146 HUNTING AND FISHING RACES 



rather than of obliging their women to procure frequent abortions 

 by the use of a certain herb common in that country '^ Similar 

 facts are recorded of the Knisteneaux. 2 Abortion is not ' uncom- 

 mon among the Haidahs '. 3 The Nootkas ' frequently prevent the 

 increase of their families by abortion '. 4 Lord says that the 

 ' causing of abortion ' is ' not uncommon ' among the natives of 

 Puget Sound, 5 while we find this practice spoken of as ' common ' 

 in Vancouver Island. 6 Teit mentions abortion as being ' rarely 

 practised ' among the Thompson Indians, 7 and as ' rare ' among 

 the Shushwap. 8 Gibbs speaks of abortion as being ' almost 

 universal ' among the tribes of Western Washington and North- 

 western Oregon. 9 According to Bancroft abortion is of ' frequent 

 occurrence ' among the Chinooks, and ' not uncommon ' among 

 the inland tribes. 10 Powers also records the practice among the 

 Kabinapek of California, 11 and Castelnau among the Guaycurus 12 

 and Rengger among the Payaguas. 13 Cooper, who has reviewed 

 the evidence so far as the Fuegians are concerned, states that 

 * deliberate abortion is common J . 14 



9. There is one common form of infanticide the killing of 

 deformed children which can have no importance so far as 

 numbers are concerned. But this practice may be noted here 

 because of its bearing upon quality. We may also note in particu- 

 lar when the killing is said to be of female children. 15 



Bonwick states that infanticide was fairly prevalent in Tas- 

 mania. 16 Ling Roth, who summarizes the evidence of several 

 authors, finds it somewhat conflicting ; but it would seem that 

 infanticide undoubtedly occurred though it is not known with any 

 certainty whether it was practised on a large scale or not. 17 In 



1 H. Ellis, Voyage, p. 198. a Mackenzie, Voyages, vol. i, p. 148. 



3 Bancroft, loc. cit., vol. i, p. 169. * Ibid., p. 197. 6 Lord, Naturalist 



in Vancouver, vol. ii, p. 231. 6 Sproat, loc. cit., p. 94. 7 Teit, 



loc. cit., vol. i, p. 305. 8 Ibid., vol. ii, p. 584. 9 Gibbs, loc. cit., 



p. 199. 10 Bancroft, loc. cit., vol. i, p. 242. It also occurred among the 



Omahas but was not common (Dorsey, loc. cit., p. 263, and Long, loc. cit., p. 20). 



11 Powers, loc. cit., p. 207. For New Mexico see Bancroft, loc. cit., vol. i, p. 590. 



12 Castelnau, Expedition, vol. ii, p. 450. See also Azara, Voyages, p. 146. 



13 Rengger, Reise, p. 329. * Cooper, S. I. B. E., Bull. No. 63, 1917, p. 171. 

 16 Female infanticide was brought into great prominence by MacLennan. 



Although he asserted that female infanticide was * common among savages every- 

 where ' (Studies in Ancient History, p. Ill), he did not bring forward any con- 

 siderable body of evidence. 



i 18 |Bonwick, loc. cit., pp. 79 and 85. See also Smyth, loc. cit., vol. ii, p. 386. 

 17 iLing Roth, loc. cit., p. 167. ' This author suggests that infanticide may have 

 increased owing to the disturbances due to the arrival of the Europeans. There 

 is no evidence that this was so, and for the reasons given later it is most improbable 

 that this is ever the result of European influence. 



