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Show 44 MAMMALIA. . . f . 1 with pouches the different genera of COnSIStmg 0 an'tma S ' • • . t d b a general similarity of orgamzat10n; whiCh are connec e Y f h · d' f th however in the teeth and nature o t elr tet some o em, ' d · d correspon dm. g t o the Carnaria ' others to the Ro entia, an a third to the Edentata. 1 . . The h oo1ce d am.m al s are less numerous, and have Ikewise fewer irregularities. The RUMINANT! A , by their cloven foot, the absence of true . . . h . er J. aw and their four stomachs, form an lllCISOrS lll t e1r upp ' order that is very distinct. . . . Th e remam. m. g h oo l"le d animals may all be un1ted m a smgle order, which I shall call P ACHYDERMAT A or JUMENT A, the Ele· phant excepted, which might constitute a separate. one, and which is remotely connected with that of the Rodentl~. . In the last place, we find those o: the Mammaha whiCh have no posterior extremities, whose p1scatory ~orm and a~uatic mode of life would induce us to form them 1~to a partic~lar class, were it not that in every thing else the1r economy IS · 'lar to that in which we leave them. These are the hot· Slml • h .. blooded fisl\es of the ancients, or the CETACEA, wh1c , umt~ng to the vigo~r of the other mammalia the advantage of be~ng sustained by the watery element, present to our wondermg sight the most gigantic of animals. ORDER I. · BIMANA. Man forms but one genus, and that genus the only one of its order. As his history is the more directly interesting to our· selves, and forms the point of comparison to which we refer that of other animals, we will speak of it more in detail. We will rapidly sketch every thing that is peculiar in each of his organic systems, amidst all that he shares in common with other mammalia; we will examine the advantages he BIMANA. 45 derives from these peculiarities over other species; we will describe the principal varieties of his race and their distinguishing characters, and finally point out the natural order in which his individual and social faculties are developed. Peculiar Conformation of Man. The foot of Man is very different from that of the Monkey; it is large; the leg bears vertically upon it; the heel is expanded beneath; the toes are short, and but slightly flexible; the great toe, longer .and larger than the rest, is placed on the same line with, artd cannot be opposed to them. This foot, then, is peculiarly well adapted to support the body; but cannot be used for seizing or climbing, and as the hands are not calculated for walking, Man is the only true bimanous and biped animal. The whole body of Man is arranged with a view to a vertical position. His feet, as just mentioned, furnish him with a base more extensive than that of any other of the Mammalia. The muscles which extend the foot and thigh are more vigorous, whence proceeds the projection of the calf and buttock; the flexors of the leg are inserted higher up, which allows full extension of the knee, and renders the calf more apparent. The pelvis is wider, hence a greater separation of the thighs and feet, and that pyramidal form of the body so favourable to equilibrium. The necks of the thigh bones form an angle with the body of the bone, which increases, still more, the separation of the feet, and augments the basis of the body. Finally) the head in this vertical position is in equilibrium on the body, because its articulation is exactly under the middle of its mass. Were he to desire it, Man could not, with convenience, walk on all fours; his short and nearly inflexible foot, and his long thigh, would bring the knee to the ground; his widely separated shoulders and his arms, too far extended from the median line, would ill support the upper portion of his body. The great indented muscle, which, in quadrupeds, suspends, as in a girth, the body between the scapulre, is smaller in Man than in any one among them. The head is also heavier, both from the magnitude of the brain and the smallness of the sinuses or cavities of the bones; and yet the means of supporting it are weaker, for he has neither cervical ligament, nor are his vertebrre so arranged as to prevent their flexure forwards; the result of this would be, that he could only keep his head in the same line with the spine, and then his eyes and mouth being directed towards the earth, he could not see before him;-in the erect posi- ) |