Hammond Times, Volume 16, Number 106, Hammond, Lake County, 23 October 1922 — Page 8

i fFrrW "A R E THE GREAT APES frr- f I & ff''lF FOLKS? M-fK :: 1 ll VS--- -j-K-g jfj gr.' .( , pp..') 4 If .; :; T--'-' ..v!t-:.i

1

1

Naturalists Are Inclined To Believe That They Are In a Way Human As They Are onderfully Like Ourselves In Many Respects.

1 ITHIN th last few years sev eral very accomplished chim panzees have been exhibited In this country on the stage. one of them has recently played a principal part In film comedies. Jfobody who has witnessed these performances could resist the impression that the animal was, at least In some dejrree, human. Its clothing, like that of a man. undeniably helps the effect: but a chimpanzee who knows how to dress and undress himself, even to the untying of his necktie and the buttoning of his boots, who eats at table In orderly fashion, using knife, fork and spoon, and who can ride a bicycle, not to mention other "stunts" equally remarkable, is no mere unthinking brute. It Is manifest. Indeed, that the Intelligence of the chimpanzee Is on a wholly different plane from that of the dog and other mammals rated excellent In this respect. The creature possesses thinking power. His human-like performances are. of course, the result of teaching and Imitation. But is It not the same with people? How else does a child learn? On the whole. It Is not surprising that some naturalists . today contend that the chimpanzee and gorilla should be classed in the same genus with man calling all three, that is to say. the Homlnldae. of which Homo sapiens (the human race) la one species. Nearest Of Our Relations The gorilla, even nearer to man than the chimpanzee, is the closest relative rf mankind on the earth. Un

771

g II I

PiQfm the rwE STARS

Lila Lee - "Broadway Pose" George Arliss - "The Valley of Silent Men" - Dot Farley -"Why Do Men iYarry?"-baby Feggy.

ILA LEE was born in Chicago. When a child she made a tremendous hit on the stage as Cuddles" Her latest appearaucu :s in "Blood and Sand," and her black hair and big brown eyes made her a perfect choice for the "Carmen" of this production, a difficult acting part which she is said to fit like the proverbial glove. Miss Lee. though still In her teens, has been on stage and screen for years and is considered one of the most thorough young actresses in the profession. She has appeared to advantage as leading woman la many notable pictures. "Broadway Rose" Rosalie Lawrence, a dancer, is courted by Hugh Thompson, pampered son of a rich New Yorker. At a polo match Hugh goes to her but Is tolfi by his father not to flaunt his Indiscretion in public. The incident rankles and Ilosalie realizes that although her relationship with Hugh has been nothing more than friendly, the world thinks otherwise, and she refuses to see Hugh any more. Peter Thompson, the father, has picked a wife for his son, but the latter Is too much in love with Kosalie to pay any attention to her. Rosalie goes to the

fortunately, it Is unlike the chimpanzee, untamable and incurably ferocious. For this reason there has never been an adult gorilla in captivity. Perhaps half-a-dozen, captured as babies, have been placed on exhibition at eoological rardens there was one. a female, at the New York Zoo not long ago but they have soon died. If there was permitted to us the same intimacy with the gorlllla that we have with the chimpanzee In captivity, and the animal were equally tractable, we would probably be astonished at Its exhibition of an almost human Intelligence. Observations of the creature in a wild state, a denizen of the primeval forest, have been in that respect very suggestive. Dr. William K. Gregory, of the American Museum of Natural History (New York) says: "The gorilla Is so much like a man that In all likelihood he would in the course of ages develop into a very human sort of creature, if his species were permitted to survive. Indeed, we see in him a monkey that is actually beginning to be a man. His face, his hands, his feet, and other parts of tils body structure are like a man's: and the same Is true of his ears, his eyes, his Internal organs, and his brain He has even become In some degree terrestrial, spending a good deal of his time on the pround. This is the way our early apelike ancestors began. It was their first step, so to speak, toward abandoning the forest and becoming dwellers of the open country, the plains, and the seashore." The e-nrfla fn vr Vittti m man

country and meets Tom Darcy. the sweetheart of her youth. She decides to give up Broadway and he is delighted. Rosalie however finds that Hugh has her heart and they are secretly married. The father discovers the son's romance and will have none of it. instead he publishes a report of his engagement to Lorothy, the sirl he has picked. Rosalie is crushed. Hugh arrives and telis her bluntly that fifty million is a lot of money and he is not going to give it up for any girl. He accuses her of marrying him for his money. Rosalie removes her wedding ring, and turns Hugh out. Tom Dacey arrives to find her weeping He tells her they can harm the dancer but the woman has always belonged to him. She marries Tom and all ends happily. Mae Murray plays as Rosalie. Monte Blue as Tom and Ray Bloomer as Hugh Arliss In New Role Versatility Is the middle name of George Arliss. as all admirers of the distinguished stage and screen star agree, and consequently it will be no surprise to them to learn that his

I L i l - II It i certain that the onui-outn I U JZrM. ft V ) V. U 1 i W': U

because he is doomed to extinction, and the same is true of the chimpanzee. Both are already rare animals In their native habitat, and the survivors are being killed off. When We Dwelt In Tree Neither the gorilla nor the chimpanzee represents the ancestral stock from which we are descended. Our ancestors were cousins of theirs, and doubtless dwelt in trees, as they do now. The great apes are dwellers of the tropical forests, and presumably the same is true of our own remote forebears a fact indicated by our lack of a hairy or furry coat for protection against the cold of chilly latitudes. We are able to survive In those latitudes only by clothing" our bodies to prevent radiation of their natural heat. The chimpanzee and gorilla are found only In the tropical zone of Africa. There is a third great ape. the orang-outang a Malay name meaning "man of the forest" which Inhabits the Jungles of Borneo and Sumatra. It Is about the size of a man, when full-grown, rarely comes to the ground except to drink, and is a tremendous flg-hter. Captured In Infancy, it Is tamable enoush. but apt to be treacherous and even dangerous Ister on The female carries her next screen offering will present him in a mood different from any of his former film characterizations. In "The Man Who Played God," from a play by Jules Eckert Goodman, based on a story by Gouverneur Morris, the role is Intensely emotional and at the same time more sympathetic than In any former picture presented by Arliss. In brief, the story depicts the crises undergone by a man of strong character in a battle against disastrous fate, and how he gradually wins himself back to a love of life and his fellow man by the interest he discovers In the performing of kind deeds The story Is a modern ot.e and its action is laid In Paris and New York. "The Valley Of Silent Men" Away up in the Canadian Rocklea amid the mighty forces of Nature, a man must be a man even to survive.

young one on her hip exactly as do the naitve women In that part of the world. It is certain that the orang-outang is a more distant relative of ours than the gorilla and chimpanzee. Naturalists believe that man and all three of the great apes are descended from the same original ancestry a theory which, please observe, does not conflict with what has gone before but that the orang cam off the parent stem at an earlier period than the chimpanzee and gorilla. Nature Is constantly making experiments, and some of them are very curious. Often they turn out failures, as is evidenced by the disappearance of species, genera, and even whole orders of animals. Perhaps it was due more or less to accident that a particular kind of ape (of the characteristics of which we know nothing) developed Into a man probably somewhere in Southern Asia, where apparently the human race had ita first beginnings. Could Talk If They Knew How ThU apelike ancestor of ours must have lived in a tree his house a aort of blrd"s-nest arrangement of branches In a suitable crotch, the thick foliage overhead serving as a roof. He got a wife by fighting with other males of his species for possession of her. and he kept her. If he could, by his superior prowess. They and their children subsisted on fruits and nuts. But their great-grandchildren, when they deserted the forest, became creatures of prey, devouring any animals they could catch. In this respect their remote descendants, ourselves, have not materially altered: for we still obtain much of our food in the same way. getting it more easily by breeding the animals In captivity. We are accustomed to speak of mammals other than ourselves as "dumb" animals. They are not really dumb. Of course: what we mean is that they lack the faculty of articulate sneefh But the rreat apes and

'Kent, the Tracker." a corporal of the Royal Northwest Mounted Police, was trailing a fur thief, when he was shot from ambush. After "getting his man" he had Just strength to ride to the nearest cabin, where he finds his friend. Jacques Radison. standing over the body of John Barkley. an outlaw fur trader. Radison 1 accused of the crime, which Kent, who believes he has only' a few days to live, takes upon himself. Quite unexpectedly Kent recovers. Up from the Valley of Silent Men. so called because of the three white mountain peaks which guard the valiey below comes Marette, quaint French Canadian girl. She learns of Kent's confession and sacrifice for her brother Jacques. At the point of a gun. Marette delivers Kent from Jail and they flee through the mountains. Marette falls from a peak and Is Inlured The Journey Is continued after

I I ,J -J.- .fi w 'X I i y ..V ..' I i s - - - 1 11 m

other monkeys could really talk if they knew bow. for they posses organs of speech exactly like ours. They do not know how to talk because they lack the requisite mental development. For our own apelike ancestors the acquisition of language must have been a slow and difficult process. The gorilla are found almost exclusively in the region of the Gaboon River, in Africa. They live la families, and build nests In the trees. Polyramy prevails among them. Fir ure to yourself a man five feet hljrh. with very short legs, enormously Ion" and powerful arms, a chest E5 inches in girth, a black skin covered with short black hair (which turns grey in age), a massive Jaw armed with formidable teeth, and naked face and ears. That Is a fair description of an adult male gorilla, an animal so ferocious and powerful as to be more than a match for a dozen unarmed men. Gorilla A Fearsome Adversary The chimpanzee, when confronted by man. will run away. Not so the rorille, which will invariably attack him. striving to grapple with him, throw him down, and tear him to pieces. The females and young run and hide while their male defender rushes at the foe. A gorilla has been known to bend a rifle-barrel almost double with his hands. The gorilla has a fairly developed heel, for ambulatory locomotion. He can, and commonly does, waTk erect, balancing his huge body by holding his arms tirwr1 His H !n Ms a short delay and they reach Marette cabin in time to hear the confession of old Pierre. Marette's father, who dies in his daughter's arms. Pierre's confession exonerates Kent- The three "Silent Men" radiate a blessing on Marette. who Is in Kent's arms. Alma Rubens takes the part of Marette and Lew Cody that-of Kent. "Why lo Men Marry?" -Why Do Men Marry? Is the title of a new picture which stars Edy Darclea. The picture, as its title suggests. Is a society and domestic drama. Its theme balances wealth and fashion and all that they bring

I . . 1' " I J J I M

posture la a sort of waddle. His hands are much more human-like than those of the chimpanzee and orang-outang, with very creditable thumbs. Of the, chimpanzees no description is needed, for nearly everybody has seen them on the stage and in the movies. Like the rorlllas and orangs. they dwell In trees and build nests: but they are more socially Inclined and are usually found In small companies. African natives believe that the chimpanzees were once members of the human race, but that they were ostracised for bad conduct and have since retrograded. Similarly, the natives of Borneo and Sumatra say, "The oranr is a man. Certainly not very handsome, but nevertheless a brother." The adult male orang1 the females of all the treat apes are considerably smaller than the males, as Is the case with human beings has a stature of about 4 feet. Inches. His legs are short and weak, buihli arms are long and powerful, the measurement from Anger-tip to flnger-ttp when outstretched being 7 feet. 8 Inches. His body is clad in brlck-red hair, and so great is his prowess as a flrhter that only the crocodile and the giant python dare to venture conflict with htm. Very Mnch Like Folks The orang's resemblance to a man Is most striking, though grotesque. He does everything as primeval man might do it eating, drinking, flirhtlng like r"h ir wist not Alrt

stLr' on the one side, and the possession of love on the other, and, it Is said, handles this theme in a distinctly different way. Miss Darclea is supported by a cast of well-selected players. Dot Farley Author-Actress-Director call tor any of these and Dot Farley will answer. She has been In the profession ail her life. As a matter of fact, she was born to It, her mother and grandmother before her being favorites on the legitimate stage. Miss Farley has spent the largest part of her time on the Mack Sennett lot. She Is now being featured as char

helpless on the ground, he climbs like an acrobat, swinging- his heavy bulk from bough to bough. But always he teats the strength of a tree-branch before trusting his weight upon it. Combats In the tree-tops are frequent between rival males, each grasping a branch with one hand while trying with the other to seise the disengaged hand of the adversary and chew the fingers off. Rarely is a male orang killed whose hands do not lack one or more fingers. Even the baby ape In captivity exhibits this Instinct, carrying a person's hand to It mouth and biting it harmlessly. The baby orang- behaves remarkably like a human child. It laughs and crows. Wht- a delicate morsel Is put Into Its mouth, it licks Its Hps and turns up Its eyes ecstatically. If angry, it stamps and screams. Anybody who might chance to witness a fight between two orangs in the forest would not say that they were dumb animals. Their howls and yells can be heard for a mile. The old males, by the way. live alone, belng no longer able to contend successfully for the possession of wives. They live forty or fifty years. Recently, in the Congo Basin, a new and riant variety of gorilla has been found. One specimen, killed, weighed 700 pounds. It stood IVt feet high, and measured y feet across the shoulders. Some naturalists say that man should properly be regarded as belonging to the ape family that he Is the great ape par excellence. But whether we accept this unflattering idea or not, it is undeniable that the gorilla, the chimpanzee, and the orang-outan-f must be recognized at least s our noor relations

crc?' yy acter comedienne In a series of comedies. In "The Crossroads of New york," she did a splendid piece of character acting as a New York landlady. Fair Tales de Luxe Tiny three years old Baby Pegs la being featured In a series of Fair tale favorites beginning with Little Red Riding Hood. Jack and the Bean stalk, and Hansel and GreteL Thillustratton shows a scene from Jack and the Beanstalk. The giant is a real giant, played by Jack Earle who is seven feet and three Inches and weighs 237 pounds.

- JW