The Irish standard., 1892-01-02
USEFUL MEMBERS.
The Toes May Be Trained to Serve
as Fingers.
Various Purposes to Which They Are
Sometimes Notwithstanding About
tho Feet Of the Different
- Nations.

It is astonishing to what uses the feet
and toes could be put if necessity arose
for full development of their powers.
There is way Of educating the foot, as
well as the hand or the eye, and there is
no telling what an educated foot can be
made to do. In the time of Alexander,
says the st. Louis Globe-Democrat, the
great warriors were taught to draw
their bows with their feet, as well as
their hands, and this is done at the
present time by the Rock Veddahs, of
Ceylon.
Nearly all aborigines can turn their
toes not only to good but to bad &C.
counts. This is especially true Of the
natives of Australia, who. while they
are cunningly diverting your attention
with their hands, are busily engaged
committing robberies with their toes,
with which they pick up small articles
as an elephant would with his trunk.
So, also, the Hindoo makes his toes
work at the loom, using them in his
weaving operations with almost as
much dexterity as he does his fingers.
The Chinese carpenter when NE is
planning piece of wood always holds it
with his feet. He also turns grind
stone and does many other kinds Of
work in the same manner.
The Banaka tribe, the most famous
canoemen on the West African coast,
will impel their light canoes with great
velocity over the waves, and at the
same time use the feet to bail out the
water that happens to be dashed over
the sides of the light craft. It from
any cause Banaka breaks or loses his
oars he throws his legs over the sides of
the boat and propels it almost as fast
with his feet as he could with the pad
dies.
M. Ducornet, who died in France in
1862, was born without arms or hands.
He had. the eye of an artist, and not
withstanding his great misfortune actu-
ally studied painting and exhibited
many fine productions wholly executed
with his toes.
The feet of Thomas Roberts, the arm
less huntsman, once in the employ OF
Sir George Barlow, were made to serve
in the place of hands. Roberts manu-
featured most of the instruments which
shoot or throw with as much precision
as the average hunter in possession of
both arms and hands.
The same may be said of William
Kinstone, an Englishman who kept his
own accounts, shaved and dressed him
self, saddled and bridled his horse,
threw sledge hammers and did other
seemingly impossible things with his
toes.
AS to national characteristics in feet,
1t may be said that-the French foot is
narrow and long; the Spanish foot is
small and elegantly curved-thanks to
its Moorish blood-correspondin to the
Castilian's pride Of being high in the
instep."
The Arabs foot is proverbial for its
high arch. The Koran says that a
stream of water can run under the true
Arabs foot without touching it. The
foot of the Scotch is high and thick;
that of the Irish fat and square,; the
English short and heshy.
When Athens was in her zenith the
Greek foot was the most perfectly
formed and exactly proportional of that
of any of the human race. Swedes,
Norwegians and Germans have the
largest feet; Americans the smallest.
Russian toes are ''webbed'' to the first
Joint; Tartarian toes are all the same
length.