334
NOTES AND QUERIES. [io. s. n. OCT. 22, 100*.
MORAL STANDARDS OF EUROPE (10 th S. ii.
168, 257). I can only say that my own ex-
perience, and that of every one whom I have
heard mention the subject, is that a distinct
racial difference does exist between the lying
of people of Teutonic type and of those in
which Keltic or pre-Keltic characteristics
have the upper hand. The imagination of
the former seems to be less ready than that
of the latter. Stolid misstatement for the
sake of personal advantage is often the be-
setting sin of a typical Englishman, Fleming,
German, or Scandinavian, but, if his brain
is normal, he rarely adds the picturesque
mendacity of a livelier type of mind to this
sordid vice.
As to the illegitimate birth - rate : does a large number of illegitimate births neces- sarily suggest that much lying has been done 1 Is it to be assumed that in nearly every case a pledge has been given, and broken ? Inherited tendency, differences of social surroundings, and differences of tra- dition, including some most pernicious folk- beliefs, all influence moral statistics in complicated fashion.
The Catholic Irishman of rural Ireland sets an example of purity which should make the rest of mankind blush for its transgres- sions. But to some degree, beyond doubt, he^ is helped by his circumstances. His priests, who insist on his learning the funda- mentals of his faith, train him rigidly in the right way, while public opinion enforces this teaching, and enforces it with severity.
On the contrary, in England, where the two sexes associate very freely, a great number of young people receive no definite drilling in their ostensible religion and moral code. Though they know what is conventionally the right thing, even the girls often hear Rabelaisian conversation. Then, in addition to this laxity, comes the influence of super- stitious survivals.
In spite of popular education many young women do still believe that when love-spells practised on the eves of certain holy-days liave resulted in a waking- vision, or a dream, showing the man fate has allotted to the inquirer, marriage must certainly follow. Hence a promise on the part of the wooer is not required : destiny will see to it that he becomes the husband of the girl.
Again, in Mid-England at least, ancient tradition is strong in asserting that a man is .a fool who ties himself to a woman in igno- rance. He should give no promise until he knows all the conditions to which the promise relates. Even men of good repute may hold this belief. Some few years since I was told
of the rupture of a long-standing engage-
ment between two respectable young folk
of the working class, which arose from the
refusal of the girl to comply with the de-
mands of her lover. He was almost as
unhappy as she was at the thought of break-
ing with her, but he could not be persuaded
by her, or by her employers, to forego what
he claimed as just and right in such a serious
matter as a contract for life. This sentiment
is no doubt kept in being by the few cases
of gross deception through which wretched
women bring tragedy into men's lives.
The clergy of the Church of England and Dissenting ministers alike seem ignorant of what a hold certain archaic customs still have on "civilized" minds. Some years ago the attention of one of the bishops was drawn to the dangers which might arise from certain surviving remnants of paganism. His com- ment was, I believe, that it was ** very curious " such superstitions should still exist ; but I have never heard of any action being taken to root them out. X. Z.
The reports of the Consuls-general the Blue-books often afford instructive infor- mation on this point. Although I was to some extent already aware of the fact, yet I was surprised, in the perusal of a consular report from Italy about the year 1883-4, to find that such a high (sexual) morality prevailed over the large area embraced by the report. Every town, large and small, was reported upon, and almost without exception the comment was I am speaking not of the great cities, but of the provincial towns either " the morality here is high," or " the morality here is very high." Those who have access to the Blue-books of this period will, I think, by referring to them, be able to bear me out. Another very instructive source is, of course, the 'Annual Detailed Report of the Registrar- General for England, Scotland, and Ireland, 'with regard to illegitimate births, &c. About the time alluded to (the approxi- mately exact figures remain indelibly fixed in my memory) the worst county in England for illegitimate births was Shropshire with eighty in every thousand. In Scotland Banffshire came first with a hundred and twenty in every thousand. In Protestant Ireland i.e , the North they were fifty in every thousand, and in Ireland Celtic and Catholic as low as three and five only in every thousand. I do not remember how Wales stood at that time, if, indeed, the returns for the Principality were given at all. J. HOLDEN MACMICHAEL.
GAMAGE (10 th S. ii. 249). There was an inquiry for Capt. William Dick Gamage, of
