4^6 EECOLLECTIONS OF A JOtJBKEY 
informed that mothers sometimes evince much reluctance 
to allow their infant to be exposed. But as the rearing df 
unlucky infants is supposed to bring misfortune upon the' 
parents, the yearning of the mother yields to the confidence 
she has in the prediction of the astrologer ; 'and, to prevent 
an imaginary and contingent evil, the poor infatuated wo- 
man consents to the murder of her offspring. In some rare 
instances, a mother sends a messenger to the jungle the 
day after the infant has been exposed, for the purpose of 
ascertaining its fate. Should it be found alive, this circum^^ 
stance is considered a favourable omen, and the poor bab^ 
is commonly brought home to the mothef, who now per- 
forms her duty \o the little innocent. 
The astrologer easily learns the nature of the predictiori 
regarding the fate of ati infant which will please the parent; 
Male-children are much desired ; hence infants of this seX 
are seldom deemed to be bom under an unlucky star, and 
very rarely exposed. The first female infant born in a 
family is generally considered lucky, and therefore not ex- 
posed. The succeeding daughters are sometimes deemed 
unlucky, and murdered accordingly. Our informant on 
this subject said, no poor man ever thought of bringing 
up more than one of his female offspring. He likewise told 
us, that very few parents, even of the wealthier classy 
would, if they had a son^ save three daughters. By a 
census, which was taken of the inhabitants of the Kandyari 
provinces in 1820, the proportion of females to males was 
as 84 is to 100. In one of the districts the proportion was 
as low as 55 J to 100. It may be feared that the mUrder 
of female infants is a principal cause of the disproportion 
between the numbers of the sexes. We are not warranted 
in presuming that a warm climate has any influence in this 
respect. Malte Brun asserts, that it has been satisfac- 
torily demonstrated by good authority, that " the number 
