Part 5

Secondly, the obliquity with which the tendons run to their insertions is increased by this arrangement; and the velocity of the movements to which they minister is increased also. True, a loss of strength is involved in such a disposition, but the gain in velocity is of more importance. If (to refer again to the diagram, fig. 15) the tendon ran in a straight course from the front of the leg to the great toe, the angle at which it joined the toe would enable it to act with more strength; but the movements connected with it could not be so quick as they now are.

We find in the construction of the human frame many instances in which strength is sacrificed to rapidity of movement in this and other ways. Scarcely any conceivable amount of strength, for instance, would be an adequate compensation for a loss of that celerity of movement of the hand which enables us to strike a blow and drive a nail. No wonder, therefore, that strength is here sacrificed to obtain celerity. And the same principle holds good for other parts.

The length and direction of the heel affords a good illustration of the principle of which I am speaking. When the heel-bone runs out to a considerable distance, and nearly straight, behind the ankle, as it does in some of the lower animals and in the inferior races of mankind, it presents a better leverage to the calf-muscle, which is, then, enabled to raise the ankle with a less amount of effort; but there is proportionately less velocity. Accordingly, in the more perfectly formed foot, such as we find it in the higher races of mankind, the heel-bone, instead of running out backwards, descends very obliquely, almost vertically.

In this instance, the loss of strength, which is thus incurred for the purpose of acquiring celerity in movement, is usually compensated for by the greater development of the calf-muscle. Hence the high heel and the well-developed calf go together; and, like most of the other features of good bodily formation, they are, on the whole, best marked in the nations which are endued with the highest intelligence, and which are, in this way, physically, as well as mentally, qualified to occupy the foremost places in the human family. Thus, we may mark a relation between the heel and the brain; and, as the comparative anatomist is able by the inspection of a bone to trace out the skeleton to which it belonged, so might it be possible for the human anatomist, by observing minutely the peculiarities of the heel and the other features of the foot in any particular race of men, to form some estimate of the capacity and conformation of the skull, and thereby, of the amount of intelligence.

Contrast the foot and leg of the EUROPEAN (fig. 16), as represented in the drawing reduced from the Farnese Hercules, with those of the NEGRO (fig. 17), the drawing of which was taken from a native of Sierra Leone. In the former the leg is plump and the calf well developed; the foot is compact and well arched; the heel descends nearly vertically; and the inner ankle stands clearly out and is raised high above the ground. In the Negro the leg is thinner and the calf is not so well defined; the foot is long, flat, and sprawling; the heel is more horizontal; and the inner ankle does not show clearly, and almost touches the ground.

Contrast also the outline (fig. 19) of the foot of the same Negro with that (fig. 18) of an Englishman. Both were traced upon the ground, and reduced upon the same scale. The Negro was 5 ft. 2 in. in height; the Englishman was 6 ft.; both were of the same age: yet the Negro’s foot was considerably the larger. It was 11 inches long, 3-1/2 inches across the middle of the instep, and 10-1/2 inches round the balls of the toes. Whereas the Englishman’s foot was less than 10-1/2 inches long, was 2-1/2 inches across the middle of the instep, and 9-1/2 inches round the balls of the toes. Even in this simple outline how much less shapely is the African’s foot. Some allowance must be made for the fact that the Negro was more accustomed to go barefooted than the Englishman; and the pressure of the boot or shoe has, in some degree, the effect of giving compactness to the foot.

In the native AUSTRALIAN the leg is commonly still more lanky, there being less calf than in the African; and in the MONKEY the heel is quite horizontal, the sole is flat, and the muscular fibres of the leg are continued low down, close to the ankle, instead of being concentrated higher up; so that the leg has nearly the same thickness from the knee to the foot, and there is no calf at all. Indeed, in the GORILLA (see fig. at page 90) the circumference of the leg increases towards the ankle. Thus, the calf may be regarded as the characteristic of MAN; and a well-developed calf is a characteristic of the higher members of the human species. The pride, therefore, which is felt in a well-formed leg is not altogether a senseless folly, but finds some excuse in the fact that its foundation lies deep in the laws of physiology and ethnology. It must be confessed, that the fashion which, in the last century, dictated the knee-breeches, the silk stocking, and the shoe, evinced a truer appreciation of the dignity and beauty of the human figure than do the modern investments, which quite cover up the limbs, encumbering their movements and hiding the beauty of the leg and ankle.

In the addition of the high heel to the shoe we recognise an effort to improve upon the original, by exaggerating one of the peculiar features of the human foot; but it results in a failure, as is invariably the case with such strainings after a greater perfection than nature has given. It increases the apparent height of the person and of the arch of the instep; but it throws the weight too forward upon the toes, and detracts from the length and security of the step. Moreover, by causing disuse of the elevators of the heel, it interferes with the full growth of the calf.

This is, however, a harmless piece of vanity in comparison with the monstrous efforts of the Chinese to mould the foot to their ideal by squeezing the heel and the toes together. They effect this to such a degree that (fig. 20) the heel-bone descends vertically from the ankle, the plantar arch is bent to an acute angle, and the foot is so crumpled up that all movement in it is effectually prevented, and the part is reduced almost to a mere stump. These observant and ingenious people have caught, it may be, the idea that compactness, elevation of instep, and sudden descent of heel are characteristics of the well-formed foot, and may urge that they are helping nature to perfection in the direction which she has herself indicated. But in their silly attempt at the preternatural, in this impious use, as it were, of fire stolen from heaven, they simply burn and cripple themselves, and render themselves ridiculous, and give to all other nations the much needed lesson that it is enough for man to follow as a humble imitator of his Maker’s works, and that his attempts to alter, or improve upon, any part of the wondrous design of creation will assuredly have the effect of spoiling and defacing it.

It is a remarkable statement by a correspondent in The Times, Jan. 14th, 1861, that in the pillage of the Summer Palace of the Emperor of Pekin “all the ladies of the Court must have had natural-sized feet, all the slippers found in their rooms being large; not a single cramped-footed shoe was seen.”

It seems that the several races of mankind are usually rather proud of their peculiarities, and that each has an inclination to make much of, and artificially exaggerate, the points in which it differs from the others. Thus the Chinese are remarkable for the spareness of their hair and the smallness of their feet; so the men shave their heads, leaving only the pig-tail, and the women squeeze up their feet in the remorseless manner we have seen. The Singhalese, who are flat-footed, are said to consider it one of the requisites for a ‘belle’ that the soles of her feet should not have any hollow. The red Indians of America delight in staining and painting their skins of a lively red colour. The Columbian tribe of Indians increase the natural lowness of their forehead by flattening it out in infancy, and succeed in bringing about a deformation of the skull almost as remarkable in its way as is the effect of Chinese cramping upon the foot. These people also take pains to reduce the small quantity of hair upon their eyebrows, lips, and chin, by plucking it out.

Joints of the Metatarsus with the Tarsus.

Figs. 25 24. 23. 22. 21.]

I will briefly draw your attention to one other point in the anatomy of the foot; and that is, the mode in which the “metatarsal” bones are jointed with the “tarsal.” If you take hold of the ends of the metatarsal bones--in other words the “balls”--of the great toe and of the two toes next to it, in your own foot, you will find that you can move them scarcely at all; they are firmly set upon the rest of the foot, almost as though they formed one piece with it. If you then try the end of the metatarsal bone of the fourth toe you will be able to move it a little upwards and downwards; and in the case of the little toe the movement is still more distinct. This difference depends upon the mode of construction of the joints of the metatarsal bones with the tarsal, which is easily understood by the aid of the accompanying drawings, representing sections, from above downwards, through these joints. In 21, 22, and 23, which are the tarso-metatarsal joints of the great toe and the two next it, the opposed surfaces of the bones between c, c, are quite flat, so that the only movement that can take place is a slight sliding of one bone upon the other, just enough to assist in breaking the jar, but not enough to interfere with the firm basis of support which these toes are required to afford to the plantar arch in consequence of the great stress of the weight in walking being borne upon this side of the foot. In No. 24, which is the joint of the ring toe, and still more in No. 25, which is the joint of the little toe, the end of the metatarsal bone (A) is rounded and is received into a corresponding concavity or cup in the tarsal bone (B). This allows a slight revolving of one bone upon the other to take place, and permits the movement which you discover when you grasp the balls of these two toes between your fingers. The outer part of the foot needs not to be so strong and firm as the inner part, because it does not lie so nearly in the plane of gravity during walking; and the provision just described, which permits some movement in the outer two metatarsals, enables the balls of the toes to adapt themselves to inequalities on the ground, and to share more equally, under various circumstances, the weight which is thrown upon them.

Standing and Stooping.

27. Bowing.

28. Stooping.

29. Squatting.]

When we STAND straight upright (fig. 26) the centre of gravity of the head is directly over a point midway between the two ankles; and the plane of gravity, represented by the vertical line in the figure, descends, from the head, through the spine, pelvis, and lower limbs, to the key-bone of the instep. And you observe that, between the head and the ankle, the skeleton is not quite straight, but is arranged in six curves, which are, alternately, in front of and behind the line of gravity. Of these curves the upper three are in the spine. They are well marked; the uppermost (a) is in the neck and is directed forwards; the next (b) is in the back and is directed backwards; the third (c) is in the loins and is directed forwards. The fourth curve (d), less distinct than those above it, is in the pelvis and is directed backwards. The fifth and sixth curves are very slight; the fifth (e), directed forwards, is at the hip-joint; and the sixth, (f), directed backwards, is at the knee. The last two curves, though slight, are not unimportant; and they contribute very much to our comfort and to prevent fatigue when we are standing: they do so in the following way. The strong ligaments of the hip are placed towards the fore part of the joint, that is, in front of the line of gravity; and the strong ligaments of the knee are placed towards the back part of the joint, that is, behind the line of gravity. It follows that when these joints are fully extended they are “locked,” as it is termed, just as is a hinge when opened to a little beyond the straight line; and, by this means, the muscles are set at rest, and we are able to maintain the erect posture, for some time, steadily and without fatigue.

When standing upright in this way, at rest on both legs, or on one leg in the military position of “at ease,” and the muscles are off their guard, if a sudden and unexpected, though slight, pressure be made upon the ham, so as to bend the knee a little and throw the joint in front of the line of gravity, the man will drop, unless the muscles come quickly to the rescue--a tendency which has not escaped the observation of school-boys.

In BENDING or BOWING (fig. 27) the head is carried forwards; and, to maintain the balance, the opposite pole of the trunk is carried backwards, so as to preserve the line of gravity still over the ankles.

In STOOPING (fig. 28) or SQUATTING (fig. 29), as in picking up any thing from the ground, the lower limbs and the trunk are bent in a zigzag manner; the heels are raised; and the plane of gravity falls, in front of the ankles, over the balls of the toes. Now we recognise one of the advantages which accrues to man from the great length of his thigh. For the head and upper part of the trunk are advanced so far in front of the feet, that it would be impossible to maintain a balance at all, even upon the balls of the toes, and we should necessarily fall forwards, were it not that, owing to the length of the thigh, the lower part of the trunk is carried backwards to a plane behind the heels, and so serves to maintain the equilibrium.

Walking.

Figs. 30. 31. 32.

Walking.]

Figs. 33. 34. 35.

Walking.]

Let us next consider the part which the foot performs in WALKING. To understand this it is necessary to consider its positions and movements in the several stages of a step. When first placed upon the ground the foot (R, fig. 30) is a little in advance of the body; and the heel comes first (fig. 33) into contact with the ground. The toes quickly follow; and the body, then, passes, vertically, over, the ankle and the key-bone of the instep. The foot (R, fig. 31 and fig. 34) now rests steadily upon the heel and the balls of the toes; the other foot (L) leaves the ground, so that the whole weight is borne by one foot; and the plantar arch of that foot expands a little, so as to cause slight lengthening of the foot, under the weight that is laid upon it. Much yielding of the arch is, however, prevented by the ligaments that brace the arch (fig. 7), and by the muscles that are disposed beneath it. Next, the heel (fig. 35) is raised by the action of the calf muscle, and the weight of the body is thrown forwards, over the balls of the toes, while the other foot (L, fig. 32) is carried onwards, and is placed upon the ground ready to receive the weight and commence its carrying work. When this has been done the foot is withdrawn from the ground; and, in the withdrawal, a final impulse onward is given, so as to throw the weight of the body fairly over to the other foot. The fore part of the foot is then raised, and the knee is bent a little. By these means the toes are kept clear of the ground, while the foot is swung forward, beside the other, so as to be ready again to rest upon the ground and bear the weight of the body.