WHOLE VOL. ARAUCANIAN CHILD LIFE — HILGER 285 



wives took turns doing these. At extraordinary work, however, such 

 as skinning animals or shearing sheep, all worked jointly. "My father 

 had three wives that were not sisters to each other ; they all lived in 

 one toldo, but veiy agreeably so." 



If husband and wife differed to the extent of quarreling, the wife 

 generally gave in eventually. "If she would not keep still or do what 

 her husband wanted her to do, things ended by the man hitting her." 

 Instances where husband and wife did not live peacefully together 

 were related by women who had been ill-treated by their husbands. 



A disagreement sometimes reached the stage where the husband 

 nearly killed his wife; but no case was recalled where a woman 

 hanged herself to be relieved of an impossible marital situation. 

 Causes for serious quarrels were drunkenness on the husband's part, 

 infidelity or neglect of work on the wife's. "It is that way today," 

 said an old woman. "My son often scolds his wife — I hear him. Then 

 his wife complains to me. But I have noticed that she neglects her 

 work; she is really stupid. I say to her, 'You are married and you 

 must try to get along with your husband ; and you must be prepared 

 to suffer a little, too.' " 



Children were loved by parents — in fact, by adults in general — and 

 had much freedom within the family. No one child was given prefer- 

 ence over others ; all were expected to do their share of the work as 

 soon as they were able to, and were held to their duty of doing so. 



During this study children were seen with parents, grandparents, 

 or other adult relatives everywhere, and they always seemed happy. 

 Young mothers fondled their children and played with them. One 

 tied a strand of grass about her baby's hair to keep it out of its eyes. 

 While doing so she talked to the baby, and the baby jumped up and 

 down on her lap, chattering. Another young mother repeatedly kissed 

 her child and tickled it to make it laugh. Later the child sat on her 

 lap, cooing to itself. Still later it toddled to an empty bucket, dropped 

 something into it, and looked at its grandmother with surprise. The 

 grandmother, too, put on a look of surprise and said, "What are you 

 doing?" The child then laughed gleefully, and all present laughed with 

 amusement, A young woman was rearing four children of her first 

 marriage and three of her second (her first husband having died). 

 All her children appeared happy, and, according to neighbors, no 

 distinction was being made by the woman and her husband between 

 the children of the two marriages. 



Parents provided food, clothing, and shelter for their children; 

 trained them in the mores of the people ; taught them work expected 



