Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-04-12

sphere of the brain, controlling the right
side is slightly longer and heavier than
the right hemisphere. controlling the left
side of the body. This difference has a
connection with observation-disclosures. 1t
would be interesting to determine in a
large number of pronouncedly left-handed
persons how this weight of the hemi-
spheres of the brain differs; but for this
there is not sufficient material. The Ma
tional Museum possesses already the
greatest collection of human and animal
brains in this country, if not in the world;
but II is not as Yet large enough to solve
these problems. The left brain. controlling
the right hand. may owe its greater ia
clity of action to less complex commu-
nication with the right hand and the right
side of the body in general than there is
between tn" left hand and the right brain
The right arm is the better developed
in the average person, ard this Isl due to
its more frequent use. That use is the
cause of this is evident because in wom
an. where the right arm is generally
less used than in man. the difference in
the two arms is found to be less
observation-disclosures runs in certain fami-
Lies. but it never extends to all the mem
bers because there have been in every
FAMILY MANY ancestors who were right
handed. II pronounceGly left handed
women married only equally left-handed
men. and this process could. in a definite
family or small locality, he long con-
tinued there would be a progressive in
crease IN lttt-1andcu progeny.
There Are No Am bidexters.
But to return to ambideX: crit -what
do you discover about this condition?
have read somewhere that Leonardo da
Vinci and Michaelangelo were perfect
aubidaxters''
Il do not think there could be found
pure case of ambidexterity or equal use
Of both hands. Even if there were the
same ease of cerehratiOn and nervous i'm
pulse or the two sides there would still
be the elements of habit and imitation.
You will not find u person habituaIy us
ing both hands in exactly the same man.
ner"
DO yov agree with Lombrosa that left
handedneSS is one of the stigmata Of
de2pneration?"
"No. I cannot. Too few cases among
d"generates and criminals have been adj
duced TO make valid such a conclusion
NV own studies of 1000 delinquent chill
dran of the New York Juvenile ASYLUM
contraGiCted any such assumption Among
these LOCO inmates / found only ten or
j per cent, who. We're .left-handed. Among
the boys il was less than | per cent
whereas for males in general it is between
: and per cent. Among the girls it was
only l Is per cent. or about the same as
for females in general.
Left handed people appear peculiar be-
cause OF their apparent awkwardness
bul tflIS dNk WaltISSS Is only aOparpnt.
If YOU see number of persons seated at
table and all but one cuts his food with
his right hand. that one person appears to
be awkward simply because he is the ex-
ceptlon. The exact significance of left
handedneSS has not yet been determined
but there certainly is no evidence that it
means anything very different from right
handadueSS.
The Indians studied were all tested
with the dynamometer. an instrument
which measures the strength of the hand
grasp. Each of them squeezed it as hard
as he could-under certain precautions
first in one hand and then in the other.
the maximum amount of pressure that
each could thus apply being registered
upon scale attached to the instrument.
1t WAS thus found that some times right
handed individual, with both arms equally
healthy. was stronger in his left than in
his right hand, and vice versa. These
We're very likely cases of imperfect right
or eft-handcdness."
Have We any tendencies toward one
sidedness other than those shown by the
hands?"
Yes. There is a somewhat similar ten