Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1867-03-24
souru aaErRIcA
From the N. Y. Tribune nth ulLl
LECTURE By PEoF. AGAssIz ON THE MONKEY
AID NATIVE ISHABITANIs OF SOUTH ASEI


r SOUTH AMERICA. t
2 From the N. Y. Tribune nth ulLl
LEcrURE By PEoF. AGAssIz ON THE stoSKEys
AND NATIVE INHABTTANTs OF SOUTH ASER-
IcA.-coNoLUDED FROM LAST SUNDAY.
n Now, I hold that the idea Of the comma
, Eity OF origin Of man and the mOnke7s
and the other quadrupeds Is a fallacT,
! the foundation Of which shall try TO explain
presently: But II 1t is an error to consider m
as derived from monkeys, we must adnil that
4 men are not derived nom a common stock, be-
, cause the differences which exist among rasn
J are OF The same kind and quite as striking as
the differences which exist betWeen monkeys,
and between the lower animals. lsensation /
Let me say in whatall men agree. and in what
al differ from monkeys. AL men agree In hay
. ing four limbs one pair OF which termfnates
. with feet aud the other pair terminates win
! hands-slI men are endowed with the ability Of
standing erect and their Constitution Is such
that the erect position is not one resulting from
education, isnot the result Of successive change,
but is one OF the consultative pecHliarites Of tho
! human frame. The whole backbone Is so or
gRnfsed that man can carry with case his heavy,
broad head only in a vertical position. lie has
[ not as animals have, a lieanaent with which he
may rest the head in a horizontal position with
ease; but the hesd must be balanced on the top
OF the vertical column, in order that II may be
moved with facility in every direction Then
man has limbs on the side OF the chest 30 0r-
gauized that he can move them In every direc-
ton and touch every part of his body with
them. And that pair OF nEnbs terminates with
the most perfect hand known In nature; and
that hand IS 50 constituted a. rapidly TO carry
out the mandate Of the mind. 1t Is brought
into the service Of the intellect, and Is no
longer an organ OF lOcomOtion, as is the case
with the monkey. Al these pecullarities ars
! characteristic OF au men, and between mon
| KEYS and men there Is no structural transition
/ there Is no gradation. From the highest mon
/ key TO the lowest race Of men, all these at
tempts at bringing man closer TO the monkey
fundamental differences which make man,
| however low and inferior, q man, and which
separate him from the monkey, however
high a. monkey lie may stane- lApplausel
But while we recognize certain structural attri-
buteg as particularly human, let as not over
/ look the great differences which exist among
men both in structure and atIainmentS. In
the first place color-these differences are obyi-
! GUS but they are cOmparRtively Of slight i'm
/ portance. Next in hair-there Is q marked diff
/ ference-the flowing, straight hair OF the white
race Is very different already from the stiff and
| Wiry hair OF the Incian and when We come to
compare that hair with that Of the Australian,
| or with that of the Malay, or with that OF the
seJee Islander, or sslll more strlklnglyi with
| that OF the negro, We find differences which are
/ most marked. The hair OF the white race Is
seIni-eircular the hatr OF the negro is fat, 10 is
| woody, Il Is curly. And these pecuiiarities are
/ not peculiarities brought about by climate, for
] white men have existed In close pr0x.
/ unity with negroes ever since the two
side on earth, and the white man
/ has not assumed the woolly hair OF the negrs,
nOehas the negro assumed the straight hair sf
l the white race. LApplanse.l Then there is a
/ difference in the denution, and very marked
one. AL the white race have teeth vertical the
/ Jaw short; and the manner In which the teeth
l dt one upon the other Is perpendicuiRrly, so
/ tnat when we close the mouth, we bring the
/ lower teeth against the upper teeth in such a
| Juxtaposition that the two sets stand vertical
| one above the other And the races OF men
which have that kind OF dentition are called
orihognate, that is, straight-aWed races while
there are other races-and, among others, all
the inhabitants OF the South Sea islands, and
all the inhabitants Of Africa south OF the
Atlas-that have their front teeth inclined, so
that the upper teeth and the lower teeth, when |
brought against one another, form an angle and
the mouth is more prominent. and these men
are called prOgnate. And that difference is a |
constant one, and all the races Of men with
prognate Jaws have also thicker and more |
prominent lips. And they have also fat noses, |
which / have already described with broad |
partitions between the nOstrls and tbs noEtrils
opening Sideways and thsse differences have /
been known among them ever since men have /
been observed by man. On the ancient moa- |
uments OF Egypt there are figures OF negroes, /
there are figures OF Egyptians, there are ngures 1
OF Jews, there are figures OF white men As \
them now so Jhat Ter at least as Tonga time as 4
these monuments have been In existence these |
features Of humanity have remained what /
they were then, and have retained their pecu- 4
uRrities. Now, then, the question is, how were 1
these peculiar1ties brought about2 Are they 1
Innate? That is, are they primal, or are they 4
the result Of change? II these differences are /
the result Of change, then why should not the /
differences which Ee observe among monkeys /
be the result Of change also; and II changes /
as great can take place why should not changes 1
little greater occur; and therefore, why
should not all the differences which exist
among living beings be the result OF successive
changes? II is upon this line Of argument that /
a scientific argument has been based, which is
known the transmutatiOu doctrine and |
Wafch has been dismissed for Centuries but
which has been revived IN q nOre recent form,
and with more recent argument, by Darwin,
among naturalists Now, 1 propose to show
You on what fallacies this view rests, and will
repeat ny statement IA anotheE form. The
question is whether we are the result Of
a natural revolution, or whether We are
the expression of specific act Of erea-
not mean to charge those who enter
tain the idea OF transformation with
DENYING the intervention OF a creative pOwertn |
the acts Of the world. I do not charge them |
with denying the interference Of God In ma
ture, Du5 l charge them with denying the i'm
med late direct Intervention in the production
OF these Differences. Whether they are right OF
wrong depends upoa the Interpretation OF the
examination Of these facts to which would
call your attention. LApplRuse.l I must crave
your indulgence, for the hour Is already over
and have hardly begun my subject In the
first place 1 would say that man is rated in the
animal kingdom in a manner which makes 10
impossible TO separate the conclusions which
to the animal kingdom. When we examine
the order of succession Of animals, through all
10 the end a definite relation TO some
thing higher and higher, and we ind that
n the last geological epoch snl9 has man
of succession Of the irving races which
have at different times peopled the sur
face OF our globe, we see man announced from
the beginning and we can say as one OF the
scientific results Of the com mparison Of all these
races, that frpm the beginning man was meant
20 E6 Il tie llead Of 6restlon aud that upon
the plan lpop Whieh animals living upon our
earth are constructed there Is no Possibility Of
a higher being than man himself And this
generalization can be sustained by an e4amina-
ton OF the struRture Of the brain a,One. With
out enteringa5nto an eS ensy argument viii
show you test such structure OF the highest
systems grrlrgsDs m the whole series OF ami
mails, thf from the fish to man there IS a con-
summaieon which shows thai he is he highest
slDie form OF the series which begins I
with the nsh. The professor here used the
blackboard to illustrate his subiect.l Suppose |
this to be the brain OF fish. We have htre, as
IA al bfSlns. front swelling from which arise
the nerves which go 10 TIE nSstrll hers mid
go to the eyes, and third swelling from which
arise the nerve which goes 10 the ear, and other
nerves which go 10 different parts, alb ut which
l need not now trouble you. These three swell
Iings are 50 constituted that the hrst formation
is Jhs grualiast, the middle form alton occupies
isFgesi. IN Replies We md thai these three ]
sWellinEa have about the same dimensions |
that the mont swelling begins 70 rise so as to
stand on 8 level with the middle swelling, !
which itself is about as large the hind swell |
ling, which is receding in dimensions from the
of the BRAIN this the optic portion
or the brain, and this the cersbellun. Now, in |
birds, We hnd that the front part Is so far de-
veloped as already 70 cover, IN measure. the
nliadle ellins, AID leaves lie hiHd SWELLING
uncovered and when 'froLu the lird we rise
70 the Quadruped, we md that the front swell !
ing covers the middle swelling completely, '
though it does not cover the hind swelling at 3
all and when We come 70 man, we 1nd that
not only the middle swelling, but the hind {
swelling. also, covered In such a manner that | Z
the position is so changed that, instead of ex- J
tending on the same plane or risiug slowly, as
IS the case IN the FePllle, QE 9laflns, a. u the
case II tGe Li-d and ulamGiia in man the brain '
Is brought TO stand at righi-angles with the '
spinal marrow, which extends through the
series OF backboneS along the vertebral column. .
Beyond this you see at once there is no progress
possible, Here we hays seqolrsd the most
The brain. 1t extends fTDpl the middle and 6
pOsterisr region OF the middle and hind parts l
Of the brain In , perfect harmonious manner,
and the whole commands the WhOls system in ! [
a manner which, II atteopted TO be exceeded ! I
would lead TO retrograde movement, and not
the different forms Of brain which we have
among men and you will ind the variety | /
little more or less developed; pass from them l
.o the monkeys and you will ind this grzdu- 9
ally fecedfng. yoIi NiH and thai the ceFehellum
will be uncovered very slowly, and then grad !
ualy more and more. In fact. you have 1
complete SERVES, which shows that between l
man and monkeys, and monkeys and quadru- 7
peds, and quadIu peds and birds, and birds and I
reptiles and reptiles and fishes, there is up-
gradatiOn OF more or leBs cOmpi-
Gated structures; but with this remarkable 6
psculiRFits that TIE distances from sne TO the E
other are unequal, that thsfe is not that even 7
gradation or that even sue 'esSton, that from
one state TO the other the distance or the differ
snee should be perfectly uniform. There Q
IS always more or less distance from =
one TO the other. and not equal in 5
measure, in steps froIn any lower TO the next |
higher type. And now, in the order Of sue I
oess,on &c animals, We find something similar. 2
Suppose represent hers thE lowest level on !
which any animal has existed upon the sur .
iacs OF the earth, and here mark the name of 2
the geological formations as they have followed I
one another illustrating on toe blackboard l
frona the az0ic period, through the Salurian '
age, through the Devoniap and carboniferous i
age, the Permian, tne triassir, the iurassO. the
the eoscene, the mloceEs, the plio-
Gene, and the present period, and here repre- 2
sent hy this line the present surface Of our 3
all nf 2
upon it. and here we have compartment for z
he radiates which, you may remember, con- =
stitute one Of the great types OF the animal .
kingdom, and are divided into three classes,
he polys and jelly fishes, the star fishes, sea
lrchins and the Ike. Here we have another
impairment for the mollusl1s, and among B
5hese mollusks we have also three classes, the G
sivalve shells, for we have here another u
sonl partment for the articulates and we |
llNina them intn lkrea llasses alsn the .