severe chastisement, nevertheless, there was usually a mutual fondness and kindness. Taking this picture as a standard, it is possible to understand and make consistent all the other statements if we assume that they exaggerate some of the traits of the general picture.[206] [206] Illustrating this point is a passage in Nieboer's _Slavery_ (pp. 9 _sqq._) bearing very closely on our subject. His aim is to discuss whether the position of the wife in Australia may be characterized as slavery. He arranges the evidence in two contrasting sets: in the first he gathers all shadows of the picture, in the second the bright spots. So he adduces several instances which show that the girl has no voice in the choice of her husband; and, on the other hand, he shows that from a series of other statements it may be inferred that the girl often marries according to her feelings. (In our discussion of the modes of obtaining wives, we saw that when betrothed normally, by engagement in infancy, neither the girl nor, practically, her husband choose in the true sense of the word. Whereas marriage by elopement is brought about by mutual consent. These two forms of marriage would correspond therefore to Nieboer's two contradictory series.) Under the second heading, Nieboer gathers statements as to barbarous treatment and want of affection on one hand, and of affection and rights of the woman on the other. Under the third heading the economic duties and the importance of the woman are discussed, one set of information exaggerating it, the other reducing it to small proportions (we shall treat this subject beneath). Nieboer's computation is very interesting as an illustration of how one can prove _pro_ and _contra_ from ethnographical material, even while confining oneself to a limited area and subject. All the series of statements collected in this book are further examples of the same fact. As a result of his discussion, Nieboer dismisses of course the term "slave" used by many writers to designate the woman's position in Australia. But we can make still better use of our evidence by asking some definite questions and seeing how far we get a clear answer to them. And we shall see that if, in this way, the whole picture be analytically divided into sections, the evidence will yield a quite unambiguous answer on some important points concerning the relation between man and wife in the Australian aboriginal society. The first inquiry is into the legal aspect of the husband's authority. In accordance with our definition of "legal," we shall try to ascertain to what extent the relationship of man and wife was left to follow its natural course; at what point society interfered; and what form this intervention assumed.