On the Indian trail

I have just recently read a most fascinating book about gospel work in Paraguay and the Matto Grosso region of Brazil. I would like to quote from it further on another occasion, but here is an extract that appalled me for more than one reason:

‘One of the saddest things we encountered among the Cageveas was the small number of children to be seen, in a community of fifteen or more families, the children of school age and under could be counted on one’s fingers. The greater number of little ones are killed either before or after birth. On enquiring the reason for such wholesale murder of little ones, we were told that owing to their custom of unfaithfulness (as a rule, two never live very long together) the mother, being deserted by the father and not wishing to be encumbered, breaks the little one’s neck at birth, if it is not successfully destroyed before birth. The tribe, as a consequence, is rapidly dying out.’

How wonderful is progress; now it can all be done in hospital!