It was a long time before he could even say 'much tiger,' as the Australian natives still have to do if they see more animals than five together, and the Andamanese if they see more than two.

The hypothesis therefore seems reasonable that at first man considered each species of animals or plants which he distinguished to have a separate single life, of which all the individuals were pieces or members.

The separation of different parts of one living body presented no difficulties to his mind, since, as already seen, he believed the life to continue in severed fractions of the human body.
A connection between individuals, apparently based on the idea that they have a common life, has been noticed in other cases.

Thus at the commencement of the patriarchal state of society, when the child is believed to derive its life from its father, any carelessness in the father's conduct may injuriously affect the child.

Sir E.B.Tylor notes this among the tribes of South America.