Читать книгу Curious Creatures in Zoology - Ashton John - Страница 7

Sometimes a specimen of humanity has got astray in infancy, and has been dragged up somehow in the woods, like Caspar Hauser, and Peter the Wild Boy, and fiction supplies other instances, such as Romulus and Remus, Orson, &c. Some of them were credited with being hairy as are the accompanying wild man and woman, as they are portrayed in John Sluper’s book, where they are thus described: —

“L’Homme Sauvage

“La Femme Sauvage

When Cæsar came to Britain for the second time, he found the Britons, although to a great extent civilised, having cavalry and charioteers (so many of the latter, that Cassivelaunus left about 4000 to watch the Romans), and knowing the art of fortification, yet in themselves, only just emerging from utter barbarism – the colouring and shaving of themselves showed that they had vanity, and were making, after their fashion, the most of their personal charms. Cæsar (Book v. 14) writes: “Of all these tribes, by far the most civilised are those who inhabit Kent, which district is altogether maritime; nor do they differ much from the Gallic customs. Most of those in the interior do not sow corn, but live on flesh and milk, and are clad in skins. All the Britons, in truth, dye themselves with woad, which produces a bluish colour, and on this account they are of a more frightful aspect in battle. They have flowing hair, and every part of the body shaved, except the head and the upper lip. Ten, and even twelve of them have wives in common between them, and chiefly brothers with brothers, and fathers with sons; but, if there is any offspring, they are considered to be the children of those by whom each virgin was first espoused.”