PKIMITIVE AGRICULTURAL RACES 173 



' until she reach the age of puberty, a girl is permitted by her 

 parents and by her betrothed to go about freely and have as 

 many lovers as she pleases '- 1 A considerable proportion of 

 marriages among the Ibo-speaking people of Nigeria take place 

 before puberty. 2 In the Congo districts the habit is specially 

 common. 3 Sexual relations commence early among the Bushongo ; 

 after reaching the age of puberty ' a girl is not supposed to have 

 further sexual relations before marriage '. 4 It is also recorded 

 by van Overbergh of the Mangbetu, 5 by Delhaise of the Warego, 6 

 by de Rochebrune of the Onolove. 7 Speaking of the Bangala, 

 Weeks says that ' above the age of five years it would be impos- 

 sible to find a girl who was a virgin '. 8 ' The sexual morality of 

 the Bahuana is conspicuous by its absence ; the unmarried 

 indulge as they please from a very early age, and the girls before 

 puberty.' 9 Torday and Joyce, who are responsible for this 

 statement, speak very similarly of the Bambala, 10 and du Chaillu 

 of the Mpongwe. 11 The Masai and the Nandi in East Africa 

 have a regularized system of intercourse before puberty. 12 It 

 also occurs among the tribes inhabiting the Baringo district 13 

 and among the Swaheli. 14 Children of the Wapagoro, in what 

 was German East Africa, are brought together by their parents 

 when about seven years of age, and are separated for a period 

 when menstruation begins that is to say, about three years 

 later. 15 Pre-puberty marriage was formerly very prevalent 

 among the Makonde 16 and the Wanjamuesi 17 of the same district. 

 ' As regards the little girls over nearly the whole of British Central 

 Africa, chastity before puberty is an unknown condition. Before 

 a girl is become a woman it is a matter of absolute indifference 

 what she does, and scarcely any girl remains a virgin after about 

 five years of age.' 18 Similar testimony is given by Stannus 19 and 

 by Maugham 20 for the same district. 



1 Partridge, Cross River Natives, p. 254. 2 Thomas, Ibo-speaking Peoples, 



p. 62. 3 Hutereau, Ann. Mus. Congo Beige, ser. 3, tome i, p. 4; Cureau, 



Societes Primitives, p. 109. 4 Torday and Joyce, Ann. Mus. Congo Beige, 



ser. 3, tome ii, p. 110. 5 Van Overbergh, Coll. Mon. Eth., No. 4, p. 309. 



6 Delhaise, ibid., No. 5, p. 157. He thinks, however, that the practice was intro- 

 duced by the Arabs. 7 Rochebrune, Rev. d'Anth., vol. iv, ser. 2, p. 281. 

 8 Weeks, J. A. I., vol. xxxix, p. 442. 9 Torday and Joyce, J. A. I., vol. xxxvi, 

 p. 288. 10 Ibid., vol. xxxv, p. 420. u du Chaillu, Explorations and Adven- 

 tures, p. 162. 12 Johnston, Uganda Protectorate, vol. ii, pp. 824 and 878. 

 13 Dundas, K. R., J. A. I., vol. xliii, p. 60. M Velten, Sitten und Gebrduche der 

 Swaheli, p. 28. 15 Fabry, Globus, vol. xci, p. 221. 16 Weule, East Africa, 

 p. 305. 17 Reichard, Z. G. E., vol. xxiv, p. 253. 18 Johnston, British 

 Central Africa, p. 409, note. 19 Stannus, J.A.I., vol. xl, p. 309. 20 Maugham, 

 Zambezia, p. 333. 



