The Houma courier. (Houma, La.) 1878-1939, 1897-06-05

ANTHROPOMETRIC MEASUREMENT.
mass of interesting information, phys
ical characteristics of the average man,
normal and abnormal variations and
differences of strength, girth or length
of limb, comparative tables by sex, race
or occupation, the total strength tests
of modern SandowB-all these and
many other data of interest and value
r collected.
Aside from thus satisfying the mere
curiosity of athletic enthusiasts, an
thropometry is of great practical value,
both as a branch of an~thropology, or
the study of the human species, and
also as a guide to scientific systems of
physical training.
1t was with the latter end in view
that DR.. Dudley A. Sargent, now di-
rector of the Hemenway gymnasium
at Harvard university, undertook some
25 years ago to elaborate a detailed
scheme of anthropometric measure
ments. In place of the few crude and
thoroughly unreliable records Of army
officers, DIR. Sargent constructed a COM
plete tabular view of the genus homo
" ANoN w AOOGS o4u AC plOSCCACh W
take his measurements with such fas-
tidious care and upon such a multitude
of subjects that the practical deduc-
lions derived therefrom would be ac-
cepted as conclusive.
DR.. Sargent began his work at Bow
doin in $50; from '72-'7s he was at Yale,
md since 1880 he has been at Harvard
university. In the course of these years
he has gathered and placed on record
the measurements of thousands and
tens of thousands of students, some
thick, some thin, lean, fat, short and
tall, athletic and puny. The sum total
of such a mass of statistics gives the
Investigator almost the exact figures
for the average physical ~characteris-
tics of American manhood at a GER
tain age. Each individual also by ref
erenc to the statistics is enabled to see
just on what side of the fence he stands;
whether his arms are shorter than the
average, and to what degree; whether
his lung capacity exceeds the normal,
ETC., etc.
The system devised by DR.. Sargent
spread to other colleges. Students are
wv HCdSulCuH L uuuSESDduua III every
eastern institution, while in the west
many schools are beginning to intro
duce work along that line. There is
also quite a demand among Y. M. C. "A.
associations, athletic clubs and turn
ing societies for anthropometric APP
paratus. A series of measurements was
recently taken in New York state penal
institutions and insane asylums, where
q surprising correspondence of mental
and moral with physical character
istics was shown. In England the great
labor agitation back in '73 stimulated a
coterie of learned Investigators, who
called themselves the "Anthropometric
Committee of the British Society for
the Advancement of Science" to under
take a large number of comparative
measurements upon people in all walks
of life. 1t was shown hat the better
classes averaged 3N inches taller than
the poorer, and, again, various mental
and moral defects were traced to phys
ical failings.
AS a result a great impetus was given
to the modern movement of organized
charity; and it may be confidently as
serted that factory inspection and COM
Pulsory shortening of the number of
hours of labor resulted in many cases
directly from the disclosures made by
the anthropometric committee.
Medical science has derived much in
formation of valuefrom anthrcpometry.
AS the great mass of carefully collected
evidence accumulated, physicians be-
came enabled to rely with confidence
upon facts which previously they had
scarcely accepted. For one the growth
of the human being from childhood has
been watched, and the needs at different
stages of development, the defects most
liable to appear at each period, ETC., are
row better known than ever before.
The particular dangers also of every
kind of employment have been ascer-
tanned, so that the physician is enabled
to guard against these. No little has
been accomplished in the way of show
ing with double emphasis the great
danger that lies in certain habits of
living, if not directly to the public at
least to the medical world. For ex-
ample, it was shown that by a contrac-
ton of woman's waist of one inch the
heart beat was raised to 1853 beats per
minute, which is eight beats beyond
the danger limits set in athletic train
ing, In fact it is claimed that as q re-