"
He gives as an instance the frantic joy of a Bacchante and the grief
of a Mary Magdalen.
I was anxious to know whether tears are freely shed during excessive
laughter by most of the races of men, and I hear from my correspondents
that this is the case. One instance was observed with the Hindoos,
and they themselves said that it often occurred. So it is with
the Chinese. The women of a wild tribe of Malays in the Malacca peninsula,
sometimes shed tears when they laugh heartily, though this seldom occurs.
With the Dyaks of Borneo it must frequently be the case, at least
with the women, for I hear from the Rajah C. Brooke that it is a common
expression with them to say "we nearly made tears from laughter."
The aborigines of Australia express their emotions freely, and they
are described by my correspondents as jumping about and clapping their
hands for joy, and as often roaring with laughter. No less than four
observers have seen their eyes freely watering on such occasions;
and in one instance the tears rolled down their cheeks. Mr. Bulmer,
a missionary in a remote part of Victoria, remarks, "that they have a keen
sense of the ridiculous; they are excellent mimics, and when one of them
is able to imitate the peculiarities of some absent member of the tribe,
it is very common to hear all in the camp convulsed with laughter.
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