NATURAL SELECTION

We have now seen that man is variable in body and mind; and that the variations are
indued! either diretly or indiretly! by the same "eneral auses! and obey the same
"eneral laws! as with the lower animals# $an has s%read widely over the &ae o& the
earth! and must have been e'%osed! durin" his inessant mi"rations ()*# See some
"ood remar+s to this e&&et by W# Stanley ,evons! -A .edution &rom .arwin/s Theory!-
/Nature!/ 01)2! %# 3*0#4! to the most diversi&ied onditions#
The inhabitants o& Tierra del 5ue"o! the Ca%e o& 6ood 7o%e! and Tasmania in
the one hemis%here! and o& the arti re"ions in the other! must have %assed throu"h
many limates! and han"ed their habits many times! be&ore they reahed their %resent
homes# ()8# Latham! /$an and his $i"rations!/ 0190! %# 0*9#4 The early %ro"enitors o&
man must also have tended! li+e all other animals! to have inreased beyond their
means o& subsistene; they must! there&ore! oasionally have been e'%osed to a
stru""le &or e'istene! and onse:uently to the ri"id law o& natural seletion# ;ene&iial
variations o& all +inds will thus! either oasionally or habitually! have been %reserved
and in<urious ones eliminated# I do not re&er to stron"ly=mar+ed deviations o& struture!
whih our only at lon" intervals o& time! but to mere individual di&&erenes#
We +now! &or instane! that the musles o& our hands and &eet! whih determine
our %owers o& movement! are liable! li+e those o& the lower animals! ()9# $essrs# $urie
and $ivart in their /Anatomy o& the Lemuro idea/ (/Transat# >oolo"# So#/ vol# vii# 01)2!
%%# 2)=214 say! -some musles are so irre"ular in their distribution that they annot be
well lassed in any o& the above "rou%s#-These musles di&&er even on the o%%osite
sides o& the same individual#4to inessant variability# I& then the %ro"enitors o& man
inhabitin" any distrit! es%eially one under"oin" some han"e in its onditions! were
divided into two e:ual bodies! the one hal& whih inluded all the individuals best
ada%ted by their %owers o& movement &or "ainin" subsistene! or &or de&endin"
themselves! would on an avera"e survive in "reater numbers! and %roreate more
o&&s%rin" than the other and less well=endowed hal&#
$an in the rudest state in whih he now e'ists is the most dominant animal that
has ever a%%eared on this earth# 7e has s%read more widely than any other hi"hly
or"anised &orm? and all others have yielded be&ore him# 7e mani&estly owes this
immense su%eriority to his intelletual &aulties! to his soial habits! whih lead him to
aid and de&end his &ellows! and to his or%oreal struture# The su%reme im%ortane o&
these haraters has been %roved by the &inal arbitrament o& the battle &or li&e# Throu"h
his %owers o& intellet! artiulate lan"ua"e has been evolved; and on this his wonder&ul
advanement has mainly de%ended# As $r# Chauney Wri"ht remar+s ())# Limits o&
Natural Seletion! /North Amerian Review!/ Ot# 01@A! %# 329#4? -a %syholo"ial
analysis o& the &aulty o& lan"ua"e shews! that even the smallest %ro&iieny in it mi"ht
re:uire more brain %ower than the "reatest %ro&iieny in any other diretion#- 7e has
invented and is able to use various wea%ons! tools! tra%s! et#! with whih he de&ends
himsel&! +ills or athes %rey! and otherwise obtains &ood# 7e has made ra&ts or anoes
&or &ishin" or rossin" over to nei"hbourin" &ertile islands# 7e has disovered the art o&
ma+in" &ire! by whih hard and strin"y roots an be rendered di"estible! and %oisonous
roots or herbs innouous#
This disovery o& &ire! %robably the "reatest ever made by man! e'e%tin"
lan"ua"e! dates &rom be&ore the dawn o& history# These several inventions! by whih
man in the rudest state has beome so %re=eminent! are the diret results o& the
develo%ment o& his %owers o& observation! memory! uriosity! ima"ination! and reason# I
annot! there&ore! understand how it is that $r# Wallae ()@# /Buarterly Review!/ A%ril
01)2! %# *23# This sub<et is more &ully disussed in $r# Wallae/s /Contributions to the
Theory o& Natural Seletion!/ 01@A! in whih all the essays re&erred to in this wor+ are re=
%ublished# The /Essay on $an!/ has been ably ritiiCed by Dro&# Cla%arede! one o& the
most distin"uished Coolo"istsin Euro%e! in an artile %ublished in the /;ibliothe:ue
Universelle!/ ,une 01@A# The remar+ :uoted in my te't will sur%rise everyone who has
read $r# Wallae/s elebrated %a%er on /The Ori"in o& 7uman Raes .edued &rom the
Theory o& Natural Seletion!/ ori"inally %ublished in the /Anthro%olo"ial Review!/ $ay
01)8! %# lviii# I annot here resist :uotin" a most <ust remar+ by Sir ,# Lubbo+
(/Drehistori Times!/ 01)9! %# 8@24 in re&erene to this %a%er! namely! that $r# Wallae!
-with harateristi unsel&ishness! asribes it (i#e# the idea o& natural seletion4
unreservedly to $r# .arwin! althou"h! as is well +nown! he stru+ out the idea
inde%endently! and %ublished it! thou"h not with the same elaboration! at the same
time#-4 maintains! that -natural seletion ould only have endowed the sava"e with a
brain a little su%erior to that o& an a%e#-
Althou"h the intelletual %owers and soial habits o& man are o& %aramount
im%ortane to him! we must not underrate the im%ortane o& his bodily struture! to
whih sub<et the remainder o& this ha%ter will be devoted; the develo%ment o& the
intelletual and soial or moral &aulties bein" disussed in a later ha%ter# Even to
hammer with %reision is no easy matter! as everyone who has tried to learn ar%entry
will admit# To throw a stone with as true an aim as a 5ue"ian in de&endin" himsel&! or in
+illin" birds! re:uires the most onsummate %er&etion in the orrelated ation o& the
musles o& the hand! arm! and shoulder! and! &urther! a &ine sense o& touh# In throwin"
a stone or s%ear! and in many other ations! a man must stand &irmly on his &eet; and
this a"ain demands the %er&et o=ada%tation o& numerous musles#
To hi% a &lint into the rudest tool! or to &orm a barbed s%ear or hoo+ &rom a bone!
demands the use o& a %er&et hand; &or! as a most a%able <ud"e! $r# Shoolra&t ()1#
Buoted by $r# Lawson Tait in his /Law o& Natural Seletion!/ /.ublin Buarterly ,ournal o&
$edial Siene!/ 5eb# 01)2# .r# Eeller is li+ewise :uoted to the same e&&et#4! remar+s!
the sha%in" &ra"ments o& stone into +nives! lanes! or arrow=heads! shews
-e'traordinary ability and lon" %ratie#- This is to a "reat e'tent %roved by the &at that
%rimeval men %ratised a division o& labour; eah man did not manu&ature his own &lint
tools or rude %ottery! but ertain individuals a%%ear to have devoted themselves to suh
wor+! no doubt reeivin" in e'han"e the %rodue o& the hase#
Arhaeolo"ists are onvined that an enormous interval o& time ela%sed be&ore
our anestors thou"ht o& "rindin" hi%%ed &lints into smooth tools# One an hardly doubt!
that a man=li+e animal who %ossessed a hand and arm su&&iiently %er&et to throw a
stone with %reision! or to &orm a &lint into a rude tool! ould! with su&&iient %ratie! as
&ar as mehanial s+ill alone is onerned! ma+e almost anythin" whih a ivilised man
an ma+e# The struture o& the hand in this res%et may be om%ared with that o& the
voal or"ans! whih in the a%es are used &or utterin" various si"nal=ries! or! as in one
"enus! musial adenes; but in man the closely similar vocal organs have become
adapted through the inherited effects of use for the utterance of articulate
language. Turnin" now to the nearest allies o& men! and there&ore to the best
re%resentatives o& our early %ro"enitors! we &ind that the hands o& the Buadrumana are
onstruted on the same "eneral %attern as our own! but are &ar less %er&etly ada%ted
&or diversi&ied uses# Their hands do not serve &or loomotion so well as the &eet o& a do";
as maybe seen in suh mon+eys as the him%anCee and oran" utan! whih wal+ on the
outer mar"ins o& the %alms! or on the +nu+les# ()2# Owen! /Anatomy o& Fertebrates!/
vol# iii# %# @0#4 Their hands! however! are admirably ada%ted &or limbin" trees#
$on+eys seiCe thin branhes or ro%es! with the thumb on one side and the
&in"ers and %alm on the other! in the same manner as we do# They an thus also li&t
rather lar"e ob<ets! suh as the ne+ o& a bottle! to their mouths# ;aboons turn over
stones! and srath u% roots with their hands# They seiCe nuts! insets! or other small
ob<ets with the thumb in o%%osition to the &in"ers! and no doubt they thus e'trat e""s
and youn" &rom the nests o& birds# Amerian mon+eys beat the wild oran"es on the
branhes until the rind is ra+ed! and then tear it o&& with the &in"ers o& the two hands#
In a wild state they brea+ o%en hard &ruits with stones# Other mon+eys o%en mussel=
shells with the two thumbs# With their &in"ers they %ull out thorns and burs! and hunt &or
eah other/s %arasites# They roll down stones! or throw them at their enemies?
nevertheless! they are lumsy in these various ations! and! as I have mysel& seen! are
:uite unable to throw a stone with %reision#
It seems to me far from true that because "objects are grasped clumsily"
by monkeys, "a much less specialised organ of prehension" would have served
them (70. !uarterly "eview, #pril $%&', p. (').* e:ually well with their %resent
hands# On the ontrary! I see no reason to doubt that more %er&etly onstruted hands
would have been an advanta"e to them! %rovided that they were not thus rendered less
&itted &or limbin" trees# We may sus%et that a hand as %er&et as that o& man would
have been disadvanta"eous &or limbin"; &or the most arboreal mon+eys in the world!
namely! Ateles in Ameria! Colobus in A&ria! and 7ylobates in Asia! are either
thumbless! or their toes %artially ohere! so that their limbs are onverted into mere
"ras%in" hoo+s# (@0# In 7ylobates syndatylus! as the name e'%resses! two o& the toes
re"ularly ohere; and this! as $r# ;lyth in&orms me! is oasionally the ase with the
toes o& 7# a"ilis! lar! and leuisus# Colobus is stritly arboreal and e'traordinarily ative
(;rehm! /Thierleben!/ ;# i# s# 9A4! but whether a better limber than the s%eies o& the
allied "enera! I do not +now# It deserves notie that the &eet o& the sloths! the most
arboreal animals in the world! are wonder&ully hoo+=li+e#
As soon as some anient member in the "reat series o& the Drimates ame to be
less arboreal! owin" to a han"e in its manner o& %rourin" subsistene! or to some
han"e in the surroundin" onditions! its habitual manner o& %ro"ression would have
been modi&ied? and thus it would have been rendered more stritly :uadru%edal or
bi%edal# ;aboons &re:uent hilly and ro+y distrits! and only &rom neessity limb hi"h
trees(@3# ;rehm! /Thierleben!/ ;# i# s# 1A#4; and they have a:uired almost the "ait o& a
do"# $an alone has beome a bi%ed; and we an! I thin+! %artly see how he has ome
to assume his eret attitude! whih &orms one o& his most ons%iuous haraters# $an
ould not have attained his %resent dominant %osition in the world without the use o& his
hands! whih are so admirably ada%ted to at in obediene to his will# Sir C# ;ell (@*#
/The 7and!/ et#! /;rid"ewater Treatise!/ 01**! %# *1#4 Insists that -the hand su%%lies all
instruments! and by its orres%ondene with the intellet "ives him universal dominion#-
;ut the hands and arms ould hardly have beome %er&et enou"h to have
manu&atured wea%ons! or to have hurled stones and s%ears with a true aim! as lon" as
they were habitually used &or loomotion and &or su%%ortin" the whole wei"ht o& the
body! or! as be&ore remar+ed! so lon" as they were es%eially &itted &or limbin" trees#
Suh rou"h treatment would also have blunted the sense o& touh! on whih their
deliate use lar"ely de%ends# 5rom these auses alone it would have been an
advanta"e to man to beome a bi%ed; but &or many ations it is indis%ensable that the
arms and whole u%%er %art o& the body should be &ree; and he must &or this end stand
&irmly on his &eet# To "ain this "reat advanta"e! the &eet have been rendered &lat; and
the "reat toe has been %euliarly modi&ied! thou"h this has entailed the almost om%lete
loss o& its %ower o& a%%rehension# It aords with the %rini%le o& the division o&
%hysiolo"ial labor! %revailin" throu"hout the animal +in"dom! that as the hands
beame %er&eted &or a%%rehension! the &eet should have beome %er&eted &or su%%ort
and loomotion# With some sava"es! however! the &oot has not alto"ether lost its
%rehensile %ower! as shewn by their manner o& limbin" trees! and o& usin" them in
other ways# (@8# 7ae+el has an e'ellent disussion on the ste%s by whih man
beame a bi%ed? /Naturlihe Sho%&un"s"eshite!/ 01)1! s# 9A@# .r# ;uhner
(/Con&erenes sur la Theorie .arwinienne!/ 01)2! %# 0*94 has "iven "ood ases o& the
use o& the &oot as a %rehensile or"an by man; and has also written on the manner o&
%ro"ression o& the hi"her a%es! to whih I allude in the &ollowin" %ara"ra%h? see also
Owen (/Anatomy o& Fertebrates!/ vol# iii# %# @04 on this latter sub<et#
I& it be an advanta"e to man to stand &irmly on his&eet and to have his hands and
arms &ree! o& whih! &rom his %re=eminent suess in the battle o& li&e there an be no
doubt! then I an see no reason why it should not have been advanta"eous to the
%ro"enitors o& man to have beome more and more eret or bi%edal# They would thus
have been better able to de&end themselves with stones or lubs! to atta+ their %rey! or
otherwise to obtain &ood# The best built individuals would in the lon" run have
sueeded best! and have survived in lar"er numbers#
I& the "orilla and a &ew allied &orms had beome e'tint! it mi"ht have been
ar"ued! with "reat &ore and a%%arent truth! that an animal ould not have been
"radually onverted &rom a :uadru%ed into a bi%ed! as all the individuals in an
intermediate ondition would have been miserably ill=&itted &or %ro"ression# ;ut we +now
(and this is well worthy o& re&letion4 that the anthro%omor%hous a%es are now atually
in an intermediate ondition; and no one doubts that they are on the whole well ada%ted
&or their onditions o& li&e# Thus the "orilla runs with a sidelon" shamblin" "ait! but more
ommonly %ro"resses by restin" on its bent hands# The lon"=armed a%es oasionally
use their arms li+e ruthes! swin"in" their bodies &orward between them! and some
+inds o& 7ylobates! without havin" been tau"ht! an wal+ or run u%ri"ht with tolerable
:ui+ness; yet they move aw+wardly! and muh less seurely than man#
We see! in short! in e'istin" mon+eys a manner o& %ro"ression intermediate
between that o& a :uadru%ed and a bi%ed; but! as an un%re<udied <ud"e (@9# Dro&#
;roa! La Constitution des Fertebres audales; /La Revue d/Anthro%olo"ie!/ 01@3! %# 3)!
(se%arate o%y4#4 Insists! the anthro%omor%hous a%es a%%roahin struture more nearly
to the bi%edal than to the :uadru%edal ty%e# As the %ro"enitors o& man beame more
and more eret! with their hands and arms more and more modi&ied &or %rehension and
other %ur%oses! with their &eet and le"s at the same time trans&ormed &or &irm su%%ort
and %ro"ression! endless other han"es o& struture would have beome neessary#
The %elvis would have to be broadened! the s%ine %euliarly urved! and the
head &i'ed in an altered %osition! all whih han"es have been attained by man# Dro&#
Shaa&&hausen (@)# /On the Drimitive 5orm o& the S+ull!/ translated in /Anthro%olo"ial
Review!/Ot# 01)1! %# 831# Owen (/Anatomy o& Fertebrates!/ vol# ii# 01))! %# 9904 on the
mastoid %roesses in the hi"her a%es#4 $aintains that -the %ower&ul mastoid %roesses
o& the human s+ull are the result o& his eret %osition;- and these %roesses are absent
in the oran"! him%anCee! et#! and are smaller in the "orilla than in man# Farious other
strutures! whih a%%ear onneted with man/s eret %osition! mi"ht here have been
added# It is very di&&iult to deide how &ar these orrelated modi&iations are the result
o& natural seletion! and how &ar o& the inherited e&&ets o& the inreased use o& ertain
%arts! or o& the ation o& one %art on another#
No doubt these means o& han"e o&ten o=o%erate? thus when ertain musles!
and the rests o& bone to whih they are attahed! beome enlar"ed by habitual use!
this shews that ertain ations are habitually %er&ormed and must be servieable# 7ene
the individuals whih %er&ormed them best! would tend to survive in "reater numbers#
The &ree use o& the arms and hands! %artly the ause and %artly the result o& man/s
eret %osition! a%%ears to have led in an indiret manner to other modi&iations o&
struture# The early male &ore&athers o& man were! as %reviously stated! %robably
&urnished with "reat anine teeth; but as they "radually a:uired the habit o& usin"
stones! lubs! or other wea%ons! &or &i"htin" with their enemies or rivals! they would use
their <aws and teeth less and less# In this ase! the <aws! to"ether with the teeth! would
beome redued in siCe! as we may &eel almost sure &rom innumerable analo"ous
ases#
In a &uture ha%ter we shall meet with a losely %arallel ase! in the redution or
om%lete disa%%earane o& the anine teeth in male ruminants! a%%arently in relation
with the develo%ment o& their horns; and in horses! in relation to their habit o& &i"htin"
with their inisor teeth and hoo&s# In the adult male anthro%omor%hous a%es! as
Rutimeyer (@@# /.ie 6renCen der Thierwelt! eine ;etrahtun" Cu .arwin/s Lehre!/01)1!
s# 90#4! and others! have insisted! it is the e&&et on the s+ull o& the "reat develo%ment o&
the <aw=musles that auses it to di&&er so "reatly in many res%ets &rom that o& man!
and has "iven to these animals -a truly &ri"ht&ul %hysio"nomy#- There&ore! as the <aws
andteeth in man/s %ro"enitors "radually beome redued in siCe! the adult s+ull would
have ome to resemble more and more that o& e'istin" man# As we shall herea&ter see!
a "reat redution o& the anine teeth in the males would almost ertainly a&&et the teeth
o& the &emales throu"h inheritane#
As the various mental &aulties "radually develo%ed themselves the brain would
almost ertainly beome lar"er# No one! I %resume! doubts that the lar"e %ro%ortion
whih the siCe o& man/s brain bears to his body! om%ared to the same %ro%ortion in the
"orilla or oran"! is losely onneted with his hi"her mental %owers# We meet with
losely analo"ous &ats with insets! &or in ants the erebral "an"lia are o& e'traordinary
dimensions! and in all the 7ymeno%tera these "an"lia are many times lar"er than in the
less intelli"ent orders! suh as beetles# (@1# .u<ardin! /Annales des Sienes Nat#/ *rd
series! >oolo"#! tom# 'iv# 019A!%# 3A*# See also $r# Lowne! /Anatomy and Dhys# o& the
$usa vomitoria!/ 01@A! %# 08# $y son! $r# 5# .arwin! disseted &or me the erebral
"an"lia o& the 5ormia ru&a#4
On the other hand! no one su%%oses that the intellet o& any two animals or o&
any two men an be aurately "au"ed by the ubi ontents o& their s+ulls# It is ertain
that there may be e'traordinary mental ativity with an e'tremely small absolute mass
o& nervous matter? thus the wonder&ully diversi&ied instints! mental %owers! and
a&&etions o& ants are notorious! yet their erebral "an"lia are not so lar"e as the :uarter
o& a small %in/s head# Under this %oint o& view! the brain o& an ant is one o& the most
marvelous atoms o& matter in the world! %erha%s more so than the brain o& a man#
The belie& that there e'ists in man some lose relation between the siCe o& the
brain and the develo%ment o& the intelletual &aulties is su%%orted by the om%arison o&
the s+ulls o& sava"e and iviliCed raes! o& anient and modern %eo%le! and by the
analo"y o& the whole vertebrate series# .r# ,# ;arnard .avis has %roved (@2#
/Dhiloso%hial Transations!/ 01)2! %# 90*#4! by many are&ul measurements! that the
mean internal a%aity o& the s+ull in Euro%eans is 23#* ubi inhes; in Amerians
1@#9; in Asiatis 1@#0; and in Australians only 10#2 ubi inhes# Dro&essor ;roa (1A#
/Les Seletions!/ $# D# ;roa! /Revue d/Anthro%olo"ies!/ 01@*; see also! as :uoted in C#
Fo"t/s /Letures on $an!/ En"l# translat#! 01)8! %%# 11! 2A# Drihard! /Dhysial 7istory o&
$an+ind!/ vol# i# 01*1! %# *A9#4 &ound that the nineteenth entury s+ulls &rom "raves in
Daris were lar"er than those &rom vaults o& the twel&th entury! in the %ro%ortion o& 0818
to 083); and that the inreased siCe! as asertained by measurements! was e'lusively
in the &rontal %art o& the s+ull==the seat o& the intelletual &aulties#
Drihard is %ersuaded that the %resent inhabitants o& ;ritain have -muh more
a%aious brain=ases- than the anient inhabitants# Nevertheless! it must be admitted
that some s+ulls o& very hi"h anti:uity! suh as the &amous one o& Neanderthal! are well
develo%ed and a%aious# (10# In the interestin" artile <ust re&erred to! Dro&# ;roa has
well remar+ed! that in iviliCed nations! the avera"e a%aity o& the s+ull must be
lowered by the %reservation o& a onsiderable number o& individuals! wea+ in mind and
body! who would have been %rom%tly eliminated in the sava"e state#
On the other hand! with sava"es! the avera"e inludes only the more a%able
individuals! who have been able to survive under e'tremely hard onditions o& li&e#
;roa thus e'%lains the otherwise ine'%liable &at! that the mean a%aity o& the s+ull
o& the anient Tro"lodytes o& LoCere is "reater than that o& modern 5renhmen#4 With
res%et to the lower animals! $#E# Lartet (13# /Com%tes=rendus des Sienes!/ et#!
,une 0! 01)1#4! by om%arin" the rania o& tertiary and reent mammals belon"in" to
the same "rou%s! has ome to the remar+able onlusion that the brain is "enerally
lar"er and the onvolutions are more om%le' in the more reent &orms# On the other
hand! I have shewn (1*# The /Fariation o& Animals and Dlants under .omestiation!/ vol#
i# %%# 038=032#4 that the brains o& domesti rabbits are onsiderably redued in bul+! in
om%arison with those o& the wild rabbit or hare; and this may be attributed to their
havin" been losely on&ined durin" many "enerations! so that they have e'erted their
intellet! instints! senses and voluntary movements but little#
The "radually inreasin" wei"ht o& the brain and s+ull in man must have
in&luened the develo%ment o& the su%%ortin" s%inal olumn! more es%eially whilst he
was beomin" eret# As this han"e o& %osition was bein" brou"ht about! the internal
%ressure o& the brain will also have in&luened the &orm o& the s+ull; &or many &ats show
how easily the s+ull is thus a&&eted# Ethnolo"ists believe that it is modi&ied by the +ind
o& radle in whih in&ants slee%# 7abitual s%asms o& the musles! and a iatri' &rom a
severe burn! have %ermanently modi&ied the &aial bones#
In youn" %ersons whose heads have beome &i'ed either sideways or ba+wards!
owin" to disease! one o& the two eyes has han"ed its %osition! and the sha%e o& the
s+ull has been altered a%%arently by the %ressure o& the brain in a new diretion# (18#
Shaa&&hausen "ives &rom ;lumenbah and ;ush! the ases o& the s%asms and
iatri'! in /Anthro%olo"ial Review!/ Ot# 01)1! %# 83A# .r# ,arrold (/Anthro%olo"ia!/
01A1! %%# 009! 00)4 addues &rom Cam%er and &rom his own observations! ases o& the
modi&iation o& the s+ull &rom the head bein" &i'ed in an unnatural %osition# 7e believes
that in ertain trades! suh as that o& a shoema+er! where the head is habitually held
&orward! the &orehead beomes more rounded and %rominent#4 I have shewn that with
lon"=eared rabbits even so tri&lin" a ause as the lo%%in" &orward o& one ear dra"s
&orward almost every bone o& the s+ull on that side; so that the bones on the o%%osite
side no lon"er stritly orres%ond# Lastly! i& any animal were to inrease or diminish
muh in "eneral siCe! without any han"e in its mental %owers! or i& the mental %owers
were to be muh inreased or diminished! without any "reat han"e in the siCe o& the
body! the sha%e o& the s+ull would almost ertainly be altered#
I in&er this &rom my observations on domesti rabbits! some +inds o& whih have
beome very muh lar"er than the wild animal! whilst others have retained nearly the
same siCe! but in both ases the brain has been muh redued relatively to the siCe o&
the body# Now I was at &irst muh sur%rised on &indin" that in all these rabbits the s+ull
had beome elon"ated or dolihoe%hali; &or instane! o& two s+ulls o& nearly e:ual
breadth! the one &rom a wild rabbit and the other &rom a lar"e domesti +ind! the &ormer
was *#09 and the latter 8#* inhes in len"th# (19#/Fariation o& Animals and Dlants under
.omestiation!/ vol# i# %# 00@! on the elon"ation o& the s+ull; %# 002! on the e&&et o& the
lo%%in" o& one ear#4
One o& the most mar+ed distintions in di&&erent raes o& men is that the s+ull in
some is elon"ated! and in others rounded; and here the e'%lanation su""ested by the
ase o& the rabbits may hold "ood; &or Wel+er &inds that short -men inline more to
brahy e%haly! and tall men to dolihoe%haly- (1)# Buoted by Shaa&&hausen! in
/Anthro%olo"ial Review!/ Ot#01)1! %# 802#4; and tall men may be om%ared with the
lar"er and lon"er=bodied rabbits! all o& whih have elon"ated s+ulls or are
dolihoe%hali#
5rom these several &ats we an understand! to a ertain e'tent! the means by
whih the "reat siCe and more or less rounded &orm o& the s+ull have been a:uired by
man; and these are haraters eminently distintive o& him in om%arison with the lower
animals# Another most ons%iuous di&&erene between man and the lower animals is
the na+edness o& his s+in# Whales and %or%oises (Cetaea4! du"on"s (Sirenia4 and the
hi%%o%otamus are na+ed; and this may be advanta"eous to them &or "lidin" throu"h the
water; nor would it be in<urious to them &rom the loss o& warmth! as the s%eies! whih
inhabit the older re"ions! are %roteted by a thi+ layer o& blubber! servin" the same
%ur%ose as the &ur o& seals and otters# Ele%hants and rhinoeroses are almost hairless;
and as ertain e'tint s%eies! whih &ormerly lived under an Arti limate! were
overed with lon" wool or hair! it would almost a%%ear as i& the e'istin" s%eies o& both
"enera had lost their hairy overin" &rom e'%osure to heat# This a%%ears the more
%robable! as the ele%hants in India whih live on elevated and ool distrits are more
hairy (1@# Owen! /Anatomy o& Fertebrates!/ vol# iii# %# )02#4 Than those on the lowlands#
$ay we then in&er that man beame divested o& hair &rom havin" abori"inally
inhabited some tro%ial landG That the hair is hie&ly retained in the male se' on the
hest and &ae! and in both se'es at the <untion o& all &our limbs with the trun+! &avors
this in&erene==on the assum%tion that the hair was lost be&ore man beame eret; &or
the %arts whih now retain most hair would then have been most %roteted &rom the
heat o& the sun# The rown o& the head! however! o&&ers a urious e'e%tion! &or at all
times it must have been one o& the most e'%osed %arts! yet it is thi+ly lothed with hair#
The &at! however! that the other members o& the order o& Drimates! to whih man
belon"s! althou"h inhabitin" various hot re"ions! are well lothed with hair! "enerally
thi+est on the u%%er sur&ae (11# Isidore 6eo&&roy St#=7ilaire remar+s (/7istoire Nat#
6enerale!/ tom# ii# 0192! %%# 309=30@4 on the head o& man bein" overed with lon"hair;
also on the u%%er sur&aes o& mon+eys and o& other mammals bein" more thi+ly
lothed than the lower sur&aes#
This has li+ewise been observed by various authors# Dro&# D# 6ervais (/7istoire
Nat# des $ammi&eres!/ tom# i# 0198! %# 314! however! states that in the 6orilla the hair is
thinner on the ba+! where it is %artly rubbed o&&! than on the lower sur&ae#4! is o%%osed
to the su%%osition that man beame na+ed throu"h the ation o& the sun# $r# ;elt
believes (12# The /Naturalist in Niara"ua!/ 01@8!%# 3A2# As some on&irmation o& $r#
;elt/s view! I may :uote the &ollowin" %assa"e &rom Sir W# .enison (/Farieties o& Fie=
Re"al Li&e!/ vol# i#01@A! %# 88A4? -It is said to be a %ratie with the Australians! when the
vermin "et troublesome! to sin"e themselves#-4 that within the tro%is it is an advanta"e
to man to be destitute o& hair! as he is thus enabled to &ree himsel& o& the multitude o&
ti+s (aari4 and other %arasites! with whih he is o&ten in&ested! and whih sometimes
ause uleration#
;ut whether this evil is o& su&&iient ma"nitude to have led to the denudation o&
his body throu"h natural seletion! may be doubted! sine none o& the many
:uadru%eds inhabitin" the tro%is have! as &ar as I +now! a:uired any s%eialiCed
means o& relie&# The view whih seems to me the most %robable is that man! or rather
%rimarily woman! beame divested o& hair &or ornamental %ur%oses! as we shall see
under Se'ual Seletion; and! aordin" to this belie&! it is not sur%risin" that man should
di&&er so "reatly in hairiness &rom all other Drimates! &or haraters! "ained throu"h
se'ual seletion! o&ten di&&er to an e'traordinary de"ree in losely related &orms#
Aordin" to a %o%ular im%ression! the absene o& a tail is eminently distintive o&
man; but as those a%es whih ome nearest to him are destitute o& this or"an! its
disa%%earane does not relate e'lusively to man# The tail o&ten di&&ers remar+ably in
len"th within the same "enus? thus in some s%eies o& $aaus it is lon"er than the
whole body! and is &ormed o& twenty=&our vertebrae; in others it onsists o& a sarely
visible stum%! ontainin" only three or &our vertebrae# In some +inds o& baboons there
are twenty=&ive! whilst in the mandrill there are ten very small stunted audal vertebrae!
or! aordin" to Cuvier (2A# $r# St# 6eor"e $ivart! /Dro# >oolo"# So#/ 01)9! %%# 9)3!
91*# .r# ,#E# 6ray! /Cat# ;rit# $us#? /S+eletons#/ Owen! /Anatomy o& Fertebrates!/ vol# ii#
%# 90@# Isidore 6eo&&roy! /7ist# Nat# 6en#/ tom# ii# %# 388#4! sometimes only &ive# The tail!
whether it be lon" or short! almost always ta%ers towards the end; and this! I %resume!
results &rom the atro%hy o& the terminal musles! to"ether with their arteries and nerves!
throu"h disuse! leadin" to the atro%hy o& the terminal bones# ;ut no e'%lanation an at
%resent be "iven o& the "reat diversity whih o&tenours in its len"th#
7ere! however! we are more es%eially onerned with the om%lete e'ternal
disa%%earane o& the tail# Dro&essor ;roa has reently shewn (20# /Revue
d/Anthro%olo"ie!/ 01@3; /La Constitution des vertebras audales#/4 that the tail in all
:uadru%eds onsists o& two %ortions! "enerally se%arated abru%tly &rom eah other; the
basal %ortion onsists o& vertebrae! more or less %er&etly hanneled and &urnished with
a%o%hyses li+e ordinary vertebrae; whereas those o& the terminal %ortion are not
hanneled! are almost smooth! and sarely resemble true vertebrae#
A tail! thou"h not e'ternally visible! is really %resent in man and the
anthro%omor%hous a%es! and is onstruted on e'atly the same %attern in both# In the
terminal %ortion the vertabrae! onstitutin" the os oy'! are :uite rudimentary! bein"
muh redued in siCe and number# In the basal %ortion! the vertebrae are li+ewise &ew!
are united &irmly to"ether! and are arrested in develo%ment; but they have been
rendered muh broader and &latter than the orres%ondin" vertebrae in the tails o& other
animals? they onstitute what ;roa alls the aessory saral vertebrae# These are o&
&untional im%ortane by su%%ortin" ertain internal %arts and in other ways; and their
modi&iation is diretly onneted with the eret or semi=eret attitude o& man and the
anthro%omor%hous a%es# This onlusion is the more trustworthy! as ;roa &ormerly
held a di&&erent view! whih he has now abandoned# The modi&iation! there&ore! o& the
basal audal vertebrae in man and the hi"her a%es may have been e&&eted! diretly or
indiretly! throu"h natural seletion#
;ut what are we to say about the rudimentary and variable vertebrae o& the
terminal %ortion o& the tail! &ormin" the os oy'G A notion whih has o&ten been! and
will no doubt a"ain be ridiuled! namely! that &rition has had somethin" to do with the
disa%%earane o& the e'ternal %ortion o& the tail! is not so ridiulous as it at &irst a%%ears#
.r# Anderson (23# /Droeedin"s >oolo"ial Soiety!/ 01@3! %# 30A#4 states that the
e'tremely short tail o& $aaus brunneus is &ormed o& eleven vertebrae! inludin" the
imbedded basal ones# The e'tremity is tendinous and ontains no vertebrae; this is
sueeded by &ive rudimentary ones! so minute that to"ether they are only one line and
a hal& in len"th! and these are %ermanently bent to one side in the sha%e o& a hoo+# The
&ree %art o& the tail! only a little above an inh in len"th! inludes only &our more small
vertebrae#
This short tail is arried eret; but about a :uarter o& its total len"th is doubled on
to itsel& to the le&t; and this terminal %art! whih inludes the hoo+=li+e %ortion! serves -to
&ill u% the inters%ae between the u%%er diver"ent %ortion o& the allosities;- so that the
animal sits on it! and thus renders it rou"h and allous# .r# Anderson thus sums u% his
observations? -These &ats seem to me to have only one e'%lanation; this tail! &rom its
short siCe! is in the mon+ey/s way when it sits down! and &re:uently beomes %laed
under the animal while itis in this attitude; and &rom the irumstane that it does not
e'tend beyond the e'tremity o& the is hial tuberosities! it seems as i& the tail ori"inally
had been bent round by the will o& the animal! into the inters%ae between the
allosities! to esa%e bein" %ressed between them and the "round! and that in time the
urvature beame %ermanent! &ittin" in o& itsel& when the or"an ha%%ens to be sat
u%on#- Under these irumstanes it is not sur%risin" that the sur&ae o& the tail should
have been rou"hened and rendered allous! and .r# $urie (2*# /Droeedin"s >oolo"ial
Soiety!/ 01@3! %#@1)#4! who are&ully observed this s%eies in the >oolo"ial 6ardens!
as well as three other losely allied &orms with sli"htly lon"er tails! says that when the
animal sits down! the tail -is neessarily thrust to one side o& the butto+s; and whether
lon" or short its root is onse:uently liable to be rubbed or ha&ed#- As we now have
evidene that mutilations oasionally %rodue an inherited e&&et (28# I allude to .r#
;rown=Se:uard/s observations on the transmitted e&&et o& an o%eration ausin"
e%ile%sy in "uinea=%i"s! and li+ewise more reently on the analo"ous e&&ets o& uttin"
the sym%atheti nerve in the ne+#
I shall herea&ter have oasion to re&er to $r# Salvin/s interestin" ase o& the
a%%arently inherited e&&ets o& mot=mots bitin" o&& the barbs o& their own tail=&eathers#
See also on the "eneral sub<et /Fariation o& Animals and Dlants under .omestiation!/
vol# ii# %%# 33=38#4! it is not very im%robable that in short=tailed mon+eys! the %ro<etin"
%art o& the tail! bein" &untionally useless! should a&ter many "eneration shave beome
rudimentary and distorted! &rom bein" ontinually rubbed and ha&ed# We see the
%ro<etin" %art in this ondition in the $aaus brunneus! and absolutely aborted in the
$# eaudatus and in several o& the hi"her a%es#
5inally! then! as &ar as we an <ud"e! the tail has disa%%eared in man and the
anthro%omor%hous a%es! owin" to the terminal %ortion havin" been in<ured by &rition
durin" a lon" la%se o& time; the basal and embedded %ortion havin" been redued and
modi&ied! so as to beome suitable to the eret or semi=eret %osition# I have now
endeavored to show that some o& the most distintive haraters o& man have in all
%robability been a:uired! either diretly! or more ommonly indiretly! throu"h natural
seletion#
We should bear in mind that modi&iations in struture or onstitution whih do
not serve to ada%t an or"anism to its habits o& li&e! to the &ood whih it onsumes! or
%assively to the surroundin" onditions! annot have been thus a:uired# We must not!
however! be too on&ident in deidin" what modi&iations are o& servie to eah bein"?
we should remember how little we +now about the use o& many %arts! or what han"es
in the blood or tissues may serve to &it an or"anism &or a new limate or new +inds o&
&ood# Nor must we &or"et the %rini%le o& orrelation! by whih! as Isidore 6eo&&roy has
shown in the ase o& man! many stran"e deviations o& struture are tied to"ether#
Inde%endently o& orrelation! a han"e in one %art o&ten leads! throu"h the
inreased or dereased use o& other %arts! to other han"es o& a :uite une'%eted
nature# It is also well to re&let on suh &ats! as the wonder&ul "rowth o& "alls on %lants
aused by the %oison o& an inset! and on the remar+able han"es o& olor in the
%luma"e o& %arrots when &ed on ertain &ishes! or inoulated with the %oison o& toads
(29# The /Fariation o& Animals and Dlants under .omestiation!/ vol# ii# %%# 31A! 313#4; &or
we an thus see that the &luids o& the system! i& altered &or some s%eial %ur%ose! mi"ht
indue other han"es#
We should es%eially bear in mind that modi&iations a:uired and ontinually
used durin" %ast a"es &or some use&ul %ur%ose! would %robably beome &irmly &i'ed!
and mi"ht be lon" inherited# Thus a lar"e yet unde&ined e'tension may sa&ely be "iven
to the diret and indiret results o& natural seletion; but I now admit! a&ter readin" the
essay by Na"eli on %lants! and the remar+s by various authors with res%et to animals!
more es%eially those reently made by Dro&essor ;roa! that in the earlier editions o&
my /Ori"in o& S%eies/ I %erha%s attributed too muh to the ation o& natural seletion or
the survival o& the &ittest#
I have altered the &i&th edition o& the /Ori"in/ so as to on&ine my remar+s to
ada%tive han"es o& struture; but I am onvined! &rom the li"ht "ained durin" even the
last &ew years! that very many strutures whih now a%%ear to us useless! will herea&ter
be %roved to be use&ul! and will there&ore ome within the ran"e o& natural seletion#
Nevertheless! I did not &ormerly onsider su&&iiently the e'istene o& strutures! whih!
as &ar as we an at %resent <ud"e! are neither bene&iial nor in<urious; and this I believe
to be one o& the "reatest oversi"hts as yet deteted in my wor+#
I may be %ermitted to say! as some e'use! that I had two distint ob<ets in view;
&irstly! to shew that s%eies had not been se%arately reated! and seondly! that natural
seletion had been the hie& a"ent o& han"e! thou"h lar"ely aided by the inherited
e&&ets o& habit! and sli"htly by the diret ation o& the surroundin" onditions# I was not!
however! able to annul the in&luene o& my &ormer belie&! then almost universal! that
eah s%eies had been %ur%osely reated; and this led to my tait assum%tion that
every detail o& struture! e'e%tin" rudiments! was o& some s%eial! thou"h
unreo"niCed! servie#
Anyone with this assum%tion in his mind would naturally e'tend too &ar the ation
o& natural seletion! either durin" %ast or %resent times# Some o& those who admit the
%rini%le o& evolution! but re<et natural seletion! seem to &or"et! when ritiiCin" my
boo+! that I had the above two ob<ets in view; hene i& I have erred in "ivin" to natural
seletion "reat %ower! whih I am very &ar &rom admittin"! or in havin" e'a""erated its
%ower! whih is in itsel& %robable! I have at least! as I ho%e! done "ood servie in aidin"
to over throw the do"ma o& se%arate reations#
It is! as I an now see! %robable that all or"ani bein"s! inludin" man! %ossess
%euliarities o& struture! whih neither are now! nor were &ormerly o& any servie to
them! and whih! there&ore! are o& no %hysiolo"ial im%ortane# We +now not what
%rodues the numberless sli"ht di&&erenes between the individuals o& eah s%eies! &or
reversion only arries the %roblem a &ew ste%s ba+wards! but eah %euliarity must
have had its e&&iient ause# I& these auses! whatever they may be! were to at more
uni&ormly and ener"etially durin" a len"thened %eriod (and a"ainst this no reason an
be assi"ned4! the result would %robably be not a mere sli"ht individual di&&erene! but a
well=mar+ed and onstant modi&iation! thou"h one o& no %hysiolo"ial im%ortane#
Chan"ed strutures! whih are in no way bene&iial! annot be +e%t uni&orm
throu"h natural seletion! thou"h the in<urious will be thus eliminated# Uni&ormity o&
harater would! however! naturally &ollow &rom the assumed uni&ormity o& the e'itin"
auses! and li+ewise &rom the &ree interrossin" o& many individuals# .urin" suessive
%eriods! the same or"anism mi"ht in this manner a:uire suessive modi&iations!
whih would be transmitted in a nearly uni&orm state as lon" as the e'itin" auses
remained the same and there was &ree interrossin"# With res%et to the e'itin"
auses we an only say! as when s%ea+in" o& so=alled s%ontaneous variations! that
they relate muh more losely to the onstitution o& the varyin" or"anism! than to the
nature o& the onditions to whih it has been sub<eted#
.is+usi dan %embahasan tentan" sam%le +arya sastra berbentu+ non &i+si esai
men"enai sain dan te+nolo"i? a+al dan %enelitian ilmiah; The Origin of Species by
Charlews .arwin dalam handout#
$eneran"+an stru+tur=stru+tur %eran"+at +esastraan esai men"enai sain dan te+nolo"i?
a+al dan %enelitian ilmiah; The Origin of Species by Charlews .arwin