ABSTRACT
One feature frequently left out of the calculations is that the custom is supported nearly as much by the women as by the men; it is by no means a one-sided affair with the advantage on the side of the men-folk as sometimes implied. Indeed, it is not uncommon to find that women are stout protagonists of the practice. To the pagan lbo, a plurality of wives is a laudable ambition and, given the opportunity, he will add to the number up to the time that old age causes him to lose interest in life. A man who is able to multiply his wives rises automatically in the social scale. They largely constitute his working capital. Every fresh outlay for the provision of an additional wife is looked upon as a shrewd investment. For these reasons alone, on the lowest level as they are, polygamy to the primitive lbo, is a worthy institution.
