In sum, all these factors give great weight to the facts here discussed; viz. to those of the early marriage of girls and the initiation of boys. We see that these facts take away from the Australian family its patriarchal character. The father's authority is exercised over his children merely during their early childhood, _i. e._ during a period when there is in a general way very little room for the display of any serious authority. Still more, as there was no serious and real training during this time, all education, as far as it was given at all by the father, assumed more the form of play, as we saw above (p. 256); and, as we saw, during that period great leniency towards the offspring was the chief feature of the father's behaviour.[823] When a serious and often harsh training took place, it was not the father's individual authority that enforced it, but the tribal elders'. So we see that our former result is hereby confirmed, viz. that there is no foundation for designing the father's relation to his child as based upon authority or any idea of proprietorship. That applies to a girl as well as to a boy. But in the case of the former we might attribute some meaning to the word property, although it would be rather straining the sense of the word. [823] On these connections in general compare the interesting article of Steinmetz, _Zeitschrift f. Sozialw._, II, pp. 613, 614. IV It was seen that on reaching a certain age the children leave their parents' camp and are removed from their control; still the personal, individual bond of kinship is not broken. And although it does not find its expression in facts of daily life, for the children and the parents live apart, yet there are some facts which unmistakably reveal the existence of a strong lifelong affection and attachment between parents and children. These facts are: real sorrow displayed at the death or funeral of a near relative, and especially that displayed by parents at the death of their children; joy and tenderness shown to children whenever met for the first time after a long absence. Here also must be placed the numerous occurrences in which love was displayed for white men who were recognized as dead relatives. In these cases their supposed parents always displayed the greatest amount of tenderness towards them, and often underwent considerable sacrifices for the sake of helping or even seeing their "children." The close connection between grandchildren and grandparents shows also that there was a near individual tie between the parents of the children and their parents. Let us adduce some statements. _Statements._--Curr remarks shortly but clearly: "Parental affection always endured," after the children left their parents and became practically independent of them.[824] [824] _Recollections_, p. 248.