F. ANGELL, Leland Stanford, Jr., University; H. BEAUNIS, Univer- O. KÜLPE, University of Würzburg; W. B. A. WALLER, London. VOL. XII. CLARK UNIVERSITY, WORCESTER, MASS. LOUIS N. WILSON, Publisher. 1900-01. THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLOGY Founded by G. STANLEY HALL in 1887. Vol. XII. OCTOBER, 1900. No. I. CREEPING AND WALKING. By AUGUST W. TRETTIEN. When we look upon an infant which is just taking its first breath of vital air, we cannot but feel the full import of Linnæus's definition of it, when he said-"Naked and without weapons.' Other mammals possess natural means of protection and defence; some wear a warm fur, others possess agility and swiftness of foot soon after birth, but man has nothing of the kind for many months after he begins his separate existence. We are also struck with the peculiar purposeless character of the movements of the human infant, apparently without control or rhythm, without administering to the immediate necessities of life. An infant, come to make its way through a life of necessity with only a possibility as its individual heritage. On the other hand, we look upon man in his full possession of power and stature and contrast his form and appearance with that of other vertebrate creatures, we are equally struck with his capability of assuming an attitude which is distinctly his own, which has been termed the erect attitude. In this position the head is balanced perfectly upon the summit of the spine; the inferior extremities are elongated and brought into straight line with the body for support and locomotion, and the superior limbs hang gracefully at the side of a beautifully curved trunk. As Huxley says-" he stands raised up as on a mountain top, far above the lead of his humble fellows, and transfigured from his grosser nature by reflecting, here and there, a ray from the infinite source of truth." The whole position is in striking contrast with the attitude 1 Man's Place in Nature. p. 132. |