46 SEX-LORE 



tines. The man upon whom the maiden first set eyes 

 after the dawn of the day, was expected to be chosen 

 as her mate for a year. We can well imagine that the 

 young people took care to help fate by arranging that 

 the right lover was on the spot at the propitious 

 moment. 



Courtship, as described so far, is characterized by 

 appeal to brute force, to physical competition, or, it 

 may be, to crude superstition, with very little per- 

 sonal feeling entering into the relationship. But the 

 spiritual emotion in love slowly develops, as mankind 

 gradually rises in the scale of civilization, until it 

 attains its full height in the modern ideal of love. 

 This is, according to Ellen Key, a combination of 

 physical and spiritual feelings in perfect balance, 

 where the lovers supplement each other, and where 

 each is willing and ready to sacrifice everything for 

 the love of the other. It is then that courtship be- 

 comes individual; every person has his own method 

 of gaining the love of the desired one, and there are 

 few customs or standards to conform to. What we 

 do find is different ways among people of giving ex- 

 pression to their love, and also in their mode of 

 accepting or refusing this love. 



Odd cases of individual choice crop up among 

 lower races, though it would be hard to say whether 

 they imply a real feeling of love. For instance, when 

 a boy of one of the New Guinea tribes admires a 

 girl, he will not look at her or go near her, but by 

 posing and by attacking and spearing imaginary 

 enemies before her, he will try to attract her atten- 

 tion. If the girl reciprocates his love, she will send 

 him an areca-nut marked with different designs as a 



