Scientific American Supplement, No. 392, July 7, 1883Various
Science
Scientific American Supplement, No. 392, July 7, 1883
Various
Science -- Periodicals
It is evident that the possession of any one of the above
characteristics by a man approximates him more to the monkeys, so far
as it goes. He retains features which have been obliterated in other
persons in the process of evolution.
[Illustration: FIG.8.--Portrait of Satanta, a late chief of the Kiowas
(from the Red river of Texas), from a photograph. The predominance of
the facial region, and especially of the malar bones, and the absence of
beard, are noteworthy.]
In considering the physiognomy of man from an embryological standpoint,
we must consider the peculiarities of the infant at birth. The numbers
of the following list correspond with those already used (Fig. 3).
I. _As to the General Form_.--(1) The head of the infant is relatively
much larger than in the adult; (3) the arms are relatively longer;
(4) there is no waist; (6) the leg, and especially the thigh, is much
shorter.
II. _As to the Surfaces_.--(10) The body is covered with fine hair, and
that of the head is short.
III. _The Head and Face_.--(14) The cerebral part of the skull greatly
predominates over the facial; (16) the superciliary ridges are not
developed; (17) the alveolar borders are not prominent; (20) the malar
bones are not prominent; (21) the nose is without bridge and the
cartilages are flat and generally short; (22) the eyes are larger.
[Illustration: FIG. 9.--Australian native (from Brough Smyth), showing
small development of muscles of legs and prognathism.]
It is evident that persons who present any of the characters cited in
the above list are more infantile or embryonic in those respects than
are others; and that those who lack them have left them behind in
reaching maturity.
We have now two sets of characters in which men may differ from each
other. In the one set the characters are those of monkeys, in the other
they are those of infants. Let us see whether there be any identities in
the two lists, i. e., whether there be any of the monkey-like characters
which are also infantile. We find the following to be such:
I. _As to General Form_.--(3) The arms are longer.
II. _Surface_.--(10) The hair of the head is short, and the hair on the
body is more distributed.
III. _As to Head and Face_.--(21) The nose is without bridge and the
cartilages are short and flat.
Three characters only out of twenty-three. On the other hand, the
following characters of monkey-like significance are the opposites of
those included in the embryonic list: (14) The facial region of the
skull is large as compared with the cerebral; (15) the forehead is not
prominent; (16) the superciliary ridges are more prominent; (17) the
edges of the jaws are more prominent. Four characters, all of the face
and head. It is thus evident that in attaining maturity man resembles
more and more the apes in some important parts of his facial expression.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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