Page:Life among the Apaches.djvu/255

 life of toil and slavish suffering commences. The warrior may at any time repudiate his conjugal companion, and her chances for a second marriage consist in her reputation as a good worker, or for her personal attractions. In either case, she experiences no difficulty in obtaining a second, and even a third or fourth husband, but her market depends upon her prominence in these respects. Should there be any children, it becomes the reputed father's duty to provide for their support, and he, in turn, imposes that responsibility upon his other wives. The women are by no means averse to sharing the affections of their lords with other wives, as the increased number lessens the work for each individual, but the place of honor is always assigned to the one who was the first married, irrespective of age.

The custom of polygamy was not always in vogue among the Apaches. A celebrated warrior, and one wise in the traditions of his people, told me that time was when only one woman was deemed the proper share of one man, but their losses by war, and other causes, had so reduced the number of the males that it was judged politic to make a change in this custom. He further added, that he thought degeneracy had been produced by its adoption, and that the individuals of the tribe had become more alienated from each other. He rejoiced in but one wife with whom he had lived twenty years, and although she had fallen into the "sere and yellow leaf," he preferred her to all the young and more attractive women. She had borne him two fine sons and a daughter, all of whom were alive and well, and she possessed the experience requisite to make him a contented husband. His oldest son was a warrior, and his father's best friend and associate. He deprecated the system of polygamy, and thought that it would