WHOLE VOL. ARAUCANIAN CHILD LIFE — HILGER IO9 



Every boy and girl learns to ride horses bareback — boys usually at 

 the age of 4 to 5 years; girls, when a little older. (PI. 8, 2.) Boys 

 teach one another. An older brother generally teaches his little sister, 

 or if there is no older brother, an older sister will do so. An 8-year-old 

 boy was seen teaching his 4-year-old brother. Each owned the horse 

 he was riding. The older boy said to the younger, "Hold onto the 

 mane with both hands, just as I do." Then he set his horse into a 

 gallop by pounding the horse's sides with his feet. The little boy's 

 horse soon followed, also in a gallop. Both galloped around for a while 

 in the open space near their ruka, the older boy in the lead and the 

 younger one following. After that the older boy brought his horse 

 alongside the younger boy's and they galloped abreast. 



On another occasion a lo-y ear-old boy rode around on his horse, 

 bareback, followed by the horse's foal and another foal a little older. 

 They were in an open, grassy space near their ruka. His two little 

 sisters, probably 5 and 7 years old, were there also. The boy on his 

 horse lassoed a tree stump with a rope and then galloped into a posi- 

 tion to make the rope taut. The two little girls chased the foals toward 

 the rope. The foals galloped to the rope but not knowing how to 

 hurdle it came to an abrupt stop, at which the little girls doubled up 

 with laughter. This performance was repeated, to the great amuse- 

 ment of the little girls. "Those foals are so stupid : they cannot learn 

 to jump over the rope!" Then one of the girls loosened the lasso, the 

 boy coiled it, and was ready to lasso another stump when a boy, prob- 

 ably 12 years old, rode in on his horse, bareback also. The newcomer 

 galloped about the space a while, then made his horse rear to show off 

 before the other boy and the little girls. Soon the two boys rode 

 abreast, leaning toward each other so that their heads touched, which 

 amused the little girls. 



Boys were clever in the use of the slingshot and seldom missed an 

 aim ; usually the target was a blemish on a rock, a leaf on a tree, or 

 some similar objective. One boy shot a sea gull in flight, something he 

 told with pride. Shooting small birds as a diversion was discouraged. 

 No schoolboy had had the opportunity to shoot with a gun — only one 

 family in the area owned a gun, and no one but the father was al- 

 lowed to use it. Girls did not use slingshots. 



HEALTH 



OMENS OF SICKNESS, CAUSES OF ILL HEALTH, PREVENTIVES OF 



ILL HEALTH 



An omen of ill health — and of death, if sickness already exists — 

 is the cry of the chonchon, a nocturnal bird. "The cries are heard by 



