THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. 285 



odd children; of whom, as I remember, above 50 were 

 daughters. 



It may be objected, that Dr Arbuthnot, in quoting the 

 bills of mortality for twenty years, gave molt unexception- 

 able grounds for his opinion, and that my fmgle aflertion 

 of what happens in a foreign country, without further foun- 

 dation, cannot be admitted as equivalent teflimony ; and I 

 am ready to admit this objection, as bills of mortality there 

 are none in any of thefe countries. I mall therefore fay in 

 what manner I attained the knowledge which I have juft 

 mentioned. Whenever I went into a town, village, or in- 

 habited place, dwelt long in a mountain, or travelled jour- 

 nies with any fet of people, I always made it my bufmefs 

 to inquire how many children they had, or their fathers, 

 their next neighbours, or acquaintance. This not being a 

 captious queftion, or what any one would fcruple to an- 

 fwer, there was no intereft to deceive ; and if it had been 

 poflible, that two or three had been fo wrong-headed among: 

 the whole, it would have been of little confequence. 



I then afked my landlord at Sidon, (fuppofe him a wea- 

 ver,) how many children he has had ? He tells me how 

 many fons, and how many daughters. The next I alk is zu- 

 fmith, a tailor, a filk-gatherer, the Cadi of the place, a cow- 

 herd, a hunter, a nfher, in fhort every man that is not a 

 ftranger, from whom I can get proper information. I fay,, 

 therefore, that a medium of both fexes ariiing from three 

 or four hundred families indiscriminately taken, mall be 

 the proportion in which one differs from the other ; and 

 this, I am confident, will give the refult to be three women 



to 



