110 THE LAW OF BIRTHS AND DEATHS 



the effect of the environment on the women of the com- 

 munity. One of the principal items of the Kaffir bill of 

 fare is " mealies " or maize. All the labour of the Kaffir 

 households, including the cultivation of the " mealie " 

 patch, falls on the women. In the matter of food the 

 women generally get what the men leave. They will 

 probably seldom taste meat. Thus they are subject to 

 considerable physical labour, combined with indifferent 

 feeding on a diet poor in proteids. The fact that c ' mealies ' ' 

 forms a principal item in the diet of both Boers and Kaffirs 

 is notable, since this is one of the poorest in proteids 

 and richest in fats of all the grains. The same remark 

 applies to rice, and rice-eating countries are more fertile 

 than wheat- and meat-eating countries. 



Contrary to what might be expected, peoples like the 

 Boers, owning large flocks and herds, but leading isolated 

 lives, are not generally very great meat-eaters. A farmer 

 finds some difficulty in disposing of the carcase of an 

 animal when freshly killed with only his own family to 

 feed, and in such climates as that of South Africa the 

 only way to preserve the flesh is in unpalatable forms 

 like " biltong." On the other hand, they will obtain large 

 quantities of " mealies," milk and eggs. It may be 

 added that in all new countries, such as Australia, New 

 Zealand, or America, large families are the rule in the 

 pioneering days. 



The French-Canadians are another race of whose con- 

 dition Spencer draws far too rosy a picture. The truth is 

 that these people are an ignorant and backward peasantry, 

 leading simple, hard-working lives. " When Canada 

 was conquered by England in 1759, it contained a French 

 population of 65,000. Without further immigration the 

 number had increased in 1901 to 2,400,000, including 

 1,600,000 in Canada, and 800,000 and their children in 



