The Washington herald., 1922-04-16
GheHcyuAaS
Scientific
Notes
qz21Coza7eHf
SUNDAY, APRIL 10, 1922.
MANS RELATION TO
APES AND MONKEYS.

facts relating TO mans ecoiution,
particularly those attacks M the
legislatures Of Kentucky and South
Carolina, make a sreriep Of the
ertdence of the human rise from
the louer dntntdis timely. DR..
John c.. Merriam, formerly pro-
fessor Of paleontolooy and histor-
teal geology, University Of Cdli-
fornia,, 10 this article, from the
'Beginntros Of Han,dw History"
dclirered before Ethe National
Academy Of Sciences erploias hoo
mars history and structnrs show
his relation to nionkeys aud apes.
F.; AS now interpreted. history means
nothing II It does not present con-
nected series in which every part
contributes somewhat to the inter-
| probation of all other parts or Is In
turn interpreted by them. Features
Of contrast may serve as markers
for stages OF movement and degrees
Of change. but the essential inter
est of the subject Is embodied in
the idea of continuity or unity.
The concept of evolution as we
Iase II In science is only another
form of expression for. continuity
In historic series presenting Sc
quences of apparently different ele-
ments. 1t represents the idea of
/ growth. It involves rate OF devei-
| opment and nature of the forces
controlling It. 1t interprets present
conditions in terms OF the past, and
furnishes to some extent a basis Of
calculation for prediction Of the fu-
ture.
Considering the evident physical.
, chemical and biological characters
| of man. resembling those represent
ed in the general scheme of animal
evolution, and taking these charac-
teristics together with mans rela-
lively advanced stage of intelli-
gence and constructive ability. it
has been natural to think of the
human organism as the next mem
| Der OF the graded series beyond the
stage seen in the known history Of
life. This might, Of course, be done
without assuming relationship be-
tween man and nature. 1t is. how
ever, logical to inquire whether
there is not actually full continuity
between the biological world and
the distinctly human , sphere. As
humans. no problem of greater fun
damental Significance faces us in
contemplation of the historical or
origin sequence in nature.
Approaches to early human his
tory have been made by many roads.
one has been that OF the investiga-
tor working his way back from
present to earlier time by way Of
documentary history. and finding a
lower limit In the beginning stage
| of written record set dawn by use
| OF hieroglyphs or alphabets. We
have also the approach through
| work of the philologist and the eth
nologist suggesting relationships
| and origins through similarities of
language and custom. Advance TO
still earlier stages OF the human
| oloEy, basing its method in part
upon superposition Of strata. Car
rying us still farther down Is that
aspect Of paleontology connected on
the one hand with the study of cul-
| lures through archaeology, and on
| the other hand basing history upon
succession OF faunas and fioras. and
using the sequence of strata work.
| ed out by the carefully elaborated
technique of the geologist. To
these views there must then be
added the speculations OF the biol
ogist upon relationships of the hu-
man family. which naturally follow
a broad application Of the evolu-
tion theory.
Consideration OF that phase OF the
problem concerning the emergence
| of man or the beginning of human
history is essentially then an arche-
| illogical and archaeological prob
lem read out of the geological rec
| ord. The evidence as we know II
unquestionably carries us back into
\ records representing geological
record. The evidence as we know
1t unquestionably carries us back
into records representing geolog-
ical periods long antedating the
present age In the earths story.
A study Of the beginnings of hu-
man history. considered from the
| point OF view of an Investigator
| passing in review the evolutionary
| process, involves the biological re-
lationship of man to other groups
| or organisms. These considerations
| are taken up with a view to de-
| termining their value in interpreta-
| tion of mans place in nature. and
the possibility Of his growth or
| evolution out Of the natural world.
! They comprise:
| /. The question OF existing human
| differentiation. Do laws of varia-
| tion. such as arc found in other
groups of organisms. obtain also
| among humans? In other words, is
a biological scheme OF classification
naturally expressed within the hu-
| man group?
2. The problem of geographical
distribution of human variations
with special regard to the question
| OF origin and classification of such
differing types.
3. The problems Of comparative
anatomy and physiology. including
consideration of the question whether
i mans body is structurally similar
to that in the higher animals.
Bringing into review the whole
| range Of variation of the human
family in all of its aspects. the diff
ferences in structure and in other
characters, as color. seem to many
biologists comparable to the grades
of distinction separating species of
horses, wolves. bears, monkeys and
other mammals. There is. to be
| sure, the unending discussion
| whether the various kinds are to
be distinguished as varieties, spe-
cies or genera: but the settlement
| of this question Is of the same ma
| ture as the determination whether
| the species of one author, writing
| on modern mammals are always
| comparable with those of another.
| There may, however, be no differ
| ence of opinion regarding existence
| of these distinctions. or that they
| represent the natural expression of
| variation or evolution in these
| groups Of organism.
Along with other natural rela-
tions. the geographical distribution
| ~ interesting