the legs and +arms, and from the body, generally speaking, made possible a more +effective turnover and output of nervous energy. During this time man +was learning many new uses for his hands in devising original means for +maintaining and advancing his footholds in life. + +The departments of sight and hearing situated respectively in the +occipital and temporal lobes of the brain show that degree of expansion +which supplied greater human powers. Man could see, and understand +better what he saw. He could hear, and understand more fully what +he heard. He was capable of more effective appreciation of his +surroundings. If he obtained a better idea of the world through his +sense of sight, he put these more ample impressions to better use in +the visual direction of his actions and more especially in guiding the +work of his hands by his eyes. + +If his sense of hearing likewise gave him better understanding of the +audible world about him, it was most important in that it contributed +to the upbuilding of his vocal speech. Sounds which he heard began to +have new meanings to him. From this it was but a step to translate such +sounds into spoken words with fixed meanings of their own. + +In all of these particulars the brain of the ape man had made definite +advances. It was superior to all of its forerunners in the animal +kingdom. The fact that it had thus advanced brings to mind many +perplexing questions. Why had this great change taken place? What +causes had produced the marked extensions in the frontal lobes and in +all other lobes, sufficient at last to lift man up to a human level? +Attempts to answer such questions venture into the field of conjecture. +Many factors yet unknown may have been the real causes in producing +this remarkable change. + + +_The Human Hand and Foot_ + +One great difference between man and the manlike apes seems to be based +upon the character of the feet. Man had at length acquired two feet +upon which to stand upright and make his way. His erect posture had +caused many changes in his body, including the position of the head, +the relation of the eyes, and the length of his limbs. None of these +changes had more telling effect upon human destiny than the final +freeing of the hands for occupations other than locomotion. In this way +man acquired his most useful advantage--the hand. It became his chief +reliance, the basis of his constructive abilities, and the guide of +his analytical powers. It has been the achievement of his hands that +has carried man onward. Some authorities believe that brain development +was the chief factor in human progress. Such no doubt is the case, +but it was the hand that called upon the brain for its progressive +development. + +Whatever other factors were at work, the hand was one of the most +potent influences in the rise of man. With the brain to direct its +action, to expand its usefulness, with the upright posture to give +free range to its executions, with speech to make its accomplishments +available to all, the hand became a master key, opening all the ways +leading through the vast domain of human behaviour. If the influences +which determined human emergence from the lower levels of animal life +might be catalogued as a working theory, they would perhaps appear in +the following order: + +1. The development of the human foot upon which to establish the erect +posture. + +2. The freeing of the hand in consequence of the erect posture for the +purposes of human success. + +3. The expansions of sight and hearing for the better appreciation of +the world and the more effective guidance of action. + +4. The development of speech. + +5. The establishment of human personality and the development of higher +mental faculties. For the successful administration of these special +powers, a brain of at least human capacity was necessary. + + +_Brain of Piltdown Man_ + +When Mr. Dawson found the fossil remains of the Piltdown Dawn man he +brought to light another view of the human prehistoric brain. There +are many indications that the Piltdown men had made great strides in +their brain power. This is especially apparent in the frontal lobe. +The convolutions are prominent, especially that one upon the left side +which plainly indicates the power of speech. These early inhabitants +of England must have been more gifted than the humbler ape man. Such +at least is the evidence of the frontal lobe in which the department +of the highest mental faculties was much better developed. Similar +advances appear in the parietal regions, suggesting that the hands of +these Dawn men had acquired increased capacities as constructive agents +and sensory organs. The large expansion in the department of body and +contact senses plainly signifies great advantages gained in exploring +the world. Piltdown man must have understood the consistency, the +texture, and shape of the things he touched. The weight and mobility +of objects gave him information concerning their use. The advantages +of wood and stone for projectile and penetrating purposes, the utility +of sharp edges, the flexibility and tensile strength of various +tissues, like the bark of trees or climbing vines, all came to him +as revelations evoked by his new powers for sensing his world. These +revelations were of much service in other ways. The Dawn man could +utilize these sense impressions in directing new actions which helped +him to overcome obstacles or to gain greater security. He could now +combine stick and stone in a manner advantageous for his daily contacts +with life. There may be some question whether the earlier ape man of +Java had learned the secret of making implements for himself. With the +Dawn man of Piltdown the case is different. It seems most likely that +he had already established the industry of instrument making. Some +students of this question still hesitate to believe that the dawn flint +implements (eoliths) found in association with the Piltdown remains +were really the product of human hands. It is probable that the Dawn +man already possessed the great advantage of being right-handed. The +chipping of stone implements would make it necessary for him to hold +the flint in one hand and flake it skillfully with the other. The +departments of hearing and sight both show an expansion similar to that +in the other parts of the brain. + +The Piltdown brain is superior to that of the Java ape man in all +particulars. It indicates the power of speech, the development of +right-handedness, and the establishment of higher mental faculties. +It also attests that the Dawn man had come a long distance from that +parting of the ways at which the human race separated from the great +apes. + + +_The Neanderthal Brain_ + +The time assigned to the Dawn man’s day on earth varies considerably +according to different estimates. The latest calculations place this +time at a little over a million years ago. By comparison, Piltdown +men were certainly more ancient than another race which dominated +Europe for long ages. This was the famous Neanderthal race. These early +and long extinct people migrated into Europe from the East. Their +scattered fossil remains found in many different parts tell the same +story of an unusually powerful race. In stature they were relatively +short, probably not averaging much more than five feet three inches +in height. Their arms were long and powerful, their necks thick and +extremely muscular. Their legs were heavy and slightly bent at the +knees. As a race they were distinguished by the shape of their heads +and the size of their brains. The Neanderthal had a low, retreating +forehead and a head that was peculiarly flat near the top. It seems +as if the head were especially constructed as part of an effective +fighting machine. Heavy ridges of bone surmounted the eyes much as is +the case in the gorilla. The head was set down well upon the shoulders. +The jaws were heavy, indicating that the teeth as well as other parts +of the body might be employed in combat. The nose was broad and flat +and the chin lacked prominence. All of these features must have given +the Neanderthal man a brutish appearance. The low beetling brow, the +flattened vault of the skull, the heavy jaw with receding chin, the +broad flat nose, all gave him a countenance not unlike that of the +great apes. Visualized from his fossil remains, the Neanderthal was a +savage-looking creature. He would have been a dangerous wayfarer for +the unwary to meet. He was probably so hideous in his appearance that +his presence gave offense to men of more refined sensibility. This +seems like a harsh judgment upon the Neanderthal. It is a low estimate +of him which his brain does not justify. As a matter of fact, the size +of the Neanderthal brain is somewhat greater than that of any modern +races. If size alone were the standard, such a brain would not indicate +a low degree of mental organization. But size alone is not a reliable +indicator of brain capacity. Unusually large brains are often inferior +in their brain power. It is said that the largest brain, both by weight +and measure, was that of a feeble-minded gardener at one time employed +in a large public garden in London. The volume of the Neanderthal +brain is not a convincing argument as to its efficiency. From other +indications, however, it is certain that this race had made definite +advances in human progress. They were skilled artisans and flint +workers. They had command of fire, which was employed in the upbuilding +of distinct industries. Far from being lowly, ape-like creatures, they +had many of the higher attributes of man. + +The earliest discovery of these ancient people occurred in 1848 when +Lieutenant Flint found the first Neanderthal skull in an old quarry at +Gibraltar. The real meaning of this find, however, was not appreciated +until more than sixty years later. + +One of the most important Neanderthal discoveries was made in the +valley of the Dordogne in southwestern France. In a cavern near the +little village of La Chapelle-aux-Saints, the abbés Bouyssonie and +Bardon (autumn, 1908) found the skeleton of a primitive man. The +body rested upon its back, with its head toward the west, its legs, +thighs, and forearms folded together. The head had been protected by +flat stones, and many skillfully worked flints of the Mousterian period +surrounded the body. There was every evidence of interment and burial +ceremony about the discovery which, it was finally decided, was the +skeleton of a middle-aged man belonging to the Neanderthal race. By +measurement it was found that the skeleton must have contained a brain +of large size, considerably larger than the average modern brain. +The brain cast of this prehistoric man gives us some clear idea of +Neanderthal brain power. In shape the brain is distinctly flat. The +arching in the region of the forehead, so prominent in modern races, is +absent. This part of the brain seems to sink inward as if the frontal +lobe had gone somewhat into eclipse, or had not yet made that decisive +expansion characteristic of later races of man. This condition, +however, corresponds exactly with the low retreating forehead of the +Neanderthal. When compared with the ape man of Java, or with the Dawn +man of Piltdown, the Neanderthal brain does, however, show expansion +in all of its major departments. The parietal, occipital, and temporal +lobes have all increased in size. This is true also of the frontal +lobe, but the ratio of expansion appears to be less here than in other +areas. It is in this department that the real flatness of the brain +is most pronounced. The convolutions in the frontal lobe fail to give +the superbrain those dominant characters which produce a high, wide +forehead in modern man. This apparent failure of the frontal lobe to +attain greater proportions must have had far-reaching influences upon +the life and destiny of these primitive Europeans. + +All of the major departments of the brain show considerable expansion. +The entire brain of the Neanderthal gives evidence of progressive +development at the same time that it manifests many signs of deficiency +and incomplete realization along the higher lines of progress. + + +_Brain of Rhodesian Man_ + +Asia and Europe have produced evidence of prehistoric man. Until quite +recently Africa has been peculiarly silent in this regard. At length +even the Dark Continent has revealed signs showing that man of a +primitive type has gone a long way toward the south in his wanderings +over the earth. This important discovery was made in Rhodesia and first +publicly reported in 1921 by Mr. William L. Harris. The conditions of +this discovery were peculiar and significant. Actual remains of two +human skeletons were found at Broken Hill mine in northern Rhodesia. +Connected with this mine there was originally a natural cave about 120 +feet long. This is known as the bone cave. It contained a vast number +of animal bones all impregnated with the salts of zinc and lead. At the +bottom of this cave the human remains were found. Like all of the other +bones, the human skeletons were incrusted by zinc and lead. The cave +itself seems to have been the ancient feasting place for hyenas, which +dragged thither their prey. There is some suspicion that these human +remains may have come to their last resting place in the cave of bones +in a similar manner. The cleft of the roof of the cave here is far in, +which suggests the possibility that the men or women whose bones were +found may have fallen into the cavern. Certain features of the skull, +however, have convinced eminent authorities that these individuals +belong to a very ancient prehistoric race. The face is far more brutal +than that of any other known human being, living or extinct. The +enormous eyebrow ridges resemble those of the gorilla, the nose is flat +and has that snout-like appearance suggesting a peculiarly significant +mark of the beast, known only in one other extinct member of the human +family, the Neanderthal man. Another remarkable feature of the head is +the great size of the palate and teeth. The brain case and the features +of the brain lend support to the view that this Rhodesian man was even +older and more primitive than Neanderthal man. + +By all the signs of his frontal lobe the Rhodesian must have been a +humble sort of human. Nothing in this department of his brain suggests +any near approach to the attainments of modern man. The frontal lobe +bears many marks of ape-like characters. It indicates at the same +time a brain power which surpassed the limits of the great apes. It +was a brain fast carrying man upward to the broader plains of human +experience. The lot of the Rhodesian must have been precarious. He +was pitted against formidable animals of the African wilds. But, +judged by his frontal lobe, his brain had not left him destitute for +the exigencies of such competition. He doubtless possessed the power +of speech and the capacity for making human combinations. Compared +with lower mammals he had a more facile association of ideas and could +profit more effectively from experience. The evidence of his parietal, +temporal, and occipital lobes indicates definite progress in all +departments of sense perception. His brain was human though still in +the rough. Whatever position is finally assigned to this far-distant +cousin in our human family, he seems from his brain to have been a very +simple sort of human being, older perhaps and even more primitive than +any of the Neanderthal race. + + +_Changes in Human Race Extremely Slow_ + +It is impossible to give the exact dates for the appearance of the +different races of prehistoric men. At best, our ideas concerning their +antiquity must be approximate. Yet these fossils do not leave us in +doubt in one respect at least. We know and we may prove our knowledge +in many different ways that man has inhabited the globe through long +ages, whether we rate these ages as hundreds of thousands or millions +of years. Throughout these ages man has varied considerably. At first +he bore many close resemblances to lower forms of life. Slowly he +improved and manifested a progressive advance toward higher humanity. +We may be inclined to question this progressive change from one stage +to another largely because our own experience of life is limited to +such a short span of time. Within the memory of any man the changes in +his fellows seem inconsiderable. Mankind appears to have a dominating +fixity in appearance. It is only a little more than sixty generations +since the birth of Christ, and during this time the racial characters +of men have changed but little. The white man, the red man, the black +man, and the yellow man, are all much the same in the form of body, the +shape of head, the appearance of face, as they were sixty generations +ago. There is more than a striking figure of speech in the scriptural +definition that a thousand years are but as a day in the endless +expanse of time. Measured by such days as these, man has changed slowly +but surely. When we contemplate long days of this kind, each of a +thousand years, their accumulation in the existence of our race takes +on a new meaning. Estimate, for example, how far back ten days of this +time would take us. We should find ourselves in the life of the world +as it was ten thousand years ago, in that critical period when a vast +social and racial change was altering the colour and complexion of +human existence in Europe. The senile but still wonderful Cromagnon +race was then limping along to the last stage of its declining old +age and was about to disappear. The hardy and practical man of the +New Stone Age had already arrived and was fast becoming master of the +situation. The Cromagnon artist-hunter was passing the sceptre of human +control in Europe over to the hard-headed Neolithic business man. +Another fifty days (each of a thousand years) still further back and +we find again a momentous crisis. At that time the Neanderthal man was +passing. In spite of all his rugged vigour, his day on earth was done. +He had carried on existence successfully for seven or eight hundred +thousand years, but now the time of his extinction was at hand. These +seven or eight hundred thousand years would merely be seven or eight +hundred days, according to the new kind of timepiece by which we are +endeavouring to measure the duration of human progress. + + +_Cromagnons Replace the Neanderthals_ + +We may pause to seek some reason for the momentous change when the +Neanderthal appears to have bowed before the Cromagnon. The real secret +in the failure of the old race and the success of the new may be found +in the brain. It was the increased brain power of the Cromagnon which +produced the supremacy of this great race. It was this power which gave +Europe its first pioneers in art and, for all mankind, opened the doors +of creative imagination and appreciation of beauty in the world. + +It would be particularly illuminating if a brain of the Cromagnon race +were available for study. These first artists occupied an exalted +position. They began their life in Europe about fifty thousand +years ago and carried on their industries for a period twenty times +longer than the duration of the Christian Era. At present there is +no Cromagnon brain cast available. We may, however, draw analogies +from certain of their human contemporaries, who lived in the middle +part of Europe during the Solutrean period. These were days when +Cromagnon art and industry were at their zenith, when the Old Stone +Age had attained its culminating stage and flourished in its fullest +development. The Solutrean contemporaries of the Cromagnons were +themselves a remarkable people. They are known as the “great mammoth +hunters of Prêdmost.” Their fossil remains have been found in Moravia. +Associated with them were the fossilized bones of nearly nine hundred +specimens of mammoths. In addition to these fossils of men and beasts +there were found many highly worked flints, including spear heads and +other stone implements, all having a pattern which belonged to the +Solutrean period. At Prêdmost, where this discovery was made, there +was a collective burial of fourteen human beings, with the remains of +six others. These great mammoth hunters must have been a large and +powerful race. Their prowess as trackers of great game was exceptional. +The character of their brain as revealed by the casts made from their +skulls places them at once on a plane higher than any of the earlier +races of man. In fact, it admits them to membership in the same race +to which we ourselves belong--that is, _Homo sapiens_. These intrepid +hunters, according to their fossil remains, closely resembled their +splendid contemporaries of western Europe, the Cromagnons. Of these +latter there is an ample record in consequence of which they will +always rank among the best representatives of the human species. +Their remarkable artistic contributions denote far more than the +executive mastery of art. They signalize that new spirit which had +been breathed into mankind, that devotion to the beautiful in life +which created an abiding enthusiasm in all of our race for its highest +ideals and loftiest purposes. From the first days of Cromagnon life +these tendencies were dominant. They were a people who delighted in the +lavish use of personal adornment. Coiffure was of particular interest +with the women and a highly developed personal achievement. Both the +men and the women seem to have been fond of using red and yellow ochre, +much as in modern times, to beautify the body. If certain Egyptian +ladies are credited with the invention of the lipstick and of rouge, it +is probable that they found their examples for such artistic practices +in these Cromagnon prototypes. Drawing, painting, and sculpture were +not the only creations of the Cromagnons in the realm of art. It seems +probable that they had invented some form of music. Their sketches of +dances and masks make it seem likely that to vocal expression they had +added certain artificial accessories in the shape of crude musical +instruments. One character in the artistic discrimination of these +artists and sculptors of the Old Stone Age is of unusual interest. It +shows a distinct partiality for portraying women of extreme corpulence. +Many of their statuettes have been discovered which, in spite of their +somewhat unsightly _embonpoint_, are called Venuses. The most famous +of these is the Venus of Willendorf. It was, however, in the carving +of animal forms that Cromagnon art attained its real heights. Many +living and extinct species of birds, mammals, and fish have thus been +immortalized. Back of all this varied artistic creation there must +have been a social organization of high order, for only a rich human +experience could provide the soil for such vivid and real beauty in art. + + +_The Mammoth Hunters of Prêdmost_ + +The brain of the great mammoth hunters of Prêdmost had a volume close +to the standards of modern men. It had lost those marks of inferiority +which stamp the brains of lower races. It had gained that refinement +of structure in the superbrain which proclaims the ascendant qualities +of humanity. The groove of Sylvius and the central groove show the +boundaries and the size of the several lobes of the brain, which +correspond closely to those of modern man. It is in the frontal lobe +that the most remarkable gains are apparent. The convolutions in this +region are prominent and well defined. That flatness so typical of +the Neanderthal brain has disappeared. These Prêdmost and Cromagnon +people were not a race of flatheads, such as were the Neanderthals. +The human forehead had become high and broad. It was no longer +ape-like and receding, but clearly indicated that the human brain had +developed sufficiently in its latest acquired and most highly organized +department to demonstrate that man at length was capable of real +humanity. + +From the Java ape-man up to _Homo sapiens_ of modern times there has +been a slow but gradual increase in all of the important measurements +of the brain. There has been a gain in length, in breadth, and in +height. Much of this gain has taken place in the region of the frontal +lobe, and thus has expressed itself in expansion in the highest +department for developing brain power. The meaning of this pronounced +frontal expansion is evident in the progressive extensions of human +intelligence. + + +_Progress of the Human Family_ + +Judged by its brain power, the human family has clearly been +progressive. In this respect it differs from all other families in +the animal kingdom. In various parts of the world mankind has lagged +behind. Such is the case in the tropics, where the races of men are +still in a primitive stage. This is true also of many islands of the +sea, in the arctic regions, and in other remote and inaccessible places +of the earth. But given its full opportunity the human family has not +failed to go forward. The line of its progress may not be deemed wholly +satisfactory by the higher standards of enlightened criticism. Yet in +bending the forces of nature more and more to his will as well as to +his convenience, man has surely progressed. Where he has stood still, +where perhaps he has even fallen behind, is in the manifest lack of +control over his own nature. His curiosity has led him to inquire into +every phase and aspect of life upon the globe. But in all of these +inquiries he has given far too little thought to himself. Only within +recent years has he become deeply interested in the mechanisms of his +own behaviour. Least of all has he devoted time and thought to the +organ of his chief reliance, to the creator of his successes, to the +dictator of his future. + +Since his earliest beginnings man has grown in humanity as his brain +expanded. Such a conclusion seems irresistible. If we place side by +side the brain casts of the ape man of Java, the Dawn man of Piltdown, +the Rhodesian, the Neanderthal, the Prêdmost, and the modern, we have +before us a demonstration of this progress more effective than words. + +The regions in which the greatest development has occurred are +easily discerned. Marked additions have been made to the department +of sight in the occipital lobe, of hearing in the temporal lobe, +of body and contact sense in the parietal lobe. The mechanisms for +the amplification of sense perception and sense combination have +been manifoldly increased. But it is in the department of the chief +executive of life and experience that the most decisive advance has +occurred. This area of the frontal lobe, so poorly represented in man’s +nearest kin, the great manlike apes, shows exuberant growth, even in +the ape man of Java. Here its features correspond to those of modern +man in nearly every detail. Its only essential inferiority is its +relative smallness. Its special development of convolutions denotes the +acquisition of human speech and human reason. + + +_Progressive Development of the Human Brain_ + +Were we to select any single area in the superbrain as the department +supreme in mental organization, we should not neglect the claims of +the department for vision, for hearing, for body and contact sense. +Although each of these has progressively expanded, we would be much +more strongly inclined to favour that part of the superbrain which +has been active as the superlative sense combiner, which has served +to develop the fullest impressions of human existence, to accumulate +the widest ranges of experience, to direct most broadly the actions +of our behaviour. Traced through all of their intermediate stages +upward, it is these frontal regions which manifest the most conspicuous +development. The process of this long, progressive expansion in the +frontal lobe reaches back to the earliest periods of man’s existence. +It conveys an accurate impression of the manner in which the brain +has responded to the demands made upon it. The human brain may still +be considered to be in its early youth, in spite of the fact that +more than a million years of human striving lie behind it. This +great antiquity, this remarkable flexibility, have been largely +overlooked. By most of us the human brain is regarded as a finished +product. Its long, prehistoric record as we know it to-day does not +support this point of view. On the contrary, it makes it appear far +more probable that the brain of modern man is only some intermediate +stage in the ultimate development of the master organ of life. The +greatest possibilities for future progress lie in further expansion +of the frontal lobe. For this reason the brain of prehistoric man is +not merely an antiquarian relic, it is a sign from the long ages of +the past showing the road man has followed in his upward course. It +likewise conveys some suggestions concerning the future. For, if the +human brain began as a simple organ and gradually developed through +successive stages, there is reason to believe, if not to predict, that +it may develop still further. + + + + +CHAPTER XII + +IMPLEMENTS OF HUMAN SUCCESS + +HOW THE HAND, FOOT, AND BRAIN LED THE WAY TO HUMANITY + + +It is not sufficient to know that the brain began as a simple organ +and gradually became more complex. Sooner or later we must learn the +reasons why it made this progress. At present we are able to identify +some of the essential principles underlying brain development, yet with +few exceptions the exact causes are still obscure. We may feel certain, +however, that the progressive advances were due to the accumulation +of slight changes which, modifying brain structure ever so little, +ultimately made it more highly effective. Such changes in the different +parts of the body are the result of a complex interplay of influences +acting upon the animal as a whole. The brain has been particularly +responsive to this interplay. It has at the same time been thoroughly +conservative. Throughout all its wide range of variation it has +maintained its basic designs. If readjustment of the body to certain +conditions has resulted in the depreciation of a special part, such as +the eye, the structure of the brain shows corresponding depreciations. +The principle of compensation has also been at work. The power which +may be depreciated or lost in one department is, to some degree at +least, compensated for by others. An illustration of this compensatory +power is afforded by the mole. This animal lives a burrowing life +beneath the ground. Light rays do not reach it, and it therefore has no +need for vision. In consequence, its eyes do not develop the function +of sight. Its senses of touch and hearing, however, are greatly +amplified, and the structure of its brain gives evidence of this +compensatory readjustment. + +Signs of the close relation between the brain and the parts which it +controls may be found in many organs of the body. In some instances +these signs are outspoken; in others they are less clear. It is much +easier to find evidence of this correlation in those parts which play +a conspicuous rôle in life. The arms and legs, the eyes and ears, are +particularly good examples. Modifications which have affected these +parts are distinctly reflected in the brain. If more brain power is +required for their better operation, more ample provision is made for +them in brain structure. + + +_Relation of One Part of Body to Another_ + +It is a debated question whether the brain or the external part of the +body takes the lead in progressive modifications. Some authorities +believe that all advances of this kind are dictated by development in +the brain. Others ascribe the determining influence to the external +part. For the present it seems wiser to consider these modifications as +simultaneous, as affecting the external part and the brain together. +Certain dangers arise from regarding the body as divided too strictly +into definite parts. Such a division has advantages for purposes +of description, but it may tend to obscure the important fact that +life is carried on by the body acting as a whole. In this light the +division between external part and the portion of the brain controlling +it establishes an artificial distinction. Viewed in the light of +purposeful life, one is of little use without the other. Both external +part and the portion of the brain controlling it establish a special +unit which, coöperating with all other special units, carry on the +process of living. + +This view is known as the organismal conception of life. It estimates +the entire animal not as a collection of different parts but as a +combination which makes life possible. According to this conception the +external structure (arm, leg, eye, ear, etc.) and the portion of the +brain controlling it form an operating part of the whole. Modifications +in the one are reflected in the other. They cause mutual reactions. +When eyes are developed for different kinds of vision, corresponding +provisions are made for them in the brain. When legs are specialized +for various kinds of locomotion, brain structure adapts itself +accordingly. + +It is important to realize what the eyes and the ears and the organ of +smell have contributed to the progressive advance of the brain. In all +of these organs there is a marked constancy and sameness among animals +possessing them. Structures presenting a greater variety of form might +have even greater pertinence. It therefore is a more leading question +to ask what relation the brain bears to the extremities, to the fore +and hind legs, to the hands and feet. + + +_History of the Hand and Foot_ + +There is a long history of progressive change back of the hand and +foot. In their development they emerged from more simple structures +connected with the ends of the limbs in certain four-legged animals. +Because they are attached to the limbs in this way, they have played +an important rôle in one of the chief activities of life--locomotion. +The fore and hind legs act as a series of levers. They are moved by +muscles and in this way make transportation possible. Consequently the +modifications in the ends of the limbs in response to special types of +locomotion have a most important bearing upon the life of the animal +and thus upon the brain. + +In animals living upon land such parts of the limbs as touch the +ground are modified by many factors; thus the weight of the body, the +speed of movement, and the kind of locomotion would all exert their +modifying influence. Limbs of several different designs have thus been +produced. Heavy animals, like horses and cattle, which require speed +and endurance for long journeys, need hoofs. Still larger hoofs were +developed by heavier animals, like the elephant and rhinoceros. The paw +was the design utilized by animals like cats and dogs. Their bodies +were not so heavy as those of horses and cattle. They were capable of +great speed and needed sharp nails on their paws to hold the ground +in running and springing. These talon-like nails they also used for +defending themselves or in capturing their prey, as do the lion, +tiger, leopard, and bear. The paw is a more flexible implement than +the hoof. It provides a soft, elastic pad by means of which the animal +touches the ground. In animals like the seal, walrus, and sea lion the +flipper is the design utilized. Here the digits are connected by means +of a web. The wing is the specialization in such animals as the bat +whose transportation depends upon flight through the air. + + +_Locomotor Devices_ + +These various devices for moving the body about on the land, in the +water, or through the air have been developed by mammals. By such +contrivances they are enabled to subsist, each according to its own +mode of living. Some of them have returned to a life in the water. +The result of aquatic habits in mammals is extremely interesting. The +flippers of seals, walruses, and sea lions equip these animals to +swim with great ease and speed. They enable them to clamber about on +the rocky coast by the edge of the sea, or upon the ice fields of the +arctic regions. Because of its apparent limitations, such a life held +little prospect for developing the powers of higher intelligence. A +flipper is in no sense an efficient implement by means of which to +acquire a superior position in the world. The seals and all of their +kind, therefore, offer little promise of progress. They are capable +of astonishing proficiency in the control of their neck muscles and +movements of their heads, but this at best is a meagre advantage. They +are somewhat better off than another group of mammals which took to +the water, namely; porpoises and whales. Nothing in the equipment of +these animals could serve as efficient instruments by which to gain a +preëminent place in nature. + +By developing wings in connection with their limbs the bats were also +excluded from the lines of higher progress. However effective they are +in flight, their wings could not be made to serve constructive purposes. + +Animals with hoofs, such as horses and cattle, elephants and +rhinoceroses, acquired solid and reliable feet for withstanding the +heavy strain which their speed and weight imposed upon them. Hoofs, +however, are far from ideal as universal instruments. Although +sufficient for the work they have to do, they cannot be utilized for +purposes other than those of transportation except, in a certain minor +way, for offensive and defensive tactics. In these animals all of the +digits are either bound together in one large supporting pad, as in the +elephant, or are encased by a horny covering, as in cattle and deer. +In the modern horse but one digit persists, and this is surrounded +by a heavy, horny hoof. Such an implement would not require a highly +specialized endowment of brain power for its control. + +The daily programme of these animals, limited largely to +transportation, calls for no constructive ability and no intentionally +destructive one. The hoofed animals possess no means for accumulating +or storing food in preparation against a day of need. They are forced +to move from place to place in order to find their browsing and +grazing lands. They cannot stand against great changes of climate or +season. They must flee before the advance of winter as well as from +their enemies. The hoof for this reason offered little promise for the +development of a more efficient kind of instrument. Such hoofed animals +as also possess a trunk developed an accessory organ of much value. +It is doubtless an important factor in the high specialization of the +elephant’s brain. Even this flexible instrument, however, has its +decided limitations. + +All of these mammals, whether hoofed, flippered, or winged, have +failed to develop a brain of superior qualities. In no instance is it +an organ capable of a high degree of learning or intricate control of +life. The hoof of the horse, cattle, deer, elephant, rhinoceros, and +the like set the stamp of the wild upon these animals. This is the +keynote of their behaviour. Flipper and wing are equally indicative of +inferior qualifications in so far as efficiency and brain power are +concerned. There may be sufficient reasons for placing these mammals in +the same bracket with man in the great classes of the animal kingdom. +Their inferiorities are apparent, however, when their intelligence is +estimated by human standards. It is then clear how far below the human +level of brain power they are. + + +_The Paw in Relation to Hand and Foot_ + +In our search for animals capable of a greater range of adjustments +we will find another group with a much more promising locomotor +equipment. This group comprises those mammals possessing paws, such +as dogs, cats, bears, rats, squirrels, and the like. In itself the +paw is a most flexible implement susceptible to many modifications. +It possesses five distinct finger-like processes or digits, each of +which is capable of some degree of individual movement. The digits may +be spread out or drawn together; they may be folded or extended. In +every typical paw there are eighteen movable joints, each of which is +capable of some independent motion. Twenty-five muscles make more than +seventy separate movements possible. These figures afford some idea of +what a complex structure the paw is. Attached to the extremity of each +digit is a sharp claw-like nail, beneath which an enlargement in the +skin forms a prominent “tip pad.” Over each of these pads the skin is +arranged in ridges. The ridges roughen the surface and produce what is +called “friction skin.” The roughened skin and the claws at the end of +the digits give the animal better ground-gripping powers. In addition +to the tip pad, each typical paw has four enlargements where the +digits come together. These are the “palm” and “sole” pads. They are +likewise covered with ridged friction skin. The paw terminates in the +wrist or ankle, and at this junction there are two enlargements called +respectively the “wrist” and “ankle” pads. They are also covered with +friction skin. + +This design of paw with its separate digits, its claw-like nails, and +its eleven pads affords an especially adaptable structure from which +to create many different kinds of useful implements. In the gnawing +animals, like the rats and squirrels, the paw is developed particularly +for running and climbing. The long sharp claws serve the purpose of +spurs which, as in the case of the squirrel, may be driven into the +bark of trees. All of the pads in the paw come in contact with the +surface over which the animal is moving, thus giving information +concerning its support and aiding its transportation. + +In moles and burrowing animals the hind paw retains its usual features, +while the fore paw is converted into something resembling a shovel. +The paw becomes broad and flat, particularly in the moles, and there +is no suggestion of any of its pads. Since this specialization is +adapted principally for digging underground, little could be expected +in the way of high attainment for animals of this kind. Their burrowing +capacity is excellent, but this is the extent of their ability. + + +_Special Uses of the Paw_ + +In the meat-eating animals, like the dog and the cat, the individual +digits and the claws are somewhat shorter, but their most important +modification is the fusion of the paw pads and the reduction in the +first digit. This change is a specialization for their more springy +type of locomotion. Such animals run on the tips of the digits, using +especially the second, third, and fourth digits. The paw pads usually +fuse to form one or two which serve to increase the spring of the +animal. The fore limb of the rat may be accepted as the working model, +because it has all of the general features that make up a typical +paw. It provides for running, climbing, clinging, and clawing. When +compared with the paw of a mole, the modifications necessary for a good +digging implement are clearly seen. The pads are no longer needed and +might, as a matter of fact, be in the way. The digits are shorter and +the whole hand is broader and more scoop-like. The paw of the mole is +modified for the work it has to do and has lost many of the structures +necessary for ordinary locomotion over the ground. Long claws are no +longer essential for climbing or clinging, and the nails have been +converted into burrowing ground-breakers. The rabbit and the guinea +pig show changes in the fore paw necessary for rapid transportation +in a kind of jumping locomotion. They have lost the specializations +in the paw necessary for climbing. The nails and the digits are less +long and somewhat heavier. The squirrel, on the other hand, has a fore +paw specialized for climbing trees. This modification has emphasized +the length of the individual digit and particularly the length and +sharpness of the claws. Often the squirrel may be seen sitting upon its +haunches holding between its fore paws a nut, the shell of which it is +attempting to crack with its teeth. Such grasping power is not found +in the paws of animals specialized for running and jumping solely. The +squirrel’s modification of the front paw is extremely important. It +reveals how the animal’s life in the tree has lengthened the digits as +well as the nails. Some degree of power for grasping small objects has +come through this lengthening. The fore paw of a cat compared with +that of a dog illustrates other important specializations. Both of +these animals are strong runners. In running they travel along on the +tips of the digits. For this reason the tip pads and the friction skin +over them have become highly developed for ground-gripping purposes. +The paw pads and the wrist pads have tended to fuse in order to give an +elastic surface necessary for that springy gait determined by running +on the tips of the digits. The individual digits are somewhat longer in +the cat than in the dog. The claw-like nail of all the cat family is +one of their distinguishing features. By means of these claws they are +able to climb trees, which is a provision of great service in procuring +food. Dogs, on the other hand, have short digits, with thick, heavy +nails suited more as spikes in running but not adapted to climbing. +In many of the great cats, like the leopard, climbing trees is an +essential part of their hunting strategy. For this reason they require +long, sharp claws, which may also be used as weapons in attacking their +prey. The long claws of the bear likewise indicate a modification of +the fore paw in adjustment to the animal’s climbing propensities. The +great weight of the bear makes it necessary for it to have these long +spur-like claws in order to get a proper grip on the bark of a tree +when climbing. + + +_Transformation from Paw to Hand_ + +Illustrations of this kind might be multiplied to show that in all +animals having paws these implements have been modified in one way +or another to suit the kind of work they have to do. In the main, +this work is transportation. But there are many special problems in +the different kinds of transportation. There are also numerous other +adjustments to life that are capable of producing profound modification +in the paws. From such facts as these it must be clear that the paw has +been serviceable as the basis for developing instruments suited to many +special purposes. One prominent feature in the several modifications of +the fore paw is the effect which climbing has had upon the length of +the digits and upon the length of the claw-like nails. In the rat and +particularly in the squirrel these effects of climbing are especially +distinct. When climbing at length became a dominant factor in the life +and livelihood of the animal, certain still more decisive modifications +were produced in the paws. We may now endeavour to gain some idea +of that important transformation which occurred when certain groups +of animals took up more or less permanent life in the trees. These +mammals were representative of the monkey kind. They did not resort +to tree climbing as many others have done as an expedient in hunting +or in escaping from their enemies. The trees became their abodes. +Many changes were induced by this new adjustment to life, changes +which affected the muscles and bones and even the skin. During the +process of this adjustment certain ridges upon the skin in the palm of +the hand and sole of the foot began to show marked changes, probably +because they were in such immediate and constant contact with the +branches of the trees. In their basic designs these ridges which form +the friction skin may be traced back to the simplest of pawed animals. +Their successive modifications offer one of the most certain guides in +following the stages through which the hand emerged from the paw. + +Each ridge upon the skin of the paw (_chiridium_) is an elevation +of the superficial layer which contains, at regular intervals, the +mouths of minute canals coming from sweat glands. In its simplest form +each sweat gland in regions of the skin not covered by hair (sole of +the foot and palm of the hand) consists of a mound-like elevation in +the centre of which is the mouth of a sweat duct. With the higher +development of the skin, numbers of these little mounds ran together in +rows thus forming the friction ridges. Depending upon the pressure and +the kind of contact made with the ground or other surface, the ridges +of the skin are arranged either in concentric circles, in ellipses, or +in parallel lines. They serve two useful purposes: First, they roughen +the surface so that it can grip the ground more effectively; second, by +the continuous secretion of fluid from the sweat glands, they keep the +skin soft, pliable, and sensitive. In this last particular, namely, the +sensitiveness of the skin, the ridges also serve in another capacity. +They provide proper locations for nerve endings, necessary to the sense +of touch in all of its various modifications. Thus the paws in the +more minute architecture of their skin pads and friction ridges afford +highly pliable and sensitive instruments by means of which different +kinds of mammals are able to adjust themselves in a great variety of +ways. + +After many intermediate stages of transition the fore paw assumed +the appearance of a hand. Simultaneous with this change the hind paw +also began to manifest many hand-like characters. Potent factors were +at work determining this important transformation. Their influences +were decisive not alone because they changed the paw into a hand but +because they instituted equally profound changes in the structure of +the brain. Such modifications as these brought about many adjustments +to life destined to be the special determinants of human behaviour. One +of the first changes to occur in transforming a front paw into a hand +was the direct result of arboreal life. This modification consisted +of a decisive lengthening of the digits, particularly the second, +third, fourth, and fifth digits. In this way the fingers were formed. +The first digit which ultimately became the thumb did not lengthen to +the same degree as the other four. The chief influence in producing +this lengthening to form fingers arose from the need of a firm grasp +upon the branches. Its effects appear in the simplest monkeys, such +as tarsius. The small hand of this animal has four long fingers and +a diminutive thumb, all of which are well adapted to encircling and +grasping a cylindrical branch. Another important transitional feature +is the flattening in the ball of each digit. In tarsius each finger tip +has a disk-like appearance. This is an extreme development. It produces +what in effect is a suction pad on the tip of the finger not unlike +that observed in some of the frogs (_Hyladæ_). Such suction pads enable +the animal to strengthen its grasp upon the bark. The flattening of the +finger tips due to the pressure required in grasping the limb of a tree +produced a third great change. It caused a corresponding flattening of +the back of the finger tip and thus developed a broad, flat finger nail +to replace the sharp, claw-like nail of the cat, rat, and other similar +mammals. + + +_The Hand of Tarsius and Lemur_ + +The three changes observed in the most primitive of the monkey kind +(_Tarsius_) comprise the pronounced lengthening of the fingers, the +flattening of the finger tips, and the flattening of the finger +nails. These transformations are easily understood in connection with +the necessity of grasping cylindrical branches. In other words, a +prehensile hand came into existence as a result of living in the trees, +and a new kind of instrument made its appearance in relation with the +upper extremity. The need of a firm grasp on the branches was the +fundamental cause of this modification of the paw. It had far-reaching +effects because it created the facility to grasp many other objects and +thus struck the keynote of those further developments which ultimately +gave rise to the grasping hand of man. + +All of the pads covered by friction skin which are characteristic +of lower mammals like the rat and the squirrel may be identified in +tarsius. The tip pads are somewhat changed to form the suction disks. +The palm pads, four in number, occupy their usual position in the angle +between the digits. The wrist pads, two in number, are well developed. +By means of these elastic cushions the animal makes its contacts with +the branches. + +Transition from paw to hand is still more pronounced in the lemurs. +These animals in many ways stand lower in the scale than tarsius. In +them the lengthening of the digits to form real fingers, the marked +development of the thumb, the appearance of friction pads, and broad, +flat finger nails are all prominent. The index finger shows certain +variations in its development. In other respects these lowly members of +the monkey kind manifest definite progress in the change from paw to +hand. + + +_The Interesting Case of the Marmoset_ + +At this point it is interesting to consider the case of the marmosets. +Here the progress which the paw had made toward a more effective +structural instrument encountered a serious setback. The hand of +these little animals, in a general way, has much that resembles a +paw. Although it has long fingers and a prominent thumb, there is +an evident slipping backward. The claw-like finger nails suggest an +actual retrogression in the process of developing a hand. If the +marmosets were actual backsliders, other monkeys of the New World were +particularly progressive. They developed hands which are extremely +human in appearance. Their long, tapering fingers have broad, flat +nails. Their thumbs are fairly well formed. Their finger and palm +pads have characteristic appearances. This interesting group of South +American monkeys show in a most striking manner those changes which +life in the trees has brought about in the fore paw. Such modifications +are especially significant because of their influence upon the +behaviour of those animals which have taken up a permanent arboreal +life. They have also made a deep impression upon the structure of the +brain. The transition from a running, ground-living animal to the +simpler arboreal forms is foreshadowed in the lemur’s hand. In many +respects this transition stands just upon the border line. Its apparent +indecisiveness is recorded in the brain, for the lemur retains many of +the ancient brain features created by older ground-living habits. At +the same time, it indicates certain adventurous attempts to break away +from the earth and ascend into the trees. The grooves of the brain show +this new departure particularly well. They retain their strong family +resemblances inherited through long ages of four-legged ancestors. But +added to this they manifest a tendency to assume the characters which +in due course would lift their successors farther from the ground and +into a more erect posture. + + +_Appearance of the Hand-like Foot_ + +Up to this point attention has been centred upon the important changes +which attended the transition from paw to hand. Equally momentous +were the modifications in the hind paws which resulted in hand-like +feet. This transformation slowly altered the digits, the claw-like +nails, and the friction pads. It modified all of these parts in such +a way as to produce better limb-gripping instruments. A great change +in transportation had taken place. Running over the ground in easy, +secure fashion now gave place to the more hazardous method of climbing +among the branches of trees. A dependable grip was the prime need. +This capacity required long toes with which to encircle the branches, +a powerful sole, and a great toe with strong grasping power. The +four-legged animals that travel over the ground on various kinds of +paws support the weight of the body on two main arches of the foot. One +arch consists of an elastic span between the tip and the sole pads. The +other arch extends between the sole and ankle pads. Generally speaking, +those animals living on the ground first strike the surface at each +step on the tip pads of the four outer toes. As the full weight of +the body is accepted by the hind paw, the sole pads touch the ground. +Last and most lightly, the ankle pads in the region of the heels rest +on the supporting surface. In many running animals of this kind the +heel touches the ground infrequently. Their running and walking in +consequence have a springy quality that prepares them for a quick +bounding start at an instant’s notice. + + +_Strong Grasping Powers_ + +Animals like the rabbit and kangaroo possess hind legs that work +together, while the fore limbs are put forward first one and then the +other. The most effective type of transportation in animals possessing +paws has developed a gait in which the action of the hind leg of one +side follows the action of the fore leg of the opposite side. This +is the manner in which the dog runs. It is also true of all members +belonging to the great cat family. The hind paw is put down in the +footprint of the opposite fore paw. Apparently there is no deliberate +supervision of this action which seems to be wholly automatic in its +nature. To a great extent, however, this automatic regularity in the +hind legs ceased when the four-handed animals came into existence and +began to live in the trees. The problem then was a totally different +one. It was not necessary for these animals to be on their toes every +moment. They did not require the powerful spring formed by the two +arches in the sole of the foot. Their chief necessity was a foot that +would have the grasping powers of a strong hand. In this way they could +make sure of seizing the branches securely. + +The first digit of the foot, which in most pawed animals often fails +to develop, became of greatest service to the monkeys. In most of them +the great toe offers an added means for securing a firm grasp. It may +be extended behind the branch while the other toes encircle it and all +working together produce a firm grip not unlike a wrench on a pipe. +The need of a long lever extending from the tip of the toes back to +the heel, essential to the springy gait of the ordinary pawed animal, +is not so strongly felt in arboreal life. In fact, a foot which is too +long may be an actual disadvantage, while one facilitating the best +kind of gripping power would necessarily require a shortening from toe +to heel. This was the change which took place in the early beginning of +tree life. + + +_Under Direction of the Eye_ + +It is difficult to appreciate all of the decisive modifications +throughout the body which the development of such hand-like structures +determined. Their influences operated in profound and subtle ways. They +caused a great change in body posture. The animal was now able to reach +for branches above its head. This was a long step in the direction of +standing upright. It modified the relation of the head which in most +four-legged animals is directed so that both the eyes and the nose +are turned toward the ground. Reaching upward to grasp branches and +drawing the body in this direction lifted the head. It has been shown +that this action of pushing the head backward and stretching the neck +causes the hind legs to straighten out automatically in exactly the +position necessary for standing erect. Such a beginning of the upright +posture also produced a change in the position of the internal organs +of the body as well as in the position of the eyes. These modifications +influenced the growth of the superbrain, which finally acquired that +appearance seen only in animals possessing hands. Coincident with these +modifying factors, still another important change was in process. In +all four-legged animals the paws, and more especially the hind paws, +operate out of sight of the eyes. The animal does not see their action. +The eye does not watch and supervise the movements of the paws step +by step, but allows them to shift more or less for themselves. With +the appearance of hands connected both with the fore and hind limbs, +this state of affairs ceased. Both the hand and the foot now came under +the critical supervision of the eye. The eye was able to hold in plain +view the performances of the hands and hand-like feet. It could see +and direct their movements. It could single them out individually or +watch them while they all worked together. It could even make critical +discriminations in each hand and in each foot. It could select a thumb +or a great toe, or each one of the other fingers and toes, and thus +guide its movements. This selective discrimination in the hands and +feet was an advantage never enjoyed by any of the pawed animals whose +habit it is to use all of the digits together. In this manner both hand +and foot profited by their new adjustments. As instruments they were +capable of a far wider range of application, although it was not alone +by this expansion in their utility that they became more effective. +They were better agents for sensing the world and possessed a more +ample sensory capacity which arose from their own multiplied movements. + + +_Threshold of a Great Change_ + +In the animal kingdom it would be difficult to find more provocative +influences than those which determined the transformation of paws into +four hands. Considered casually, the appearance of the quadrumanous +monkeys in all their varieties seems little more than the addition +of many interesting forms of life. This addition, however, had a far +greater significance. The four-handed stage of animal existence led to +the highest development of the brain. Without this stage the ultimate +advances in life, the supreme achievements in progress, would have been +impossible. Numerous factors contributed to the acquisition of hands +and hand-like feet, but no one of them was more potent in the final +outcome than the effects of tree-living. Almost every other combination +of habitat and adjustment had exerted its influence upon the form of +the mammalian body, yet in no other instance has there been achieved +a success comparable to the development of hands. Most mammals are +equipped with highly efficient eyes, keen ears, and a serviceable +sense of smell. These endowments have had opportunity to contribute to +the efficiency of life. But neither sight nor hearing nor smell was +sufficient of itself to determine those advantages capable of giving +the animal a supreme position. It was the hand which opened the door +to give the senses those opportunities never enjoyed before. It called +upon the brain for further expansions to direct new ranges of movement. +It required additional brain extensions for a greatly amplified sense +of touch in the fingers and palms, in the toes and soles of the feet. +It was the hand, in a word, that afforded an entirely new grasp upon +life and in the end created not only a new order of mammals but +almost a new kingdom of life. The transition from paws to the hands +of the quadrumana is the threshold of an epochal change. As the paw +was the basic pattern for the hand, the hand was the indispensable +stepping-stone to the development of man. This formula may perhaps seem +altogether too simple and graphic. It would be such, in fact, if many +of the important intermediate stages in the process of development were +overlooked. These stages may now be considered. + +The consequences of the transition produced under the influence of +tree-living appear conspicuously in the lengthening of the digits +to form fingers, in the appearance of an opposable thumb, in the +acquisition of a grasping hand. All of these are definitely adaptive +changes. They are applied directly to meet the conditions of locomotion +through the trees. But if these modifications conferred upon the +animals many real advantages, they also introduced certain imposing +hazards to further progress. They were adequate for the mastery of +arboreal life, yet at the same time they permitted the forest to become +master of these four-handed animals. This is true in exactly the same +way that the sea imposes its laws upon aquatic mammals, the plains +dictate to the ungulates, and the air exerts its control over the bats. + + +_Possession of too Many Hands_ + +So far as the monkeys are concerned, an obstacle lies squarely across +the path of further progress. They are possessed of too many hands. +Hand and hand-like foot both serve the purposes of locomotion. Neither +the one nor the other is afforded those opportunities of exclusive use +which are essential to the highest development. This is true even +of most of the monkeys of the Old World, like the macaques. Their +locomotion requires the use of all four extremities. They run along +on the top of the branches, grasping firmly as they go. They leap +from one branch to another, employing all four hands in this mode of +transportation. As a result of these activities the hands are long +and slender, the fingers long and tapering, and the thumb short but +opposable. The foot has much the appearance of the hand. + +One group of the ape world offers a striking departure from this +more general rule of development. This exception is particularly +interesting. It appears in the baboon and more especially those members +of their family which have taken up a life upon the ground. With the +baboons the resumption of terrestrial life came long before any of +the monkeys had made pronounced advances toward the erect posture. It +is for this reason that when these animals adopted habits of ground +life they readjusted themselves after the fashion of other four-legged +animals. They travel about much like the dog or cat, with their muzzles +directed to the earth. In fact, many of their features, both in head +and body, take on a definite canine appearance. A feature of special +significance is the manner in which their fore and hind limbs have +reacted to the influences of ground-living. The great lengthening in +the hands, fingers, feet, and toes, conspicuous in monkeys that live +in the trees, has actually been reversed in the baboon. It is still +proper to speak of hands and feet, but both hand and foot have shown +striking tendency to revert to paws. This specialization illustrates +a remarkable disgression in the development of the monkey kind. It +means, if it means anything at all, that the adaptations necessary +for carrying on life in the trees have withdrawn their influence +and permitted the habits of adjustment to the ground to modify the +character of the extremities. In four particulars the hand of the +baboon shows distinct tendencies to revert to a paw: + +1. All of the fingers are shortened. + +2. The thumb has been reduced if not to the state of a vestigial +tubercle as in the dog, at least until it has become extremely +rudimentary. + +3. The nails have become much longer and more slender, as if they were +tending to form claws. + +4. Both the tip pads and the palm pads have become more prominent, the +latter actually fusing to form a single palmar cushion. + +In the foot similar tendencies toward a paw are present. The lesser +toes and the great toe are much shortened, and there is a distinct +fusion of the plantar pads. This reversion in the hands and feet of the +baboon shows clearly how readjustment occurred when the influences of +tree living were withdrawn. It also demonstrates the strong tendency +for the chirideal structures to assume the ancient patterns of the +paw in response to the habits of four-footed living upon the ground. +The baboons, therefore, cannot be considered in the direct line of +progress. They not only failed to advance the cause of developing +the hand but they did nothing to further the erect posture or the +progressive expansion of the brain. It was perhaps the large size of +their body that made it necessary for them to desert the tree and +seek more secure support upon the ground. This increase of body size, +however, came at an early period, long before the primates had begun to +feel those decisive influences which favoured standing erect. + + +_Brachiation and the Erect Posture_ + +Considerably later in geologic times another class of apes made its +appearance, which felt the full power of this determining influence. +These animals were the gibbons. They introduced a new type of +transportation. Their locomotion no longer depended upon running along +on the tops of the branches, or leaping from one support to the next. +They introduced the novel method of swinging by the hands. Reaching +for a branch over the head with the right hand, the gibbon swings +its body forward to grasp the next branch in advance with the left +hand. Swinging in this manner, step by step, first with the right +hand, then with the left, these animals walk through the trees. The +results of this arm-swinging locomotion (brachiation) are apparent +in the development of the hand. The fingers, tip pads, the palm, and +the palm pads are greatly elongated. Similar lengthening is also +apparent in the forearm. The acrobatic manœuvring requisite to such +locomotion has developed a high degree of skill in using the hands +and arms. It also requires a close coöperation between the movements +of the upper extremities, eyes, and head. The influence of these +several modifications has impressed itself upon the brain. But the most +decisive effect of the gibbon mode of locomotion is seen in the posture +of the body. The swinging by the hands well above the head produces an +almost constant erect posture. The muzzle no longer points, as in the +great majority of monkeys, toward the ground. It, as well as the eyes, +is now directed toward the horizon, and thus those factors which have +contributed most to an upstanding, forward-looking primate were first +introduced by the gibbon. The foot of these animals, while it retains +many features and markings of a hand, affords a fairly satisfactory +support for bipedal locomotion in the erect posture. Obviously the +effects of tree life are responsible for these changes in the gibbon. +All other monkeys up to this stage have been embarrassed by an +over-endowment of hands. But the gibbon, by over-emphasizing the upper +extremity, has to some degree nullified the importance of hand-like +feet. It has begun the solution of that perplexing problem which was +imposed upon the monkeys by their almost exclusive tree life and which +must be solved in order to provide for the manlike specializations +essential to bipedal locomotion. + +In this gibbon level of the ape world such specializations began to +manifest themselves. From some gibbon-like progenitor, early in the +Age of Mammals, there arose a common stock capable of producing all of +the modern gibbons, the great anthropoid apes, and man himself. This +gibbon stage of development contained the potential material from which +to evolve the erect posture, bipedal locomotion, hands freed for the +purposes of the greatest utility, and a brain adequate to the needs of +the highest primates. + + +_A New Grasp on Life_ + +In the three great anthropoids, orang-outang, chimpanzee, and gorilla, +the hand is approaching more closely to the human pattern. In all three +the leading advance is due to the development of a more effective +opposable thumb. The result of this change has caused the disappearance +of the two wrist pads so characteristic of the mammalian paw and so +prominent in the great majority of monkeys. Power to oppose the thumb +against each one of the fingers separately has increased to a great +extent. The opponens muscle of the thumb has become more prominent +and caused the appearance of a conspicuous muscular swelling in the +palm of the hand, the thenar eminence. The palm muscles developed +in connection with the little finger have likewise occasioned the +appearance of the hypothenar eminence and at the same time the +disappearance of the second wrist pad. These developments, all clearly +seen in the anthropoid apes, and most prominent in the gorilla, reach +their greatest proportions in man. They are evidence not of the further +adaptation of the hand to locomotion but of its liberation for other +and more constructive purposes. + +The effects of this advance in the hand from one primarily intended +to provide a firm grip upon the limbs of trees to one of almost +universal application are revealed by alterations in the palmar lines. +These lines are three in number, namely, the anterior, middle, and +posterior groove. In the gibbon they extend across the palm almost +parallel to each other. They are creases which represent the lines of +palmar flexion resulting from grasping cylindrical branches. In the +orang-outang these lines are still essentially parallel, indicating a +hand designed to grasp a cylinder. In the chimpanzee and gorilla the +palmar grooves begin to converge toward the space between the index +finger and thumb. In man this convergence is complete, due to the +development of the powerful hand muscle which permits the opposable +thumb to reach the other fingers. This progressive convergence of the +palmar lines indicates the development of a hand no longer intended +for the simple purpose of grasping a cylinder, but not constructed +to take firm hold upon a sphere. Figuratively this change in hand +from cylinder- to sphere-holding capacity is illustrative of actual +development in the intellectual grasping powers that became the +distinguishing feature of mankind. + + +_A Firm Foundation for Humanity_ + +Thus far we have been able to trace the stages by which the hand +developed in consequence of tree life. It is now necessary to follow +the modifications which terminated this arboreal domination and +consequently liberated the animal from the forest. This transition +determined an adjustment to life that was finally productive of the +most effective behaviour. The outcome of this modification was the +freeing of the hand for purposes other than locomotion. The immediate +agent that made such a result possible was the development of a foot +capable of supporting the upright posture. This foot, as it made its +appearance in man, passed through a long series of transitional phases. +It had its beginning in a definitely prehensile stage when in the +earliest of the monkey kind it was hand-like in its appearance. The +structure that was the forerunner of the human foot had the same bones, +the same muscles, the same ligaments. The only substantial difference +was in the form and arrangement of these parts. Even in such a minute +particular as the three contravehent muscles in the sole of the +monkey’s foot, which draw together the heads of the metatarsal bones, +the correspondence is complete. These muscles are present and active in +the gibbon. They are much diminished in the chimpanzee. In the orang +and the gorilla they are still further reduced and closely resemble +the atrophic fibrous strands found in man. A similar correspondence +involves the muscles which separate and draw the toes together (the +interossei). They are deeply situated in the plantar surface of the +foot in most monkeys. In the orang and gorilla they have exactly the +same position and relations as in man. The human embryo affords the +final connecting link, for in this stage of development the muscles +correspond to those of the lower monkeys. + +The human foot is foreshadowed by that of the great anthropoids. It +is, in fact, the culminating stage in that series which had almost +reached the human goal in the orang, chimpanzee, and gorilla. The +plantar grooves in the feet of the anthropoid apes clearly indicate +the lines of flexion adapting the foot for purposes of grasping the +limbs of the trees. In passing from the gibbon to the orang and the +chimpanzee, with the slow development of semiterrestrial life, there +is a progressive disappearance of the plantar grooves. This change +illustrates the manner in which the foot became adapted to the purposes +of bipedal locomotion. Of all the great apes, the gorilla makes the +nearest approach to the human foot. The toes have become shorter and +have lost their finger-like resemblances. The great toe has become +larger and is partially assuming an axis in parallel with the other +toes. It has also migrated toward the end of the foot and, in older +adults, has lost much of its prehensile character. Another modification +is the gradual broadening of the heel and the appearance of the plantar +arch. All of these changes have been developed for the purposes of +bipedal locomotion and the erect posture. In consequence of these new +functions the simple grasping foot of the monkey is altered to serve as +a powerful stepping lever. In its simian form the foot is a Y-shaped +prehensile organ. The stem of the Y is represented by the long heel. +The two branches are formed by the great toe and the lesser digits +respectively. In the higher primates, such as the orang, chimpanzee, +and gorilla, the simple Y foot has undergone a striking change. +The sole of the foot, including the ball and the heel, has greatly +increased, while the toes or grasping elements have become shorter. In +gorilla this is particularly true of all the toes except the great +toe, which has not only become somewhat longer but now tends to be in +the main axis of the foot. + +The most important features in the development of the foot are the +increase in the supporting surface of the heel and the appearance of +the plantar arch. In the lower monkeys the arch of the foot is double. +In the great apes, more especially in gorilla, the plantar arch is +single and corresponds practically to that of the human foot. The +sole pads have become fused to form the ball of the foot, while the +development of the heel has caused the disappearance of the ankle pads. + +Whatever may have been the influences which caused certain members +of the prehuman stock to desert the trees and live upon the ground, +it is clear that one most important result of this change was the +formation of the human foot. This structure was a solid foundation +for the highest achievements of organic evolution. It ultimately +produced an animal capable of dominating the world. It was responsible +for all of the extensive changes incident to the erect posture--for +the rearrangement in the shape of the body, for the squaring of the +shoulders and the broadening of the pelvis, for readjustments in the +position of the heart and lungs, for new provisions in supporting the +abdominal organs, for a reordering in the relation of the eyes to +provide for binocular, stereoscopic vision, for the modifications in +the neck to suit the purposes of the most effective head movements, +for the freeing of the hands so that they might become constructive +agents, and, above all, for impressing upon brain structure the +effects of these many progressive advantages. If there could be any +doubt that the hand and the foot contributed in this decisive manner +to the development of the brain, we might test this supposition by a +pertinent question: What, for example, would the brain have been if +neither hand nor foot had made its appearance? It is clear to us what +limited advantages were acquired by animals equipped with hoofs or +paws or flippers or wings. The brain responded to the requirements of +these specialized organs. None the less, such response was always and +unmistakably the brain of an ungulate or of a meat-eater, of a flying +or of a swimming mammal. It was the brain of a creature of restricted +behaviour, as limited in the development of its intelligence as it +was in the amplitude of its adjustment to life. It was particularly +deficient in one great department which is the hallmark of all animals +possessing hands. Summarized as briefly as possible, it may be said +that what the brain owes to the hand and foot is the frontal lobe. +Through all the stages of progress, from the time when the monkeys +first began to live in the trees until their successors, through graded +intermediate phases, developed the hand and foot of man, this lobe has +been the outstanding feature of the brain. + +It is perhaps unwise and also unwarranted to speak of the debt that one +organ owes to others, especially when the activities of all represent +a unified process. Brain, hand, and foot are in the strict sense a +single functional unit. Each is indispensable to the others. Yet it +may be assumed that it was the new opportunities for action provided by +the hand and foot which at length gave the brain its human capacities. +These ultimate instruments of man’s success amplified brain power and +increased its sphere of influence. The hand in particular was the +instigator, if not the originator, of human speech. Herbert Spencer, +in his essay on “The Philosophy of Style,” clearly points out the +fundamental relation of the hand to speech, in the following words: “To +say ‘leave the room,’ is less expressive than to point to the door. +Placing a finger on the lips is more forcible than whispering ‘Do not +speak.’ A beck of the hand is better than ‘Come here.’” As the creator +of indicative gesture the hand laid the foundations for the use of +symbols, which, when vocalized, became established as language. This +attainment was the most important single step in the ascent leading to +humanity. + + + + +CHAPTER XIII + +ESTIMATES AND VALUES + +ASSETS AND LIABILITIES OF THE HUMAN BRAIN + + +There is substantial evidence to prove that the brain passed through +many intermediate stages before it acquired sufficient power to enter +upon the latest stage of its progress. Wherever it has come down +into modern times, regardless of race or climate, it bears marked +similarities in its external appearance. In spite of this strong family +likeness, however, there are many individual variations. Some of these +variations are especially noteworthy. Certain of them are of utmost +importance because it is possible to discover in them the secret of +man’s highest achievements. + +In the average human brain, as in these notable exceptions, the +principle of development remains unchanged. Expansion, the root and +base of this principle, has been most pronounced in the departments +capable of creating human supremacy. From order to order among the +mammals, increase in the size of the brain has been prominent. +Depending upon the specialization of the animal, this increase has +affected the area of vision, of hearing, of body sense, of taste, or +of smell. Only in the family of man has this expansion made itself +preëminent in the frontal region. Frontal growth is the dominant +character of man’s physical endowment. It seems reasonable, therefore, +to speak of the entire period of human existence as the Age of the +Frontal Lobe. + + +_The Frontal Lobe and the Expansion of Consciousness_ + +Selective development in the brain has had far-reaching effects. It +has provided for special adaptability. It has furnished one or more +of the senses with a particular degree of keenness. It has determined +the specific lines of reaction. These lines in all animal life express +themselves in three phases: (1) the approaching phase, (2) the avoiding +phase, and (3) the resting phase. In the vertebrates each phase depends +upon impulses which influence the nervous system, particularly the +brain. The approaching reactions embrace all efforts made by the animal +to reach out and acquire what it needs. In these reactions the hunger +impulse is the most primitive and the most important. It arises from +the necessity for food and depends upon stimuli from the entire body, +more especially from the gastro-intestinal tract. Another series of +approaching reactions takes origin in the herding impulse, which leads +to the gregarious association of animals of the same kind, such as +schools of fish, flocks of birds, herds of cattle. The stimuli for this +impulse come through the contact-receiving organs. Many approaching +reactions express the essential necessity of the muscles to contract, +as in activities without any other apparent objective. Still more +conspicuous are the approaching reactions caused by the mating +impulses which arise from sexual stimuli. + +Impulses of each variety motivating these reactions of approach +ascend higher in consciousness, or acquire greater clarity, in direct +proportion to the brain capacity of the animal. Consciousness in fish +is of a relatively low grade. It becomes progressively more extensive +in amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals, reaching its highest +development in the human cortex. The frontal lobe in man provides for +an incalculable expansion of these impulses in conscious clarity. + +The avoiding reactions of animal life likewise depend upon fundamental +impulses whose essential stimuli arise from the hurt or painful +elements in sensation. All extremes of sensory stimulation may +contribute to impulses underlying the avoiding reactions. They form +the natural armament of protection upon which the animal depends in +adjusting itself to its surroundings. As in the case of the approaching +reactions, so the impulses necessary to avoidance are progressively +expanded through the vertebrates until they reach their highest clarity +in the human brain. The resting phase depends upon impulses derived +from the entire metabolism of the body. + +These fundamental impulses which become clearer in consciousness +through the progressive stages of the animal kingdom tend to interact +in their correlations and determine combinations of great importance. +Avoiding impulses of a protective nature may combine with approaching +impulses to determine a reaction of attack in order to save the +animal from some threatening enemy. Thus a protective effort may be +a combination of an avoiding and an attacking attitude at the same +time, as when the mongoose, jumping backward in retreat from the +striking cobra, still maintains the pose of attack in the entire set +of its body. The resting phase may be employed as camouflage for an +avoiding reaction in what is commonly known as “playing ’possum,” or +it may be used as a decoy in preparation for aggressive activities of +attack, particularly as seen in the cat family. In man the range of +these combinations has attained the highest degree of development. The +frontal lobe furnishes an extensive equipment for this purpose. In +all modern races frontal capacity manifests but little difference. It +therefore seems clear that this common denominator of human success has +given man his power to hold his place in nature and to overcome the +difficulties which have beset his path. + + +_Caucasian Supremacy_ + +The greater apparent successes of the white race might presuppose a +greater degree of brain capacity and hence a better frontal lobe. But +the frontal superiority of the Caucasian peoples, if it exists, is at +best slight. The white man’s supremacy must, however, depend upon some +actual advantage. Although outnumbered two to one, he is to-day the +overlord of the world. Of the 1,700,000,000 human beings now living, +only 550,000,000 are Caucasians. The remaining 1,150,000,000 belong +to the yellow, black, and red races. In spite of this disparity, the +white man’s policies, his products, his projects, penetrate into every +angle of the earth whose climate, fertility, or hidden wealth may be +exploited by resources of the Caucasian brain. + +Numerous facts indicate that in the white race there has been +an unusually large number of individuals with exceptional brain +development. Many Caucasians who have distinguished themselves +intellectually show conspicuous advantages in cerebral development, +especially in the richness of convolutions and fissures. The region of +the brain showing this richness particularly is the frontal lobe. + + +_Brains of Modern Races_ + +This lobe is much the same in all modern races of men. The Eskimo +brain, however, possesses frontal convolutions which are rather more +complex and tortuous than in the average whites (Hrdlicka). As a +whole, the brain of this northern race is heavier and larger than the +Caucasian. Its excess of weight over the average white man, according +to many observers, amounts to about 150 grams. The large Eskimo brain +is not out of proportion with the fact that these people are compelled +to contend with an exacting environment and require much ingenuity to +maintain themselves. + +The brains of the aborigines in Andaman and Nicobar Islands weigh +somewhat less than the average white brain. The brain is broad and +short; the frontal lobes are a little less massive than in the +Caucasian. The fissures and convolutions are, if anything, slightly +less complex than in the white man, although the difference is not +striking (E. A. Spitzka). + +The negro brain, for the most part, has the same outline as the +European brain (Tiedemann). The length and height of the hemispheres +do not differ visibly, and their breadth is only a little less. The +convolutions are large in the frontal regions and the sulci show a +greater degree of symmetry than is usually found in European brains. + +Among the American Indians the average weight of the brain is somewhat +less than the Caucasian (H. B. Ferris). This is true both of the +North and South American Indian. On the other hand, the fissures and +convolutions, especially in the frontal region, correspond very closely +in complexity and dimension to those of the white man. + +Examination of Mongolian brains shows that the average weight of the +Chinese brain is slightly less than that of the Caucasian (Kurz). +The Chinese brain is said to have a number of striking peculiarities +in which it differs from the brain of other races. One investigator +mentions thirty-three peculiarities of this kind, and yet when each +peculiarity is considered individually its prototype may be found in +an extensive group study of Caucasian brains. The frontal lobe is +richly convoluted and fissured. Kappers believes that the Chinese brain +retains a degree of infantilism, much of which is shown in the high +arching of the corpus callosum. + +Accepting all of these differences in the several races of living men +as to weight, dimension, development of lobes, richness of convolutions +and fissures, and peculiarities in individual details, it becomes +clear that such differences as do exist are slight enough to be well +within the range of individual variation. In other words, when large +numbers of brains of the several races of modern men are compared, +the differences between them are almost certain to assume no great +importance. We may conclude that the Caucasian, Negroid, Mongolian, and +all other forms of the modern brain present a striking similarity in +their general appearance and characters. + + +_Brains of Distinguished Men_ + +When, however, we consider the brains of distinguished members +of the white race, we at once obtain the impression of striking +individual variations. The brains of many men of genius have been +carefully studied. Spitzka has collected the records of one hundred +such individuals to which he has added his own studies upon six +distinguished scientists. All tell the same story. These men, noted +as jurists, scientists, mathematicians, composers, dramatists, +physicians, journalists, statesmen, and historians, have with few +exceptions possessed brains which in weight exceed those of the rank +and file of the race. This is true of the brain of such outstanding +men as Beethoven, Cuvier, Turgenev, Daniel Webster, Lenin, Thackeray, +Joseph Leidy, William Pepper, Edward Cope, and many others. The brain +of the remarkable deaf, dumb, and blind girl, Laura Bridgman, has +been carefully studied by Dr. Donaldson. It is notable that in this +instance the frontal lobes, both in size and in the richness of the +convolutions and fissures, were well developed. It was in this region +that the brains of the distinguished contributors to human progress +already mentioned showed their greatest degree of expansion. Recently +reports on the brains of Sir William Osler, of Dr. G. Stanley Hall, +and of Dr. E. E. Southard have been published. In each of these +remarkable men the size of the brain and the unusual development of +the frontal lobe have been striking features. The brain of the great +German historian, Theodore Mommsen, was particularly notable because of +its frontal development, and so also was that of William Bunsen, the +scientist and discoverer. + +In contrast to the massive brains of these other men of genius, there +has recently been brought to light the fact that the brain of a great +modern master of literature, Anatole France, was remarkably small, +weighing only 1017 grams. This weight is considerably below the average +for the white race (1300-1400 grams) and not much above the estimated +weight of _Pithecanthropus erectus_, the Java ape man. The difference +between the weight of Anatole France’s brain and that of the ape man is +77 grams, according to the estimated values. Sir Arthur Keith maintains +that in spite of this noted academician’s reputation, known the world +over for his writings as a novelist, philosopher, and savant, Anatole +France was actually an extremely primitive man. This position taken by +Keith would be difficult to support against the prevailing opinions +of the day. We should be more impressed by the degree of richness in +development of the frontal lobe and the complexity of its convolutions +and fissures than by the actual size of the brain. It would seem +most likely that a marked degree of frontal development has been the +decisive factor in the production of the exceptional brain. Most of the +great men who have left records in respect to their cerebral endowment +confirm Sir Arthur’s contention that a powerful brain is a large brain. +Individual variation may account for much, however, and a high grade +of frontal convolution, implying as it does a great cell richness +in a cortex, may make amends for many ounces of weight deficiency. +From the facts available it is clear that human greatness in the main +depends upon largeness of brain and extensive frontal development. The +possessors of such brains have been the leaders in the activities of +the white man, in every line of his progress, in every detail of his +success. They have been the Caucasian thinkers, the idealists, the +philosophers, the poets and artists; they have been the white man’s +pragmatists, his statesmen and builders of empire. They have also been +his spiritual pioneers, the founders of his religions and ethics. To +them has been given exceptional power of vision, with equally great +capacities for transforming what such vision revealed into benefits for +their race. + + +_Caucasian Leaders_ + +History gives them their proper places. Their dynamic personalities +have touched the earth and made it bring forth its seven wonders and +an increasing multitude of lesser wonders, each a marvel of human +ingenuity. As they touched the earth and made it produce, so they have +touched the hearts and imaginations of their fellow men until their +minds responded to new aspirations and nobler purposes, until the mark +of the beast was left farther in the distance and the ascendancy of +mankind became the most stirring theme of creation. + +History also shows how these favoured elements of the race, under +the guidance of their leaders, have built brilliant civilizations, +compelling systems of religion, far-reaching codes of ethics. Nations +have risen, articulating the ideals of peoples scattered over vast +territories. Cities have come into existence filled with the treasures +of man’s imagination. The same aspiration shone through them all. It +was the spirit, the determination to reach out where man had never +reached before. + +Whatever were his material successes, still more important was that +inner possession which came to man during his adventurous development +of civilization. However simple it may have been in the beginning, it +grew rapidly. This priceless possession was the human intellect. In +many tribes of men it manifested none of the expansion discernible +in the more progressive races. But with its fullest opportunity, +especially under the conditions of European environment, it developed +to the degree which created a new humanity. Man recognized his +interdependence with his fellow beings. His social qualities now began +to bear fruit in a new soil and in a more invigorating atmosphere. The +finer traits of his social nature grew abundantly. Broader conceptions +of responsibility to others, deeper understandings of sympathy, led to +new products of generosity and new vocations of social devotion. All of +the higher sentiments found easier means of expression. These were new +conceptions denied to lower animals and to the lower races of man. + +Scarcely less substantial than the satisfaction derived from this deep +social sentiment was the gratification obtained from an appreciation of +the beauties of nature and from man’s own efforts to duplicate these +beauties in his art and literature. But his eyes have never contented +themselves with earthly attractiveness alone. When he had possessed the +earth he must still reach out in imagination to gain for himself the +assurance of kingdoms beyond his present state. In all his civilized +period and even long before man has peered acquisitively into the +unknown, to create for himself a future existence or the hope of such +existence. This yearning for another and an immortal life has been +the basis of his many religious beliefs. From this theme of religion +have grown the impulses for the best of human achievements. It has not +merely formed a halo about civilization, but has reached far inward to +exert control over almost every human relation. No influence has been a +greater force in the ennoblement of life. No creation of the brain has +been a more effective guide in directing human destiny. No incentive +has sustained human hope more consistently than the solace arising from +this deep source of faith. + + +_Age of the Frontal Lobe_ + +The frontal lobe, which has guaranteed such advantages to man, +brought him his spiritual understanding, his social attributes, and +his satisfactions from art and literature. It created the means +for him to gain a more adequate knowledge of the world in which he +lived and of the great cosmos of which his world is but a part. The +conquest of reality, the deeper appreciation of things as they are, +the broad expansion of his knowledge of all things in and about him, +have contributed deep satisfactions to human life. It is difficult +to estimate in this day the value of all the great contributions to +science. It is difficult also to state which product of man’s frontal +lobe, his social development, his religion, his art, his literature, +or his science, has meant most to the growth of that imposing figure +in which he now presents himself. No one of these elements may justly +deserve to be set above the others. Deprived of any of them, the +race might have been seriously impoverished; it might never have +attained that position which entitles it to be considered the supreme +achievement of creation. It is little wonder that the gods which man +set up for himself have been anthropomorphic, cast in his own image and +likeness. + +In later days there were reasons for the Caucasian’s assurance, for +his self-reliance, for his faith in his own judgment and reason. Peace +and comity existed between the nations of the earth. Prosperity was +within their borders. Success and progress filled every walk of life. +Social order rested upon firm moral foundations. This was a human +establishment upon which to depend. But ultimately this record of the +white man, from the beginning of his civilized period down to the early +decades of the Twentieth Century, brings us to a fateful midsummer day, +the 1st of August, 1914. + + +_Old Sores and Liabilities_ + +Perhaps there are no good reasons for turning back to such old +sores. Can any conceivable advantage come of opening again those +vaults holding that which we would rather forget? With passing years +memory gradually relinquishes what should be the immortal lessons of +experience. The horror, the degradation, and all other outgrowths of +the protective mechanisms making for better judgment, for saner living, +for wiser avoidance, are soon forgotten. We look and see only the +whited sepulchre. The dissolution and disease, the lurking danger for +the future, are concealed. Yet these are our liabilities. If we drive +on blindly or with our eyes closed to them, such prosperity as we have +attained is destined to disintegrate. + +It is the old formula over again that we see beginning to reproduce +itself on that fateful August afternoon. The expansive demand for +power, the will to dominate, the insatiable determination to possess, +are all disdainfully snapping their fingers in disregard of the rights +and peaceful pursuits of others. Sacred obligations are thrown to the +winds with the crackling of a scrap of paper. There are no obligations. +Lust, greed, and the dregs of human cruelty are seething in the +breasts of men turned animals, are ready to speak with the tongues of +every manner of ruthless torment. By armies men return to the filth +of the earth, living in the mire, breathing the stenches of their own +corruption, inhaling the gases of sadistic invention, meeting the flame +of an earthly purgatory, and inspired by the single indefatigable +impulse to kill. And for what purpose? None but the old one! To grasp, +to gain, to seize by force! There is no question of right or wrong. The +only question is right of possession. Both those who attack and those +who defend pray to the same God and pray the same prayer. + +Here in our own days is the frontal lobe leading a great fraction +of the white race not merely into hell but to the brink of its own +undoing. If it failed in this leadership it was by the narrowest +margin. It has left us still gasping on the edge of the precipice into +whose depths we have gazed, wondering how long ere we see them again. + +Courage, endurance, and heroic determination we say were the +compensating atonements for this madness, for this maniacal era of +wanton destruction. Nobility of purpose rang out in the defiance--“They +shall not pass!” Yet where was the nobility in that machine-made death +which swept regiment after regiment into oblivion by its withering +fire? Who now will claim the glory of 400,000 dead in less than a +lunar month, of 8,543,515 fighting men fallen in the early prime of +manhood in four years of war? Is this the chronicle for a great race to +glory in? It is rather the record of the white man at his lowest ebb, +dehumanized for a mere bauble of possession. + +Thus, through four brief years, out of the unhallowed precincts of no +man’s land, the mark of the beast came back. The white man learned +that the cloak over his baser passions was a thin veneer. He learned, +or may have learned if there has yet been time to recover from the +overwhelming concussion, that he is not yet master of himself, that +the chief guide of his life may on slight provocation lead him not +rightly or well, but with unerring precision, into the pitfalls of +extermination. + + +_When the Pressure Comes_ + +We speak of loyalties and vocations of devotion. Where are these when +the pressure comes? Where are they when the man stands with his mob? +The greatest and best things in life at once take flight. There is not +even standing-room for them when hate and revenge are the passions of +the day. It is then that class stands against class. All that wealth +and culture and luxury have built through centuries finds no strength +against the ire galvanized by equal centuries of oppression. Those who +have suffered their silent agonies confront those who are about to die. +Such have been the tragedies of revolution. So it was in the French +Revolution, with its history of guillotine horrors. Such was the case +of Russia in revolt. Such it has always been wherever the privilege to +enjoy, concentrated for the benefit of the few, has worked disadvantage +to the many. Neither those who for the time enjoy, nor those who +are deprived, have sufficiently learned the lessons of moderation, +self-restraint, and control over the human spirit to hold in check the +baser impulses. + +War, revolution, and other mass reactions in the interest of +readjusting man’s social conditions are not rare in our racial +experience. Since the beginning of historic times there have been +thousands of wars of greater or less magnitude. If, during the Roman +era, the gates in the temple of Janus stood open for centuries and +that great people were almost continuously at war without appreciable +cessation, we moderns would have no need for an energetic gatekeeper. +In one place or another, throughout the globe, we have been +continuously waging war or producing revolutions. Following the close +of the great World War, a little more than a decade ago, there have +been no less than sixteen wars, and seventy-five thousand men have died +as a result of warfare. Let those who philosophize in security call +war an activity essential to human progress. Those who know it through +suffering and loss will call it by its proper name. It is not, however, +in war alone that we may discern the results of our defective control +over human nature. We need turn but a few pages of history to encounter +many other sore spots. Among these blemishes are those arising from +a source which should have been our most unfailing, our deepest +consolation. + + +_Heresy and Retaliation_ + +The spiritual heritage bequeathed by the Great Galilean retained +its influence for little more than two centuries. Through the dark +Middle Ages Christianity wandered far from the path of its appointed +blessedness. To many it ceased altogether to be a blessing, and to +many others it became an actual curse, meaning for them torture, +imprisonment, starvation, humiliation, or death by burning at the +stake. There can be little wonder that heresies sprang up against the +inhuman conduct of the mediæval Church. Corruption, discrimination, +demoralization, abuse, and tyranny went unrebuked. The church +militant was infected by every sin that it was created to prevent. +Heresy was the reaction to such corruption, and the Inquisition +was the retaliation on the part of the Church to preserve itself +against heretical disintegration. The barbarous zeal which through +many centuries brought misery to mankind in the name of Christ has +been explained in several ways. Some have denounced it as mere +bloodthirstiness or lust of power. Some have traced it to the doctrine +of exclusive salvation. In order to understand it properly we must +comprehend the stage of civilization in which it flourished. The feudal +military spirit was everywhere dominant. Society relied more upon +force than upon persuasion. Industrial influences had not yet tempered +modes of thought and action. Throughout the Middle Ages men were +strangely pitiless in their dealings with each other. The wheel, the +cauldron of boiling oil, burning alive, burying alive, flaying alive, +and tearing apart with wild horses were the ordinary means by which +jurists endeavoured to deter crime. In England poisoners were boiled to +death as late as 1542 (Rouse and Margaret Davie). One woman, in 1726, +was burned at Tyburn. Minor crimes were dealt with with a harshness +unbelievable in this day, including such hideous procedures as +blinding, mutilation, tearing with hot pincers, breaking on the wheel, +and cutting out the tongue. People of all nations were accustomed to +this cruel savagery and accepted it in relation to crimes that were +thus punished. By popular detestation heresy was regarded not merely as +a sin but as the worst of all crimes. This belief was held with equal +tenacity both by the clergy and the laity. Under the influence of such +feelings the Church adopted the harshest measures and continued to grow +more cruel and more unchristian. + +The Inquisition was not a local phenomenon. It became most intense in +Italy, where it gradually took shape. In time it spread into Germany, +into France, and into Spain. The Spanish Inquisition was employed for +the most part as a state institution to maintain the throne. It used +all of the ingenuity known to the ecclesiastical inquisitors and added +punishments of its own. The torture chamber, which at first was not +introduced as an inquisitorial instrument, soon established itself +as an indispensable accessory and flourished in many parts of Europe. +There was a furtiveness in the manner in which the Church doled out +these punishments. For the repentant heretic life imprisonment on +bread and water and in chains was not a criminal sentence; it was the +means of repentance and salvation for the unfortunate sinner. If the +heretic remained unrepentant the Church washed its hands of him as a +capital offender and turned him over to the secular authorities to be +burned at the stake. The dungeon in which the unfortunate victim was +imprisoned for life was a frightful chamber, damp, and infested by rats +and vermin. Confinement was solitary and various circumstances besides +pain and hunger were brought to bear upon the terrorized imagination +of the prisoner. These dungeons were often ingenious means of torture. +One in the Bastille at Paris had a floor which was conical and pointed +downward so that it was impossible to sit or lie in it. Another in +the Châtelet had a floor continually covered by water, compelling the +prisoner to stand erect. Persons convicted of heresy were also forced +to wear crosses of cloth, generally yellow, sewed upon their garments. +In this manner the symbol of Christian devotion was converted into a +badge of utmost shame. Confiscation was another penalty with frightful +effects. Upon arrest for heresy a man’s property was sequestrated, +and his family thrown into the street. After several centuries of +unremitting cruelty the Inquisition succeeded in suppressing the +various sects of heretics. For this advantage the Christian Church +paid an unnecessarily high price by gaining for itself a lasting stigma. + + +_Provocations of Circumstance and Time_ + +Such interludes as these in the course of man’s happiness and peace +may perhaps be regarded as unfortunate digressions from the scheme of +human behaviour. Their apology lies in the fact that they belong to +other times by contrast with which we have shown great improvement. We +are much changed for the better--so much changed that many of these +appalling episodes of history could not occur in this day. Reassurance +of this kind may comfort us, but it does not provide us with protection +against ourselves. For with due provocations of circumstance and +time there is no guarantee that we would not repeat or even amplify +the ghastly delinquencies of the past. The pride we feel in our +modern progress and prosperity elevates us to a plane of conscious +superiority. And yet this same pride experienced a sickening collapse +when no later than our own day and generation it was forced to witness +a phenomenon of eruptive brutality compared to which all former warfare +was insignificant. In spite of this recent experience we feel sure of +ourselves, confident in the great capacities which have made us men. +We possess this confidence, however unenlightened we may be concerning +the real power upon which we depend, especially as to its source, its +nature, its possibilities, and its proper management. + + +_Compounding the Essential Impulses of Life_ + +As no other members of the animal kingdom, we have compounded each +one of the essential impulses of life. Through our frontal mechanisms +we have raised these primitive drives to the most elevated planes of +consciousness. We have increased their clarity to the highest degree. +It was doubtless the introduction of symbols which first secured this +greater clarity. Later the development of spoken language established +the universal medium of exchange within the brain. Lower animals +evidently do not learn to speak. They only acquire the use of beast +cries by which to transmit warnings, sex invitations, or challenges to +combat. Such specific cries modified by the structural adjustments of +man may have been sufficient for the simple human language of earliest +times. There seems to be no actual barrier between the vocal activities +of birds, dogs, apes, and men except that superior mechanism of speech +provided by a progressively developing frontal lobe. From its first +introduction language was a societal phenomenon. All of its products +were likewise societal. If it raised man as an individual, its greatest +profits appeared in the elevation of the social order. Under this new +influence the primitive impulses of hunger, herding, mating, avoiding, +and the rest entered into complex combinations. In consequence, each +primordial drive was converted into a thriving industry in the interest +of further human satisfaction. Excessive growth in these industries +soon manifested many dangerous tendencies. New human expansions +developed out of the primitive impulse of hunger under the added +opportunities of the frontal lobe. Appetite and indulgence with their +tendencies toward excess came in conflict with sumptuary restrictions +and prohibitions. The effects of frontal expansion upon the herding +impulse contributed to the development of crime, to the creation of +mass phenomena under the influence of fear, hate, and hope, to the +epidemic spread of group manias and popular delusions such as were +the pilgrimages, crusades, and demonism of the Middle Ages, such +as was the extremity of ruthlessness manifested in the last great +war. The extension of the sex impulse through the mechanisms of the +frontal lobe is incalculable. From it have come crops of asceticism +and licentiousness, of poetry and sentimentality, of social order and +disorder, of philosophy and pure bunkum. The expansion of impulses +underlying the avoiding reactions has produced an unescapable blight +upon human life due to the extensive corticalization of fear. The fear +of bondage or slavery, of tyranny or cruelty, is no longer upon us. +A multitude of more subtle fears, engendered by modern civilization, +have produced our phobias, our irresistible compulsions, and our great +variety of somatic and psychic anxieties. + + +_Human Nature Has Not Changed_ + +The incentives of life have been magnified and multiplied upon the +screen of the frontal cortex. They have afforded man his powers of +judgment and reason, his greater capacities to enjoy existence, his +new aspirations of hope. They have supplied him with his broader +opportunities to order and adjust his life and with his stimulating +inspirations of learning. Each of these new capacities is conditioned +by the circumstance and fashion of a given age. There is no arguing +with such fashion. The _mores_ and the times, the customs and the +place, dominate the products of the frontal lobe and mold them in +constantly changing patterns. The fashion of yesterday is often +the laughing stock of to-day as that of to-day may be the jest of +to-morrow. These plastic patterns, which the frontal lobe produces +for the conduct of human affairs, have neither permanency nor assured +foundations. Great principles which we swear by now we know are wholly +transitory. While they last certain moral notions and devices are in +fashion, but these are conditioned by the times and customs. In such +facts as these may be recognized the variable quality of human wisdom. +Reason is likewise based upon conditioned reflexes which have grown out +of the _mores_ of the time and place. In this light, if man seems to +have come a long distance from his early beginning, the path measured +in units of real progress is surprisingly short. “Things happen,” says +Sumner, “which show us that human nature has not changed and that the +brute in each may awake at any time. It is all a question of time, +custom, and occasion and the individual is coerced to adopt the _mores_ +as to these matters which are then and there current.” + +Morals and manners, like speech, are societal adjustments. They are +highly conditioned reflexes acquired through generations of social +experience. Self-restraint, agreeability, and coöperation form the +basic currency of successful social intercourse. They are the artifacts +of group needs, the medium of exchange in all comfortable and safe +contacts between man and man. That these qualities are superficially +engrafted upon human nature is easily demonstrated. With adequate +provocation the individual discards restraint and reveals the grossest +traits of his aggressive reactions, the group is quickly resolved into +the lawless mob, and nations are easily excited to martial frenzy. + +What benefits, therefore, will we obtain by further self-deceptions? +It is long overdue that we see through the thin fabric of traditional +delusions wherewith we have surrounded ourselves. It requires courage +to face the truth and an open mind to recognize it. But we cannot hope +to improve unless we see ourselves as we are, unless we appreciate our +inherent liabilities as well as our assets, unless, divested of angelic +or godlike disguises, we stand forth for our own inspection as human +animals occupying the foremost place among living things only by virtue +of the best brain thus far developed. Much that is animal within us +must remain unchanged despite our utmost strivings. All that is human +may be modified, enhanced, and brought to better fruition. + + +_Handicaps and Restraints_ + +Almost from its beginning the race has recognized its handicaps. It has +struggled in many ways against its own liabilities, especially those +due to increased brain power. By systems of philosophy the human spirit +has sought to show the reason and goal of life, has endeavoured to +envisage the most desirable pathway for existence. + +Man has endeavoured to hold himself in check through religion, bowing +to the belief that for every human being there is some higher power +controlling destiny and for this reason entitled to obedient reverence +and worship. For his hour of need, however, philosophy and religion +offer no reprieve. The Great War comes, and assurances from these +sources of human reliance have no power to stay the catastrophe. + +Man has experimented through societal organization, through the +formation of governments, through the establishment of laws, to +restrain the dangerous tendencies of his frontal lobe development. But +if his governments succeeded in utilizing effectively his efforts at +social order, they have also abused these efforts. In every societal +system there must be a ruling class. According to Professor Sumner, +no class can be trusted to rule society with due justice to all its +members. Whatever the sins of antiquity, modern society is ruled by +the middle class. It has to its credit the invention of institutions +securing civil liberty and the safety of person and property. Its +history is otherwise not satisfactory. It has demonstrated that in no +popular government could sufficient control be created to restrain the +abuses of special privilege, to avert the corruption of civic power +for graft, or to repress the selfish undertakings of cliques formed on +special interests for the purpose of public exploitation. When faced by +this test, all modern democratic states have failed. Plutocracy and the +unscrupulous powers of wealth are at the root of the financial scandal, +which is the blemish upon all modern parliamentary organizations. We +must recognize this defect not merely as a tendency of the times but as +a national disease. It spoils every institution and, extending from one +generation to the next, at length destroys in the masses the faculties +of ethical judgment. + + +_The Cult of Success_ + +By education man has likewise endeavoured to moderate the recognized +liabilities of his frontal lobe. But, like his customs, his education +has varied with the fashions of his time and place. With one brilliant +exception educational processes have too strictly been confined to +technological training, or to the inculcation of traditional cultures +or mediæval scholasticism. The ancient Greek alone dealt with his life +and its problems as we well might with ours. We are imitators and large +users of secondhand materials. He was an originator. His education was +an adventure of discovery, an absorbing search for the understanding +of what constituted the good life. Largely without traditions and upon +his own initiative he endeavoured to gain a critical attitude toward +all of his prejudices, to liberate himself from the dominance of herd +influence, and to adjust his conduct most intelligently for the welfare +of the state. + +Modern education is especially in a state of confusion. It is almost +wholly devoid of any broader theme than that embraced in the purpose +to teach the individual the formulas necessary to make good. There +is little effort to inspire a larger point of view, to instill an +understanding of life’s values, an appreciation of its relations, and +of its truly human opportunities for intelligent living. + +Philosophy, religion, societal order, government, and education have +failed to produce any entirely satisfactory solution of life. They have +scarcely recognized the existence of the frontal lobe, but, looking +beyond it to some intangible sources of power, they have neither +capitalized its assets nor reckoned with its liabilities. There is +probably a cause of long standing behind these several failures. For +centuries and ages the incentives of human efforts, even the best, have +laboured under a contaminating influence. This influence has touched +and tainted every aspect of life. During thousands of years men have +struggled to make good in Europe. The result has always been the same. +From time to time some section of the race has succeeded, later to +weaken, and in the end to succumb. In the past an invariable cycle of +rise, decline, and fall has dictated the course of life in Europe. +Such was the lot of the Neanderthals. Cromagnon and Neolithic men both +had their days of success and of disappearance. It was not different +with the Greeks or the Romans who rose and finally, under this spell +of Europe, passed into decline. In many respects the motive at work in +this destructive cycle seemed to act like some evil influence. It was +already well developed in the first trading exploits of the Phœnicians. +With them it began to migrate westward from harbour to harbour along +the Mediterranean. It implanted the germs of its spreading infection, +which came to be the dominant spirit of civilization--gold and a price +for everything. Nothing escaped the effects of this new standardization +of human enterprise. The pioneer Phœnicians carried this gold standard +of life far beyond the Pillars of Hercules to the shores of Britain +until it spread throughout Europe. The source of this influence +lies far back of these earlier civilizations. It had its origin +in those primitive days when Mousterian cave man tasted the first +drafts of power. The use of this power he justified by one standard +only--success. For three hundred thousand years the human brain +has been conditioned by this influence. Power increased, successes +multiplied, and the passion for possession became a frenzy. Thus it +was that those whom the gods would destroy they first made rich; and +thus also one civilization after another met its destruction. No other +solution can be worked out on this standard of existence. It will serve +to exploit nature, including human nature. It may bend the natural +forces one after another to man’s bidding. It may make him master +of the entire world except in one superlative detail--himself. In +proportion as it has been concentrated upon the conquest of the earth, +it has had little time for the mastery of the spirit. The old idea +is still at work with us to-day. We have found nothing new, nothing +better. We scarcely attempt to look. It is now our ruling passion. It +has been the contaminating influence which has for ages frustrated the +best human efforts. + +Wealth, with the power to confer upon the greatest number the benefits +of true human satisfaction, is not to be condemned. Its acquisition +and proper distribution must be intelligently encouraged. Such wealth +is the just return on man’s efforts to make and maintain for himself +a wholesome place in nature. But riches, representing egocentric +aggrandizement and the upbuilding of special privilege for selfish +ends, are an open sore in all times and a most serious menace for the +future. + +The ancient motive of possession is still the most powerful urge among +civilized peoples. It has exerted an increasingly evil influence upon +modern times. Its effects have been unfavourable because possession and +power depend upon the offensive and defensive mechanisms of aggression. +Such mechanisms are the progenitors of war. They promote the conflicts +of social rivalry between classes and incite the struggles for +competitive supremacy between nations. If the goal of such life is +success, the price of such success is strife. This is the standard +of existence which has prevailed for at least three hundred thousand +years. It seems irrevocable. Nothing visible in our modern world +suggests the cessation of its destroying influence. In the absence +of any present reassurance there is a strong probability that we are +following, to its bitter ends, a path long familiar to our race. + + + + +CHAPTER XIV + +THE FINAL TEST OF THE BRAIN + +WORLD COÖPERATION AND RECIVILIZATION + + +Our most vital issue is no longer a matter of national prosperity +alone. The success and therefore the happiness of the entire world are +at stake. This generation of ours has taught us what to expect from the +old forces of competitive wealth and nationalism. It is not difficult +to foresee the recurrence of one war after another. As Dr. Butler has +so forcibly said: “The world is just now standing at a crossroads. +It may take the path in one direction and so make agriculture, +industry, commerce, trade, finance, the fortunate means of uniting +the whole world, of increasing its prosperity and of buttressing its +peace; or it can take the opposite path and so turn the nations into +narrow-minded, unsympathetic, jealous, and quarrelling neighbours, +and prepare the way for another cataclysm which, if it should come, +would mark civilization’s end. What are we going to do about it? Where +shall our influence be thrown? Shall it be for a repetition of the +old stupidities, the old ignorances and the old antagonisms, or shall +it be for a new world order in which selfish competition shall be +supplanted by kindly and large-minded coöperation? That is in substance +the crucial question which at this moment awaits answer by leaders of +opinion in every land.”[1] There are many who believe that man in +his present exalted phase cannot stand the test. His modern days are +numbered just as surely as were those of his ancient glory. He has no +further reliance, no better assurance now than he had then. The fate +of civilization hangs in the balance; its chances in many respects +are unpromising. There are no guarantees for the future outside of +man himself. Although we have multiplied in number and compounded our +problems of life, the world in which we live is much the same as it has +been for hundreds of thousands of years. If man also remains unchanged +we may expect the same lot which befell other successful people in the +past. + +[1] From “The New Center of Gravity,” an address delivered at the +Parrish Art Museum, Southampton, L. I., on Sunday evening, September 1, +1929, by Nicholas Murray Butler. + +And yet looking beneath the surface and into the depths of the organ +which has been the chief asset of our progress, we may discern +some promising possibilities. These are possibilities which if +developed might subordinate or overcome the ancient lures of power +and possession. They might even establish a new order of existence, +a new age of wisdom, with clearer ways of looking at life and better +methods for realizing its opportunities. We may have no desire to see +these possibilities. We may turn from them now as we have before. They +clearly exist, however, and chief among them is the possibility of a +better human brain, a brain with much more ample power by means of +which to create a better world. + +Many facts support this possibility. We know from certain evidence that +man in his earliest period on earth possessed a brain much simpler than +that responsible for his modern successes. Such testimony is given by +the brain cast of the Java ape man. The entire cerebral structure in +this instance was in an intermediate phase of human development. It was +far in advance of the brain of the highest apes but much less developed +than the brain of modern men. In spite of its simplicity it gives +evidence of human progress. It had supplied the structural basis needed +for a crude type of humanity. It indicates that the powers of human +speech had been acquired and that the first steps in the upbuilding of +human intelligence had been taken. + +Compared with this primitive race of extinct men, the Piltdown and +Rhodesian brain casts bear signs of definite progress. With the passage +of time brain power continued slowly to acquire new capacities. +Nothing makes this conclusion more certain than the facts revealed by +the Neanderthal casts. From them it is clear that the chief organ of +life which directed the successes of the Neanderthal race had assumed +many aspects of modern development. Most of this progress in the +brain during its gradual stages upward, through the ape man, the Dawn +man of Piltdown, the Rhodesian, and the Neanderthal, manifests its +highest degree of expansion in the frontal lobe. With the coming of the +Cromagnon race all of the cerebral requirements necessary to modern +man made their appearance. Thus through more than a million years the +brain has slowly improved. There has been a steady increase in the size +and richness of its convolutions. + +In contrast with the lifetime of other families in the animal kingdom +the human race has scarcely passed out of its early youth. Our race +seems young as the ages of the earth are estimated, and our racial +youth justifies the belief that the modern brain represents some +intermediate phase of ultimate development. The facts of the distant +past point ahead to periods of further progress in the future. +Influences which have operated through vast intervals of time in slowly +advancing the brain from one stage to the next are doubtless still at +work. The impulses necessary to brain development had their beginning +in the fishes. They continued through reptilian and mammalian phases +and finally passed into the period of tree life wherein the foundations +of the human brain were laid. It is difficult to believe that this +impetus of progress which persisted for ages has at length ceased to +act. + +The possibility of a better brain finds support in another fact of +great interest. An entirely new force favourable to progressive +development has made itself felt within the last century. Never before +has it exerted an influence upon the process of evolution. At present +it is difficult to estimate its full value as an element of progress. +This new force arises from the fact that men and women throughout +the world have recognized the existence of an evolutionary process. +In all places where the earnest search for truth is being made this +knowledge has become the dominant note. It cannot fail to lead to +new understandings and to add new quota of power to the organ of our +chief reliance. An adequate appreciation of the processes underlying +natural selection is certain to impart new and practical significance +to the survival of the fittest. The means which may subsequently be +employed to further such survival cannot be predicted. Whatever they +may be, if they justify themselves by advantageous results, they will +be applied with courage and intelligence. They may embrace measures of +extensive restriction and intensive selection to meet the conditions +of overcrowding in population, and of inequality in the emoluments of +life. The embarrassments of the laggard fractions of humanity would +thus be overcome. + +Application of wise societal regulations having as their object the +better apportionment of opportunity and the greater accessibility of +human happiness might easily be conceived as the outgrowths of such +further extensions in knowledge. Obviously the questions concerning the +character of the means directed to these desirable ends cannot now be +discussed or foreseen. It is sufficient to indicate that whatever these +agencies may be, provided their results are calculated to contribute to +the betterment of mankind, they may be discovered and made practical. +This possibility presupposes the attainment of those advantages which +accrue from a better understanding of man as a participant in a still +active process of evolution. + +If up to this time we have employed the full power of our intelligence, +if we have made the best use of the brain, there may be actual +doubts concerning further progress. Many reasons justify the belief, +however, that the human race has not yet utilized the brain to its +fullest capacity. Numerous facts support this view and make it +appear certain that we have developed but a small fraction of our +potential brain power. In exceptional cases of outstanding groups and +highly specialized individuals the brain may have yielded something +approaching its best product. Even in cases of unusual development +there are deficiencies and inequalities of development due to the +circumstances of training, to the introduction of adverse influences, +and to the universal lack of any generally acceptable goal of life. +A cross section of any community estimated by its high and its low +intellectual attainments indicates a striking unevenness in brain +development. It also reveals a low rating in the average intellectual +level. Averages of this kind obtained from nations or races disclose an +aggregate of brain power far below the grade of the brain’s potential +capacity. Instances of individual specializations make the fractional +development of the race still more evident. If, for example, Laura +Bridgman, deprived as she was of sight, hearing, taste, and smell, with +only a fifth of her brain areas accessible to satisfactory contacts +with the world, made an adjustment to life equal to the average of +such adjustments; if Helen Keller, almost equally deprived of sensory +impression, is rated by many as belonging to the class of genius; then +the rank and file of mankind uses but a small fraction of its potential +brain power. This fraction has been variously estimated at one fifth or +one half. It seems obvious that great advantages for the extension of +intelligence might arise from the utilization of the unemployed fifty +to eighty per cent. of human power. The large portion of the brain not +used by the majority of mankind introduces the disquieting thought +that the usual way of life is the easiest way. The intelligent way is +laborious and fraught with many trials incident to arduous application. +Brain capacity may be improved only by patient and continuous effort +and by an unremitting submission to diligent self-discipline. The +avoidance of these exactions has made the development of the brain a +slow process in man. It is the general disinclination to depart from +the path of least effort which has held human intelligence at its +average low levels. Many factors have contributed to this attitude. +Not the least among them is what may be called mixed survival. This +is a provision by which not only those thoroughly equipped but those +as thoroughly unfit are presumed to enjoy equal opportunity in the +advantages of life. The unfit depreciate the general average. Their +inclusion creates the level of mediocrity and retards the progress of +the fittest. + +Another fact affords hope for the further development of the unused +fractions of human brain power. It is possible to demonstrate that +certain structural and chemical elements in the brain develop in +relation to the use made of them. This is particularly true of the +insulating substance surrounding nerve fibres. Such fibres serve the +purpose of impulse conduction. Simple and complex associations alike +depend upon them. It has been shown that the simplest of these fibre +connections come into use early in life while the most important +connections appear at later periods. In order to be effective the +connecting fibres must be insulated. The insulating material, a complex +chemical substance, makes its appearance in direct relation to the +different periods of mental development. This insulating substance is +least in amount at birth. It increases noticeably at the end of the +first year at about the time when speech is acquired. It shows marked +additions at the seventh, tenth, and twentieth years. Thereafter +it increases slowly up to the fortieth year. It also manifests the +interesting phenomenon of gradual decrease in the declining years +of the late decades of life. Apparently the mental development of +different life periods requires differing degrees of insulation in the +brain. The functional use of definite areas appears to bear a direct +relation to the degree of insulation. The more areas in use, the more +numerous are the insulated nerve fibres to facilitate proper operation. +The child uses and needs less than the youth, and, in the general +case, the youth less than the adult. The development of the brain thus +appears to be proportional to the use made of it. In this way human +intelligence may be gauged in terms of actual brain structure. In cases +of low intelligence the demands have been relatively small, and large +fractions of brain remain undeveloped because unused. Higher grades of +intelligence require more extensive development because the objectives +of their application are more complex and more exacting. They are the +response to the more extensive utilization of brain power. + +The recognition of this relation between use and structural development +of the brain clearly points the way by which human intelligence may +be extended. This relation has long been understood as a biological +principle. It has been practically applied in the training of +muscular strength and endurance, in the sharpening of the senses, +in the cultivation of the voice. Its practical application to the +development of the brain as a whole has been much less assiduous. Both +in principle and practice this relation of use to structure indicates +possibilities for producing a better human brain. The unused fractions +may accordingly find opportunity for utilization. + +Still another possibility for advancement arises from more adequate +systems of human training. The success with which the brain is used +depends in large part upon its conditioning. Such conditioning is +determined by many factors. In the broadest sense it includes the +influence of physical environment from the earliest moments of life, +the effects of societal habits and ideals both in the family and in +the group, the impress of formal education and educational forces, and +the direction imparted by differing degrees of satisfaction, health, +and disease. If, for example, the objective is accommodation to Arctic +life, the conditioning process differs in many details from that +necessary for adjustment to tropical existence. If the end sought is +success according to European standards, a totally different set of +conditionings is essential to this result. Civilized nations as well +as barbarous tribes may be trained through generations to the pursuits +and practices of warlike aggression. The results of such conditioning +were clearly demonstrated in the Great War. Ultimate adjustments are +thus strongly influenced by the group, the group outlook, the time, +and the place. For this reason every experience in and every contact +with existence assumes high value as a conditioning factor. The entire +span of life, from birth to death, becomes a period of active training +which may be consciously directed. The element of chief importance +in this conscious control is the recognition of the end to which the +training is directed. If the highest qualities of human happiness and +satisfaction are the objectives, every factor which contributes to +the conditioning must be carefully estimated and properly adjusted to +this end. Such certainly is not the objective under the modern cult of +success. + +The earth, which we have made a bone of contention, might, to our +infinite advantage, become the sphere of human content. In order to +determine such a change it is necessary to reëstimate and readjust +every influence capable of conditioning the activities of the brain. +The recognition of the uninterrupted continuity in the conditioning +process and its specific requirements in relation to definite phases of +development is most essential. Influences of the physical environment +from the first moments after birth through all successive periods +demand extensive, renewed attention. In the formation of habits and +ideals, training in the home and in the group reaches down to the roots +of societal life. These phases of brain conditioning are now largely +matters of dogmatic tradition or confused instruction. + +Our present cult of success dominates formal education. The profound, +far-reaching influence of this department of life is exerted through +the most effective agencies for adjustment and readjustment. Education +is charged with the responsibilities of devising the most beneficial +methods for conditioning the brain. It participates in deciding to what +ends such conditioning shall be directed and thus occupies a position +of supreme control over human behaviour. Its supervision embraces and +guides every period of life. Its disciplines have power to shape the +character of human intelligence. Its inspirations are the hope of the +future. Opportunities are even now at hand for it to overcome its +traditional resistances and to open new fields for human satisfaction +and contentment. Greater than the power of armies, more compelling than +the military force of the entire globe, is the peaceful sway which +education may exert in the satisfactory reshaping of existence. + +There should be added to these possibilities of future progress the +fact that man, in spite of his blemishes, his delinquencies, and +failures, is an aspiring and plastic animal. He is not unwilling to +take the form of any mold in which he may be cast. He has been the +victim of many prejudicial molds--clay in the hands of circumstance. +Yet, whatever his form or deformities, he has always aspired to rise +above himself. His aspirations have been sublimated in the heroes he +has made to admire, in the gods he has selected for worship. Unlike +all other animals, he has had the gift of idealization, the power of +projecting far ahead of himself, beyond the limits of his recognized +imperfections, the ideals of what he hoped or craved to be. Even his +societal veneer, his morals, and his manners are products of his +aspirations. His idealizations of existence in poetry and art show how +tenaciously his vision has dwelt on higher things. Recognition of his +own futilities has made him aspire to a future life of purification and +redemption. Yet in this aspiring he manifests a lingering childhood, +which reveals his still plastic state. The hereafter which he has +designed for himself is based on an infantile system of rewards and +penalties. This eventual refuge is an acquisitive immortality born of +self-interest and bred in self-conceit. It bears the taint of ancient +and sordid motives of the race. It has none of the altruism of that +more noble and practical immortality through which earthly life strives +unselfishly to leave a worthy influence for the benefit of those who +later follow the path of human experience. + +In the light of his possibilities man’s further progress seems assured. +Add to these possibilities his remarkable plasticity, his aspiring +spirit, his youthful racial development, and it appears inconceivable +that he should not advance. Science is constantly placing increased +power at his command. While disclosing to him his place in nature, it +is also revealing what still remains to be accomplished in the conquest +of himself. + +Whatever fault may be found with the technique of human living, +the major complaint is directed against the persistence of the old +objectives. Ancient motives and standards are obstacles in the path +of progress. A less complex life is needed--one with new incentives +and different goals. Many are living and have lived this kind of +life. One among these, the Great Galilean, has made it exemplary. As +its influence comes down through the Christian centuries this life +brings increasing conviction that it is the best yet lived. One third +of the globe’s population professes to follow it. As followers they +are frustrated in their purpose by the persistence of more ancient +influences of the past. Yet it cannot be denied that any order of +humanity higher than the present one requires extensive modifications +in our purposes, our desires, our outlook on life, our manner of +self-expression. A long step in this direction will be taken when the +ancient password of the Old Stone Age--_get_, which for thousands of +years has been the mainspring of existence, is gradually subordinated +by the keynote of a New Golden Age--_give_. This solution of the +problem is likely to seem utopian. Long ago we were admonished to +try it. If we have failed we need not altogether despair. The human +brain has overcome other difficulties to which it has been applied. +With all of its possibilities for improvement, it may in time solve +the supremely difficult problem of human nature. Success such as this +depends upon the further development of science--especially that +comprehensive science which will deal with all of the principles +underlying the behaviour of man. + +In all respects it is a task of gigantic proportions to build the world +anew--to readjust, to recivilize ourselves. At the same time it is the +greatest adventure ever conceived by man--to construct his final empire +of world coöperation wherein to know and to control himself. Should +this be deemed worth while, it must be paid for by the intelligent, +unremitting toil necessary to develop the full capacity of our chief +reliance--the human brain. + + +THE END + + + + +TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES + + +Page 8: original spelling of “Poriphara” retained. + +Typos corrected: “in the dog.” to “in the dog,” (page 146); “pryamid” +to “pyramid” (page 166); “preeminent” to “preëminent” (page 272); +“sufficently” to “sufficiently” (page 316). + +Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been left unchanged. + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 78733 *** diff --git a/78733-h/78733-h.htm b/78733-h/78733-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..7dd4b72 --- /dev/null +++ b/78733-h/78733-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,12256 @@ +<!DOCTYPE html> +<html lang="en"> +<head> + <meta charset="UTF-8"> + <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1"> + <meta name="format-detection" content="telephone=no,date=no,address=no,email=no,url=no"> + <title> + The master of destiny | Project Gutenberg + </title> + <link rel="icon" href="images/cover.jpg" type="image/x-cover"> + <style> + +body { + margin-left: 10%; + margin-right: 10%; +} + +h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6 { + text-align: center; /* all headings centered */ + clear: both; +} + +p { + margin-top: .5em; + text-align: justify; + margin-bottom: .5em; +} + +.p1 {margin-top: 1em;} +.p2 {margin-top: 2em;} + +hr { + width: 33%; + margin-top: 2em; + margin-bottom: 2em; + margin-left: 33.5%; + margin-right: 33.5%; + clear: both; +} + +hr.chap {width: 65%; margin-left: 17.5%; margin-right: 17.5%;} +@media print { hr.chap {display: none; visibility: hidden;} } + +div.chapter {page-break-before: always;} +h2.nobreak {page-break-before: avoid;} + +table { + margin-left: auto; + margin-right: auto; +} +table.autotable { border-collapse: collapse; } +table.autotable td, +table.autotable th { padding: 0.25em; } + +.tdl {text-align: left;} +.tdr {text-align: right;} +.tdc {text-align: center;} + +.pagenum { + position: absolute; + left: 92%; + font-size: small; + text-align: right; + font-style: normal; + font-weight: normal; + font-variant: normal; + text-indent: 0; +} /* page numbers */ + +blockquote { + margin-top: 0; + margin-bottom: 0; + margin-left: 5%; + margin-right: 10%; +} + +.center {text-align: center; text-indent: 0;} + +.right {text-align: right;} + +.smcap {font-variant: small-caps;} + +.allsmcap {font-variant: small-caps; text-transform: lowercase;} + +figcaption {font-weight: bold;} +figcaption p {margin-top: 0; margin-bottom: .2em; text-align: inherit;} + +/* Images */ + +img { + max-width: 100%; + height: auto; +} +img.w100 {width: 100%;} + + +.figcenter { + margin: auto; + text-align: center; + page-break-inside: avoid; + max-width: 100%; +} + +/* Footnotes */ +.footnote {margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%; font-size: 0.9em;} + +.footnote .label {position: absolute; right: 84%; text-align: right;} + +.fnanchor { + vertical-align: super; + font-size: .8em; + text-decoration: + none; +} + +/* Poetry */ +.poetry-container {display: flex; justify-content: center;} +.poetry-container {text-align: center;} +.poetry {text-align: left; margin-left: 5%; margin-right: 5%;} +.poetry .stanza {margin: 1em auto;} +.poetry .verse {text-indent: -3em; padding-left: 3em;} + +/* Transcriber's notes */ +.transnote {background-color: #E6E6FA; + color: black; + font-size:small; + padding:0.5em; + margin-bottom:5em; + font-family:sans-serif, serif; +} + +.ph2 { + text-align: center; + font-size: x-large; + font-weight: bold; +} +.transnote { + margin-left:17.5%; + margin-right:17.5%; +} + +.x-ebookmaker .ep4 {margin-top: 4em;} +.x-ebookmaker .ep6 {margin-top: 6em;} + +li { margin-top: 0.25em; margin-bottom:0; line-height: 1.2em; } + +/* Poetry indents */ +.poetry .indent0 {text-indent: -3.0em;} +.poetry .indent4 {text-indent: -1.0em;} + + +/* Illustration classes */ +.illowp100 {width: 100%;} +.illowp20 {width: 20%;} + </style> +</head> + +<body> +<div style='text-align:center'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 78733 ***</div> + + +<figure class="figcenter illowp100" id="i_cover" style="max-width: 24em;"> + <img class="w100" src="images/i_cover.jpg" alt=""> +</figure> + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_i">[Pg i]</span></p> + +<p class="center ep4" style="font-size: x-large;"> +THE MASTER OF DESTINY +</p> +</div> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_ii">[Pg ii]</span></p> + + +<p class="center ep4"><span style="font-size: small;">BOOKS BY</span><br> +FREDERICK TILNEY</p> + +<p class="center">THE BRAIN FROM APE TO MAN</p> + +<p class="center p1"><span style="font-size: small;">IN COLLABORATION WITH</span><br> +HENRY ALSOP RILEY</p> + +<p class="center" style="font-size: small;">THE FORM AND FUNCTIONS OF THE<br> +CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM</p> +</div> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_iii">[Pg iii]</span></p> + + +<h1 style="font-family: sans-serif;">THE MASTER OF DESTINY</h1> + +<p class="center" style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: large; letter-spacing: 0.05em;">A BIOGRAPHY<br> +OF THE BRAIN</p> + +<p class="center p1" style="font-family: sans-serif; font-size: large; letter-spacing: 0.05em;">BY FREDERICK<br> +TILNEY, M.D.</p> + +<p class="center p1" style="font-family: sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.05em; margin-bottom: 2em;">WITH A FOREWORD<br> +BY AUSTEN FOX<br> +RIGGS, M.D.</p> + +<figure class="figcenter illowp100" id="i_titlepage" style="max-width: 32em;"> + <img class="w100" src="images/i_titlepage.jpg" alt=""> +</figure> + +<p class="center" style="font-family: sans-serif; letter-spacing: 0.1em;">DOUBLEDAY, DORAN & COMPANY, INC.<br> +GARDEN CITY MCMXXX NEW YORK</p> +</div> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_iv">[Pg iv]</span></p> + + +<figure class="figcenter illowp20 ep6" id="colophon" style="max-width: 3em;"> + <img class="w100" src="images/colophon.png" alt="" data-role="presentation"> +</figure> + + +<p class="center p2" style="font-size: x-small;">COPYRIGHT, 1929, 1930<br> +BY FREDERICK TILNEY<br> +ALL RIGHTS RESERVED<br> +PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES AT<br> +THE COUNTRY LIFE PRESS<br> +GARDEN CITY, N. Y.</p> + +<p class="center" style="font-size: x-small;">FIRST EDITION</p> +</div> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_v">[Pg v]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="FOREWORD"> + FOREWORD + </h2> +</div> + + +<p>Race after race of man has appeared on this earth, +lasted but a short span of time, and then met disaster +and extinction. Our modern race is of this series. We +have reason to believe that it differs in quality from +its forerunners chiefly in its cerebral endowment. +That its progress from animalhood to civilization is +due to this endowment, is not questioned, for its victory +over environment, its ascendency over all other +animals is plainly due to its superior brain power.</p> + +<p>How did this race originate? Like all the other +races preceding it? Or by some aberrant, instantaneous +freak of creation? How did it acquire its characteristic +brain? As the bird its wings, as the elephant +its trunk, as the camel its hump, or by a divine +act of separate and special creation? Those who maintain +the quarrel over man’s origin are not those who +have familiarized themselves with the history of the +world and its creatures; they are not the astronomers, +the geologists, the biologists, the anthropologists or +the archeologists. They are clearly those who prefer +believing to thinking, the traditionalists, good men +mayhap but not necessarily wise. In the earlier days +of science (it is only four or five hundred years old), +its devoted labourers were persecuted by Church and +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_vi">[Pg vi]</span>State. They had to give respectful attention to criticism +or else perish by fire and sword. But, as we have +advanced slowly from religious persecution and the +auto-da-fé to mere intolerant and wordy remonstrance, +the scientist has paid but scant attention to +these quarrels. He feels that as they are not of his +making, neither are they his concern. Perhaps he is +not quite right there. To be sure, he is criticized, not +wisely but too well, and for the most part not quite +fairly. We have criticized him for an assumed lack of +reverence, but even more for his obvious indifference +to our criticism. This has justice in it for, though his +indifference to criticism may be excused, the ignorance +upon which this criticism is founded should be his +first concern, for the man of science is the teacher +and ignorance is his very opportunity. Heretofore, +however, he has seen his opportunity too narrowly, +for he has been content to teach only the few embryo +scientists apprenticed to his own particular field. +He has not, until very lately, realized that his hard-won +knowledge is far more needed and therefore far +more owed to those who are most ignorant of it, in +short, to the great mass of men and women outside +the scientific world.</p> + +<p>“You are irreligious,” said his critics. “You have +been weighed and found wanting in that devotional +attitude we find essential to humanity. You do not +even listen to our reproaches. You are irreverent!”</p> + +<p>For the most part, there has been no answer. The +men of science have been strangely preoccupied with +their own business of finding out all they can of their +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_vii">[Pg vii]</span>fellow man, of his nature, his origin, his difficulties, +his dangers, and of his predictable future, all in the +faith that such knowledge will ultimately benefit +mankind.</p> + +<p>Now at length one of them has made rejoinder to +these protests. He admits that he has been preoccupied, +especially so in the past twenty years, with +laborious but fascinating research into just these +questions so vitally concerning his fellow man. He +admits that he had not thought his scientific gleanings +would interest any but scientists, but he denies irreverence +and insists that neither he nor any other +who spends his life in studying man and his place in +nature could lack reverence. He cannot find himself +entirely in accord with any of the eleven surviving +religions which guide the lives of many men to-day. +The twelve extinct religions of the past also leave him +unsatisfied. Nevertheless he worships devoutly, +though in a temple transcending in significance and +beauty any wrought by the hand of man. His devotion +is no mere lip service expressive of the self-protective +instinct, but one that takes form in labour. +In spite of disappointment and hardship, he has persevered +through years in that labour, with the single +object of gaining a deeper understanding of man and +his place in nature.</p> + +<p>It is now our turn to admit error and ask if we may +not share in the fruits of his research—even though +our understanding has thus far been alien to his field +of labour, even though our path has not led us to his +temple, even though we have not been aware of his +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_viii">[Pg viii]</span>devotion. We urge him to speak to us, not as to scientists, +but as to his fellow creatures, fellow citizens and +fellow sufferers. We urge him to speak to us plainly, +believing that whatsoever has value in human knowledge +may be simply told.</p> + +<p>With some hesitation he has consented. He has +chosen to speak to us of the brain, as the most direct +approach to the comprehension of the nature of man. +He points out that this master organ of life holds the +secret of human success, that its function is human +progress, its neglect human disaster.</p> + +<p>The immensity of the retrospect of his story will +create in us the wholesome effect called humility. +The prospect he pictures is fraught with the terror +of what may happen, but it also holds forth inspiration +to courage and is golden with hope. No man can +follow this account without being inspired by a vision +of the dawning of a new era of progress, not an era of +greater possessions but of better use of those already +possessed; of better relations between peoples and +races; and being sobered by a realization that this +hope lies in developing still further the efficiency +of the master organ of destiny, through training +and education.</p> + +<p>The scientist speaks. He tells what he has seen and +heard and read through the long pilgrimage of years, +searching for the truth, and he gives us the fruit of +these labours, simply and accurately. But scientific +accuracy and matters of fact are only his raw material. +They are woven into the fabric of a true story, vibrant +with adventure, warmed by the love and reverence +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_ix">[Pg ix]</span>of the humanitarian, and illumined by the prophetic +imagination of a poet.</p> + +<p>This tale of man’s emergence is fascinating, inspiring, +stimulating, but when it brings us to the +climax of the present it becomes a challenge. We are +faced by an awful question. Shall the glorious race +of modern man sink into oblivion, as all the preceding +races have sunk, or may he save himself from chaotic +ruin? If he is to be spared for further progress to +greater heights of happiness, he must take heed of +his own history, he must value his forebrain as his +master organ and set himself diligently to develop +its powers more fully than ever before. To this end +he must discard the last bit of fundamentalism, and +the false security of all superstition; he must learn +to depend courageously on his own power to understand +and control himself; he must give up superhuman +sanctions for evils that his intelligence has +long since discarded. Knowledge must replace superstition—else +the embattled hosts of the world will +again be at their bloody work of extinction, praying +to the same god, using the same old prayers. It is +only by increasing the scope of his forebrain through +self-knowledge, training, and education that man +can save himself from the old pitfalls from which +neither the old nor the new religions have heretofore +saved him. It is only thus, through understanding, +that he can ever hope to make full use of the forces +of growth and change which we call evolution. But +our scientist gives us reason to hope that through +intelligence, itself a product of evolution, man may +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_x">[Pg x]</span>yet not only escape destruction by these forces but +may even go far toward gaining a mastery over them +which will insure the progress of his race toward planes +of usefulness and happiness as yet undreamed of.</p> + +<p>It is indeed time that we think of ourselves as men +in the making and cease to consider ourselves as gods +and the lords of a finished creation.</p> + +<p class="right"> + <span class="smcap">Austen Fox Riggs.</span> +</p> + +<p> + Stockbridge, Massachusetts,<br> + October, 1929. +</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_xi">[Pg xi]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CONTENTS"> + CONTENTS + </h2> +</div> + + +<table class="autotable"> +<tr> +<td class="tdr"> +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="font-size: x-small;"> +PAGE +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr"> +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +FOREWORD +</td> +<td class="tdr"> +<a href="#FOREWORD">v</a> +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdc" style="font-size: x-small;"> +CHAPTER +</td> +<td> +</td> +<td></td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +I. +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +PRIMITIVE ANCESTORS<br> +Origin and Early Days of the Brain +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<a href="#CHAPTER_I">1</a> +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +II. +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +ANCESTORS BEFORE THE APES<br> +The Brain from Fish to Man +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<a href="#CHAPTER_II">24</a> +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +III. +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +MAN IN THE MAKING<br> +Human Progress from Prehistoric to Modern Times +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<a href="#CHAPTER_III">51</a> +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +IV. +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +EDEN OR EVOLUTION<br> +Genesis and the Origin of Species +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<a href="#CHAPTER_IV">85</a> +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +V. +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +BIRTHPLACE AND EARLY BEGINNINGS +OF MAN<br> +Influences of Forest and Plain on Brain Development +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<a href="#CHAPTER_V">107</a> +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +VI. +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +DAWN OF THE PRIMATE BRAIN<br> +The Lowest of the Monkey Kind +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<a href="#CHAPTER_VI">129</a> +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +VII. +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +ON THE WAY UPWARD<br> +Brains of the Old World Monkeys +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<a href="#CHAPTER_VII">152</a> +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +VIII. +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +MANLIKE TENDENCIES<br> +Brains of Gibbon and Orang-Outang +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<a href="#CHAPTER_VIII">168</a> +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +IX. +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +HUMAN IN MINIATURE<br> +The Brain of the Chimpanzee +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<a href="#CHAPTER_IX">186</a> +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_xii">[Pg xii]</span></p>X. +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +ALMOST HUMAN<br> +The Brain of the Gorilla +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<a href="#CHAPTER_X">212</a> +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +XI. +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +HUMAN AT LAST<br> +The Brain of Prehistoric Man +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<a href="#CHAPTER_XI">239</a> +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +XII. +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +IMPLEMENTS OF HUMAN SUCCESS<br> +How the Hand, Foot, and Brain Led the Way +to Humanity +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<a href="#CHAPTER_XII">267</a> +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +XIII. +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +ESTIMATES AND VALUES<br> +Assets and Liabilities of the Human Brain +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<a href="#CHAPTER_XIII">301</a> +</td> +</tr> +<tr> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +XIV. +</td> +<td class="tdl"> +THE FINAL TEST OF THE BRAIN<br> +World Coöperation and Recivilization +</td> +<td class="tdr" style="vertical-align: top;"> +<a href="#CHAPTER_XIV">330</a> +</td> +</tr> +</table> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + <p class="ph2 ep4"> + THE MASTER OF DESTINY + </p> +</div> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_1">[Pg 1]</span></p> + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_I"> + CHAPTER I + <br> + PRIMITIVE ANCESTORS + <br> + <span style="font-size: medium;">ORIGIN AND EARLY DAYS OF THE BRAIN</span> + </h2> +</div> + + +<p>Since every well-arranged biography should start +at the beginning, we may first inquire into the origin +of the brain. The early history of such an important +organ must be closely interwoven with the genesis of +man. If man were the result of a separate creative +miracle, so also was his brain.</p> + +<p>But we are not obliged to accept this view which +attributes the universe and all living things to creative +miracles. There is another and equally reasonable +possibility. We may, for example, assume that man +and all else came into existence by that process of +continuous change and progressive development +called evolution. We have excellent grounds for accepting +such an assumption. Astronomy, geology, +biology, chemistry, and all of the sciences relating to +mankind have revealed the essential facts. Any other +interpretation must disregard or repudiate this convincing +record. With such a record as this to guide us +we may turn our attention to the origin of the brain.</p> + + +<h3 id="Earliest_Forms_of_Animal_Life"> + <i>Earliest Forms of Animal Life</i> +</h3> + +<p>The inception of life on our planet was simple in +the extreme. The earliest animals, although well +organized, possessed no special organs in the strict +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_2">[Pg 2]</span>sense. In the beginning there was nothing which +could be specifically called a stomach or a heart, a +lung or a kidney. Certainly there was nothing even +remotely resembling a brain. The business of living +was transacted within a single cell. This cell was so +small that it could not be seen by the naked eye. +Each of these cells was sufficient unto itself. Each +played its own separate part with a simple programme +of existence. Each was required to get its own food, +to carry on its own chemical activities of digestion +and elimination. Finally, after it had been successful +in this remarkable process, it was called upon to +produce offspring, to perpetuate its species. This last +act was the crown and climax of its life, for in this +way it conferred a material immortality upon its kind.</p> + +<p>The amœba, among living animals, is a good example +of this simple life. It is wholly intent upon +carrying on within itself the earliest traditions of +existence. All of its life is conducted within a single +microscopic cell, which is at once its office and workshop. +It has nothing in its make-up that could in the +ordinary sense be called an organ. In such amœban +animals as these there seems to be nothing progressive, +nothing to suggest the possibilities of further advancement. +Each amœba might, if such a thing were +possible, look back over a long line of ancestors exactly +like itself. In looking forward it might see no +great possibility of progress. Perhaps it might reach +the more specialized conditions of its present-day +relatives with contractile threads in their substance +and vibrating hairs by which to move themselves +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_3">[Pg 3]</span>about. At best the outlook of the amœba for progress +was restricted within very narrow limits.</p> + + +<h3 id="Familiar_Animals_of_Earliest_Type"> + <i>Familiar Animals of Earliest Type</i> +</h3> + +<p>Certain events in the long history of these little +animals have acquired much human interest. At +times some of these simple lives become strikingly +dramatic. Their monotonous existence is changed +and they pass through certain exciting phases. Such +a drama is often enacted when certain amœbæ gain +entrance into the body of another animal and there +become parasites. The other animal may be some +huge beast or even man himself. One unpretentious +amœba (<i>Amœba histolytica</i>), if it gains entrance into +the intestinal tract of man, may cause amœbic dysentery +and abscess of the liver. Another single cell +animal (<i>Trypanosome Gambiense</i>) living in the blood +of certain cattle is often conveyed by the tsetse fly +to human blood where it produces the fatal disease +known as “African sleeping sickness.” This small animal +claims hundreds of thousands of victims a year. +In tropical Africa its devastations go on unchecked +over an area of more than a million square miles. +In this region sleeping sickness kills as many persons +as all other diseases combined. From five to seventy +per cent. of the inhabitants in different localities are +stricken. Cattle, horses, and other domestic animals +cannot be kept because of this disease. On this account, +and also because the area in which the sickness +rages is extremely fertile, it has been said that the +conquering of this malignant protozoan would be +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_4">[Pg 4]</span>equivalent to the discovery of a new continent.</p> + +<p>Even better known are the several acts in the cycle +of the <i>plasmodium malaria</i>. This protozoan animal +is often borne by the Anopheles mosquito and injected +into the blood of man. Then follows the familiar +series of pathological events consisting of chill, fever, +and sweat, called malaria. In certain respects it seems +like retributive justice when this animal is injected +into the body of man to cure the effects produced by +another microörganism. The other organism is the +spirochæte which causes syphilis. It often produces +changes which destroy the human brain in consequence +of a disease known as paresis. Many other +protozoan animals are parasites, but in the main they +live and have lived simple, unobtrusive lives.</p> + +<p>Notwithstanding their apparent simplicity of structure +and action, these minute animals, like all other +things, have been subject to the influence of continuous +change. They have responded to this influence +in different ways. In many instances, through generations +of reproduction, they have effected combinations +and recombinations of their essential constituents +out of which have emerged modifications of their +original structure. Often these changes have proved +progressive and contributed to more complex modes +of living. Often they have been regressive or non-progressive. +It was the progressive modifications in +these earliest animals that were of utmost importance +to the origin of the brain. This organ was not yet in +sight, but adaptations working toward it were soon +to appear.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_5">[Pg 5]</span></p> + + +<h3 id="Critical_Changes_in_Animal_Existence"> + <i>Critical Changes in Animal Existence</i> +</h3> + +<p>In the course of time certain critical changes took +place in the lowly scheme of animal existence. These +were distinctly progressive changes. Some of the single-cell +animals began to live in colonies. Circumstances +thus conferred upon them a community life. They +began to exist in close contact with others like themselves +and were compelled to forego their simple, independent +habits. They were, in fact, actually joined +to each other by rather slender bonds of their own +vital substance—protoplasm. This was an epochal +stride forward. It was the first step which led to +progress. In some instances it brought about entirely +new relations between these animals and the world +in which they lived. Now, since these small cells +were grouped together as colonies, each individual +cell lost much of its own independence. Its interests +became, in some degree at least, the interests of the +group. If, as a single cell by itself, it had been thoroughly +self-contained, now it was necessary for it to +follow the needs and inclinations of its neighbours. +It was forced to observe the conventions and habits +of its colony. This condition of affairs exists in what +are known as the colonized protozoans. In addition +to the advantages of community life there was another +and far more important reason why this new +kind of existence was a critical step. It introduced +for the first time the principle of differentiation or +class distinction. A division of labour was thus +made possible. Some of the cells in each group were +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_6">[Pg 6]</span>forced to take up positions on the outer surface of +the colony. Others occupied places inside of the +group. This arrangement immediately created a distinction +between “outer cells” and “inner cells.” +It was destined to have far-reaching consequences +because it established a difference in the responsibilities +of two great classes. The outer cells made an +immediate and direct contact with the world. They +were nearest to the water, to the light, and to all of +the outer chemical substances necessary for living. +They were like guards and outposts about a camp, +defending the colony from adverse influences. They +might be likened to the first line of battle in the aggressive +struggles for life, acting as foragers and procurers +of food. The rôle of the inner cells was different. +Their contacts with the world were more indirect +and established largely through the outer cells. Their +offices were especially confined to the inner workings +of the colony. They became the germ cells whose +function it was to insure the immortality of the species. +This arrangement was a momentous advance in +the direction of progress. It was particularly momentous +because it laid the foundations upon which all of +the great developments in the animal world were to be +built. In a certain way, it was also a prophecy, for it +foretold the coming of animals that were to follow +the protozoans. These newcomers, the metazoans +(animals which came after the first forms of animal +life), were to possess a body with outer cells engaged +chiefly in the efforts of life, while the inner cells +would be particularly concerned with the essence of +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_7">[Pg 7]</span>living, such, for example, as digestion, assimilation, +and circulation.</p> + +<p>This remarkable process of class distinction among +cells developed new and useful methods in living. It +brought about a division of labour in the business of +life. Different parts of the animal now had different +obligations to fulfil. Some parts served to move the +body about, some were employed in digesting food, +some in eliminating waste, some in breathing and +circulation, some in reproduction. In the end, this +division of labour resulted in the formation of a body +made up of many different organs, each having its +own particular responsibilities. We may find an +excellent example of the very earliest stages of this +division of labour in Volvox, one of the colony-forming +protozoans. Most of the colonized cells of +this minute animal are on the outside, forming a hollow +sphere. These cells are equipped with minute +hairs or flagellæ which, by their constant motion, +keep the animal rolling around in the water like a +hollow rubber ball. In this manner it seeks and finds +its food, and thus also it may escape when threatened. +But all of the cells of Volvox are not on the outside. +A number of them are tucked away from the actual +surface of the animal. These are the sex cells to which +is entrusted the important duty of reproduction.</p> + + +<h3 id="Early_Influences_at_Work_to_Form_the_Brain"> + <i>Early Influences at Work to Form the Brain</i> +</h3> + +<p>Even by this time in the history of the earth, although +animal life had been developing for millions +of years, there was no sign of anything like a brain. +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_8">[Pg 8]</span>The forces, however, which would eventually bring +such an organ into existence were already at work. +Perhaps from this great distance it may be difficult +to recognize the exact nature of these forces as they +began to act at this particular stage of life. They +were present nevertheless, faintly discernible like +the first streaks of dawn which precede the sunrise. +This figure of speech may seem to imply that in the +end the brain was the actual sun destined to rise +above the horizon of animal life and ultimately to +dominate all progressive achievement. The rest of +this biography must prove whether this is an extravagant +figure or not. One important influence +behind those forces that eventually produced the +brain stands out clearly. It seems to have been the +direct result of that class distinction among cells +which caused such effectual division of labour. With +this subtle influence at work it required one further +critical step to set in motion the events which were to +end in the formation of a brain. This step was taken +when the sponges (<i>Poriphara</i>), the simplest of metazoan +animals, came into existence. They differed +from the protozoans, even the colonized protozoans, +because their bodies were more complexly organized. +The individual cells forming them had lost most of +their separate independence. All of these cells were +now incorporated in a single living individual, and +each cell was subordinate to the interests of the whole.</p> + +<p>Cell distinction had become still more important +because of the increase in size of these animals. The +outer cells now formed a covering or skin called the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_9">[Pg 9]</span>“ectoderm.” The inner cells constituted the wall +of a cavity, which might be likened to the lining of +the stomach. The lining is called the “entoderm.” +Many minute openings or pores in the outer covering +established communication by means of small canals +with the inner cavity of the animal. Through these +pores water is inhaled and carries with it particles +of food into the inner chambers. These particles are +absorbed, and the water is then exhaled through a +larger opening called the “osculum.”</p> + +<p>It was at this critical point that a decisive factor +leading to the formation of the brain made its appearance. +Some of the deep cells around the pores +and outlets of the sponge formed “muscles.” In +many respects this was a new device, and the sponges +become especially interesting because of this innovation +in animal life. The innovation itself resulted in a +special machine for producing motion; namely, the +muscle cell. Such muscle cells in the sponge are extremely +simple. They form rings around the pores +and the outlets which, by contracting, regulate the +flow of water through the animal. But such muscle +action as this is extremely important because if the +water in the sponge contains an abundance of food +particles, muscular contraction prevents too rapid +outflow. This slowing of the ex-current stream, among +other things, allows more time for absorption and +digestion. The muscles in different parts of the sponge +act independently. Each one is, so to speak, a free +agent, occupying its position at its own particular +pore or outlet. If, however, it became necessary for +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_10">[Pg 10]</span>all of these muscles to contract at the same instant in +a concerted effort, let us say, to make the sponge +move, there would be no mechanism to assure harmony +of action. The muscle cells at each outlet would +react according to their own inclinations—some relaxing, +others contracting. Confusion of action could +scarcely fail to result. The sponge, however, does not +need to move about in order to get its food. Being +stationary, it obtains its nourishment by sucking the +water through its pores, and by regulating the flow +the muscle cells do all that is required of them.</p> + + +<h3 id="A_New_Motor_Device"> + <i>A New Motor Device</i> +</h3> + +<p>Simple as is this muscular equipment, it possesses +great possibilities for further development. It clearly +indicates how such mechanisms for producing motion +might be expanded to create all of the surprising +varieties of motors which in time enabled animals +to move about over the earth, in the water, and +through the air. It is true that the simple strands +of muscle in the sponge are far from powerful; but +when a number of muscular strands are collected +together they may take form in such muscles as the +biceps of the arm, the great extensors of the leg, or +those covering the entire body.</p> + +<p>The presence of the muscle cells created the need +for a nervous system to control and regulate their +activities. In order to act together muscles require a +supervisor. The first important step in this direction +was taken when certain simple animals like hydras +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_11">[Pg 11]</span>and sea anemones (<i>Metridium</i>) made their appearance. +These animals are equipped with muscles in +several parts of their bodies. Some of them, unlike +the sponges, have the power to move about a little, +crawling slowly like snails. They are also capable of +moving their many tentacles, and thus are able to +reach out and grasp food. All of these movements +call for the action of the many different muscles. +The sea anemone has thirteen different sets of such +muscles, the exact coöperation of which requires the +closest harmony of action. Each part must be mutually +adjusted to the others. It must act in the right +rhythm and with the proper force. Such delicate adjustment +as this could not be left to chance. It needed +an adjuster and regulator. It required also a system +of communication between the cells in order that each +might sense how the others were acting during any +given interval of time. In consequence of these requirements +many cells were specialized as timers, +signallers, and dispatchers. They acted like independent +telephone stations, each serving separate districts; +such, for example, as the individual tentacles +of hydra or of sea anemones. These separate stations +were known as nerve cells. <i>In them the first elements +needed for the origin of the brain made their appearance.</i> +At first they were scattered and had limited communication +by means of slender strands, the nerve fibres. +There was as yet no central operator for receiving +and routing their messages which were transmitted +rather diffusely by a loose nerve net.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_12">[Pg 12]</span></p> + + +<h3 id="Foundation_Stones_of_the_Brain"> + <i>Foundation Stones of the Brain</i> +</h3> + +<p>In spite of this apparent simplicity, these nerve +cells were the foundation stones of the brain. Scattered +as they were, they lacked that unity of action +which is the real secret of nerve power. A more +constructive plan for utilizing their capacity was +requisite at this stage. Such a plan was eventually +forthcoming. It was exactly what might have been +expected in the progressive development of any good +business concern; namely, consolidation. In effect, it +was a merger uniting the separate nerve units into +one centralized system. How this merger was brought +about may be recognized in such animals as the jellyfish +(<i>Cœlenterates</i>). In them the body equipment consists +of an outside layer called the “exumbrella,” and +an inner layer, the “subumbrella.” In the latter +the older arrangement of the nerve cells as scattered, +more or less independent stations still persists. These +stations form a net of communication on the under +surface of the animal. But where the subumbrella +joins the exumbrella, making the rim of the jellyfish, +the nerve fibres and the nerve cells form a nervous +ring entirely surrounding the animal. This is the first +time in the history of animal life that an actual central +nervous system makes its appearance. This ring of +nerve fibres and cells acts as a central receiving and +dispatching station. It is a central office for receiving +information from the outside world and a dispatcher +for sending orders to different portions of the animal +so that all parts may coöperate harmoniously. Certain +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_13">[Pg 13]</span>special organs develop along the rim of the jellyfish, +whose functions have some bearing upon the +sense of direction. These structures are known as the +marginal sense organs or “lithocysts.” They are in +direct communication with the central nervous +system. Certain other sense organs are also present +in the form of red or black specks of pigment at +the bases of the tentacles; they are the “ocelli,” +which are sensitive to light and are, in fact, the simplest +form of eyes. Thus, in such low forms of animal +life as the jellyfish, the first signs of special sense +organs made their appearance, and the nervous elements +were for the first time organized to form a +central governing mechanism for the animal.</p> + + +<h3 id="Nerve_Concentration_in_Forming_the_Head"> + <i>Nerve Concentration in Forming the Head</i> +</h3> + +<p>Following the merger of the scattered nerve cells to +form a central system, the process of developing a +brain had opportunity to advance along another new +line. The circular nervous system of the jellyfish +passed through many modifications as it adapted +itself to the form of different types of lowly animals. +The great impulse thus imparted toward the formation +of the brain veered off in numerous directions +until a new and decisive change occurred in the arrangement +of the muscles. At this juncture certain +animals appeared whose bodies were much elongated +and slender. Their muscles were arranged in straight +rows, one behind the other. Such an arrangement had +definite advantages for transportation, and these +advantages were utilized by such animals as the flat +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_14">[Pg 14]</span>worms (<i>Platyhelminthes</i>). Many of the nerve cells +and fibres became concentrated in the head end of +these animals. This head region in a general way took +the lead in directing the activities of motion and +transportation. It also had centralized in and about +it many of the most important structures of life. +The animal at this critical stage now possessed a head +and a body. In the broadest sense the development +of such a head may be likened to the creation of a +definite executive office within which was established +a supreme organ to preside over the rest of the +body.</p> + +<p>Further concentration of nerve cells in the head of +the animal was the next step in this constructive +process. This advance added materially to the centralization +of nerve power, which was the keynote +in the formation and growth of the brain.</p> + +<p>If this process of successive upbuilding seems mysterious +and almost miraculous, especially from its +feeble beginnings in a single cell, it is scarcely more +remarkable than the commonplace miracle that has +resulted in the development and birth of every newly +created animal since the dawn of time. The offspring +of each species—fish or fowl, beast or man—has its +beginning in a single cell. It passes through stages of +cell colonization, of class distinction among cells, and +of specialization of organs for the various functions of +life.</p> + +<p>In the main, these two processes have run parallel +in their programmes of construction—the beginning +and development of life on our planet, the beginning +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_15">[Pg 15]</span>and growth of every new life created. Summarized +thus briefly, these successive stages necessary to bring +the brain into existence may appear unimpressive. +But when we consider that each forward step required +ages for its achievement, we may appreciate that this +was indeed a marvel of progress. From nerve cell to +brain is a few short words in print; but it required +millions of years for the slow advances to attain +even the humble level of the flat worms.</p> + + +<h3 id="Development_of_Better_Brains"> + <i>Development of Better Brains</i> +</h3> + +<p>With the head at length in its proper place and the +most simple kind of brain installed within it, vast +horizons of life still lay ahead. Better mechanisms +were needed for a more successful struggle with +existence. More capable motors were required for +more efficient locomotion. These improvements came +after the passage of long intervals of time. By degrees +more highly developed animals, such as bees, ants, +beetles, or other insects, lobsters, crayfish, and shrimp, +began to appear. Their brains were much better organized +than those of the lowly worms. The special +senses of sight, smell, and taste became highly important, +while the central organ which presided over +all activities acquired a remarkable complexity in its +structure.</p> + +<p>How much these animals gained from their better +brain power is clearly seen in their behaviour. The +achievements of ants and bees and beetles, as well +as many other insects, have long been a matter of +wonder, a theme of interest and fascination. If we +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_16">[Pg 16]</span>credit these animals with highly capable brains, it is +their just due. One detail in their organization, however, +became a serious handicap to them in their +further development. The passageway from the +mouth to the stomach ran directly through the centre +of the brain. If the brain grew extensively it would +encroach upon the gullet, ultimately shutting off the +only channel for food. This embarrassment actually +overtook many insects like the mosquito. Here the +brain became large. The tube connecting the mouth +and the stomach was thus reduced to a fine calibre, +and the animal was forced to depend upon the highly +concentrated fluid diet obtained by sucking blood. +Coarser forms of food could not pass the œsophageal +ring which the brain forms about the gullet. Thus +the stomach and the brain came into serious competition +with each other. If the brain grew larger the +stomach would be deprived of food. In consequence, +this situation created a dangerous hazard to life.</p> + + +<h3 id="Advent_of_Backboned_Animals"> + <i>Advent of Backboned Animals</i> +</h3> + +<p>In addition to this stomach-brain dilemma, animals +such as the insects suffered from another handicap +because of the outer skeleton which protected their +bodies. This skeleton was in the form of a more or less +rigid shell, as in the lobster, crab, or crayfish. It was +to overcome the effects of such handicaps, according +to some authorities, that the great race of backboned +animals came into existence. In any event, such animals +seem to have circumvented the difficulty of +having a brain which surrounded the gullet. They also +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_17">[Pg 17]</span>overcame the necessity of carrying a heavy shell about +on the outside of their bodies. An inner skeleton did +away with this embarrassment. It is not altogether +clear how or when this transition took place. Many +students of this matter believe that the basis for this +change is to be found in the starfish group of lower +animals (<i>Echinoderms</i>). Others maintain that the +change began with some creature not unlike the horseshoe +crab (<i>Limulus</i>). It is also believed that the +animals which served as the intermediate forms for +this advance were the ostracoderms, a group which +has long since become extinct. They are known +to us only through fossil preservations. They +possessed, however, so many fishlike features that +they may well have served as the forerunners of the +earliest animals with backbones. Whatever else is in +doubt, one detail of this transition is definite. The +brain, already well developed in certain lower creatures, +now received a fuller opportunity to advance +along more advantageous lines. The first gains of this +kind are seen in the fish. Judged by outward appearances +the object of such new brain development was +to provide a more efficient regulator for a new and +more efficient kind of animal. The fish, in one particular +at least, showed higher specialization. It was built +for speed in locomotion. The shape of its body, the +arrangement of its muscles, the position of its fins, +the design of its head, and the form of its tail gave +it many advantages over lower animals. Equally +important were the special organs by which it sensed +the world. The fish possessed powerful and remarkably +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_18">[Pg 18]</span>constructed eyes. It had most delicate organs +for smell, and an effective apparatus for taste. In +fact, all of the senses of the body were now so thoroughly +organized that each one of them had its own +special department in the brain. According to this +new type of administrative organization, an endbrain, +an interbrain, a midbrain, and a hindbrain +were established for distinct departmental purposes.</p> + +<p>In spite of this better arrangement, there were still +decided limitations in the brain. The most serious +of these deficiencies lay in the mechanism regulating +the energy turnover. The fish had little power to withhold +its reactions. Its impressions from the outside +world produced almost immediate responses. Such +rapid reactions precluded the wide range of acts which +characterizes more deliberate behaviour.</p> + +<p>The brain machinery for the most ample kind of +living was not yet present at this stage of animal +development. It did begin to make its appearance, +however, when certain of the fish assumed partial +adjustment to life on land. These adventurous pioneers +managed to crawl out of the muddy waters at +times when there was a lack of oxygen or when the +supply of food was insufficient. They set on foot those +progressive changes that gave rise to fore and hind +limbs in such amphibians as the frogs. When these +latter animals made their appearance nearly all of +the fundamental problems of the vertebrate brain +had been solved. Nevertheless, there was still the +need of certain expansions in brain power and these, +in some part, were supplied during the age of reptiles.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_19">[Pg 19]</span></p> + +<p>As yet, however, that handicap of almost instantaneous +reaction which seriously limited the life of +fish had not been entirely overcome by the amphibian +or by the reptile. These animals still lacked the brain +mechanisms needed for the deliberate and varied actions +of the most efficient life. They had not yet altogether +escaped from the ancient tyranny of automatic +or reflex reaction.</p> + +<p>At length the mammals, throughout the different +periods of their long progressive age, introduced the +final detail of brain perfection. The secret of this perfecting +detail was the addition of a new mechanism +to the brain never possessed by animals before +this time. The great and new areas of the cerebral +hemispheres now came slowly into existence. With +them developed new and greater capacities for action +together with far more effective adjustments to +life.</p> + + +<h3 id="Vast_Ages_of_Animal_Life"> + <i>Vast Ages of Animal Life</i> +</h3> + +<p>All of these developments reach back a great distance +in time, so great that it is difficult to calculate +its exact duration. According to modern estimates the +first animals came into existence about 1,000,000,000 +years ago in the Proterozoic period. This period +was followed by the Palæozoic, which began approximately +300,000,000 years ago, and is known as +the Age of Fish. Then came the remarkable Age of +Reptiles, beginning about 200,000,000 years ago, +followed by the Age of Mammals, which commenced +in the neighbourhood of 65,000,000 years ago. The +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_20">[Pg 20]</span>present Age of Man has had a short duration, extending +back only about 1,000,000 years.</p> + +<p>Two methods have been depended upon in determining +these figures and the age of the earth. +The first is based upon the rate of deposit and upbuilding +of sedimentary rocks. The estimated period +required for the development of each rock layer has +provided a time-table for the age of the different +strata of the earth’s crust. The second method calculates +the rate at which common salt is extracted +from the land and deposited in the oceans. Imprints +of fossil animals upon the several rock layers also +reveal the age of different strata. The discovery of +radium afforded the latest gauge for estimating +geologic time. The physicists now tell us that former +calculations have been far too modest and that we +must go back still further to reach the actual beginnings +of our earth. Their “radioactive clock” indicates +that the earth is 1,600,000,000 years old.</p> + +<p>During all this vast interval there has been a succession +of great changes in the earth and its waters. +Continents have risen above sea level, to be submerged +again. Great inundations of continental +oceans have swept inward and made vastly different +land divisions from those which exist to-day. North +America has been more or less widely flooded by +great oceans at least fifteen times. Other continents +have been similarly inundated. Mountain ranges have +risen and crumbled away by erosion. In point of +geologic time most of the present mountains are relatively +young. The oldest of these is the Appalachian +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_21">[Pg 21]</span>range which was formed during the Permian period +approximately 230,000,000 years ago. The Rocky +Mountains appeared at the close of the Cretaceous, +100,000,000 years ago, while the Swiss Alps are of +much later development, having been formed at the +close of the Miocene about 15,000,000 years ago. +Even the Himalayas are relatively young when compared +with the earth’s antiquity. They had not taken +on their full gigantic proportions until the close of +the Eocene about 45,000,000 years ago.</p> + +<p>According to many authorities, great continental +land connections once existed between Africa and +what is now part of South America. This connecting +continent disappeared beneath the ocean long ago. +So also did the land connection between Asia and +North America in the region of the Bering Sea. An +important land connection existed between England +and the Continent, across what is now the English +Channel, in Pliocene times. It was present, therefore, +at some time within the last 6,000,000 years. Immense +inland seas have drained off or evaporated and left +in their places great desert spaces, like the Bad Lands +of the West.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Long_Upward_March_Toward_Humanity"> + <i>The Long Upward March Toward Humanity</i> +</h3> + +<p>While these changes were in process marked alterations +in climate affected the surface of the earth. +Glacial ice caps descended from the poles, later to +recede and leave the earth invested in tropical warmth. +Time and again these changes recurred. The crust of +the earth, chilled by intense refrigeration for protracted +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_22">[Pg 22]</span>ages, grew warm again for equally long periods +when tropical vegetation crept up toward the poles. +These changes in vegetation have been accompanied +by many changes in the animal inhabitants of the +globe. Species of animals in profusion have come into +existence only to follow the path which led to extinction. +In many cases the forms of life began simply +and progressed by graded stages to greater structural +complexity. Man is an outstanding example of this +rule. He began in much simpler form than that in +which he now exists. This relative simplicity is particularly +true of his brain.</p> + +<p>Thus, as if descending a long stairway, we may +pass by the successive terraces of the earth’s history +toward the beginnings of geologic time. The expanse +of this time is difficult to conceive. From the inception +of animal life in the long Proterozoic Age, +throughout the ages of Fish, Reptiles, and Mammals, +man’s brain was in the making. Irresistible +forces molded the various stages of its progress. +Species, genera, families, and even entire orders of +animals came into existence and disappeared as +wastage in a great experiment. Yet, through all vicissitudes +of time and change, the long upward march +toward humanity held its place. Ultimately it became +the dominant feature in creation. The advent of man +introduced a new era. It remains to be seen whither +the forces moving in this Age of Man will take us. +They may be leading to extinction. The way to such +a termination is clearly open to our race. On the +other hand, the brain has made man what he is and +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_23">[Pg 23]</span>may save him for better things. Its interesting pioneer +ancestry, although extremely remote, has left a well-established +record. The history of its development +through the process of evolution in the backboned +animals is still more interesting.</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_24">[Pg 24]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_II"> + CHAPTER II + <br> + ANCESTORS BEFORE THE APES + <br> + <span style="font-size: medium;">THE BRAIN FROM FISH TO MAN</span> + </h2> +</div> + + +<h3 id="Practical_Significance_of_Evolution"><i>Practical Significance of Evolution</i></h3> + +<p>There are many who still harbour resentment against +the ape, especially in explaining man’s origin. As a +result, hostilities often flare up against evolution. +It cannot be denied that the unattractive ape is at +the root of these reactions. He is the bar sinister and +the real stumbling block in the evolutionary theory. +He is also, to many people at least, the entire gist of it. +That we are descended from monkeys is rather generally +accepted as the meaning of evolution. This view, +at best, is a superficial explanation of what evolution +really means. No scientist to-day believes that any +one of the living apes is ancestral to man. These animals +belong to families totally divergent from the +human family. They have ascended well up into the +trees. Here doubtless they will remain, quite as unconcerned +in human origin as they are innocent of +participation in it. Our interest in evolution should +not centre upon the ape kind. The line of our ancestry +reaches far back of them through millions of years. +We were in the making long before there were any +apes on earth. They, in their tree life, merely afforded +the last finishing touches which shaped our +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_25">[Pg 25]</span>course toward humanity. If we wish to acknowledge +our hereditary indebtedness properly, we would be +compelled to recognize in our family tree that highly +important line of mammals which first introduced the +custom of arboreal living. Back of them are still older +lines which deserve equal ancestral credit. Here are +found those animals without the existence of which +we should never have arrived. Among these is the +vast assortment of reptiles, together with mammal-like +reptilians which appeared in the Age of Reptiles. +All of these reptilian forms were in their turn indebted +for existence to earlier amphibians and fish, +their progenitors during the long Age of Fish. Thus +the true line of evolutionary descent leads us from +fish to man. Not until we appreciate the meaning of +this long vertebrate lineage through all its various +phases does the vital significance of evolution become +clear. If we view it in this way it is possible to sense +the irresistible force that has carried animal life onward +and upward through the ages from the earliest +times. This force may still carry us onward. In its +broader applications such a viewpoint should make an +urgent appeal for thoughtful consideration. It offers +many suggestions concerning further advances and +readjustments in human behaviour.</p> + + +<h3 id="Evidence_of_Evolution_in_Our_Bodies"> + <i>Evidence of Evolution in Our Bodies</i> +</h3> + +<p>The brain is one of the best witnesses testifying to +this long evolutionary development of man. It contains +convincing evidence of this process in three +striking particulars. First, it gives numerous signs +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_26">[Pg 26]</span>indicating its primitive origin from the lowest of the +vertebrates, the fish. Second, it bears identifying +marks of intimate association with animals of its own +class, the mammals. Third, it has a large number of +details in its special mechanisms possessed in common +with all of the primate order, to which man belongs +together with the lemurs, tarsiers, monkeys, and +apes. This evidence is not circumstantial. It is direct +and unimpeachable. It leaves no point in the line of +man’s long descent to be decided by inference. It +embodies factors which led, step by step, to the upbuilding +of the human brain.</p> + +<p>Other tissues and organs of the body tell the same +story of slow, steady progress upward, from some low +and simple phase of life, through many graded stages +of improvement until the human form at length +came in sight.</p> + +<p>The blood has been an especially positive witness +concerning this progressive development. Tests with +many different kinds of animals show that the blood +of man is much nearer to that of the great apes than +to the lower Old World monkeys. The relation between +the human blood and that of the New World +monkeys is still more remote. In general, these blood +tests are among the most convincing proofs of evolution.</p> + +<p>The bony system of the body is another decisive +witness. The skeleton of the fore and hind limbs sheds +much light on the changing adjustments which have +been made in the motor apparatus. The use of the +limbs as fins, paddles, wings, hoofs, paws, claws, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_27">[Pg 27]</span>hands, or feet, indicates the broad family relations +and kinship of various animals. The size and shape +of the skull and the character of the teeth reveal the +manner in which this evolutionary process has passed +through its several stages. The muscular system, +the system for eliminating waste products of the +body, the heart and the lungs, all afford important +evidence of vertebrate kinship and evolution. The +increase in the complexity of the breathing apparatus, +from the early gill stages of the fish to the lung of +the mammal, through all its many intermediate +phases, discloses with astonishing clearness the course +of this progress.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Embryo_as_a_Witness"> + <i>The Embryo as a Witness</i> +</h3> + +<p>Testimony from another source also stands undisputed. +This corroboration comes from the manner +in which all vertebrates are conceived and formed. +The witness in this case is the embryo, which in all +animals begins in the same way. Embryonic existence +starts from a single cell. It holds true to the +earliest beginnings of animal life that first appeared +in a single cell such as the amœba. In the higher animals +this cell is called the ovum. From it, after fertilization, +two cells are derived, then four, then eight, +then sixteen, until it has an appearance closely resembling +some of the colonized protozoan animals. Here +again, even in man, is seen that decisive stage in +which a critical cellular distinction is made between +outside and inside cells. From this time specializing +progress in the growing individual goes forward. Each +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_28">[Pg 28]</span>new phase repeats in a general way a stage of development +previously attained in the evolution of life. All +embryos of vertebrate animals pass through such +phases. The fish embryo carries the process up to +the stage characterized by those improvements which +developed during the Age of Fish. The amphibian +embryo takes the process one step farther. It adds +new features essential to living on land. Embryos +of reptiles and of birds introduce the progressive +advancements peculiar to their kinds. The mammal +embryo takes the final step, prior to which it passes +successively through the several phases of the lower +grades of life. The human embryo follows the mammalian +plan and puts the finishing touches of development +upon what the mammal has gained from all the +stages below it. Fish, amphibians, reptiles—all have +their beginning in a single cell. Regardless of the +differences in body form, in mode of life, and in +behaviour, all are cast in a mold of development +based on a common design. Thus, while the blood, the +bony system, the muscles, the teeth, the eliminating +system, the heart, and the lungs tell the story of +progressive development, the embryo gives a summary +of this process by disclosing the general plan +which underlies the manner in which every backboned +animal is formed.</p> + +<p>The brain contains a comprehensive record of this +progress. There are reasons why this is the case. Brain +influences pervade and dominate all other systems. +This organ is the great transformer of energy, which +so assembles other parts in operation that the body +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_29">[Pg 29]</span>as a whole becomes a smoothly acting machine. It +receives sensory impressions from its environment. +It controls the reactions incited by these impressions. +In this dual capacity the brain has been especially +sensitive to those influences of change and adjustment, +of action, reaction, and interaction that have +affected animal life during its long existence. It has +responded to these changes and has retained the impression +of such responses. In many cases it has been +structurally improved. Gradually it became capable +of sensing the world more effectively. It acquired the +capacity to react on a broader scale. Developing along +certain progressive lines it has served to transform +impressions received from the senses in such a way +as to produce an increasingly more effective turnover +of nervous energy. For this reason it is necessary +for us to estimate the value of such senses as were +utilized in this way. Without going too extensively +into detail, it may be said that, with extremely few +exceptions, vertebrate animals possess four chief +varieties of sense. Each of these supplies the brain +with stimuli necessary to its proper reaction.</p> + + +<h3 id="Value_of_Our_Senses"> + <i>Value of Our Senses</i> +</h3> + +<p>First, chemical sense, through special organs for +smell and taste, conveys information concerning +certain chemical conditions in the surroundings. The +sense of smell derives its impressions from gaseous or +volatile substances which, among other things, may +create a pleasant or a disagreeable odour important in +selecting food. The sense of taste gathers its information +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_30">[Pg 30]</span>from substances in solution. It depends upon acid, +sweet, bitter, salty, or other similar stimuli. The +primitive headquarters for taste are in the hindbrain, +while the endbrain serves in this capacity for the +sense of smell.</p> + +<p>Second, body sense furnishes information concerning +what transpires within the body, as in the heart +and lungs, in the stomach and intestines, and in other +special organs. It also supplies equally important +information concerning what contraction is occurring +in the muscles, how the bones are being moved, what +postures the different parts are assuming, and how +the body as a whole is being balanced.</p> + +<p>Third, contact sense makes known what is going +on immediately outside the body. It depends upon +many things which touch the body surfaces, such as +the touch and pressure of a handclasp, the temperature +of water upon the hand, the vibration of a heavy +vehicle running over the ground. Body and contact +senses had their original headquarters in the midbrain +and interbrain.</p> + +<p>Fourth, distance sense supplies information concerning +objects in the world outside of the body more +or less remote from it. The information which this +sense brings is news from abroad. It is gathered by +the sense of sight and the sense of hearing. Sight, in +a way, is touch at a distance. When an animal sees its +enemy a long way off it, so to speak, touches this +enemy with its eyes and thus gives the brain the +needed information while there is yet time for escape. +Sight depends upon light waves, and hearing upon +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_31">[Pg 31]</span>sound waves. By such means these two highly specialized +agents of distance sense gather their information. +The central offices of sight and hearing were at +first situated in the midbrain.</p> + +<p>All impressions obtained from these senses were +and still are the raw materials utilized in the energy +turnover produced by the brain.</p> + +<p>Improvement was not always the result of the +great struggle for adjustment. There were many +ups and downs, many trials, many failures. Yet a +certain insistent tendency toward progress was constantly +in evidence. By means not entirely clear, this +tendency ultimately succeeded in finding some way +to become effective. It appears to have exerted its +influence by selecting definite parts of the animal +machinery for emphasis or repression.</p> + +<p>Often some highly selective improvement was developed +in the brain to meet special conditions. Such +is the expansion in the bird’s brain by which the sense +of sight is greatly amplified. This special increase +makes it possible for the bird to see its prey from +great distances in the air, as the hawk sees the fish +in the water, or the vulture detects the presence of +carrion by its keen eyesight. The sense of smell in +birds is much less developed than vision.</p> + +<p>In scenting animals, like the dog, the fox, and the +cat, selective improvement has affected the sense of +smell. In a few instances the addition of a relatively +new sense was the means by which improvement +manifested itself. Such an addition is seen in that +transition when fish life first began to assume the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_32">[Pg 32]</span>characters of living upon land. At that juncture the +sense of hearing was added in some amphibious +animals belonging to the same class as the frog. +These and other methods for getting a better supply +of raw materials through the senses contributed to +progressive development in the brain.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Sense_Combiner"> + <i>The Sense Combiner</i> +</h3> + +<p>Still more effective was the improvement which +came as a new mechanism. It provided a special +apparatus that may for convenience be called the +“sense combiner.” The office of this mechanism was +to assemble sense impressions in the brain, to make +composite pictures of sight, hearing, taste, smell, and +all other senses. This sense combiner served also as +an effective depository for impressions already received. +It held them in readiness for use as a background +of experience that would be needed for new or +subsequent situations. At a glance it is evident that +the brain having the best sense combiner would outstrip +all others in its efficiency and output. In the +earliest vertebrates this new mechanism did not acquire +a centralized headquarters. Its operations were +controlled from several scattered stations in the +brain. Obviously such division of responsibility could +not be considered an efficient method of control. +Centralization was needed, and certain stages in the +development of the brain from fish to man illustrate +how this improvement was gradually brought about.</p> + +<p>The first or fish stage, as might be expected, expresses +the beginning of this process of improvement +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_33">[Pg 33]</span>in simplest terms. There are many who do not credit +the fish with such a thing as a brain. These animals, +however, are equipped with an effective organ of this +kind. Its efficiency is not high according to human +standards, yet, as we shall presently see, it has many +characteristics of the human organ and reacts to +similar stimuli.</p> + +<p>In the fish brain there are nearly all of the working +departments found in man. Much variation exists +even among fish. Some of them have very simple +brains. This is true of the earliest forms, but the more +advanced types acquired brains thoroughly efficient +for the special complexities of existence in which they +had to live. The several departments in these brains +are adjusted to their requirements. The sense of smell +in the fish is particularly well developed. It has certain +limitations, however, due to the fact that it +must depend upon substances borne by the water. +The department of this sense, nevertheless, occupies +the major portion of what in these descriptions will +be called the endbrain. The sense of taste is also well +organized in fish. In certain of them, like the catfish, +it has received special emphasis, because in addition +to taste organs in the mouth there are organs of this +kind scattered over the entire body from head to tail. +The primitive central office of the sense of taste in +fish is located in the hindbrain. Body sense is highly +developed because most of the fishes are able to +control their muscles and joints in an amazing way +as they dart about in the water. Balancing of the body +in swimming is another important problem in the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_34">[Pg 34]</span>locomotion of the fish. It is solved by means of certain +highly specialized water levels (semicircular canals). +The body sense department occupies the interbrain. +The sense of sight in most fish is fairly well advanced, +although it has distinct limitations. Being placed on +the side of the head, each eye acts more or less independently +of the other, and the fish, so to speak, gets +a two-eyed picture of its surroundings. It will subsequently +become clear that one of the most important +events in the progress of the brain has been the development +of that kind of vision in which both eyes +receive the impression of an object at the same time. +Then again, the medium in which the fish lives is in +many respects less favourable for the passage of light +rays than the air. The retina of the fish’s eye which +first receives the light rays also indicates a relative +simplicity in the organization of vision. For these and +other reasons the fish’s sense of sight cannot be as +effective as in the higher forms of life. This sense department +is located in the midbrain.</p> + + +<h3 id="Starting_with_the_Fish"> + <i>Starting with the Fish</i> +</h3> + +<p>The fish stage in the development of the brain +shows a striking deficiency in its lack of provision +for a sense of hearing. Strictly speaking, fish have no +ears. It is believed that the ability to hear which the +human being possesses is denied to them. In still +another respect, however, a more obvious deficiency +makes itself apparent. The brain is poorly equipped +in mechanisms that could specifically be called sense +combiners. Some slight degree of combination between +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_35">[Pg 35]</span>the senses does take place, but this at best is +meagre and simple. Consequently the brain’s output, +that is to say, its productive turnover, is limited. +It confines itself to those reaction patterns with +which we are familiar in the habits and behaviour of +fish. The limitations by which these patterns are restricted +are evident in the fact that the animal’s entire +life programme is carried on largely under water. +If an attempt were made to estimate the capabilities +of the fish as a machine compared with other animals, +it would almost certainly receive a low rating. The +justification of this low estimate is obvious. The +reasons for it are twofold: first, the relatively low +degree of development in each of the sense departments +including the lack in one department (sense of +hearing); second, the poorly developed sense combiner.</p> + +<p>Professor Gregory has devoted much time in the +American Museum of Natural History to the study +of the progressive stages from fish to man, and especially +to those changes which appear in the head. +He has shown that in this fish stage the animal at +first had no lower jaw and no teeth. Its mouth served +as a sucking organ, which thus obtained food in the +form of minute organisms and small particles of organic +matter. Certain new patterns were introduced +with the appearance of primitive sharks. These animals +had a lower jaw impregnated with lime salts, +thus made effective for supporting many successive +rows of formidable teeth. Such sharks also had well-developed +gills. Certain lobe-finned fishes of a somewhat +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_36">[Pg 36]</span>later period (<i>Crossopterygian</i>) began to live in +streams and swamps. By means of their peculiar fins +they were able to crawl over the surface of the land, +and thus they were the forerunners of the next more +completely air-breathing stage determined by the +appearance of the amphibians.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Beginning_of_Life_on_Land"> + <i>The Beginning of Life on Land</i> +</h3> + +<p>The second or amphibian stage came after those +steps had been taken which led certain modified +forms of fish life to attempt a partial adjustment to +living on land and to breathing air. True amphibians +then made their appearance. Animals called tetrapods, +or four-footed creatures, were the result of this change. +They were the forerunners of all higher animals. By +the slow conversion of their fins and paddles into +legs they acquired a new kind of transportation +machinery. With the aid of these four legs the animal +could now hop about on land and also swim in the +water much as do the frogs. Such a transformation +had a profound effect upon the entire body, which +became greatly shortened and in many instances +no longer possessed a tail (except in the polliwog +stage). The head also changed. New devices were +necessary for the purposes of air-breathing, which replaced +the old method of getting oxygen out of the +water. One of the most important changes, however, +was the addition of the new sense of hearing. The +amphibians, living partly on land, were now able to +receive useful information by means of air waves. +The advent of this new sense was destined to have +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_37">[Pg 37]</span>momentous effects upon the further development of +the brain. Each of the several sense departments is +well represented in the frog. The sense of smell is +highly organized. It contains some improvements +over the fish for the reason that the animal is now +able to scent odours borne by the air. The sense of +taste shows little if any improvement. Compared with +many of the fish it has actually receded. Body sense +is well provided for and shows certain refinements +due to the fact that it has taken on the new responsibility +of sensing four legs. It also has the duty of +supervising what is going on in the muscular machine +when the animal performs its new kind of motion, +hopping about over the ground, leaping into the +water, or using the new frog-method of swimming. +The department of the sense of sight shows some +improvements when contrasted with that of the fish. +The frog is able to adjust its vision both to air and +water. While on land it is able to see many things that +never come into the range of the fish’s field of vision. +Some of the frogs even go so far as to have what is +called a third eye in the middle of the forehead. This +organ, however, is but poorly developed and serves +more for light perception than for actual seeing. The +introduction of the sense of hearing, by establishing +certain innovations in the frog brain, provides an +advantage over the fish. It is, however, in furthering +the development of the sense combiner that the frog’s +brain shows its most distinctive advance. The two +great hemispheres are now clearly outlined. The endbrain, +in consequence of land-living and air-breathing, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_38">[Pg 38]</span>has taken an important step forward. In all further +advances this part will bear the chief burdens of +progress and improvement.</p> + +<p>The frog and his kind represent a machine that in +many respects is not much better organized than the +fish. But amphibians did serve to introduce advantages +that were utilized in new adjustments to life; +such, for example, as living on land, breathing air, +getting about on four legs, and being able to hear. +Besides this, the way was now opened for a better +type of sense combiner. There was promise, if not +actual profit, in these new amphibian endowments. +Professor Gregory has shown that among the most +important changes in the amphibian head were those +which ultimately led to the formation of the ear. +The skin in this region was already beginning to act +as a tympanic member or eardrum.</p> + + +<h3 id="Epoch_of_Giant_Reptiles"> + <i>Epoch of Giant Reptiles</i> +</h3> + +<p>The third or reptile stage witnessed that critical +advance that came with the fully established habit +of living on land. The amphibians, both those which +retained and those which lost the tail, took the first +somewhat hesitating steps in this direction. They +were, however, essential predecessors to the next +higher order, the reptiles, which upon their arrival +stepped out boldly. During the remarkable Mesozoic +period these reptiles covered the earth with their +dominating and often hideous presence. No period +compares with this one for the awe-inspiring inhabitants +that peopled the world. It was then that +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_39">[Pg 39]</span>the gigantic dinosaurs were the overlords of creation. +Some of these monstrous creatures were composed +of many tons of flesh and bone. They became the most +terrific fighting machines ever produced by nature. +Even the tail, which had disappeared in many of the +amphibians, became prominent as part of the offensive +equipment in these reptile monsters. Gigantic +size was an outstanding structural feature. But these +huge dimensions carried their own penalties. They +were extremely hazardous and destined to bring +catastrophe. Even if some of the great reptiles might +have been thoroughly efficient fighting machines, +they lacked the essential advantages of progressive +brains and brain power. In this respect they had +improved but little. That tremendous monster <i>Tyrannosaurus +rex</i>, the most destructive engine ever +created, had a body weighing many tons, with a brain +of less than a pound.</p> + +<p>The prolific Mesozoic reptiles inhabited the land +and infested the waters of the earth, its oceans and +inland seas, its lakes and rivers. They also for the +first time attempted to realize the advantages of +another mode of life. Having adjusted their weird +bodies to the water and to the land, they next took +to the air. Late in the Permian or Triassic times +(150,000,000 years ago) some lizard-like reptiles, +partially biped in habit and distantly related to the +great two-legged dinosaurs, assumed habits of life +adapted in part to the trees. Specialization of their +fore limbs led to wing-like structures for purposes of +volplaning to the ground. Such modified fore limbs +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_40">[Pg 40]</span>eventually acquired the character of wings, and thus, +according to some authorities, the most ancient of +known birds had their origin in the Age of Reptiles. +Many students of this subject believe that bird life +may have begun at an even earlier period.</p> + +<p>More conservative and also far less conspicuous +was another tendency which developed in this reptilian +age. For a long time it remained most unpretentious. +The spectacular development of huge +animals for land and sea held the centre of the stage. +Mere size, however, is not always sufficient for success +and progress. In any event, a certain number of +relatively small reptiles began to show changes along +entirely different lines. At first it was difficult to discern +the signs of progress in them. Slowly, however, +significant modifications came about in two important +details: First, in the readjustment of the fore +and hind legs, so that acting together they began to +lift the body of the animal clear off the ground. The +second great change was an alteration in the teeth, +which were gradually specialized until they assumed +the characters recognized in those later animals +known as mammals. These two new traits, developed +by relatively inconspicuous reptiles, led in time to +animals that became the actual forerunners of the +mammals. They are known as the pro-mammalian +reptiles (<i>Cynodont</i>, <i>Theriodont</i>).</p> + + +<h3 id="Reptile_Forerunners_of_the_Mammals"> + <i>Reptile Forerunners of the Mammals</i> +</h3> + +<p>It is probable that while these momentous changes +were in process an equally important modification +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_41">[Pg 41]</span>had begun. This change affected the blood. It caused +the blood cells to become smaller and at the same time +better conveyers of oxygen. These cells also began to +lose their nuclei. As a result, certain animals passed +from a cold-blooded, scaly reptilian condition to that +of the warm-blooded, hair-covered mammal. The +constant warm temperature of the blood in these +mammalian forerunners must have been a decisive +influence favouring the further development of the +brain.</p> + +<p>In many respects the reptilian brain is inferior to +that of the mammals. All of its sense departments are +fairly well represented. The senses of smell and taste +have made slight advances over the amphibian +stage. Body and contact senses have perhaps gained +some slight advantage over the previous period. In +sight and hearing there were some improvements. +Collectively the reptilian mechanisms for managing +impressions obtained through the senses are considerably +better than those of such animals as the +amphibious frog. At least one of the reptiles (<i>Sphenodon</i>) +developed a third eye in the middle of the forehead. +This is not, however, a highly efficient visual +organ. The sense combiner in the reptile also shows +some advantage, although in the main the reptilians +appear to have acquired little more of practical value, +except greater speed and more power, than their predecessors, +the amphibians.</p> + +<p>Even when reptile development took that bent +which led to the appearance of birds, the brain received +but a slight benefit from this adjustment to +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_42">[Pg 42]</span>the air. Selective progress in the bird’s brain is unquestionably +found in that marked expansion involving +the department of sight. Body sense also expanded +to meet the requirements of sensing and balancing +the body in flight. But to offset these advances both +the sense of smell and the sense of taste have undergone +considerable recession. Adaptive progress here, +as in many other instances, emphasized one department +with some apparent loss of advantage in other +parts. Consequently the sense combiner, which ultimately +produces the most effective combinations of +sense impressions, has shown no conspicuous advantage +among the birds.</p> + + +<h3 id="Disappearance_of_the_Great_Reptiles"> + <i>Disappearance of the Great Reptiles</i> +</h3> + +<p>The reptile stage of life, especially in its most imposing +phases, witnessed but little advance in the +progressive development of the brain. During this +period all of the great departments of brain structure, +such as the endbrain, the interbrain, the midbrain, +and the hindbrain, were retained and somewhat expanded. +But that highly important mechanism that +was finally to act as the superbrain, technically +known as the neopallium (new outer coating of the +brain, the cortex), had not yet been acquired. It may +be in part for this reason that, as the Mesozoic period +advanced, catastrophe was rapidly overtaking +many of the great reptilian groups. Of the eighteen +orders of reptiles that once filled the world, all but +five were mysteriously swept into oblivion. Why +they passed is not yet clear. It may have been due to +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_43">[Pg 43]</span>great changes in the surface and climate of the earth +at different times. It may have been that the gigantic +size of these reptiles made the struggle for existence +too severe or the food supply too precarious. Whatever +the cause, they all seem to have paid the penalty +of excessive specialization. The five orders which have +survived these destructive catastrophes include the +snakes, the crocodiles, the lizards, the turtles, and the +lizard-like tuateras of New Zealand.</p> + +<p>Notwithstanding this wholesale destruction, there +was a priceless heritage handed down from the Age +of Reptiles. This heirloom was the beginning of the +warm-blooded mammal, which slowly developed +from the humble pro-mammalian reptiles. It endowed +the animals that were to rule the next great +period of the earth’s history with power to get about +on four feet, with increased ability to withstand +great changes of climate, with added capacities in +preparing their food for digestion. This last advantage +depended upon a new kind of teeth which the +mammals inherited from their immediate reptilian +ancestors. All of the teeth possessed by primitive +reptiles were fang-like (laniary), used for seizing their +prey or tearing their food. These reptiles had no +grinding teeth, and this condition left the responsibility +of digestion to the stomach and other organs. In +most of the mammals digestion begins in the mouth +with actual mastication. The early pro-mammalian +reptiles (<i>Cynodonts</i>) were equipped with grinding +teeth, and their dental apparatus, as in all mammals, +included incisors, canines, pre-molars, and molars. +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_44">[Pg 44]</span>Teeth such as these were important items in the +legacy received by the mammals from their ancestors, +the pro-mammalian reptiles.</p> + + +<h3 id="When_the_Warm-blooded_Mammal_Appeared"> + <i>When the Warm-blooded Mammal Appeared</i> +</h3> + +<p>In the fourth or mammalian stage, life entered upon +the Age of Mammals with all of these new endowments. +Almost at once it began to show signs of +progress. It was in the brain that this progress became +most apparent. A new mechanism long in the +making now came into existence. This new structure +may be rightly called the superbrain (neopallium), +since it soon proved to be the most decisive step +yet taken in the development of the sense combiner +and in the further expansion of all the senses. At +first it did not make its appearance in any preëminent +manner. It came as an outer covering over the ancient +parts of the endbrain. Within it, however, were possibilities +of expansion such as were possessed by no +other part of the brain. Ultimately it added about +twelve billion cells to be used in many different kinds +of brain activity. This addition was especially characterized +by the orderly arrangement of the cells, +layer upon layer, almost as if each successive layer +imparted some new capacity for the management of +life. In its fully developed form this structure constitutes +the cortex of the hemispheres, and with its +fibre connections makes up as much as eighty per +cent. of the entire brain.</p> + +<p>It could hardly be expected, even after the first +arrival of the mammals, that this new brain addition +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_45">[Pg 45]</span>would at once attain its fullest development. In fact, +the first attempts along this line were feeble. A new +and great production of weird mammals was in +process. It might almost seem as if the imposing +shadows of the previous Age of Reptiles still hung +over these early mammalian experiments. Huge, +ungainly proportions were still the fashion. In many +instances the primitive mammals themselves developed +gigantic and awkward bodies. They were +strange, unsightly beasts as we know them now from +their fossilized skeletons and from reconstructions of +them. Were it possible to reassemble them, what a +sensation they would create in our modern world. +Even the best efforts of our foremost showmen would +be ineffective to describe those strange monsters of +most unfamiliar appearance, with their peculiar +armours, their long unsightly horns and tusks, their +strange hoofs and claws. The mammoth, the mastodon, +the amblypod, the titanothere, the creodont, +the sabre-toothed tiger, and many others would be +among them to excite wonder.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Paths_to_Extinction_and_Progress"> + <i>The Paths to Extinction and Progress</i> +</h3> + +<p>But all of these have passed, in part at least, because, +like the dinosaurs, they possessed inferior or +unprogressive brains. Indeed, many of the earliest +mammals had brains that in some particulars resembled +those of the reptiles. They grew in size and +power until they became repulsive brutes, although +their brains improved but little. In many of them +the superbrain developed only in a small way. It +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_46">[Pg 46]</span>was notable not for its size but for the position it occupied +above more ancient structures. In their +struggle for life these huge beasts seemed to be unable +to adjust themselves to changing environment; so +probably when the conditions became too severe, +not having the capacity to adapt themselves, they +failed to survive. Many orders of these animals became +extinct in the early part of the Age of Mammals +(Oligocene and Eocene, thirty million to sixty-five +million years ago). Others, showing more progressive +tendencies, continued to advance, and their descendants +have come down into modern times. One striking +difference between these progressive and unprogressive +mammals was certainly in the brain. Wherever +this organ remained primitive, wherever the +superbrain was only feebly developed, the fate of +extinction seems to have been a foregone conclusion. +Such animals soon reached the end of their line. But +wherever the superbrain expanded, there the signs +of progress were unmistakable. One extremely important +factor in the survival of most of the mammals +alive to-day was the progressive development in the +most recently acquired portion of the brain. Great +practical results were brought about by its expansion +in the administration of brain power. It produced, +so to speak, the final consolidation of all the sense +departments under one roof. Reactions connected +with the sense of smell and of taste, which had so +long depended upon the primitive endbrain, marked +this structure as the most advantageous location +for centralization. Whatever may have been the influences +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_47">[Pg 47]</span>that established this preference, here the +departments of body and contact senses, of sight and +hearing, were finally organized. The effects of this +consolidation were immediately felt by the endbrain. +It at once became a superbrain in the truest sense. +Rapid expansions in the actual size of the hemispheres +were the first signs of this new development. Then +came the process of convolution and folding to obtain +more brain room, and this for the same reason was +followed by still more complex convoluting. These +advantages especially favoured contact sense, the +expansion of which was largely due to the fact that +the mammal body was now covered with a highly +sensitive skin equipped with hair. Such a skin was a +new sensory device by which finer impressions of +touch might be conveyed to the brain. In this manner +the animal was able to form more complete judgments +concerning objects with which it came in +contact. Little by little, these judgments of touch +became more critical and discriminating. A great +range of understanding of the world through touch +sense was made available. One critical impression of +touch was added to another until complex judgments +in this sense were constructed. Similar expansions +in the powers of vision, hearing, and body sense led +to their localization in this new part of the brain. +Their most effective activity soon required still further +extension, which ultimately, by the development +of the frontal lobe, made provision for the highest +faculties. The mammals have thus shown their +progressive tendency in the acquisition of an efficient +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_48">[Pg 48]</span>sense combiner. Through their better sense capacities +they have been able to understand their surroundings +more thoroughly than lower animals. Consequently +their energy turnover in the brain has resulted in a +better output by means of which they have made +more ample adjustments to life. All of this they have +been able to accomplish because they possessed a +mechanism of incalculable value, the superbrain. +Yet the mammals have not in all cases utilized this +mechanism to its full extent. Its advantages have been +applied in different ways and for different purposes. In +some instances they have been utilized for the special +adjustments of the hoofed animals, or in the hunting +craft of the great meat-eaters, or in that furtiveness +of the moles, which seek their protection by burrowing +in the ground. The advantages of the superbrain were +applied to many other diverse specializations, such +as the adjustments of bats for flying, or of beavers, +seals, whales, and porpoises for living in the water.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Superior_Brain_of_Mammals"> + <i>The Superior Brain of Mammals</i> +</h3> + +<p>The mammalian brain has made possible a wide +range of behaviour and adjustment. This range exceeds +that of the fish, amphibian, reptile, or bird. +Concerning the increased capacity of the mammals +as a class there seems to be no doubt. But this greater +power of adaptability is also true of every mammal. +The differences in this respect between the lower +mammals, like the rat, the opossum, or the sloth, +when compared with the bird, the snake, the frog, or +even the fish, may not be striking. But when we contrast +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_49">[Pg 49]</span>the actions and capabilities of such mammals as +dogs, horses, elephants, or any of the cat family with +those of the bird or snake the vast differences speak +for themselves. A dog, for example, has by comparison +with lower vertebrates a greatly increased capacity +for getting on in life. He is capable of adapting himself +to many complications incident to his associations +with man. He has a much more ample repertoire of +performances. He is capable of learning many intricate +accomplishments. In general, such learning is +also true of most of the higher mammals; it is particularly +true of those having a highly developed superbrain. +Even aquatic mammals like the seals show a +remarkable degree of adaptability. They are among +the most interesting of trained performers. A casual +glance is sufficient to reveal what an excellent superbrain +they possess. Elephants, in spite of their huge +proportions and awkwardness, are capable of remarkable +adjustments. Their brains are also highly +developed.</p> + +<p>Yet, however decisive the mammalian superiority +in brain power may be over the lower vertebrates, +most of the mammals are held down by many handicaps, +restrictions, and limitations. They all possess +a capacity for broad adjustments to strictly limited +conditions. For life in the water, in the air, upon the +plains, underground, or in the forest, they may be +well adapted. But the specializations of their own +bodies hold them to their specifically restricted adjustments. +With trunk and head, with hoof and paw, +with wing and flipper, they may do the things which +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_50">[Pg 50]</span>these implements make possible. Here their opportunities +cease. In this way even the progressive mammals +are confronted by serious obstacles. These mammalian +obstacles were difficult to overcome. Some of the +mammals, however, became specialized for a more +varied kind of life. They manifested a strong tendency +to live chiefly in the trees. This fact influenced +their further adjustments profoundly. It opened the +way for new specializations in their limbs. It gave a +new direction to progress, which finally called upon +the brain for its supreme development. These important +tree-living animals are the monkey kind and +the manlike apes. All of the events in adjustment +preceding this great epoch might be likened diagrammatically +to a succession of plateaus. Each plateau, +beginning with that of the fish, then rising to the +level of the amphibians, of the reptiles, and finally of +the mammals, contributed some important elements +to progress. From these at length came the upper +level of the apes, that plateau destined to give rise to +many varieties of primates, and also to afford those +footholds essential to the further upward climb of +man.</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_51">[Pg 51]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_III"> + CHAPTER III + <br> + MAN IN THE MAKING + <br> + <span style="font-size: medium;">HUMAN PROGRESS FROM PREHISTORIC TO + MODERN TIMES</span> + </h2> +</div> + + +<h3 id="Arrival_of_Man"><i>Arrival of Man</i></h3> + +<p>Long before man appeared upon the scene the brain +had passed through certain preliminary grades. Its +basic patterns had been perfected. Its most important +mechanisms had been improved. All manner of animals +inhabited the earth in those preparatory days—fishes, +amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals of +many varieties. They were the stepping stones of +progress. When at length the first members of our +family arrived their brains were barely human, and +they themselves were crude human beings. There +was a certain triumph in their advent, however, for at +last there were men. The Age of Man which they +inaugurated was to differ from all preceding ages in +the products of human achievement. This great inaugural +event, however, made no particular stir in +nature. Its beginnings were insignificant and humble, +just as the brain of these earliest men was a far less +imposing organ than that possessed by modern people. +It was still a crude brain, unrefined in many of its +structural details and small in its capacity. Hundreds +of thousands of years were still necessary for such a +brain to attain its highest efficiency.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_52">[Pg 52]</span></p> + +<p>To most of us who are accustomed to count time +as the hours between breakfast and dinner, or, at the +most, as the proverbial threescore years and ten, +these long periods sound fabulous and fantastic. In +contemplating the past our vision usually stops short +at the beginning of history, about five or six thousand +years ago. Such a focus is unfortunately nearsighted. +It leaves us insensitive to the much longer prehistoric +period. Through all this unrecorded time man +struggled upward to achieve those successes which +at length established the Age of the Frontal Lobe.</p> + +<p>Much evidence of this great prehistoric period is now +available. Examined carefully and without prejudice +it reveals what man must have been when his human +journey first started. It tells us much of how he lived +and acted; also by what means he succeeded in lifting +himself up step by step from his lowly beginnings.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Duration_of_Human_Existence"> + <i>The Duration of Human Existence</i> +</h3> + +<p>It is natural that our first inquiry should be concerning +the length of time during which the human +race has inhabited the earth. The exact figures, as +might be expected, are a matter of much dispute +and difference of opinion. All authorities, however, +agree that the several stages of human progress must +have required a remarkably long period. None of +the modern estimations of this period is less than +five hundred thousand years. Many calculations, +such as those of Sir Arthur Keith, far exceed this +figure and place the origin of man as far back as a +million years or more. The beginnings of the human +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_53">[Pg 53]</span>species are usually attributed to the early part of +the Pleistocene, or the late part of the Pliocene. +Keith, however, believes this does not permit of +sufficient time for that development which produced +all of the effects evidenced in the known features +of modern man, as well as those of certain extinct +varieties that have long since passed from the human +stage. Concluding his famous work, the <i>Antiquity +of Man</i>, Keith expresses the opinion that “There is +not a single fact known to me which makes the existence +of the human form in the Miocene period an +impossibility.” This view would set the origin of man +back to an astonishingly remote period in the neighbourhood +of twelve or fifteen million years ago.</p> + +<p>Professor Osborn has recently revised his original +estimations concerning the beginning of the human +race. He now attributes the rise of man to a time one +and a half million years ago.</p> + +<p>In all his races, both living and extinct, man constitutes +the sixth family in the primate suborder, +<i>Anthropoidea</i> (manlike). This family is known as the +<i>Hominidæ</i> (men of all types). The progenitors of the +human family split off from a common primate stock +at some time early in the Oligocene. At this critical +juncture, probably twenty-five million years ago, two +great branches of the suborder parted company. +Thenceforth they developed independently of each +other. The first branch from this common stem gave +rise to human races. From the second branch arose +the great modern anthropoid apes, including the +orang-outang, the chimpanzee, and the gorilla. The +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_54">[Pg 54]</span>vast difference that exists between man and all other +living creatures is evident in the complexity of human +affairs. In size and form of body there are many notable +resemblances between man and the apes, particularly +the great apes. But here the similarity ends +abruptly. Man has created a new world, which he +strives to control both by laws of his own making +and by subjugating more or less completely all other +creatures to his will. His races to-day throughout the +world are collectively known as the species <i>Homo +sapiens</i> (man of wisdom). This species comprises the +African, the Australian, the Mongolian, and the +European varieties of mankind.</p> + + +<h3 id="Four_Extinct_Races_of_Men"> + <i>Four Extinct Races of Men</i> +</h3> + +<p>Study of human fossils and ancient implements has +revealed the former existence of at least four prehistoric +races of man. These races took their parts in the +human drama and then, in consequence of factors not +altogether clear, became extinct. It is not surprising +that man’s obscure prehistoric beginnings are all but +lost in the great geological ages which lie behind his +recorded history. There can be small wonder that +such insignificant traces of his remains have yet been +brought to light. The search for these remains has +been in progress for little more than a century. +Doubtless when this exploration becomes more extensive, +also when more people are engaged in its +organization, a considerable collection of relics revealing +man’s primitive stages will be discovered. +Nothing more than a meagre record could be expected +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_55">[Pg 55]</span>because so little effort was originally made to +preserve the remains of the earliest prehistoric men. +In those long-distant days the bodies of the dead +were either disposed of by burning, or merely cast +out to be devoured by beasts and birds of prey.</p> + +<p>The principal criteria for estimating the antiquity +of human remains are four in number. First, the age +in geological time of the strata within which the remains +are found. Second, the fossil remains of the +animals associated with the fossil remains of man, +whether these be of still living forms, or entirely extinct +species. Third, the human artifacts, that is, implements, +ornaments, and other objects produced by +human hands, found with the remains. Fourth, the +structural characteristics as to skull and other parts +of the skeleton, which distinguish these fossil men +from living races.</p> + +<p>Quite as important as the fossilized bodily remains +of prehistoric man are those ancient works of human +hands that have been slowly collected as a result of +untiring search and scientific industry. It is now possible +to classify this great body of evidence. Besides +revealing the actual presence on earth of prehistoric +man, this classification clearly demonstrates the occurrence +of certain cultural stages prior to the historic +period. The extinct races of men already brought +to light appear to vary considerably from the modern +man; so much so, in fact, that a question has been +raised concerning the wisdom of creating for each of +them a new genus within the human family. One +reason for this distinction is that no one of the extinct +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_56">[Pg 56]</span>races may properly be called the ancestor of living +man. Some arrangement in the chronological order of +man’s appearance on earth is desirable. The exact +period of each extinct race cannot be given. But +within certain broad limits we are able to assign each +prehistoric man to his proper time and place.</p> + + +<h3 id="Javan_Ape_Man"> + <i>Javan Ape Man</i> +</h3> + +<p>Probably the oldest, most primitive of extinct +races is the ape man of Java (<i>Pithecanthropus erectus</i>). +This ape man belonged to what is called the Trinil +race, which, according to Keith, originated more +than one million years ago. The ape man, although +definitely human in type, had many simian qualities. +He was also so similar to man as to justify the view +that he represents some transitional stage in human +evolution. He possessed a head and a face not unlike +those of an ape, but his brain was nearly twice the +size of the brain of any simian including the largest +of the great apes, the gorilla. It was this transcendent +advantage that lifted him above all of the anthropoids +and assured him an unassailable place as a +member of the human family.</p> + +<p>The fossil remains of the ape man were discovered +in 1891 by a Dutch army surgeon. Dr. Eugen Du +Bois made the discovery on the Bengawan River in +central Java where he had been excavating in the +hope of finding pre-human fossils. He actually did +find a number of mammalian bones, including a single +upper molar tooth, which he regarded as those of a +new species of ape. On carefully clearing away the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_57">[Pg 57]</span>rock and gravel at this site on the bank of the river, +the top of a skull came to view about a yard from the +spot where the tooth had been found. Further excavation +brought to light a second molar tooth and a left +thigh bone. Both of these were about fifteen yards +from the place where the skull had been discovered. +These scattered parts were carefully studied by Du +Bois, who, in 1894, published a description of a new +animal—<i>Pithecanthropus erectus</i> (<i>Pithecus</i>, ape; <i>Anthropus</i>, +man). The entire term was meant to signify +an upright standing ape man. The word “<i>erectus</i>” +refers to the thigh bone concerning which Du Bois +observes:</p> + +<blockquote> +<p>We must therefore conclude that the femur [thigh bone] +of <i>pithecanthropus</i> was designed for the same mechanical functions +as that of man; the two articulations [upper and lower joint +surfaces] and the mechanical axis correspond so exactly to the +same parts in man that the law of perfect harmony between +form and function of a bone will necessitate the conclusion that +this fossil creature had the same upright posture as man, and +likewise walked on two legs.... From this it necessarily follows +that the creature had the free use of the upper extremities—now +superfluous for walking—and that these last [the arms and +hands] were no doubt already far advanced in the line of differentiation, +which developed them in mankind into tools and +organs of touch.... From a study of the femur and the skull, +it follows with certainty that this fossil cannot be classified as a +simian ... and as with the skull so with the femur the differences +that separate <i>pithecanthropus</i> from man are less than those distinguishing +it from the highest anthropoid [great ape].... +Although far advanced in the course of differentiation this +Pleistocene [Age of Man] form had not yet attained to the human +type. <i>Pithecanthropus erectus</i> is the transition form between +man and the anthropoids which the laws of evolution teach +us must have existed; he is the ancestor of man.</p> +</blockquote> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_58">[Pg 58]</span></p> + +<p>More extended study of the brain of this ancient +fossil creature shows that he was in reality human. +This man did, however, retain so much that was ape-like +in his make-up that it is difficult to agree with +Du Bois in his view that <i>pithecanthropus</i> was a direct +human ancestor. He was, of course, able to walk +upon both feet much like his modern successors. +It also seems probable that in stature this primitive +man was not greatly inferior to the human races of the +present. It is likely that he employed his hands in the +use of weapons and certain crude implements. It +also seems probable that he depended upon very +primitive means for protecting himself against the +numerous enemies that beset his path and lay in wait +about his camping places. His time doubtless was +fully taken up by the arduous task of gaining sustenance +for himself. So busy was he in these obligatory +pursuits that he had little opportunity for developing +industries or cultural activities. This human creature +with his ape-like appearance was closely related to +many beast-like contemporaries in the animal kingdom. +He managed to hold his position among them +only by a narrow margin of superiority. His ascendancy +was derived from a dawning ingenuity, which +enabled him to equalize the struggle by the cunning +of his hand. He took advantage of primitive shrewdness +and contrivance to outwit his natural antagonists +that far excelled him in power and speed.</p> + +<p>However manlike <i>pithecanthropus</i> may have been +in respect to the posture of his body and the general +character of his locomotion, it is certain that he was +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_59">[Pg 59]</span>much below any of the known races of man in his +brain power. His face and head each bore a closer +resemblance to the ape than to man. His brain indicates +that he had probably acquired some mode of +speech, primitive no doubt, yet sufficient for the +purposes of simple human communication. It is likewise +probable that he lived in tribes and, being gregarious, +had learned some of the advantages accruing +from community life. He may have had some crude +notion at least of the division of labour and its compensations +in sharing the results.</p> + + +<h3 id="Dawn_Man_of_England"> + <i>Dawn Man of England</i> +</h3> + +<p>From certain flints, which seem to have many +features indicating their use as instruments, Professor +Osborn believes that there were primitive men living +in England at a time earlier even than that assigned +to the ape man of Java. These prehistoric people are +called “Subcrag Dawn men.” It is his opinion that +they made use of certain flint instruments called +“rostro-carinates.” Dr. Osborn, believing that these +primitive people are close to the beginning of the +human race, places their origin in the Pliocene, +1,300,000 years ago. In consequence of the discovery +of certain somewhat different flint instruments, he is of +the opinion also that the Subcrag men were followed +at a little later period by the Foxhall Dawn men +(antiquity about 1,200,000 years). Disputes about +these early prehistoric Englishmen arise from the +fact that no actual human remains of them have +yet been found. This, fortunately, is not the case +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_60">[Pg 60]</span>with the now famous English Dawn man of Piltdown, +attributed by Professor Osborn and other authorities +to the last part of the Pliocene (a little over a million +years ago). Piltdown is a town in the weald of Sussex +not many miles from the English Channel, between +two branches of the Ouse River. To the east of it is +the plateau of Kent upon which have been found +many flints of earliest prehistoric times. It was at +Piltdown that the most famous of English Dawn men +was discovered by Mr. Charles Dawson. The fossilized +remnants consisted of a number of fragments of this +extinct man’s skull. Because of the fragmentary condition +of this fossil, it was necessary to give each piece +its proper relation to the head in order to reconstruct +the skull. A reconstruction of the Piltdown skull was +first presented to the Geological Society of London, +in December, 1912, by Sir A. Smith-Woodward of +the British Museum, and its discoverer, Mr. Charles +Dawson. The announcement of this remarkable discovery +deeply stirred the interest of scientific circles. +An unknown phase of the early human existence was +about to be revealed. The reconstructed skull as pieced +together impressed all who saw it as a strange blend +of ape and man. It seemed that the missing link for +which the early followers of Darwin had ardently +searched was at length forthcoming. But whether this +was the long sought-for missing link or not, the +Piltdown strata in Sussex told of a race of human +beings who inhabited England long before history +had made its feeblest beginnings. Dr. Smith-Woodward +believed that the Piltdown fossil dated back to +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_61">[Pg 61]</span>the early part of the Pleistocene period, but Sir +Arthur Keith and Professor Osborn now advocate +an antiquity far more remote going back to some +portion of the Pliocene. Although it is impossible to +be more exact in these estimations of prehistoric +time, it is clear that a very primitive race of men +lived in England long before Cæsar’s invasions; in +fact, ages before the ancient Britons claimed the +land that was to produce many of the most brilliant +lights of history. By some the Piltdown man is regarded +as the direct ancestor of modern races; by +others he is held to be an independent branch of the +human family of quite unknown affiliations.</p> + + +<h3 id="Neanderthal_Man"> + <i>Neanderthal Man</i> +</h3> + +<p>Some time early in the Pleistocene, variously estimated +from 800,000 to 900,000 years ago, another +race of man made its appearance in Europe. This was +the Heidelberg race (<i>Homo Heidelbergensis</i>). These +people manifested many traits distinctly more human +than the ape man. It is believed from the implements +found in the neighbourhood of his fossil remains +that the Heidelberg man made use of crude implements +both of wood and stone. This man, although he +became extinct before human progress had made +great advances, appears to have been the ancestor +of the Neanderthal race (<i>Homo Neanderthalensis</i>). +This latter is the third race of prehistoric men recognized +up to the present time. Much more than all +others who had gone before him, Neanderthal man +has left traces of himself. Many of these relics are +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_62">[Pg 62]</span>the stone implements that he employed. From these +implements it is evident that the organization of his +life had made long strides in the direction of his more +modern successors. His advances in industry and in +cultural development laid the foundation for all the +stages that progressively evolved as the human race +rose through the Old Stone Age. Yet the fate of +Neanderthal man was not unlike that of other prehistoric +men. In time he also became extinct. His +disappearance occurred about fifty thousand years +ago, when a fourth and even greater race of primitive +men came into Europe. These were the Cromagnons. +After they had completely replaced the Neanderthals +they flourished for a long time, in the end to be replaced +by the races of Neolithic men which continued +dominant up to the time when man gained mastery +over the metals.</p> + +<p>It seems clear, then, that the earliest human beings +began as simple, nomadic hunters. After the +passage of great intervals of time and an actual succession +of races, men acquired the crude essentials +of manufacture and then gradually, as in the Cromagnon +period, developed the dexterity and æsthetic +sense of the artist. Finally, in the New Stone Age, +they learned the practices of agriculture.</p> + +<p>The past of prehistoric man has been subdivided +into periods characterized by the presence of implements +employed in his several activities. In general, +these periods bear the name of French stations or +towns near which the discoveries of the implements +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_63">[Pg 63]</span>have been made. French archæologists have so successfully +devoted themselves to the efforts of classifying +the flint implements that they have established +a chronological order in the development of human +progress during the long periods of man’s prehistoric +existence.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Old_Stone_Age"> + <i>The Old Stone Age</i> +</h3> + +<p>Man’s first great epoch on earth was the Old Stone +Age (Paleolithic, 900,000 years ago). In this era, +which began at some time in the first interglacial +period, the only implements were devised from flint +or stones of other kind, from wood, carved ivory, and +bone. The Old Stone Age was followed by the Neolithic +(New Stone Age), which began in postglacial +times and rapidly led up to the thresholds of history, +through the Bronze and Iron ages.</p> + +<p>Long before the Old Stone Age it is probable that +man was at work in the slow development of industries +that later were to assume great importance. +Hunting was the great incentive out of which all of +his early industries were evolved. Little is known of +his cultural development, although it seems fairly +clear that the Subcrag Dawn men used certain implements +called rostro-carinates, while the Dawn +men of Foxhall and Piltdown employed very primitive +implements known as eoliths. These were so +crude in appearance that they are looked upon by +many as merely accidental forms. With such simple +and limited instruments, man’s struggle for existence +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_64">[Pg 64]</span>in these earliest days must have been most severe. +Even at the time when the Old Stone Age began, +the primitive flint implements manifested considerable +development. For example, in the Pre-Chellean +cultural stage (beginning 700,000 years ago), the +chase is represented almost exclusively by a simple +flint knife. This knife, although extremely crude, in +conjunction with other equally crude combinations +of stone and stick, gave man a slight balance of power +over other animals inhabiting the field and forest as +his competitors. His simple equipment furnished +the means to gain his daily food, and to establish that +footing by which he rose step by step.</p> + +<p>War in this period was not among man’s highly +organized pastimes. He appears to have had no implements +for warlike pursuits. He had, however, invented +certain instruments for industrial and domestic +purposes, such as a flint scraper, a planing tool, +a drill, and a stone hammer. Nothing among his +primitive equipments appears to have answered the +purposes of art or artistic production.</p> + +<p>In this early Pre-Chellean period, man was a vagrant +hunter. He lived without the protection of +habitation and was thus exposed to the devastations +of the great meat-eating animals that followed his +wanderings. He had not acquired sufficient constructive +ingenuity to protect himself against these dreaded +marauders. They stalked him in his marches by day +and lay in wait on the outer edges of his camps to +find him an easy prey when he slept at night. The +less fortunate members of his tribes were within easy +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_65">[Pg 65]</span>reach of these night prowlers that waited only for +darkness to help them in the capture of their human +quarry. Man’s slow imagination required ages to +show him that he held in his own hands the power to +subjugate the beasts of prey. For a long time he +struggled on this low level of intelligence. He lived a +hand-to-mouth existence, passing his days like other +animals, getting his food supply as he dared, and protecting +himself as best he could. Doubtless some +critical occurrence like the discovery of fire and its +uses may have furnished a new incentive for his advance. +Some great change in climate with increasing +cold may have stimulated him to more vigorous +exertion, may have forced him to become a more persistent +hunter of animals, both for their meat and the +warmth to be had from their protecting skins. Long +winter seasons when game was scarce may also have +taught the wisdom of storing his supply of provisions +and thus aroused in his imagination some conception +of the advantages in thought for the future. Living +along with him was an imposing host of other mammals. +Among them were the lion, the wolf, the cave +bear, the deer, and the wild boar. Over the plains +roamed the Etruscan rhinoceros, the Mosbach horse, +and the ancient elephant. Following this game he +wandered from station to station, always living near +the course of the great rivers, but showing little +tendency to establish a permanent abode. A restless +migrant, he was moved by the dictates of the seasons +almost as instinctively as the migratory birds and +beasts. He had not learned the secrets which later +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_66">[Pg 66]</span>enabled him to stand against the severe vicissitudes +of climate. The idea which gave him that self-assurance +to stake out his own claim, to assert his right +to his own angle of earth, was still in embryonic +state.</p> + + +<h3 id="Neanderthal_Progress"> + <i>Neanderthal Progress</i> +</h3> + +<p>The foundations of that possessive sense destined +to become the chief characteristic of the human race +and at length the ruling passion of humanity had as +yet been laid down only in their simplest form. It was +Neanderthal man who introduced the first real advances +over this primitive level of life. In the Chellean +cultural period (500,000 years ago), even more in +the Acheulean period (400,000 years ago), his race +developed rapidly. His progress is shown by a great +increase and considerable refinement in all of the small +implements which he employed.</p> + +<p>He now developed a chisel or adze-like tool for +shaping his wooden implements. He made flint points +to form darts and spear heads to aid him in the chase. +But for all these advances, it was not until Neanderthal +man passed into his wonderful Mousterian stage +of culture, about 300,000 years ago, that the human +race took a most decisive step forward. This step was +in every sense critical and epoch-making. It may also +be looked upon as a highly profitable step. The effects +of it have made themselves felt with increasing force +upon all the subsequent development of the human +race. It was a new departure that, taken so long ago, +actually led the Neanderthal man to the threshold of +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_67">[Pg 67]</span>an idea in many ways quite original. Ultimately the +expansion of this idea was to become one of the keystones +of all social organization. It may indeed be regarded +as the fundamental principle in the upbuilding +of human society. This notable step forward gave +the Mousterian man the first real conception of +property holding. It implanted in his mind that germ +out of which grew the rights of possession. This was +an idea which was handed down by him as an heirloom +to all the remainder of his race, and to all other +races of mankind. The conception of property holding +developed from the fact that the Neanderthal man +in Mousterian times became a cave dweller. He sought +shelter from the elements in these rude dwellings +fashioned by nature. Why he had not availed himself +of these shelters long before is not difficult to understand. +The caves which he might have found to his +liking were already inhabited by dangerous tenants, +such as the cave lion, the leopard, the hyena, the +wolf, the great cave bear, and perhaps even the dread +Machærodus or sabre-toothed tiger. All of these were +his natural enemies. For the most part they had been +successful enemies. Man had scarcely dared to dispute +the right of way with them, far less the right of possession. +Through all his long periods of upward progress, +he had not yet learned the means by which he +could contend with these beasts of prey on anything +like an equal footing. They took from him at will and +his retaliation at best was feeble. They, rather than +he, were the real masters of the situation. This state +of affairs was bound to continue until some critical +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_68">[Pg 68]</span>discovery revealed a new instrument whose deadliness +placed in human hands a supremacy over these +creatures. Some strategy, some modification of the +old flint instruments, perhaps some new combination +of them with fire, at length gave Neanderthal man +the needed advantage and then he drove the hostile +beasts out of the caves. In time he established there +his own dwelling places, and there proclaimed his inalienable +right of possession. Such a hazardous undertaking +undoubtedly required a hardy courage and an +unwavering persistency. Yet a hard-fought contest +of this kind could not fail to have a marked influence +on the final outcome. Once man had gained the right +of ownership, all of the struggles incident to it served +to emphasize his final sense of possession. This triumph +did much to stimulate human desire for gain. +It seems fairly clear that from it arose the incentives +of conquest. Since Mousterian times man has expended +much of his energy in exploiting this new advantage. +He has made laws to justify and regulate it. +The rights of possession have had a dominating influence +over all of his economic and political organizations. +Most of his moral code has been built up +around these rights. States and empires have been +founded upon them, while the governing principle +in the life of the individual has been the right to have +and to hold. In a word, this newly expanded sense of +possession started by Neanderthal man has become +an essential element in all the achievements of mankind. +It has no less been the cause of much woe and +maladjustment in the race.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_69">[Pg 69]</span></p> + + +<h3 id="Mousterian_Success_and_Character"> + <i>Mousterian Success and Character</i> +</h3> + +<p>It is difficult to estimate the importance of this +contribution to the development of human progress. +We may at least give Mousterian man due credit for +establishing this new assertiveness. He likewise deserves +recognition because this achievement was an +outstanding milestone on the road toward higher +humanity. For this reason it is worthy of a special +commemorative date. As chronicled by Professor +Osborn, this memorable occurrence, the beginning of +cave dwelling, took place about 300,000 years ago. +In more senses than one it was a red-letter day for +humanity. It was especially a red-letter day because +of the recurring bloodshed of innumerable wars destined +to arise out of the lust and greed inspired by +this expanded sense of possession. This, however, is +the most unfavourable aspect of the Mousterian’s new +idea. He himself should not be made to appear too +black on this score. He was actually a considerable +personage and introduced many other new ways of +looking at life that have been highly advantageous to +us all.</p> + +<p>Living in dark caves as he did, especially in the +long bleak winters, as the glacial periods crept down +upon him, he must have found much of mystery in +those dim recesses to stimulate his imagination. It is +probable that he became a believer in occult forces +of nature, and perhaps even developed a system of +magic. These suppositions become more probable from +the fact that he, for the first time in human experience, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_70">[Pg 70]</span>established the custom of burying the dead. +The men who lived before him belonged to what may +be called the pre-burial period. This fact unquestionably +accounts in part for the scanty human remains +before Mousterian times. The Neanderthal Mousterian +not only buried his dead but he developed an +elaborate burial ceremony. The general nature of this +ceremony is shown by the position of the body and +of the limbs as they were found folded and flexed in +the fossilized remains of these men of the Old Stone +Age. With certain primitive people this is still the +custom. Even in the case of some of the ancient Egyptian +kings many personal belongings were buried with +the dead. Favourite weapons of the chase, useful +implements of one kind or another, ornaments and +other trinkets presumably dear to the departed ones, +have been found with the skeletons in these Neanderthal +sepulchres. Special attention was given to +prevent pressure upon or crushing of the head by +means of placing large flat stones upon either side of +it. There are some indications that even as far back +as the Old Stone Age man, as part of his burial +service, deposited certain articles of food beside the +body of the departed. All of these facts clearly reveal +that as long ago as 300,000 years man had acquired +his first religious ideas. There is every suggestion +about these burial ceremonies that the Mousterian +cave man believed in another life after death. He +appears to have had a strong conviction that the +body was but a temporary container of some intangible +spirit that in its time passed on into another +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_71">[Pg 71]</span>world. It seems probable that he also believed in the +return of the departed spirit to its earthly habitations, +else why did he place food in the sepulchres? In his +crude way of thinking he seems to have had certain +well-fixed ideas of the pursuits and occupations in the +life hereafter. For this reason he left a useful collection +of weapons and other implements close at hand, ready +for the spirit that had left the body. The Mousterian +idea of immortality may have been simple, but there +is no doubt that it existed. Whether there was a belief +in God or not is difficult to discern. It is probable, +however, that the Mousterian, like all other primitive +people, did have some conception of a supreme being, +and that he had thus laid the foundations of religion.</p> + +<p>It is for these reasons that the cave-dwelling Mousterian +man especially deserves our attention. The +features of his face and the character of his body as +reconstructed by scientists make him appear to be a +particularly formidable human being. Everything +about him indicates that he was powerful and aggressive. +In a word, he was a splendid fighting machine +with heavy, protruding lower jaw, low beetling brow, +thick and short neck, long and heavy-muscled arms, +short, powerful legs slightly bent at the knees. He was +a fierce and dangerous antagonist; one, from all we +know of his history, as courageous as he was powerful. +It is probable that in consequence of his cave dwelling +he had begun to live in fairly large organized communities. +Such life as this had many influences upon +his social activities. It developed his use of language. +It stimulated his interest in industries other than +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_72">[Pg 72]</span>those of the chase. It caused expansion in his imagination, +leading to the establishment of racial tradition. +It produced the spirit of individual competition as +well as the pursuits of tribal rivalry. War up to this +time seems to have been limited very largely to individual +encounters. Now for the first time differences +of opinion and controversies between one community +and another were most likely settled by group combat. +Here, therefore, were laid the foundations of war +that was to prove one of the most irresistible and +costly of all human indulgences. The self-assertiveness, +which must have resulted from the cave man’s +realization that he had finally gained the upper hand +in many details over the natural world, caused him to +change his attitude. Instead of being a fugitive, he +now became a conqueror. It was this positive self-feeling +that gave rise to most of his more expansive +ideas. The multiplication of these ideas easily led him +on into the realm of fancy and brought him many +illusory interpretations concerning the workings of +nature.</p> + +<p>During the Mousterian period Neanderthal man +did not make many material changes in the implements +used before his time. In some instances there +was a distinct improvement of the old ideas; in others +there was a distinct decline or even suppression of +some of the most effective instruments. The cave +man’s aims, however, were considerably modified by +his new mode of life. His sheltered existence lessened +his physical powers to resist disease. The making +of clothing from the skins of animals also grew out of +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_73">[Pg 73]</span>this more sheltered type of life. In the end it produced +a people less accustomed to the elements than +those earlier and hardier races that had lived in the +open. The effects of this need for clothing made themselves +felt not only in the industry of producing +garments but quite as much in the production of implements +necessary for such work. Cave dwelling +permitted disease and imperfect hygiene to go their +full length in producing inroads upon this great Mousterian +race. The ravages of infection and contagion +had better opportunity to exert their baneful influences. +These and other insidious factors were secretly +at work. In course of time the Mousterian culture +began to show signs of a steady deterioration. For +some mysterious reason these men of the Old Stone +Age slowly began to lose ground. The prominence +held by the Neanderthal race during lower Palæolithic +times was distinctly on the wane as this period +approached its end.</p> + + +<h3 id="Cromagnon_Ascendancy"> + <i>Cromagnon Ascendancy</i> +</h3> + +<p>Finally a profound change came over the inhabitants +of western Europe. For some as yet unknown +reason the Neanderthal race entirely disappeared +from the earth. Its place, however, was taken by +another and a greater people, the Cromagnons. Without +question this was a replacement of a lower race +by one of much higher development. The Neanderthal +was on a distinctly lower plane than any now +existing human type. The Cromagnon ranks high +among the races of mankind in intellectual attainment +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_74">[Pg 74]</span>and in known capacities for production. He +belongs to the species <i>Homo sapiens</i>, that same species +of man which has made modern history. He held +sway during the last part of the Old Stone Age, appearing +in Europe about fifty thousand years ago. +Like those races which had gone before him, he passed +through many interesting phases of culture and +growth. All of these were characterized by the development +of stone implements, thus making him still a +man of the Old Stone Age. He added many new attainments +as a result of new human capacities. He +stands out particularly as the first artist of mankind, +and sets a mark as one of the most splendid examples +of humanity both for his superb physical appearance +and for his remarkable mental qualities. But he, too, +like all others who preceded him, was destined to decline +and then to disappear.</p> + +<p>The Cromagnon is interesting to us because he was +the probable conqueror of the great Neanderthal race. +What secret power he had to achieve this conquest, +to subdue and destroy these fierce cave dwellers, is +still unknown. It may have been that he brought with +him some new implements for warfare, such as the +bow and arrow, and that he had many other advantages +of this kind. In any event, he showed no +quarter to the Neanderthals, whom he seems to have +destroyed completely. He did not even follow the +custom of many conquerors, of intermarrying with +the women of the conquered race. No generally admitted +sign of Neanderthal features or characters +persists among the race of men after the last Mousterian +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_75">[Pg 75]</span>days. Beyond question it was the increased +brain power of the Cromagnons which gave them +their real advantages. This opinion is based on the +appearance of the large brain case of this race and the +development of the almost modern forehead and forebrain. +In the main, our admiration for the ancient +Cromagnon people depends upon something entirely +different from their powers of conquest. They may +have been great as warriors, but they were far greater +as artists. This is the aspect of their lives that interests +and influences us most.</p> + +<p>The Cromagnons were a race that developed somewhere +in Asia and migrated westward into Europe. +They came in contact with the Neanderthals and +probably destroyed them. They had no ancestral +connections of any kind with this other race. They +possessed a brain capable of more complex ideas, +greater comprehension, more reasoning powers, a +wider, more facile imagination. Still more they were +endowed with a highly artistic sense and were capable +of advanced education. Their society was differentiated +along the line of capacity and talent for work. +Their artistic productions as shown in the mural +decorations of their caves were so excellent as to +place them among the truly great achievements of +mankind. In the pursuits of industry and domestic +life, the Cromagnons added little in the way of innovation. +They adapted and perfected what the +Mousterians had previously used. They did introduce, +however, what no other people had ever employed; +namely, tools and implements for sculpture +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_76">[Pg 76]</span>and engraving. These tools in the main were small +and delicate instruments made of flint. Among these +was a fine drill, an engraver, an etcher, a carving +chisel, a mortar, a hammer stone, and a polisher.</p> + + +<h3 id="Cromagnon_Cultural_Periods"> + <i>Cromagnon Cultural Periods</i> +</h3> + +<p>The Cromagnon, like the Neanderthal, passed +through certain cultural phases. Each of these periods +lasted many thousands of years and each of them +was much longer than the Christian Era. The first +of these cultural steps was the Aurignacian period, in +which the great awakening of artistic enthusiasm +occurred. The peak of artistic devotion, however, +came in the Solutrean period, which was the acme of +achievement in the flint industry. Decline set in +during the next, the Magdalenian period, which +brought the closing stage of Cromagnon culture. And +then in the Azilian period the last survivors of the +greatest race in the Old Stone Age, grown old in their +industries and feeble in their art, saw the setting of the +Cromagnon sun and the passing of their kind into the +darkness. Many changes came about in Cromagnon +industries, due to the influences of trade invasions +and new inventions, but in their art these people +showed one continuous and sustained development.</p> + +<p>The impressive feature about Cromagnon art, +especially in the Aurignacian period, is the absence +of that period of infantilism and crudity almost always +observed in the artistic development of primitive +races. The Cromagnon first reveals his artistic +effort in a state of sturdy youth. His art passed +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_77">[Pg 77]</span>directly into a relatively mature stage. Its treasures +preserved in the art galleries of the ancient caves, +comprising remarkable drawings, sculptures, and +paintings, fully warrant the title of “Palæolithic +Greeks” conferred upon the Cromagnon. Indeed, they +resemble the Greek and Egyptian artists in many +ways. Like them, the Cromagnon resorted to painting +his reliefs whether they were of the bison, the horse, +the deer, or the great mammoths. The relative simplicity +of his technical skill depended upon the employment +of fewest possible lines and boldest of +strokes. To his accuracy of reproduction and his simplicity +of style he imparted a third great quality. +This added artistic element, which has made his art +live in a class well up to the standards of later periods, +was a feeling of motion, particularly of locomotion. +With this he vividly endowed the animals carved +upon the walls of his cavern, upon bone or ivory.</p> + + +<h3 id="Motives_of_Cromagnon_Art"> + <i>Motives of Cromagnon Art</i> +</h3> + +<p>It is clear that the Cromagnons were cave dwellers +like the Neanderthals, but they also depended largely +upon the chase for their living. Why, then, did they +in the dark recesses of their caverns resort to these +remarkable artistic activities? These efforts could +scarcely be meaningless diversions. They must have +been more than pastimes, for hours not devoted to the +hunt or combat. Such arduous pursuits as these +surely had some serious and pertinent object in their +lives. Many explanations have been offered for the +remarkable outburst of artistic enthusiasm in Cromagnon +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_78">[Pg 78]</span>times. The one most generally accepted is +that the art of these people was a part of their hunting +magic. In the history of primitive races it has repeatedly +occurred that drawing and design have a special +significance in the actual maintenance of life. For example, +the Australians draw pictures of animals they +use for food. Sitting on the ground about these pictures, +they perform certain ceremonies which they +believe will insure a plentiful supply of the food they +need. The American Indians are in the habit of carving +images of animals. They also draw the signs +representing rain. In the presence of these emblems +they make incantations and believe that by this +means they will secure abundant harvest and complete +success in their hunting expeditions. Images +and pictures act as a sort of magic talisman by means +of which to exercise an influence over those animals +which serve for food.</p> + +<p>But we do not need to go back into the pre-history +of the Old Stone Age, or to the superstitions of people +still in a primitive stage. Not so long ago the picture +of a man was supposed to represent his spirit, and the +possessor of such a picture could exert a magic power +over his person. Only a few centuries ago learned +judges condemned to death men and women on the +evidence that they possessed images or pictures of +people they were accused of bewitching. Until quite +recently there were certain sorcerers and magicians +in Sicily who for a price would destroy a hated enemy +by the simple executionary method of sticking pins +into a wax image of this undesirable person.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_79">[Pg 79]</span></p> + +<p>It seems to require no further explanation to understand +the pictorial efforts of the Australian natives +and American Indians. Like them, the Cromagnons +drew for the most part the animals which they employed +for food. This may not in all respects be a satisfactory +answer to the question: Why did man of the +Old Stone Age resort to art? It is, however, a good +working theory. It shows a real motive for his efforts +in this direction. To his mind, all of his works of art +assured him some peculiar magical control over the +animal life that was necessary for his living and well-being.</p> + + +<h3 id="Men_of_the_New_Stone_Age"> + <i>Men of the New Stone Age</i> +</h3> + +<p>The fate of the Cromagnon race was no exception +to what had gone before or what would follow many +times thereafter. Race after race, nation after nation, +rose and became master, declined and passed into +final extinction. As the day of Cromagnon ascendancy +waned a new race invaded western Europe. The Old +Stone Age came to its end approximately ten thousand +years ago with the advent of the more vigorous +Neolithic (New Stone Age) man. He developed a +great innovation in manufacturing his implements, +making his instruments better and more useful by +polishing the stone. Neolithic man was far more practical +and thoroughly utilitarian than his predecessors +in the Old Stone Age. He introduced many +economic advantages and substituted the benefits +of applied science for the delusions of magic and sorcery. +The man of the New Stone Age, unlike his +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_80">[Pg 80]</span>Cromagnon predecessor, did not alone pray for his +crops. He tilled the soil and planted seed. Perhaps he +believed in a magic ritual for his hunting expeditions, +but to make his food supply as secure as possible, he +domesticated many animals that he liked to eat. +He was unwilling to depend solely upon hunting +magic and art sorcery. He had discovered the true +magic of agriculture and sought to control nature by +the toil of his hands rather than by mysterious incantations +and pictorial art. As a farmer and a cattle +raiser he required a permanent home, and in consequence +the New Stone Age gave a fresh impulse to +the upbuilding of man’s possessive sense. Neolithic +man became a land holder, and this advance was a +long, provocative step in the direction of modern +humanity. Because of it man had to learn new ways +and means of defending his claim and of asserting his +right. Very quickly this new assertiveness led to the +more sanguinary ages of Bronze and Iron with their +effective equipments for offense and defense. Its +influences finally reached historical times. Ultimately +these more aggressive tendencies created all of the +armed camps that we are pleased to call civilization, +ancient, mediæval, and modern.</p> + +<p>At the close of the New Stone Age all of the direct +ancestors of modern European races were established +in Europe. During the Bronze Age man rapidly +learned those new capacities which enabled him to +make a permanent record of himself, and thus he +entered upon his real historic period. Some authorities +set the beginning of this period only so far back as +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_81">[Pg 81]</span>the beginning of the Egyptian calendar. In round +numbers this is five or six thousand years ago.</p> + +<p>The dawn of history was followed by a procession +of great events which began in the early Egyptian +dynasties. The development of Pharaonic art and +culture, the regal splendours of Babylonia and Chaldea, +the incomparable achievements of Greece and +Rome, followed in rapid succession. Each of these +civilizations in its turn contributed to the development +of the race. Then came the long eclipse of the +Dark Ages in mediæval times, and at length the +brilliant light of the Renaissance, the illuminating +influences of which have been carried forward in that +steady progress of material accomplishments characteristic +of modern times.</p> + +<p>A brief review of man’s progress in his prehistoric +existence shows the following races in his advancement, +known by fossil remains:</p> + +<blockquote> +<ol> +<li>Ape man of Java (<i>Pithecanthropus erectus</i>). Professor Osborn +prefers to consider him the Dawn man of Trinil. +Probable antiquity about one million years. Probably +employed crude stone implements and was a nomadic +hunter. Had a poorly developed human brain; nothing +known of his cultural development. Chief contributions +to human progress: human frontal lobe, human speech, +and a complete erect posture.</li> + +<li>Dawn man of Piltdown, England (<i>Eoanthropus dawsoni</i>). +Antiquity over a million years, probably employed crude +instruments known as eoliths and thus belonged to the +Dawn Stone Age. Had a fairly well-developed human +brain. Was a migrant hunter. Nothing known concerning +his cultural development. Chief contribution to human +progress: further development of the brain.</li> + +<li>Heidelberg man of Germany (<i>Paleoanthropus</i>). Antiquity +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_82">[Pg 82]</span>about 800,000 years. Fairly well-developed human brain +and frontal lobe. Probably employed crude stone implements. +Little known of his cultural phases. Chief contribution +to human progress: first man of the Old Stone Age +and probable progenitor of the Neanderthal race.</li> + +<li>Neanderthal man (<i>Homo primogenius</i>). Probable antiquity +600,000 years. A well-developed human brain and frontal +lobe. Made and improved many flint implements. Hunter +and cave dweller. Had definite cultural periods known as +the Chellean, Acheulean, and Mousterian. Chief contributions +to human progress: established idea of permanent +abode, became dominant over other animals of the earth, +introduced human burial, laid the foundations of religion. +Founder of human assertiveness and supremacy.</li> + +<li>Cromagnon man (<i>Homo sapiens</i>). Probable antiquity 50,000 +years. Well-developed human brain and frontal lobe of +modern type. Hunter and artist, employed somewhat +refined flint implements of the Old Stone Age. Had definite +cultural periods known as the Aurignacian, Solutrean, +Magdalenian, and Azilian. Chief contribution to human +progress: the conqueror of Neanderthal man; the world’s +first great artist. The founder and introducer of art.</li> + +<li>Neolithic man (<i>Homo sapiens</i>). Probable antiquity 10,000 +years. Human brain and frontal lobe of modern type. +Employed polished flint implements of a highly developed +kind. Was a hunter, herdsman, and farmer. Chief contributions +to human progress: introduction of agriculture, +culinary art, domestication of animals; also establishment +of more permanent abode.</li> + +<li>Bronze and Iron Age men (<i>Homo sapiens</i>). Probable antiquity +7,000 years. Human brain and frontal lobe of modern +type. Used implements made of bronze and iron. Chief +contribution to human progress: introduction of the metals +for human utility.</li> +</ol> +</blockquote> + +<p>In addition to these prehistoric races of men, certain +other early members of our family have been +recognized in the latter part of the Pliocene and +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_83">[Pg 83]</span>early part of the Pleistocene. These races include the +Subcrag and the Foxhall Dawn men who appear to +have employed the rostro-carinate flints. Still another +race was the Cromerians, who made and used the +giant flints found embedded in the cliffs of Cromer.</p> + +<p>Prehistoric man is thus gradually emerging from +his long obscurity. His skeletal form is known from +more than 350 specimens of his fossil remains. In +Java, in central Asia, in Rhodesia, central Africa, in +Gibraltar, in the Island of Jersey, in France, in +Germany, in England, in Austria, and in Galilee, +Palestine, these remains have been found.</p> + +<p>All phases of man’s early existence are important +to our modern thought and development. As the +curtain of the past is lifted to reveal the long, prehistoric +vista of human existence, it is possible to sense +the vast distance that man has come since his journey +began. It is also possible to see how he has made his +way and why he has progressed. From its earliest appearance +on earth the race has grown in humanity +as the brain expanded. In man’s first struggles brain +power endowed him with a capacity to develop and +to hand down certain cultural activities. The earliest +instruments that he fashioned gave rise to an uninterrupted +stream of human achievements which has +passed on as the main current of culture and knowledge. +It was this capacity for progressive and racial +learning that distinguished the human brain. Estimated +by his accomplishments, it seems necessary to +assume the existence in man of some special power +different from all other living creatures. This distinguishing +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_84">[Pg 84]</span>endowment is variously called the soul, the +psyche, the spirit of man, or human genius. Its name +may be immaterial, but its source is the secret of our +supremacy. If we acquired this power as the divine +gift of a creative miracle, that is one thing. If we +earned it through a long and tedious process of evolution, +that is even a more promising and an altogether +different thing.</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_85">[Pg 85]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_IV"> + CHAPTER IV + <br> + EDEN OR EVOLUTION + <br> + <span style="font-size: medium;">GENESIS AND THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES</span> + </h2> +</div> + + +<h3 id="Early_Beliefs_in_Creation"><i>Early Beliefs in Creation</i></h3> + +<p>Although we may entirely reject the evidence of +man’s presence on earth long before the dawn of history, +even so there still remains a perplexing question +that must be answered. What was man’s origin? +It is surprising how many people have attempted to +solve this troublesome problem. It seems to be one +of the first questions that primitive man tried to +answer for himself when he began his earliest speculations. +He was naturally anxious to know who made +the land and the water and the sky and all that is in +them. He was especially interested, when he thought +about such things, in deciding how he came to be +what he was himself. And so, from earliest times, beliefs +concerning the beginning of things have sprung +up all over the world. They constitute a mass of +speculation, which is called cosmogony (beliefs or +theories about the creation of the universe). Only a +few races or tribes of mankind have failed to indulge +in speculations leading to such beliefs. Appearing as +they do in the infancy or early life of a race, these +beliefs must be the fruit of the primitive human mind. +In peoples who have failed to progress and have always +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_86">[Pg 86]</span>remained primitive, such beliefs, like many +other traits and customs, continue for generations +almost unchanged. Sometimes they become an important +part of the religion of the race. If they are +looked upon less seriously they form themes for folklore.</p> + +<p>This searching question about man’s origin has +always been present and is, in fact, still with us. In +times gone by, when man was primitive, or at least +more primitive than he is to-day, he tried to answer +the question as best he could. He was hampered by +lack of facts because his knowledge and understanding +of his own surroundings were limited. His racial +experience in the world had yet been too brief for +him to do more than see the great generalities of +nature. At best he could merely surmise the truth +of the universe. He had neither the training, the +methods, nor the instruments necessary to disclose +the intimate details upon which reasonable theories +might be based. Being so largely destitute of facts, he +relied upon intuition or drew heavily upon his imagination. +It is a matter of wonder that his beliefs often +took such noble form.</p> + +<p>Not infrequently a common central theme runs +through the beliefs of primitive people, even though +they may belong to different races and are separated +from each other by long distances. Such, for example, +is the belief in the manlike appearance of the Supreme +Being held by the Hebrews, Greeks, Romans, and +many other ancient civilizations. Early ideas concerning +<i>creation</i> illustrate this common or central theme +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_87">[Pg 87]</span>still more vividly. Doubtless the conception of creation +has its supreme expression in the opening chapters +of Genesis in the Hebrew Testament. But other +primitive people had exactly the same ideas about +creation and the origin of man. This way of solving +the problem must have been one of the inherent +tendencies of the human mind in its earliest beginnings. +Isolated peoples in far-distant parts of the +earth could not have shared such similar ideas as a +result of racial contacts or propinquity. Time and +distance set them widely apart. The similarity might +be ascribed to traditions handed down from a common +stock. In any event, an identical theme runs +through the creation story of many different peoples. +The most effective record of this theme is given in +Genesis, especially in the first chapter, the King +James version of which is accepted by many as the +highest literary mark ever set by the English language. +It is of particular interest for us to follow the +sequence of events in this incomparable chapter which +depicts creation with such grandeur that it may well +be called inspired.</p> + + +<h3 id="Early_Accounts_of_Creation"> + <i>Early Accounts of Creation</i> +</h3> + +<p>According to this record, creation proceeded as a +succession of separate miracles. First came the miracle +creating heaven and earth, then the creation of +light, of the firmament, of the earth set apart from +the waters, of vegetation upon the earth, of the sun, +moon, and stars, of fish and fowl, of beasts and cattle +and all creeping things, of man and woman together +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_88">[Pg 88]</span>in the image and likeness of the Creator. The second +chapter of Genesis repeats the story of creation, but +this time in a minor key, with certain striking differences +and discrepancies. The grandeur of the original +description and its sublime intuition are missing. The +master mind which conceived it has obviously been +replaced by one at once much more naïve and manifesting +a thoroughly parochial interest in the affairs +and frailties of humankind. This second narration +largely reverses the original order given to creation. +By it man is created before all other animals and +woman last of all. This account produces man from the +dust of the ground, into which the Creator breathes +the breath of life and gives him a living soul, while +the rib taken from man is used to create woman. The +discrepancies in the two accounts are obvious at +once. To explain them the second chapter is attributed +to a very early writer (Jehovistic document). The +first chapter is ascribed to a much later writing +(Priestly document) made during the Hebrew captivity +in Egypt.</p> + +<p>Earlier than this Biblical record was the Babylonian +idea of creation. These people also conceived that +man was molded out of clay. According to the Babylonian +version of creation, the god Bel cut off his own +head, and the other gods, catching the flowing blood, +mixed it with the dust of the earth, and from this +bloody paste molded the forms of men. The Babylonians +believed that men were wise because their +mortal clay was thus tempered with divine blood. +According to the Egyptians, the father of the gods +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_89">[Pg 89]</span>molded men out of clay on his potter’s wheel. A Greek +explanation of man’s origin contains the same idea, +in that Prometheus is said to have molded the first +men out of clay at Panopeus in Phocis. These naïve +conceptions about the origin of mankind, common to +the Hebrew, the Babylonian, the Egyptian, and the +Greek, were doubtless handed down to these ancient +civilized people by their savage or barbarous forefathers. +Legends of creation of exactly this kind are +current among savages and barbarians of the present +day. It is particularly interesting to note the different +forms in which this story has made its appearance in +many distant places of the earth.</p> + + +<h3 id="Creation_Beliefs_of_Barbarous_People"> + <i>Creation Beliefs of Barbarous People</i> +</h3> + +<p>The Australian blacks, near Melbourne, held that +the Creator cut large sheets of bark with his big knife. +He placed on one of these a mass of clay and prepared +it with his knife until it had the proper consistency. +Then he set a portion of the clay on another piece of +bark and fashioned it in human form, making first +the legs and then the trunk and arms and finally the +head. Having finished his molding, he took stringy +bark from the eucalyptus tree, made hair of it, and +attached it to the heads of his models. When all was +finished he blew his breath into the mouths and noses +and navels of these clay men until they rose and +spoke as full-grown human beings.</p> + +<p>In New Zealand the Maoris believed that a certain +god took red riverside clay, kneaded it with his own +blood into a likeness of himself, with eyes, legs, and +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_90">[Pg 90]</span>arms exactly similar to his own. When this model +was finished he breathed into it the breath of life +through its mouth and nostrils, with the result that +the clay man at once came to life and sneezed.</p> + +<p>Among the Tahiti there is a tradition that the first +man and woman were made by the chief god, who +created them out of red earth. In Netherland Island, +one of the Ellice Islands, a great deity is supposed +to have made models of man and woman out of the +earth and brought them to life by lifting them up. +Similar in general conception is the tradition of creation +among the Pelew Islanders who believe that +certain of their deities made man and woman out of +clay by kneading it with the blood of various animals. +This feature is a new detail and somewhat of a +departure from the general story. It shows, moreover, +the interest which these primitive people had in explaining +the different behaviour of their fellow men. +Thus they believed that the characters of these first +men as well as their descendants were due to the +characteristic traits of the animal whose blood was +mingled with the clay. Men, for instance, who had +rats’ blood in their clay were thieves. Those who had +serpents’ blood were sneaks and informers. Those +who were vitalized by cocks’ blood were brave and +daring.</p> + +<p>According to a Melanesian legend in one of the +Banks Islands, the great hero Qat molded men from +red clay taken from the marshy riverside. At first +he made men and pigs to appear alike, but subsequently +he forced the pigs to go upon all fours and +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_91">[Pg 91]</span>caused men to walk upright. This distinction indicates +man’s early recognition of the subtle meanings +of the erect posture. Qat also constructed a female out +of flexible twigs. Finally she smiled at him, and by +this unfailing sign of feminine allurement he immediately +recognized her as the first woman.</p> + +<p>Inhabitants of the Kei Islands believe that their +ancestors were fashioned out of clay by the supreme +god who breathed the breath of life into the clay +models. The Dyaks of British Borneo claim that the +first man was made by two birds. After several failures +in attempting to hew him out of rock they at +length molded him out of damp clay and infused into +his veins the red gum of the Kumpang tree. When +they called him he answered, and they gave him a +name which in the Dyak tongue means “molded +earth.”</p> + +<p>In India also the same kind of legend explains +man’s origin. The Kumis who inhabit the hill tracts +in eastern India believe that a powerful god made the +world and the trees and the creeping things first. +After this he made a man and a woman, shaping +their bodies from clay. When he had finished his work +a great snake came while the god was sleeping and +devoured the two images. This occurred several times, +so that the deity was much perplexed. Feeling that +after his day’s work he needed a good night’s sleep, +it was impossible for him to sit up to protect his handiwork. +At length he conceived the plan of making a +dog out of clay before he created his next models of +man and woman. This device solved the problem in a +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_92">[Pg 92]</span>satisfactory manner. The god was now able to sleep +in peace after his hard work of modelling human +beings, since the dog, watching over them, would +bark and frighten away the destructive serpent. To +this day the Kumis believe this is the reason why dogs +howl when a man is dying.</p> + +<p>Africa has similar legends about the creation of +mankind. Many of the natives on the White Nile +believe that men were modelled out of clay. They +even go so far as to explain the different complexions +of various races by the differently coloured clay out of +which they are molded. Their great creator, wandering +about the world, found pure white earth or sand +and from this he fashioned the white man. Returning +to Egypt he molded red and brown men from the +mud of the Nile. Finally, coming upon black earth +far in the depths of Africa, he created black men.</p> + +<p>The story of man’s creation out of clay also occurs +in America among the Eskimos and the Indians from +Alaska to Paraguay. Many of the Eskimos have +the belief that a certain spirit made a man of clay. +Then having set him upon the shore to dry he +breathed into him and gave him life. Certain Indians +of California conceive of an all-powerful being who +created man out of a deposit of clay which he found +on the shores of a lake. From this clay he made both +male and female, and the Indians of the present day +are descended from this original clay man and woman.</p> + +<p>The Mayas in Central America believe that their +gods first made men out of clay, but that these clay +models lacked vitality because they were dissolved +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_93">[Pg 93]</span>by water. Then the gods created man out of the wood +of one tree and the woman from the sap of another. +Unfortunately these human beings could neither +move nor propagate their kind, and for this reason +the gods caused a shower of pitch to produce a flood, +which destroyed this wooden race. A few of them +survived, however, and from them are descended the +small monkeys. The Maya gods at last created four +perfect men out of yellow and white maize, and, wishing +to confer the greatest boon, while these four perfect +beings slept, four women were created for them.</p> + + +<h3 id="Primitive_Ideas_Foreshadowing_Evolution"> + <i>Primitive Ideas Foreshadowing Evolution</i> +</h3> + +<p>It is interesting also to find that all savage people +did not believe in the legend that ascribed the origin +of man to clay models or to effigies made by some +supreme being. Many primitive races appear to have +preferred the theory of evolution to this other idea +of creation. In any event, even if they did not fully +recognize the nature of their belief, their idea was +that man evolved from some lower form of animal +life. The particular form of animal from which this +evolution started varied considerably with the local +colour, with the character and with the opportunities +of different people.</p> + +<p>Some California Indians believe that they are +descended from coyotes. In their early stages of +evolution all members of their tribe walked on all +fours. Slowly they acquired some of the features of +human beings, one toe or one finger at a time. Then +came an eye or an ear, until at length these animals +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_94">[Pg 94]</span>grew to be perfect human beings by losing their tails. +This loss, which was regarded as deplorable, came +from the habit of sitting upright.</p> + +<p>The Iroquois, belonging to one important clan, +hold that they are the descendants of mud turtles +that formerly inhabited a certain large pool in their +territories. The Choctaw Indians believe that they +were descended from crayfish, while throughout the +Osage Indians it is generally understood that their +ancestors were a male snail and a female beaver. A +great flood carried the snail down the Missouri River, +leaving him upon a bank, where the sun ripened him +into a man. In time he met and married a beaver +maid, and these two were the ancestors of the Osages. +The Delaware Indians call the rattlesnake their +grandfather and would on no account destroy one of +these serpents.</p> + +<p>Certain Indians of Peru claim to be descended +from the puma or American lion, and this animal is +worshipped as their god. Some natives of East Africa +look upon the hyena as one of their ancestors. The +death of this animal is mourned by the whole people +with great funereal ceremony. On the Gold Coast of +West Africa certain tribes believe that they were +descended from the horse mackerel.</p> + +<p>Natives of Borneo think that the first man and +woman were born from a tree which had become +fertilized by a creeping vine that waved to and fro +in the wind. Some of the primitive inhabitants in the +northeastern extremity of Celebes believe that they +are descended from apes and that the parent stock +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_95">[Pg 95]</span>of these animals still inhabits the woods. The aborigines +of western Australia considered that their ancestors +were swans, ducks, or various other kinds of +water birds, which were later transformed into men.</p> + +<p>All of these illustrations of the creation idea among +primitive people show that man has held at least two +widely different views about his own origin. One of +these is the idea of separate miraculous creation; the +other corresponds to or foreshadows the theory of +evolution. In accordance with the view of separate +creation, a god or a tribal hero was the great creator +who fashioned the first members of the race in their +present form. According to the other view, man +was evolved from lower forms of animals, or even +from vegetable life. These two viewpoints of man’s +origin still divide the peoples of the world. It is probably +true, as Sir James Frazer has said, that “by +weighing one consensus against the other, with +Genesis in the one scale and the Origin of Species in +the other, it might be found, when the scales were +finally trimmed, that the balance hung even between +creation and evolution.”</p> + +<p>The development of the evolutionary theory among +civilized people has a long history. This theory has +already passed through many interesting phases. +Doubtless other equally interesting phases lie before +it. At present there are many who still believe that +Darwin was the originator of the evolutionary idea. +This belief is in no sense true. The origin of the doctrine +long antedates Darwin’s time. It may be traced +back to the age when the human race first began to +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_96">[Pg 96]</span>think clearly. Like many other things of high cultural +value, it had its earliest recognizable beginnings +in the Greek period—in those days when man sought +to gain an intelligent understanding of himself and +the world in which he lived.</p> + + +<h3 id="Growth_of_the_Evolutionary_Theory"> + <i>Growth of the Evolutionary Theory</i> +</h3> + +<p>The basic conception of evolution is as old as +Empedocles (450 <span class="allsmcap">B. C.</span>). Aristotle (384-322 <span class="allsmcap">B. C.</span>) +was the originator of the theory of animal descent, +which he formulated with remarkable clearness. A +strong inhibiting influence fell upon this conception +of life as a result of mediæval scholasticism. This +influence restrained further developments until the +subject was again reopened in the Eighteenth Century. +The works of Leibnitz and Buffon (1707-1788) +reawakened interest in this problem. Modern constructive +efforts to formulate the theory of evolution +did not begin, however, until the early Nineteenth +Century. By a strange coincidence, the real founding +of this theory occurred in the year of Darwin’s birth, +1809. Up to this time, with few exceptions, it was +thought that man’s body was the result of special +creation. Some savage people, as we have seen, have +believed that man was derived from lower animals. +But this belief was only a fantastic forerunner of the +evolutionary concept. The birthplace of the theory +was in Paris. It may appear strange that such a doctrine +did not originate in the great schools of learning, +and that it first saw the light in the quiet, out-of-the-way +location of the Museum of Natural History. The +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_97">[Pg 97]</span>names of three scientific immortals are associated +with this revolutionary conception of the animal +kingdom. All three of these distinguished men lived +at the same time, worked together at the same place, +and together profoundly influenced our modern +views of man’s place in nature.</p> + +<p>The most noted of this famous trio in his own day +was Cuvier (1769-1832). He was a professor of comparative +anatomy and though only forty years of +age was accumulating the material for his epoch-making +work, <i>Ossements Fossiles</i>. This work was to +show conclusively that the great ages of time, filled +with multitudes of strange, extinct animals, had +passed over the earth before the dawn of our modern +era. Cuvier believed that each group of these extinct +animals represented a series of separate creations. It +was doubtless his energetic and brilliant insistence +upon this point that denied to the French nation the +first place of distinction in advancing the theory of +evolution. Although he held vigorously to the old +creative interpretation of life, Cuvier was in a sense +an unconscious promoter of the evolutionary idea. +His recognition of a succession of epochs in the earth’s +history and in the animal inhabitants of the globe +was an important step toward the modern theory. +Besides this, his keen powers of observation had enabled +him to discern one of the chief principles underlying +evolution. This principle is known as the law +of “correlation of parts.” In consequence of this law +there is a definite relation of one part of the body to +another, as well as a combination of these parts in the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_98">[Pg 98]</span>habits of the animal. Thus, horns belong with hoofs, +and hoofs are associated with complicated grinding +teeth, which latter in their turn are possessed by +animals having complex stomachs and feeding on +plants.</p> + +<p>The second great pioneer in the discovery of life’s +true origin was somewhat younger than Cuvier. This +was Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire. He was intent upon seeking +the common plan upon which all animals with +backbones were built. In this way he was laying the +foundations of that broad conception of life which +holds that all living things have a common descent.</p> + +<p>The third of these great French contemporaries +was more obscure than either of his associates in the +Museum. In his own period the public heard and +knew little of him. He was a retiring person, but an +indefatigable student. As time passes it is he who +stands as the towering figure of this famous trio. In +1809, when he was already sixty-five years of age, he +made his remarkable contribution to knowledge. +His careful studies of nearly fifty years were then +published in two small volumes entitled <i>Philosophie +Zoologique</i>. This was a milestone in human progress. +In consequence of this work alone the name of Jean +Baptiste Pierre Lamarck will stand as one of the most +eminent figures of science. From his long and laborious +researches he had reached the conclusion that all +living creatures were the outgrowth of a common +tree of life. In this treatise of his there appears the +first clear declaration that man has been evolved +from some anthropoid ancestor like the chimpanzee, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_99">[Pg 99]</span>and that man’s erect posture has been derived from +one which was ape-like.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Lamarckian_and_Darwinian_Theories"> + <i>The Lamarckian and Darwinian Theories</i> +</h3> + +<p>The Lamarckian theory of evolution holds that +progress takes place by the imperceptible transformation +of one species into another through the efforts +of the organism to adapt itself to new conditions. It +also maintains that, by inheritance, the changes thus +produced are handed on from one generation to the +next. These changes may be slight, almost insensible +variations produced by the use or disuse of certain +parts and organs. Through their accumulated effects +they are capable of transforming one species into +another. The following quotation from Lamarck’s +<i>Philosophie Zoologique</i> (Vol. 1, p. 349) furnishes some +of the more important details in the concept by which +he explains the evolution of man:</p> + +<blockquote> +<p>Indeed, if any race of primates (quadrumanes) whatsoever, +particularly the more highly evolved of them, were to lose, +either from force of circumstances or any other cause, the +aptitude for tree climbing and of grasping the branches with +their feet, as with their hands, for security of grip, and if the +individuals of this race, for a series of generations, be obliged +to use their feet only in walking, and cease using their hands as +feet; then there is no doubt, from the evidence produced in the +foregoing chapters, that these apes would finally be transformed +into man (bimanes) and that the great toe would no longer be +separated from the other toes like a thumb, the feet merely +serving the purposes of progression.</p> +</blockquote> + +<p>Despite the fact that Lamarck was a pioneer he +did not, in so far as the evolution of man is concerned, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_100">[Pg 100]</span>induce a single anatomist of his own time or of a succeeding +generation to follow in his footsteps. In this +respect his great work remained strangely ineffective. +The more persuasive introduction of the evolutionary +theory was made by an illustrious English naturalist, +Charles Darwin. After a somewhat mediocre university +career, for which he received the degree of Bachelor +of Arts, Darwin devoted himself to the natural +sciences. In his early manhood he spent five years on +the famous barque <i>Beagle</i> in which he made a trip +around the globe. Twenty-three years later (1859) he +published his renowned <i>Origin of Species</i>, which +proved to be one of the most revolutionary books ever +written. In an educational sense, Darwin was far +more fortunate than Lamarck. Almost at once he +obtained the ear of the public and started the theory +of evolution on its strenuous course around the world. +Twelve years later (1871) he published his second +monumental book, <i>The Descent of Man</i>, which proved +to be the most telling step in our modern knowledge +of man’s evolution. These two great books set forth +the Darwinian theory. Like Lamarck, Darwin believed +that progress from lower to higher forms of +animal life took place as a result of insensible variations. +These variations were due to what Darwin and +one of his contemporaries, Alfred Russell Wallace, +called natural selection. This factor was the prime and +sufficient cause of evolution. Through its operations +new species arose by the selective action of external +conditions upon individual variations. Natural selection, +as a law, implies the effects of those forces which +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_101">[Pg 101]</span>separate living creatures into two groups—those +which survive and those which, being ill equipped +to make the struggle for existence, perish. The selective +effects of external conditions on an organism +or its parts operate in such a way that individual +variations or peculiarities of advantage are perpetuated +in the race and thus give rise to the survival of +the fittest. Darwin in his <i>Descent of Man</i> makes clear +his opinion of the manner in which natural selection +has operated in human evolution:</p> + +<blockquote> +<p>As soon as some ancient member (elsewhere defined as some +species of anthropoid like the chimpanzee) in the great series +of the primates came to be less arboreal, owing to a change in +its manner of procuring subsistence, or to a change in the surrounding +conditions, its habitual manner of progression would +have been modified and thus it would be rendered more strictly +quadrupedal or bipedal.... Man alone has become a biped and +we can, I think, partly see how he has come to assume his erect +attitude which forms one of his most conspicuous characters.... +As the progenitors of man became more and more erect and their +hands and arms more and more modified for prehension and +other purposes, with their feet and legs at the same time transformed +for firm support and progression, endless other changes +in structure would have become necessary. The pelvis would +have to be broadened, the spine peculiarly curved, and the head +fixed in an altered position, all which changes have been attained +by man. It is very difficult to decide how far these modifications +are the result of <i>natural selection</i> and how far of the +<i>inherited effects</i> of the increased use of certain parts or of the +action of one part on another. No doubt these means often +coöperate.</p> +</blockquote> + +<p>Comparing the explanations given by Lamarck +and by Darwin it is clear at once that they have much +in common. Both suppose that man was evolved from +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_102">[Pg 102]</span>a chimpanzee-like anthropoid. Both agree that the +transformation had been initiated by a change from +an arboreal to a terrestrial mode of existence. Both +believe that the results of habit or of function acquired +by one generation may be inherited by the +next generation. Darwin made certain important +additions to this theory. He applied the law of natural +selection—the tendency of successful individuals to +survive and prosper. He also recognized the effects of +sexual tendencies and perceived that there was a law +of correlation of parts. By this latter mechanism a +number of structures were modified at the same time +to suit some particular function of the body.</p> + +<p>Since Darwin’s time, although the general principle +involved in the theory of evolution has been accepted +by scientists everywhere, there has been much discussion +concerning specific details of the evolutionary +process. Simultaneously with the conviction that +evolution was a fact in the animal life there arose an +eager desire to discover its underlying causes. Many +students of the problem have arrived at independent +explanations of their own. To some the theory of +Lamarck has been considered satisfactory; to others +Darwin’s interpretation is most convincing. Such +differences of opinion as do exist among those who +have seriously pursued this matter centre primarily +upon the causes of evolution. For this reason a number +of different theories are recognized to-day. It is +probable that these theories do not represent all of the +differing shades of opinion concerning this subject at +present. They may be said, however, to express the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_103">[Pg 103]</span>high points of difference. Their chief interest lies +in the fact that they indicate the degree of energy and +determination devoted to the solution of this problem. +Recent students of the Darwinian theory have modified +and extended it in such a way as to make the law +of natural selection entirely sufficient to explain +evolution. Such students, with Weismann the most +prominent among them, deny the inheritance of +acquired characters. This view is known as the neo-Darwinian +theory.</p> + +<p>Lamarck’s original conception was also modified +and became the basis of the neo-Lamarckian theory. +This view recognized all of Lamarck’s ideas, including +insensible variation, use and disuse of parts, and +hereditary transmission. But it added to these causative +factors certain influences of consciousness and +the will, thus introducing an internal and psychological +principle in the evolutionary process. In +America this newer view of Lamarck’s conception +has been vigorously upheld by many naturalists +(Cope and Hyatt) who attempted to explain evolution +according to the fundamental laws of growth +plus the inherited effects of use and disuse.</p> + +<p>Explanations such as these seem to lose sight of +many influences acting upon animal life from without +and along certain determinate lines. These influences +were highly specific in their character and embraced +definite chemical and physical factors. Their effects +were concentrated upon limited organic areas, such, +for example, as the eye, but they spread to correlated +organs like the brain, the muscles, and the bones, all +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_104">[Pg 104]</span>of which are functionally continuous with the visual +apparatus of vertebrates. Such a spread of modifying +influences from a determinate focus like the eye +throughout the entire body caused a widespread +tendency to variation and thus afforded the opportunity +for progressive development. This explanation +is known as the Orthogenetic Theory (Eimer, 1897).</p> + +<p>Still more recently the pendulum has swung away +from this extremely materialistic viewpoint in what is +called the Creative Theory of Evolution (Henri +Bergson, 1907). According to this explanation the +variations that bring about evolution from lower to +higher forms of life require some good genius to preserve +and collect the effects in the interest of progress. +This presiding genius working from within is the +original impetus of life, the <i>élan vitale</i>, or vital impetus +(entelechy), which like some internal perfecting +agency passes from one generation of germs to the +next and through the developed organism bridges +the interval between generations.</p> + +<p>Philosophy, with its conception of an internal +creative power common to all life and biology, pinning +its faith to physicochemical factors, have vied with +each other in bringing to light the causes of evolution. +Among the latest explanations is the Energy Theory +(Henry Fairfield Osborn, 1918). This interpretation +holds that the life of every animal is due to the action, +reaction, and interaction of four types of energy. The +first type arises from chemical elements and compounds +surrounding the animal (inorganic environment). +The second is the energy derived from the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_105">[Pg 105]</span>body substance of the developing organism (protoplasm +and body chromatin, the chief substance in the +nucleus of body cells). The third source of energy is +from the sex cells, especially those parts of them +which contain the hereditary elements (hereditary +chromatin). The fourth type of energy comes from +the living matter surrounding the animal (life environment). +Selection and adaptation are constantly +at work upon the reactions of these four types of +energy. Divergence in the form of different animals +depends upon adaptations to special conditions of +life as seen, for example, in the whales and the meat-eaters. +Altogether there are twelve major environments +for living, like the plain, the forest, the air, the +sea, which require special adaptations. All life has +tended to radiate out into such habitat zones, and +the four types of energy represented by each living +creature have been adjusted to a particular environment. +This spreading out of life into many different +zones of existence is a recognized principle in natural +selection (law of adaptive radiation. Osborn).</p> + +<p>The most recent interpretation is that offered by +the Emergent Theory of Evolution (C. Lloyd Morgan, +1928). Evolution, according to this explanation, is +the name given to the plan of sequence in all natural +events. Orderly sequence presents from time to time +something genuinely new. In the physical world +emergence is exemplified by the advent of each new +kind of atom, each new kind of molecule, each new +form of life. Emergence is not the mere addition to +or subtraction from existing properties. It is the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_106">[Pg 106]</span>appearance of something new and unpredictable from +the combination of properties already in existence. +A true emergence of this kind is produced by the +combination of carbon and sulphur out of which the +gaseous carbon bisulphide arises. This gas is totally +different from either sulphur or carbon, its two combining +ingredients. It is something genuinely new and +hence an emergent. This principle affects all spheres +of life in such a manner that it is possible for new characters, +new structures, new activities to appear as +emergents from preëxisting elements. Variations and +progressive development may be thus explained as the +result of orderly sequence.</p> + +<p>In spite of the differences in opinion among scientists +concerning the evolutionary process, there is an +almost unanimous agreement with regard to the +correctness of the general theory of evolution and the +principle underlying it. To attempt a critical estimation +of these several theories would be futile and +far removed from our present purpose. Doubtless +each one of them contains some portion of the truth. +It is, however, their large number that is of striking +significance, inasmuch as these theories indicate a +widespread, profound, and growing interest concerning +evolution among intelligent people. Whatever +their minor differences, such theories demonstrate a +determined effort in the search for truth and manifest +tendencies in thinking which cannot fail eventually +to reshape the intellectual outlook of mankind.</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_107">[Pg 107]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_V"> + CHAPTER V + <br> + BIRTHPLACE AND EARLY BEGINNINGS OF MAN + <br> + <span style="font-size: medium;">INFLUENCES OF FOREST AND PLAIN ON + BRAIN DEVELOPMENT</span> + </h2> +</div> + + +<p>The place of man’s origin is a matter of little significance +if he came into being by a creative miracle. Any +one of a hundred natal sites, chosen for reasons of +local pride or racial prestige, might have served the +purpose. Eden undoubtedly was most colourful, but +otherwise it had no exceptional advantages. Once +created and upon his feet, man had the world before +him to conquer and possess. Such was the beginning +and end of his story.</p> + +<p>If, on the other hand, the human race came through +evolution from lower forms of animals, then man’s +homeland is of utmost significance. It must have +exercised a strong influence not only upon his origin +but also upon all his life and progressive development.</p> + + +<h3 id="Africa_Europe_or_Asia"> + <i>Africa, Europe, or Asia</i> +</h3> + +<p>Some students of this subject have regarded Africa +as the most likely birthplace of man. According to +this view the human form first appeared as certain +Nilotic negroes. From this homeland man spread +throughout the world. On the other hand, the accumulating +fossil evidence of man’s existence seems +to be strongly in favour of western Europe as a centre +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_108">[Pg 108]</span>of human dispersal. Professor Osborn points out that +between the years 1823 and 1925 there were discovered +in this part of the world alone no less than +116 individuals belonging to the Old Stone Age or to +the Dawn Stone Age. Two of these were members of +the Piltdown race. Fossils of forty other individuals +belong to the Neanderthal race. Seventy-four are +accredited to the Cromagnon and other races that +lived in late Stone Age times. Remains of 236 individuals +belonging to races that lived between the end +of the Old Stone Age and the beginning of the New +Stone Age were also found. These fossil men, in all +352 individuals, have been discovered within the last +hundred years. During the same period, a little more +than a century, only one human fossil has been found +in the entire continent of Asia, one in the Holy Land, +and two in Africa. Such a great preponderance in +numbers clearly favours Europe as the home of primitive +man. Africa, Asia, and those parts of Oceania +formerly connected with the Asiatic continent, have +borne no such abundant evidence of man’s early +presence. Both the northern and southern continents +of the New World have revealed nothing as yet that +may be accepted as representing man in his early prehistoric +period. This survey of the globe seems to +limit the first appearance of man to European regions. +In this connection it should be borne in mind that the +various countries of Europe have been carefully explored +in the search for early human fossils, while in +other parts of the world the search is little more than +just begun.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_109">[Pg 109]</span></p> + +<p>Northern Asia has also been regarded as likely to +contain the site of man’s birthplace. This has been +the view of certain French authorities who consider +the Eskimos as the most ancient northerly race of +mankind. From this homeland there was a progressive +southward migration of primitive tribes under +the influence of the severe conditions imposed by +northern glaciation. More recently attention is being +directed to central Asia as the birthplace of man. This +locality was suggested long ago by the great American +scientist, Joseph Leidy, and this viewpoint has been +supported by Professor Osborn. Dr. Matthews in +considering the matter of climate and evolution discussed +the origin and migratory history of man. He +believes that Asia was the centre of dispersal for +human migrations, which were among the last of great +migratory movements of animals in the history of the +world. It is his opinion that most scientists to-day +would place this centre in or about the Great Plateau +of central Asia. In this region, now barren and very +sparsely inhabited, are probably the remains of civilizations +more ancient than any yet recorded. Immediately +around this region and lying upon its +borders are the territories of the earliest civilizations +known to man. Chaldea, Asia Minor, and Egypt lie +to the west, India to the south, China to the east. +From this central region came successive migrations, +which overflowed into Europe during prehistoric, +classical, and mediæval times. The history of India +shows that similar invasions poured down upon it +from the north. Toward the east, invasions in successive +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_110">[Pg 110]</span>waves entered the Chinese Empire and North +America by way of Alaska, spreading southward over +the two continents of the New World.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Top_of_the_World"> + <i>The Top of the World</i> +</h3> + +<p>Since his recent visit to Mongolia, Professor Osborn +is strengthened in his conviction that central Asia will +prove the homeland not only of man but of all the +greater forms of mammal life. Here, he believes, in the +Gobi Desert, were the ideal surroundings for the early +development of Dawn men who were the direct ancestors +of the human race. His belief in this part of +the world as the birthplace of man depends upon +certain characters in the terrain which are essential to +racial development, concerning which he reasons as +follows: Man’s earliest existence was mainly in the +open either along river bottoms and river drifts or on +uplands and plateaus. Such a life developed the finest +physical qualities of the race. The earliest man could +not have been a forest-living animal. Such parts of +the human race as lived in forested lands have either +been exceedingly slow in their development or have +gone backward. Thus, the South American Indians, +living in the forests, are much behind those who live +in the open. Of the latter, those who live in the uplands +are further advanced than those who lived in +the river drifts. An alert, progressive race cannot +develop in a forest, and it would be impossible for such +country to serve as the centre of human radiation. +Higher types of men do not develop in a lowland +river bottom country, because food is plentiful and +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_111">[Pg 111]</span>vegetation luxurious. It is upon the plateaus and the +high uplands that life is most exacting and calls for +exertions which are most beneficial for development. +Mongolia was probably a region forested only in part, +certainly not a country of dense forests. It was a most +favourable upland country throughout the entire Age +of Mammals. Here the conditions of life were apparently +ideal, and since all other indications point to +Asia as the place of man’s origin, Professor Osborn +looks to Mongolia and Tibet, which he calls the top +of the world, as the most favourable centre offered by +nature for the birthplace of man. Here he has hopes of +finding our remote human ancestors. He is, however, +guarded in this view, which he feels must be treated +merely as an opinion. It is not yet a theory, but is, +however, an opinion sufficiently sound to warrant +further extensive investigation. In consequence, +several great Asiatic expeditions have been sent out +by the American Museum of Natural History into +the Gobi Desert. Under the leadership of Dr. Roy +Chapman Andrews this exploration was undertaken +in the search for fossil men. One of the explorers, Dr. +Nels C. Nelson, soon made the remarkable discovery +that in the wide expanse of this ancient desert there +had lived, ages ago, certain people whom he called +“dune dwellers of the Gobi.” His discovery included a +great collection of flint implements of the Mousterian +type, closely resembling those found in the cavern of +Le Moustier in France, and thus belonging to the Old +Stone Age. These newly discovered implements reveal +the existence of man at a much earlier period in the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_112">[Pg 112]</span>Gobi Desert than the Mousterian period in Europe. +Indications of an earlier Stone industry were also +found in Mongolia. Some of these ancient implements +show that long ago there were probably men living +in this part of the world who belonged to the Dawn +Stone Age.</p> + +<p>The latest evidence in favour of Asia as the home +of primitive man was supplied by a surprising fossil +discovery made by Turville-Petre (August, 1925). +This new find consists of a skull of Neanderthal type, +discovered in Palestine and known as the “Galilee +skull.” The rapidly accumulating discoveries of the +past three years sustain Professor Osborn’s view that +central Asia is the homeland of the human race. He +concludes that “while the anthropoid apes were +luxuriating in the forest and lowlands of Asia and +Europe, the Dawn men were rising in the invigorating +atmosphere of the relatively dry plateaus of +central Asia.”</p> + + +<h3 id="Home_Surroundings_Necessary_to_Human_Evolution"> + <i>Home Surroundings Necessary to Human Evolution</i> +</h3> + +<p>If, as a result of evolution, man took origin from +lower animals, these must of necessity have been +mammals nearly like himself. They must have borne +and nursed their young as he did. Mammals other +than the primates differ so much from man that they +could scarcely stand in the direct line of his origin. +How different from him are all of the great races of +hoofed animals, including the great varieties of cattle, +horses, deer, camels, giraffes, and elephants. All of +these are highly specialized and seem at once to exclude +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_113">[Pg 113]</span>themselves even as remote relatives of man. +So it is also with the pawed animals, the great families +of dogs, cats, rats, and hares. These are definitely +quadrupeds, clearly designed to meet the issues of +life upon four legs. They fail to disclose anything +resembling a near approach to man, either in form of +body or mental capacity. The winged animals like the +bats, strange specializations of the mammal kind, +bear little resemblance to the human form and offer +a poor beginning from which such a form might start. +The swimming mammals, like seals, whales, and porpoises, +also exclude themselves from direct connection +with the line of man’s ancestry. In fact, all mammals +must be put to one side in considering this question, +except a single remarkable group. The apes and their +kind alone bear an undeniable semblance to men both +in body and in behaviour. Many of their parts are +similar to the human, such as their hands and feet, +fingers and toes all equipped with nails, as well as their +thumbs which may be held against each finger in +turn. The apes have acquired a more or less erect +posture. Some of them, called manlike apes (anthropoids), +possess so many characteristics in common +with man that they alone of all animals might be regarded +as connected with the direct line of origin. If +this relationship be true, then the nature and location +of man’s original homeland is of profound significance. +Wherever this place may be, it should bring into +combination two distinctly different types of home +surroundings. It should provide this combination in +order that the apes might supply the last long step by +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_114">[Pg 114]</span>means of which man has ascended into humanity. +These two different but essential types of abode are:</p> + +<ol> + <li>Home surroundings favourable for ape life.</li> + <li>Home surroundings favourable to human life.</li> +</ol> + +<p>A third condition must bring these two elements +into final combination. These specialized surroundings +must be relatively near together, so that transition +from one to the other may readily take place. +Does Mongolia and particularly the Gobi Desert fulfil +all of these three conditions?</p> + +<p>According to Professor Osborn’s theory, the uplands +and plateaus are the most favourable places for +human development. Such being the case, we must +also agree, then, that the forests are equally essential +to the life of apes. Only a few of these animals have +adjusted themselves to life outside of wooded country. +Living in the trees, therefore, is the existence that +favours the life of the subhuman primates (lemurs, +monkeys, and apes). The forest provides the home +surroundings favourable for ape life, just as the +plains afford those conditions favourable to human +life. Does such proximity of these two essentials exist +in the region of the Gobi Desert? Mongolia is not a +densely wooded country. It is a territory forested +only in parts. In this light it does not seem to be an +ideal locality for the final transition from ape to man. +To explain this defect, Professor Osborn at present +holds that man in evolving had but a brief and very +distant phase of tree life. He believes that the quadrumanous +arboreal stage was extremely remote in +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_115">[Pg 115]</span>geologic time. It was never a profound or exclusive +mode of life. There are those, on the other hand, who +firmly maintain that in this ape to man transition a +long intermediate period of tree living was necessary +in order to bring about those changes in the primate +stock which laid the foundations for human existence. +This life in the trees was essential to determine the +erect posture of man, to free his hands ultimately for +purposes other than locomotion; in fact, to free them +so that they might become the chief incentives in the +further development of the human brain. Even from +this viewpoint, Mongolia may still be considered the +homeland of mankind. The forested lands throughout +its extent and upon its borders might well serve as +adequate surroundings for the development of life +during that critical intermediate phase when the first +ancestors of men had parted company with the apes +and had at length become humans.</p> + +<p>With many animals there has been a strong tendency +to take refuge in the trees. The chief object of +this tendency was to make life more secure either by +escaping danger or by obtaining food. But with the +coming of the ape kind this arboreal habit took a +somewhat new turn. It furnished the early members +of the monkey kind a permanent abode. Such a +change to a more or less fixed dwelling in the trees +produced marked modifications in the animals themselves. +It created a new type of home and developed a +new kind of thoroughfare over highways in the tree +tops. In order to acquire a proper equipment for such +transportation, both fore and hind paws became +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_116">[Pg 116]</span>grasping organs. In consequence these animals developed +four hands. They gradually gave up the older +pattern of paw and claw, and by developing a new +instrument connected with the arms and legs they +acquired a supreme facility for grasping the branches +of the trees. The tail also, in some cases, acquired +similar grasping powers. Thus, as the trees became +the home and the highways of these animals, their +four grasping hands and their grasping tails gave +them a mastery over the forest which they used to +their own peculiar advantages.</p> + +<p>The forest background of their lives played an +important rôle in the molding of their behaviour. The +perpetual semidarkness of their home surroundings +exerted a subtle influence upon them. It might be +that the forest in which they lived stood on the edge +of a wide plain with a clear opening from which to +look into the farther distances outside. Undoubtedly +there must have been an alluring temptation in the +green plains and their inviting freedom. Yet for these +tree-living animals to venture into this open space +was a hazardous undertaking. There were many +dangers lurking in the plain and over it. Fierce +creatures of every kind were there. Reptiles, mammals, +and birds, all of them beasts of prey, were lying +in wait for just such an adventuresome excursion. +So for the time at least, and until they were better +prepared to cope with the enemies outside, the semidarkness +was safer, even though the view were +limited and many interesting things were left unexplored.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_117">[Pg 117]</span></p> + + +<h3 id="Effects_of_Tree_Life"> + <i>Effects of Tree Life</i> +</h3> + +<p>The lemurs were probably the first of these new +tree-living animals. Their bodies were still slender +and furry, their heads long and fox-like, their eyes +widely separated, and their tails long and bushy. But +in their hands and in their feet they showed the real +beginning of fingers and toes. This stage marks the +transition from some lower form of mammal to the +primates (lemurs, monkeys, apes, and man). It was a +profound change, and in it the new order of primates +had its origin. The steps preceding this important one +we shall consider subsequently. But with this advance +there began a period of tree living which influenced +all of these animals as they and their successors +passed through their many stages upward. The little +animal known as Tarsius, perhaps even more than +the lemurs, shows the effects of these new influences +caused by tree-living habits. The monkeys of South +America reveal the manner in which the next step +forward was taken. The effects of it appear in the +shape of the head, in the almost human expression +of the face, in the closer relation of the eyes to each +other, and in the shape of the nose and the position +of the mouth. All of these features prophesy the coming +of the still more manlike apes. Above everything +else, these South American monkeys are conspicuous +in the history of development because of their almost +human hands, and also because of their hand-like +feet. Most of the members of this group acquired +prehensile or grasping tails. With the appearance of +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_118">[Pg 118]</span>the Old World monkeys, this tail began to wane in +importance. It lost all of its grasping power and was +reduced to much the same condition as in other +animals not of the monkey tribe. Some of the Old +World apes, such as the gibbons, developed the ability +to stand and walk upright. In addition to this erect +posture these apes had passed through another phase +that brought them nearer to man. They had lost their +tails. This had come about, doubtless, from their +habit of sitting upright. The erect posture of the +gibbons, however, was most important as a forerunner +of further developments in the great manlike +apes, the orang-outang, the chimpanzee, and the +gorilla. These animals had grown so large that for +most of them living in the trees was a matter of some +inconvenience. It was necessary for them to come to +the ground at times, because they found it difficult +to swing from tree to tree like the smaller monkeys. +Of the great manlike apes, the orang-outang still +adheres rather closely to the forest. The chimpanzee, +which has developed even greater cleverness +in climbing, seeks the ground oftener. He has learned +to walk upon all fours, using the knuckles of his hands +as a support in this act. Like the orang-outang, he +can stand up quite erect and walk like a man. Finally +the gorilla, the largest of the manlike apes, often +attains the size of nearly four hundred pounds in adult +life, and standing erect may reach the height of nearly +six feet. He also is able to walk upright. But the influences +of tree living are so strong even with the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_119">[Pg 119]</span>gorilla that he has not yet made a good adjustment +for life upon the ground. If it were not for the prodigious +strength in his great arms it would be difficult +for him to take to the trees, and he thus shows a betwixt +and between specialization, not entirely suitable +for the ground and too large for security among +the trees.</p> + +<p>All of the manlike apes are capable of standing and +walking in the upright posture, but in this posture +they are awkward and inefficient. Their awkwardness +is due to the fact that the foot in all three of them +retains many characters of a hand. None of them has +a good foot for effective heel and toe walking on the +ground. Yet in spite of the handicaps in their poor feet, +in spite also of their long, ungainly arms, these apes +are able to venture beyond the limits of their forest +home. Some of them live in the plains or on the mountain +sides. By their great strength they are equipped +to cope with many of the dreaded enemies outside of +the forest. The orang-outang seems to have no natural +enemies because of its own great offensive power. +Only two of the larger reptiles presume even to attack +it—the crocodile and the python. According to +the natives of Borneo, the orang always succeeds in +killing the crocodile through main strength by standing +upon its back and opening its jaws until he is able +to tear out its throat. It is reported that if attacked +by the python, the orang seizes the reptile with both +hands, squeezing it with such force and biting it so +ferociously that the outcome of the combat is soon +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_120">[Pg 120]</span>decided in favour of the anthropoid. The gorilla also +has conquered most of its antagonists in the animal +world, and is regarded as the most powerful and the +most dangerous brute enemy of man. All of these +apes have acquired a certain freedom in using their +hands, which are thus made available for acts of self-defense +and even for a considerable degree of exploring +their surroundings.</p> + +<p>Progress in the direction of mankind had its beginning +when the tree-living tendency of the apes began +to recede. The recession of such tree life paved the +way for those first indecisive but promising steps +which took the great apes out of their ancient forest +homes into the inviting plain. Finally with the complete +passing of tree life there began that long and +adventurous journey which was to lead over every sea +and into every land, until no region of the earth remained +for further conquest, until the full development +of the hand and the upright posture had more +and more bent the forces of nature to the designs of +the races of man.</p> + + +<h3 id="Stages_in_Developing_the_Erect_Posture"> + <i>Stages in Developing the Erect Posture</i> +</h3> + +<p>The advances made toward mankind through the +intermediate stepping stones of the great apes and +smaller monkey kind may be traced through successive +stages of tree life up to the time when the fully +erect posture became an accomplished fact. These +stages have been recognized as a result of exhaustive +studies made by Professors Gregory and Morton. +They consist of gradual changes which finally gave +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_121">[Pg 121]</span>rise to the human foot. This structure permitted man +at length to stand upright and thus gave him the free +use of his hands for constructive purposes.</p> + +<p>The first stage came in the Eocene (beginning of +the Age of Mammals, about 65,000,000 years ago). At +this time certain four-footed land-living animals began +to live in the trees. This arboreal life had profound +effects upon the fore and hind paws. In order to climb +among the branches a clinging grip was necessary. +Long, sharp claws developed in consequence of this +requirement. The digits of the paw were short and the +palms well padded. The thumb also was short but not +opposable. As yet there was no squatting or half-sitting +posture. The toes were likewise short and +clawed. The heel was lifted off the ground. The sole +was well padded and the great toe large. These four-footed +animals made only an imperfect adjustment to +tree life. Their movements were slow and their range +of action correspondingly limited. The tree shrew is a +good living example of such animals, while certain +fossils of the Eocene belonging to this type have been +described by Professors Matthews and Gregory.</p> + +<p>The second stage in developing transportation +came with certain light, lemur-like animals. They +were still slow and cautious in getting about and depended +upon a clutch-like grip. This new kind of +grasping produced long digits like fingers. The toes +were changed in the same manner, so that the feet +began to look more like hands. (Living examples of +this stage, <i>Loris</i> and <i>Lemur potto</i>.)</p> + +<p>The third stage was a more decisive advance since +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_122">[Pg 122]</span>transportation through the trees now combined the +advantages of climbing and leaping. Locomotion was +swifter and more effective. A tendency to a partially +erect posture developed, and squatting or sitting up +was tentatively established. All of the fingers became +much longer. Most of them had finger nails, so that +these animals at last possessed what might be called a +hand. Changes of the same type took place in the +toes. The thumb and the great toe became more +powerful and both were opposable. They could be +brought in contact with each of the other fingers or +toes in turn. In these animals the hands were now +well formed and the feet looked much like hands. It +is for these reasons that such animals are called +quadrumanous (four-handed). (Representative animals +of this stage, <i>Lepidolemur</i> and <i>Notharctus</i>.)</p> + +<p>The fourth stage was but a short step from leaping +and climbing to swinging from branch to branch or +running along the branches. This swinging by the +hands is called brachiation. It had far-reaching influences +upon all subsequent stages. Such swinging +naturally lengthened and strengthened the arms. It +produced a better grasping grip around the branches +and caused the fingers to grow longer. The thumb did +not participate in this increase of size. It actually was +reduced in strength and prominence. This is true in +most of the New World monkeys. In some of these, +like the spider monkey, the thumb has disappeared +altogether. It should be remembered that most of +these animals had a prehensile tail which they used +much like a fifth hand. The foot also developed a +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_123">[Pg 123]</span>grasping grip and looked if anything even more like a +hand than before. All of the South American monkeys, +besides their ability to swing from the limbs of +trees, can run along on the top of the branches in +what is known as “pronograde” locomotion. But +their swinging propensity probably had the greatest +influence upon the final developments of transportation. +It tended to bring the body in a close approach +to the upright position. Many of the Old World +monkeys sat in a semi-erect sitting posture, and from +their habit of squatting developed thick pads (ischial +callosities) over their buttocks. The leg became +lengthened but was yet too much flexed at the hip to +permit of the most complete erect posture. This stage +is represented both by the New World and Old World +monkeys, with the exception of the baboons. These +latter animals are an interesting variation. They more +or less deserted the old custom of living in the trees. +Their bodies and heads assumed many dog-like +characters, and they returned to a four-footed ground-living +type of locomotion. In consequence their limbs +became shortened, as was also true of their fingers and +toes. All of these important changes took place in the +early part of the Oligocene (second period in the Age +of Mammals, probably 30,000,000 years ago).</p> + +<p>The fifth stage occurred much later in this period +when another decisive advance was introduced. For +one thing, the tail entirely disappeared. The legs became +more extended at the hip. Swinging from branch +to branch was the chief means of getting about. +This produced extremely long arms and hands, and +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_124">[Pg 124]</span>because this swinging mode of transportation was +predominant it kept the trunk more and more in the +upright position. Such straightening up of the body +introduced the most positive influence toward standing +erect up to this time. The legs did not grow in proportion +to the arms, and the feet retained a close +resemblance to hands. On the ground such animals +as these could make their way with considerable +speed, standing upright and running much as man +runs. The only difference between this kind of gait +and that of the human was due to the great length of +the arms and the poor feet.</p> + +<p>This stage in the development of the upright posture +is often seen in motion pictures of those animals +which portray this particular phase of locomotive +advance. These are the remarkable apes known as +gibbons. Those familiar with them in the zoölogical +gardens, or in moving pictures, will remember the +peculiar way in which they run upright, holding their +long arms stretched out much like balancing poles. +Thus erect, they speed about in getting their food or +playing with other monkeys. Their upright gait is +awkward but extremely interesting. Once, however, +they get into the trees their locomotion has all the +grace of a bird in flight. This gibbon stage of development +was one of extreme importance, since it gave the +primates preceding man their first chance to stand +upon two feet and to run about in something like human +fashion. It is this stage that many authorities +consider indispensable in the final working out of the +human erect posture and human locomotion. Many +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_125">[Pg 125]</span>students of this question also believe that the upright +posture could never have been attained unless animal +life had passed through that particular phase in the +development of transportation called brachiation. It +seems certain that this stage itself was dependent +upon a preceding and extremely long period of life in +the trees.</p> + +<p>The sixth stage developed early in the Miocene +(third period of the Age of Mammals, about 15,000,000 +years ago). One of its chief factors was a great +increase in the body weight of the apes. This greater +weight caused the animals to come nearer to the +ground, as is the case of the chimpanzee and the +gorilla. These animals actually spend much time +upon the ground. In consequence, it was necessary +for them to make certain transportation adjustments. +Their locomotion in the trees was still of the brachiating +type—that is, they depended largely upon their +arms for swinging. The arms thus became long and +powerful. When the gorilla stands erect his hands +hang below his knees. The legs are relatively short, +but the feet in consequence of living so much on the +ground look less like hands than in the lower apes. +They have well-recognized broad heels, but flat soles +without much of an arch. The lesser toes are human +in appearance. They are much shortened and have +little resemblance to the fingers of a hand. The great +toe is shorter and only in a slight degree opposable. +This is especially so in the mountain gorilla, in which +the great toe bears a striking likeness to the same part +in man. The flexion of the leg at the hip is somewhat +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_126">[Pg 126]</span>decreased and as a result the gorilla is able to stand +upright in almost human fashion. All of these changes +appear, to a less degree, in the chimpanzee also. Both +gorilla and chimpanzee are able to stand erect, to +walk, and even run in this posture. Their gait, however, +is awkward. They are greatly hampered in their +locomotion by the extreme length of their arms. +Usually in getting about on the ground they run upon +all fours, using their arms somewhat like crutches +and coming down at each step on the knuckles of the +flexed hand. When aroused or charging to the attack, +the adult male gorilla usually stands upright and +beats its fists upon its chest, at the same time emitting +a terrifying growl. When it is necessary for the animal +to make speed in flight or for other purpose, it usually +comes down upon all fours. Arboreal locomotion in +all of the three great apes still retains much of the +brachiating type. It thus requires the retention of the +hands as part of the locomotor apparatus. Tree life in +the chimpanzee and the gorilla, combined with partial +use of the ground, did much to develop the essentials +of the erect posture. It did not, however, free the +hands to that extent which permitted their exclusive +use for purposes more constructive than transportation. +However strong the inclination toward life +upon the ground may have been in the manlike apes, +they were committed long ago by their predecessors +to a life in the trees. This commitment still kept them +true to their kind and to their simian inheritance. If +they were to be more than apes, it was necessary for +them to shed the stigma that tree life stamped upon +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_127">[Pg 127]</span>them. This the modern apes were never able to accomplish.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Parting_of_the_Ways"> + <i>The Parting of the Ways</i> +</h3> + +<p>At length, however, in spite of many obstacles, the +tendency toward the erect posture found a new opening. +It was the foot that led the way to this great +opportunity. It provided an efficient supporting +structure with a well-developed heel, a non-opposable +great toe, and a sole containing an effective longitudinal +arch. Man could at last stand upright and be +secure upon a capable pair of feet. At some period late +in the Miocene two branches from the stock of those +animals, which had managed to get into something +approaching the upright posture, parted company. +This was a critical juncture. Thenceforth one branch +proceeded one way and the other followed an entirely +different course. The apes accepted the trees +as their lot. Man, because of his two human feet and +what they supported above them, acquired the earth +and all it contains. Thus with tree life a thing of the +past, with a true ground-gripping foot, with longer +legs, with an actual erect posture, the hands were +finally liberated for the purposes of human success.</p> + +<p>The development of the human foot, which must +have been in progress through vast periods of time, +marks the decisive parting of the ways between the +apes and the races of men. It is doubtless true that the +specialization of the hand has been a potent influence +affecting the expansion of the brain and of brain +power. The hand itself, however, was ultimately +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_128">[Pg 128]</span>dependent for its free and unhampered use upon the +development of the foot. This great factor was the +forerunner of all those elements in structural organization +which finally brought about the erect posture, +which set the head upon the shoulders so that the +eyes might look forward and upward, and at length +made it possible for the eyes to guide the actions of +the hands.</p> + +<p>Step by step, the brain has kept pace with these +progressive alterations. Old and new parts of it alike +bear the imprint of adaptive change. The combinations +determined by life in the trees and by the +development of four hands have been worked out +through graded stages, from the humblest of the +monkey kind up to man. Beginning with the lowly +tarsius and lemurs, this advance may be traced +through intermediate phases to its ultimate goal in +the human brain. Mongolia, as many authorities +agree, may have been the land that saw man’s earliest +beginnings. Whatever his homeland, a long period of +tree life was necessary to develop in his predecessors +those specializations by which he rose to his allotted +position. It is in the tree-life part of man’s history +that we see the dawn of the primate brain; for it was +then there occurred the earliest exploits of that great +order of mammals, the primates, to which all the +monkeys, the great apes, and man belong.</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_129">[Pg 129]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_VI"> + CHAPTER VI + <br> + DAWN OF THE PRIMATE BRAIN + <br> + <span style="font-size: medium;">THE LOWEST OF THE MONKEY KIND</span> + </h2> +</div> + + +<p>We are now approaching a critical period in the +history of the brain. It is a period that contains many +incidents of the utmost importance. Particularly +noteworthy are the episodes which favoured the production +of human characteristics in the animal kingdom. +These characteristics showed many manlike +tendencies that much later were to appear full fledged +in the human race. They were from the first limited to +a single, highly interesting order of mammals. And +this seems especially strange because from the beginning +of the Age of Mammals (65,000,000 years ago) +a great variety of new animals came into existence. +The fact that a single group out of all this vast number +was picked out to develop human resemblances +must hold the secret of some potent selective influence. +Such an influence was definitely at work. Its +operations were slow but steady. Little by little it +changed and reshaped the structure of the body until +at length there appeared a race of animals so human +in their organization that they might well have been +the forerunners of mankind.</p> + +<p>It would be difficult to conceive the kind of modification +in structure that could produce the form of +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_130">[Pg 130]</span>man from a horse, from a whale, or even from a dog. +But this difficulty becomes far less in the case of the +animals usually referred to as the monkey kind. In +many features of their structure these animals resemble +men. Existing in a great variety of forms, +they manifest numerous modifications in the different +parts of their bodies and exhibit a wide range of behaviour +in their habits. Only a superficial acquaintance +with them is necessary to reveal their many +progressive traits. But their progress, like all other +progress, had its humble beginnings. At first the apes +were very simple creatures. Their coming, however, +marked the dawn of a new day in animal life. We shall +be interested to follow the advances that occurred in +their mental capacities as they slowly made their +progressive strides forward. We shall be particularly +struck by those changes which gradually led up to +the development of a brain capable to control all of +the complex activities of human behaviour.</p> + +<p>Naturally we may expect to find a simple controlling +organ in the lowest of the monkey kind. As we +pass upward, however, into the higher families of the +apes, we shall not only observe a pronounced increase +in manlike tendencies but, as the great anthropoids +at length become human in miniature and then almost +human, we shall recognize in these animals a +brain which very closely resembles that of man.</p> + + +<h3 id="Class_Distinctions_in_the_Monkey_World"> + <i>Class Distinctions in the Monkey World</i> +</h3> + +<p>In the ape world there are animals of high and low +degree. Some are so humble that it is hard to decide +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_131">[Pg 131]</span>whether they actually belong to the monkeys or not. +With few exceptions they all prefer to live in the +jungles and tropical forests. We could not fail to be +impressed by the striking resemblance that many of +them bear to man. Yet there are such marked differences +among them that they cannot all be regarded as +members of the same family. If we grouped them as +we do human races, we might most advantageously +assign them to certain large classes according to their +nearness to man.</p> + +<p>Monkeys of lowest degree include the lemurs, the +tarsiers, and all of the New World monkeys.</p> + +<p>The intermediate monkeys in the next higher grade +are those which live in the Old World, with the exception +of the three great manlike apes.</p> + +<p>The higher anthropoids occupy the top rank and +are the nearest to man both in their appearance and +in their habits.</p> + +<p>These three ranks in apedom did not appear at the +same time. One rank, so to speak, successively developed +from another. By a process of selection and +adjustment the higher forms arose from the lower. +The ranking great apes owe their superiority to many +traits and characters which they inherited from more +humble forerunners and which they improved by the +process of progressive development. The lowest +monkeys likewise had their day of upward progress, +during which they emerged from some mammal still +lower in the animal scale. These forerunners of the +earliest primates, the lemurs and tarsiers, had in all +probability been gradually specializing during the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_132">[Pg 132]</span>latter part of the Age of Reptiles. Their ancestors +came from that stock of mammal-like reptiles which +started from lowly beginnings and remained modestly +in the background during the reptilian period.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Lemurs"> + <i>The Lemurs</i> +</h3> + +<p>In the endeavour to get some conception of these +distant predecessors of the monkeys and apes, it is +believed that the tree shrews possess those simple +characters necessary for the proper starting point. +The shrew is an insect-eater and lives in the trees. +It has many specializations in its legs, in its head, and +in its trunk. These special adjustments might serve +as the beginning of those important changes in the +body which later distinguished the monkey kind. In +the first place, the small size of the tree shrew was +particularly favourable for this purpose. Then, in the +second place, its habit of living in the trees foreshadowed +advantages of great promise. Such an +epoch-making adjustment made its appearance when +paws were replaced by hands and when definite hand-like +feet appeared. If an animal like the tree shrew +were the forerunner of the monkeys, it is not difficult +to appreciate how the lemurs arose from this stock. +They and their kind may be looked upon as the first +chapter in the history of the ape world and the ape +brain. At present they live exclusively in Madagascar +and its small adjacent islands. They are not known +in any other part of the world, although fossils of +them indicate that they were widespread throughout +the globe in earlier times. The reasons for their present +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_133">[Pg 133]</span>exclusiveness and their insular homes are not clear. +Geologists claim that the parts in which they live +originally had land connection with the continent thus +permitting their wide dissemination. The later disappearance +of this connection accounts for their +present isolation.</p> + +<p>There is much in the appearance of the lemurs that +distinguishes them from the monkeys and apes. Their +most distinctive feature, the head, is much like that +of a fox and is drawn out in a long pointed muzzle. +Many characters appear in lemurs not seen in +monkeys. They have no cheek pouches. Their tails, +never prehensile, are usually furry. They develop +no gluteal pads, which many apes possess in consequence +of their squatting postures. It is in their +hands that they resemble monkeys most strikingly. +They have fingers and toes with finger nails and toe +nails. The thumb and great toe are always well developed, +but the second or third digit is often greatly +modified. They also have mammary glands like the +monkeys. In the female these glands assume certain +definitely human characters. The lemur is a little +smaller than the domestic cat. Its fur is thick and +woolly. Its large and prominent eyes are more widely +separated than in monkeys. The ears are long and +have tufts of hair on their upper portions. The arms +are not quite so long as the legs. The tail is long and +often bushy. Fleshy pads appear on the palms of the +hands and soles of the feet, as well as upon the palmar +surface of the fingers. These enable the animal to +grasp the branch of a tree with great tenacity.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_134">[Pg 134]</span></p> + +<p>Little is known of the lemur’s habits in the wild +state. It is not strictly nocturnal, for some of these +animals are known to seek their food during the day. +Often they travel about in troupes consisting of many +individuals. Most of them live in the forest. Their +food consists of fruits, insects, birds’ eggs, and birds +themselves, which latter they are most skillful in +catching. During the heat of the day they sleep with +the head beneath the arm and the tail curled about +the neck. When walking they go upon the hands and +feet, both when on the ground and in the trees. The +tail is used in the manner of a balancing or steering +organ. Sometimes they assume a semi-erect posture on +the hind legs, or sit in a half-crouching position. Both +hands and feet are employed primarily for climbing +or running about on the ground.</p> + +<p>The lemur has great ability in leaping from tree to +tree. Its movements are so rapid that it can only with +difficulty be followed by the eye. Hunters say that it +is easier to kill a bird on the wing than a lemur when +leaping. If pursued and shot at it has a habit of +dropping suddenly from the topmost branches into +the bushes, giving the hunter the impression that he +has succeeded in killing the animal. This impression +is soon dissipated upon seeing the lemur in another +tree at a considerable distance from the spot where it +fell. When wild the animals are said to subsist largely +upon bananas. They also seem to be fond of the +brains of birds. After fracturing the bird’s skull with +their teeth, as they might puncture a nutshell, they +suck the brain out of the brain case. The lemur, however, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_135">[Pg 135]</span>does not eat the rest of the bird. We may see +from this description that this is an animal of great +agility. Not only does it possess much speed in its +locomotion, but it also manifests the utmost nicety +in balancing and remarkable precision in all movements.</p> + + +<h3 id="Tarsius"> + <i>Tarsius</i> +</h3> + +<p>Another of these lowest monkeys is a strange little +animal called tarsius, which has acquired a notable +reputation. Several learned authorities have singled +it out as the standard bearer of human origin from +some lower mammal. The tarsius is about as large as +a small squirrel. Its appearance is peculiar because of +its closely set bulging eyes, its long tufted tail, its +protruding ears, and the small circular pads on the +end of each finger and toe. Tarsiers have two curious +habits that attract attention at once. They can leap +with astonishing swiftness from tree to tree, often in +pursuit of insects, and when they turn their heads +they seem at one instant to be looking forward and +the next directly backward. Their eyes, though very +large and prominent, do not seem to give them the +best of eyesight. The animals can see well at night, +but during the day they appear to be almost stupid +because in the sunlight their vision is imperfect. +Tarsius lives in the jungle, usually in the low countries +of the Malay Islands. During the day it passes +most of its time clinging in a vertical position to the +trunks of the smaller trees and underbrush. The way +in which it supports itself is interesting and peculiar. +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_136">[Pg 136]</span>With its fingers and toes it firmly grasps its slender +support, at the same time pressing inward with its +long tail, which acts like a spring against the tree. +If its tail is pulled away from this support the tarsier +at once tends to slip backward. The tail, which has +no grasping power, is used like a rudder for balancing +and steering when the animal is in motion.</p> + +<p>In some respects tarsiers are quite human. They go +about in pairs and are not gregarious like most of the +monkeys. Furthermore, they give birth to but a single +offspring at a time. After the breeding season the +female and her young find a home by themselves. +There are no indications that these animals build +nests or even live in holes of trees. The tarsier often +falls asleep in its characteristic clinging position, and +the head then sinks downward much as that of an old +man asleep in his chair. Often the young tarsius will +perch upon the mother’s head while she is asleep, +and in this position fall asleep itself. The general +behaviour of the animal is extremely stereotyped and +limited. It learns but little under training. In captivity +it is able to make but few new adjustments. +During the day its enormous bulging eyes give it an +almost ridiculous appearance as it gropes awkwardly +for food. This no doubt is due to the fact that its eyes +are constructed for hunting at night and do not contain +the specialization essential to the sharpest kind +of vision. On the ground tarsius leaps like a frog but +is very awkward. In the trees, however, it is extremely +agile, and is probably the quickest jumper of all +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_137">[Pg 137]</span>mammals. While grasping a small branch it can turn +its head so as to look directly backward and jump +more quickly than the human eye can follow. It +seems to be looking in one direction and jumping in +another. This is due to the great rapidity with which +it turns its head. In captivity it is pugnacious and +cannot be tamed. It performs its toilet much as a +cat does and thus keeps itself scrupulously clean. It +is not known to make vocal sounds indicating fear +or anger. On rare occasions, and particularly when +young, it has been heard to squeak. The infant +tarsius clings to the hair of the mother’s chest like +other young monkeys. The eyes are open at birth, +and many reactions appear at once that are long +delayed in such animals as the rat, cat, dog, and +higher apes.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Marmosets"> + <i>The Marmosets</i> +</h3> + +<p>Another lowly monkey is the marmoset. It has less +renown than tarsius but is nevertheless an interesting +animal. It is often carried around in the pocket of its +owner and fits conveniently inside of the old-fashioned +fur muff. The marmosets belong to the group of the +New World monkeys. They inhabit South America +and Central America. Their chief interest arises from +the fact that they represent one of those moments of +faltering experienced by the monkeys in their upward +strivings. These little animals have an almost +pathetic expression and features that are in many +ways quite human. Yet in spite of this human-like +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_138">[Pg 138]</span>appearance they indicate an actual backsliding in the +attempts at progress. This backsliding is most apparent +in their fingers and toes. In fact, the entire +hand and foot have lost most of their human resemblance. +The finger nails are now replaced by sharp, +talon-like claws, and the toes are equipped in the +same way. The marmosets, both because of their +diminutive size and the imperfections in their hands +and feet, are now looked upon as monkeys that show +signs of retrogression.</p> + +<p>The marmoset is as large as a small squirrel and +covered with a thick, silky fur. It is naturally very +timid but soon becomes friendly to those with whom +it is familiar in captivity. The female produces two +or three young at a birth and in this respect is unlike +most of the monkeys. The marmoset’s facial appearance +and shape of head are certainly more ape-like +than the lemur’s. The eyes are set much closer together, +and are separated by a flat, narrow nose suggesting +that vision now depends on the simultaneous +operation of both eyes. The animal has a long, bushy +tail. It lives in the tree tops or small underbrush and +climbs the trees in a manner similar to the squirrel. +Although it has a cat-like agility, it does not make +the long and daring leaps characteristic both of lemur +and tarsius. It often loses its grip on the branches +and falls from a considerable height to the ground. +In captivity it shows little inclination to develop new +actions. It is not easily trained, and to teach it to +do tricks of any kind is most difficult. It lives upon +worms, insects, and fruit. It is known also to invade +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_139">[Pg 139]</span>birds’ nests and suck the eggs. Very rarely does it +prey upon bird life and then only when it is able to +overpower one of the smaller birds or unprotected +young.</p> + + +<h3 id="South_American_Howling_Monkeys"> + <i>South American Howling Monkeys</i> +</h3> + +<p>In this group of lower monkeys we encounter one +with a highly interesting personality, known as the +“red howling monkey of South America.” He is a real +monkey, noisy and disagreeable, often attaining the +size of a fox-terrier. He always seems to be in an unpleasant +mood, showing his teeth and howling on the +slightest provocation. In spite of all this ill temper, +he belongs to the progressive party of the monkeys. +There is not the slightest doubt that he has made +definite advances along the lines of progress. If we +should question this progress we would soon have our +doubts set at rest when we saw the astonishing manner +in which he uses his tail like a fifth hand. Even +more convincing in this respect is the almost human +appearance of his hands. Not long ago a young woman +visiting the ape house in the zoölogical gardens was +struck by these human similarities. She was still more +impressed when a large howling monkey thrust his +long tail through the bars and deftly tossed her hat +into the air.</p> + +<p>The howling monkeys enjoy this gift of a capable, +grasping tail in common with most of their fellows +who live in South America. The prehensile tail is +especially well developed in the spider monkeys and in +the woolly monkeys. At its end this tail looks like a +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_140">[Pg 140]</span>long, tapering finger. It is a highly developed sense +organ and gives the monkey a new instrument for +locomotion and for exploring. These monkeys are +able to swing themselves from the branches by their +tails and thus leave the hands and feet free for other +purposes.</p> + +<p>In addition to this highly efficient tail, the howlers +have developed a larynx and vocal cords with which +they produce awe-inspiring sounds. Their mournful +howlings are often audible for miles around, and it is +supposed that they employ their cries as a means of +defense to intimidate their enemies. The howling +monkeys possess a slightly opposable thumb and +well-developed fingers. While they are described as +being the most ferocious of the South American monkeys, +they are also credited with a low degree of intelligence. +The face of this monkey is naked with the +exception of a heavy beard that hangs beneath the +chin. In captivity they are practically untamable +and soon die. Their fur is usually black, but in some +cases is brown or reddish brown. They live largely +upon fruit, although like other South American +monkeys they feed upon caterpillars and insects.</p> + + +<h3 id="Measuring_the_Mentality_of_New_World_Monkeys"> + <i>Measuring the Mentality of New World Monkeys</i> +</h3> + +<p>Professor Thorndike, of Columbia University, has +made careful studies concerning the behaviour of +several South American monkeys. He was chiefly +interested in the manner in which monkeys differ +from other animals in the mental capacities and +methods of learning. In making his tests he devised +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_141">[Pg 141]</span>certain experiments which utilized boxes with pegs, +bolts, bars, and hooks. The object of these tests was +to find out how the animal learned to release itself +from confinement, or gain access to a goal containing +food. Professor Thorndike concluded that these +monkeys did not learn by reasoning. They do, however, +form more and a greater variety of associations +than other mammals. Their combinations of this +kind are remarkably slow and ineffectual in providing +any new behavioural accomplishment. Concerning +the general mental development of the South American +monkeys, Dr. Thorndike believes that they represent +a certain advance from the generalized type +of mammals toward man. This is particularly true of +their sense equipment and their localized vision. All +of this, he believes, is in reality an advance due to +the brain acting with increased delicacy and bringing +into line those activities which distinguish human +mental faculty from that of all other animals. Here, +at length, among the lower monkeys is well-attested +proof of some progress toward the development of +human capacity.</p> + + +<h3 id="Monkey_Behaviour"> + <i>Monkey Behaviour</i> +</h3> + +<p>The way in which these lower members of the +monkey kind behave deserves particular attention. +It gives us the opportunity to observe certain striking +resemblances to our own human behaviour. This +question is one of primary importance. It acquires +especial interest as we compare the brains of the +monkeys and apes one with another. As the brain +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_142">[Pg 142]</span>continues to improve from one stage to the next, we +should be on the lookout for new developments in +behaviour. It might perhaps be impossible to appreciate +all of these minute changes among the monkey +kind. It is even somewhat questionable whether such +an exact comparison at the present time is necessary +or possible. Yet there are certain outstanding traits +of conduct that may be easily traced from stage to +stage. One of the most important of these traits depends +upon the development of the tail from the time +when it first acted as a rudder-like organ for steering +and balancing the animal until it acquired all of its +great facilities as a fifth hand. After this it began to +recede in importance and finally disappeared. The +tail thus created a special cycle of behaviour which +had important bearing upon the final outcome of +man’s adjustment.</p> + +<p>Another group of reactions centre upon the manner +in which the hand made its appearance, including the +progressive changes in behaviour when the monkeys +first became four-handed. All of these changes were +dependent upon living in the trees and gradually +found their culmination in an animal that could stand +upon two feet and use its hands. Such usage as this +foretold the beginning of human skill, of human right-handedness, +and of human speech.</p> + +<p>Very important were the changes in behaviour that +made their appearance as the eyes worked more in +harmony with each other. They produced a kind of +vision better able to guide the movements of the +hand and give more complete information concerning +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_143">[Pg 143]</span>distance, direction, and perspective. But far exceeding +all other changes for getting a better control over +the surroundings were those progressive advances +introduced for making the fullest combinations of +sense impressions. These advances favoured the development +of better powers for learning and for profiting +from experience. Progress in all of these particulars +concerning the behaviour of the monkeys may be +clearly traced in corresponding expansions in their +brains.</p> + + +<h3 id="Brains_of_the_Lower_Monkeys"> + <i>Brains of the Lower Monkeys</i> +</h3> + +<p>In the brains of these four very simple members of +the monkey kind we may readily see the expansions +that promoted development in the governing organ. +It will be apparent at a glance that progress followed +no direct or easy path. It met many rebuffs and obstacles. +Often it faltered and even stumbled. But +struggling on it finally reached solid ground and then +went forward to real advances.</p> + +<p>Placing the brains of the lemur, tarsius, marmoset, +and howling monkey side by side we may see how this +progress began. To guide our way in following this +advance, certain signposts and milestones will prove +serviceable. Three of these landmarks are deep grooves +or clefts. They appear in the superbrain and indicate +the places in which progress has been particularly +active. Around these grooves the outer covering of +the superbrain has been folded to make room for more +brain cells. This folding produces convolutions with +the result that the more convoluted a brain is, the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_144">[Pg 144]</span>more cells it has for the development of brain power. +Each of these three grooves has its own special meaning +as a landmark:</p> + +<ol> +<li>The “Sylvian groove” is a fissure that runs +between the department for the sense of hearing, +called the “temporal lobe,” and the department for +body and contact sense, called the “parietal lobe.”</li> + +<li>The “central groove” is a fissure between the +department for body and contact senses and the +department of supreme brain activity, called the +“frontal lobe.” This lobe of the brain is situated +immediately above the eyes and behind the bone of +the forehead (frontal bone). A small frontal lobe +means a low brow with a correspondingly inferior +mentality. As this lobe of the brain increases from +ape to man, the forehead gradually becomes higher +and more prominent.</li> + +<li>The “ape groove” separates the occipital lobe +in the back of the head from the parietal lobe. In the +occipital lobe is situated the department for sight.</li> +</ol> + +<p>The three grooves form the boundary lines between +the four chief departments of the superbrain, each +of which is known as a lobe; namely, (1) the parietal +lobe, department of body and contact senses; (2) +the temporal lobe, department of hearing; (3) the +occipital lobe, department of sight; and (4) the frontal +lobe, department of the high mental faculties like +judgment and reason.</p> + +<p>Further advances from this point will occupy our +attention in tracing the brain of the monkey kind +upward. Two other landmarks in the brain have +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_145">[Pg 145]</span>special value. One of them is the bridge (pons) which +connects the larger brain (cerebral hemispheres) with +the lesser brain (cerebellum). This lesser brain acts as +the chief muscle timer and adjuster. It balances one +muscle’s action to that of another and adjusts the +force of such action. All of our most exact movements, +whether in walking or writing or speaking, depend +upon the little brain. If it is injured or destroyed the +movements of our hands and feet, head and trunk, +become shaky, unsteady, and very irregular. For an +animal to become highly skillful requires high development +in the little brain. The animal having the highest +intelligence also possesses the greatest capacity +for skill in its actions. The size of the bridge reflecting +the degree of this skill is a good index of the intelligence +possessed by the animal.</p> + +<p>The pyramid is another important indicator of +progress. Like the bridge, it is found on the base of +the brain. It is called pyramid because of its somewhat +pyramidal shape. It acts as the main trunk +line for getting the orders of the superbrain out to the +muscles. It transmits, so to speak, the highest commands +of the brain in controlling the motor machinery. +By means of it we act according to the dictates +of our wills. If both of these great pyramidal trunk +lines are interrupted, we become completely paralyzed. +The pyramids conduct the highest output of the +brain’s activity and increase in direct proportion as +the animal’s behaviour becomes more and more +complex.</p> + +<p>The brains of low monkeys are of small size: lemur, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_146">[Pg 146]</span>18 grams; tarsius, 6 grams; marmoset, 6.2 grams; +and howling monkey, 24.5 grams.</p> + +<p>Size and weight of brain, we must bear in mind, +vary to a considerable degree with the size of the +body, so that certain other signs of expansion in the +brain are more impressive. These signs clearly indicate +that progress is under way as follows: First, the +large superbrain begins to cover over the lesser +brain. In lemur this extension backward has only +just begun. It is only slightly more marked than in +many of the lower animals, like the cat and the dog. +In tarsius the large brain has extended backward over +the lesser brain to a considerably greater degree. +This is an important change because the tarsier has +transferred much of its business of sight to a new department +in the occipital lobe of the superbrain. The +marmoset shows this transfer carried a little farther, +for the large brain now overhangs the lesser brain. +The great advance shown in the howling monkey reveals +the way in which the superbrain has taken complete +control of the situation. It now covers over the +lesser brain entirely. All of this change in the superbrain +has been mainly in the interest of making a +better department for sight, but the departments for +the sense of hearing and for body and contact senses +have not been behindhand in expanding in these lower +monkeys.</p> + +<p>Another pronounced sign of progress is the gradual +change in the position of the groove of Sylvius. In +lemur it is almost vertical, as in the cat, in the dog, +and other lower mammals. The arrangement of other +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_147">[Pg 147]</span>smaller grooves around it is also similar to that in +lower animals. In the tarsius this groove is equally +primitive. It is beginning to tip backward a little in +marmoset. Finally, in the howling monkey this groove +has become quite oblique, as it is in most of the apes +and man.</p> + +<p>All of this change has occurred as a direct result of +perfecting the organization in the department of hearing. +The more tilted the Sylvian groove becomes, the +better developed is the temporal lobe which carries +on the business of hearing. The tilting backward of +this groove also results from an increase in that part +of the superbrain which lies immediately about the +groove. This is the parietal lobe, the department of +contact and body sense. It is in this department that +the especially important information concerning the +movements in the hands and feet is registered. Thus +the tilting backward of the Sylvian groove plainly +tells the story of improvements in the departments of +hearing and of body and contact sense.</p> + +<p>Still another sign of progress appears in the central +groove, which has an equally interesting history. In +the lemur this groove is just discernible as a faint dent. +In position it resembles a corresponding groove in +animals like the cat and dog. Lemur in this respect +suggests that in its striving to part company with +the lower animals, to break away from ancient contacts, +and to get on an independent new line of its +own, it has not been entirely successful. This central +groove shows where the chief department of the superbrain +begins, that is, the frontal lobe. In the lemur +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_148">[Pg 148]</span>this department is poorly developed. In tarsius it is +impossible to find anything that looks like a central +groove. This animal’s brain is an example of some +of that hesitation which was encountered in the path +of progress. The same faltering is also seen in the +brain of marmoset, which has no central groove whatsoever. +These little South American animals, it must +be remembered, are thought to be backsliders, and +this particular defect in their brain strongly supports +that conclusion.</p> + +<p>In the brain of the howling monkey we find the +central groove now well developed. The superbrain +shows that it is at length pursuing some definite +policy of expansion in its most responsible department. +Emphasis in growth is now obviously given to +the frontal lobe for advancing the capacity to transact +all higher mental faculties. In the howling monkey +this department may not have attained any high degree +of development, but its presence is undoubted, +and from this relatively simple beginning it is only +a matter of further expansion to bring into existence +the most productive mechanism of the brain. The +howling monkey shows its superiority over all lower +monkeys in another respect. It has developed the ape +groove, and by it the boundary between the department +of sight and the department for body and contact +sense is fully established.</p> + +<p>Viewed as a whole, the brains of these four lower +monkeys show distinct progress in the interests of +developing a more efficient superbrain. Each of the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_149">[Pg 149]</span>sense departments has gradually become better defined +in its boundaries, and doubtless correspondingly +better organized for the administration of its duties. +Rising supreme above them all there finally appeared +the controlling department of the chief executive in +the frontal lobe. We see this in its earliest stage in +lemur. It assumes still more importance in the howling +monkey. The departments of sight (occipital +lobe), of hearing (temporal lobe), of body and contact +sense (parietal lobe), show the effects of steady improvement +from lemur up to the howling monkey. +If there have been some hesitations, even some slipping +back in the organization of efficiency, it is because +some of these animals were rather uncertain +disciples of progress. They may have been, as is probably +true of tarsius, too close to the starting point +where the real advances of the monkey kind began; +or perhaps, like the marmosets, they ran into early +difficulties along the upward climb. It seems probable +that they were not able to extricate themselves with +credit from these hazards or to overcome the obstacles +that confronted them. For this reason their brain +shows some actual backwardness. With these exceptions, +however, the evidence of progress is undisputed. +It seems sufficient to convince the most sceptical. +The purpose of the progress is also sufficiently +plain. It clearly appears to be that effort toward +promoting organization in the superbrain so that the +offices of the supreme executive might be established +in the permanent quarters of the frontal lobe.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_150">[Pg 150]</span></p> + + +<h3 id="Measurable_Improvements"> + <i>Measurable Improvements</i> +</h3> + +<p>Any doubts due to lack of measurable proofs may +be easily overcome by several comparative measurements +of the bridge and the pyramid. The size of +these structures, both of which reveal the behavioural +capacities of animals, has been carefully estimated. +Accordingly the bridge has been assigned the following +values: lemur, .055; tarsius, .057; marmoset, +.095; howling monkey, .103. Thus the bridge, called +by some authorities an index of intelligence, shows +distinctly the advances made among these simple +monkeys.</p> + +<p>Quite as striking are the figures for the pyramid, +which indicate the degree of voluntary control that +the superbrain has over all actions: lemur, .110; +tarsius, .032; marmoset, .064; howling monkey, .137.</p> + +<p>From these figures the howling monkey stands in +advance of his monkey associates in the index of his +voluntary control. Doubtless much of this advantage +is due to the high degree of hand-like specialization +in this animal’s hands and feet. But the grasping +tail of the howling monkey should not be overlooked. +If tarsius and the marmoset appear to stand lower +than the lemur, it is because one of them is a primitive +type of animal with a much restricted repertoire of +reactions, and the other, the marmoset, is a backslider +less richly endowed in the more effective motor +capacities.</p> + +<p>All of these features in the brain seem to coincide +with progress in the behaviour of the lower monkeys. +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_151">[Pg 151]</span>They show the path which progressive advance has +pursued. In the beginning, emerging from those +strivings of lower mammals and with much of the +mammalian heritage handed down by them, the +lemurs took the first step of the monkey kind toward +a new type of brain. There was prophecy in these +early attempts made by the lemur. In some degree at +least they foretold what this new kind of brain was to +be. Obviously they had as their distant mark the +ultimate upbuilding of the superbrain until an adequate +department for the supreme executive of life +was produced. If tarsius hesitated in reaching out +toward this objective, it was none the less travelling +in the right direction. The destination of this course +was clearly visible in the brain of the howling monkey +and other similar monkeys of the New World. In +this manner the first primate steps toward a more +highly efficient type of brain were taken. The conditions +of tree life both incited and successfully urged +them onward.</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_152">[Pg 152]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_VII"> + CHAPTER VII + <br> + ON THE WAY UPWARD + <br> + <span style="font-size: medium;">BRAINS OF THE OLD WORLD MONKEYS</span> + </h2> +</div> + + +<p>We have seen that the first steps leading to improvements +in the primate brain were taken by certain +humble creatures living in distant parts of the earth, +and by the great tribes of the New World monkeys +inhabiting South America and Central America. +These steps did not lead far along the path of progress. +They were only a beginning, the first harbingers +of man’s arrival. Many lowly animals in the ape house +at the zoölogical gardens reveal numerous features +suggestive of the human being. Such features not only +include their fingers, finger nails, toes and toe nails, +but even more their facial appearance. Many of these +monkeys look like diminutive old men. They snarl +and show their teeth when angry. Their way of indicating +displeasure is almost human. They make +certain expressive gestures, like nodding or tilting of +the head to one side in a quizzical or even pathetic +manner. They make plaintive cries or sounds, in some +cases almost like the notes of a bird, or they scream +out loudly in anger. All of these New World monkeys +are notable for one other reason. They do not make +any of those humorous grimaces that are so amusing +in the Old World monkeys. These latter manifest a +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_153">[Pg 153]</span>certain drollness in their constantly changing facial +expression.</p> + +<p>The Old World monkeys include about three quarters +of all living species. They are embraced in one +great family, but the members of this family show +many differences ranging from the huge dog-faced +baboon to the small bonnet monkey. Some of them +are gentle and affectionate, some are savage, pugnacious, +and treacherous. This entire family is spread +out over the hot or semitropical regions of the world. +Many of its members live in the damp, tropical +forests; others prefer rocky, almost barren country, +and a few seek their homes in temperate climates. +Some monkeys are found among the lower ranges of +the Himalayas and may be seen in the winters playing +among the branches of snow-laden trees. Two varieties +seem to have a surprising endurance in really +severe cold. They inhabit the elevated regions of +eastern Tibet.</p> + +<p>In picturing to ourselves the characteristics of a +monkey we are apt to have the conception of an +animal that can hold on and hang by its tail. None of +the Old World monkeys has this kind of tail. The +greatest number of them live in the trees, and the +tail, while generally short and stumpy, in some cases +is decorative and almost plume-like. Most of the +Old World tribes are especially interesting and amusing +because of a large elastic pouch in each cheek. +This pouch the monkey greedily crams with food in +his haste to get his meal into safe-keeping. When the +cheek pouches are filled both cheeks are bulged out +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_154">[Pg 154]</span>and give the animal somewhat the appearance of a +gourmand embarrassed by a mouthful of delicacies. +Later on, at his leisure, the monkey chews and swallows +the food.</p> + + +<h3 id="Baboons"> + <i>Baboons</i> +</h3> + +<p>By far the largest of the Old World monkeys are +the baboons. They may be recognized at once by +three characteristics. The head and face look much +more like those of a dog than is true of other monkeys. +They have long and dangerous fangs in the +upper and lower jaws. They go about, like most four-legged +animals, upon hands and feet which have +much the appearance of paws.</p> + +<p>Further acquaintance with the baboon shows him +to be a surly, unmannerly, savage, and thoroughly +undependable creature. All of his tribes have fleshy +pads over the buttocks, which in some cases are large +and brilliantly coloured. Some members of his clans, +such as the mandrill, have faces which look like gruesome +masks or hideously painted savages. The skin +over the nose is a fiery red, while the cheeks are swollen, +ribbed, and of a vivid blue colour. A beard of +golden hue hangs beneath the chin in contrast to the +dull olive drab of the body. Protruding over the lips +are savage canine teeth, long and dagger-like. These +baboons are about as large as a good-sized dog. The +colouring of the face adds considerably to the repulsive +unattractiveness of the animal. They run +along on their hands and feet, with their eyes directed +downward, so that they are obliged to elevate the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_155">[Pg 155]</span>large overhanging eyebrows in order to look upward +and forward. They go about with the palms of the +hand and soles of the feet laid flat upon the ground. +The mother is often seen walking or scampering +around with a young baboon clinging to her back. +Sometimes the mother will sit up on top of a rock +just like a human being. Her offspring often perches +on her neck after the fashion of a well-trained acrobat.</p> + +<p>All of these monkeys are gregarious. They travel +about in large numbers. Often as many as a hundred +individuals collect in one herd. Because of their aggressive +disposition, they are dangerous enemies, +especially when irritated or disturbed. Their long, +sharply pointed, canine teeth are capable of inflicting +severe wounds. Although they have no actual speech, +they utter certain sounds that seem to be thoroughly +understood by all members of the herd. There is +quite a variety in these sounds. Some of them resemble +barks, grunts, or even screams. Often they make +low and subdued murmurs with various inflections, +the meaning of which all the baboons seem to understand +immediately. Sometimes the slightest murmur +from one of the members of the herd will act as a +signal or warning. This is particularly true when the +baboons are out on an expedition of pillage or mischief. +On such occasions they always station a lookout or +outpost at some favourable point from which the +signal may be given upon the approach of danger. +The faintest murmur made by one of these lookouts +will start the marauding baboons scampering away to +safety.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_156">[Pg 156]</span></p> + + +<h3 id="Disposition_of_Baboons"> + <i>Disposition of Baboons</i> +</h3> + +<p>For the most part they live in rocky places near +ravines, crags, or hilly promontories where grass and +trees are scanty. Their favourite abodes are usually +places surrounded by wide plains. This kind of home +enables them to lie in wait for the right moment to +perpetrate some thieving expedition upon a garden +or field and at the same time to have every opportunity +of escape. They are much given to mischief of +this kind. Consequently they are feared and despised +by the inhabitants of the country which they infest. +If attacked, they often turn upon their pursuers and +inflict serious wounds upon their assailants. Some +baboons prefer to live in the dense forest and climb +readily about even in the tallest trees. Those that +live in more open country are very agile in clambering +among the rocks and are able to reach lofty +heights or positions of safety. The baboon eats a +little of everything, although its chief diet consists of +roots, fruits, reptiles, and insects. To procure their +food they are continually searching, turning over +stones beneath which the desired food may be concealed. +When young the baboon is often quite gentle +and affectionate, but with most of them this disposition +changes when they grow up. In captivity baboons +are surly and unfriendly. Even those born and reared +in captivity are more difficult to approach and teach +than other apes. They are vindictive and treacherous. +Their disagreeable dispositions accord well with their +unpleasant and often repulsive facial expressions. +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_157">[Pg 157]</span>Their savage reactions and lack of intelligence have +earned for them the reputation of being the lowest of +the Old World monkeys. Baboons seldom assume the +erect position for standing or walking. They do, however, +sit upon their haunches in a somewhat crouched +position, but not so freely as many other Old World +monkeys. They all live in Africa, with a slight extension +into Arabia. It is well that these animals never +grew to the size of the great apes, for had they done +so they certainly would have been among the most +dreaded and frightful creatures ever known on earth.</p> + +<p>Dr. Ditmars, who has spent much time in observing +monkeys, reports many interesting studies and experiments +concerning their behaviour. Apparently +the habit of throwing missiles when enraged is not +uncommon among baboons. Any angry monkey may +in its rage grasp and hurl an object such as a drinking +pan, but there is usually no accuracy in its aim or intention +in its act other than an expression of irritated feelings. +None of the monkeys has ever been known to use +a stick or a club in attacking others or defending itself. +Although the throwing of missiles is almost unknown +among monkeys, the baboon marks an exception. +As an instance, one day Dr. Ditmars found the visitors +to the ape house almost in a panic, due to the +savage behaviour of a big yellow baboon. A part of +the cement had fallen out of the wall of his cage and +broken up into sharp pieces. These pieces the baboon +was hurling at the visitors through the bars in a +most deliberately offensive manner and with effective +aim. The crowd in consequence had retreated to +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_158">[Pg 158]</span>various points of safety. Later a shovelful of coal +was placed in the cage of this same baboon. The +pieces of coal he also used as missiles, throwing them +with calculating aim at the keeper and other attendants. +The baboon seems to have an excellent throwing +arm, and Dr. Ditmars credits him with good control +and much speed. During this experiment a baboon +of a different species acted in precisely the same way. +In both of these animals their pitching capacity was +demonstrated without any previous practice or instruction, +and from these observations it would appear +that baboons are natural-born pitchers.</p> + + +<h3 id="Macacus_the_Indian_Monkey"> + <i>Macacus, the Indian Monkey</i> +</h3> + +<p>Another one of the Old World monkeys, the macacus, +shows a different side of the picture. He is more +friendly, more gentle, more full of fun, and forever +up to some sort of monkeyshines. Many of these +monkeys live in India. Mr. Kipling has described them +in his famous “Road Song of the Bandar-Log”:</p> + +<div class="poetry-container"> + <div class="poetry"> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="verse indent0">Jabber it quickly and all together!</div> + <div class="verse indent0">Excellent! Wonderful! Once again!</div> + <div class="verse indent0">Now we are talking just like men.</div> + <div class="verse indent4">Let’s pretend we are ... never mind,</div> + <div class="verse indent4"><i>Brother, thy tail hangs down behind!</i></div> + </div> + </div> +</div> + +<p>These monkeys have their homes throughout the +Indo-Malayan regions. They extend northward into +China and Japan and eastward into Tibet. The macaques +have a stout body and a proportionately large +head. There is considerable variation in the tail, which +ranges from a long, sweeping, plume-like appendage +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_159">[Pg 159]</span>with a tuft at the tip, as in the lion macaque, to +a thick, stubby tail much like that of a dog which +has been docked. The pigtail monkey has a curled +appendage. One of the macaques of Japan has a mere +stump, while the Barbary ape has no tail at all. The +macaques are the typical monkeys about which most +of the favourite stories concerning the ape kind have +had their origin. Their enormous cheek pouches, their +facial grimaces, and the motion of their lips make +them unusually fascinating to watch. They are extremely +noisy, jabbering most of the time. They +seem to have an extensive vocabulary of sounds, consisting +of shrill calls, grunts, low mutterings, barks, +chattering noises, and almost ear-splitting yells, +which they emit in moments of rage. They are playful +and quarrelsome, and these two phases of their behaviour +pass without sharp line one into the other. +They never become involved in serious combats because +they seldom remain at one thing long enough +to be effectual fighters. In their quarters at feeding +time they usually make a real pandemonium in their +frenzied efforts to stuff their cheek pouches as full +as they can. They have absolutely no consideration +or courtesy on these occasions. Their table manners +are not only rough but actually ruthless, and the most +delicious morsels go to the strongest. The weak, the +young, and the female obtain what is left or go without. +These monkeys are often docile and affectionate. +They make the most amusing kind of pets. No animal +is more mischievous or more destructive about a +home where there is anything within reach to break. +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_160">[Pg 160]</span>Sometimes when they grow up they develop the unpleasant +tendency of being too strictly a one-man +animal. To protect their owner against an imaginary +danger they will often attack strangers or visitors.</p> + + +<h3 id="Behaviour_of_Macacus"> + <i>Behaviour of Macacus</i> +</h3> + +<p>The head of the macaque is much less dog-shaped +than that of the baboon. The eyes are set closely together, +and the animal sits on its haunches a good +deal of the time holding its head upright, so that the +eyes are directed forward. Its posture in sitting is +quite human, while its attentive gaze gives the impression +that it is watching intelligently all that is +going on. Its nose is short and has a fairly good nasal +bridge. The lips are thin and the upper one is particularly +long. The hands and feet closely resemble human +hands, except that the palm is not so broad, the fingers +are longer, and the thumb shorter. In its movements +the macaque is remarkably deft. It changes from one +position to another with surprising swiftness. These +monkeys go about in herds, often of considerable size. +If captured young the animal is easily trained and +quickly learns many amusing tricks. It is full of +mischief and curiosity. Macacus monkeys frequently +become a nuisance in the neighbourhood of towns +where they live in large numbers. When full grown +they are sometimes quite ill tempered and often +savage even to the extent of attacking the inhabitants +without much provocation. For the most part +they live in cultivated tracts along the banks of +streams. They seem to seek rather than avoid the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_161">[Pg 161]</span>habitations of man. They manifest little fear for their +human neighbours and take a real delight in molesting +them by many annoying pranks. Sometimes their +attentions are vigorously resented and their human +neighbours turn upon them. Their behaviour on such +occasions is like that of tantalizing small boys who +take an almost idiotic delight in the vain efforts of +their pursuers to overtake them, and continue their +aggravating antics in order to prolong the excitement +of the futile pursuit. If one happens to be captured, a +number of them will turn back to take the part of the +unfortunate captive. In their native haunts they are +constantly on the move. Repose is totally foreign to +their daily programme. Scampering, swinging, chattering, +screaming, they go among the trees all day +long. Either their actions are without design, or else +their purpose changes so rapidly and frequently that +their behaviour has the appearance of ceaseless motion. +When together they are very quarrelsome, constantly +nagging or teasing each other, but here, as +in all of their activities, the object of their anger, +the victim of their jest, is as quickly shifted as their +fleeting attention. Having no fear of the water, they +are able to swim for long distances and greatly enjoy +it. They feed upon spiders and many other insects, +besides fruits and berries. As compared with the +baboon, they show a greater mental alertness.</p> + + +<h3 id="Mental_Tests"> + <i>Mental Tests</i> +</h3> + +<p>Considerable psychological study has been made +of the macaques, particularly concerning their ability +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_162">[Pg 162]</span>to learn and their mentality. Dr. Kinnaman, who +has made some of these studies, believes that they +have attained a higher level of intelligence than that +ascribed to the New World monkeys by Professor +Thorndike. He thinks there is some evidence that +the macaques have powers of reasoning, although of a +low order. Dr. Hobhouse agrees with this view and +adds that the macacus monkey seems to be possessed +of definite ideas. Professor Yerkes, after a longer and +more systematic study with experimental methods +better suited to the problem, agrees with Professor +Thorndike that the macacus may have a certain number +of limited ideas. It is clear to him also that there +are extreme differences in the mentality of different +species of monkeys. The slow process which they display +in the solution of problems is quite surprising, +in many instances being actually less rapid than in +some of the lower mammals.</p> + +<p>One question is certain to arise at this point: How +do the Old World monkeys compare in mentality +with lemur and tarsius and with the monkeys of the +New World? Perhaps the best answer to this question +may be obtained by watching the actions of these +different animals in their cages at the zoölogical +gardens. Looking at a lemur as he jumps about restlessly +among the supports of his cage, it is quickly +concluded that this animal, not unlike a diminutive +fox, is interesting only because of his remarkable +agility. Tarsius would probably not be found in most +zoölogical gardens because these animals do not survive +long in captivity. The marmosets would attract +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_163">[Pg 163]</span>little more attention than the lemurs, not only because +of their small size, but also because of their +lack of interesting reactions. Howling monkeys, +spider monkeys, and woolly monkeys are more interesting +because of the remarkable way in which +they use their tails like a fifth hand. Their facial +expression and their general behaviour, however, are +somewhat monotonous.</p> + +<p>The Old World monkeys, especially the macaques, +hold the attention and create a real interest. Here is +to be seen a busy world of jabbering, mischievous, +tricky, athletic monkeys whose antics easily rival the +best of human clowning. There can be no doubt that +these Old World monkeys are on a higher mental +plane than those of the New World. The main fault +to be found with them is that they never get anything +really done, except perhaps filling the pouches in +their cheeks just as full as they can. Even the grouchy +baboons show some signs of better mental powers +than the South American monkeys. They have a +thoroughgoing hostility for their human contemporaries +which they have never changed, and their +powers of organized banditry show a degree of mental +capacity that is foreign to the lower monkeys. This +capacity we should consider all the more noteworthy +because the baboon manifests a distinct tendency to +lose some of the benefits derived from living in the +trees. It almost seems as though, to a certain extent, +it had retrograded. This retrogression appears in +the fact that many of the baboon’s characteristics are +less ape-like and more dog-like than other Old World +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_164">[Pg 164]</span>monkeys and also because its hands and feet seem +to be specialized more in the direction of paws. Yet, +in spite of this backsliding on the part of the baboon, +the monkeys of the Old World are as a whole eminently +more efficient in their actions and capacities +than any of the New World monkeys, the lemurs or +tarsiers.</p> + + +<h3 id="Brains_of_the_Old_World_Monkeys"> + <i>Brains of the Old World Monkeys</i> +</h3> + +<p>A question may arise concerning the relation in +point of time which the Old World monkeys bear to +those of the New World. All of the evidence supplied +by fossils indicates that lemurs and tarsiers, as well +as the monkeys of South America and Central America, +came into existence long before those species +which inhabit Africa and Asia. According to most +reliable records, the monkeys had their start some +time early in the Age of Mammals. It is correct, therefore, +to look upon the Old World monkeys as a later +and higher stage of development in apedom. This +conclusion is borne out when we view the brains of the +macaque and the baboon. In this comparison we may +be able to detect many signs indicating improvements +in the brain; in fact, all doubts may be set at +rest concerning the superiority of Old World monkeys.</p> + +<p>If we look at the baboon’s brain we are impressed +by the fact that it has many more grooves and many +more convolutions than the brain of the South American +monkey. The convolutions and the grooves of the +brain indicate the amount of cell space which the +superbrain provides for developing brain power. +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_165">[Pg 165]</span>As between the baboon and the macaque, the difference +in this respect somewhat favours the former. This +difference is small and may perhaps be discounted +by the fact that in macacus the grooves have a slightly +more advanced arrangement in consequence of which +certain departments of the superbrain show more progressive +tendencies than in the baboon. This is particularly +true of the department of hearing (temporal +lobe) and the department of body and contact senses +(parietal lobe). Comparing the groove of Sylvius, +whose general angle furnishes such an important +standard in rating a brain, there is more of a backward +tilting seen in this groove of the macaque than +in the baboon. Such an inclination is characteristic +of higher races. The central groove appears to be +about on a par in both brains, and the ape groove is +likewise well developed both in the macaque and the +baboon. These three great boundary lines separate +the four major lobes of the superbrain. The department +of sight in the occipital lobe in macacus has no +real advantage over the corresponding area in the +baboon. As already noted, the departments of hearing +and of body and contact sense are better organized +and somewhat more expansive in macacus than in +baboon. But when we come to the preëminent part +of the superbrain, that portion in which the chief +executive function is located, namely, the frontal +lobe, the baboon actually seems to have some real +advantage. Recalling the ugly disposition and ferocious +nature of this animal, we may question why he +is superior in this highest part of his brain to the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_166">[Pg 166]</span>lively and humorous little macaque. It is unfortunate +that we have not as yet any good psychological studies +of the baboon by which we may compare him +with his more nimble associates. Doubtless it is the +disagreeable nature and uncompromising aversion +which the baboon has for mankind that make it so +difficult to estimate him psychologically. Yet there +may be something of an enviable consistency in the +baboon’s aversion to man that implies a better type +of mental power than one might infer from the jabbering, +ceaseless activities of the macacus and all of the +other bandar-logs. Some explanation of this sort must +at present suffice until we are possessed of better +standards for psychological comparison.</p> + +<p>The two important structures on the base of the +brain furnish a definite idea of an animal’s rating. +Accepting their evidence, it appears at once that the +bridge (<i>pons</i>) bears out our previous observations +concerning the powers of the superbrain. This evidence +gives the baboon a higher standing in intelligence +than the macacus. The value assigned to the +bridge in the baboon is .164, while in the macacus it is +.150. This contrast gives an interesting corroborative +estimate of the superior mental powers of the baboon. +From the figures indicating the relative size of the +pyramid, it would seem that the macacus is somewhat +more richly supplied in his variety of skillful movements +than the baboon. The figure in macacus is .147 +and baboon .143. While this is not a marked difference, +it seems to indicate an advantage probably +derived from the more nimble and acrobatic actions +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_167">[Pg 167]</span>of the macacus. This animal has acquired a more +highly efficient mastery of tree life as compared with +the more sluggish tendencies of baboons, most of +which prefer to live upon the ground and go about like +other four-legged animals. These contrasts between +the Old World monkeys are interesting for what they +show in themselves. They give rise to many questions +which we would be glad to see answered by more +exact and extensive study. The reasons why the baboon +or the macacus should be endowed with superior +qualities in one particular or another, or why there +should be corresponding improvements in the brain, +are not clear. There can be no doubt, however, that +in the Old World monkeys as a whole both behaviour +and brain are in many respects superior to the monkeys +of the New World. We cannot fail to discern +the special points of this superiority in the brain. +It seems impossible to avoid the conclusion that when +the Old World monkeys made their appearance they +definitely advanced the cause of progressive improvement +and that from this progress the brain profited +as much as or even more than any other part.</p> + +<p>Turning back for a moment to the brains of the +New World monkeys and comparing them with those +of the Old World group, we will find sufficient +evidence to convince us that the chief organ of the +body was surely on the way upward, and that the +first humble steps taken by the earliest members +of monkey kind had been supplemented by further +and bold advances.</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_168">[Pg 168]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_VIII"> + CHAPTER VIII + <br> + MANLIKE TENDENCIES + <br> + <span style="font-size: medium;">BRAINS OF GIBBON AND ORANG-OUTANG</span> + </h2> +</div> + + +<p>There is little about the Old World monkeys, either +in their mode of life or in their appearance, to inspire +respect or confidence. The savage fierceness of the +baboon, the mischievous nonsense of the macaque, +seem like flimsy foundations upon which to build a +race of intelligent human beings. When these animals +first made their appearance they were but vague +foreshadowers of what mankind might be. It is not +alone their form and structure that interests us; their +actions, habits, and behaviour must be carefully +studied at the same time.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Anthropoid_Gibbon"> + <i>The Anthropoid Gibbon</i> +</h3> + +<p>Had the human eye been able to observe all that +transpired in the early days of the monkey kind, it +would have been difficult to believe that a race of +men was in the making. It would have seemed incredible +that from these chattering, restless monkeys +change and modification could eventually bring forth +that development necessary for the human form. And +yet in the course of time changes of this kind did bring +into existence an ape which bore a much closer resemblance +to man. It was then possible to foresee how, +from this new kind of animal, certain human features +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_169">[Pg 169]</span>might be derived. This particular member of the ape +world is the gibbon. All of his tendencies make him +somewhat shy and inconspicuous. At the zoölogical +gardens he is generally sitting high up on a perch in +his cage with his long arms folded over his head, peering +quietly about him. His fur is usually dark, although +some members of his family are quite light in +colour. The most impressive thing about the gibbon +is the fact that he can stand up, walk, and run upon +two legs. This he does a little awkwardly, but not +unlike a human being. In a certain memorable moving +picture, an unusually interesting silvery gibbon +nearly usurped the rôle of leading man. His marvellous +feats earned for him universal applause, and +whenever he appeared he was the centre of attention. +Among its most stirring moments, this picture shows +a dramatic scene in which a great Indian elephant +whose young one has been captured demolishes the +dwelling of the jungle native who has trapped her +offspring. Shortly after the native with his wife and +children has escaped to safety, the gibbon emerges +cautiously from the wreckage of the home. Through +the darkness of the forest he discerns the glistening +eyes of a tiger that is about to spring upon him. +Realizing that retreat is cut off, he takes to flight. +In escaping he stands upright and runs like a man, +screaming in his fright in a thoroughly human manner. +Fortunately for the gibbon, the branch of a tree +comes opportunely in his path, and then, with a single +upward bound, he is off like a bird through the trees +to safety.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_170">[Pg 170]</span></p> + +<p>Gibbons are gentle, affectionate creatures. They +are also timid and at the first sign of danger hurry +away through the forest as far up in the trees as they +can go. The gibbon’s body and head are relatively +small, being only a little larger than some of the +smaller macaques. The animal’s legs are short and it +has no tail. A prominent feature is the exceptional +length of the forearm and of the fingers. The hand is +slender and longer than the foot. The female bears +one young at a time, which the mother carries under +her body, the young one clinging to the fur on her +chest with hands and feet. This burden does not +embarrass her in the slightest as she swings her way +from tree to tree through the forest. She makes as +good time in this transportation as the unincumbered +males.</p> + +<p>In the wild state the gibbons never leave the jungle, +and live for the most part throughout southern Asia +and the adjacent islands. A few of them venture from +the inland forests to the vicinity of the coast. All of +the gibbons are highly developed for life in the trees. +This specialization is important not only for the +effects it has had upon these apes but also for those +developments in them which were to be of subsequent +and substantial advantage to the rise of man.</p> + +<p>There are many different varieties of gibbons such +as the white-handed gibbon, the silvery gibbon, the +white-cheeked gibbon, the slender gibbon. The +animal that we shall consider is the hoolock gibbon +of India. He gets his name from a peculiar sound or +cry which he makes. If it were at all possible to imitate +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_171">[Pg 171]</span>this cry it might be expressed as “hooloo! hooloo! +hooloo!” Mr. Candler has studied this interesting +animal at close quarters, and his account of its habits +is well worth quoting:</p> + +<blockquote> +<p>The Hoolock swings along the thinnest part of a bough or +to the slender end of a bamboo, until it bends to its weight, then +with a swing and a sort of a kick-off he flies through the air +seizing another branch, and swinging along it with the accuracy +of a finished trapeze performer. I fancy he does very little walking +in the wild state, for I have never seen a wild Hoolock on the +ground. Moreover, they are only found in the dense jungle +where the ground is everywhere covered with tangled vegetation. +The Hoolocks are extremely shy and it is difficult to watch +them as they are concealed by leaves high up on the bamboo +clumps or tops of forest trees. The cry of the Hoolock is characteristic. +It is a very pleasing note, rising and falling in intensity, +and reminding one somewhat of a pack of beagles giving +tongue on a scent, which is waxing and waning in strength as a +larger or smaller number of the band join in the chorus. It is +heard chiefly in the early morning, then through all the heat of +the day there is silence, but towards evening as the sun sets you +may hear it again.</p> +</blockquote> + +<p>One might almost think that their early morning +cry was like a rising bell, and their cry toward evening +was their curfew.</p> + + +<h3 id="Manners_of_the_Gibbon"> + <i>Manners of the Gibbon</i> +</h3> + +<p>Gibbons live in fairly large communities. They are +constantly on the move. From what is known of their +intelligence it seems probable that their movements +are guided by definite plans. They even seem to have +some simple sort of governmental system. Tea planters +in India often keep these gibbons as pets for years. +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_172">[Pg 172]</span>They run about the compound quite freely. At times +they suddenly disappear and are gone for several +months. Eventually they return quite unconcerned, +as if nothing had occurred to interrupt their pleasant +human associations. For the most part the gibbon +is sociable. After he has become acquainted he will +often sit on the arm of a person’s chair at breakfast. +Whatever his appetite, he will never reach out for food +at the table, although his long arms give him much +advantage over his human host. Nor will he ever +snatch things off the table. His manners are above +reproach and he keeps himself scrupulously clean. +As the day is drawing to a close it is his habit to get +ready for the night. At sunset he settles down to sleep, +safely seated in the fork of a tree, usually with his +long arms over his head. He is never boisterous, mischievous, +or noisy. Oftentimes he seems to be more +in sympathy with children than with grown-ups.</p> + +<p>The diet of the gibbon includes a long list of foods, +such as fruits, leaves, and young shoots, spiders, +birds’ eggs, insects, and young birds. If captured +young the gibbon is readily tamed. He is never sulky +or ill tempered and shows marked intelligence both in +learning many tricks and adjusting himself to the +rules of the home.</p> + +<p>The locomotion of these animals among the trees is +totally different from that of the monkeys. The latter +climb about using both hands and feet. Gibbons +employ their arms almost exclusively, swinging from +branch to branch, with the legs tucked close to the +body. This is such an important change in the transportation +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_173">[Pg 173]</span>methods of apedom that we should give it +particular attention in order to note what effects it +had produced upon the gibbons themselves. In the +first place, swinging from one limb to another by the +hands greatly elongated the forearm and the fingers. +This kind of locomotion gives the gibbon the appearance +of taking tremendously long strides with his +arms. The right hand, first grasping a branch, permits +the animal to swing twelve or more feet to the next +branch which is grasped by the left hand. In the next +step the forward stride is taken by the right hand. +Thus the animal alternates the right and left hand +just as we alternate the right and left foot. It is +probably for this reason that the gibbons have been +called “tree walkers” (<i>Hylobates</i>).</p> + +<p>The second effect produced by this kind of swinging +locomotion, called brachiation, is even more decisive +in the final outcome. Transportation such as this +swinging by the hands drew the body more and more +into the upright position. It brought about many of +those fundamental changes which made it possible +for the gibbon to stand upright, walk, and run upon +two legs. Compared with other animals of this class, +the gibbon is the most two-legged of all the apes. He +walks rather quickly in the erect posture. His gait is +waddling, and if pursued he will make every effort +to reach some support by which he can swing himself +to safety. In walking he turns his leg and foot outward, +which gives him a bow-legged appearance, +added to which the shortness of his legs makes his +movements in walking and running far less graceful +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_174">[Pg 174]</span>than these acts ultimately came to be in their highest +exponent, man. Here undoubtedly may be discerned +important elements for the inception of human locomotion. +They appear in an animal which can stand, +walk, and run upright, and also possesses well-developed +hands.</p> + + +<h3 id="Gibbons_Resemblance_to_Man"> + <i>Gibbon’s Resemblance to Man</i> +</h3> + +<p>The gibbons are said sometimes to scoop up water +in the hollow of the hand in order to drink. At other +times they stretch out their long arms among the +foliage and lick off the dew which adheres to their +hair, in this way quenching their thirst.</p> + +<p>In view of these facts our estimate of the gibbon +may credit him with certain manlike traits. Yet his +resemblance to human beings, considering the animal +as a whole, is at best sketchy and vague. Casual +observation of the gibbon does not bring any clear +association with the human being at once to mind. +Only after watching him, after noting the manner in +which he gets about, after seeing him walk and run +on two legs, is it possible to recognize certain tendencies +which point in the human direction. It is for +this reason that the gibbon is said to represent a stage +preceding the manlike apes. Some students of this +question class the gibbon with these anthropoid apes. +It seems better judgment, however, to consider him +rather an animal showing dispositions which serve +as a starting point for the anthropoids. These tendencies, +as they are crystallized in the gibbon, represent +an introductory chapter in the history of all +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_175">[Pg 175]</span>those animals which later became notable because +they walked more or less upright and had the use of +hands. Thus the gibbon is often spoken of as pro-anthropoid. +He himself is a modern animal. One of +his venerable ancestors, very much like himself, +lived long ago—<i>Propliopithecus</i> of the Oligocene. +The descendants of this ancient extinct ape with the +long name, whose fossil remains have been found in +Egypt, followed two lines of development. One line +led up to the modern anthropoid apes and man, the +second to the modern gibbons. The first offshoot from +this line gave rise to a great ape which in many features +looks much more like man than does the gibbon. +This is the orang-outang. He is one of the big apes +seen in the large primate cages of the zoölogical +gardens. He may be recognized by the brownish-yellow +hair which covers his body, by his face which +bears a humorous caricatured resemblance to man, +and by the erect posture which he assumes much of +the time. Although he climbs about his cage and its +supports like a skillful acrobat, this manlike ape lacks +the grace and agility of the gibbon. He is wild and shy, +but possesses enormous strength, which makes him +more than a match for the most able-bodied man.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Orang-Outang"> + <i>The Orang-Outang</i> +</h3> + +<p>The orang lives in Borneo and Sumatra. He has +not been found elsewhere in the world. In his island +home he enjoys a deserved reputation because of his +prodigious strength. When full grown he stands a +little over four feet in height. He has a heavy body, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_176">[Pg 176]</span>short thick neck, receding forehead, thick lips, and a +face uncovered by hair. His muzzle protrudes to form +a thick and heavy upper jaw, with a large mouth +and large teeth. In the full-grown male the cheek +pouches become greatly enlarged, so that they look +like an old-fashioned ruff around the head. This feature +gives him a hideous and gruesome appearance. +The arms are long, reaching almost to the ankles +when the orang stands upright. The hands are long +and narrow, the thumb is short, the fingers are united +by webs at their bases. The legs are short in comparison +to the length of the body and considerably bowed. +The feet are long and narrow. The great toe is short, +but it can be used for grasping the branches. Fleshy +pads over the buttocks are present in the adult male, +but the orang has no tail. He is easily distinguished +from the other great apes by his bulging muzzle and +his light yellowish-brown hair. He seldom exceeds +four feet two inches when standing upright, but his +outstretched arms together measure nearly eight +feet from finger tip to finger tip. Some specimens +killed by hunters have been reported to stand five +feet three inches high.</p> + +<p>Among the first accurate accounts of the orang-outang’s +life is that of Alfred Russell Wallace appearing +in his famous book <i>The Malay Archipelago</i>, from +which the following description is an extract:</p> + +<blockquote> +<p>The orang has a wide distribution, inhabiting many districts +along the coast of the island [Borneo] where it appears chiefly +confined to the low swampy forests. It particularly affects a +country which is low and level with a few isolated mountains, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_177">[Pg 177]</span>on some of which the Dyaks have settled and planted many +fruit trees which are a great attraction to the orang, as his most +desirable food seems to be unripe fruit. The habitual habitat of +the animal is in the lofty virgin forests, in which they can roam +in every direction with as much facility as the Indian on the +prairie, passing from treetop to treetop without being obliged +to descend to the earth. The orang makes his way leisurely +through the forest, with remarkable ease. He walks deliberately +along the larger branches, in a semi-erect attitude which his +great length of arm and the shortness of his legs causes him +naturally to assume. But this proportion between his limbs +is increased by his walking on his knuckles and not on the palm +of his hand. He chooses those branches which intermingle with +those of an adjoining tree. In approaching these he stretches out +his long arms, seizing the neighboring bough with both hands +and then deliberately swings himself across to the next branch, +on which he walks along as before. He never jumps or springs +nor even appears to hurry himself, yet he manages to get along +almost as quickly as a person can run through the forest beneath. +The long powerful arms are of greatest use to the animal, as +they enable him to climb easily the highest trees, to seize fruit +and young leaves from slender boughs which will not bear his +weight and to gather leaves and branches from which to form +his nest at night. When wounded he endeavors to make a nest +in which to remain quiet, and similarly at night prepares a +resting place in the tree to sleep. He likes this place low down in +the tree, not over 20 or 30 feet from the ground, probably because +in this position it is warm and less exposed to the wind.</p> + +<p>The orang, it is said, makes a new nest for himself every night +or perhaps remakes an old one. In rainy weather the animal +covers himself with leaves or large ferns, and this may have led +to the belief that he actually builds huts in the trees. The animal +does not arise from his bed in the morning until the sun is well +up and has dried the dew upon the leaves. He seldom returns +to the same tree two days in succession.</p> + +<p>They have no particular fear of man, and only retreat slowly +after a considerable period of scrutinizing inspection. They do +not have so much of the gregarious tendencies as do the other +large apes. Two full-grown animals are seldom seen together, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_178">[Pg 178]</span>but males and females are sometimes accompanied by half-grown +young ones. At other times three or four young animals +are seen together. Their food consists almost exclusively of +fruits, leaves, buds and young shoots. They seem to prefer the +unripe fruit, even when very sour or intensely bitter, the red +fleshy arillus being a particular favorite. The orang rarely +descends to the ground except when pressed by hunger, when +it seeks the succulent shoots at the riverside. In very dry weather +it also comes down from the trees in quest of water, of which +it generally finds sufficient in the hollow of the leaves. They have +been seen upon the ground playing together, at which times +they assume the erect posture and grasp each other with their +arms.</p> +</blockquote> + +<p>Wallace believes that the orang seldom stands or +walks erect unless when using its hands to support +itself by the branches overhead, or when attacked. +He also thinks that the representations of it walking +with a stick are quite imaginary. In its general demeanour +the orang would impress one as dull and +apathetic. When seated among the branches its back +is bent, its head is bowed, and its long arms either +reach up to grasp a branch overhead or hang listlessly +by its sides. Some explorers have maintained that the +animal builds huts for itself in the trees. This is largely +an exaggeration, but the orang has developed an interesting +technique for building itself a nest in the +trees as night approaches. Small branches are first +laid crosswise to form a framework, and over this a +thick bed of leaves is placed. The orang is quite +fussy about the construction of its bedroom and takes +good care to cover itself up when the wind is chilly +or the night stormy. Even in captivity the animal is +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_179">[Pg 179]</span>particular about the details of its bedchamber and +always manages to cover itself with straw or newspapers +if it happens to find them in the cage.</p> + +<p>The orang has other constructive tendencies. He +often manifests some engineering skill in devising +supports for himself in his cage. With these he will +amuse himself by the hour, climbing upon the support, +dropping to the floor, and repeating the entire +performance time after time in as many different +ways as he can. In one instance a young male orang +found a long rope hanging from the roof of his cage. +He clung to the rope by his left hand and both feet. +With his free right hand he passed the end of the rope +around the bars, turned it through a right angle, and +pulled it tight. In this way he made an interesting +perch for himself. If anyone detached the rope he at +once replaced it and thus remade his perch.</p> + +<p>On the ground the orang is clumsy. He usually goes +on all fours, and his walking gait has been likened +to that of a very old man bent down by age, hobbling +along with the aid of a cane. It is interesting to note +that in walking he goes on the outer borders of his +feet. His stride is short and shuffling. Even when +hurrying he lopes along rather than runs. Unlike the +gibbons, the orang does not use his hand as a drinking +cup. His lower lip protrudes in a capacious trough +for collecting rain water. If given a pail of milk or +water the orang lifts the pail and pours the fluid into +this trough and then swallows it. When captured +young the animals can be trained and taught to obey +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_180">[Pg 180]</span>many words of command. In time they get over their +shyness and seem to like human companionship. +They are, however, easily frightened. Females when +pregnant separate themselves from the others and +remain more or less in seclusion until the young are +born. The offspring grow slowly and, like human +infants, require the care of their mothers for a long +time. When the mother moves about the young one +clings to the hair of her chest. This is a marked characteristic +of child care throughout the ape world.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Orang_in_Infancy"> + <i>The Orang in Infancy</i> +</h3> + +<p>Wallace recites an interesting experience which he +had with a baby orang whose mother was shot and +killed by him in the forest the preceding day. This +experience is especially interesting because of its +many human resemblances. When Wallace stooped +to pick up the helpless infant orang that lay sprawling +on its back, his long beard was immediately seized +by the grasping hands and feet of the youngster. +It was a long and painful ordeal to get away from +this clinging infant. The baby orang had but a single +tooth, but soon its milk teeth began to appear, much +as in a human infant. The lack of milk on the island +made it difficult to feed the young ape. When a finger +was placed in its mouth it would suck with great +vigour, drawing in its cheeks in a vain effort to extract +milk. After persevering for a long while it would +give up in disgust and start screaming, much as would +a human baby under similar circumstances. When +handled or nursed it was always quiet, but if laid +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_181">[Pg 181]</span>down by itself it would invariably cry. It enjoyed +being rubbed after its morning bath and was quite +happy while its hair was being combed and brushed.</p> + +<p>For the first few days it clung desperately by all +four hands to everything it could reach, and Wallace +remarks that it was necessary for him to be cautious +in keeping his beard out of the way. He felt that the +infant ape was lonely and needed companionship, so +a little harelipped monkey of the macacus variety was +obtained as a playmate. It was curious to see the +difference in the actions of these two animals, the +one an offspring of a humbler monkey, the other born +of one of the great manlike apes. The two young ones +were about the same age. The orang, just like a human +baby, would lie upon its back helplessly rolling +from side to side, stretching out all four hands into +the air and striving to grasp something, although +hardly able to guide its fingers to any desired object. +When dissatisfied it opened wide its almost toothless +mouth and expressed its discomfort in an infantile +scream. The little macacus monkey, on the other +hand, was constantly on the go, running and jumping +about, examining everything in sight, taking hold +of objects with greatest precision, balancing itself on +the edge of its box and searching everywhere for food. +There could scarcely be a greater contrast. One could +hardly escape the conclusion that in the orang, as in +man, a long period of slow growth is necessary for its +final development. The advantages of such growth +are sufficiently apparent and need no further comment.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_182">[Pg 182]</span></p> + + +<h3 id="Psychological_Tests"> + <i>Psychological Tests</i> +</h3> + +<p>The orang-outang has not yet been so extensively +subjected to psychological study as its more sociable +fellow ape, the chimpanzee. It is fortunate, however, +that at least one of this species has come under the +critical observation of an astute student of animal +behaviour, Professor Robert M. Yerkes, of Yale +University. In his notable contribution on the mental +life of monkeys and apes, Professor Yerkes has described +certain tests devised for estimating the intelligence +of lower animals, and applied to the partly +grown orang known as “Julius.” These tests were +devised on what is known as the “multiple choice +basis.” Julius, after many unsuccessful efforts to solve +his problems by the method of trial and error, quite +unexpectedly seemed to get the idea of what was +wanted. He suddenly responded to the test without a +single mistake. He seemed to solve his problem quite +as if he knew what it was all about. It took him a +long time, but at last he showed that he was capable +of some kind of thinking. The curve of learning as it +was charted day by day from the actions of Julius +indicated that if he had been a human subject his +mental process would possibly have been described +as rational. Professor Yerkes feels justified in concluding +from this evidence that the orang solves his +problems ideationally. In general, Julius appeared to +be far superior to other monkeys in his intelligence. +His mental processes were slow, but the method of +learning by ideas seemed to replace the simpler way +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_183">[Pg 183]</span>of trial and error which is common throughout the +monkey world. Julius persistently endeavoured, and +often vainly, to gain some insight into a situation. +Even though slow, he showed nevertheless that the +brain had at length attained the development necessary +for the production of real ideas. However questionable +this attainment may be in the monkeys or +in other lower animals, there seems to be little doubt +about its existence in the orang.</p> + + +<h3 id="Brains_of_the_Gibbon_and_Orang"> + <i>Brains of the Gibbon and Orang</i> +</h3> + +<p>Upon reviewing the facts concerning the gibbon +and the orang, we may ask certain questions. For +example, does the real progress which these two members +of the ape world show in their capacity to do +things manifest itself as a measurable difference in +their brains? Would it be possible to maintain that +these were indeed the brains of more capable and +more intelligent animals than the monkeys? Certain +features about the brain of the gibbon and the orang +are striking. In the first place, the pattern of their +convolutions is more complicated. The orang especially +has more grooves and convolutions upon the +surface of the superbrain. It is believed, and many +facts sustain the belief, that convolutions indicate in +a general way the capacity of an animal to develop +brain power. In the gibbon the increase in convolutions +is not so pronounced as in the orang, although it +is not difficult to see that in this respect the gibbon’s +brain is much improved when compared with lower +monkeys. Upon identifying the familiar landmarks, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_184">[Pg 184]</span>it is obvious that the groove of Sylvius, the central +groove, and even the ape groove form more decisive +boundaries and outline more prominent lobes than in +macaque or baboon. The superbrain departments +for sight (occipital lobe), for hearing (temporal lobe), +for body and contact senses (parietal lobe), are all +more extensive. Each lobe, by the presence in it of +smaller secondary grooves which do not appear in the +lower monkeys, shows how its capacity has expanded. +The grooves of the brain, in their arrangement, number, +and relations, now begin to assume an appearance +similar to that of the human brain. Each sense +department in the orang is well organized. Each has +gained in prominence, thus indicating how the senses +of sight and hearing, and body and contact senses, +have increased their capacity. By means of its amplified +sensory combinations the superbrain was eventually +capable of producing intelligent reactions. +The area in front of the central groove manifests the +chief improvement. This is the part of the brain in +contact with the frontal bone. It has made some advances +in the gibbon but is still more prominent in +the orang. At this stage it is possible to speak of a +well-developed frontal lobe acting as the headquarters +of all higher mental functions. The large increase in +the size of the orang’s brain is in some degree proportional +to the size of the animal’s body. Many other +factors have actuated this expansion and will receive +special consideration in a subsequent chapter.</p> + +<p>If it were possible to reduce the difference in intelligence +between the orang and the gibbon to actual +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_185">[Pg 185]</span>figures, the contrasts would be marked. Certain +estimations of this kind are significant. The bridge +(<i>pons Varolii</i>) on the base of the brain, which may be +regarded as an index of intelligence, has a value of +.200 in the gibbon and .300 in the orang. The pyramid, +indicating the degree of skill in movement attained +by the animal, as well as the degree of controlling +itself by the dictates of its will, also shows a considerable +difference. This difference is again in favour +of the orang, whose pyramid is estimated at .160, +while that of the gibbon is .138.</p> + +<p>Many other points indicating similar advantages +held by the orang over the gibbon might be cited. +They have the same general meaning, namely, that +the orang possesses a better brain. In fact, all of the +evidence gathered from this animal reveals many +manlike tendencies. Such tendencies, both in brain +and behaviour, first became notable in the gibbon. +At this stage they were not prominent features. They +were, so to speak, in a preparatory or pro-anthropoid +phase. In the orang those manlike tendencies foreshadowed +by the gibbon became more definite and +better developed. They formed the foundations for +new combinations out of which was to emerge a still +higher type of animal.</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_186">[Pg 186]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_IX"> + CHAPTER IX + <br> + HUMAN IN MINIATURE + <br> + <span style="font-size: medium;">THE BRAIN OF THE CHIMPANZEE</span> + </h2> +</div> + + +<p>The chimpanzee has a well-established reputation +for many sterling qualities. He is a comedian of no +mean talent, and often as a buoyant fun maker earns +a large salary. He is also famous as an acrobat.</p> + +<p>Depending upon his species, the chimpanzee varies +in height from four feet to four feet five inches. As a +class these apes are spread out over more territory +than any of the other great anthropoids. They live in +West and Central Equatorial Africa ranging from +Gambia in the north as far south as Angola. In colour +they are black with thick hair over the entire body, +except the brow and face. In some species the scalp +is bare, as in the bald-headed chimpanzee. All varieties +are powerful but lightly built animals. They +possess great strength and agility. In spite of his relatively +short stature, the chimpanzee is a dangerous +enemy even for the strongest man. His head is flattened +in the region of the forehead, which has a thick +bony ridge above the eyes. The ridge of the nose is +flat. The mouth is large and the lips thick. The ears +are especially large and project upward almost as +high as the vertex of the head. The lower jaw protrudes +considerably. The teeth in general are large +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_187">[Pg 187]</span>and formidable, the canines in particular being prominent. +The skin over the face is usually dark, but in +some species it is lighter than surrounding areas. +This is particularly true in the region of the mouth +and nose. The body is short and the abdomen pendulous. +The legs are shorter than the arms. The foot is +short with a great toe that is thick and opposable. +The other toes are united by a web near the base. +The arms are long, with finger tips reaching a considerable +distance below the knees when the animal +stands erect. The hands are broad, the thumb is +short, and the fingers webbed near their bases, as in +the case of the toes. As is true of the other great anthropoids, +the chimpanzee has no tail. The female +bears one young at a time, which she carries when +passing through the forest and along the ground in +the manner characteristic of other apes.</p> + + +<h3 id="Intelligence_of_the_Chimpanzee"> + <i>Intelligence of the Chimpanzee</i> +</h3> + +<p>Concerning the habits of the chimpanzee in its +native state little is known. Fortunately, many of +these animals have been captured when young. +Some of them have become noted circus performers, +or famous moving-picture actors. A number of them +have been studied from the standpoint of their behaviour +and psychology. One of the best records of +the chimpanzee comes to us as an echo of the Great +War. It furnishes another instance of German thoroughness +and scientific enterprise.</p> + +<p>Some years ago the Prussian Academy of Science +established at Teneriffe in the Canary Islands a +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_188">[Pg 188]</span>special station equipped for the study of the great +manlike apes. It was here that Professor Köhler +found himself during the Great War and here he remained +interned with nine chimpanzees for two years. +During this time he lived with these animals largely +shut off from the rest of the world by the naval +blockade. The report of his experience and studies is +given in a delightful narrative published both in English +and German called <i>The Mentality of Apes</i>. The +following descriptions of the chimpanzee are taken +from Professor Köhler’s book. In this work his chief +purpose was to test the intelligence of the larger manlike +apes. To this end it was necessary to devise certain +methods which he called “roundabout tests” +because they complicated ordinary situations in such +a way as to require intelligence on the part of the +animal for their solution.</p> + +<p>Early in the study one of the most quick-witted +chimpanzees in the collection was given the following +problem: From the roof of the animals’ playground a +basket of bananas was suspended by means of a +string passed through an iron ring. The end of this +string was tied in a noose and placed over the limb +of an old tree at a height of nine feet from the ground. +When all was ready, the chimpanzee called “Sultan” +was sent out into the playground. He, of course, was +familiar with this basket and associated it with feeding +time. On entering the enclosure Sultan saw the +basket at once and then began to manifest signs of +agitation because, contrary to custom, he was all +alone in the open. He began at once to show his feelings +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_189">[Pg 189]</span>in true chimpanzee style. Jumping about he expressed +his extreme disapproval at being alone by +making a thundering noise with his feet against the +wall of the ape house. It seemed as if he were calling +upon the other chimpanzees to come out and join +him. He even tried to get in communication with +the other animals by climbing up and looking in at +their windows. But all of this was to no avail. Presently +he appeared to take a renewed interest in the +bananas. He looked up at the basket, and having +sized up the situation made for the tree, climbed +quickly to the noose, pulled the string until the basket +bumped against the roof, released the string, pulled it +a second time even more vigorously, until a banana +fell to the ground. Sultan then left the tree, but soon +ascended once more, now to pull violently upon the +string until it broke and the entire basket fell. Immediately +he scampered down, took the basket, and +went off in a corner to eat the fruit. Thus Sultan, in a +comparatively brief time, solved this roundabout +problem by obtaining the objective in spite of the +obstacles put in his way.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Chimpanzees_Use_of_Implements"> + <i>The Chimpanzee’s Use of Implements</i> +</h3> + +<p>Many experiments were made to see how much the +chimpanzees make use of implements, but in the +main these experiments were not necessary. The +chimpanzee, as if by nature, handles many objects +in his immediate surroundings in a variety of ways. +His powerful hands serve in a most natural manner +as a useful link between him and the world of things +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_190">[Pg 190]</span>outside. His feet, although far more than a second pair +of hands, may be used in emergencies when the human +feet would be quite useless. The jaws and teeth +are also serviceable, and are employed as among +many African tribes and other primitive people. +The handling of everyday objects by the chimpanzee +comes almost entirely in the nature of play. Sometimes +under the pressure of need it appears that new +knowledge acquired from using objects at play will +be put to still better use in gaining some desired objective. +In the main, however, what the chimpanzee +may use in this way is without the slightest idea of +immediate gain and serves only to increase the joy +of living. Thus jumping with the aid of a stick or pole, +invented by one of the brightest chimpanzees, was +imitated by all the others as a means of entertainment. +Later it was put to more practical use for obtaining +food which was suspended above them and out +of reach. In order to get this food it was necessary +to resort to some means of lifting their body toward +the desired goal. In the end the jumping with a stick +in play was converted to a sort of pole vaulting by +means of which the chimpanzees all acquired a +thoroughly businesslike method for getting such food +as was out of reach over their heads. These chimps +also used straws and twigs as we use spoons. At first +this was more or less in play during mealtime, especially +after their first thirst had been quenched. +Then they liked to amuse themselves by dipping the +water up with a straw and sucking the straw. Once +some red wine was poured into the drinking water +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_191">[Pg 191]</span>which they shared in common. At the first taste of +this new mixture they all paused for a moment and +looked at each other; then one of the chimpanzees +began to spoon up this wonderful drink with a straw, +and all the others immediately followed his example. +In learning to use twigs and straws for spoons there +was no possibility of imitation. None of the chimpanzees +had a chance of seeing a human being use a +knife or spoon while eating. The twig or stick was also +employed quite deftly in other ways, adding to its +usefulness as a table utensil some of the properties of +a weapon for the chase. In the summer time a species +of ant infests the part of the Canary Islands where +these great apes were housed. These ants passed in a +wide stream, moving along over the beams, around a +wire netting which encircled the playground. The +chimpanzee has a great liking for acid fruit, which he +prefers to all others. It is no doubt for this reason +that he relishes the formic acid in the ants. Usually +upon seeing the ants the chimpanzee simply rolled +his tongue along a beam over which they were crawling +and thus gathered them in to himself. If the wire +netting came between him and this coveted delicacy, +such a method of capture would not suffice. In consequence, +all of the chimpanzees soon learned to +use sticks and straws, which they thrust through the +wire netting and held in this position until covered +by ants. The straws were then withdrawn, and the +insects promptly licked off and devoured. This +method of capture proved most satisfactory and entertaining. +Their attention was entirely absorbed in +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_192">[Pg 192]</span>the process of overcoming the obstacle between them +and the delicate morsels which they craved.</p> + + +<h3 id="Strong_Human_Resemblances"> + <i>Strong Human Resemblances</i> +</h3> + +<p>If a mouse, a lizard, or some small crawling animal +entered the playground, the chimpanzees at once +became greatly excited. They manifested all of the +hunting interest apparent in the human species under +like circumstances. There was also evidence of fear +and timidity on these occasions, not, however, confined +to the female alone. Even the bolder chimpanzees +that evinced the greatest hunting interest did +not give chase with any creditable show of courage. +They manifested caution and hesitation throughout +the entire performance. Nearly every movement on +the part of the poor quarry was followed by nervous +gestures of the chimps. The largest ones hesitated to +make a capture by a sudden snatch with the naked +hand. It was amusing and almost laughable to see +these powerful apes stretch out their hands with the +evident intention of catching the prey, with fingers +all pointed in anticipation, then suddenly, on the +slightest movement of the mouse or lizard, quickly +withdraw the hand again. A firm grasp upon one of +these little wriggling animals appeared almost as +impossible for the chimpanzees as for many people. +Despite the great excitement which the presence of +invaders occasioned, the little animals would often +escape because the chimpanzees lacked that last degree +of daring necessary to make a successful capture. +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_193">[Pg 193]</span>Presently they learned to use sticks upon the +small intruders of their domain. With these weapons, +if the victim did not escape, they would at length +dispatch it. This they did in no spirit of cruelty but +rather in sheer excitement of the chase.</p> + +<p>Professor Köhler took great pains to observe the +rapidity with which the chimpanzees adjusted themselves +when confronted by new conditions for the +first time in their lives. One of the most striking +tests of this kind was their introduction to the electric +current. It was decided to observe how the chimpanzees +would act when they made the acquaintance +of this entirely new circumstance. For this purpose +one wire from an electric induction coil was attached +to a metal basket filled with bananas and suspended +from the roof. The other wire from the battery was +made fast to a metal netting upon the ground beneath +the basket. In a short time all of the chimpanzees +became intensely interested in the fruit above their +heads. They were particularly eager to reach the +bananas. To do so it was necessary for them to stand +upon the wire netting on the ground. At first one +chimpanzee approached cautiously. Having taken +up his position with both feet upon the wire netting, +he reached slowly up to the metal basket. This of +course immediately made a connection which delivered +an electric current through his hand. The reaction +of the chimpanzee was astonishingly human. +Immediately upon touching the basket he felt the +shock of the current and with a cry of dismay bounded +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_194">[Pg 194]</span>off in great surprise. His curiosity, however, was not +yet satisfied. He still had a hungry longing for the +bananas. Everything about the situation looked +thoroughly familiar and innocent to him. He could +see no reason why the basket on this occasion should +treat him so rudely or why he experienced such an +unpleasant sensation in trying to get his food as he +had done a hundred times before. Appetite and curiosity +finally got the upper hand, and stealing up +cautiously he made a second attempt. This time he +was less hasty in grasping the basket and spent +several moments in hesitating attempts to touch it, +drawing his hand back now and again. At length, with +a sudden grasp, he reached for the goal, only to +receive another shock. In apparent indignation he +hopped away in much the same manner as might any +human being who had inadvertently touched a hot +stove. Nothing would do, however, but that all of +the chimpanzees in turn should follow the example +of their leader and try to get the bananas away from +this strange thing that seemed to be outwitting them. +One after another they made their futile attempts +until it became a pathetic sight to see them sitting +around in a mournful ring, sometimes looking at their +hands, sometimes shaking them resentfully, and always +gazing wistfully at the inaccessible delicacies. +Most of the chimpanzees during this test reacted in +a manner which might easily be called human. It was +rather impressive to observe that all of their reactions +under these conditions were actual counterparts of +human behaviour.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_195">[Pg 195]</span></p> + + +<h3 id="Chimpanzee_Sports_and_Nest_Making"> + <i>Chimpanzee Sports and Nest Making</i> +</h3> + +<p>In handling other objects the chimpanzees showed +a strong tendency to develop new habits. After a +time they did not confine themselves alone to thrusting +and hitting with sticks. They soon began to +throw them around. In moments when they were +greatly pleased (and chimpanzees have a joyful, +buoyant nature) they showed their delight in a new +way, especially when very good food was being provided. +On such occasions one of them would seize +another and shake him violently out of sheer pleasure +and approval. Under such provocation a large chimpanzee +developed the habit of taking a stick and +flinging it forcefully at some comrade in his vicinity. +This frequently happened in play also. One female, a +remarkable athlete called “Chica,” developed the +amusing pastime of stealing up behind her companions +as they sat quietly at rest, and from fairly close +quarters hurling a stick at them. Immediately she +would scurry off, apparently much delighted by the +discomfort that she had caused. From throwing +sticks it was but a short step to throwing handfuls +of sand at one another, and finally stones of varied +size and weight. At first their aim was poor, but soon +throwing stones became a ruling passion among them, +and some of them became dangerously expert, especially +the wily Chica. She practised so continuously +that she soon acquired great skill and an excellent +aim. From this pastime she appeared to derive much +satisfaction, whether hurling stones at her fellow +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_196">[Pg 196]</span>apes or at her human associates. Both ape and man +acquired such a genuine respect for her ability in +this regard that whenever they found her in this +mood they quickly retired to safety and permitted +the expert marksman to find her amusement on less +sensitive targets. All of these hurling activities, which +were in the nature of play, might for a few moments +determine an exciting stone battle. But the sharpshooting +Chica was so obviously superior that the +fray was certain to be short lived.</p> + +<p>Almost all of the chimpanzees made nests for themselves, +even from the earliest infancy onward. In +these operations, as might be expected, the full-grown +chimpanzee made the best beds. It may not be +altogether clear why the adult female was the best +chambermaid of all. Her efforts in bed making did in +fact show a precision in tidiness that was unequalled +by any of the others. Usually in the evening, as the +strenuous play of the day subsided, all of the apes +began to gather heaps of straw. In the centre of each +heap a chimpanzee would sit quietly and begin to +twist the ends of the straw together. This work continued +all around the edge until a natural nest, not +unlike that of the stork, was formed. The younger +animals in their nest making were less exact. They +seldom made so neat a turning down of the outer +edges, but on some occasions, when they apparently +took more pains with their handiwork, their movements +during the preparation of the nest were exactly +like those of the older females. Nests were often +made during the day in pure fun, and many different +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_197">[Pg 197]</span>materials, such as string, grass, branches, rags, ropes, +and even wire, were collected for this purpose. It was +quite evident that in their nest-making activities +the younger chimpanzees imitated the actions of the +older ones.</p> + + +<h3 id="Clowning_and_Masquerade"> + <i>Clowning and Masquerade</i> +</h3> + +<p>Objects of many kinds interested these apes. They +seemed particularly fond of carrying quite a variety +of rubbish about on the body in one way or another. +Nearly every day some of the animals began walking +around the playground with a piece of rope, a bit of +rag, a blade of grass, or a twig upon the shoulders. +Some of them if given a bit of metal chain would put +it proudly around their necks like a necklace. Bushes +and brambles were often carried in considerable +quantities spread out over the entire back. In these +actions they affected a manner that revealed tendencies +familiar to human masquerading in grotesque +or fantastic costumes. One of the chimpanzees contracted +the habit of carrying around empty preserve +cans by grasping the lid of the can between his +teeth. All of this occupation was done as diversion or +entertainment, from which the chimpanzees derived +much visible pleasure. The clowning actions of these +apes clearly held the attention of those not actively +participating in the performances, and many of them, +like little children, attempted to imitate the antics of +the leader. When dressed up in these various ways +the chimpanzees often displayed an almost impish +self-important audacity, strutting about among their +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_198">[Pg 198]</span>companions or advancing upon them in a menacing +way. One of the older females, attired for play, would +trot around in a circle with several of the smaller +animals following closely at her heels. Sometimes the +entire company playing in this fashion would march +around in a circle, one behind the other. The largest +animal would stamp its foot at each step, as though +beating time for the parade. The other animals followed +suit by an accentuation of the marching movements.</p> + + +<h3 id="Manufacture_and_Building"> + <i>Manufacture and Building</i> +</h3> + +<p>Not only did the chimpanzees acquire many ways +for employing objects which they encountered, but +some of them actually went one step farther. They +manifested a degree of ingenuity in constructing special +implements for themselves. The results of this +constructive industry, it must be admitted, were relatively +simple. On the other hand, there can be no +doubt that the chimpanzee does manufacture instruments, +in a modest way, which help him to gain +his ends. One of the most talented apes learned to +fit a small piece of bamboo into the cavity at the +end of a larger piece. In this way he built a long bamboo +pole, which was especially useful for procuring +food hung above his head and out of reach. All of the +chimpanzees ultimately developed some degree of +constructive or engineering ability. They actually became +builders on a small scale. This ability grew out +of their learning to use boxes in order to reach objects +over their heads. Using one box led to the advantage +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_199">[Pg 199]</span>of piling one box on top of another and thus constructing +a tower. They were not all equally expert as +builders. As might be expected, the more quick-witted +and alert members of the group learned how to +build first, and this they did entirely of their own +initiative. After they had built a tower of this kind, +the long bamboo stick came in handy as a means to +bring the suspended banana to the ground. Here two +modes of solving a problem were combined—that of +building, and that of using the long pole. Building +operations soon became a favourite pastime; yet in +spite of the fact that they were given every opportunity +they never developed an efficient labour organization. +However helpful united efforts may have been +toward their ultimate aim, the chimpanzees failed to +realize the advantages of a mutual aid society. There +was doubtless a reason for their lack of intelligence +in developing higher efficiency in this respect. Almost +invariably their building operations were dictated by +a desire to obtain food that was out of their reach. +Among the chimpanzees this goal was in no sense a +mutual interest. It was a matter of the utmost selfish +concern to each chimpanzee. So whatever advantage +there might have been in a division of labour, there +was never a thought of dividing the spoils. When the +chimpanzees gravely assembled in the presence of a +basket of food hung up over their heads, they gazed +about for proper materials to use as tools in reaching +the desired goal. One would bring a pole; another +would drag up a box. These were put in position preparatory +to constructing a tower. The building +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_200">[Pg 200]</span>would then begin in earnest. When the first stages of +construction were complete several of the animals +at the same time would show great impatience to +clamber up. Each one of them acted as if either he or +she were the sole proprietor of the structure. Often, +too, the box already in position would be snatched +away by some competitive group in the building industry +and dragged off to be used in the construction +of a rival tower. This would usually result in a wrangle +among the architects. In fact, the entire company +of builders might come to blows over this infringement +of property rights. After the subsidence of these +Babel-like controversies the building would be resumed +and the structure would continue to grow in +height until it became an object of ever-increasing +excitement to the assembled workers, each manifesting +a keen desire to mount it. In consequence of this +highly individualistic competition and due to their +restless efforts, the tower would sometimes tumble +over and the result of their labours be destroyed. +Then it was necessary to begin all over again. Usually +in this renewed effort only the more diligent and +patient of the chimpanzees adhered to the original +purpose. The others became interested in more trivial +occupations. Eventually the tower was finished, and +the more diligent as well as the more patient of the +toilers quietly mounted to the summit of the structure +and, either with or without the aid of the pole, obtained +the coveted bananas. Sometimes, however, +just when the diligent one was ready to reap the just +reward of his efforts, some member of the group endowed +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_201">[Pg 201]</span>with unusual athletic prowess rushed up +stealthily and with great speed to the top of the tower +and seized the prize before the rightful winner had +time to protest or retaliate. In all of this building enterprise +there is something so fundamentally human, +so reminiscent of modern methods, that it seems inaccurate +to class these reactions too rigidly in the +category of ape behaviour.</p> + + +<h3 id="Emotions_of_the_Chimpanzee"> + <i>Emotions of the Chimpanzee</i> +</h3> + +<p>The chimpanzee, according to Professor Köhler, +has a range of expression of emotion even greater +than that of the average human being. The chimp +shows his feelings by his entire body, not merely +by his facial expressions. It is his custom to jump up +and down both in joyful anticipation and in anger or +annoyance. In extreme despair or disgust, which +the animal shows on slight provocation, he has the +habit of flinging himself upon his back, rolling wildly +to and fro, swinging and waving his arms about his +head in a frantic manner not, on the whole, very +different from the way in which some non-European +races manifest their disappointment and dejection. +The chimpanzee is not known to weep, nor does he +laugh in quite the human sense of the term. There is +something approaching human laughter in his rhythmical +gasping and grunting when he is tickled. While +quietly watching objects that seem particularly +pleasing (and his greatest delight comes from observing +little children) the face of the chimpanzee, especially +around the mouth, has an expression not unlike +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_202">[Pg 202]</span>a human smile. When perplexed or in doubt, he has +a way of scratching the surface of his body, especially +the arms, breast, or upper portions of the thigh. It +has not been stated that during these moments of +perplexity he scratches the head, as is the common +human custom. He conveys his meaning not only of +emotional distaste but also of definite desires. The +expression of his wishes is in large part shown by +direct imitation of the actions desired. Thus, when +one chimp wishes to be accompanied by another, he +gives the latter a nudge and pulls him by the hand. +If one chimpanzee wishes to receive bananas from +another, he imitates the movement of snatching +or grasping accompanied by pleading glances. The +summoning of another chimpanzee from a considerable +distance is often accompanied by a beckoning +that is very human in character. Their many actions +in all instances are characteristic enough to be understood +by their comrades.</p> + + +<h3 id="Surgical_Interests"> + <i>Surgical Interests</i> +</h3> + +<p>The chimpanzee is especially prone to pay close +attention to the wounds or injuries received by his +fellows. The motive of this attention may scarcely +be called mutual aid. The removal of splinters from +each other’s hands and feet is a favourite clinical +operation. In this pursuit the chimpanzee employs +methods usually in vogue among the human laity. +Two finger nails are pressed on either side of the splinter, +which is thus elevated until it may be caught and +removed by the teeth. Professor Köhler himself, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_203">[Pg 203]</span>once having suffered from such an accident, ventured +to allow one of the chimpanzees to remove the splinter +from his hand. On perceiving the condition, the chimpanzee’s +face at once assumed an expression of eager +intensity, and his attention became concentrated in +preparation for his surgical efforts. He seized the +hand, examined the wound, forced out the splinter +with two somewhat powerful squeezes of his finger +nails, and then closely examined the hand to be satisfied +that his work was well done.</p> + + +<h3 id="Morals_Among_Chimpanzees"> + <i>Morals Among Chimpanzees</i> +</h3> + +<p>There is much of interest in the experiences of +another distinguished observer, Dr. Charles F. +Sonntag, formerly Prosector of the Zoölogical Society +of London, who has called attention to the fact that +the chimpanzee is said to be filthy in its habits. +He observed that many of these animals in captivity +do not manifest such traits, nor do they +show any tendency toward immoral behaviour as +has been claimed. It seems unfortunate even to imply +that such a delinquency as immorality exists among +chimpanzees or, for that matter, any of the lower +mammals. But since the point has been raised, it may +be well to recall that morals are of human making. +They are designed to modify, to restrain, or to prevent +the development of certain animal tendencies which +are a human heritage from the great animal kingdom. +If the chimpanzee in any of its actions tends to depart +from the code of morality established by man in one +part of the world or another, this can be no reproach +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_204">[Pg 204]</span>to the ape, since man himself has not yet been completely +successful in building up a system of restrictive +laws to protect himself from the devastations of +his own animal inheritance.</p> + +<p>Professor Köhler, from his long studies of the chimpanzees, +concluded that these apes manifest intelligent +behaviour of a general kind familiar in human +beings. Not all of their intelligent acts are similar to +human acts, but by means of well-chosen tests the +character of intelligent conduct can always be traced +in the chimpanzee. These apes differ among themselves +just as much as people do, in their mentality +and intelligence. Some of them may be mentally +deficient, just as there are mentally deficient human +beings. One remark of Professor Köhler’s is a keen +social criticism with a wide application to life in general. +He maintains that the tests designed for the +chimpanzee serve two purposes: First, they determine +the intelligence of the apes; and, second, they test +the intelligence of the examiner. This is eminently +true in all intellectual contacts between human +beings. It is a fact that the chimpanzees stand out +among all other animals in their form, in their actions, +and in their understanding. In these respects they +come much closer to the human standard than any +other ape, with the possible exception of the gorilla. +All of these observations agree well with the theory +of evolution, and in particular with the close relations +existing between the growth of intelligence and the +development of the brain.</p> + +<p>Many other chimpanzees have been studied from +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_205">[Pg 205]</span>time to time. The conclusions drawn from them have +been closely similar to those already cited. Romanes +some years ago studied the trained chimpanzee, +Sally, which was famous for her high degree of intelligence. +Under training this animal acquired the ability +to count. She could draw a number of straws to six +or seven, and upon request would indicate with +straws the exact number she had been instructed +to show. This achievement, in combination with +many other extraordinary performances, reveals certain +striking likenesses to man, particularly as to the +degree of the chimpanzee’s power to learn.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Chimpanzees_Social_Traits"> + <i>The Chimpanzee’s Social Traits</i> +</h3> + +<p>Others besides Professor Köhler are willing to give +the chimpanzee credit for unusual good-fellowship. +All admit that he is a most friendly creature. Often +an affectionate attachment exists between him and +his owner or keeper. He is never loath to indulge in +his clowning performances to please and entertain his +human friends. His actions on these occasions have +doubtless been the models for the ludicrous mimicry +of olden times now generally referred to as “aping.” +In many of the army encampments in Africa, monkeys +and apes have been the much-prized pets of the +officers. It was not uncommon to find among these +pets the highly sociable chimpanzee. Frequently the +officers manifested much zeal and interest in training +their charges and felt a real pride in exhibiting them. +Sometimes on gala occasions these simian pets occupied +places at the table beside their owners. They +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_206">[Pg 206]</span>partook in most approved style both of food and of +drink. Not a few of them have shown a distinctly +human characteristic in their strong liking for intoxicating +liquors. The chimpanzee has always had a decided +penchant in this direction. At mess dinners +and on other occasions he not only manifested a keen +liking for good wines but took his share with the rest. +Often he, like his human companions, rose to hilarious +heights. Often, too, it was necessary to lead him off to +bed in such a deplorable condition that he would +appear next morning with a shaky hand on his brow +and that sad expression which plainly told the consequences +of festive revelry. One of these chimpanzees +had a particular fondness for afternoon tea and would +join the officers’ group at this time as a matter of +course. His manners were altogether agreeable. He +acquired all of the airs essential to such occasions +even to certain banal chatterings.</p> + + +<h3 id="In_Prophecy_of_the_Human_Brain"> + <i>In Prophecy of the Human Brain</i> +</h3> + +<p>If doubts should remain concerning the superior +and almost manlike capacities of the chimpanzee, +these may be soon put at rest by inspection of his +brain. In this organ there are indications of the means +by which the chimpanzee has acquired his new and +extensive powers of learning, his greater understanding, +his higher capacity for adjustments to life, and +his many reactions which are so nearly human.</p> + +<p>Every sense department in the superbrain has +shown pronounced improvements. A survey of the +chimpanzee’s brain shows it to be a mechanism better +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_207">[Pg 207]</span>organized for the purposes of efficient output than +that of other apes and monkeys. It is a larger brain. +It also has a greater richness in grooves and convolutions +showing that its capacity for developing brain +power has been much increased. The groove of Sylvius +has been tipped backward in consequence of expansions +in the department of hearing and the department +of body and contact senses. In the department +of hearing (the temporal lobe) the convolutions are +more complex than in any other lower apes or monkeys. +In fact, the entire pattern of coil arrangement +in this part of the superbrain is similar to that seen +in man. It has, perhaps, a simpler design, but the +essential features of the pattern may all be identified. +In the department of sight the same principle of expansion +has been at work. The convolutions in the +occipital lobe have increased both in number and +complexity of arrangement. There are more grooves +and more convolutions in this region than we have yet +encountered. Such also is the case in the department +for body and contact senses (the parietal lobe), in +which the grooves and convolutions manifest an +arrangement identical to that of man. The lesser +brain, lying as it does tucked away beneath the occipital +pole of the superbrain, also shows marked increase +in size, so that the subsidiary department +essential to postures of the limbs and body, and also +to balance, has kept pace with the superbrain. Appraised +on the value of its great working departments, +a brain like this reveals the manner in which +progressive development has advanced.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_208">[Pg 208]</span></p> + +<p>The organization for transacting the functions of +hearing has been greatly improved, if we judge by +the enlargement of the temporal lobe. Furthermore, +it appears that certain sub-departments for handling +these transactions have been established. They doubtless +have to do with a better filing system for auditory +impressions and especially for correlating the impressions +of things heard with similar records of things +seen. This method of cross reference produces a better +understanding of all objects encountered in the surroundings. +A practical illustration may assist in +visualizing the manner in which such associations +operate. If in their home life the chimpanzees are +suddenly startled by the report of a gun, which they +have never heard before, the entire family may be +greatly perturbed by the harsh and unfamiliar sound. +The sound alone might be startling and disagreeable, +but the sound cross referenced by the sight of the +hunter and gun comes to mean peril. Instances of this +kind might be multiplied to show how essential to +success in life this system of cross reference is. In fact, +it is the amplification of this system that underlies +our progress as individuals or as a race. The structural +signs of this progress are to be found in the region of +the brain that we have been discussing. We may +recognize them in the increased number of convolutions +which provide for better development of brain +power. Equally pronounced are the advances that +have taken place in the organization of body and +contact senses. This department lies immediately +above the Sylvian groove in the parietal lobe. It receives +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_209">[Pg 209]</span>all communications transmitted from the outside +world by the sense of touch and by the various +movements of the body. The convolutions in this +region indicate a highly organized department which +we might expect in view of the remarkable performances +of the chimpanzee. Walking a tight rope, eating +his food with a certain degree of good manners, drilling +to music, or driving an automobile, the chimpanzee +clearly demonstrates how expert he has +become in the use of his hands and feet. His cleverness +depends upon his ability to sense the things he +touches and to appreciate the finest grades of motion +made by his arms and legs. In addition to this high +degree of sensing in his hands, he has also acquired +greater capacity for appreciating movements and +postures of his entire body. Unless the chimpanzee +had this expanded department for body and touch +senses, it would be impossible for him to learn many +of the performances which he does so skillfully. He +also would be unable to apply this skill under the +direction of his masters or according to the dictates +of his own wishes. It is not difficult to understand, +therefore, why all the great departments of the senses +have increased so much in size in the chimpanzee. +Obviously, by amplifying and refining the raw materials +received as sense impressions, the output seen +in the chimpanzee’s behaviour has been correspondingly +amplified and extended. The significance of +growth in the parietal, the occipital, and the temporal +lobes in this light becomes clear.</p> + +<p>One important detail in the superbrain of the chimpanzee +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_210">[Pg 210]</span>we have not yet considered. It will be recalled +that the central groove is one of the salient landmarks +in the brain. Its outstanding importance arises from +the fact that it is the boundary line of the frontal +lobe. All of the territory lying in front of this groove +represents the last acquired department of the superbrain, +the one having the highest authority. It is here +that all of the highest brain functions are located. +Judgment and reason are included in this list. But +to these should be added the ability to profit by +experience in the better guidance of life, the upbuilding +of personality, and the proper adjustment in all +courses of action requiring initiative, insight, restraint, +and self-control; and, finally, recognition of +responsibility and appreciation of opportunity.</p> + +<p>The frontal territory in the chimpanzee is more +extensive than in the orang or any other of the lower +apes. It shows an additional amount of convolution. +The frontal coils for producing the brain power of +this highest department have attained a development +not far below that of man. The counterpart of each +human convolution is present, the only difference +being that each individual convolution in the chimpanzee +is less complex than in man. These facts about +the frontal lobe, which we must regard as the permanent +headquarters of the chief executive of the superbrain, +are in harmony with what Professor Köhler +and other students of animal psychology have told +us about the chimpanzee’s intelligence. Man’s frontal +lobe is a highly complex facsimile of the chimpanzee’s, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_211">[Pg 211]</span>just as human intelligence is a more complex development +of the higher mental powers.</p> + +<p>These improvements in the superbrain are borne +out by both the bridge and the pyramid. The bridge, +recognized as a reliable index of intelligence, has the +value of .400 in the chimpanzee, a rating much above +the orang or any of the lower apes already considered. +The pyramid also shows a corresponding increase, +having a value of .172, and thus indicating a greater +development in skilled acts and in the voluntary control +over the actions of the body. These two structures +show that the superbrain has, in fact, become +a more efficient governor for the guidance of a larger, +a more complex, and a more effective machine. Every +detail in the brain of chimpanzee clearly demonstrates +the marked advance that has been made in the steady +upward climb. We are able to identify all of the chief +features characteristic of the human brain.</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_212">[Pg 212]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_X"> + CHAPTER X + <br> + ALMOST HUMAN + <br> + <span style="font-size: medium;">THE BRAIN OF THE GORILLA</span> + </h2> +</div> + + +<p>The largest member of the ape world is the gorilla. +There is much dispute to-day concerning the place +he occupies in relation to man, and also as to what +rating his intelligence deserves. Neither of these +questions can be settled at present. His case, in fact, +requires much more study than has yet been given +to it. Recently the gorilla has been befriended by +several famous African explorers like the Bradleys +and the late Mr. Carl Akeley. They have given him +a rather favourable recommendation as an inoffensive +and retiring animal. In spite of this vindication, however, +most persons who have any acquaintance with +him regard the gorilla as a dangerous, savage brute. +Standing upright, he is nearly as tall as the average +man. Sometimes his height reaches six feet, and often +the adult male attains the great weight of nearly +four hundred pounds.</p> + + +<h3 id="A_Superlative_Fighting_Machine"> + <i>A Superlative Fighting Machine</i> +</h3> + +<p>The body of the gorilla is stout and large. His legs +are short but his arms are extremely long. When +standing erect the tips of his fingers reach to about +the middle of the leg below the knee. His huge and +grizzly head, flat, broad nose, prominent muzzle, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_213">[Pg 213]</span>large mouth, very large canine teeth, and protruding +ears all give the animal a terrifying appearance.</p> + +<p>The manner in which he rises on his hind legs and +makes the forest reverberate with his roars when +attacked is one reason why the gorilla is considered +the most savage of all beasts. His hands are large +and thickly covered with black hair on the back. The +palms of the hands have no hair. They possess many +grooves and markings with strong human resemblances. +The thumb is somewhat short for the size of +the hand, but is thick and bears a broad nail. The +animal’s body as well as the head up to the brow +line is covered with thick, black, shaggy hair. The +skull is massive and heavy. The eyes are surmounted +by a heavy ridge of bone, and a thick bony crest extends +from the bridge of the nose to the back of the +skull along the middle of the head. All of these bony +structures provide the gorilla with a most effective +fighting helmet. The massive head, the short neck, +the powerful arms, and the savage teeth create +the impression of a superlative fighting machine—a +sort of dreadnaught. But this machine has one +inherent weakness. The feet and legs are inadequate +for a finished fighter. The gorilla is able to assume +the upright position and walks thus in an awkward +manner, using the arms in balancing. In the main, +however, he goes on all fours, especially when making +speed through the underbrush or climbing among the +trees. He rises upon his hind legs largely for purposes +of inspection in order to make a survey of the +surrounding territory.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_214">[Pg 214]</span></p> + +<p>Many species have been identified. They all live in +Africa. One variety inhabits the Gaboon in West +Africa. It also extends into regions of southern and +northern Cameroon, near the border of the French +Congo. This variety of gorilla is especially adapted +for forest life. Another type, sometimes spoken of as +the mountain gorilla, inhabits mountainous localities +in the Belgian Congo.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Gorillas_Ancient_Disrepute"> + <i>The Gorilla’s Ancient Disrepute</i> +</h3> + +<p>The gorilla has been long and unfavourably known +to mankind. Ancient rumour of him spread abroad +many unsavoury reports about his savage disposition. +In the Fifth Century <span class="allsmcap">B. C.</span> gorillas were first spoken of +as wild, hairy men living in Africa. The Carthaginian +Admiral Hanno, in his famous voyage to the Pillars +of Hercules, appears to have been the first white man +to encounter them. He and his comrades unexpectedly +came upon a group of these wild people. All of the +men fought so savagely that they made their escape, +but Hanno and his friends were able to capture three +of the women. These females were so ferocious and +unfriendly that it was necessary to kill them. Their +skins were preserved, taken to Carthage, and there +placed in the Temple of Juno, where they were held +sacred until that city was destroyed.</p> + +<p>The famous explorer, Paul Du Chaillu, in his <i>Explorations +and Adventures in Equatorial Africa</i> describes +the gorilla as gregarious. He found them going +about in companies of eight or ten. Sometimes the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_215">[Pg 215]</span>older males become superannuated. Then they live +solitary lives apart from these small communities. +When grown old they appear actually grizzled with +age, and the hair, which in youth is black, becomes +almost white. Du Chaillu was probably the first +European to kill a gorilla in its native forest. His +description of their habits was thought to be an exaggeration, +but later information largely upholds his +opinion. He believed that the gorilla did not, as often +claimed, lurk in the trees just above the roadside in +order to reach down with his great arms and snatch +up the unsuspecting passer-by. He discredited the +ancient story that these animals attack elephants +and beat them to death with sticks, and that they +carry off native women to devour them in the depths +of the forest. He did not even believe that the gorilla +built itself houses or nests from twigs among the trees, +or that large bands of them made attacks upon men +whose homes were in the neighbourhood of the forest. +Du Chaillu reported that the gorilla lives in the loneliest +portions of the dense African jungle. It is seldom +found in the same place two days in succession. It +prefers deep wooded valleys or rugged heights and +roams about over a large area in search of food. It +consumes a large amount of food, such as pineapple +leaves, berries, wild sugar cane, and other vegetable +matter. The animal sleeps sitting on the ground with +its back against the trunk of a tree, and when full-grown +seldom ascends high among the branches. The +young sleep in the trees, and possibly the females may +occasionally do so.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_216">[Pg 216]</span></p> + + +<h3 id="Like_Some_Monster_of_a_Nightmare"> + <i>Like Some Monster of a Nightmare</i> +</h3> + +<p>In spite of their reputation to the contrary, the +gorillas are in reality shy. The female will run to +shelter at the first sound of alarm, carrying her young +one with her. The male, however, is less hurried in his +retreat. In fact, he seems to act upon the theory that +the best defense is an attack. He rises up on his hind +legs for a moment, showing his savage face among +the underbrush. Then, glaring at the intruder, he +begins to beat his chest with his closed fists, at the +same time uttering a deep, terrifying roar. This sound +begins at first as several loud barks like those of a dog +and then changes to a deep-throated growl, which is +emitted with redoubled force, causing echoes in the +forest like distant thunder. Du Chaillu said that the +horror of the animal’s appearance at this time is +beyond description. It seems like some monster of a +nightmare, an indescribable piece of hideousness.</p> + +<p>In walking, the gorilla waddles from side to side as +he proceeds upon his hind legs. Meanwhile, in order to +balance himself, he swings his great arms at his sides, +which makes him appear more determined and awe-inspiring. +When attacking, his features are distorted +by hideous wrinkles, and his lips are drawn back +revealing long fangs in the powerful jaws by which a +human limb could easily be crushed.</p> + +<p>The celebrated African explorer, Mr. Akeley, has +pointed out that there is no difficulty in shooting the +gorilla. In fact, against modern firearms this animal +is as defenseless as a crippled woman. Such hunting +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_217">[Pg 217]</span>is thoroughly distasteful and seems to be an atrocity +closely akin to murder. It was due to Mr. Akeley’s +efforts that the King of Belgium recently set aside a +large territory in the Congo as a gorilla sanctuary, in +which all hunting of this animal is prohibited. Here, in +the vicinity of the three extinct volcanoes, Mt. Keno, +Mt. Karissimbi, and Mt. Visake, Mr. Akeley hoped +that a biological station might be established for the +further study of the gorilla’s behaviour. In this +sanctuary, now known as Albert National Park, he +believed it would be possible to gain a footing on +close and intimate terms with this gigantic ape. +Mr. Akeley was convinced that the gorilla’s reputation +for ferocity was greatly exaggerated, and that the +animal was actually a timid and retiring beast. This +new estimate of the gorilla’s disposition gives encouragement +to the expectation that in time this fast-disappearing +offshoot of the prehuman stock may +furnish its full testimony concerning the evolutionary +process.</p> + + +<h3 id="Training_the_Young_Gorilla"> + <i>Training the Young Gorilla</i> +</h3> + +<p>In adult life the gorilla is untamable. If captured +young, as much may be done with it as with many +other apes in captivity. The following account of a +gorilla’s life in civilization, given by Miss Alyse +Cunningham, of London, testifies to this fact. It is +the story of the young gorilla called “John Daniel the +First.” The record was made by Miss Cunningham +herself. At first she had no fancy for this animal; in +fact, she felt rather a dislike for anything in the shape +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_218">[Pg 218]</span>of a monkey or an ape, but she soon became interested +in the young gorilla and took his education +seriously in hand. The animal was presented to her +by her nephew, Major Penny, shortly after the end +of the Great War. He was much interested in apes +and bought the gorilla with the idea of seeing how +much mentality it possessed and how much it could be +developed. John Daniel was captured when very +young in the French Gaboon country and came to +England when he was about three years of age. Major +Penny first saw the young gorilla on exhibition, during +the Christmas holidays, in a large show window of +a well-known shop in London. The animal attracted +much attention and large crowds gathered daily to +watch him. As a dry-goods advertisement he was a +splendid investment, but unfortunately at that time +he was suffering from rickets. With the severe changes +of weather in the Christmas season he contracted an +attack of influenza. On this account his owners were +compelled to retire him from his advertising post and +found themselves at their wit’s end to know what to +do with this sick infant gorilla. When he was finally +sold to Major Penny his original owners did not think +he would survive for very long. In this respect their +calculations went astray. Miss Cunningham took the +sickly gorilla, nursed him as she would a child, brought +him through his influenza, and so successfully cared +for him that during the next three years he reached +the weight of 112 pounds and the height of three feet +four and a half inches. Meanwhile, he acquired many +of the habits and adjustments necessary to fit him as +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_219">[Pg 219]</span>an interesting if somewhat unusual member of the +household.</p> + + +<h3 id="John_Daniel_the_First"> + <i>John Daniel the First</i> +</h3> + +<p>We are indebted to Miss Cunningham for the excellent +account of his life, which indicates the extent +to which this great ape may be trained and educated. +Little John, immediately after his recovery from influenza, +began to show some singularly childlike +emotions. He was gentle and affectionate in response +to the tender care he received. But he became too +much attached to his new and kind friends. His devotion +in this respect created some difficult situations +in the household. If he were left by himself at night +he would shriek from fear and loneliness. Perhaps +he remembered the long and cheerless nights when he +was a Christmas exhibit in the department store. In +any event, Miss Cunningham was forced to treat him +just as she would any little child. She coaxed and +soothed and petted him until she had allayed his +fears. Then he would become quiet and fall asleep. +But even this was not sufficient. It soon became +necessary to place her nephew’s bed in the room adjoining +the cage of the gorilla. Apparently he craved +companionship of some kind and at length became +quite happy under this new arrangement.</p> + +<p>John soon began to grow and to put on weight. He +gradually got over his rickets. At first he was taught +to be clean in his habits by a system of rewards and +punishments. At the end of six weeks he was thoroughly +housebroken. At this time he was taken out of +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_220">[Pg 220]</span>his cage and allowed the freedom of the house. Thereafter, +John would always run upstairs to the bathroom +of his own accord. He would turn the knob of a +door and took pains to see that he always left it closed +behind him. He showed strong likes and dislikes in +the matter of food. There was one feature that always +puzzled Miss Cunningham in this respect. Generally +speaking, John was not a thief. He manifested average +honesty, but when it came to food he much preferred +to steal it than have it given to him. It was +difficult to understand the motive underlying this +course of action. There were some things about it +that seemed to indicate a real satisfaction derived +from stealing, due, perhaps, to an outcropping of his +native cunning. Perhaps it was the consequence of a +well-recognized quality of natural aloofness characteristic +of the gorilla in general that made John +Daniel averse to receiving favours from others. He +would always avoid any food that had been exposed +to the air for long. He was particularly fond of +oranges and apples, but would never eat them if they +had been cut a few hours. John had what almost +amounted to a passion for eating roses. The more +beautiful they were, the more he seemed to like them, +but nothing would induce him to eat faded roses. +Nuts he did not much care for, although at times he +showed a liking for walnuts. A cocoanut was always +a problem to him. It was most amusing to see how he +went about this problem. He understood that it was +necessary to break the cocoanut. First he would throw +it upon the floor, but failing to break it this way +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_221">[Pg 221]</span>he would finally bring it to one of the members of the +family with an appealing look for help. If given a +hammer he would use it viciously on the nut, but +never effectively. After several failures John would +take the nut and the hammer to someone, indicating +what he wanted.</p> + + +<h3 id="Johns_Social_Behaviour"> + <i>John’s Social Behaviour</i> +</h3> + +<p>John had a good understanding of tools, almost too +good, in fact. In consequence, hammers, chisels, and +saws were kept in hiding, and if John happened to +find them he was apt to indulge in a somewhat ruthless +carpentry on the household furniture. From his +babyhood, and while he was growing up, he was always +fond of people. He liked to have them come to +visit him at his home. Far from being timid and shy, +he was quite the reverse. Whenever there were visitors +he always liked to show off, just like a child. He +would take the visitor by the hand and lead him +round and round the room. This amused John greatly, +and if his guest responded playfully all went well, but +if there was any sign of nervousness or fear John took +an impish delight and would run by the visitor, giving +him a smack on the leg. Then, perching himself on a +chair, he would grin foolishly at his own mischief. +This was the only blemish on his company manners, +and he always appeared a bit shamefaced when rebuked +for such misbehaviour. He did not, however, +go the length of making apologetic overtures to his +offended visitor, but kept himself aloof with an air +of injured innocence.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_222">[Pg 222]</span></p> + +<p>Miss Cunningham had few misgivings about John +when she had company in the home. He was always +very obedient to her and seemed to recognize that +her wishes were law. It hurt him apparently to be +guilty of any act which caused her displeasure, and +while sometimes he would perpetrate some mischief +on the sly he would always be on his best behaviour +when he felt Miss Cunningham’s eye upon him. His +table manners were rather good. He always sat at the +table, and when the meal was ready would pull up +his chair to the designated place. He never cared for +great quantities of food, and his actions at table required +little, if any, more reproval than did an ordinary +child. He was especially fond of drinking water +from a tumbler. He always took afternoon tea with +the family. He had a particular liking for this beverage +and with it would eat a thin slice of bread with +plenty of jam. He also liked his demi-tasse of coffee +after dinner. The family estimate of him was generally +high. He was regarded as the least greedy of all +the animals that had ever come under the observation +of his owners. He would never snatch for anything at +the table, and he always ate slowly. He was accustomed +to drink large quantities of water, which he +got for himself whenever he wanted it by turning on +the tap. Strangely enough, he always turned off the +water when he had finished drinking.</p> + + +<h3 id="A_Gorilla_with_a_Sense_of_Humour"> + <i>A Gorilla with a Sense of Humour</i> +</h3> + +<p>John Daniel had a very good opinion of himself. +He was quite well poised and self-contained. Nothing +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_223">[Pg 223]</span>seemed to ruffle him, and he could amuse himself in +simple ways by the hour. He seemed to believe that +his own estimate of himself was shared by others and +appeared confident that everyone was delighted to +see him. Often he would stand on the window sill and +throw up the shade. In a short time a large crowd +would collect on the street below to watch this unusual +sight at the window. He enjoyed such publicity +immensely and would stand watching the people for +a long time. Once in a while, if the crowd grew very +large, he would pull the shade down deliberately in +their faces and run away shrieking with laughter, in a +way which seemed to indicate that he was conscious +of having perpetrated a huge joke upon his audience +outside. Of course, this entire reaction and the motives +underlying it are open to several interpretations. +Skeptics will say that the version here given endows +the gorilla with attributes more human than he could +possibly possess. However that may be, those who +actually observed these performances were impressed +by the fact that John Daniel did act in a seemingly +human manner.</p> + + +<h3 id="Fondness_for_Little_Children"> + <i>Fondness for Little Children</i> +</h3> + +<p>John was especially attached to Miss Cunningham’s +three-year-old niece, who often came with her +mother to stay at the house. They would play together +by the hour. The gorilla seemed to know just +what this little girl wanted him to do. If she cried for +any reason, when her mother came to pick her up, +John would give the mother’s hand a nip with his +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_224">[Pg 224]</span>teeth or slap her with the full weight of his palm, +apparently thinking that she was the cause of the +child’s grief. One day Miss Cunningham was dressed +for going out, and John Daniel wished to sit on her +lap to bid her good-bye. It chanced that her gown +was a light-coloured one, and she pushed him away, +saying that she feared he might soil her dress. Poor +John was deeply distressed. At once he lay down on +the floor and cried like a baby for a moment. Then he +looked around the room, found a newspaper, laid it +on Miss Cunningham’s lap, and climbed up on it. This +was the cleverest thing he had ever done. Those who +saw it said they would not have believed it had they +not themselves been present.</p> + + +<h3 id="Like_a_Child_in_Play"> + <i>Like a Child in Play</i> +</h3> + +<p>John Daniel apparently could stand a good deal of +cold weather. He would often climb out on the roof +when the thermometer was below the freezing point. +He did not seem to mind how cold it was so long as +he could come back into a warm room when he wanted +to. Then he would go directly to the fire, rub his +chest, and sit down with his feet cocked up on the +fender. Exercise was necessary to keep him in good +health, and John got much of this by playing hide-and-seek +with Major Penny. In the morning before breakfast +and in the evening before dinner the Major +would run up and down stairs, in and out of all the +rooms. The game appeared to delight the gorilla, +who would giggle and laugh while being chased. He +never took any chances about going into a dark room, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_225">[Pg 225]</span>however. Invariably he would make sure to turn on +the light first.</p> + +<p>It was his habit to retire each night at eight o’clock, +and it was not necessary to tell him to do so more +than once. He had his own little room adjoining that +of Miss Cunningham’s nephew, in which he had a +spring bed of his own, with blankets and pillows. At +night he would get up out of bed by himself, go back +to bed, and pull the blankets up over himself quite +neatly. One of John’s greatest pleasures was to stand +on the top rail at the foot of the bed and jump on +the springs, just like a little child. He was never +taught any tricks, but simply acquired knowledge +by himself. In the summer time John was taken by +train to the family’s cottage in the country. He occupied +his seat in the railway coach like any other +passenger, without so much as a chain around his +neck. When out of doors the broad fields and open +country seemed to terrify him, but he was singularly +happy and contented in the quiet garden or in the +woods. He seemed to fear full-grown sheep, cows, +and horses, but colts, calves, and lambs attracted +and amused him. It seemed to those who cared for +him that he recognized youth and was sympathetically +drawn to it.</p> + + +<h3 id="John_Becomes_Famous"> + <i>John Becomes Famous</i> +</h3> + +<p>As the years passed he became more devotedly +attached to the family. If left alone he would make a +great noise, shrieking and crying. This tendency increased, +so that after three years it was necessary to +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_226">[Pg 226]</span>make some other arrangement for him. Through a +misunderstanding which his owners have always regretted, +John was sold to a circus. He was taken +across the Atlantic to New York. Here, after a +month’s separation from his devoted friends during +which time he refused to take food and showed every +sign of real homesickness, he died in the tower of the +old Madison Square Garden, in April, 1921.</p> + +<p>Many of the New York daily papers published a +notice of this remarkable ape’s death, telling how the +gorilla, John Daniel, homesick and disconsolate without +those who had befriended him, died of a broken +heart. The skeleton and taxidermic preparation of +this gorilla, who has contributed so much to our +knowledge and understanding of the great apes, may +be seen in the anthropoid collection in the American +Museum of Natural History, bearing the label “John +Daniel.”</p> + + +<h3 id="A_Gorilla_at_Afternoon_Tea"> + <i>A Gorilla at Afternoon Tea</i> +</h3> + +<p>As an interesting sequel to this history of what +appears to be the first gorilla raised under the conditions +of such intimate domestic life, it may be +added that Miss Cunningham secured another gorilla, +which she called “John Daniel the Second.” John +Daniel the First was a little over six years old when he +died and was then less than half grown. These two +great apes resembled each other closely in their +emotional reactions and in their responses to training. +Both were about of the same age. John the Second +was perhaps a less likable individual and had a disposition +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_227">[Pg 227]</span>more in keeping with the ancient reputation +of gorillas. Several years ago, while he was visiting +in New York, a number of scientists were invited to +have afternoon tea with him at a certain fashionable +hotel. On this occasion the troglodyte host was found +seated in a comfortable chair. He displayed much +gravity and apparent enjoyment as he drank from a +cup of tea. During the course of conversation John +the Second was for a moment not the actual centre of +attention. Suddenly he dashed across the room with +unbelievable swiftness and attacked one of his visitors +with repeated rapid blows of both fists in the neighbourhood +of the solar plexus. Just as quickly he +hopped over the foot of the bed and from this point +of vantage watched the discomfiture of his guest. +A moment later, when less sharply watched, he +hurled his full weight in most approved football style +against a distinguished professor of zoölogy, who, +as a result, was thrown from his chair. In the intervals +between these presumably playful diversions +this powerful gorilla sat quietly. Yet, in spite of his +innocent demeanour, one was suspicious that he was +casting about for the next piece of mischief that he +might perpetrate. There was a degree of roughness +and sudden strength in the playfulness of this young +gorilla that afforded some idea of the terrific power +these animals must possess when full grown.</p> + +<p>The attractive prospect of a biological station in +Africa, as suggested by the late Carl E. Akeley, for the +study of the gorilla is inspiring. It should be possible under +these circumstances for one scientifically inclined +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_228">[Pg 228]</span>to saunter into the jungle of a morning, call to some +particularly promising gorilla, and with the troglodyte +spend many profitable hours in biological study. +If the full-grown gorilla, however, is anything like +John Daniel the Second, this studious occupation +might not prove so simple. Indeed, it seems probable +that only the most hardy of human adventurers will +ever enjoy the privileges of anything approaching a +familiar acquaintance with these giant apes. Such +adventurers may live to report that the great brutes +have acquired no marked degree of gentleness even +in their own gorilla sanctuary.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Art_of_Capturing_Young_Gorillas"> + <i>The Art of Capturing Young Gorillas</i> +</h3> + +<p>On a number of occasions young gorillas have been +captured alive. Mr. Ben Burbridge, using some clever +tactics, has succeeded in capturing several small +gorillas. The approved style of such hunting is to +lure the young animal away from the older gorillas; +then, grasping the throat, force it to the ground until +helpers arrive to slip a stout bag over its head. On +one occasion Mr. Burbridge succeeded in artfully luring +a gorilla from the rest of his family. He at once +proceeded to seize him in the usual manner. Immediately +he realized that he had caught a tartar. +The young gorilla was much stronger than any man, +and grasping both of Mr. Burbridge’s hands he forced +them into his savage mouth. Nothing but iron nerve +and quickness of wit would have saved a man under +these circumstances. Realizing his inability to overpower +the gorilla or free himself from its vise-like +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_229">[Pg 229]</span>grip, Mr. Burbridge did the only thing left for him to +do. He thrust his hands down the animal’s throat as +far as they would go. Several natives finally succeeded +in overpowering and binding the young giant. +The first burlap bag put over his head he split asunder +like a piece of gauze. At length he was bound and +carried off to camp. But this young monarch of the +volcanic mountain sides would not accept captivity. +He was unapproachable and so actively hostile that he +soon died. Later, Mr. Burbridge succeeded in capturing +and bringing home to Florida a small female +gorilla, weighing sixty-five pounds, which he called +“Congo the Second.”</p> + + +<h3 id="Professor_Yerkes_Studies_Congo_the_Second"> + <i>Professor Yerkes Studies “Congo the Second”</i> +</h3> + +<p>We are extremely fortunate that this gorilla has been +studied by Professor Yerkes, who in a book recently +published, called <i>The Mind of a Gorilla</i>, has given us +another of his brilliant works on animal behaviour. +This is a most readable account of Congo’s actions, +and those who wish further information will derive +much pleasure from Professor Yerkes’s story. All of +his observations are illuminating and helpful in understanding +the brain of this great troglodyte.</p> + +<p>The mountain gorilla, as Professor Yerkes points +out, is built for strength rather than speed. Congo, +although still in her childhood, and weighing only +sixty-five pounds, was amazingly strong. She could +lift weights and overcome resistances that required +the full strength of a grown man. In her play with a +young Airedale terrier she became so rough that the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_230">[Pg 230]</span>dog finally avoided her. Her climbing among the +trees, about which she seemed eager, was scarcely +any better than that of an active small boy. It was +easy to outrun her and throw her off her balance. +The tremendous strength of the gorilla must, therefore, +be looked upon as the real secret of his success +in life. Without this strength he probably would not +have survived, since he has neither the skill in climbing +nor the speed upon the ground to escape his +deadly enemies. His deadliest foe is the leopard. +This stealthy and powerful cat often steals up to a +gorilla family and snatches away the little ones. The +gorilla’s sole defense against the leopard is his gigantic +strength. If at present this great ape is threatened +with extinction it is because his natural enemies are +increasing in number. Man with his modern equipments +must be listed among these hostile contemporaries. +For ages the struggle between the gorilla +and his enemies in the jungle has been going on relentlessly. +The great ape has been able to maintain +that margin of superiority which permitted his kind +to come down into modern times.</p> + +<p>Professor Yerkes devised a series of tests for determining +the mental capacity of the young gorilla, +Congo the Second. These were arranged in several +groups such as the following:</p> + +<ol> +<li>The use of the stick as an implement.</li> + +<li>The use of simple mechanisms showing adaptive +ability.</li> + +<li>The uses of boxes and piling boxes.</li> + +<li>Tests for memory.</li> + +<li><span class="pagenum" id="Page_231">[Pg 231]</span>Observations of social relations.</li> + +<li>Study of emotions and incentives to action.</li> +</ol> + + +<h3 id="The_Mind_of_a_Gorilla"> + <i>The Mind of a Gorilla</i> +</h3> + +<p>In all, twenty-four tests were employed in the +experiments to fathom Congo’s mind. Among them +were the stick used as an implement, a buried jar of +food, food suspended and made accessible by using +the stick, food suspended and made accessible by +piling boxes one on top of another, the use of hammer +and nail in imitation of a man using the same implements, +the mirror test and the animal’s reaction to the +looking-glass. Professor Yerkes carried on his studies +through a number of weeks on two different occasions. +The first series was conducted in January, 1926, and +the second series, largely repeating the conditions +of the first, in January, 1927. During this time the +little gorilla had grown and prospered. She had +doubled her weight in twelve months and she manifested +many changes in her behaviour. In the first +place, she had become somewhat destructive, although +when she first came to Shady Nook in Florida +this was not the case. Her curiosity had increased as +had also her powers of imitation and her emotional +expressions. She was much more self-reliant and likewise +more coöperative. She showed a very considerable +improvement in her ability to solve the problems +of the several tests given to her. In using the +stick she manifested greater cleverness and adaptability, +with some indications of real insight into the +situations that confronted her. There were signs also +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_232">[Pg 232]</span>that she had gained a greater degree of adaptability +in the use of simple mechanisms. These appliances +in her earlier tests baffled Congo, but upon repetition +a year later she not only gave evidence of memory +concerning the tests but also had more ability in solving +the problems which she had previously failed to +master. She showed much improvement, particularly +in piling boxes one upon another. Certain memory +tests, which were unsuccessful in January, 1926, were +quite successfully performed in January, 1927. Heretofore, +no animal except man has been capable of +correct response in these particular memory tests. +Congo’s success possibly demonstrates the existence +of a mechanism in the gorilla brain that is possessed +by the most highly organized animals only. It is this +mechanism, doubtless, which distinguishes man and +the great apes from all other mammals. Buried food +tests also demonstrated an ability to remember after +intervals of one or two days. Congo’s emotions likewise +had changed. At first she appeared aloof, independent, +and inexpressive. She still remained reserved, +and although playful she was highly self-controlled. +Her emotional expression by voice, face, and attitude +was rare, and seldom appeared in response to definite +provocation. Her incentives and motives seemed +much more complex than in lower animals, like rats +and guinea pigs. Congo was moody, having her good +days and bad days in doing the tests. The inducements +offered her to perform certain acts did not +have the same certainty that they have with lower +animals. In her social relations she was extremely +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_233">[Pg 233]</span>simple. She apparently gained an increased interest +in those with whom she was familiar and also with +strangers. She enjoyed visitors and acted in a limited +way to entertain them. Seeing herself in the looking-glass, +she had a marked interest in her image. In the +second series of tests her interest in the mirror seemed +more intelligent than the first. In sexual interest +Congo showed a marked development. At first she +manifested nothing resembling sex play, but in the +course of the year this became evident in her relations +with her dog companions and other objects. Ultimately +she had a decided preference for the male dog.</p> + + +<h3 id="Mental_Comparisons_of_the_Great_Manlike_Apes"> + <i>Mental Comparisons of the Great Manlike Apes</i> +</h3> + +<p>Professor Yerkes’s comparison of the behaviour of +the three great apes, the orang, the chimpanzee, and +the gorilla, is particularly interesting and important. +He carefully guards his statement by acknowledging +that these are rough comparisons based on the intimate +study of only a few individual apes. The physical +differences between these anthropoids may have +a definite bearing upon their mental characters. The +chimpanzee is well but lightly built. The orang, in +contrast, is loosely built, with arms that seem much +too long and liable to be in the way. The gorilla is +stocky, somewhat clumsy, but of impressively strong +build. The general disposition of these three apes +varies somewhat according to their physiques. The +chimpanzee is sanguine, buoyant, alert, and snappy. +The orang-outang is melancholy and taciturn. The +gorilla is reserved and aloof almost to the point of +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_234">[Pg 234]</span>manifesting a superiority complex. In their attitude +toward others and things in general this same difference +is observed. The chimpanzee is preëminently a +leader in playfulness and invention of ways to amuse +himself. He is quick, impulsive, energetic, and comical. +He has much enthusiasm and optimism, all of +which makes him the showman’s prize. The orang +is more slow and cautious, with little impulsiveness +and no show of optimism. He seems more stable and +dependable than the chimpanzee. He is certainly +more readily depressed and discouraged than his +livelier cousin. The gorilla is calm, reserved, cool, and +calculating. His disposition is quite the opposite of +that of the chimpanzee. The terms sullen, morose, +ferocious, and unrelenting did not, however, apply +to Congo, who was placid, self-dependent, and usually +superior to the incidents of her artificial life in captivity. +In curiosity the chimpanzee heads the list. +The orang is a close second. The gorilla may be +stirred to curiosity, but under such circumstances +usually acts as though he considered himself superior +to such childish indulgence. The manner and methods +of learning in these three great apes are remarkably +interesting. In learning by imitation from man, +the chimpanzee has a long lead. The orang is not +entirely unsuccessful in this matter, but the gorilla, +especially as typified by Congo, shows an actual resistance +to learning by imitation of man. The ability +to acquire new habits and adjustments to life by +means of trial and error shows that the great apes +rank as follows: Chimpanzee first, orang second, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_235">[Pg 235]</span>gorilla third. Learning by ideas, experience, insight, +and understanding seems to reverse this order and +puts the gorilla at the head of the list.</p> + +<p>Professor Yerkes appears to think that, as compared +with chimpanzees and orangs of like age, Congo +was remarkably slow in adapting herself and was more +limited in initiative, originality, and insight. He concludes +that the general tendency to rate the gorilla +in a mentally higher class than the chimpanzee or +orang finds no support from his study of Congo. He +also believes that conclusions based on a single specimen +of this great ape are not sufficient to determine +the mental rating of the gorilla. This animal, like the +chimpanzee and the orang, indeed like man himself, +has great individual variations in mental development.</p> + +<p>Such records as those of John Daniel, First and +Second, made by observers little trained in the +technical methods of behavioural study, must of +course be accepted with some reservations. Viewed +in the light of Professor Yerkes’s studies on Congo, +they do afford an illuminating picture of the gorilla’s +mental capacity, disposition, and ability to learn. To +say the least, in all of these qualifications the largest +of the great apes is strikingly human. Its brain, +which weighs and measures more than that of other +apes, is in many respects nearer to the brain of man. +In the gorilla’s brain it is possible to discern the +process by which the progressive development of this +organ has made great strides. All of the landmarks +of the superbrain are more distinctly human in their +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_236">[Pg 236]</span>arrangement and disposition than in the chimpanzee +or orang. If the chimpanzee’s brain is a human +miniature, the resemblance to man in gorilla has +become still more striking. The position of the Sylvian +groove and of the ape groove marks the boundary +of the two great departments of sight and hearing. +In the gorilla both of these have increased the area +for radiating brain power. The convolutions in both +of these regions bear a close resemblance to those of +the human brain. This similarity is likewise true in +the department for body and contact sense, where +the convolutions have increased in complexity as well +as in relative size. The central groove forms the +boundary for a well-defined frontal lobe. If it were +possible to make a measurable contrast of this permanent +headquarters for the higher faculties in gorilla +to that of chimpanzee, it seems fair to say that the +gorilla would show some slight advantage. This advantage +may account for the gorilla’s greater reserve, +which in some ways indicates a more mature attitude +toward life, especially when compared to the restless +and more childlike behaviour of the chimpanzee.</p> + + +<h3 id="Secret_of_the_Gorillas_Survival"> + <i>Secret of the Gorilla’s Survival</i> +</h3> + +<p>Professor Yerkes would perhaps be unwilling on +the strength of his studies to admit any measurable +degree of superiority on the part of the gorilla’s mentality +over the chimpanzee. Unquestionably this is a +proper point of view in the light of those great apes +which have been available for experiment and investigation. +In the main, such gorillas have been +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_237">[Pg 237]</span>both too young and too few in number to permit any +just estimate of their real ability. One fact in their +history does speak forcibly in behalf of their mental +superiority over all other apes. In form and physique +the gorilla occupies an intermediate position. He is +not well adapted for great successes living upon the +ground. He is too heavy to capitalize the full advantages +of living in the trees. Added to this is the +fact that he is both slow and clumsy. His one physical +asset in the struggle for life is his gigantic strength. +By means of this advantage he has been able to meet +all comers of the wild, to contend with such deadly +enemies as the leopards and other members of the +great cat family. He has eked out an existence in a +territory filled with all manner of hazards. Yet in +spite of his handicaps he has not only held his place +in nature but he has kept his line a vital and going +concern with all the increasing odds against him. +This success in adjustment must depend upon something +more than mere chance. We are perhaps fair in +assuming that added to his chief asset of brute-like +strength there have been certain superior mental +qualities derived from a superbrain and particularly +from a frontal lobe which surpassed that of all his +animal competitors.</p> + +<p>The index of his powers to adjust himself to a +strenuous life is shown by his bridge (<i>pons</i>). This +gives him a rating of .480, which is still higher than +in the case of the chimpanzee. Most interesting in +this connection is the fact that the pyramid in the +gorilla is .161, which is considerably less than in the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_238">[Pg 238]</span>chimpanzee. The pyramid, as will be recalled, indicates +the degree of skill that an animal has in controlling +its voluntary movements; that is, in making +its muscles act in many and varied ways according +to the dictates of the will. That the agile, speedy, and +acrobatic chimpanzee should surpass the clumsy and +slow-moving gorilla in this particular might be expected. +In almost every other detail of its development +the brain of the gorilla is nearer to man than +is the brain of any other ape, great or small. Those +who have studied this question are fully convinced +of the near approach in brain structure which all three +of the great manlike apes make to the human brain. +If any final estimation is justified at the present time, +the gorilla’s brain appears to be the most advanced of +all the apes and is, in fact, almost human.</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_239">[Pg 239]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XI"> + CHAPTER XI + <br> + HUMAN AT LAST + <br> + <span style="font-size: medium;">THE BRAIN OF PREHISTORIC MAN</span> + </h2> +</div> + + +<p>Those individual characteristics which distinguish +the orang, chimpanzee, and gorilla may be easily +recognized. Yet, notwithstanding their striking differences, +these animals all belong to the same family, +called the <i>Simiidæ</i>. As a family this was and still remains +the highest in the ape world. All of the great +apes manifest certain pronounced manlike tendencies. +Up to this point they were progressive, but beyond it +they did not go. They were not equipped to reach the +upper footholds or to gain the vast plateaus on the +top of the world. This last achievement remained for +another, who, being freed from many simian restrictions, +had already outstripped the anthropoids.</p> + + +<h3 id="Human_Superiority"> + <i>Human Superiority</i> +</h3> + +<p>As a machine, this newcomer in the animal world +was more effective than any of his forerunners. His +human superiority was not due to higher speed, +greater strength, or better staying powers. Many +of his animal competitors could far outdistance him, +could easily overpower him, could surpass him in endurance. +He did, however, have an exceptional advantage. +He was able to combine these essential +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_240">[Pg 240]</span>qualities with many others in a variety of ways and +thus gain an ultimate supremacy. In the end it was +better brain power that raised man above his lower +contemporaries and set him on his path toward human +success. This new power of his did not come all +at once. It needed the steady effort of ages to reach +its present development. Compared with the existence +of other species, the human race is relatively +young. In point of geologic time so also is the human +brain. Many students are agreed that temporally and +in other respects our brain has scarcely outgrown its +childhood. The brain power of to-day may require +further ages of development to attain its highest +possibilities.</p> + +<p>When man first appeared on earth he had much in +common with the great apes. Although not descended +from them, he had inherited with them many qualities +from a common ancestor. It is now settled beyond +question that in earliest times the human brain +possessed all of the basic patterns and mechanisms +still to be found in the gorilla, the chimpanzee, and +the orang. It had one fundamental advantage that +greatly improved its capacity for developing its +power. Expansion was the secret of this advantage. +It was apparent in all parts of the superbrain, +but most prominent in the department +of the highest mental faculties, the frontal lobe. We +may discern this great advance at a glance by comparing +the sloping, narrow foreheads of the great +apes with the high and prominent brow of man. The +frontal lobe gradually pushed forward over the eyes, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_241">[Pg 241]</span>and in consequence the forehead slowly rose above +them. It seems fair to say that as the brow grew +higher through successive stages the race gradually +rose in humanity. We are still much in the dark concerning +the early phases of this slow rise to power. +Some of the stages, it is probable, we shall never +know. On the other hand, a large number of human +fossils have been found during the past century. +From these it is possible to decipher what the human +brain must have been like at certain critical periods +of man’s long journey. The brain, like all other soft +parts of the body, disappears in time after death. How +is it possible, therefore, to speak about the brains of +men long since dead, or of races long ago extinct?</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Fossil_Records_of_Man"> + <i>The Fossil Records of Man</i> +</h3> + +<p>It is true that only the bones of ancient peoples remain +to tell us what they were like. Many of these +bones have become fossilized by impregnation with +minerals and are, so to speak, turned into stone. Thus +they make an enduring record of man’s bony framework. +From these petrified bones we can read many +things about the people of the past to whom they +belonged. We can measure their height, determine +the manner in which they held their bodies in walking, +and estimate their muscular strength. We may +even rebuild their bodies about their skeletons by +using certain standard measurements and so gain a +fair idea of what these men must have looked like +when alive. From the shape of the head it is possible +to decide whether the jaw was massive and protruding, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_242">[Pg 242]</span>or of modern type; whether the cheek bones were +heavy and prominent or relatively inconspicuous; +whether the forehead was low and receding or high +and broad; whether the nose was flattened or had a +high nasal bridge; whether the chin was weakly developed +or large and firm; whether the brain case was +small, round, and narrow, or long, high vaulted, and +capacious.</p> + + +<h3 id="Brain_Casts_of_Extinct_Races_of_Men"> + <i>Brain Casts of Extinct Races of Men</i> +</h3> + +<p>Many other characters of extinct races may be +determined by means of exact measurement. So much +has already been accomplished in this way that it is +possible to reproduce a reasonable facsimile of races +that vanished long ago. It is possible also to reproduce +a reasonable likeness of their brains. Reproductions +of this kind depend upon the use of the fossil skulls +as molds from which plaster of Paris casts are made. +Upon the inner surface of the skull the brain makes +certain definite impressions. It leaves grooves in the +bone where great arteries run. It shows deep indentations +caused by the convolutions. It contains +other landmarks indicating the size and position of +certain prominent features in the brain. These casts +do not show the brain characters in all their sharp +details because within the skull the brain is covered +by three layers of membranes and surrounded by a +thin jacket of fluid. In consequence, all of the prominent +characters, although easily recognized, are somewhat +veiled. It is for this reason that we are unable to +detect every coil and groove in a brain cast of a fossil +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_243">[Pg 243]</span>skull. We may, however, discern many important +features and thus form an accurate estimate concerning +the brain characters of several prehistoric races +of man. Many casts of this kind are now available for +study.</p> + +<p>It is probable that a number of distinct species of +prehistoric races have passed away leaving no trace of +themselves. Even the bones of man’s body gradually +crumble into dust unless, by some fortuitous circumstance, +they are slowly converted into stone through +the deposit of mineral salts. It seems likely that only +a few of man’s skeletal remains have been preserved +for us in this manner. By far the vast majority have +gone the way of all flesh and most bones. The few +precious relics that we thus far have had the good +fortune to discover are treasured as rare possessions. +They tell us in a somewhat disconnected way of many +ancient people who have lived long before our times. +Yet, however disconnected this story may be, however +wide its gaps, however serious its omissions, it +would be improper to overlook the fossil evidence of +these early people. The fossilized relics must be permitted +to set forth the story which they have to tell +while we endeavour to keep our interpretations +within the bounds imposed upon us by the nature of +the evidence.</p> + + +<h3 id="Brain_of_Java_Ape_Man"> + <i>Brain of Java Ape Man</i> +</h3> + +<p>The brain cast representing the most ancient race +of men yet discovered is that of the ape man of Java +(<i>Pithecanthropus erectus</i>). Dr. Eugen Du Bois, when +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_244">[Pg 244]</span>he made his wonderful discovery in Java, found almost +the entire skull cap of this primitive man, who +lived somewhere between 500,000 and 1,000,000 years +ago. His brain was remarkably small. It was not +nearly so large as our modern brain or even as the brain +of many other prehistoric people. Its capacity was +only 940 cubic centimetres. This is small for a human +brain, which ranges between 1000 to 1400 cubic centimetres. +But if it is small for a man, it is much larger +than any ape brain. An interesting comparison as to +the size of the ape man’s brain is afforded when the +brains of a large gorilla, of the Java ape man, and of a +modern man are placed side by side. At once the differences +are apparent. The brain we are now considering +clearly occupies an intermediate position between +the gorilla and modern man.</p> + +<p>The striking feature about the brain of the lowly +ape man is the great expansion which has taken place +in the department and permanent headquarters of the +highest mental faculties—the frontal lobe. Compared +with the brain of the gorilla, there can be no dispute +as to the great advantages held by the ape man in +this part of his brain. The convolutions are plainly +shown in this frontal area. In fact, these coils are more +prominent in this region than elsewhere. This fact +does not imply that the convolutions in the brain are +supreme in the frontal lobe of the ape man. If they +seem less prominent in the other lobes it is only because +the frontal coils in all cases make more positive +impressions upon the skull. It is fortunate, though, +that these coils may be so clearly seen in that region +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_245">[Pg 245]</span>of the superbrain which reveals the development of +the highest faculties. We should also bear in mind +that this department of the chief executive in the +frontal lobe is preëminently a human possession. A +comparison with the gorilla’s brain shows at once +the great expansion which has occurred in the most +responsible portion of man’s superbrain. In consequence +of such frontal growth the human race distinguished +itself in creation by acquiring all that is +implied in the title <i>Homo sapiens</i> (man of wisdom).</p> + +<p>Another decisive feature appears in this frontal +region. The left convolutions are slightly larger than +those on the right side. In all probability this difference +in size indicates that a highly characteristic +human quality has already been introduced. In the +ape man the right hand already appears to have become +the leader in all the varied skillful performances +of manual achievement.</p> + + +<h3 id="Speech"> + <i>Speech</i> +</h3> + +<p>In this early period it seems likely that man was +using his hands for constructive purposes. Of far +more significance and bearing more decisively upon +the destiny of humanity is the appearance of a well-marked +coil in the lower portion of this frontal lobe +on the left side. In all living races of man this convolution +is associated with the control of spoken +language. From this specialization it is apparent that +the ape man had acquired the powers of speech. Even +if his frontal lobe were small, it far surpassed that of +any ape however highly developed.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_246">[Pg 246]</span></p> + +<p>It is clear from these facts that the primitive ape +man of Java had risen to a plane far above the gorilla, +although he was still much below that of modern +man. Visualized from his brain, this Java man must +have had increased powers of reasoning. He must +have been capable of making better adjustments to +life than the gorilla or any of the great manlike apes. +He possessed the ability to build up a greater sphere +of experience and make some approach to human +personality. His tendency to right-handedness was a +distinctly human character, around which are built +many of man’s most productive specializations. In +all of his qualities the Java man was much below his +later human successors. It is difficult to estimate how +much skill he had acquired with his hands, but it +seems almost certain that he added one supreme +advantage to the motor equipment of animal life. +<span class="allsmcap">HE HAD LEARNED TO SPEAK</span>—to communicate in verbal +language. The animal machine had acquired a +new means of expressing itself. It was capable of +developing a new output in the production of which +it became highly prolific.</p> + +<p>Several theories have been advanced to explain +the development of human speech. One of these +attributes the origin of language to gestures, especially +those made with the hands. Gestures indicating direction, +location, distance, size, shape, motion, number, +and many other specifications became associated with +vocal expressions. These symbols were the basis of +language, which required special speech centres in +the brain for its control.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_247">[Pg 247]</span></p> + +<p>This means of communication laid the foundation +of all human knowledge. Doubtless the linguistic +ability of the Javan ape man was extremely crude, +but he had taken a decisive step in a direction necessary +to the further development of mankind.</p> + + +<h3 id="More_Effective_Use_of_the_Senses"> + <i>More Effective Use of the Senses</i> +</h3> + +<p>In the department of his body and contact senses +the ape man’s brain shows marked advances over the +apes. The expansions here must be regarded as +particularly connected with the free use of the hands +and arms and the assumption of the erect posture. A +much richer supply of raw materials in the way of +sense impressions from the legs and arms, and from +the body, generally speaking, made possible a more +effective turnover and output of nervous energy. +During this time man was learning many new uses +for his hands in devising original means for maintaining +and advancing his footholds in life.</p> + +<p>The departments of sight and hearing situated respectively +in the occipital and temporal lobes of the +brain show that degree of expansion which supplied +greater human powers. Man could see, and understand +better what he saw. He could hear, and understand +more fully what he heard. He was capable of +more effective appreciation of his surroundings. If he +obtained a better idea of the world through his sense +of sight, he put these more ample impressions to +better use in the visual direction of his actions and +more especially in guiding the work of his hands by +his eyes.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_248">[Pg 248]</span></p> + +<p>If his sense of hearing likewise gave him better +understanding of the audible world about him, it was +most important in that it contributed to the upbuilding +of his vocal speech. Sounds which he heard began +to have new meanings to him. From this it was but +a step to translate such sounds into spoken words +with fixed meanings of their own.</p> + +<p>In all of these particulars the brain of the ape man +had made definite advances. It was superior to all of +its forerunners in the animal kingdom. The fact that +it had thus advanced brings to mind many perplexing +questions. Why had this great change taken place? +What causes had produced the marked extensions in +the frontal lobes and in all other lobes, sufficient at +last to lift man up to a human level? Attempts to +answer such questions venture into the field of conjecture. +Many factors yet unknown may have been +the real causes in producing this remarkable change.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Human_Hand_and_Foot"> + <i>The Human Hand and Foot</i> +</h3> + +<p>One great difference between man and the manlike +apes seems to be based upon the character of the feet. +Man had at length acquired two feet upon which to +stand upright and make his way. His erect posture +had caused many changes in his body, including the +position of the head, the relation of the eyes, and the +length of his limbs. None of these changes had more +telling effect upon human destiny than the final freeing +of the hands for occupations other than locomotion. +In this way man acquired his most useful +advantage—the hand. It became his chief reliance, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_249">[Pg 249]</span>the basis of his constructive abilities, and the guide +of his analytical powers. It has been the achievement +of his hands that has carried man onward. Some +authorities believe that brain development was the +chief factor in human progress. Such no doubt is the +case, but it was the hand that called upon the brain +for its progressive development.</p> + +<p>Whatever other factors were at work, the hand was +one of the most potent influences in the rise of man. +With the brain to direct its action, to expand its +usefulness, with the upright posture to give free range +to its executions, with speech to make its accomplishments +available to all, the hand became a master key, +opening all the ways leading through the vast domain +of human behaviour. If the influences which determined +human emergence from the lower levels +of animal life might be catalogued as a working +theory, they would perhaps appear in the following +order:</p> + +<ol> +<li>The development of the human foot upon which +to establish the erect posture.</li> + +<li>The freeing of the hand in consequence of the +erect posture for the purposes of human success.</li> + +<li>The expansions of sight and hearing for the +better appreciation of the world and the more effective +guidance of action.</li> + +<li>The development of speech.</li> + +<li>The establishment of human personality and +the development of higher mental faculties. For the +successful administration of these special powers, a +brain of at least human capacity was necessary.</li> +</ol> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_250">[Pg 250]</span></p> + + +<h3 id="Brain_of_Piltdown_Man"> + <i>Brain of Piltdown Man</i> +</h3> + +<p>When Mr. Dawson found the fossil remains of the +Piltdown Dawn man he brought to light another view +of the human prehistoric brain. There are many indications +that the Piltdown men had made great +strides in their brain power. This is especially apparent +in the frontal lobe. The convolutions are +prominent, especially that one upon the left side which +plainly indicates the power of speech. These early +inhabitants of England must have been more gifted +than the humbler ape man. Such at least is the evidence +of the frontal lobe in which the department +of the highest mental faculties was much better +developed. Similar advances appear in the parietal +regions, suggesting that the hands of these Dawn +men had acquired increased capacities as constructive +agents and sensory organs. The large expansion +in the department of body and contact senses plainly +signifies great advantages gained in exploring the +world. Piltdown man must have understood the consistency, +the texture, and shape of the things he +touched. The weight and mobility of objects gave +him information concerning their use. The advantages +of wood and stone for projectile and penetrating +purposes, the utility of sharp edges, the flexibility and +tensile strength of various tissues, like the bark of +trees or climbing vines, all came to him as revelations +evoked by his new powers for sensing his world. These +revelations were of much service in other ways. The +Dawn man could utilize these sense impressions in +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_251">[Pg 251]</span>directing new actions which helped him to overcome +obstacles or to gain greater security. He could now +combine stick and stone in a manner advantageous +for his daily contacts with life. There may be some +question whether the earlier ape man of Java had +learned the secret of making implements for himself. +With the Dawn man of Piltdown the case is different. +It seems most likely that he had already established +the industry of instrument making. Some students of +this question still hesitate to believe that the dawn +flint implements (eoliths) found in association with +the Piltdown remains were really the product of human +hands. It is probable that the Dawn man already +possessed the great advantage of being right-handed. +The chipping of stone implements would make it +necessary for him to hold the flint in one hand and +flake it skillfully with the other. The departments of +hearing and sight both show an expansion similar to +that in the other parts of the brain.</p> + +<p>The Piltdown brain is superior to that of the Java +ape man in all particulars. It indicates the power of +speech, the development of right-handedness, and the +establishment of higher mental faculties. It also attests +that the Dawn man had come a long distance +from that parting of the ways at which the human +race separated from the great apes.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Neanderthal_Brain"> + <i>The Neanderthal Brain</i> +</h3> + +<p>The time assigned to the Dawn man’s day on earth +varies considerably according to different estimates. +The latest calculations place this time at a little over +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_252">[Pg 252]</span>a million years ago. By comparison, Piltdown men +were certainly more ancient than another race which +dominated Europe for long ages. This was the famous +Neanderthal race. These early and long extinct +people migrated into Europe from the East. Their +scattered fossil remains found in many different parts +tell the same story of an unusually powerful race. In +stature they were relatively short, probably not +averaging much more than five feet three inches in +height. Their arms were long and powerful, their +necks thick and extremely muscular. Their legs were +heavy and slightly bent at the knees. As a race they +were distinguished by the shape of their heads and +the size of their brains. The Neanderthal had a low, +retreating forehead and a head that was peculiarly +flat near the top. It seems as if the head were especially +constructed as part of an effective fighting +machine. Heavy ridges of bone surmounted the eyes +much as is the case in the gorilla. The head was set +down well upon the shoulders. The jaws were heavy, +indicating that the teeth as well as other parts of +the body might be employed in combat. The nose +was broad and flat and the chin lacked prominence. +All of these features must have given the Neanderthal +man a brutish appearance. The low beetling +brow, the flattened vault of the skull, the heavy jaw +with receding chin, the broad flat nose, all gave him +a countenance not unlike that of the great apes. +Visualized from his fossil remains, the Neanderthal +was a savage-looking creature. He would have been a +dangerous wayfarer for the unwary to meet. He was +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_253">[Pg 253]</span>probably so hideous in his appearance that his presence +gave offense to men of more refined sensibility. +This seems like a harsh judgment upon the Neanderthal. +It is a low estimate of him which his brain does +not justify. As a matter of fact, the size of the Neanderthal +brain is somewhat greater than that of any +modern races. If size alone were the standard, such +a brain would not indicate a low degree of mental +organization. But size alone is not a reliable indicator +of brain capacity. Unusually large brains are often +inferior in their brain power. It is said that the largest +brain, both by weight and measure, was that of a +feeble-minded gardener at one time employed in a +large public garden in London. The volume of the +Neanderthal brain is not a convincing argument as +to its efficiency. From other indications, however, it is +certain that this race had made definite advances in +human progress. They were skilled artisans and flint +workers. They had command of fire, which was employed +in the upbuilding of distinct industries. Far +from being lowly, ape-like creatures, they had many +of the higher attributes of man.</p> + +<p>The earliest discovery of these ancient people occurred +in 1848 when Lieutenant Flint found the +first Neanderthal skull in an old quarry at Gibraltar. +The real meaning of this find, however, was not appreciated +until more than sixty years later.</p> + +<p>One of the most important Neanderthal discoveries +was made in the valley of the Dordogne in southwestern +France. In a cavern near the little village of +La Chapelle-aux-Saints, the abbés Bouyssonie and +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_254">[Pg 254]</span>Bardon (autumn, 1908) found the skeleton of a +primitive man. The body rested upon its back, with +its head toward the west, its legs, thighs, and forearms +folded together. The head had been protected by +flat stones, and many skillfully worked flints of the +Mousterian period surrounded the body. There was +every evidence of interment and burial ceremony +about the discovery which, it was finally decided, +was the skeleton of a middle-aged man belonging to +the Neanderthal race. By measurement it was found +that the skeleton must have contained a brain of large +size, considerably larger than the average modern +brain. The brain cast of this prehistoric man gives us +some clear idea of Neanderthal brain power. In shape +the brain is distinctly flat. The arching in the region +of the forehead, so prominent in modern races, is +absent. This part of the brain seems to sink inward +as if the frontal lobe had gone somewhat into eclipse, +or had not yet made that decisive expansion characteristic +of later races of man. This condition, however, +corresponds exactly with the low retreating forehead +of the Neanderthal. When compared with the ape +man of Java, or with the Dawn man of Piltdown, the +Neanderthal brain does, however, show expansion in +all of its major departments. The parietal, occipital, +and temporal lobes have all increased in size. This is +true also of the frontal lobe, but the ratio of expansion +appears to be less here than in other areas. It is in this +department that the real flatness of the brain is most +pronounced. The convolutions in the frontal lobe fail +to give the superbrain those dominant characters +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_255">[Pg 255]</span>which produce a high, wide forehead in modern man. +This apparent failure of the frontal lobe to attain +greater proportions must have had far-reaching influences +upon the life and destiny of these primitive +Europeans.</p> + +<p>All of the major departments of the brain show +considerable expansion. The entire brain of the +Neanderthal gives evidence of progressive development +at the same time that it manifests many signs +of deficiency and incomplete realization along the +higher lines of progress.</p> + + +<h3 id="Brain_of_Rhodesian_Man"> + <i>Brain of Rhodesian Man</i> +</h3> + +<p>Asia and Europe have produced evidence of prehistoric +man. Until quite recently Africa has been +peculiarly silent in this regard. At length even the +Dark Continent has revealed signs showing that man +of a primitive type has gone a long way toward the +south in his wanderings over the earth. This important +discovery was made in Rhodesia and first +publicly reported in 1921 by Mr. William L. Harris. +The conditions of this discovery were peculiar and +significant. Actual remains of two human skeletons +were found at Broken Hill mine in northern Rhodesia. +Connected with this mine there was originally a +natural cave about 120 feet long. This is known as +the bone cave. It contained a vast number of animal +bones all impregnated with the salts of zinc and lead. +At the bottom of this cave the human remains were +found. Like all of the other bones, the human skeletons +were incrusted by zinc and lead. The cave itself +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_256">[Pg 256]</span>seems to have been the ancient feasting place for +hyenas, which dragged thither their prey. There is +some suspicion that these human remains may have +come to their last resting place in the cave of bones +in a similar manner. The cleft of the roof of the cave +here is far in, which suggests the possibility that the +men or women whose bones were found may have +fallen into the cavern. Certain features of the skull, +however, have convinced eminent authorities that +these individuals belong to a very ancient prehistoric +race. The face is far more brutal than that of any +other known human being, living or extinct. The +enormous eyebrow ridges resemble those of the gorilla, +the nose is flat and has that snout-like appearance +suggesting a peculiarly significant mark of the beast, +known only in one other extinct member of the human +family, the Neanderthal man. Another remarkable +feature of the head is the great size of the palate and +teeth. The brain case and the features of the brain +lend support to the view that this Rhodesian man +was even older and more primitive than Neanderthal +man.</p> + +<p>By all the signs of his frontal lobe the Rhodesian +must have been a humble sort of human. Nothing in +this department of his brain suggests any near approach +to the attainments of modern man. The frontal +lobe bears many marks of ape-like characters. It +indicates at the same time a brain power which surpassed +the limits of the great apes. It was a brain +fast carrying man upward to the broader plains of +human experience. The lot of the Rhodesian must +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_257">[Pg 257]</span>have been precarious. He was pitted against formidable +animals of the African wilds. But, judged by his +frontal lobe, his brain had not left him destitute for +the exigencies of such competition. He doubtless +possessed the power of speech and the capacity for +making human combinations. Compared with lower +mammals he had a more facile association of ideas +and could profit more effectively from experience. +The evidence of his parietal, temporal, and occipital +lobes indicates definite progress in all departments +of sense perception. His brain was human though still +in the rough. Whatever position is finally assigned +to this far-distant cousin in our human family, he +seems from his brain to have been a very simple sort +of human being, older perhaps and even more primitive +than any of the Neanderthal race.</p> + + +<h3 id="Changes_in_Human_Race_Extremely_Slow"> + <i>Changes in Human Race Extremely Slow</i> +</h3> + +<p>It is impossible to give the exact dates for the appearance +of the different races of prehistoric men. +At best, our ideas concerning their antiquity must +be approximate. Yet these fossils do not leave us in +doubt in one respect at least. We know and we may +prove our knowledge in many different ways that +man has inhabited the globe through long ages, +whether we rate these ages as hundreds of thousands +or millions of years. Throughout these ages man has +varied considerably. At first he bore many close resemblances +to lower forms of life. Slowly he improved +and manifested a progressive advance toward higher +humanity. We may be inclined to question this progressive +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_258">[Pg 258]</span>change from one stage to another largely +because our own experience of life is limited to such a +short span of time. Within the memory of any man +the changes in his fellows seem inconsiderable. Mankind +appears to have a dominating fixity in appearance. +It is only a little more than sixty generations +since the birth of Christ, and during this time the +racial characters of men have changed but little. +The white man, the red man, the black man, and the +yellow man, are all much the same in the form of body, +the shape of head, the appearance of face, as they +were sixty generations ago. There is more than a +striking figure of speech in the scriptural definition +that a thousand years are but as a day in the endless +expanse of time. Measured by such days as these, +man has changed slowly but surely. When we contemplate +long days of this kind, each of a thousand +years, their accumulation in the existence of our race +takes on a new meaning. Estimate, for example, how +far back ten days of this time would take us. We +should find ourselves in the life of the world as it was +ten thousand years ago, in that critical period when a +vast social and racial change was altering the colour +and complexion of human existence in Europe. The +senile but still wonderful Cromagnon race was then +limping along to the last stage of its declining old age +and was about to disappear. The hardy and practical +man of the New Stone Age had already arrived and +was fast becoming master of the situation. The Cromagnon +artist-hunter was passing the sceptre of +human control in Europe over to the hard-headed +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_259">[Pg 259]</span>Neolithic business man. Another fifty days (each of a +thousand years) still further back and we find again +a momentous crisis. At that time the Neanderthal +man was passing. In spite of all his rugged vigour, his +day on earth was done. He had carried on existence +successfully for seven or eight hundred thousand +years, but now the time of his extinction was at hand. +These seven or eight hundred thousand years would +merely be seven or eight hundred days, according to +the new kind of timepiece by which we are endeavouring +to measure the duration of human progress.</p> + + +<h3 id="Cromagnons_Replace_the_Neanderthals"> + <i>Cromagnons Replace the Neanderthals</i> +</h3> + +<p>We may pause to seek some reason for the momentous +change when the Neanderthal appears to have +bowed before the Cromagnon. The real secret in the +failure of the old race and the success of the new may +be found in the brain. It was the increased brain +power of the Cromagnon which produced the supremacy +of this great race. It was this power which gave +Europe its first pioneers in art and, for all mankind, +opened the doors of creative imagination and appreciation +of beauty in the world.</p> + +<p>It would be particularly illuminating if a brain of the +Cromagnon race were available for study. These first +artists occupied an exalted position. They began their +life in Europe about fifty thousand years ago and +carried on their industries for a period twenty times +longer than the duration of the Christian Era. At +present there is no Cromagnon brain cast available. +We may, however, draw analogies from certain of +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_260">[Pg 260]</span>their human contemporaries, who lived in the middle +part of Europe during the Solutrean period. These +were days when Cromagnon art and industry were +at their zenith, when the Old Stone Age had attained +its culminating stage and flourished in its fullest development. +The Solutrean contemporaries of the +Cromagnons were themselves a remarkable people. +They are known as the “great mammoth hunters of +Prêdmost.” Their fossil remains have been found in +Moravia. Associated with them were the fossilized +bones of nearly nine hundred specimens of mammoths. +In addition to these fossils of men and beasts there +were found many highly worked flints, including +spear heads and other stone implements, all having +a pattern which belonged to the Solutrean period. At +Prêdmost, where this discovery was made, there was a +collective burial of fourteen human beings, with the +remains of six others. These great mammoth hunters +must have been a large and powerful race. Their prowess +as trackers of great game was exceptional. The +character of their brain as revealed by the casts made +from their skulls places them at once on a plane higher +than any of the earlier races of man. In fact, it admits +them to membership in the same race to which we +ourselves belong—that is, <i>Homo sapiens</i>. These intrepid +hunters, according to their fossil remains, +closely resembled their splendid contemporaries of +western Europe, the Cromagnons. Of these latter +there is an ample record in consequence of which they +will always rank among the best representatives of +the human species. Their remarkable artistic contributions +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_261">[Pg 261]</span>denote far more than the executive mastery +of art. They signalize that new spirit which had been +breathed into mankind, that devotion to the beautiful +in life which created an abiding enthusiasm in all +of our race for its highest ideals and loftiest purposes. +From the first days of Cromagnon life these tendencies +were dominant. They were a people who delighted +in the lavish use of personal adornment. Coiffure was +of particular interest with the women and a highly +developed personal achievement. Both the men and +the women seem to have been fond of using red and +yellow ochre, much as in modern times, to beautify +the body. If certain Egyptian ladies are credited +with the invention of the lipstick and of rouge, it is +probable that they found their examples for such +artistic practices in these Cromagnon prototypes. +Drawing, painting, and sculpture were not the only +creations of the Cromagnons in the realm of art. It +seems probable that they had invented some form of +music. Their sketches of dances and masks make it +seem likely that to vocal expression they had added +certain artificial accessories in the shape of crude +musical instruments. One character in the artistic +discrimination of these artists and sculptors of the +Old Stone Age is of unusual interest. It shows a +distinct partiality for portraying women of extreme +corpulence. Many of their statuettes have been discovered +which, in spite of their somewhat unsightly +<i>embonpoint</i>, are called Venuses. The most famous of +these is the Venus of Willendorf. It was, however, in +the carving of animal forms that Cromagnon art +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_262">[Pg 262]</span>attained its real heights. Many living and extinct +species of birds, mammals, and fish have thus been +immortalized. Back of all this varied artistic creation +there must have been a social organization of high +order, for only a rich human experience could provide +the soil for such vivid and real beauty in art.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Mammoth_Hunters_of_Predmost"> + <i>The Mammoth Hunters of Prêdmost</i> +</h3> + +<p>The brain of the great mammoth hunters of Prêdmost +had a volume close to the standards of modern +men. It had lost those marks of inferiority which +stamp the brains of lower races. It had gained that +refinement of structure in the superbrain which proclaims +the ascendant qualities of humanity. The +groove of Sylvius and the central groove show the +boundaries and the size of the several lobes of the +brain, which correspond closely to those of modern +man. It is in the frontal lobe that the most remarkable +gains are apparent. The convolutions in this +region are prominent and well defined. That flatness +so typical of the Neanderthal brain has disappeared. +These Prêdmost and Cromagnon people were not a +race of flatheads, such as were the Neanderthals. +The human forehead had become high and broad. +It was no longer ape-like and receding, but clearly +indicated that the human brain had developed sufficiently +in its latest acquired and most highly organized +department to demonstrate that man at +length was capable of real humanity.</p> + +<p>From the Java ape-man up to <i>Homo sapiens</i> of +modern times there has been a slow but gradual +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_263">[Pg 263]</span>increase in all of the important measurements of the +brain. There has been a gain in length, in breadth, +and in height. Much of this gain has taken place in +the region of the frontal lobe, and thus has expressed +itself in expansion in the highest department for developing +brain power. The meaning of this pronounced +frontal expansion is evident in the progressive extensions +of human intelligence.</p> + + +<h3 id="Progress_of_the_Human_Family"> + <i>Progress of the Human Family</i> +</h3> + +<p>Judged by its brain power, the human family has +clearly been progressive. In this respect it differs from +all other families in the animal kingdom. In various +parts of the world mankind has lagged behind. Such +is the case in the tropics, where the races of men are +still in a primitive stage. This is true also of many +islands of the sea, in the arctic regions, and in other +remote and inaccessible places of the earth. But given +its full opportunity the human family has not failed +to go forward. The line of its progress may not be +deemed wholly satisfactory by the higher standards +of enlightened criticism. Yet in bending the forces of +nature more and more to his will as well as to his +convenience, man has surely progressed. Where he +has stood still, where perhaps he has even fallen +behind, is in the manifest lack of control over his own +nature. His curiosity has led him to inquire into every +phase and aspect of life upon the globe. But in all of +these inquiries he has given far too little thought to +himself. Only within recent years has he become +deeply interested in the mechanisms of his own +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_264">[Pg 264]</span>behaviour. Least of all has he devoted time and +thought to the organ of his chief reliance, to the +creator of his successes, to the dictator of his future.</p> + +<p>Since his earliest beginnings man has grown in +humanity as his brain expanded. Such a conclusion +seems irresistible. If we place side by side the brain +casts of the ape man of Java, the Dawn man of Piltdown, +the Rhodesian, the Neanderthal, the Prêdmost, +and the modern, we have before us a demonstration +of this progress more effective than words.</p> + +<p>The regions in which the greatest development has +occurred are easily discerned. Marked additions have +been made to the department of sight in the occipital +lobe, of hearing in the temporal lobe, of body and +contact sense in the parietal lobe. The mechanisms +for the amplification of sense perception and sense +combination have been manifoldly increased. But it +is in the department of the chief executive of life +and experience that the most decisive advance has +occurred. This area of the frontal lobe, so poorly +represented in man’s nearest kin, the great manlike +apes, shows exuberant growth, even in the ape man +of Java. Here its features correspond to those of +modern man in nearly every detail. Its only essential +inferiority is its relative smallness. Its special development +of convolutions denotes the acquisition of human +speech and human reason.</p> + + +<h3 id="Progressive_Development_of_the_Human_Brain"> + <i>Progressive Development of the Human Brain</i> +</h3> + +<p>Were we to select any single area in the superbrain +as the department supreme in mental organization, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_265">[Pg 265]</span>we should not neglect the claims of the department +for vision, for hearing, for body and contact sense. +Although each of these has progressively expanded, +we would be much more strongly inclined to favour +that part of the superbrain which has been active +as the superlative sense combiner, which has served +to develop the fullest impressions of human existence, +to accumulate the widest ranges of experience, to +direct most broadly the actions of our behaviour. +Traced through all of their intermediate stages upward, +it is these frontal regions which manifest the +most conspicuous development. The process of this +long, progressive expansion in the frontal lobe reaches +back to the earliest periods of man’s existence. It +conveys an accurate impression of the manner in +which the brain has responded to the demands made +upon it. The human brain may still be considered to +be in its early youth, in spite of the fact that more +than a million years of human striving lie behind it. +This great antiquity, this remarkable flexibility, +have been largely overlooked. By most of us the +human brain is regarded as a finished product. Its +long, prehistoric record as we know it to-day does not +support this point of view. On the contrary, it makes +it appear far more probable that the brain of modern +man is only some intermediate stage in the ultimate +development of the master organ of life. The greatest +possibilities for future progress lie in further expansion +of the frontal lobe. For this reason the brain of +prehistoric man is not merely an antiquarian relic, +it is a sign from the long ages of the past showing the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_266">[Pg 266]</span>road man has followed in his upward course. It likewise +conveys some suggestions concerning the future. +For, if the human brain began as a simple organ and +gradually developed through successive stages, there +is reason to believe, if not to predict, that it may +develop still further.</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_267">[Pg 267]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XII"> + CHAPTER XII + <br> + IMPLEMENTS OF HUMAN SUCCESS + <br> + <span style="font-size: medium;">HOW THE HAND, FOOT, AND BRAIN LED THE + WAY TO HUMANITY</span> + </h2> +</div> + + +<p>It is not sufficient to know that the brain began as a +simple organ and gradually became more complex. +Sooner or later we must learn the reasons why it +made this progress. At present we are able to identify +some of the essential principles underlying brain +development, yet with few exceptions the exact +causes are still obscure. We may feel certain, however, +that the progressive advances were due to the accumulation +of slight changes which, modifying brain +structure ever so little, ultimately made it more +highly effective. Such changes in the different parts +of the body are the result of a complex interplay of +influences acting upon the animal as a whole. The +brain has been particularly responsive to this interplay. +It has at the same time been thoroughly conservative. +Throughout all its wide range of variation it +has maintained its basic designs. If readjustment of +the body to certain conditions has resulted in the +depreciation of a special part, such as the eye, the +structure of the brain shows corresponding depreciations. +The principle of compensation has also been at +work. The power which may be depreciated or lost in +one department is, to some degree at least, compensated +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_268">[Pg 268]</span>for by others. An illustration of this compensatory +power is afforded by the mole. This animal lives +a burrowing life beneath the ground. Light rays do +not reach it, and it therefore has no need for vision. +In consequence, its eyes do not develop the function +of sight. Its senses of touch and hearing, however, are +greatly amplified, and the structure of its brain gives +evidence of this compensatory readjustment.</p> + +<p>Signs of the close relation between the brain and the +parts which it controls may be found in many organs +of the body. In some instances these signs are outspoken; +in others they are less clear. It is much easier +to find evidence of this correlation in those parts +which play a conspicuous rôle in life. The arms and +legs, the eyes and ears, are particularly good examples. +Modifications which have affected these parts +are distinctly reflected in the brain. If more brain +power is required for their better operation, more ample +provision is made for them in brain structure.</p> + + +<h3 id="Relation_of_One_Part_of_Body_to_Another"> + <i>Relation of One Part of Body to Another</i> +</h3> + +<p>It is a debated question whether the brain or the +external part of the body takes the lead in progressive +modifications. Some authorities believe that all advances +of this kind are dictated by development in +the brain. Others ascribe the determining influence +to the external part. For the present it seems wiser to +consider these modifications as simultaneous, as +affecting the external part and the brain together. +Certain dangers arise from regarding the body as +divided too strictly into definite parts. Such a division +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_269">[Pg 269]</span>has advantages for purposes of description, but it +may tend to obscure the important fact that life is +carried on by the body acting as a whole. In this light +the division between external part and the portion +of the brain controlling it establishes an artificial +distinction. Viewed in the light of purposeful life, +one is of little use without the other. Both external +part and the portion of the brain controlling it establish +a special unit which, coöperating with all other +special units, carry on the process of living.</p> + +<p>This view is known as the organismal conception +of life. It estimates the entire animal not as a collection +of different parts but as a combination which +makes life possible. According to this conception +the external structure (arm, leg, eye, ear, etc.) and +the portion of the brain controlling it form an operating +part of the whole. Modifications in the one are +reflected in the other. They cause mutual reactions. +When eyes are developed for different kinds of vision, +corresponding provisions are made for them in the +brain. When legs are specialized for various kinds of +locomotion, brain structure adapts itself accordingly.</p> + +<p>It is important to realize what the eyes and the +ears and the organ of smell have contributed to the +progressive advance of the brain. In all of these organs +there is a marked constancy and sameness among +animals possessing them. Structures presenting a +greater variety of form might have even greater +pertinence. It therefore is a more leading question to +ask what relation the brain bears to the extremities, +to the fore and hind legs, to the hands and feet.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_270">[Pg 270]</span></p> + + +<h3 id="History_of_the_Hand_and_Foot"> + <i>History of the Hand and Foot</i> +</h3> + +<p>There is a long history of progressive change back +of the hand and foot. In their development they +emerged from more simple structures connected with +the ends of the limbs in certain four-legged animals. +Because they are attached to the limbs in this way, +they have played an important rôle in one of the chief +activities of life—locomotion. The fore and hind legs +act as a series of levers. They are moved by muscles +and in this way make transportation possible. Consequently +the modifications in the ends of the limbs +in response to special types of locomotion have a +most important bearing upon the life of the animal +and thus upon the brain.</p> + +<p>In animals living upon land such parts of the limbs +as touch the ground are modified by many factors; +thus the weight of the body, the speed of movement, +and the kind of locomotion would all exert their modifying +influence. Limbs of several different designs +have thus been produced. Heavy animals, like horses +and cattle, which require speed and endurance for +long journeys, need hoofs. Still larger hoofs were +developed by heavier animals, like the elephant and +rhinoceros. The paw was the design utilized by animals +like cats and dogs. Their bodies were not so +heavy as those of horses and cattle. They were capable +of great speed and needed sharp nails on their +paws to hold the ground in running and springing. +These talon-like nails they also used for defending +themselves or in capturing their prey, as do the lion, +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_271">[Pg 271]</span>tiger, leopard, and bear. The paw is a more flexible +implement than the hoof. It provides a soft, elastic +pad by means of which the animal touches the ground. +In animals like the seal, walrus, and sea lion the +flipper is the design utilized. Here the digits are connected +by means of a web. The wing is the specialization +in such animals as the bat whose transportation +depends upon flight through the air.</p> + + +<h3 id="Locomotor_Devices"> + <i>Locomotor Devices</i> +</h3> + +<p>These various devices for moving the body about +on the land, in the water, or through the air have +been developed by mammals. By such contrivances +they are enabled to subsist, each according to its +own mode of living. Some of them have returned to a +life in the water. The result of aquatic habits in +mammals is extremely interesting. The flippers of +seals, walruses, and sea lions equip these animals to +swim with great ease and speed. They enable them to +clamber about on the rocky coast by the edge of the +sea, or upon the ice fields of the arctic regions. Because +of its apparent limitations, such a life held +little prospect for developing the powers of higher +intelligence. A flipper is in no sense an efficient implement +by means of which to acquire a superior position +in the world. The seals and all of their kind, therefore, +offer little promise of progress. They are capable +of astonishing proficiency in the control of their neck +muscles and movements of their heads, but this at +best is a meagre advantage. They are somewhat +better off than another group of mammals which +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_272">[Pg 272]</span>took to the water, namely; porpoises and whales. +Nothing in the equipment of these animals could +serve as efficient instruments by which to gain a preëminent +place in nature.</p> + +<p>By developing wings in connection with their limbs +the bats were also excluded from the lines of higher +progress. However effective they are in flight, their +wings could not be made to serve constructive purposes.</p> + +<p>Animals with hoofs, such as horses and cattle, elephants +and rhinoceroses, acquired solid and reliable +feet for withstanding the heavy strain which their +speed and weight imposed upon them. Hoofs, however, +are far from ideal as universal instruments. +Although sufficient for the work they have to do, +they cannot be utilized for purposes other than those +of transportation except, in a certain minor way, for +offensive and defensive tactics. In these animals all +of the digits are either bound together in one large +supporting pad, as in the elephant, or are encased by +a horny covering, as in cattle and deer. In the modern +horse but one digit persists, and this is surrounded +by a heavy, horny hoof. Such an implement would not +require a highly specialized endowment of brain +power for its control.</p> + +<p>The daily programme of these animals, limited +largely to transportation, calls for no constructive +ability and no intentionally destructive one. The +hoofed animals possess no means for accumulating +or storing food in preparation against a day of need. +They are forced to move from place to place in order +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_273">[Pg 273]</span>to find their browsing and grazing lands. They cannot +stand against great changes of climate or season. +They must flee before the advance of winter as well +as from their enemies. The hoof for this reason offered +little promise for the development of a more efficient +kind of instrument. Such hoofed animals as also possess +a trunk developed an accessory organ of much +value. It is doubtless an important factor in the high +specialization of the elephant’s brain. Even this +flexible instrument, however, has its decided limitations.</p> + +<p>All of these mammals, whether hoofed, flippered, +or winged, have failed to develop a brain of superior +qualities. In no instance is it an organ capable of a +high degree of learning or intricate control of life. +The hoof of the horse, cattle, deer, elephant, rhinoceros, +and the like set the stamp of the wild upon +these animals. This is the keynote of their behaviour. +Flipper and wing are equally indicative of inferior +qualifications in so far as efficiency and brain power +are concerned. There may be sufficient reasons for +placing these mammals in the same bracket with +man in the great classes of the animal kingdom. Their +inferiorities are apparent, however, when their intelligence +is estimated by human standards. It is then +clear how far below the human level of brain power +they are.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Paw_in_Relation_to_Hand_and_Foot"> + <i>The Paw in Relation to Hand and Foot</i> +</h3> + +<p>In our search for animals capable of a greater range +of adjustments we will find another group with a +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_274">[Pg 274]</span>much more promising locomotor equipment. This +group comprises those mammals possessing paws, +such as dogs, cats, bears, rats, squirrels, and the like. +In itself the paw is a most flexible implement susceptible +to many modifications. It possesses five distinct +finger-like processes or digits, each of which is +capable of some degree of individual movement. The +digits may be spread out or drawn together; they +may be folded or extended. In every typical paw there +are eighteen movable joints, each of which is capable +of some independent motion. Twenty-five muscles +make more than seventy separate movements possible. +These figures afford some idea of what a complex +structure the paw is. Attached to the extremity of +each digit is a sharp claw-like nail, beneath which an +enlargement in the skin forms a prominent “tip pad.” +Over each of these pads the skin is arranged in ridges. +The ridges roughen the surface and produce what is +called “friction skin.” The roughened skin and the +claws at the end of the digits give the animal better +ground-gripping powers. In addition to the tip pad, +each typical paw has four enlargements where the +digits come together. These are the “palm” and “sole” +pads. They are likewise covered with ridged friction +skin. The paw terminates in the wrist or ankle, and +at this junction there are two enlargements called +respectively the “wrist” and “ankle” pads. They are +also covered with friction skin.</p> + +<p>This design of paw with its separate digits, its +claw-like nails, and its eleven pads affords an especially +adaptable structure from which to create many +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_275">[Pg 275]</span>different kinds of useful implements. In the gnawing +animals, like the rats and squirrels, the paw is developed +particularly for running and climbing. The +long sharp claws serve the purpose of spurs which, +as in the case of the squirrel, may be driven into the +bark of trees. All of the pads in the paw come in +contact with the surface over which the animal is +moving, thus giving information concerning its support +and aiding its transportation.</p> + +<p>In moles and burrowing animals the hind paw retains +its usual features, while the fore paw is converted +into something resembling a shovel. The paw +becomes broad and flat, particularly in the moles, +and there is no suggestion of any of its pads. Since +this specialization is adapted principally for digging +underground, little could be expected in the way of +high attainment for animals of this kind. Their burrowing +capacity is excellent, but this is the extent of +their ability.</p> + + +<h3 id="Special_Uses_of_the_Paw"> + <i>Special Uses of the Paw</i> +</h3> + +<p>In the meat-eating animals, like the dog and the +cat, the individual digits and the claws are somewhat +shorter, but their most important modification is the +fusion of the paw pads and the reduction in the first +digit. This change is a specialization for their more +springy type of locomotion. Such animals run on the +tips of the digits, using especially the second, third, +and fourth digits. The paw pads usually fuse to form +one or two which serve to increase the spring of the +animal. The fore limb of the rat may be accepted +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_276">[Pg 276]</span>as the working model, because it has all of the general +features that make up a typical paw. It provides for +running, climbing, clinging, and clawing. When compared +with the paw of a mole, the modifications necessary +for a good digging implement are clearly seen. The +pads are no longer needed and might, as a matter of +fact, be in the way. The digits are shorter and the whole +hand is broader and more scoop-like. The paw of the +mole is modified for the work it has to do and has lost +many of the structures necessary for ordinary locomotion +over the ground. Long claws are no longer essential +for climbing or clinging, and the nails have been +converted into burrowing ground-breakers. The +rabbit and the guinea pig show changes in the fore +paw necessary for rapid transportation in a kind of +jumping locomotion. They have lost the specializations +in the paw necessary for climbing. The nails +and the digits are less long and somewhat heavier. +The squirrel, on the other hand, has a fore paw specialized +for climbing trees. This modification has +emphasized the length of the individual digit and +particularly the length and sharpness of the claws. +Often the squirrel may be seen sitting upon its +haunches holding between its fore paws a nut, the +shell of which it is attempting to crack with its teeth. +Such grasping power is not found in the paws of +animals specialized for running and jumping solely. +The squirrel’s modification of the front paw is extremely +important. It reveals how the animal’s life in +the tree has lengthened the digits as well as the nails. +Some degree of power for grasping small objects has +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_277">[Pg 277]</span>come through this lengthening. The fore paw of a +cat compared with that of a dog illustrates other +important specializations. Both of these animals are +strong runners. In running they travel along on the +tips of the digits. For this reason the tip pads and the +friction skin over them have become highly developed +for ground-gripping purposes. The paw pads and the +wrist pads have tended to fuse in order to give an +elastic surface necessary for that springy gait determined +by running on the tips of the digits. The individual +digits are somewhat longer in the cat than in +the dog. The claw-like nail of all the cat family is +one of their distinguishing features. By means of these +claws they are able to climb trees, which is a provision +of great service in procuring food. Dogs, on +the other hand, have short digits, with thick, heavy +nails suited more as spikes in running but not adapted +to climbing. In many of the great cats, like the leopard, +climbing trees is an essential part of their hunting +strategy. For this reason they require long, sharp +claws, which may also be used as weapons in attacking +their prey. The long claws of the bear likewise +indicate a modification of the fore paw in adjustment +to the animal’s climbing propensities. The great +weight of the bear makes it necessary for it to have +these long spur-like claws in order to get a proper +grip on the bark of a tree when climbing.</p> + + +<h3 id="Transformation_from_Paw_to_Hand"> + <i>Transformation from Paw to Hand</i> +</h3> + +<p>Illustrations of this kind might be multiplied to +show that in all animals having paws these implements +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_278">[Pg 278]</span>have been modified in one way or another to +suit the kind of work they have to do. In the main, +this work is transportation. But there are many special +problems in the different kinds of transportation. +There are also numerous other adjustments to life +that are capable of producing profound modification +in the paws. From such facts as these it must be +clear that the paw has been serviceable as the basis +for developing instruments suited to many special +purposes. One prominent feature in the several modifications +of the fore paw is the effect which climbing +has had upon the length of the digits and upon the +length of the claw-like nails. In the rat and particularly +in the squirrel these effects of climbing are +especially distinct. When climbing at length became +a dominant factor in the life and livelihood of the +animal, certain still more decisive modifications were +produced in the paws. We may now endeavour to +gain some idea of that important transformation +which occurred when certain groups of animals took +up more or less permanent life in the trees. These +mammals were representative of the monkey kind. +They did not resort to tree climbing as many others +have done as an expedient in hunting or in escaping +from their enemies. The trees became their abodes. +Many changes were induced by this new adjustment +to life, changes which affected the muscles and bones +and even the skin. During the process of this adjustment +certain ridges upon the skin in the palm of the +hand and sole of the foot began to show marked +changes, probably because they were in such immediate +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_279">[Pg 279]</span>and constant contact with the branches of +the trees. In their basic designs these ridges which +form the friction skin may be traced back to the simplest +of pawed animals. Their successive modifications +offer one of the most certain guides in following the +stages through which the hand emerged from the +paw.</p> + +<p>Each ridge upon the skin of the paw (<i>chiridium</i>) +is an elevation of the superficial layer which contains, +at regular intervals, the mouths of minute canals +coming from sweat glands. In its simplest form each +sweat gland in regions of the skin not covered by hair +(sole of the foot and palm of the hand) consists of a +mound-like elevation in the centre of which is the +mouth of a sweat duct. With the higher development +of the skin, numbers of these little mounds ran together +in rows thus forming the friction ridges. Depending +upon the pressure and the kind of contact +made with the ground or other surface, the ridges of +the skin are arranged either in concentric circles, in +ellipses, or in parallel lines. They serve two useful +purposes: First, they roughen the surface so that it +can grip the ground more effectively; second, by the +continuous secretion of fluid from the sweat glands, +they keep the skin soft, pliable, and sensitive. In this +last particular, namely, the sensitiveness of the skin, +the ridges also serve in another capacity. They provide +proper locations for nerve endings, necessary to the +sense of touch in all of its various modifications. Thus +the paws in the more minute architecture of their +skin pads and friction ridges afford highly pliable +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_280">[Pg 280]</span>and sensitive instruments by means of which different +kinds of mammals are able to adjust themselves +in a great variety of ways.</p> + +<p>After many intermediate stages of transition the +fore paw assumed the appearance of a hand. Simultaneous +with this change the hind paw also began to +manifest many hand-like characters. Potent factors +were at work determining this important transformation. +Their influences were decisive not alone because +they changed the paw into a hand but because they +instituted equally profound changes in the structure +of the brain. Such modifications as these brought +about many adjustments to life destined to be the +special determinants of human behaviour. One of +the first changes to occur in transforming a front +paw into a hand was the direct result of arboreal life. +This modification consisted of a decisive lengthening +of the digits, particularly the second, third, fourth, +and fifth digits. In this way the fingers were formed. +The first digit which ultimately became the thumb +did not lengthen to the same degree as the other four. +The chief influence in producing this lengthening to +form fingers arose from the need of a firm grasp upon +the branches. Its effects appear in the simplest monkeys, +such as tarsius. The small hand of this animal +has four long fingers and a diminutive thumb, all of +which are well adapted to encircling and grasping a +cylindrical branch. Another important transitional +feature is the flattening in the ball of each digit. In +tarsius each finger tip has a disk-like appearance. +This is an extreme development. It produces what +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_281">[Pg 281]</span>in effect is a suction pad on the tip of the finger not +unlike that observed in some of the frogs (<i>Hyladæ</i>). +Such suction pads enable the animal to strengthen its +grasp upon the bark. The flattening of the finger tips +due to the pressure required in grasping the limb +of a tree produced a third great change. It caused a +corresponding flattening of the back of the finger tip +and thus developed a broad, flat finger nail to replace +the sharp, claw-like nail of the cat, rat, and other +similar mammals.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Hand_of_Tarsius_and_Lemur"> + <i>The Hand of Tarsius and Lemur</i> +</h3> + +<p>The three changes observed in the most primitive +of the monkey kind (<i>Tarsius</i>) comprise the pronounced +lengthening of the fingers, the flattening +of the finger tips, and the flattening of the finger nails. +These transformations are easily understood in connection +with the necessity of grasping cylindrical +branches. In other words, a prehensile hand came into +existence as a result of living in the trees, and a new +kind of instrument made its appearance in relation +with the upper extremity. The need of a firm grasp on +the branches was the fundamental cause of this modification +of the paw. It had far-reaching effects because +it created the facility to grasp many other objects +and thus struck the keynote of those further developments +which ultimately gave rise to the grasping +hand of man.</p> + +<p>All of the pads covered by friction skin which are +characteristic of lower mammals like the rat and the +squirrel may be identified in tarsius. The tip pads +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_282">[Pg 282]</span>are somewhat changed to form the suction disks. +The palm pads, four in number, occupy their usual +position in the angle between the digits. The wrist +pads, two in number, are well developed. By means +of these elastic cushions the animal makes its contacts +with the branches.</p> + +<p>Transition from paw to hand is still more pronounced +in the lemurs. These animals in many ways +stand lower in the scale than tarsius. In them the +lengthening of the digits to form real fingers, the +marked development of the thumb, the appearance +of friction pads, and broad, flat finger nails are all +prominent. The index finger shows certain variations +in its development. In other respects these lowly +members of the monkey kind manifest definite progress +in the change from paw to hand.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Interesting_Case_of_the_Marmoset"> + <i>The Interesting Case of the Marmoset</i> +</h3> + +<p>At this point it is interesting to consider the case of +the marmosets. Here the progress which the paw had +made toward a more effective structural instrument +encountered a serious setback. The hand of these +little animals, in a general way, has much that resembles +a paw. Although it has long fingers and a +prominent thumb, there is an evident slipping backward. +The claw-like finger nails suggest an actual +retrogression in the process of developing a hand. +If the marmosets were actual backsliders, other +monkeys of the New World were particularly progressive. +They developed hands which are extremely +human in appearance. Their long, tapering fingers +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_283">[Pg 283]</span>have broad, flat nails. Their thumbs are fairly well +formed. Their finger and palm pads have characteristic +appearances. This interesting group of South +American monkeys show in a most striking manner +those changes which life in the trees has brought +about in the fore paw. Such modifications are especially +significant because of their influence upon the +behaviour of those animals which have taken up a +permanent arboreal life. They have also made a deep +impression upon the structure of the brain. The +transition from a running, ground-living animal to +the simpler arboreal forms is foreshadowed in the +lemur’s hand. In many respects this transition stands +just upon the border line. Its apparent indecisiveness +is recorded in the brain, for the lemur retains many +of the ancient brain features created by older ground-living +habits. At the same time, it indicates certain +adventurous attempts to break away from the earth +and ascend into the trees. The grooves of the brain +show this new departure particularly well. They +retain their strong family resemblances inherited +through long ages of four-legged ancestors. But added +to this they manifest a tendency to assume the characters +which in due course would lift their successors +farther from the ground and into a more erect posture.</p> + + +<h3 id="Appearance_of_the_Hand-like_Foot"> + <i>Appearance of the Hand-like Foot</i> +</h3> + +<p>Up to this point attention has been centred upon +the important changes which attended the transition +from paw to hand. Equally momentous were the +modifications in the hind paws which resulted in +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_284">[Pg 284]</span>hand-like feet. This transformation slowly altered the +digits, the claw-like nails, and the friction pads. It +modified all of these parts in such a way as to produce +better limb-gripping instruments. A great change in +transportation had taken place. Running over the +ground in easy, secure fashion now gave place to +the more hazardous method of climbing among the +branches of trees. A dependable grip was the prime +need. This capacity required long toes with which to +encircle the branches, a powerful sole, and a great +toe with strong grasping power. The four-legged +animals that travel over the ground on various kinds +of paws support the weight of the body on two main +arches of the foot. One arch consists of an elastic +span between the tip and the sole pads. The other +arch extends between the sole and ankle pads. Generally +speaking, those animals living on the ground +first strike the surface at each step on the tip pads +of the four outer toes. As the full weight of the body +is accepted by the hind paw, the sole pads touch the +ground. Last and most lightly, the ankle pads in +the region of the heels rest on the supporting surface. +In many running animals of this kind the heel touches +the ground infrequently. Their running and walking +in consequence have a springy quality that prepares +them for a quick bounding start at an instant’s notice.</p> + + +<h3 id="Strong_Grasping_Powers"> + <i>Strong Grasping Powers</i> +</h3> + +<p>Animals like the rabbit and kangaroo possess hind +legs that work together, while the fore limbs are put +forward first one and then the other. The most effective +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_285">[Pg 285]</span>type of transportation in animals possessing +paws has developed a gait in which the action of +the hind leg of one side follows the action of the fore +leg of the opposite side. This is the manner in which +the dog runs. It is also true of all members belonging +to the great cat family. The hind paw is put down in +the footprint of the opposite fore paw. Apparently +there is no deliberate supervision of this action which +seems to be wholly automatic in its nature. To a great +extent, however, this automatic regularity in the +hind legs ceased when the four-handed animals came +into existence and began to live in the trees. The +problem then was a totally different one. It was not +necessary for these animals to be on their toes every +moment. They did not require the powerful spring +formed by the two arches in the sole of the foot. Their +chief necessity was a foot that would have the grasping +powers of a strong hand. In this way they could +make sure of seizing the branches securely.</p> + +<p>The first digit of the foot, which in most pawed +animals often fails to develop, became of greatest +service to the monkeys. In most of them the great +toe offers an added means for securing a firm grasp. +It may be extended behind the branch while the other +toes encircle it and all working together produce a +firm grip not unlike a wrench on a pipe. The need of a +long lever extending from the tip of the toes back to +the heel, essential to the springy gait of the ordinary +pawed animal, is not so strongly felt in arboreal life. +In fact, a foot which is too long may be an actual +disadvantage, while one facilitating the best kind of +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_286">[Pg 286]</span>gripping power would necessarily require a shortening +from toe to heel. This was the change which took place +in the early beginning of tree life.</p> + + +<h3 id="Under_Direction_of_the_Eye"> + <i>Under Direction of the Eye</i> +</h3> + +<p>It is difficult to appreciate all of the decisive modifications +throughout the body which the development +of such hand-like structures determined. Their +influences operated in profound and subtle ways. +They caused a great change in body posture. The +animal was now able to reach for branches above its +head. This was a long step in the direction of standing +upright. It modified the relation of the head which in +most four-legged animals is directed so that both +the eyes and the nose are turned toward the ground. +Reaching upward to grasp branches and drawing +the body in this direction lifted the head. It has been +shown that this action of pushing the head backward +and stretching the neck causes the hind legs to +straighten out automatically in exactly the position +necessary for standing erect. Such a beginning of the +upright posture also produced a change in the position +of the internal organs of the body as well as in the +position of the eyes. These modifications influenced +the growth of the superbrain, which finally acquired +that appearance seen only in animals possessing +hands. Coincident with these modifying factors, still +another important change was in process. In all four-legged +animals the paws, and more especially the +hind paws, operate out of sight of the eyes. The +animal does not see their action. The eye does not +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_287">[Pg 287]</span>watch and supervise the movements of the paws step +by step, but allows them to shift more or less for +themselves. With the appearance of hands connected +both with the fore and hind limbs, this state of affairs +ceased. Both the hand and the foot now came under +the critical supervision of the eye. The eye was able +to hold in plain view the performances of the hands +and hand-like feet. It could see and direct their movements. +It could single them out individually or watch +them while they all worked together. It could even +make critical discriminations in each hand and in each +foot. It could select a thumb or a great toe, or each +one of the other fingers and toes, and thus guide its +movements. This selective discrimination in the +hands and feet was an advantage never enjoyed by +any of the pawed animals whose habit it is to use all +of the digits together. In this manner both hand and +foot profited by their new adjustments. As instruments +they were capable of a far wider range of application, +although it was not alone by this expansion +in their utility that they became more effective. They +were better agents for sensing the world and possessed +a more ample sensory capacity which arose from +their own multiplied movements.</p> + + +<h3 id="Threshold_of_a_Great_Change"> + <i>Threshold of a Great Change</i> +</h3> + +<p>In the animal kingdom it would be difficult to find +more provocative influences than those which determined +the transformation of paws into four hands. +Considered casually, the appearance of the quadrumanous +monkeys in all their varieties seems little +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_288">[Pg 288]</span>more than the addition of many interesting forms of +life. This addition, however, had a far greater significance. +The four-handed stage of animal existence +led to the highest development of the brain. Without +this stage the ultimate advances in life, the supreme +achievements in progress, would have been impossible. +Numerous factors contributed to the acquisition of +hands and hand-like feet, but no one of them was +more potent in the final outcome than the effects of +tree-living. Almost every other combination of habitat +and adjustment had exerted its influence upon the +form of the mammalian body, yet in no other instance +has there been achieved a success comparable to the +development of hands. Most mammals are equipped +with highly efficient eyes, keen ears, and a serviceable +sense of smell. These endowments have had opportunity +to contribute to the efficiency of life. But neither +sight nor hearing nor smell was sufficient of itself to +determine those advantages capable of giving the +animal a supreme position. It was the hand which +opened the door to give the senses those opportunities +never enjoyed before. It called upon the brain for +further expansions to direct new ranges of movement. +It required additional brain extensions for a +greatly amplified sense of touch in the fingers and +palms, in the toes and soles of the feet. It was the +hand, in a word, that afforded an entirely new grasp +upon life and in the end created not only a new order +of mammals but almost a new kingdom of life. The +transition from paws to the hands of the quadrumana +is the threshold of an epochal change. As the paw was +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_289">[Pg 289]</span>the basic pattern for the hand, the hand was the indispensable +stepping-stone to the development of man. +This formula may perhaps seem altogether too simple +and graphic. It would be such, in fact, if many of the +important intermediate stages in the process of development +were overlooked. These stages may now be +considered.</p> + +<p>The consequences of the transition produced under +the influence of tree-living appear conspicuously in +the lengthening of the digits to form fingers, in the +appearance of an opposable thumb, in the acquisition +of a grasping hand. All of these are definitely adaptive +changes. They are applied directly to meet the +conditions of locomotion through the trees. But if +these modifications conferred upon the animals many +real advantages, they also introduced certain imposing +hazards to further progress. They were adequate +for the mastery of arboreal life, yet at the same time +they permitted the forest to become master of these +four-handed animals. This is true in exactly the same +way that the sea imposes its laws upon aquatic mammals, +the plains dictate to the ungulates, and the air +exerts its control over the bats.</p> + + +<h3 id="Possession_of_too_Many_Hands"> + <i>Possession of too Many Hands</i> +</h3> + +<p>So far as the monkeys are concerned, an obstacle +lies squarely across the path of further progress. They +are possessed of too many hands. Hand and hand-like +foot both serve the purposes of locomotion. Neither +the one nor the other is afforded those opportunities +of exclusive use which are essential to the highest +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_290">[Pg 290]</span>development. This is true even of most of the monkeys +of the Old World, like the macaques. Their +locomotion requires the use of all four extremities. +They run along on the top of the branches, grasping +firmly as they go. They leap from one branch to +another, employing all four hands in this mode of +transportation. As a result of these activities the +hands are long and slender, the fingers long and tapering, +and the thumb short but opposable. The foot +has much the appearance of the hand.</p> + +<p>One group of the ape world offers a striking departure +from this more general rule of development. +This exception is particularly interesting. It appears +in the baboon and more especially those members +of their family which have taken up a life upon the +ground. With the baboons the resumption of terrestrial +life came long before any of the monkeys had +made pronounced advances toward the erect posture. +It is for this reason that when these animals adopted +habits of ground life they readjusted themselves after +the fashion of other four-legged animals. They travel +about much like the dog or cat, with their muzzles +directed to the earth. In fact, many of their features, +both in head and body, take on a definite canine +appearance. A feature of special significance is the +manner in which their fore and hind limbs have reacted +to the influences of ground-living. The great +lengthening in the hands, fingers, feet, and toes, +conspicuous in monkeys that live in the trees, has +actually been reversed in the baboon. It is still proper +to speak of hands and feet, but both hand and foot +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_291">[Pg 291]</span>have shown striking tendency to revert to paws. +This specialization illustrates a remarkable disgression +in the development of the monkey kind. It means, if +it means anything at all, that the adaptations necessary +for carrying on life in the trees have withdrawn +their influence and permitted the habits of adjustment +to the ground to modify the character of the extremities. +In four particulars the hand of the baboon +shows distinct tendencies to revert to a paw:</p> + +<ol> +<li>All of the fingers are shortened.</li> + +<li>The thumb has been reduced if not to the state +of a vestigial tubercle as in the dog, at least until it +has become extremely rudimentary.</li> + +<li>The nails have become much longer and more +slender, as if they were tending to form claws.</li> + +<li>Both the tip pads and the palm pads have become +more prominent, the latter actually fusing to +form a single palmar cushion.</li> +</ol> + +<p>In the foot similar tendencies toward a paw are +present. The lesser toes and the great toe are much +shortened, and there is a distinct fusion of the plantar +pads. This reversion in the hands and feet of the +baboon shows clearly how readjustment occurred +when the influences of tree living were withdrawn. +It also demonstrates the strong tendency for the +chirideal structures to assume the ancient patterns +of the paw in response to the habits of four-footed +living upon the ground. The baboons, therefore, cannot +be considered in the direct line of progress. They +not only failed to advance the cause of developing +the hand but they did nothing to further the erect +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_292">[Pg 292]</span>posture or the progressive expansion of the brain. +It was perhaps the large size of their body that made +it necessary for them to desert the tree and seek more +secure support upon the ground. This increase of body +size, however, came at an early period, long before +the primates had begun to feel those decisive influences +which favoured standing erect.</p> + + +<h3 id="Brachiation_and_the_Erect_Posture"> + <i>Brachiation and the Erect Posture</i> +</h3> + +<p>Considerably later in geologic times another class +of apes made its appearance, which felt the full power +of this determining influence. These animals were the +gibbons. They introduced a new type of transportation. +Their locomotion no longer depended upon running +along on the tops of the branches, or leaping +from one support to the next. They introduced the +novel method of swinging by the hands. Reaching +for a branch over the head with the right hand, the +gibbon swings its body forward to grasp the next +branch in advance with the left hand. Swinging in +this manner, step by step, first with the right hand, +then with the left, these animals walk through the +trees. The results of this arm-swinging locomotion +(brachiation) are apparent in the development of the +hand. The fingers, tip pads, the palm, and the palm +pads are greatly elongated. Similar lengthening is also +apparent in the forearm. The acrobatic manœuvring +requisite to such locomotion has developed a high +degree of skill in using the hands and arms. It also +requires a close coöperation between the movements +of the upper extremities, eyes, and head. The influence +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_293">[Pg 293]</span>of these several modifications has impressed itself +upon the brain. But the most decisive effect of the +gibbon mode of locomotion is seen in the posture of +the body. The swinging by the hands well above the +head produces an almost constant erect posture. +The muzzle no longer points, as in the great majority +of monkeys, toward the ground. It, as well as the eyes, +is now directed toward the horizon, and thus those +factors which have contributed most to an upstanding, +forward-looking primate were first introduced by the +gibbon. The foot of these animals, while it retains +many features and markings of a hand, affords a +fairly satisfactory support for bipedal locomotion in +the erect posture. Obviously the effects of tree life +are responsible for these changes in the gibbon. All +other monkeys up to this stage have been embarrassed +by an over-endowment of hands. But the gibbon, by +over-emphasizing the upper extremity, has to some +degree nullified the importance of hand-like feet. It +has begun the solution of that perplexing problem +which was imposed upon the monkeys by their almost +exclusive tree life and which must be solved in order +to provide for the manlike specializations essential +to bipedal locomotion.</p> + +<p>In this gibbon level of the ape world such specializations +began to manifest themselves. From some +gibbon-like progenitor, early in the Age of Mammals, +there arose a common stock capable of producing +all of the modern gibbons, the great anthropoid apes, +and man himself. This gibbon stage of development +contained the potential material from which to +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_294">[Pg 294]</span>evolve the erect posture, bipedal locomotion, hands +freed for the purposes of the greatest utility, and a +brain adequate to the needs of the highest primates.</p> + + +<h3 id="A_New_Grasp_on_Life"> + <i>A New Grasp on Life</i> +</h3> + +<p>In the three great anthropoids, orang-outang, +chimpanzee, and gorilla, the hand is approaching +more closely to the human pattern. In all three the +leading advance is due to the development of a more +effective opposable thumb. The result of this change +has caused the disappearance of the two wrist pads +so characteristic of the mammalian paw and so prominent +in the great majority of monkeys. Power to oppose +the thumb against each one of the fingers separately +has increased to a great extent. The opponens +muscle of the thumb has become more prominent and +caused the appearance of a conspicuous muscular +swelling in the palm of the hand, the thenar eminence. +The palm muscles developed in connection with the +little finger have likewise occasioned the appearance +of the hypothenar eminence and at the same time +the disappearance of the second wrist pad. These +developments, all clearly seen in the anthropoid +apes, and most prominent in the gorilla, reach their +greatest proportions in man. They are evidence not of +the further adaptation of the hand to locomotion +but of its liberation for other and more constructive +purposes.</p> + +<p>The effects of this advance in the hand from one +primarily intended to provide a firm grip upon the +limbs of trees to one of almost universal application +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_295">[Pg 295]</span>are revealed by alterations in the palmar lines. These +lines are three in number, namely, the anterior, middle, +and posterior groove. In the gibbon they extend +across the palm almost parallel to each other. They +are creases which represent the lines of palmar flexion +resulting from grasping cylindrical branches. In the +orang-outang these lines are still essentially parallel, +indicating a hand designed to grasp a cylinder. In the +chimpanzee and gorilla the palmar grooves begin to +converge toward the space between the index finger +and thumb. In man this convergence is complete, +due to the development of the powerful hand muscle +which permits the opposable thumb to reach the +other fingers. This progressive convergence of the +palmar lines indicates the development of a hand no +longer intended for the simple purpose of grasping +a cylinder, but not constructed to take firm hold +upon a sphere. Figuratively this change in hand from +cylinder- to sphere-holding capacity is illustrative of +actual development in the intellectual grasping powers +that became the distinguishing feature of mankind.</p> + + +<h3 id="A_Firm_Foundation_for_Humanity"> + <i>A Firm Foundation for Humanity</i> +</h3> + +<p>Thus far we have been able to trace the stages by +which the hand developed in consequence of tree life. +It is now necessary to follow the modifications which +terminated this arboreal domination and consequently +liberated the animal from the forest. This +transition determined an adjustment to life that was +finally productive of the most effective behaviour. +The outcome of this modification was the freeing of +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_296">[Pg 296]</span>the hand for purposes other than locomotion. The +immediate agent that made such a result possible +was the development of a foot capable of supporting +the upright posture. This foot, as it made its appearance +in man, passed through a long series of transitional +phases. It had its beginning in a definitely prehensile +stage when in the earliest of the monkey kind +it was hand-like in its appearance. The structure +that was the forerunner of the human foot had the +same bones, the same muscles, the same ligaments. +The only substantial difference was in the form and +arrangement of these parts. Even in such a minute +particular as the three contravehent muscles in the +sole of the monkey’s foot, which draw together the +heads of the metatarsal bones, the correspondence +is complete. These muscles are present and active in +the gibbon. They are much diminished in the chimpanzee. +In the orang and the gorilla they are still +further reduced and closely resemble the atrophic +fibrous strands found in man. A similar correspondence +involves the muscles which separate and draw +the toes together (the interossei). They are deeply +situated in the plantar surface of the foot in most +monkeys. In the orang and gorilla they have exactly +the same position and relations as in man. The human +embryo affords the final connecting link, for in this +stage of development the muscles correspond to those +of the lower monkeys.</p> + +<p>The human foot is foreshadowed by that of the +great anthropoids. It is, in fact, the culminating stage +in that series which had almost reached the human +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_297">[Pg 297]</span>goal in the orang, chimpanzee, and gorilla. The +plantar grooves in the feet of the anthropoid apes +clearly indicate the lines of flexion adapting the foot +for purposes of grasping the limbs of the trees. In +passing from the gibbon to the orang and the chimpanzee, +with the slow development of semiterrestrial +life, there is a progressive disappearance of the plantar +grooves. This change illustrates the manner in which +the foot became adapted to the purposes of bipedal +locomotion. Of all the great apes, the gorilla makes +the nearest approach to the human foot. The toes +have become shorter and have lost their finger-like +resemblances. The great toe has become larger and +is partially assuming an axis in parallel with the other +toes. It has also migrated toward the end of the foot +and, in older adults, has lost much of its prehensile +character. Another modification is the gradual broadening +of the heel and the appearance of the plantar +arch. All of these changes have been developed for +the purposes of bipedal locomotion and the erect +posture. In consequence of these new functions the +simple grasping foot of the monkey is altered to serve +as a powerful stepping lever. In its simian form the +foot is a Y-shaped prehensile organ. The stem of the Y +is represented by the long heel. The two branches are +formed by the great toe and the lesser digits respectively. +In the higher primates, such as the orang, +chimpanzee, and gorilla, the simple Y foot has undergone +a striking change. The sole of the foot, including +the ball and the heel, has greatly increased, while the +toes or grasping elements have become shorter. In +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_298">[Pg 298]</span>gorilla this is particularly true of all the toes except +the great toe, which has not only become somewhat +longer but now tends to be in the main axis of the foot.</p> + +<p>The most important features in the development +of the foot are the increase in the supporting surface +of the heel and the appearance of the plantar arch. +In the lower monkeys the arch of the foot is double. +In the great apes, more especially in gorilla, the plantar +arch is single and corresponds practically to that of +the human foot. The sole pads have become fused to +form the ball of the foot, while the development of +the heel has caused the disappearance of the ankle +pads.</p> + +<p>Whatever may have been the influences which +caused certain members of the prehuman stock to +desert the trees and live upon the ground, it is clear +that one most important result of this change was the +formation of the human foot. This structure was a +solid foundation for the highest achievements of +organic evolution. It ultimately produced an animal +capable of dominating the world. It was responsible +for all of the extensive changes incident to the erect +posture—for the rearrangement in the shape of the +body, for the squaring of the shoulders and the broadening +of the pelvis, for readjustments in the position +of the heart and lungs, for new provisions in supporting +the abdominal organs, for a reordering in the +relation of the eyes to provide for binocular, stereoscopic +vision, for the modifications in the neck to suit +the purposes of the most effective head movements, +for the freeing of the hands so that they might become +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_299">[Pg 299]</span>constructive agents, and, above all, for impressing +upon brain structure the effects of these many progressive +advantages. If there could be any doubt that +the hand and the foot contributed in this decisive +manner to the development of the brain, we might test +this supposition by a pertinent question: What, for +example, would the brain have been if neither hand +nor foot had made its appearance? It is clear to us +what limited advantages were acquired by animals +equipped with hoofs or paws or flippers or wings. +The brain responded to the requirements of these +specialized organs. None the less, such response was +always and unmistakably the brain of an ungulate or +of a meat-eater, of a flying or of a swimming mammal. +It was the brain of a creature of restricted behaviour, +as limited in the development of its intelligence as +it was in the amplitude of its adjustment to life. It +was particularly deficient in one great department +which is the hallmark of all animals possessing hands. +Summarized as briefly as possible, it may be said +that what the brain owes to the hand and foot is the +frontal lobe. Through all the stages of progress, +from the time when the monkeys first began to live +in the trees until their successors, through graded +intermediate phases, developed the hand and foot of +man, this lobe has been the outstanding feature of +the brain.</p> + +<p>It is perhaps unwise and also unwarranted to speak +of the debt that one organ owes to others, especially +when the activities of all represent a unified process. +Brain, hand, and foot are in the strict sense a single +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_300">[Pg 300]</span>functional unit. Each is indispensable to the others. +Yet it may be assumed that it was the new opportunities +for action provided by the hand and foot which +at length gave the brain its human capacities. These +ultimate instruments of man’s success amplified brain +power and increased its sphere of influence. The +hand in particular was the instigator, if not the originator, +of human speech. Herbert Spencer, in his +essay on “The Philosophy of Style,” clearly points +out the fundamental relation of the hand to speech, +in the following words: “To say ‘leave the room,’ +is less expressive than to point to the door. Placing +a finger on the lips is more forcible than whispering +‘Do not speak.’ A beck of the hand is better than +‘Come here.’” As the creator of indicative gesture +the hand laid the foundations for the use of symbols, +which, when vocalized, became established as language. +This attainment was the most important +single step in the ascent leading to humanity.</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_301">[Pg 301]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XIII"> + CHAPTER XIII + <br> + ESTIMATES AND VALUES + <br> + <span style="font-size: medium;">ASSETS AND LIABILITIES OF THE HUMAN + BRAIN</span> + </h2> +</div> + + +<p>There is substantial evidence to prove that the +brain passed through many intermediate stages before +it acquired sufficient power to enter upon the +latest stage of its progress. Wherever it has come +down into modern times, regardless of race or climate, +it bears marked similarities in its external appearance. +In spite of this strong family likeness, however, +there are many individual variations. Some of these +variations are especially noteworthy. Certain of +them are of utmost importance because it is possible +to discover in them the secret of man’s highest +achievements.</p> + +<p>In the average human brain, as in these notable +exceptions, the principle of development remains unchanged. +Expansion, the root and base of this principle, +has been most pronounced in the departments +capable of creating human supremacy. From order to +order among the mammals, increase in the size of the +brain has been prominent. Depending upon the specialization +of the animal, this increase has affected the area +of vision, of hearing, of body sense, of taste, or of +smell. Only in the family of man has this expansion +made itself preëminent in the frontal region. Frontal +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_302">[Pg 302]</span>growth is the dominant character of man’s physical +endowment. It seems reasonable, therefore, to speak +of the entire period of human existence as the Age of +the Frontal Lobe.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Frontal_Lobe_and_the_Expansion_of_Consciousness"> + <i>The Frontal Lobe and the Expansion of Consciousness</i> +</h3> + +<p>Selective development in the brain has had far-reaching +effects. It has provided for special adaptability. +It has furnished one or more of the senses with a +particular degree of keenness. It has determined the +specific lines of reaction. These lines in all animal +life express themselves in three phases: (1) the approaching +phase, (2) the avoiding phase, and (3) the +resting phase. In the vertebrates each phase depends +upon impulses which influence the nervous system, +particularly the brain. The approaching reactions +embrace all efforts made by the animal to reach out +and acquire what it needs. In these reactions the +hunger impulse is the most primitive and the most +important. It arises from the necessity for food and +depends upon stimuli from the entire body, more +especially from the gastro-intestinal tract. Another +series of approaching reactions takes origin in the +herding impulse, which leads to the gregarious association +of animals of the same kind, such as schools +of fish, flocks of birds, herds of cattle. The stimuli +for this impulse come through the contact-receiving +organs. Many approaching reactions express the +essential necessity of the muscles to contract, as in +activities without any other apparent objective. Still +more conspicuous are the approaching reactions +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_303">[Pg 303]</span>caused by the mating impulses which arise from +sexual stimuli.</p> + +<p>Impulses of each variety motivating these reactions +of approach ascend higher in consciousness, or acquire +greater clarity, in direct proportion to the brain +capacity of the animal. Consciousness in fish is of a +relatively low grade. It becomes progressively more +extensive in amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals, +reaching its highest development in the human +cortex. The frontal lobe in man provides for an incalculable +expansion of these impulses in conscious +clarity.</p> + +<p>The avoiding reactions of animal life likewise depend +upon fundamental impulses whose essential +stimuli arise from the hurt or painful elements in sensation. +All extremes of sensory stimulation may contribute +to impulses underlying the avoiding reactions. +They form the natural armament of protection +upon which the animal depends in adjusting itself +to its surroundings. As in the case of the approaching +reactions, so the impulses necessary to avoidance +are progressively expanded through the vertebrates +until they reach their highest clarity in the human +brain. The resting phase depends upon impulses derived +from the entire metabolism of the body.</p> + +<p>These fundamental impulses which become clearer +in consciousness through the progressive stages of the +animal kingdom tend to interact in their correlations +and determine combinations of great importance. +Avoiding impulses of a protective nature may combine +with approaching impulses to determine a reaction +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_304">[Pg 304]</span>of attack in order to save the animal from some +threatening enemy. Thus a protective effort may be a +combination of an avoiding and an attacking attitude +at the same time, as when the mongoose, jumping +backward in retreat from the striking cobra, still +maintains the pose of attack in the entire set of its +body. The resting phase may be employed as camouflage +for an avoiding reaction in what is commonly +known as “playing ’possum,” or it may be used as a +decoy in preparation for aggressive activities of attack, +particularly as seen in the cat family. In man the +range of these combinations has attained the highest +degree of development. The frontal lobe furnishes an +extensive equipment for this purpose. In all modern +races frontal capacity manifests but little difference. +It therefore seems clear that this common denominator +of human success has given man his power to +hold his place in nature and to overcome the difficulties +which have beset his path.</p> + + +<h3 id="Caucasian_Supremacy"> + <i>Caucasian Supremacy</i> +</h3> + +<p>The greater apparent successes of the white race +might presuppose a greater degree of brain capacity +and hence a better frontal lobe. But the frontal superiority +of the Caucasian peoples, if it exists, is at +best slight. The white man’s supremacy must, however, +depend upon some actual advantage. Although +outnumbered two to one, he is to-day the overlord of +the world. Of the 1,700,000,000 human beings now +living, only 550,000,000 are Caucasians. The remaining +1,150,000,000 belong to the yellow, black, and red +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_305">[Pg 305]</span>races. In spite of this disparity, the white man’s +policies, his products, his projects, penetrate into +every angle of the earth whose climate, fertility, or +hidden wealth may be exploited by resources of the +Caucasian brain.</p> + +<p>Numerous facts indicate that in the white race +there has been an unusually large number of individuals +with exceptional brain development. Many +Caucasians who have distinguished themselves intellectually +show conspicuous advantages in cerebral +development, especially in the richness of convolutions +and fissures. The region of the brain showing +this richness particularly is the frontal lobe.</p> + + +<h3 id="Brains_of_Modern_Races"> + <i>Brains of Modern Races</i> +</h3> + +<p>This lobe is much the same in all modern races of +men. The Eskimo brain, however, possesses frontal +convolutions which are rather more complex and +tortuous than in the average whites (Hrdlicka). As a +whole, the brain of this northern race is heavier and +larger than the Caucasian. Its excess of weight over +the average white man, according to many observers, +amounts to about 150 grams. The large Eskimo brain +is not out of proportion with the fact that these +people are compelled to contend with an exacting +environment and require much ingenuity to maintain +themselves.</p> + +<p>The brains of the aborigines in Andaman and Nicobar +Islands weigh somewhat less than the average +white brain. The brain is broad and short; the frontal +lobes are a little less massive than in the Caucasian. +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_306">[Pg 306]</span>The fissures and convolutions are, if anything, +slightly less complex than in the white man, although +the difference is not striking (E. A. Spitzka).</p> + +<p>The negro brain, for the most part, has the same +outline as the European brain (Tiedemann). The +length and height of the hemispheres do not differ +visibly, and their breadth is only a little less. The +convolutions are large in the frontal regions and the +sulci show a greater degree of symmetry than is +usually found in European brains.</p> + +<p>Among the American Indians the average weight +of the brain is somewhat less than the Caucasian +(H. B. Ferris). This is true both of the North and +South American Indian. On the other hand, the fissures +and convolutions, especially in the frontal +region, correspond very closely in complexity and +dimension to those of the white man.</p> + +<p>Examination of Mongolian brains shows that the +average weight of the Chinese brain is slightly less +than that of the Caucasian (Kurz). The Chinese +brain is said to have a number of striking peculiarities +in which it differs from the brain of other races. One +investigator mentions thirty-three peculiarities of +this kind, and yet when each peculiarity is considered +individually its prototype may be found in an extensive +group study of Caucasian brains. The frontal +lobe is richly convoluted and fissured. Kappers believes +that the Chinese brain retains a degree of +infantilism, much of which is shown in the high arching +of the corpus callosum.</p> + +<p>Accepting all of these differences in the several races +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_307">[Pg 307]</span>of living men as to weight, dimension, development +of lobes, richness of convolutions and fissures, and +peculiarities in individual details, it becomes clear +that such differences as do exist are slight enough to +be well within the range of individual variation. In +other words, when large numbers of brains of the +several races of modern men are compared, the differences +between them are almost certain to assume no +great importance. We may conclude that the Caucasian, +Negroid, Mongolian, and all other forms of +the modern brain present a striking similarity in their +general appearance and characters.</p> + + +<h3 id="Brains_of_Distinguished_Men"> + <i>Brains of Distinguished Men</i> +</h3> + +<p>When, however, we consider the brains of distinguished +members of the white race, we at once obtain +the impression of striking individual variations. +The brains of many men of genius have been carefully +studied. Spitzka has collected the records of one +hundred such individuals to which he has added his +own studies upon six distinguished scientists. All tell +the same story. These men, noted as jurists, scientists, +mathematicians, composers, dramatists, physicians, +journalists, statesmen, and historians, have with few +exceptions possessed brains which in weight exceed +those of the rank and file of the race. This is true of +the brain of such outstanding men as Beethoven, +Cuvier, Turgenev, Daniel Webster, Lenin, Thackeray, +Joseph Leidy, William Pepper, Edward Cope, and +many others. The brain of the remarkable deaf, dumb, +and blind girl, Laura Bridgman, has been carefully +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_308">[Pg 308]</span>studied by Dr. Donaldson. It is notable that in this +instance the frontal lobes, both in size and in the richness +of the convolutions and fissures, were well developed. +It was in this region that the brains of the +distinguished contributors to human progress already +mentioned showed their greatest degree of expansion. +Recently reports on the brains of Sir William Osler, +of Dr. G. Stanley Hall, and of Dr. E. E. Southard +have been published. In each of these remarkable men +the size of the brain and the unusual development of +the frontal lobe have been striking features. The +brain of the great German historian, Theodore +Mommsen, was particularly notable because of its +frontal development, and so also was that of William +Bunsen, the scientist and discoverer.</p> + +<p>In contrast to the massive brains of these other +men of genius, there has recently been brought to +light the fact that the brain of a great modern master +of literature, Anatole France, was remarkably small, +weighing only 1017 grams. This weight is considerably +below the average for the white race (1300-1400 grams) +and not much above the estimated weight of <i>Pithecanthropus +erectus</i>, the Java ape man. The difference between +the weight of Anatole France’s brain and that of +the ape man is 77 grams, according to the estimated +values. Sir Arthur Keith maintains that in spite of +this noted academician’s reputation, known the world +over for his writings as a novelist, philosopher, and +savant, Anatole France was actually an extremely +primitive man. This position taken by Keith would +be difficult to support against the prevailing opinions +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_309">[Pg 309]</span>of the day. We should be more impressed by the +degree of richness in development of the frontal lobe +and the complexity of its convolutions and fissures +than by the actual size of the brain. It would seem +most likely that a marked degree of frontal development +has been the decisive factor in the production +of the exceptional brain. Most of the great men who +have left records in respect to their cerebral endowment +confirm Sir Arthur’s contention that a powerful +brain is a large brain. Individual variation may account +for much, however, and a high grade of frontal +convolution, implying as it does a great cell richness +in a cortex, may make amends for many ounces of +weight deficiency. From the facts available it is clear +that human greatness in the main depends upon +largeness of brain and extensive frontal development. +The possessors of such brains have been the leaders +in the activities of the white man, in every line of his +progress, in every detail of his success. They have +been the Caucasian thinkers, the idealists, the philosophers, +the poets and artists; they have been the white +man’s pragmatists, his statesmen and builders of +empire. They have also been his spiritual pioneers, +the founders of his religions and ethics. To them has +been given exceptional power of vision, with equally +great capacities for transforming what such vision +revealed into benefits for their race.</p> + + +<h3 id="Caucasian_Leaders"> + <i>Caucasian Leaders</i> +</h3> + +<p>History gives them their proper places. Their dynamic +personalities have touched the earth and made +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_310">[Pg 310]</span>it bring forth its seven wonders and an increasing +multitude of lesser wonders, each a marvel of human +ingenuity. As they touched the earth and made it +produce, so they have touched the hearts and imaginations +of their fellow men until their minds responded +to new aspirations and nobler purposes, +until the mark of the beast was left farther in the +distance and the ascendancy of mankind became +the most stirring theme of creation.</p> + +<p>History also shows how these favoured elements +of the race, under the guidance of their leaders, have +built brilliant civilizations, compelling systems of +religion, far-reaching codes of ethics. Nations have +risen, articulating the ideals of peoples scattered over +vast territories. Cities have come into existence +filled with the treasures of man’s imagination. The +same aspiration shone through them all. It was the +spirit, the determination to reach out where man +had never reached before.</p> + +<p>Whatever were his material successes, still more +important was that inner possession which came to +man during his adventurous development of civilization. +However simple it may have been in the +beginning, it grew rapidly. This priceless possession +was the human intellect. In many tribes of men it +manifested none of the expansion discernible in the +more progressive races. But with its fullest opportunity, +especially under the conditions of European +environment, it developed to the degree which created +a new humanity. Man recognized his interdependence +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_311">[Pg 311]</span>with his fellow beings. His social qualities now began +to bear fruit in a new soil and in a more invigorating +atmosphere. The finer traits of his social nature grew +abundantly. Broader conceptions of responsibility +to others, deeper understandings of sympathy, led +to new products of generosity and new vocations of +social devotion. All of the higher sentiments found +easier means of expression. These were new conceptions +denied to lower animals and to the lower races of +man.</p> + +<p>Scarcely less substantial than the satisfaction derived +from this deep social sentiment was the gratification +obtained from an appreciation of the beauties +of nature and from man’s own efforts to duplicate +these beauties in his art and literature. But his eyes +have never contented themselves with earthly attractiveness +alone. When he had possessed the earth +he must still reach out in imagination to gain for +himself the assurance of kingdoms beyond his present +state. In all his civilized period and even long before +man has peered acquisitively into the unknown, to +create for himself a future existence or the hope of +such existence. This yearning for another and an +immortal life has been the basis of his many religious +beliefs. From this theme of religion have grown the +impulses for the best of human achievements. It has +not merely formed a halo about civilization, but has +reached far inward to exert control over almost every +human relation. No influence has been a greater force +in the ennoblement of life. No creation of the brain +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_312">[Pg 312]</span>has been a more effective guide in directing human +destiny. No incentive has sustained human hope more +consistently than the solace arising from this deep +source of faith.</p> + + +<h3 id="Age_of_the_Frontal_Lobe"> + <i>Age of the Frontal Lobe</i> +</h3> + +<p>The frontal lobe, which has guaranteed such advantages +to man, brought him his spiritual understanding, +his social attributes, and his satisfactions +from art and literature. It created the means for him +to gain a more adequate knowledge of the world in +which he lived and of the great cosmos of which his +world is but a part. The conquest of reality, the deeper +appreciation of things as they are, the broad expansion +of his knowledge of all things in and about +him, have contributed deep satisfactions to human +life. It is difficult to estimate in this day the value of +all the great contributions to science. It is difficult +also to state which product of man’s frontal lobe, +his social development, his religion, his art, his +literature, or his science, has meant most to the +growth of that imposing figure in which he now presents +himself. No one of these elements may justly deserve +to be set above the others. Deprived of any of +them, the race might have been seriously impoverished; +it might never have attained that position +which entitles it to be considered the supreme achievement +of creation. It is little wonder that the gods +which man set up for himself have been anthropomorphic, +cast in his own image and likeness.</p> + +<p>In later days there were reasons for the Caucasian’s +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_313">[Pg 313]</span>assurance, for his self-reliance, for his faith in his own +judgment and reason. Peace and comity existed between +the nations of the earth. Prosperity was within +their borders. Success and progress filled every walk +of life. Social order rested upon firm moral foundations. +This was a human establishment upon which to +depend. But ultimately this record of the white man, +from the beginning of his civilized period down to the +early decades of the Twentieth Century, brings us to a +fateful midsummer day, the 1st of August, 1914.</p> + + +<h3 id="Old_Sores_and_Liabilities"> + <i>Old Sores and Liabilities</i> +</h3> + +<p>Perhaps there are no good reasons for turning back +to such old sores. Can any conceivable advantage +come of opening again those vaults holding that which +we would rather forget? With passing years memory +gradually relinquishes what should be the immortal +lessons of experience. The horror, the degradation, +and all other outgrowths of the protective mechanisms +making for better judgment, for saner living, for +wiser avoidance, are soon forgotten. We look and see +only the whited sepulchre. The dissolution and disease, +the lurking danger for the future, are concealed. Yet +these are our liabilities. If we drive on blindly or with +our eyes closed to them, such prosperity as we have +attained is destined to disintegrate.</p> + +<p>It is the old formula over again that we see beginning +to reproduce itself on that fateful August afternoon. +The expansive demand for power, the will to +dominate, the insatiable determination to possess, +are all disdainfully snapping their fingers in disregard +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_314">[Pg 314]</span>of the rights and peaceful pursuits of others. Sacred +obligations are thrown to the winds with the crackling +of a scrap of paper. There are no obligations. +Lust, greed, and the dregs of human cruelty are +seething in the breasts of men turned animals, are +ready to speak with the tongues of every manner of +ruthless torment. By armies men return to the filth +of the earth, living in the mire, breathing the stenches +of their own corruption, inhaling the gases of sadistic +invention, meeting the flame of an earthly purgatory, +and inspired by the single indefatigable impulse to +kill. And for what purpose? None but the old one! To +grasp, to gain, to seize by force! There is no question +of right or wrong. The only question is right of +possession. Both those who attack and those who +defend pray to the same God and pray the same +prayer.</p> + +<p>Here in our own days is the frontal lobe leading a +great fraction of the white race not merely into hell +but to the brink of its own undoing. If it failed in this +leadership it was by the narrowest margin. It has left +us still gasping on the edge of the precipice into whose +depths we have gazed, wondering how long ere we see +them again.</p> + +<p>Courage, endurance, and heroic determination we +say were the compensating atonements for this madness, +for this maniacal era of wanton destruction. +Nobility of purpose rang out in the defiance—“They +shall not pass!” Yet where was the nobility in that +machine-made death which swept regiment after +regiment into oblivion by its withering fire? Who now +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_315">[Pg 315]</span>will claim the glory of 400,000 dead in less than a +lunar month, of 8,543,515 fighting men fallen in the +early prime of manhood in four years of war? Is this +the chronicle for a great race to glory in? It is rather +the record of the white man at his lowest ebb, dehumanized +for a mere bauble of possession.</p> + +<p>Thus, through four brief years, out of the unhallowed +precincts of no man’s land, the mark of the +beast came back. The white man learned that the +cloak over his baser passions was a thin veneer. He +learned, or may have learned if there has yet been +time to recover from the overwhelming concussion, +that he is not yet master of himself, that the chief +guide of his life may on slight provocation lead him +not rightly or well, but with unerring precision, into +the pitfalls of extermination.</p> + + +<h3 id="When_the_Pressure_Comes"> + <i>When the Pressure Comes</i> +</h3> + +<p>We speak of loyalties and vocations of devotion. +Where are these when the pressure comes? Where are +they when the man stands with his mob? The greatest +and best things in life at once take flight. There is +not even standing-room for them when hate and +revenge are the passions of the day. It is then that +class stands against class. All that wealth and culture +and luxury have built through centuries finds no +strength against the ire galvanized by equal centuries +of oppression. Those who have suffered their silent +agonies confront those who are about to die. Such +have been the tragedies of revolution. So it was in the +French Revolution, with its history of guillotine +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_316">[Pg 316]</span>horrors. Such was the case of Russia in revolt. Such +it has always been wherever the privilege to enjoy, +concentrated for the benefit of the few, has worked +disadvantage to the many. Neither those who for the +time enjoy, nor those who are deprived, have sufficiently +learned the lessons of moderation, self-restraint, +and control over the human spirit to hold +in check the baser impulses.</p> + +<p>War, revolution, and other mass reactions in the +interest of readjusting man’s social conditions are +not rare in our racial experience. Since the beginning +of historic times there have been thousands of wars +of greater or less magnitude. If, during the Roman +era, the gates in the temple of Janus stood open for +centuries and that great people were almost continuously +at war without appreciable cessation, we +moderns would have no need for an energetic gatekeeper. +In one place or another, throughout the +globe, we have been continuously waging war or +producing revolutions. Following the close of the great +World War, a little more than a decade ago, there have +been no less than sixteen wars, and seventy-five +thousand men have died as a result of warfare. Let +those who philosophize in security call war an activity +essential to human progress. Those who know it +through suffering and loss will call it by its proper +name. It is not, however, in war alone that we may +discern the results of our defective control over human +nature. We need turn but a few pages of history +to encounter many other sore spots. Among these +blemishes are those arising from a source which +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_317">[Pg 317]</span>should have been our most unfailing, our deepest +consolation.</p> + + +<h3 id="Heresy_and_Retaliation"> + <i>Heresy and Retaliation</i> +</h3> + +<p>The spiritual heritage bequeathed by the Great +Galilean retained its influence for little more than two +centuries. Through the dark Middle Ages Christianity +wandered far from the path of its appointed +blessedness. To many it ceased altogether to be a +blessing, and to many others it became an actual +curse, meaning for them torture, imprisonment, starvation, +humiliation, or death by burning at the stake. +There can be little wonder that heresies sprang up +against the inhuman conduct of the mediæval Church. +Corruption, discrimination, demoralization, abuse, +and tyranny went unrebuked. The church militant +was infected by every sin that it was created to prevent. +Heresy was the reaction to such corruption, and +the Inquisition was the retaliation on the part of the +Church to preserve itself against heretical disintegration. +The barbarous zeal which through many +centuries brought misery to mankind in the name of +Christ has been explained in several ways. Some have +denounced it as mere bloodthirstiness or lust of power. +Some have traced it to the doctrine of exclusive +salvation. In order to understand it properly we must +comprehend the stage of civilization in which it +flourished. The feudal military spirit was everywhere +dominant. Society relied more upon force than upon +persuasion. Industrial influences had not yet tempered +modes of thought and action. Throughout the Middle +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_318">[Pg 318]</span>Ages men were strangely pitiless in their dealings +with each other. The wheel, the cauldron of boiling +oil, burning alive, burying alive, flaying alive, and +tearing apart with wild horses were the ordinary +means by which jurists endeavoured to deter crime. +In England poisoners were boiled to death as late as +1542 (Rouse and Margaret Davie). One woman, in +1726, was burned at Tyburn. Minor crimes were dealt +with with a harshness unbelievable in this day, including +such hideous procedures as blinding, mutilation, +tearing with hot pincers, breaking on the +wheel, and cutting out the tongue. People of all +nations were accustomed to this cruel savagery and +accepted it in relation to crimes that were thus +punished. By popular detestation heresy was regarded +not merely as a sin but as the worst of all crimes. +This belief was held with equal tenacity both by +the clergy and the laity. Under the influence of such +feelings the Church adopted the harshest measures +and continued to grow more cruel and more unchristian.</p> + +<p>The Inquisition was not a local phenomenon. It +became most intense in Italy, where it gradually took +shape. In time it spread into Germany, into France, +and into Spain. The Spanish Inquisition was employed +for the most part as a state institution to maintain +the throne. It used all of the ingenuity known to +the ecclesiastical inquisitors and added punishments +of its own. The torture chamber, which at first was +not introduced as an inquisitorial instrument, soon +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_319">[Pg 319]</span>established itself as an indispensable accessory and +flourished in many parts of Europe. There was a +furtiveness in the manner in which the Church doled +out these punishments. For the repentant heretic life +imprisonment on bread and water and in chains was +not a criminal sentence; it was the means of repentance +and salvation for the unfortunate sinner. If the +heretic remained unrepentant the Church washed its +hands of him as a capital offender and turned him +over to the secular authorities to be burned at the +stake. The dungeon in which the unfortunate victim +was imprisoned for life was a frightful chamber, damp, +and infested by rats and vermin. Confinement was +solitary and various circumstances besides pain and +hunger were brought to bear upon the terrorized +imagination of the prisoner. These dungeons were +often ingenious means of torture. One in the Bastille +at Paris had a floor which was conical and pointed +downward so that it was impossible to sit or lie in it. +Another in the Châtelet had a floor continually +covered by water, compelling the prisoner to stand +erect. Persons convicted of heresy were also forced to +wear crosses of cloth, generally yellow, sewed upon +their garments. In this manner the symbol of Christian +devotion was converted into a badge of utmost +shame. Confiscation was another penalty with frightful +effects. Upon arrest for heresy a man’s property +was sequestrated, and his family thrown into the +street. After several centuries of unremitting cruelty +the Inquisition succeeded in suppressing the various +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_320">[Pg 320]</span>sects of heretics. For this advantage the Christian +Church paid an unnecessarily high price by gaining +for itself a lasting stigma.</p> + + +<h3 id="Provocations_of_Circumstance_and_Time"> + <i>Provocations of Circumstance and Time</i> +</h3> + +<p>Such interludes as these in the course of man’s +happiness and peace may perhaps be regarded as unfortunate +digressions from the scheme of human behaviour. +Their apology lies in the fact that they +belong to other times by contrast with which we have +shown great improvement. We are much changed for +the better—so much changed that many of these +appalling episodes of history could not occur in this +day. Reassurance of this kind may comfort us, but it +does not provide us with protection against ourselves. +For with due provocations of circumstance and time +there is no guarantee that we would not repeat or +even amplify the ghastly delinquencies of the past. +The pride we feel in our modern progress and prosperity +elevates us to a plane of conscious superiority. +And yet this same pride experienced a sickening +collapse when no later than our own day and generation +it was forced to witness a phenomenon of +eruptive brutality compared to which all former warfare +was insignificant. In spite of this recent experience +we feel sure of ourselves, confident in the great +capacities which have made us men. We possess this +confidence, however unenlightened we may be concerning +the real power upon which we depend, especially +as to its source, its nature, its possibilities, +and its proper management.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_321">[Pg 321]</span></p> + + +<h3 id="Compounding_the_Essential_Impulses_of_Life"> + <i>Compounding the Essential Impulses of Life</i> +</h3> + +<p>As no other members of the animal kingdom, we +have compounded each one of the essential impulses +of life. Through our frontal mechanisms we have +raised these primitive drives to the most elevated +planes of consciousness. We have increased their +clarity to the highest degree. It was doubtless the +introduction of symbols which first secured this +greater clarity. Later the development of spoken +language established the universal medium of exchange +within the brain. Lower animals evidently +do not learn to speak. They only acquire the use of +beast cries by which to transmit warnings, sex invitations, +or challenges to combat. Such specific cries +modified by the structural adjustments of man may +have been sufficient for the simple human language +of earliest times. There seems to be no actual barrier +between the vocal activities of birds, dogs, apes, and +men except that superior mechanism of speech provided +by a progressively developing frontal lobe. +From its first introduction language was a societal +phenomenon. All of its products were likewise societal. +If it raised man as an individual, its greatest profits +appeared in the elevation of the social order. Under +this new influence the primitive impulses of hunger, +herding, mating, avoiding, and the rest entered into +complex combinations. In consequence, each primordial +drive was converted into a thriving industry +in the interest of further human satisfaction. Excessive +growth in these industries soon manifested +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_322">[Pg 322]</span>many dangerous tendencies. New human expansions +developed out of the primitive impulse of hunger +under the added opportunities of the frontal lobe. +Appetite and indulgence with their tendencies toward +excess came in conflict with sumptuary restrictions +and prohibitions. The effects of frontal expansion +upon the herding impulse contributed to the development +of crime, to the creation of mass phenomena +under the influence of fear, hate, and hope, +to the epidemic spread of group manias and popular +delusions such as were the pilgrimages, crusades, and +demonism of the Middle Ages, such as was the extremity +of ruthlessness manifested in the last great +war. The extension of the sex impulse through the +mechanisms of the frontal lobe is incalculable. From +it have come crops of asceticism and licentiousness, of +poetry and sentimentality, of social order and disorder, +of philosophy and pure bunkum. The expansion +of impulses underlying the avoiding reactions has +produced an unescapable blight upon human life due +to the extensive corticalization of fear. The fear of +bondage or slavery, of tyranny or cruelty, is no longer +upon us. A multitude of more subtle fears, engendered +by modern civilization, have produced our phobias, +our irresistible compulsions, and our great variety of +somatic and psychic anxieties.</p> + + +<h3 id="Human_Nature_Has_Not_Changed"> + <i>Human Nature Has Not Changed</i> +</h3> + +<p>The incentives of life have been magnified and +multiplied upon the screen of the frontal cortex. They +have afforded man his powers of judgment and +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_323">[Pg 323]</span>reason, his greater capacities to enjoy existence, his +new aspirations of hope. They have supplied him +with his broader opportunities to order and adjust his +life and with his stimulating inspirations of learning. +Each of these new capacities is conditioned by the +circumstance and fashion of a given age. There is no +arguing with such fashion. The <i>mores</i> and the times, +the customs and the place, dominate the products of +the frontal lobe and mold them in constantly changing +patterns. The fashion of yesterday is often the +laughing stock of to-day as that of to-day may be the +jest of to-morrow. These plastic patterns, which the +frontal lobe produces for the conduct of human affairs, +have neither permanency nor assured foundations. +Great principles which we swear by now we know are +wholly transitory. While they last certain moral +notions and devices are in fashion, but these are +conditioned by the times and customs. In such facts +as these may be recognized the variable quality of +human wisdom. Reason is likewise based upon conditioned +reflexes which have grown out of the <i>mores</i> +of the time and place. In this light, if man seems to +have come a long distance from his early beginning, +the path measured in units of real progress is surprisingly +short. “Things happen,” says Sumner, +“which show us that human nature has not changed +and that the brute in each may awake at any time. +It is all a question of time, custom, and occasion and +the individual is coerced to adopt the <i>mores</i> as to +these matters which are then and there current.”</p> + +<p>Morals and manners, like speech, are societal +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_324">[Pg 324]</span>adjustments. They are highly conditioned reflexes +acquired through generations of social experience. +Self-restraint, agreeability, and coöperation form the +basic currency of successful social intercourse. They +are the artifacts of group needs, the medium of exchange +in all comfortable and safe contacts between +man and man. That these qualities are superficially +engrafted upon human nature is easily demonstrated. +With adequate provocation the individual discards restraint +and reveals the grossest traits of his aggressive +reactions, the group is quickly resolved into the lawless +mob, and nations are easily excited to martial frenzy.</p> + +<p>What benefits, therefore, will we obtain by further +self-deceptions? It is long overdue that we see through +the thin fabric of traditional delusions wherewith we +have surrounded ourselves. It requires courage to +face the truth and an open mind to recognize it. But +we cannot hope to improve unless we see ourselves as +we are, unless we appreciate our inherent liabilities +as well as our assets, unless, divested of angelic or +godlike disguises, we stand forth for our own inspection +as human animals occupying the foremost +place among living things only by virtue of the best +brain thus far developed. Much that is animal within +us must remain unchanged despite our utmost strivings. +All that is human may be modified, enhanced, +and brought to better fruition.</p> + + +<h3 id="Handicaps_and_Restraints"> + <i>Handicaps and Restraints</i> +</h3> + +<p>Almost from its beginning the race has recognized +its handicaps. It has struggled in many ways against +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_325">[Pg 325]</span>its own liabilities, especially those due to increased +brain power. By systems of philosophy the human +spirit has sought to show the reason and goal of life, +has endeavoured to envisage the most desirable pathway +for existence.</p> + +<p>Man has endeavoured to hold himself in check +through religion, bowing to the belief that for every +human being there is some higher power controlling +destiny and for this reason entitled to obedient +reverence and worship. For his hour of need, however, +philosophy and religion offer no reprieve. The +Great War comes, and assurances from these sources +of human reliance have no power to stay the catastrophe.</p> + +<p>Man has experimented through societal organization, +through the formation of governments, +through the establishment of laws, to restrain the +dangerous tendencies of his frontal lobe development. +But if his governments succeeded in utilizing effectively +his efforts at social order, they have also +abused these efforts. In every societal system there +must be a ruling class. According to Professor Sumner, +no class can be trusted to rule society with due +justice to all its members. Whatever the sins of +antiquity, modern society is ruled by the middle class. +It has to its credit the invention of institutions securing +civil liberty and the safety of person and property. +Its history is otherwise not satisfactory. It has +demonstrated that in no popular government could +sufficient control be created to restrain the abuses of +special privilege, to avert the corruption of civic +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_326">[Pg 326]</span>power for graft, or to repress the selfish undertakings +of cliques formed on special interests for the purpose +of public exploitation. When faced by this test, +all modern democratic states have failed. Plutocracy +and the unscrupulous powers of wealth are at the root +of the financial scandal, which is the blemish upon all +modern parliamentary organizations. We must recognize +this defect not merely as a tendency of the times +but as a national disease. It spoils every institution +and, extending from one generation to the next, at +length destroys in the masses the faculties of ethical +judgment.</p> + + +<h3 id="The_Cult_of_Success"> + <i>The Cult of Success</i> +</h3> + +<p>By education man has likewise endeavoured to +moderate the recognized liabilities of his frontal +lobe. But, like his customs, his education has varied +with the fashions of his time and place. With one brilliant +exception educational processes have too strictly +been confined to technological training, or to the inculcation +of traditional cultures or mediæval scholasticism. +The ancient Greek alone dealt with his life +and its problems as we well might with ours. We are +imitators and large users of secondhand materials. +He was an originator. His education was an adventure +of discovery, an absorbing search for the understanding +of what constituted the good life. Largely without +traditions and upon his own initiative he endeavoured +to gain a critical attitude toward all of his prejudices, +to liberate himself from the dominance of herd influence, +and to adjust his conduct most intelligently +for the welfare of the state.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_327">[Pg 327]</span></p> + +<p>Modern education is especially in a state of confusion. +It is almost wholly devoid of any broader +theme than that embraced in the purpose to teach +the individual the formulas necessary to make good. +There is little effort to inspire a larger point of view, +to instill an understanding of life’s values, an appreciation +of its relations, and of its truly human opportunities +for intelligent living.</p> + +<p>Philosophy, religion, societal order, government, +and education have failed to produce any entirely +satisfactory solution of life. They have scarcely +recognized the existence of the frontal lobe, but, looking +beyond it to some intangible sources of power, +they have neither capitalized its assets nor reckoned +with its liabilities. There is probably a cause of long +standing behind these several failures. For centuries +and ages the incentives of human efforts, even the +best, have laboured under a contaminating influence. +This influence has touched and tainted every aspect +of life. During thousands of years men have struggled +to make good in Europe. The result has always been +the same. From time to time some section of the race +has succeeded, later to weaken, and in the end to +succumb. In the past an invariable cycle of rise, decline, +and fall has dictated the course of life in Europe. +Such was the lot of the Neanderthals. Cromagnon and +Neolithic men both had their days of success and of +disappearance. It was not different with the Greeks +or the Romans who rose and finally, under this spell +of Europe, passed into decline. In many respects the +motive at work in this destructive cycle seemed to +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_328">[Pg 328]</span>act like some evil influence. It was already well developed +in the first trading exploits of the Phœnicians. +With them it began to migrate westward from harbour +to harbour along the Mediterranean. It implanted +the germs of its spreading infection, which +came to be the dominant spirit of civilization—gold +and a price for everything. Nothing escaped the effects +of this new standardization of human enterprise. The +pioneer Phœnicians carried this gold standard of life +far beyond the Pillars of Hercules to the shores of +Britain until it spread throughout Europe. The source +of this influence lies far back of these earlier civilizations. +It had its origin in those primitive days +when Mousterian cave man tasted the first drafts of +power. The use of this power he justified by one +standard only—success. For three hundred thousand +years the human brain has been conditioned by this +influence. Power increased, successes multiplied, and +the passion for possession became a frenzy. Thus it +was that those whom the gods would destroy they +first made rich; and thus also one civilization after +another met its destruction. No other solution can be +worked out on this standard of existence. It will serve +to exploit nature, including human nature. It may +bend the natural forces one after another to man’s +bidding. It may make him master of the entire world +except in one superlative detail—himself. In proportion +as it has been concentrated upon the conquest +of the earth, it has had little time for the mastery +of the spirit. The old idea is still at work with us +to-day. We have found nothing new, nothing better. +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_329">[Pg 329]</span>We scarcely attempt to look. It is now our ruling +passion. It has been the contaminating influence +which has for ages frustrated the best human efforts.</p> + +<p>Wealth, with the power to confer upon the greatest +number the benefits of true human satisfaction, is +not to be condemned. Its acquisition and proper +distribution must be intelligently encouraged. Such +wealth is the just return on man’s efforts to make +and maintain for himself a wholesome place in nature. +But riches, representing egocentric aggrandizement +and the upbuilding of special privilege for selfish ends, +are an open sore in all times and a most serious menace +for the future.</p> + +<p>The ancient motive of possession is still the most +powerful urge among civilized peoples. It has exerted +an increasingly evil influence upon modern times. Its +effects have been unfavourable because possession and +power depend upon the offensive and defensive +mechanisms of aggression. Such mechanisms are the +progenitors of war. They promote the conflicts of social +rivalry between classes and incite the struggles +for competitive supremacy between nations. If the +goal of such life is success, the price of such success is +strife. This is the standard of existence which has +prevailed for at least three hundred thousand years. +It seems irrevocable. Nothing visible in our modern +world suggests the cessation of its destroying influence. +In the absence of any present reassurance there +is a strong probability that we are following, to its +bitter ends, a path long familiar to our race.</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_330">[Pg 330]</span></p> + + + <h2 class="nobreak" id="CHAPTER_XIV"> + CHAPTER XIV + <br> + THE FINAL TEST OF THE BRAIN + <br> + <span style="font-size: medium;">WORLD COÖPERATION AND RECIVILIZATION</span> + </h2> +</div> + + +<p>Our most vital issue is no longer a matter of national +prosperity alone. The success and therefore the happiness +of the entire world are at stake. This generation +of ours has taught us what to expect from the +old forces of competitive wealth and nationalism. +It is not difficult to foresee the recurrence of one war +after another. As Dr. Butler has so forcibly said: +“The world is just now standing at a crossroads. +It may take the path in one direction and so make +agriculture, industry, commerce, trade, finance, the +fortunate means of uniting the whole world, of increasing +its prosperity and of buttressing its peace; +or it can take the opposite path and so turn the +nations into narrow-minded, unsympathetic, jealous, +and quarrelling neighbours, and prepare the way for +another cataclysm which, if it should come, would +mark civilization’s end. What are we going to do +about it? Where shall our influence be thrown? +Shall it be for a repetition of the old stupidities, the +old ignorances and the old antagonisms, or shall it be +for a new world order in which selfish competition +shall be supplanted by kindly and large-minded +coöperation? That is in substance the crucial question +which at this moment awaits answer by leaders of +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_331">[Pg 331]</span>opinion in every land.”⁠<a id="FNanchor_1_1" href="#Footnote_1_1" class="fnanchor">[1]</a> There are many who believe +that man in his present exalted phase cannot stand +the test. His modern days are numbered just as surely +as were those of his ancient glory. He has no further +reliance, no better assurance now than he had then. +The fate of civilization hangs in the balance; its +chances in many respects are unpromising. There +are no guarantees for the future outside of man himself. +Although we have multiplied in number and +compounded our problems of life, the world in which +we live is much the same as it has been for hundreds +of thousands of years. If man also remains unchanged +we may expect the same lot which befell other successful +people in the past.</p> + +<div class="footnote"><p><a id="Footnote_1_1" href="#FNanchor_1_1" class="label">[1]</a> From “The New Center of Gravity,” an address delivered at the Parrish +Art Museum, Southampton, L. I., on Sunday evening, September 1, 1929, by +Nicholas Murray Butler.</p></div> + +<p>And yet looking beneath the surface and into the +depths of the organ which has been the chief asset of +our progress, we may discern some promising possibilities. +These are possibilities which if developed +might subordinate or overcome the ancient lures of +power and possession. They might even establish a +new order of existence, a new age of wisdom, with +clearer ways of looking at life and better methods for +realizing its opportunities. We may have no desire +to see these possibilities. We may turn from them +now as we have before. They clearly exist, however, +and chief among them is the possibility of a better +human brain, a brain with much more ample power +by means of which to create a better world.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_332">[Pg 332]</span></p> + +<p>Many facts support this possibility. We know from +certain evidence that man in his earliest period on +earth possessed a brain much simpler than that responsible +for his modern successes. Such testimony +is given by the brain cast of the Java ape man. The +entire cerebral structure in this instance was in an +intermediate phase of human development. It was +far in advance of the brain of the highest apes but +much less developed than the brain of modern men. +In spite of its simplicity it gives evidence of human +progress. It had supplied the structural basis needed +for a crude type of humanity. It indicates that the +powers of human speech had been acquired and that +the first steps in the upbuilding of human intelligence +had been taken.</p> + +<p>Compared with this primitive race of extinct men, +the Piltdown and Rhodesian brain casts bear signs +of definite progress. With the passage of time brain +power continued slowly to acquire new capacities. +Nothing makes this conclusion more certain than the +facts revealed by the Neanderthal casts. From them +it is clear that the chief organ of life which directed +the successes of the Neanderthal race had assumed +many aspects of modern development. Most of this +progress in the brain during its gradual stages upward, +through the ape man, the Dawn man of Piltdown, +the Rhodesian, and the Neanderthal, manifests +its highest degree of expansion in the frontal +lobe. With the coming of the Cromagnon race all of +the cerebral requirements necessary to modern man +made their appearance. Thus through more than a +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_333">[Pg 333]</span>million years the brain has slowly improved. There +has been a steady increase in the size and richness +of its convolutions.</p> + +<p>In contrast with the lifetime of other families in +the animal kingdom the human race has scarcely +passed out of its early youth. Our race seems young +as the ages of the earth are estimated, and our racial +youth justifies the belief that the modern brain represents +some intermediate phase of ultimate development. +The facts of the distant past point ahead to +periods of further progress in the future. Influences +which have operated through vast intervals of time +in slowly advancing the brain from one stage to the +next are doubtless still at work. The impulses necessary +to brain development had their beginning in the +fishes. They continued through reptilian and mammalian +phases and finally passed into the period of +tree life wherein the foundations of the human brain +were laid. It is difficult to believe that this impetus of +progress which persisted for ages has at length ceased +to act.</p> + +<p>The possibility of a better brain finds support in +another fact of great interest. An entirely new force +favourable to progressive development has made itself +felt within the last century. Never before has it +exerted an influence upon the process of evolution. +At present it is difficult to estimate its full value as an +element of progress. This new force arises from the +fact that men and women throughout the world have +recognized the existence of an evolutionary process. +In all places where the earnest search for truth is being +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_334">[Pg 334]</span>made this knowledge has become the dominant +note. It cannot fail to lead to new understandings and +to add new quota of power to the organ of our chief +reliance. An adequate appreciation of the processes +underlying natural selection is certain to impart new +and practical significance to the survival of the fittest. +The means which may subsequently be employed to +further such survival cannot be predicted. Whatever +they may be, if they justify themselves by advantageous +results, they will be applied with courage and +intelligence. They may embrace measures of extensive +restriction and intensive selection to meet the conditions +of overcrowding in population, and of inequality +in the emoluments of life. The embarrassments +of the laggard fractions of humanity would +thus be overcome.</p> + +<p>Application of wise societal regulations having as +their object the better apportionment of opportunity +and the greater accessibility of human happiness +might easily be conceived as the outgrowths of such +further extensions in knowledge. Obviously the questions +concerning the character of the means directed +to these desirable ends cannot now be discussed or +foreseen. It is sufficient to indicate that whatever +these agencies may be, provided their results are +calculated to contribute to the betterment of mankind, +they may be discovered and made practical. +This possibility presupposes the attainment of those +advantages which accrue from a better understanding +of man as a participant in a still active process of +evolution.</p> + +<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_335">[Pg 335]</span></p> + +<p>If up to this time we have employed the full power +of our intelligence, if we have made the best use of +the brain, there may be actual doubts concerning +further progress. Many reasons justify the belief, +however, that the human race has not yet utilized the +brain to its fullest capacity. Numerous facts support +this view and make it appear certain that we have +developed but a small fraction of our potential brain +power. In exceptional cases of outstanding groups +and highly specialized individuals the brain may have +yielded something approaching its best product. +Even in cases of unusual development there are +deficiencies and inequalities of development due to +the circumstances of training, to the introduction of +adverse influences, and to the universal lack of any +generally acceptable goal of life. A cross section of +any community estimated by its high and its low +intellectual attainments indicates a striking unevenness +in brain development. It also reveals a low rating +in the average intellectual level. Averages of this kind +obtained from nations or races disclose an aggregate +of brain power far below the grade of the brain’s +potential capacity. Instances of individual specializations +make the fractional development of the race +still more evident. If, for example, Laura Bridgman, +deprived as she was of sight, hearing, taste, and smell, +with only a fifth of her brain areas accessible to satisfactory +contacts with the world, made an adjustment +to life equal to the average of such adjustments; if +Helen Keller, almost equally deprived of sensory impression, +is rated by many as belonging to the class of +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_336">[Pg 336]</span>genius; then the rank and file of mankind uses but a +small fraction of its potential brain power. This fraction +has been variously estimated at one fifth or one +half. It seems obvious that great advantages for the +extension of intelligence might arise from the utilization +of the unemployed fifty to eighty per cent. of +human power. The large portion of the brain not +used by the majority of mankind introduces the +disquieting thought that the usual way of life is the +easiest way. The intelligent way is laborious and +fraught with many trials incident to arduous application. +Brain capacity may be improved only by +patient and continuous effort and by an unremitting +submission to diligent self-discipline. The avoidance +of these exactions has made the development +of the brain a slow process in man. It is the +general disinclination to depart from the path of +least effort which has held human intelligence at its +average low levels. Many factors have contributed +to this attitude. Not the least among them is what +may be called mixed survival. This is a provision by +which not only those thoroughly equipped but those +as thoroughly unfit are presumed to enjoy equal opportunity +in the advantages of life. The unfit depreciate +the general average. Their inclusion creates +the level of mediocrity and retards the progress of the +fittest.</p> + +<p>Another fact affords hope for the further development +of the unused fractions of human brain power. +It is possible to demonstrate that certain structural +and chemical elements in the brain develop in relation +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_337">[Pg 337]</span>to the use made of them. This is particularly +true of the insulating substance surrounding nerve +fibres. Such fibres serve the purpose of impulse conduction. +Simple and complex associations alike depend +upon them. It has been shown that the simplest +of these fibre connections come into use early in life +while the most important connections appear at later +periods. In order to be effective the connecting fibres +must be insulated. The insulating material, a complex +chemical substance, makes its appearance in direct relation +to the different periods of mental development. +This insulating substance is least in amount at birth. +It increases noticeably at the end of the first year at +about the time when speech is acquired. It shows +marked additions at the seventh, tenth, and twentieth +years. Thereafter it increases slowly up to the fortieth +year. It also manifests the interesting phenomenon +of gradual decrease in the declining years of the +late decades of life. Apparently the mental development +of different life periods requires differing +degrees of insulation in the brain. The functional +use of definite areas appears to bear a direct relation +to the degree of insulation. The more areas +in use, the more numerous are the insulated nerve +fibres to facilitate proper operation. The child +uses and needs less than the youth, and, in the general +case, the youth less than the adult. The development +of the brain thus appears to be proportional to the use +made of it. In this way human intelligence may be +gauged in terms of actual brain structure. In cases of +low intelligence the demands have been relatively +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_338">[Pg 338]</span>small, and large fractions of brain remain undeveloped +because unused. Higher grades of intelligence require +more extensive development because the objectives +of their application are more complex and more exacting. +They are the response to the more extensive +utilization of brain power.</p> + +<p>The recognition of this relation between use and +structural development of the brain clearly points the +way by which human intelligence may be extended. +This relation has long been understood as a biological +principle. It has been practically applied in the training +of muscular strength and endurance, in the +sharpening of the senses, in the cultivation of the +voice. Its practical application to the development of +the brain as a whole has been much less assiduous. +Both in principle and practice this relation of use to +structure indicates possibilities for producing a better +human brain. The unused fractions may accordingly +find opportunity for utilization.</p> + +<p>Still another possibility for advancement arises +from more adequate systems of human training. +The success with which the brain is used depends in +large part upon its conditioning. Such conditioning is +determined by many factors. In the broadest sense +it includes the influence of physical environment +from the earliest moments of life, the effects of societal +habits and ideals both in the family and in the group, +the impress of formal education and educational +forces, and the direction imparted by differing degrees +of satisfaction, health, and disease. If, for example, +the objective is accommodation to Arctic life, the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_339">[Pg 339]</span>conditioning process differs in many details from that +necessary for adjustment to tropical existence. If the +end sought is success according to European standards, +a totally different set of conditionings is essential +to this result. Civilized nations as well as barbarous +tribes may be trained through generations to the +pursuits and practices of warlike aggression. The results +of such conditioning were clearly demonstrated +in the Great War. Ultimate adjustments are thus +strongly influenced by the group, the group outlook, +the time, and the place. For this reason every experience +in and every contact with existence assumes +high value as a conditioning factor. The entire span +of life, from birth to death, becomes a period of active +training which may be consciously directed. The element +of chief importance in this conscious control is +the recognition of the end to which the training is +directed. If the highest qualities of human happiness +and satisfaction are the objectives, every factor +which contributes to the conditioning must be carefully +estimated and properly adjusted to this end. +Such certainly is not the objective under the modern +cult of success.</p> + +<p>The earth, which we have made a bone of contention, +might, to our infinite advantage, become the +sphere of human content. In order to determine such +a change it is necessary to reëstimate and readjust +every influence capable of conditioning the activities +of the brain. The recognition of the uninterrupted +continuity in the conditioning process and its specific +requirements in relation to definite phases of development +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_340">[Pg 340]</span>is most essential. Influences of the physical +environment from the first moments after birth +through all successive periods demand extensive, renewed +attention. In the formation of habits and ideals, +training in the home and in the group reaches down +to the roots of societal life. These phases of brain +conditioning are now largely matters of dogmatic +tradition or confused instruction.</p> + +<p>Our present cult of success dominates formal +education. The profound, far-reaching influence of this +department of life is exerted through the most effective +agencies for adjustment and readjustment. +Education is charged with the responsibilities of devising +the most beneficial methods for conditioning +the brain. It participates in deciding to what ends +such conditioning shall be directed and thus occupies +a position of supreme control over human behaviour. +Its supervision embraces and guides every period of +life. Its disciplines have power to shape the character +of human intelligence. Its inspirations are the hope +of the future. Opportunities are even now at hand +for it to overcome its traditional resistances and to +open new fields for human satisfaction and contentment. +Greater than the power of armies, more compelling +than the military force of the entire globe, is +the peaceful sway which education may exert in the +satisfactory reshaping of existence.</p> + +<p>There should be added to these possibilities of +future progress the fact that man, in spite of his +blemishes, his delinquencies, and failures, is an aspiring +and plastic animal. He is not unwilling to take the +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_341">[Pg 341]</span>form of any mold in which he may be cast. He has +been the victim of many prejudicial molds—clay in +the hands of circumstance. Yet, whatever his form +or deformities, he has always aspired to rise above +himself. His aspirations have been sublimated in the +heroes he has made to admire, in the gods he has +selected for worship. Unlike all other animals, he +has had the gift of idealization, the power of projecting +far ahead of himself, beyond the limits of his +recognized imperfections, the ideals of what he hoped +or craved to be. Even his societal veneer, his morals, +and his manners are products of his aspirations. His +idealizations of existence in poetry and art show how +tenaciously his vision has dwelt on higher things. +Recognition of his own futilities has made him aspire +to a future life of purification and redemption. Yet in +this aspiring he manifests a lingering childhood, which +reveals his still plastic state. The hereafter which he +has designed for himself is based on an infantile system +of rewards and penalties. This eventual refuge +is an acquisitive immortality born of self-interest and +bred in self-conceit. It bears the taint of ancient and +sordid motives of the race. It has none of the altruism +of that more noble and practical immortality through +which earthly life strives unselfishly to leave a worthy +influence for the benefit of those who later follow the +path of human experience.</p> + +<p>In the light of his possibilities man’s further progress +seems assured. Add to these possibilities his remarkable +plasticity, his aspiring spirit, his youthful +racial development, and it appears inconceivable +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_342">[Pg 342]</span>that he should not advance. Science is constantly +placing increased power at his command. While disclosing +to him his place in nature, it is also revealing +what still remains to be accomplished in the conquest +of himself.</p> + +<p>Whatever fault may be found with the technique +of human living, the major complaint is directed +against the persistence of the old objectives. Ancient +motives and standards are obstacles in the path of +progress. A less complex life is needed—one with +new incentives and different goals. Many are living +and have lived this kind of life. One among these, the +Great Galilean, has made it exemplary. As its influence +comes down through the Christian centuries +this life brings increasing conviction that it is the best +yet lived. One third of the globe’s population professes +to follow it. As followers they are frustrated in +their purpose by the persistence of more ancient +influences of the past. Yet it cannot be denied that +any order of humanity higher than the present one +requires extensive modifications in our purposes, our +desires, our outlook on life, our manner of self-expression. +A long step in this direction will be taken +when the ancient password of the Old Stone Age—<i>get</i>, +which for thousands of years has been the mainspring +of existence, is gradually subordinated by the +keynote of a New Golden Age—<i>give</i>. This solution of +the problem is likely to seem utopian. Long ago we +were admonished to try it. If we have failed we need +not altogether despair. The human brain has overcome +other difficulties to which it has been applied. +<span class="pagenum" id="Page_343">[Pg 343]</span>With all of its possibilities for improvement, it may +in time solve the supremely difficult problem of +human nature. Success such as this depends upon +the further development of science—especially that +comprehensive science which will deal with all of the +principles underlying the behaviour of man.</p> + +<p>In all respects it is a task of gigantic proportions +to build the world anew—to readjust, to recivilize +ourselves. At the same time it is the greatest adventure +ever conceived by man—to construct his +final empire of world coöperation wherein to know +and to control himself. Should this be deemed worth +while, it must be paid for by the intelligent, unremitting +toil necessary to develop the full capacity +of our chief reliance—the human brain.</p> + + +<p class="center p2"> + THE END +</p> + + +<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop"> +<div class="chapter"> +<div class="transnote"> + <p class="ph2" id="TRANSCRIBERS_NOTES"> + TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES + </p> + + +<p><a href="#Page_8">Page 8</a>: original spelling of “Poriphara” retained.</p> + +<p>Typos corrected: “in the dog.” to “in the dog,” (<a href="#Page_146">page 146</a>); “pryamid” to “pyramid” (<a href="#Page_166">page 166</a>); “preeminent” to “preëminent” (<a href="#Page_272">page 272</a>); “sufficently” to “sufficiently” (<a href="#Page_316">page 316</a>).</p> + +<p>Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been left unchanged.</p> +</div> +</div> +<div style='text-align:center'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 78733 ***</div> +</body> +</html> diff --git a/78733-h/images/colophon.png b/78733-h/images/colophon.png Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..e77c24e --- /dev/null +++ b/78733-h/images/colophon.png diff --git a/78733-h/images/cover.jpg b/78733-h/images/cover.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..a398d6d --- /dev/null +++ b/78733-h/images/cover.jpg diff --git a/78733-h/images/i_cover.jpg b/78733-h/images/i_cover.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..d8fcd14 --- /dev/null +++ b/78733-h/images/i_cover.jpg diff --git a/78733-h/images/i_titlepage.jpg b/78733-h/images/i_titlepage.jpg Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..28f11ed --- /dev/null +++ b/78733-h/images/i_titlepage.jpg diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6c72794 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This book, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. 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