The Descent of Man

and with the American natives it not rarely
reaches to the ground. Some species of Semnopithecus
have their heads covered with moderately
long hair, and this probably serves as an
ornament and was acquired through sexual
selection. The same view may perhaps be extended
to mankind, for we know that long tresses
are now and were formerly much admired,
as may be observed in the works of almost every
poet; St. Paul says, "if a woman have long
hair, it is a glory to her;" and we have seen that
in North America a chief was elected solely
from the length of his hair.
COLOUR OF THE SKIN.
The best kind of evidence that in man the colour
of the skin has been modified through
sexual selection is scanty; for in most races the
sexes do not differ in this respect, and only
slightly, as we have seen, in others. We know,
however, from the many facts already given