CANNIBALISM. 487 



human being, no matter in what part of the world, who will slay his 

 fellow-man, without any provocation having been offered, or any 

 excitement produced ; but that he is known to deprive him of his 

 life merely for a supply of daily food, just exactly with the same 

 feelings, and with no others, than we would shoot a hare or a 

 pheasant to entertain a dinner party. 



Sometimes, even in civilised life, we witness strange things, very 

 nearly approaching to cannibalism, in the common acceptation of 

 the word. 



In the United States of North America, two individuals of the 

 higher ranks had a desperate row, hand to hand. The affair ter- 

 minated in the disgustful act of one having bitten off the greater por- 

 tion of the other's ear. " Sir/' said a person who was looking on, 

 " I presume you know that you have unfortunately lost an ear in 

 this terrible scuffle." " No matter," rejoined the enraged combatant ; 

 "the fellow has got the worst of it; for, look," said he, opening his 

 hand as he spoke the word, " I have bitten off the scoundrel's nose." 



If these Christian warriors had been savages in the woods, and not 

 members of civilised life, there can be no doubt but that both the 

 ear and the nose would have gone down into the stomachs of the 

 doughty champions. Still, in my idea, they would not have been 

 cannibals, even if they had torn off and swallowed each other's 

 cheeks, and gloried in the hideous act. 



In a word, if any traveller will step forward and positively declare 

 that he has undoubted intelligence of wild men who, without having 

 received any provocation, will kill one of their own tribe, or of any 

 other nation, and then eat him, as he would eat ordinary food, 

 then, and in that case, as our lawyers say, I will readily believe that 

 real and genuine cannibals do exist ; and, moreover, I will no longer 

 object to receive for truths all the strange accounts which I have 

 read in books, and have hitherto considered as mere inventions to 

 deter travellers from exploring the uncivilised parts of the world, or 

 to astound listening children on a winter's night, when howling winds 

 and drifting snow announce that there is murky mischief going on, and 

 gipsies encamped close by to kidnap them, should they be rash enough 

 to venture out beyond the threshold of their comfortable habitation. 



I have entered into this inquiry, and have determined to place 



