many large and important tribes with female descent who certainly
believe in an All Father. We have tribes of the highest social
advancement who are said to show no vestige of the belief, and we have
tribes also socially advanced who hold the belief with great vigour. In
these circumstances, authenticated by Mr. Howitt himself, it is
impossible to accept the theory that belief in an All Father is only
reached in the course of such advance to a higher social organisation
as is made by tribes who reckon descent in the male line.




CHAPTER III



RELATIONSHIPS AND TOTEMS


Some savants question the intellectual ability of the blacks because
they have not elaborate systems of numeration and notation, which in
their life were quite unneeded. Such as were needed were supplied. They
are often incorporate in one word-noun and qualifying numerical
adjective, as for example--

Gundooee A SOLITARY EMU

Booloowah TWO EMUS

Oogle oogle FOUR EMUS