152 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY 



upon rare occasions at any other time than immediately after birth, 

 and when the mother thought she was unable to care for the babe. 

 The killing of the new-born child was thus an effort at kindness on 

 their part and to them was certainly devoid of cruelty, since they 

 believed the spirit part went back to the spot whence it came and was 

 subsequently born again to the same woman. Twins were killed as 

 unnatural, a practise to be explained in part by the natives' dread of 

 everything uncommon or rare. On infrequent occasions a young child 

 of a few years was killed that an older but weaker child might eat it 

 and thus get its strength. Howitt mentions the same practise among 

 the southeastern natives (p. 7-19). He also says that in some places 

 infants were eaten in especially hard summers. Sometimes, also, after 

 the family consisted of three or four, all additional children were 

 killed because they would make more work than the women could 

 manage. Among the Kurnai, infanticide unquestionably arose through 

 the difficulty of carrying a baby when there were other young children, 

 some of whom might be unable to walk. Infants, under these circum- 

 stances were simply left behind when they were on the march, it not 

 being regarded as killing to dispose of them in this way (Howitt, p. 

 750). Palmer, writing of the natives of Queensland, says that the 

 killing of a new-born child was lightly regarded, but not common. On 

 the lower Flinders Eiver the fondness of the natives for their children 

 was noted (Palmer). Spencer and Gillen say that, with rare excep- 

 tions, children were kindly and considerately treated, the men and 

 women alike sharing the care of them on the march and seeing that 

 they got their proper share of food. Howitt mentions the case of a 

 mother watching a sick child, refusing all food, and, when it died 

 being inconsolable (p. 766). One woman for nineteen years carried 

 about a deformed child on her back (Fraser; vide Henderson, p. 121). 

 Natural affection was certainly keen and much grief was manifested 

 over the loss of children. 



In the aborigines' treatment of the old and infirm most observers 

 depict them in quite a favorable light. Dawson, it is true, reports 

 that the natives of Victoria killed them, but this is certainly not a 

 widely prevalent custom. Lumholtz (p. 183) says that the Queens- 

 landers were very considerate of all who were sick, old or infirm, not 

 killing them as with some savage peoples (cf. Bonney, p. 135). In 

 northern parts of Australia there were many blind and they were 

 always well cared for by the tribe, being often the best fed and nour- 

 ished (Creed, p. 94). In the central tribes the old and infirm were 

 never allowed to starve. Each able-bodied adult was assigned certain 

 of the older people to provide with food, and the duty was fulfilled 

 cheerfully and ungrudgingly. 6 In some tribes the old and sick were 



9 Spencer and Gillen, " Northern Tribes," p, 32. 



