New-York tribune., 1901-03-17
from Nature.

AND FEN APES.
4 simple workable. absolutely trustworthy
system is still urgently wanted for the detection
IF criminals. and if Miriam Anne Ellis in her
book the human has succeeded she Ger
tainly deserves the thanks of all the govern
ments of Europe. Whatever worth her method
may have when ii comes to be applied PRACTICAL
y it has some decided drawbacks when the
data are examined on hich ii is founded
IT 50 HAPPENED that about seven years ago the
reviewer came to the conclusion that the eX
teTnal ear ought to yield some cleW to thu re-
lationship Of man and ape and of one race of
man to another. As is well known the char
acters Of the ear are fully inherited. and afford
fairly trustworthy CleWS to family relationship.
Of which the authoreSs gives some good iIlustra-
tons pounding MS th'd Of observation ana
classification on data derived from "a study of
the development and ComparatiV" anatomy "t
the external ear. the reviewer proceeded To- *
lIVini; tho shores Of the North Sea. first
on the Continental side. then on the British. to
see how far the data h. accumulated would sup
port the Seri-traditiCuaI accounts aVaiIahl.
concerning the early Saxon inNasiunS of Britain
TheS" observations W-"e continued into thc
Highlands II scotland. t. ireland ana Wai.s,
To test thr ''criIni;al mari theory of IumhruSu
ana many others h" examined IN" ears "f NOR"
than eight hundred confirmed CRIMINALS, ana az
more than t"o thousand inmates uf asy lums for
tn" insane. situated in parts "f the country
where n mad already examined III. ears of thu
sane. Altogether thu cars of NOR than forty
thousand people of different races and of differ
eat muraIIti,s i-S.d,s those of about thr.,. hun
dre,i apes amt authioroid-. v-rr examined hut
The total results Of this elaborate tStIEatIou
were almost entirely "f a usSatlV" nature
The authoress appears to tlk" il tor granted.
and evidently mas not inquired int" tn" matter
that tn of tho criminal is peculiar II IN"
reviewers methods and observations are correct
the confirmed 'flrhlnat $ ear - ih" ear 81 IN,
average iHhabltaHt of Great Britain Nor dd
~" ears Of the insane ditf'r ON AN average
from thos, OF th'- I,-nplc from which they w"rr
drawn. and j: Tho aut norr<~ had carried her
obs.rN atious over number nf men of genius cor
Of nigh ability instead ~ drawing ,lanorAt.. de-
.ftrs .... F...fH
Ir"naniN HAY" arrived III similar COM 'HSi"n as
L. them.
Tn great diin,ulty ia Il matter this kind is
20 arrive at mrthHt of cLISsin' ati'n and il is
in this that All the systems pr"ppuud'd break
down when applied practically. and the system
r'up'uuied h't' - worse than ih"." thA' htN"
rou- before IL. lU hrr class sIuDttIou tin first
division lS "a separation of oars inf" 80 large.
60 medium. and 80 small INF rtuuatc'y. sh"
proposes no definite measurements. hut If shr
did 10 would bc found that great proportion =
cars feel. an tb,. limits IF The. medium line. and
would be-, matter # the greatest difficulty TO
-ny I" which of IN" great divisions IT belonged
Th'rc is another great "h-laci" {" thu appca-
ZION of measurement Of tho ear To- detection of
criminals. Of which the HuthoVySS is uuiWarc.
As SchWabhr showed years ago and the
auth1ross may verify any quiet half hour during
"erin|n time, the ear IN the later decades "f
life undergone very considerable growth
Cough to SHIFT Ia" ear Of a woman aged forty
from the medium division To the large dix lSIun
Rhon she is aged sixty.
The authoress has used Of th,. 81 vari.i-
hI,. and uutriIstworthy features If the human
the forms in which II is found. She detects in
its helix tkc upII'r ara puStrrlOr border uf the
ear iiVc uIVie ions. 'ParItci 10y udrntations
more or less mark ii. The three small groups uf
large, medium and small ears Subdividcd
az, ,ording 10 whioh and how many OF these divs-
ions of the helix are present In many eases
no two observers would agre- as to the number
Of helical subdivisions present. which ~ not
markahle " hen il IS remembered that the helix
on tn" postcri"r bnrder is VeStigial structure.
the result of thu Unfolding of the free. margin Of
the The amount of Unfolding does not in
dicatr, the authoTcSs suppUscS. certain
pathological p'culiariIics, but merely IN" d"-
gree Uf rrtr"eT'-ssion in the examined. Like
all truly NeStiEial structures, the lnfnldrd mar
gin of the helix - subject To such variety If
forms that it drties classification.
one or two interesting. although minor points
might also be mentioned. The statement that
the length of thr ear depends on IN" length of
the nos" and that the measurement pf the one
- identical with that of the other Will h'
found on trial 10 hc the exception and not the
inVarabe rule. In most anatomical works TN"
relation OF the breadth to the length Of the ear
is used Il method of classification, quite /"
useless one. in the reviewers opinion.