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The Descent of Man

The Descent of Man

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tles. (78. Dujardin, 'Annales des Sciences Nat.'<br />

3rd series, Zoolog., tom. xiv. 1850, p. 203. See<br />

also Mr. Lowne, 'Anatomy and Phys. <strong>of</strong> the<br />

Musca vomitoria,' 1870, p. 14. My son, Mr. F.<br />

Darwin, dissected for me the cerebral ganglia <strong>of</strong><br />

the Formica rufa.) On the other hand, no one<br />

supposes that the intellect <strong>of</strong> any two animals<br />

or <strong>of</strong> any two men can be accurately gauged by<br />

the cubic contents <strong>of</strong> their skulls. It is certain<br />

that there may be extraordinary mental activity<br />

with an extremely small absolute mass <strong>of</strong> nervous<br />

matter: thus the wonderfully diversified<br />

instincts, mental powers, and affections <strong>of</strong> ants<br />

are notorious, yet their cerebral ganglia are not<br />

so large as the quarter <strong>of</strong> a small pin's head.<br />

Under this point <strong>of</strong> view, the brain <strong>of</strong> an ant is<br />

one <strong>of</strong> the most marvellous atoms <strong>of</strong> matter in<br />

the world, perhaps more so than the brain <strong>of</strong> a<br />

man.<br />

<strong>The</strong> belief that there exists in man some close<br />

relation between the size <strong>of</strong> the brain and the

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