The question whether man should or should not be placed in the same zoological order with the apes, must be decided according to the principles of classification adopted. If that classification be purely morphological, i.e., be determined by form and structure only, he cannot well be separated from them, at least by any naturalist who would also include the lemurs in such order. The Linnean name “Primates ” has been retained for the ape order, not only by naturalists who (like Professor Huxley) retain man within its limits; but also by others (e.g., the Professors Isidore Geoffroy St Hilaire and Gervais), who consider that he should be excluded from it. Cuvier, on the other hand, proposed for the ordinal group of apes and lemurs only the term Quadrumanes (or four-handed), giving to that order, within which he placed man alone, the antithetical term Bimanes. In this he has been followed by very many naturalists, and in England, amongst others, by Professor Owen; and, perhaps, the majority of writers since Cuvier have bestowed on two distinct orders the names Quadrumana and Bimana respectively.

Priority of use determines our preference for the Linnean naxas“ Primates,” but this preference is reinforced by considerations derived from anatomy and physiology.

The whole of the apes, as indeed the whole of the halfapes also, differ from man in having the great toe, or (as it is called in anatomy) the hallux, so constructed as to be able to oppose the other toes (much as our thumb can oppose the fingers), instead of being parallel with the other toes, and exclusively adapted for supporting the body on the ground. The prehensile character of the hallux is fully maintained even in those forms which, like the baboons, are terrestrial rather than arboreal in their habits, and are quite quadrupedal in their mode of progression. It was this circumstance that led Cuvier to bestow the name Quadrumanes upon the apes and lemurs. Now, if we accept, with Professor Owen, as the definition of the word “foot,” “an extremity in which the hallux forms the fulcrum in standing or walking,” then man alone has a pair of feet. But, anatomically, the foot of apes (as well as that of half-apes) agrees far more with the foot of man than with his hand, and similarly the ape’s hand resembles man’s hand and differs from his foot. Even estimated physiologically, or according to use and employment, the hand throughout the whole order remains the special prehensile organ; while the predominant function of the foot, however prehensile it be, is constantly locomotive. Therefore the term Quadrumana is apt to be misleading, since, anatomically as well as physiologically, both apes and men have two hands and a pair of feet.

Apart then from man, the apes constitute the first sub-order of that which is the most man-like order of the class Mammalia (beasts), and which bears the name “Primates.” Such being the position of apes as a whole, they are zootomically divisible into a number of more and more subordinate groups, termed respectively families, subfamilies, and genera.

The following table exhibits what is believed to be, on the whole, the most natural and convenient arrangement of these groups of apes :— [table]

The limits of the present article exclude altogether from consideration the half-apes or Lemurs.

The whole of the apes may be characterised by the following zoological definition, the meaning of the terms of which will be explained later :—

Unguiculate, claviculate mammals, with a deciduate, dis-coidalplacenta and small allantois; with orbits encircled by and separated off from the temporal fossae by plates of bone; lachrymal foramen not opening on the cheek; posterior cornua of os hyoides longer than the anterior cornua; dental formula as in man, save that a true molar may be wanting, or that there may be a premolar in excess, or both; brain with zv ell-developed posterior cornua and with the cerebellum quite covered by the cerebrum, or only very slightly uncovered; hallux opposable, with a flat nail or none; a well-developed caecum; penis pendulous; testes scrotal; only two mammae, which two are pectoral; uterus not two homed; thumb sometimes rudimentary or absent.

The great group of apes thus characterised is divisible, as the foregoing table indicates, into two great families, which are sharply distinguished by geographical distribution as well as by structural differences. The first of these families, Simiadae, is strictly confined to the warmer latitudes of the Old World. The second family, Cebidae, is as strictly confined to those of the New World.

Of the three sub-families into which the Simiadae are divided, the first, Simiinae, contains only the orang, the chimpanzee, the gorilla, and the gibbons. These are the creatures which, anatomically, are the most like man of all the apes, on which account they are often called the t, ' anthropoid” apes. They are also termed, on account of the relative breadth of their breast-bone or sternum, the “latisternal” or “broad breast-boned” apes.

The orang (N. satyrus) constitutes the genus Simia, which gives its name to the whole family (Simiadae), as well as to the sub-family (Simiinae) to which it belongs. Of this genus there is but one certain species, which is, however, subject to considerable variation. The orang is exclusively confined to the islands of Borneo and Sumatra, where it frequents the swampy forests near the coast. It attains a height of about 4 feet 4 inches; but its bulk is considerable, its legs, however, being exceedingly short. Its arms, on the contrary, are exceedingly long, reaching down to the ankle when the animal is placed in an erect posture. In harmony with this structure the animal rarely assumes, naturally, a truly erect posture, but walks resting on the knuckles of its hands and the outer sides of its feet, the soles of the latter being turned mainly inwards. Its motions are ordinarily very slow and deliberate, and its demeanour in captivity is languid and melancholy. It is, in a "wild state, exclusively a vegetable feeder, and arboreal in its habits, forming in the trees a sort of nest or shelter of interwoven branches. The animal is covered with long, reddish-brown hair, and there are no naked spaces on the hinder part of the trunk. The forehead is rounded and rather high. Adult males are furnished with a longish beard on the chin, and they may also develop a large warty prominence, consisting of fibro-cellular tissue, on each side of the face. There is no vestige of a tail. The hands are very long; but the thumb is short, not reaching to the end of the metacarpal bone of the adjacent (index) digit. The feet have exceedingly long toes, except the great toe (hallux), which only reaches to the middle of the proximal phalanx of the index digit of the foot. The hallux is often destitute not only of a nail, but of the second or distal phalanx also; it· nevertheless possesses an opponens muscle. The orang has twelve pairs of ribs, and has, compared with man, an extra wrist bone, or an os intermedium in its carpus. The brain of the orang has the cerebrum greatly convoluted, and is altogether more like the brain of man than is that of any other ape. A prolongation is developed from each ventricle of the larynx, and these processes in the adult become enormous, uniting together in front over the windpipe, and forming one great sac which extends down between the muscles to the axilla. There are, however, no cheek pouches. The canine teeth, especially of the adult males, are very large.

The chimpanzee and gorilla together form the genus Troglodytes. Both of these species agree with the orang in being destitute of any rudiment of a tail, in having no cheek pouches, and no naked spaces at the hinder part of the trunk, as also in possessing tusk-like canines, and in the habit of resting on the knuckles of the hand in walking on the ground and of mainly dwelling in trees. The chimpanzee (T. niger) is found in Western Africa, from the Gambia to the Benguela, and extending inland to 2⅛ 4 E.

long. It is the most man-like of the latistcrnal apes in the proportions of its arms, as these only reach a little below the knees when the body is placed upright. It is of moderate stature, never appearing to exceed 5 feet in height In disposition it is lively and intelligent, and its playfulness in captivity contrasts greatly with the lethargy of the orang. The forehead is not rounded, but a bony, supra-orbital ridge extends transversely above the eyes. Its ears are very large, and it has distinct eyebrows, eyelashes, and whiskers. The pollex reaches nearly or quite to the base of the first phalanx of the index of the hand, and the hallux to the proximal end of the second phalanx of the index of the foot. There is no os intermedium, in the carpus. The laryngeal sacculus may, as in the orang, extend downwards to the axilla. There are thirteen pairs of ribs.

The gorilla (7 ’. gorilla) is also West African, but has a less extended range than the chimpanzee, namely, between the Cameroon and Congo rivers only. It is the largest ape known, attaining a bulk of body considerably exceeding that of man, though, on account of the shortness of its legs, it never seems to exceed the height of 5 feet 6 inches. It was first made known to modems by Dr Thomas Savage, but it appears to have been seen by Hanno of Carthage, in his voyage south of the pillars of Hercules. The gorilla has not such dark hair as has the chimpanzee, being blackish-dun in colour, and becoming grey when old. Its skin, however, is black. Its arms are longer than those of its congener, reaching half-way down the shin. Its pollex reaches but very little beyond the proximal end of the first phalanx of the index of the hand (slightly further than in the chimpanzee), and its hallux to about the distal end of the proximal phalanx of the index of its foot. The fingers and toes, however, are curiously syndactyle, being bound together by the integument to the ends of the proximal phalanges. The forehead is not rounded, the supra-orbital crest beinsj more prominent than even in the chimpanzee; the ears too are smaller relatively. The larynx is provided with enormous air-sacs, communicating with the ventricles and meeting over the trachea, and extending to the axilla with age. There is no os intermedium in the carpus, and there are thirteen pairs of ribs.

The gibbons, or long-armed apes, form the genus Hylo-bates, confined in the present day to the south-eastern continent of Asia and the Indian Archipelago. There are several species, but individual variation and sexual difference in colour are so great that their limits are not yet well defined. One well-marked species, the largest of the genus, is the siamang (77. syndactylus) of Sumatra, which is remarkable as being the ape with the best developed chin and widest breast-bone. It has also the second and third toes united by skin down to the last joint of each. Another well-marked form is the hoolock of Assam (77. hoolock). In the gibbons we first find that part upon which the body rests in sitting provided with naked callous spaces, termed (from that part of the haunch bone to which they are applied, the ischium) “ischial callosities; υ they are, however, still small. Though vegetable feeders, the gibbons are probably less exclusively so than are the yet higher apes before noticed. In captivity their manners are gentle, although their activity is surprising; especially remarkable are the enormous distances they can swing themselves by their long arms. In spite of this length of arm, which seems to render their bodily proportions so unlike those of man, the length of leg, when compared with the length of the trunk of the body, is more human than in either of the two preceding genera. Another point in which they approach nearest to man, is the quality of voice which at least some of the species (e.g. II. hoolock) possess.

None of the gibbons have any rudiment of a tail, and they have no cheek pouches, but the canines are elongated and tusk-like. When the body is erect, the arms are so long that they reach the ground. The hallux is well developed, reaching to the middle or end of the proximal phalanx of the index of the foot, while the pollex only attains to, or reaches a little beyond, the proximal end of the proximal phalanx of the index of the hand. There is an os intermedium in the carpus. The laryngeal sacs are no longer prolongations of the laryngeal ventricles, but open into the larynx above the false vocal chords. The number of species is, as has been said, doubtful, but the following kinds are often reckoned as distinct,— Syndactylus, Lar, Leuciscus, Agilis, Mulleri, Raffl,esii, Hoolock, Entelloides, Pileatus, and Funereus.

On leaving the gibbons, which close the series of Anthropoid apes, we come at once upon animals of very different aspect, and from creatures devoid of any vestige of a tail, we pass at once to monkeys, which have that organ at its maximum of development. These are the two genera Semnopithecus and Coldbus, which so closely resemble each other as to be hardly separable, but for their different geographical distributions. Together they form the subfamily Semnopilhecinoe, and agree in having, as well as the long tail, arms shorter than the legs, and a slender body. They have small ischiatic callosities, but no cheek pouches. Their nails are compressed and pointed. Their stomach is very elongated and exceedingly sacculated, and their hinder-most lower grinding tooth has five tubercles. The laryngeal sac opens medianly into the front of the larynx, and is an extension of the thyro-hyoid membrane. The thumb is small or absent.

The genus Semnopithecus, in which there is a small thumb, is confined to South-Eastern Asia from the Himalaya southwards, the Indian Archipelago being its headquarters. One species, Ä entellus (the hounaman), is an object of religious veneration to the Hindoos. Another very remarkable kind is found in Borneo. It is S. nasalis (the kahau, or proboscis monkey), and, as its name implies, it has an exceedingly long nose. In the young state, the nose is much smaller relatively, and is bent upwards. No similar structure was known to exist in any other ape whatever till quite recently. Now, however, the Rev. Father David (a Lazarist missionary, who has made many other important discoveries in zoology), has found high up in the cold forests at Moupin in Thibet, a large well-clothed species, with a small but distinct nose excessively turned up, on which account the name & roxellanoe has been bestowed upon it. It is remarkable that a form, reminding us of the young condition of S. nasalis, should have been discovered in a region so remote from the island of Borneo as is Thibet. It is also very remarkable that a monkey of a genus the home of which is the warm Archipelago of India, should be found in forests where frost and snow last several months in the year, when their only food is tree buds, and tender shoots and twigs. The species of the genus to be mentioned, besides Entellus, Nasalis, and Roxellanoe, are,— Nemoeus, Leucoprymnus, Latibar-batus, Obscurus, Nestor, Cucullatus, Johnii, Priamus, Cristatus, Maurus, Femoralis, Auratus, Frontatus, Siamensis, Mitratus, Flavimanus, Rubicundus, Albipes, Nigripes, and Schistaceus.

The genus Colobus is exclusively African, but the species composing it only differ from the Semnopitheci, in that the thumb is generally absent or reduced to a small tubercle, which may or may not support a nail. The species are — Guereza, Verus, Temminckii, Vellerosus, Fuliginosus, Satanas, Angolensis, Ursinus, Ferrugineus, Kirkii, and Palliatus.

We now come to the concluding genera of the apes of the Old World, together forming the third sub-family Cyno- pithecinoe. This is a very natural group, but one exceedingly difficult to subdivide in a satisfactory manner, because the different characters gradually alter as we pass from round-headed, long-tailed, and comparatively slender monkeys to dog-faced, short-tailed, and massive baboons. All the Cynopitliecinoe agree in having pretty well-developed thumbs and a single stomach, as also in having the sides of the face distensible, serving as pockets wherein food may be temporarily stored, and technically called “cheek pouches.” The hair is often annulated. The ischiatic callosities are larger than in the forms hitherto noticed, and in some kinds these parts become greatly swollen at the period of sexual excitement, the enlargement extending sometimes (as in Macacus cyclopis) even to the tail. The male external generative organs tend to assume a bright and varied coloration, which is often accompanied with vivid hues on and about the face. By common consent, the Cynopithednoe are divided into at least three genera, and by some naturalists (e.g. Μ. Isidore Geoffroy St Hilaire) they have been divided into as many as seven.

The first genus, Cercopithecus, includes those species of the sub-family, which by their length of tail and comparative slenderness, most nearly approach the members of the preceding sub-family. Many of the species (e.g. the Diana and white-nosed monkeys) are very attractive animais. Commonly the Cercopitheci have four tubercles to the last lower molar. The talapoin monkey (C. talapoin) has been made the type of a separate genus (Miopithecus), because it has but three such tubercles, while the mangabeys and white-eyelid monkeys (C. oethiops, collaris, and /uliginosus) have been separated off into a genus Cercocebus, because in them the last lower molar has five tubercles. All the Cercopitheci (including Miopithecus and Cercocebus) are African forms. Besides those already mentioned, the following species have been described by authors :— Nictitans, Petaurista, Cephus, Mona, Monoides, Diana, Labiatus, Leucampyx, Pygerythrus, Lalandii, Sa- boeus, Cynosurus, Ruber, Pyrrhonotus, Callitrichus, Rufo-υiridis, Albig ena, Erythrogaster, Werne d, Melanogenys, Ludio, Er y thrar chus, Ochraceus, Flavidus, Lunulatus, and Erxlebenii.

The next genus, Macacus, is Asiatic, with the exception of the Barbary ape, or magot (Jf. imius), which is found in Northern Africa and on the Rock of Gibraltar. Already, in some of the Cercopitheci, notably in the mangabeys, the muzzle has acquired a greater prolongation. This becomes still more marked in the Macaci. It is this greater production of muzzle, the greater size in the ischiatic callosities, the frequent shortness of the tail, and the different geographical distribution, which can alone be given as differentiating these animals from the Cercopitheci. In some kinds the tail is long. Occasionally (as in the wanderoo, Jf. silenus) it is tufted at the end and short. Sometimes, as in Μ. nemestrinus, it is very short, and occasionally, as in Μ. inuus, it is absent. On account of this absence of tail, this species has sometimes been made the type of a distinct genus, Inuus.

Another species, Μ. niger (from Celebes and Batchian), has, on account of the much greater production of its muzzle, been made the type of another genus, termed Cynopithecus.

The Macaci present us with the most northern forms of apes, namely, that of Gibraltar, and Μ. speciosus of Japan. Father David has lately brought from Moupin, in Thibet, a new species (Jf. thibetanus') which inhabits snowy mountains, and is clothed suitably for such a habitat, in thick and dense fur. In addition to the Macaci already mentioned, we may name the species Sinicus, Pileatus, Aureus, Cynomolgus, Silenus, Rhesus, Nemestrinus, Thibetanus, Ochreatus, Palpebrosus, Brunneus, Rufescens, Rheso-similis, Erythraeus, Cristatus, Tcheliensis,...

The Northern Apennines include what are usually designated the Ligurian and Tuscan Apennines. The Ligurian Apennines extend from the Maritime Alps past Monte Gisa to the borders of Tuscany. The principal passes here, between Piedmont and the duchy of Genoa, are through the valleys of the Tanaro, the Bormida, and the Lemma. The pass of Pontremo leads up the Magra Valley from Spezzia to Parma. The Tuscan Apennines extend from Monte Pellegrino to Monte Cornaro, in 12° 3' E. The Alpi Appuani form an outlying mass of mountains between the valley of the Magra and the Secchio. The chief passes are those of Bratello, Fiumalbo, Monte Carelli or Pietra-Mala, and that proceeding from the valley of the Sieve, over Borgo di San Lorenzo, through the valley of the Lamone, and on towards Faenza.

The Central or Roman Apennines comprehend that part of the chain between Monte Cornaro, in which the Tiber rises, and Monte Velino, north of Lake Fucino. Its general direction is from N.N.W. to S.S.E. or nearly parallel to the Tiber. The descent towards the Adriatic is continuous and direct, but towards the Mediterranean it forms two distinct inclined planes. The principal passes from the north are at the village of Scheggia, where the Cantiano rises; at Serra valle, south-east of Monte Pennino, at the head of the valley of the Chienti; at Castellucio, between Norcia and Arquata; and the chief pass of all between Rieti and the valley of the Pescara.

The Southern Apennines include the remaining portion of this chain. From Monte Velino they proceed in a southeasterly direction to the valley of the Ofanto, which cuts through the range. South of that limit, one short branch extends eastward towards Altamura, another runs westward to the neighbourhood of Salerno, while the main chain is prolonged nearly due south to the heights of Aspromonte overlooking the Strait of Messina. In the upper part of the Southern Apennines a number of sharp pyramidical points raise themselves above the mountain chain. Among these are Monte Forcone at the source of the Sangro, Monte Sant’ Angelo, above the sources of the Volturno and Trigno, and Monte Calvello north-east of Salerno. The principal pass over this part of the Apennines is that of Sulmona, near the sources of the Volturno, so called from the town of Sulmona, where the roads from Rome, Pescara, and Aquila unite. The passes above Castel Franco and Ariano are the highest points of the roads over the ridge, from Benevento to Troja, and from Avellino to Foggia.

The geology and palaeontology of the Apennines have been fully investigated by Savi, Meneghini, Pareto, Lavini, Orsini, Bianconi, Mortillet, and others. As a general rule, the same formations occur here as in the Alps, and the system usually consists of a central ridge having secondary and lower ridges running parallel with the main range, the intervening country being formed of but slightly disturbed newer Tertiary deposits. Thus, in that portion of the Apennines which borders on and extends into Tuscany and Bologna, the system consists of two parts. The one which is most distant from the Mediterranean forms the Apennines proper; here the Eocene beds prevail, and are covered, especially on the north flank, by Miocene and Pliocene beds; the axes of elevation are numerous and parallel to each other, following strikes which run from W.N.W. to E.S.E., and from N.W. to S.E. The other part is nearer the Mediterranean, and is remarkable for its richness in metalliferous ores; the rocks prevalent in it belong to the Palaeozoic and Oolitic periods, and have a N.N.W. to S.S.E. strike. Between Spezzia and Cività Vecchia it is represented by numerous outliers of verrucano (probably of Carboniferous age), and trias surrounded by Oolitic rocks. The district of Carrara abounds in marbles belonging to the Liassic and Oolitic periods. Nearly all the mountains between Carrara and Monte Sagra have beds of marble, which sometimes acquire considerable thickness, as for instance in the vertical escarpments of Monte Corchio. The mountains between the meridians of Genoa and Parma form but one chain, composed of parallel ridges striking W.N.W. to E.N.E. The strata consist of Eocene formations flanked by Miocene and Pliocene beds, pierced by numerous ophiolitic masses. Towards Genoa the mountains conform to the S.S.W. and N.N.E. directions of the Western Alps; the rocks are of Eocene age, but are much metamorphosed by the serpentines of Pegli, Voltri, and Varagine. In the Central Apennines there is a large development of secondary beds from the trias to the upper chalk, and of the Tertiaιy formation, which is represented by strata of the Eocene, Miocene, Pliocene, and Post-Pliocene periods. The main axis of the chain is chiefly formed of the Secondary rocks, while the minor ranges are formed of Tertiary beds. The mountains, as a whole, rise from N. to S., culminating in Monte Corno, 9593 feethigh, beyond which their height again decreases. Mount Amaro is 8960 feet, and Mount Velino 7910 feet high. The oldest rock seen in this part is a dolomite; it is unfossiliferous, and acquires its greatest massiveness in the mountains of Cesi, Spoleto, and Ventosa. Above it follows a limestone, which is in places many hundred yards thick. Fossils are rare in it as a whole, though locally abundant in a few places. The strata which next succeed are ferruginous limestones and marls, abounding in Middle Liassic fossils; then red limestones, yielding ammonites and other shells of the Upper Lias; then a vast series of limestones, marls, and siliceous beds, which compose a large part of the flanks and summits of the Apennines, and which represent the Oolitic period. The hippuritic chalk is largely developed, and in places it forms the mass of the Apennines, as in the Rossa Chain, and the loftj ranges of the Abruzzi. Fossils are abundant in this limestone. The Upper Cretaceous beds are represented by massive limestones with comparatively few fossils. Above these follow a nummulitic limestone, marly schists, arenaceous macigno, &c. The Miocene beds are varied in their lithological nature and rich in fossils. The more recent strata seldom occur at any great height above the sea.

(See D’Achiardi, Mineralogia della Toscana, 2 vols. 1872; W. P. Jervis, in The Mineral Resources of Central Italy, 8vo, 1868; and papers by Lavini and Orsini, in Bull. Soc. Geol. France, 2d series, xii. 1202-1232; Pareto, in Bull. Soc. Geol., xix. 239-320; Bianconi, Ibid., xxiv. 482; and Ponzi, Giornale Arcadico, new series, vol. xxiii.)