The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1921-04-28

malicious ape today could get away
with a series Of secret murders
such as startled the Rue Morgue."
Not unless he wore rubber gloves.
For there would be the unmistak-,
able evidence of his finger prints,
which are very different from the
human finger prints, and which,
likely as not, could be quickiy
traced to the newly-established
"rouge's gallery" of some nearby
zoo.
This assurance is given by DR..
Daymond l.. Ditmars, curator OF
reptiles of the Bronx Geological
Park, who has recently made
thorough study of monkey hands.
DR.. Ditmars was first interested IN
the subject by the American Mu-
scum of Natural History OF this
city, which wanted some handprints
of monkeys to use in its elaborate
study Of the evolution of man. The
Cation Society Of Washington.
which is also devoted to the study
OIL HAL cNOlullOA, was Inv ~" ASS
anxious for a similar supply.
my only part in the project was
to get the prints" explained DR..
Ditmars, but as the work pro-
crossed l became so muhc interest
ed that l bought several books on
palmistry containing great num-
hers of prints of human hands"
The curator Immediately founo
that while the general hand prints
of monkeys and those of human be-
ings are similar, the monkey hand
possessing the life line, heart line,
head line and fate line which are to
be noted in the human hand, close
examination shows striking differ
ences in every instance between the
human hand and the monkey hand.
1.-The human hand in all cases.
says he, has the tips of the fingers
and the tip Of the thumb marked
with lines arranged in whorlds. The
monkey hand, On the contrary, in
variably has the tips Of the fingers
marked in straight lines, never in
whorls.
ION the monkey hand the whorl-
markings are always on the
mounts, the soft Jumps Of flesh al
the base of the fingers. In the hui
man hand these mounts are always
marked with straight lines, never
with whorls.
"No matter how human the
monkeys hand may appear at first
glance, a print examination always
shows this difference, although in
the orangoutang, for instance, the
resemblance is otherwise startling
THE whorls on the tips OF the
fingers and especially on the
thumb are the means whereby ex
perts establish identity. In mon
keys the whorls on the mount:
could be used for the same pur
| pose. Apparently. there are no two
monkeys with the same markings
on the mounts of their hands. jus
as there are no two human being!
with whorl markings that are ex
actly the same on the tips of theil
thumbs or fingers"
| Monkey Character.
i In obtaining the finger prints
DR.. Ditmars had to confine his eff
forts to the most tractable mon
keys, the larger and more savag'
animals stubbornly holding on
against this process of identified
ton. But he succeeded in getting
specimens of the ringtails, tam
black ape, South American mon
key, a pigtail Ceylonese monkey,
bonneted Macaque. Javan Maca
que and an orangoutang. TIL
principal difficulty lay in keepin
the animals quiet so that the
would not jump at the psychology
cal moment.
Il used a sheet Of dull surfac
paper with fine grain for maxim
the print" explained DR.. Ditmars
THE monkeys hand was covere
, with a paste made of Oil and gra
phite. After the hand vas covere
with the substance it was presse
against the paper and an excellen
, print obtained.
st was not. however. as easy a
it sounds" said the curator reflec
! lively. "At first most Of the mon
keys Immediately licked off tn
, paste. We then put some cologn
. | in the paste and this seemed to in
, terest them immensely. Their cui