COURTSHIP IN MAN 41 



her lover to reach the winning-post first and gain her 

 for his bride. 



Dancing, which is one of the favourite pastimes of 

 all races and of all times, becomes a natural method 

 of allurement in human courtship. The mere physical 

 movement is apt to bring about a heightened feeling 

 of bodily exhilaration and a corresponding mental 

 elation. It is therefore not surprising that so many 

 unions come about at the dancing-places all over the 

 world. This holds good even more for savages than 

 for civilized people. Among many races the men 

 and women dance separately, and so can show off 

 their skill to each other. A young man who is a 

 good dancer finds great favour in the girl's eyes. 

 As a chief of Mabuiag (Torres Straits) put it: "In 

 England, if a man has plenty of money, women want 

 to marry him; so here, if a man dances well, they too 

 want him." Some of the dances those of the Faroe 

 Islanders, for instance may last for two days and 

 nights, and are a permitted method by which the 

 young men may court the girls. " The man enters 

 the circle and places himself beside the girl to whom 

 he desires to show his affection. If he meets with 

 her approval she stays and continues to dance at his 

 side; if not, she leaves the circle and appears later at 

 another spot." The dances among primitive folk 

 very often take a voluptuous form and end in orgies. 

 Among civilized people, dancing is more of a social 

 pastime, though its sexual origin is not completely 

 lost. Fond mothers still find the ball-room the bc~t 

 place for match-making, a method which is by no 

 means altogether groundless. 



There are other more subtle methods of courtship, 



