The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1883-06-05
THE MAN OF THE FUTURE.
Remarkable Deductions from Accom-
pIished Facts-A FOrbidding
Prophecy.

such kindly and half-incrcdulous scorn
AS we now condescend to bestow upon
our club welding, apelike ancestor
will be a toothlcss, hairless slow limbed
animal, incapable of extended lo"omo-
ton His feet will have no divisions
between the toes. He will be very adj
verse TO fighting, and will maintain his
position in the foremost files of time to
come solely upon the strength OF one or
two conyolutions in his brain. This
may seem to be a poor prophecy; but n
differs from most prophecies in being
mere logical deduction from accomplished
facts.
The different parts of the human frame
as it exists now have been evolved or
modified by the action of the two great
principles that have always regulated the
development of species. Every organ
and every ornament that man possesses
has been acquired by natural orby sexual
selection, and when either of these forces
are weakened or removed or when the
necessity for such organs or ornaments is
no longer sufficient to cOunterbalancc the
loss of the power employed in their pro-
duCtion, then they commence at once to
disappear. This is the case with human
teeth. The early ancestors OF man were
furnished, as the male gorilla is to-day,
with magnificent grinding teeth for
crushing hard fruits, and huge CANNES
for fighting with other males for the
possession of the females. A trace of
this remains in the more powerful denti-
ton of savage races, who stand short
distance nearer to our common ape-like
ancestor. Civilized human beings, on
the other hand, have absolutely no use
for canine teeth, which are therefore
found to be small in proportion to the
civilization of their possessOrs; and for
the rest of the teeth they are eminently
unsuited for the work they have to per
form. This is sufficiently plain from
their early decay, and the artificial means
which have to be employed in
order TO retain them even to
maturity. The so-called wis
dom teeth are even now being lost
They are the last to appear and the first
to 90, and even while we have them are
unemployed. The rest will probably fol-
low them two at a time, and their places
will be supplied, no doubt, by a hardening
of the gums, which cannot fail to be IN
comparably more convenient and suitable
to the viands of civilized life.
Long hair, beard, moustache and
whiskers are all sexual ornaments acquired
by man to charm and allure the opposite
sex, Just rs the canine teeth were acquired
for similar purpose. But neither is
sexual selection so powerful now, nor are
these hairy ornaments so important as
they used to be- Marriage is no longer
settled by the strength or magnificent
hairiness of the sutton. Wealth will
cover the bald head; intellect is more
valued than whiskers, and the length of
rent roll counterbalances the shortness of
a beard A woman, too, who has but a
scant supply of that ancient pride of a
woman long hair-Can exc it out by
fraud and art, nor need she go unwedded
on that account Neither men nor wo-
men, therefore, who happen to be ill
furnished with hair, are now, as formerly
handicapped in the race of life, and IN
likely to leave children Tor inherit their
defects. On the other hand they gain a
distinct advantage at the outset, inasmuch
rs no vital force is in their case, wasted
in the production of useless ornaments
There is, moreover, mysterious law of
correlation Of growth between the hair
and the teeth. Throughout the animal
world, strong and luxuriant hair is accom-
panied by regular and durable teeth; and
a hairless breed of dogs exist which is
equally conspicuous for the absence of its
teeth. Hence il might have been expect,
ed that civilization would affect the hair
rs much as the teeth, and infallibly tend
to suppress all hirsute adOrnments as not
being sufficiently necessary to the welfare
of the individual to repay the cost of their
production. Experience confirms this
view; for as the teeth are small, soon lost,
and two OF them at least capricIOus in ap-
pearance, so bald heads in the prime of
life, smooth cheeks and beardless chins
among men, and women Conspicuous
for the absence of natural locks, are
common in civilized countries; while
savage tribes, who have more lately left,
or still remain in, that state of society in
which individual strength or personal
ornament are demanded by the principles
of natural and sexual selection have
stronger teeth and retain more of their
original wealth of hair
With respect to his locomotive limbs
civilized man has lost some faculties and
is losing others. The prehensiIe power
of the great toe, inherited from our ape
like ancestor and still obvious in the hui
man embryo, is retained in part by saw.
age races, but of necessity lost by those
human beings who habitually inclost
their feet in the boots and shoes of civil
lied life. Indeed, the separation of thu
five toes under such circumstances is M
longer necessary, and will not permanent
ly survive. Already the percentage o.
persons who have two or more of thei
toes united throughout their length il
surprisingly large.
In that particular form of endurance
again, which enables man to travel Ions
distances on foot, the savage is, as wa
to be expected, immensely superior to hi
civilized brother. And increased facilitie
of artificial locgmOtion, by rendering thu
use by the latter of his lower limbs NOR
and more unnecessary. will reduce then
in time to comparatively rudimentar,
condition. Finally, the readiness of on
ancestors and of our savage cotempora
ries, to fight with one another is nj
longer profitable, but absolutely perm
cious in the struggle for civilized exist
ence. There is no necessity nowaday
for frequent personal combats and strug
giles OF life and death, On the contrary
man who is violent and pugnacious will
as general rule, be more often impril
oned or slain in the prime of life than hi
more pacific neighbors, and will therefor
leave fewer children to inherit his fight
ing spirit Thus the constant process {
elimination of combative men will con
tinue, without any compensating advaI
tage in the struggle for existence arisin
as heretofore from success as warrio
The man of the future, therefore, will n,
only be toothless, baldheaded. ami ines
pable of extending locomotion with h
lmperfectly developed feet. hut he vi