Shame of Man Read Free Page B

steam cloud. Again they hesitated, but they were hungry, so they came on through. Both were frightened, but Hu's confidence encouraged them. They knew he would not lead them into mischief.
    In a surprisingly short time they were through the narrow way and approaching the berry patch on the other side. There were other patches close below it with plenty of ripe berries. Ra and Fa pounced on the patches and gorged themselves. Hu found a separate patch, and ate too.
    Then it was time to go back. They had to let the others know. Fa, with an intuitive insight, plucked a berry branch and clamped it between her teeth. Then they returned, no longer afraid of the steam path.
    This time Bb was there at the rock pile. He bared his teeth as he spied Hu, thinking to attack him. Then Ra came up beside Hu and bared his teeth. Bb, alone, changed his mind and loped away.
    Hu and Ra did not let it go at that. They bounded after him, screeching threateningly, forcing Bb to flee without dignity. It was fun. Fa followed close behind, enjoying the scene.
    The three approached Hu's mother. “Food!” they cried. Fa showed off her berry branch. There were several ripening berries on it. That got the attention of the others. Where had she found that, when all the plants nearby had been stripped of all their berries, both ripe and green, as well as their leaves?
    Hu's mother followed Hu, and Ra's mother followed Ra. Several other children came too. But the dominant males did not deign to pay attention. What could children have that could interest them?
    The trip was not easy, for the women were far more wary of the steam vents than the children were. But when little Be jumped blithely through, evincing no fear, Hu's mother followed. She almost turned back when she saw the second vent, but again they managed to persuade her to jump through. Finally they brought her and the other female out to the berry patches. Then all was clear, and they all feasted.
    Later that day they brought through more children and females. The word spread quickly: food! Soon all the young ones were running through the steam as if it had never been fearsome. Even the steady hissing seemed friendly.
    It took time to convince the dominant males, but hunger finally compelledthem. They navigated the cleft with extreme reluctance. Hu saw that their larger bulk made the passage difficult. In the narrowest section they had to stand and sidle along. It would have been impossible for one of the brutes who had displaced their band to squeeze through.
    In due course the band moved down the new slope to the thickly growing trees below. There were no brutes there, and food was plentiful. They had found their new home.
In this manner the range of the chimpanzees extended beyond that of the gorillas. The graciles were not able to oppose the robusts, but the robusts could not go as far from their home forests. It was not just that the chimps could run better on ground or squeeze through narrower apertures, but that they could forage more efficiently in difficult terrain. Perhaps their constant displacement to the fringe of the joint range forced them to be more versatile, and that helped them survive when times changed. Thus those who were less specialized for a particular habitat became survivors in varied habitats. This pattern was to be repeated endlessly as our species evolved, and it seems to have been the graciles who usually outlasted the robusts. Thus perhaps their weakness was their strength.
    Within our species, men are robust, women gracile. That may be significant.

CHAPTER 2
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    GARDEN
Six million years ago Africa was in a relatively cool, dry phase. Lakes dried out and disappeared, and forests shrank. Savanna, the flat, treeless grassland, expanded. This was not good habitat for chimpanzees, and their range diminished. But one group fought to survive by adapting to the dangerous flatland to the east of the West Rift Valley. This led to a development that was to change the