:o2 



SCIENTIFIC NEWS. 



[Sept. 14, if 



ing and eating ; the number of cave dwellings and villages ; the E-lill 

 prevalent inter-insular jealousy ; the size and great physique of the 

 men of the Purpurarise ; the confiding, generous, hospitable character 

 of the Conejeros ; the use of the vaulting pole ; the general absence 

 of bigotry and religious intolerance : the preference to this day of 

 the Gomeros to carry baggage on the head ; the abomination of 

 butchers ; the torchlight fishing ; the method of laying-out the dead ; 

 the wit of the Palmeros ; the cleverness with which buildings are 

 constructed with stones without mortar ; the honesty of the Canarios ; 

 the unusual beauty of the peasant-women, were points alluded to 

 by the author in illustration of his assertion. 



The position of women was considered at some length, the 

 author bringing forward many facts to show that they held a far 

 higher position in the social scale than was usual among ancient 

 nations. 



Canon Tristram said he had listened to this paper with much 

 interest, as he was just fresh from the Canaries, having spent twelve 

 weeks there. He had paid considerable attention to the subject 

 -which had been brought before them by Mr.Stone. He agreed with the 

 author in everything, except when he said the " Guanche " had 

 gone. He must allow that the inhabitants of the Canaries were 

 free from all the vices which characterised his countrymen, and 

 possessed all the virtues they could not find in Spain. Who were 

 the European aborigines ? what were they ? and did any of 

 them remain ? He thought, with Mr. Stone, many of them did 

 remain, and though the land might be lost, yet the race was not. 

 While in the islands he visited every village, and wherever he went 

 he found the " Guanche" the most truthful and honest people in the 

 world. In the three islands he visited he never heard a muleteer 

 utter an oath. He could not agree with the author that there was 

 the slightest Egyptian trace in the inhabitants of these islands. No 

 more Egyptians, he thought, than negroes. There was not the 

 slightest trace of their having heard anything of Christianity or 

 Mohammedanism. In conclusion, he asked if any reason had been 

 found why the ancient people of the islands did not use boats. 



Other speakers followed, and the author, in answer to Canon 

 Tristram, said he had thought over the question why boats were 

 not used by the ancient people, but he could give no satisfactory 

 reason. 



The Rev. Henry George Tomkins discoursed on Worlebury, 

 an Ancient pre- Roman Stronghold at Weston-super-Mare. 



The last paper was read by Mr. F. Haverfield, on Pre-historic 

 Objects Found at Broos, in Himgary, by Miss Von Torma. 



In connection with this section there was an anthropological 

 laboratory for the use of members. 



CUSTOMS OF SAVAGE RACES. 



Lecture Delivered by Sir John Lubbock, M.P, F.R.S.* 



to the Working-Classes of Bath. 

 '"THE subject on which I shall have the honour of 

 addressing you this evening is one of such vast ex- 

 tent, that I shall make no apology for entering on it at 

 once, without any introductory remarks. I do not pro- 

 pose to describe the arms or implements, houses or 

 boats, dress or food of savages — all no doubt very inte- 

 resting, but which time will not permit me to deal with. 

 My object will rather be, if possible, to illustrate the 

 mental condition and ideas of the lower races of men. 



Our empire contains representatives of almost every 

 race of men, and every stage of human progress. To 

 understand their wants and ideas, is not only an intel- 

 lectual exercise, but a political problem of great national 

 importance. Even those who consider that man was 

 civilised from the beginning, and who look upon savages 

 as the degenerate descendants of much superior parents, 

 must still admit that our own ancestors were once mere 

 barbarians, and may find therefore much interest in this 

 study; but it no dpoibt appears far more important to 

 those who think that the primitive condition of man was 

 one of savagery, and that the history of the human race 

 has, on the whole, been one of progress. No one, of 

 course, supposes that every people must necessarily pro- 

 gress ; but those which do not advance will assuredly 

 be replaced, sooner or later, by more worthy races. 



Nor certainly do our modern savages in all respects re- ' 

 produce the condition of our ancestors in early times ; 

 on the contrary, even the Australians have now a system 

 of complex rules and stringent customs which have 

 grown up gradually, and cannot have existed originally ; 

 it does, however, seem that from the study of modern 

 savages we can gain a fairly correct idea of man as he 

 existed in ancient times, and of the stages through which 

 our civilisation has been evolved. At the same time the 

 study is by no means easy, because many things which 

 seem natural and obvious to a savage appear to us ab- 

 surd and inconsequential. Moreover, if we often find it 

 far from easy to understand savages, they naturally have 

 much greater difficulty in understanding us. All over 

 the world nations on first seeing white men have taken 

 them for ghosts or spirits. Our weapons, tools, animals, 

 in fact all our belongings are at first a source of great 

 wonder. An Australian tribe, for instance, when they 

 first saw a waggon drawn by oxen were much puzzled 

 as to what the oxen could be. It afterwards appeared 

 that some thought they were spirits, because they had 

 spears on their heads, while others maintained that they 

 were the wives of the white men because they carried 

 the burdens, which among Australians is the special 

 duty of women. Again, the modes of salutation among 

 savages are sometimes very curious, and their modes of 

 showing their feelings quite unlike ours. Kissing 

 seems to us so natural an expression of affection that we 

 should expect to find it all over the world, yet it is un- 

 known to the Australians, the New Zealanders, the Pa- 

 ponans, and the Esquimaux and other races. I mentioned 

 this fact about the negroes in one of my books many 

 years ago, never supposing that it would give any 

 offence, and was surprised to receive a most violent 

 anonymous letter from a negro of St. Domingo on the 

 subject. He abused me in unmeasured terms, and ended 

 by saying that he would like to drink my heart's blood. 

 The Polynesians and the Malays always sit down when 1 

 speaking to a superior : in some parts of Central Africa I 

 it is considered respectful to turn the back to a superior. 

 Captain Cook asserts that the inhabitants of Malliedo, 

 an island in the Pacific Ocean, show their admiration by 

 hissing ; the Todas of the Neilgherry hills in India are 

 said to show respect by raising the open right hand to 

 the brow, resting the thumb on the nose ; it is asserted 

 that among the Esquimaux it is customary to pull a per- 

 son's nose as a compliment ; a Chinaman puts on his hat 

 where we should take it off, and among the same curious 

 people a coffin is regarded as a neat and appropriate 

 present for an aged person, especially if in bad health. 

 Among the Yombas of West Africa, who take great care 

 of their teeth and scrub them well at least three times a 

 day, an old tooth brush is regarded as a touching pre- 

 sent, not being so much intended for actual use indeed, 

 but rather as conveying a sort of implied message that 

 as the sender took the greatest care of his teeth and used , 

 his tooth-brush continually, so his friend was also in his 

 thoughts morning, noon, and night. (Gollmer, Jour. 

 Anthr. Hist., 1884, p. 176). 



A mistake made by Dampier led to very serious results. 

 He had met some Australians, and apprehending an 

 attack, he says, " I discharged my gun to scare them, 

 but avoided shooting any of them, till finding that we 

 were in great danger from them, and that though the gun 

 had a little frightened them at first, yet they had soon 

 learnt to despise it, tossing up their hands and crying 

 pooh, pooh, pooh, and coming afresh with a great noise. 



