eS eteet aye cer i Sotaey el WS a ye re sera ay . eA Na ee EEOC GR Sy Pits eee te aye ee Hy o SNA ate beh’ Ns YT oe ahh , art Petey vote ten Sub t ae * 8 ? A Cide es Ged 5 MISCELLANEOUS DOCUMENTS OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FOR THE FIRST SESSION OF THE FORTY-SEVENTH CONGRESS, 1881-'82. IN TWENTY-SEVEN VOLUMES. Volume 20—No. 61. WASHINGTON: GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE, 1883. 47TH Uh aa HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES. (¢ Mis. Doc. 1st Session. \ No. 61. - SECOND ANNUAL REPORT BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY TO THE SECRETARY OF THE SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION iWcent | ag oul BY a Week © W ).L3, DIRECTOR WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1883 ri j etn! ease i - ; ae rset ae ey Ae ) aa as ak 3 SmirHsonian Institution, Bureau or ETHNowoey, Washington, D. C., September 9, 1882. Prof. Spencer F. Bairp, Secretary Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D. C.: Sir: I have the honor to transmit herewith my second an- nual report as Director of the Bureau of Ethnology. The first part of the volume consists of a brief account of the operations of the Bureau for the fiscal year; the second, of a series of papers by my assistants, illustrating the methods and results of the researches prosecuted under the direction of the Bureau. It will be seen that investigations have been pursued in the four great departments of objective human activities, viz, arts, institutions, languages, and opinions; the design being to pros- ecute research in a systematic manner. It is believed that the facts in each field of research throw such light upon each other field that one cannot be neglected without injury to the others. The study of the arts is but the collection of curiosities unless the relations between arts, institutions, languages, and opinions are discovered. The study of institutions leads but to the discovery of curious habits and customs unless the deeper meaning thereof is discovered from arts, languages, and opinions. In like manner the study of language is but the study of words unless philologic research is based upon a knowledge of arts, institutions, and opinions. So also the study of opinions is but the collection of mythic stories if their true meaning is not ascertained in the history of arts, mI Vi LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. institutions, and languages. For this reason the four great departments of objective activities have been the subject of systematic investigation. Permit me to express my thanks to yourself for your hearty co-operation in the prosecution of the work and for the wise counsel and direction you have given. I am, with respect, your obedient servant, Director. TABLE OF CONTENTS. REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR. Page. Introductory ..----.------ -2-- 222 4--2-.--=- -2---- -=- oS a A aE ee eee XVi Par WiC HOTA oe ee rea ae ean e Soon ase ta see nen a saone series ae XVI Introduction to the study of Indian languages, by J. W. Powell.-. .----- XVI Houses and house-life of the American aborigines, by Lewis H. Morgan. XVII Linguistic work...-..=------------ ---=-+ ---=-- ---5 2-00 coe ne ners anes 30 The Gegiha language, by J. O. Dorsey-.-----------------++------7 07777 Xx The Klamath language, by A. S. Gatschet..---. ------------ ----------+- XXT The Dakota language, by S. R. Riggs ---------------------------+----- XXI Bibliography of North American philology, by J. C. iPM Coes seasee XXI Ethnologic work.... .-..---- ---. ---- 22-92 ee-2e0 eer ens tree rer etrsrt tee XXII Sign language and pictographs, by Garace Mallory. 2. - 2. -)- 22)-4--=5 -- XXII Mortuary customs, by H. C. Yarrow ---.-.----------+-+-++--+-s-200007+ XXII Indian cessions of land, by C. C. Royce ---...----------- ----++---------> XXUI TOCGIG US i ee BSE Sol eo oS SE OA ESE RSE II IOC: eee ae Sie aie 2G. Nf Papers accompanying this report .----. ---------- -----+-----+ +--+ s+r50r cto XXVI Zuni fetiches, by F. H. Cushing -.------------- ------------ +--+ -------- XXVI Myths of the Iroquois, by E. A. Smith .------. -----------------+--277-- XXIX Animal carvings from Mounds of the Mississippi Valley, by H. w. Hen- ATT Alte nee dso ceen oanso Cent ae DOC CEE nO Sear © Se asec pC OSe Csaba coc XxX Navajo Silversmiths, by-Washington Matthews- .----.------------------ XXXII Art in Shell of the ancient Amerians, by William H. Holmes...-.-------- XXXIV Illustrated catalogue of the collections obtained from the Indians of New Mexico and Arizona, in 1879 and 1880, by James Stevenson .--.-.----- XXXVI Classification of expenditures..-..--.--- -------- ¢++--+ 2-22 2+ terre tree cere XXXVII ACCOMPANYING PAPERS. ZUNI FETICHES, BY FRANK HAMILTON CUSHING. ; Zui philosophy .----. ..---------- ------ -- +--+ -- 2202 222 n ee orn teers eee a Worship of animals...--...---..-----------------+-----2 etree er er terete 11 Origin of Zuni fetichism--.-.-.-.----.----------------++----+ +2228 error 12 MhetAuvi Wind soe eee ee sa ~ o woe ee <= p< = ale een == 12 Power of the fetiches .......----.------ See eee ema cece cece es 15 Prey gods of the six regions..---..----------+ ------ --2-+ e222 er errr ceteris 16 Mew OMiPIN << -2- a oe eae eee ens we ae one eee 16 Their power as mediators -.-.-----------------+-----+ -+-2e8 creer eee r eee 18 heir worship -....--- ------ «== -- <= -00 no = ann enn ene ener nee ane 19 Prey gods of the hunt ...---.----- .----------------+ 22-22 sere es eee reer 20 Their relation to the others.--..-.--------.-------------------- Saecsessoeces 20 Ahan OvipIn = ses see ne seen ae oe em == = en lee enna eal 20 Their varieties -....-.-..- Pe Sear ee Oe aes sec maas Sema lease sane 24 Their relative values .......--. ------------ ---------+ 222 eee ee reer 30 heir custodian ....---.---------- ---¢ --e-5 Seen ne onan en eon ee een ee ee 31 The rites of their worship ..---..-.---.--------- ------+------+++---+-------- 32 Their power ---..--. ---- ---- ---- +--+ «0222 ooo ne cee nee enn nee teen een nee 39 VI TABLE OF CONTENTS. Page. Prey gods of the Priesthood of the Bow.......--.-.-.---.---..--------------- 40 The knife-feathered monster, the mountain lion, and the great white bear. 40 Their resemblance to the prey gods of the hunt. -.......--...----.----.---- 41 The\ritesiof their -worshi ness see ete ee eae ate ate eee 41 Otherifebiches . asa sect ca oe bea alee alas oe aa ee ee eet 44 Fetiches!/ of Navajo Origin sce ate eiaee ee ae ae 44 Amulets'and! charms! seese ee eo ae a ai ee ete ees slate ietotenerieieraee 44 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS, BY ERMINNIE A. SMITH. CHAPTER I.—Gods and other supernatural beings .---..-.-.-----------.------ 51 MME TSE emamne se ongcee cSaac] comessioasc na someccrescen noe sceconce 65 iT Practice of sorceryee senna eae nee ee eee 68 IV.—Mythologic explanation of phenomena -.-....-------.----------- 75 Wi Dales: so3 ou sca2bicocsect ce ote feces eee ae sae ees See sae ee 83 VI-—Reli gion 2525 nose ds ooo cea cee s 5 Sani eons see eeee sees 112 ANIMAL CARVINGS FROM THE MOUNDS OF THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY, BY HENRY W. HENSHAW. Introductory s2<- 2-ss%s a. esse se See mes occerssoscaeaneosicen oe sec meee snssemeee soe 123 Manatee!soeasc)-cao sae seen eee eee ad ease een cee e Ce sete emis aero 125 TOUGCAN «aa te cra aioe eats cicete semics oats iste CSS yao eee ee eee eee eee OO Parognet: -tes2c es scsiesa eens ee sooo esas Boece nee eee eee eee 139 Knowledge of tropical animals by Mound-Builders .-.-...-..-....----.------- 142 Other‘errors)of-identification, =~. 25-2 -2--12 256 cece nee ae aoe eee 144 Skill in sculpture of the Mound-Builders ........--...----.-----.------------.- 148 Generalization not designed .-.---. BEE pene RB Aron chad ar asec codes oe 149 Probable totemicjorigin’s2-<-- -s2--) oes ee a ee eee ese ae aeeeeeeee pamee 69\1) J Sib Pl beG RS oso nes conn cope asoceooscooo ao cess oseraa cosas csocboooporaseoes 152 Theelephant mound se2ke onan sacle s earl eee la a= ela ae ee ete 152 DG AUTEN yo TAG Bo S555 oo. Ga cobbar SosoSe esesencssce costar seacieerese 158 Human sculptures...--....--. SSaS08 Shgcon baaSer sence HE SEaS Ae acdantbatoscces 160 Indian and mound-builders’ art compared ......------------ ------ -----+e----- 164 General! conclusions) ec. ae eee ae eee eee eee eye nee 166 NAVAJO SILVERSMITHS, BY DR. WASHINGTON MATTHEWS, U. &. A. Naa orSilversmith see esses sete setae ates seine eeelee eet fo kefas Sats. iainjemi sates 171 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS, BY WILLIAM H. HOLMES. Je) 8 fen AS ono eG Sa cane ap Sboc. DOB SOOSO.0400 35 Sose Goosindooss ateHse 185 Implements andiutensils)- =. -- ce. see oe alana ee eae alee el ee eee 189 Unworked shells =< ..< |< ass sagas cree ayes diate’ ata vain Sia’e = Wee eisieedes SI 419 WollectiontfromPictopraph Rocks 22 -22-c- dees. ses Sartels oan a2 eeicoas aerator ee aes ene Collection;from Silla seers) ste mre are ie eieiste ie este nee ae eee 454 ArticlesOF StONE 22 siercnk repose als arerese te reo aie ehe torte este in otelichasoitete peices eee eters 454 Articles! ofiolay.< ssc ee een ee ne eae ee oe ie ee eee ees 454 Miscellaneous’; aa<..coee coe ce cee seri « aiciaee = omciah le =siaeeiee eee Mesa teeoe 455 Collection from’San! Juans .-.2ssss coos eens een e oe sen See ee ee eee Eee 456 Articles of stone. .----. ....--.... EE RCS cermmEao Sem conSSp Ae soacco cba aods 456 Anticlesiof clayisa=2 snes eee Boda j asec cee eseeseaes eee ee ee 456 Miscellaneous‘ articles! 22...) =. .<2s:o ss 57s seaap eis oesiaeileeeins cee eee 458 Collection from:Santa-Ana-- ses. 6s sc2 onic wise oaienie ce mene once eee eine eee eee 458 Articles of/stone: >. essfac sega -scnvews cise Sewissis sseus mceeeee ce eeee eee 458 Articles of clay.....----- . Soe asra gale rorere Sa eee era ase Nese ee eee 458 | Collection fromiSandia, (No Mex So. 22 see ~ seem ee eae eee eee se = eee Socios 458 Collection:from'Cochtti=es-n- 2222 2-- 2200-28 200 MON Shelliceltsesscs se ne ane ae se a es ce weer elem cme 204 XXVI.—Shell implements. .-..- .--- -----------+ 2-2-2 -0rr reer rene 206 XXVII.—Shell implements... -.--- -----------------7 ------ cere cc roe" 208 XXVIII.—Shell fishing appliances..-..--.-----------------+-+--20 00707" 210 XXIX.—Manufacture of implements and ornaments.--------------- 214 XXX.—Pins, eastern forms..---.----------- +--+ -------20007 00077" 216 XXXI.—Pins, Pacific coast forths- -.---.---------------225 22770 077* 218 XXXII.—Perforated shell beads..-------------------------+++rr00- 220 XXXIIT.—Discoidal’ beads, ---=-- ..----- - <==. == 25-3 e2!= ean one eee 222 XXXIV.—Massive beads and pearls .-------------------- +--+ +7077 7" 224 PRO NORGV BBR MBean seme aoe es eae sim aeniaieenn = enlace 226 Skok Vile —untee DOAGs eo ona eam nie nia nani moe = 228 XXXVII.—Use of wampum belts in Indian council ...----------+----- 240 XXX VII.—Wampum belts. .-.--- ---- ------ ---- 2+ +2525 one tere sore 242 XXXIX.—Wampum belts, belonging to the Onondagas .------------- 244 XL.—Wampum belt, belonging to the Onondagas...--.--------- 246 XLI.—Wampum belt, belonging to the Onondagas ---..---------- 248 - XLII.—Wampum belt, belonging to the Onondagas-.-..--.------- 252 MMe re iPen my Olives sa. oe a- =e =i een Sinica 252 XLLV.—Sirines of wampum:-2.----2---- ~~ --6-= si 22-2 oo crcoencnn 254 XLY.—Ancient pendants.----. -----------------0" --20cse-on cor ece 256 XLVI.—Pendant ornaments, eastern forms. .----.------------++--+" 258 XLYVII.—Plain pendants, Pacific coast forms -.---------+-+--+++----" 260 x LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. Page. PuraTE XLYIII.—Pendant ornaments of the Pacific coast ---. -- ee eee 262 XLIX.—Plain pendants, Pacific coast forms...--..----------------- 264 L.—Perforated plates..---. .----- ---- «-sne. «<2 --2 = senna -=-=-- 266 LI.—Shell gorgets, the cross..---.---------.---------+--------- 268 _ LII.—The cross of the Mound-Builders. .---.----. --.----------- 27 LOL 00 Bees Ie dss) Seng Rasoce cob aoe Teh E Rs cos sei aceos Joscoe saahoSte 272 LIV.—Scalloped shell disk ......-----.-----------+++----- -------- 274 TLV: —Shel tdiskepces-eee esas ie eerie eee eee 276 LVI.—Scalloped shell disks.-....-..---.---.----------- ------<--- 278 LVIi.—Scalloped disks: ~~~ o-oo a 2 in wie en ee a= 280 LVIII.—Shell gorget—the bird.-..-. -....-.----------------------- 282 IVD. GWAC il pane ee peoc cada deo cee od coeSeEneSseeeosncS soscee 284 1bp.G— A Nya) | NbWals 5 coon soa cone csee Sebo soba coe A Her eorscseedecece 286 LXI.—Spider gorgets...----- .-.. 252-20 - we oe 2 en = 283 TXT — Rattlesnake vorsets o--44--eeeeeseee eee ees e eee 290 Axe ——Rathlesnake) OTS ets pe eee einen e ete eee eee ere 290 IeXiVe—Rattlesnake rorpetis a=. saa epee ce =i eile alee el 292 LXV.— Rattlesnake gorgets << -- 5-52 22-0 25-9 one een wo nn 292 TBP AM Reg ete cose e kanes boocen soo PoSecsbonanoy esescnas ceES 292 LXVII.—The human face..---. Reade poss BASED cen asoR boo cdassaccce 294 TOD. QD MIPS) ere eos Coco ann ose econ coos eoeEce ses orares soso sans 294 1bp-0 DING) abe een ooo coo eee boce sero sess coe con sess abes 296 (0). OA NOG Ip eM EES. a soos 6S csosscos seas gases Anse ores 296 LXXI.—Shell gorget, the human figure.....-.----.-------- SaeeEECS 298 LXXII.—Shell gorget, the human figure.......--.--.--------------- 298 LXXIII.—Shell gorget, the human figure........-.---------.-------- 300 LXXIV,—Engraved gorget, fighting figures. ....-.--.-.--.----.----- 300 1PNO.Q/e— 1 Nas) Nhe Ha) -o Sogo SoS sbo cosebcaaeuosceernoseessese 302 DXeXVil-—Compositertigunes)am cee: aisria= terse ale = eet eet ia laa 302 1D. OQ GED oyeeh Twa’ AN NE) Soe sooo eee bed Soos Sosa] coos canecsossesencs 304 BIG yl —-Concretions see sae eae iatars = eae alee ee eee ee ee eee eet 45 2:—Mineralifeti che sme acer tease mite eee eee tae eee aes 45 3:—Fossil fetichince2c2-to teleicle ieisler= 371-374.—Zuni water vases - .-.-- ---- See eee ae ee Scan eaoeenecics S10 -O1e— UNL Webel VASOS= <2. aim ose ere clei nlataveacie io clech-=anisinicciceecee rGejoto — AU ni CANON =o sean 2) asia ees eaies erasers pis Ne ae Be. — Zuni eatin, DOW oo. cic cela sneer le ateieniels sen) setniei=> == =-\= SS le — A Water VASOre eas ae ose ies sieetele alnletefamteioaniatnle/= == = = (—'— 382.—Zuni eating bowl. .... ..--.-.--222 2-20. -00ses eee - es esenns PIGS) 585-004,— Zon Water VASCS 2. cia =a\ereiain lien See ee eels eee ee ee oe en Oe) 537—039.— WOl pi DaSKOts= catmctse)-eije-== aes se eie ee cee ee eee eee 390 Ere. 540:—Wol pi floor; mat. =.=. 2 sa.5. 3 sec tere eee eee 390 FiGs.'541—542-—Wolpiibaskebs) soar icee eee aj eee eee eee eee eeioeee 390 543-545,—Wolpiibaskets)-- «cece -ccstaes cise ee nee e eee eee eee 391 EG 046: WOlip awe a yin 9S tC Kearse eee eee 392 547,—Woolplispindleiwhorle-- sme 3 2-3 = eee ee eee eee ee 392 Figs, 548-549: — Wolpirabbitisticks) 222. -ss- -onccsee eee sone eee enoeeee nes 392 BIG=(550:— Wil pinralke tomer) een ee ee OS Sol—=Wiol picdnum sti cise eee eee aan He eee eee ae eee aS Do2;——W ol pitreasure-DOk—. =. sean acetate eee ne eee eee Os 503. WO) pid anCe)e O00 recent Gee eee eee eee eee eee 393 554—Wolpittreasure-DOx seq 5.5 eae a ee eee eee 393 FIGS. 555-563.—Wolpi danceioraments 222-2. --2- sess sees eee ceee 393 HIG. (509. — Wiolipi head-dress\a= cere eee acaie eee eee eee eee 394 560;—Woolpisourdirattle 2. -=s= 24s ene eee ee eee eee eee 394 561.—Wolpi musical instrument ..--...-- Se ort een eee 394 562;—Woolpil gourd vattlete =.= ses see eee eee eee 394 FIGs:'563-560:— Wiel piiornaments) «-- ese ase eee a eae eee ee eee 394 566—569/—Wiolp! (efigies esses msec sade eee nese eee Scere evenioee eee 395 570-572; —WiOlipil fh gi OS ren says eet eee ae eee ee 396 BIG=573;—Wolpilhornilad] eye nses esse ee eee eee eee ee ee 397 574.—Wolpi hornirattl eso sma-is-s eee aie seen eae eee 397 5/9. WO pis pert ora tonya. sterile 22-1 eee eee eee one eee 397 576.—Wolpi arrow straightener .-.. .---2.-----0-.---.+e-5-2---2 397 577; —=Wolpiswristle tice se a- = nee eee ete eae eee eee eee 398 578:—W olpismoccasinit= 2 5.10 hss ace eee ee ee 398 579:-—=W/Ol pit Wristlet) seme sean ne caeee eee eee eee 398 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. XII Gone Wwotmidranee 22 5 ee ete eet 398 BGS AOS2-Hod.— WOlpl WIONKOb so. ou ... -...-------2-.--22-255--02-- 461 #id.— PROS POLshiINPySlONG S-2 2-22 soc cece cece ee acecccce cscs e- ABA Ff Dee syste Uae Saab sceoose casos coos eeeeotsocseeoscenep hn) Map showing location of the pueblos of Arizona and New Mexico -...----.----- 319 Sp DEE Gye UTE ON ae en ee AS oe pots BODE OB ocb CacSenoos=s ee soee 429 * = J é - » 7 * : i ' = a . ' * : . i) 9 « f : 4 ! : re Se i“ ° he 2 : p ayrnhy ee = : Pets 1aiWae : alia ee a uN =~ SECOND ANNUAL REPORT OF THE BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. BY J. W. POWELL, DIRECTOR. INTRODUCTORY. Researches among the North American Indians, as directed by act of Congress, have been diligently prosecuted during the fiscal year 1880-81. The plan of operations has consisted in— First. The direct employment of scholars and specialists to conduct investigations and prepare the results for publica- tion. Second. In inciting and guiding research immediately con- ducted by collaborators not directly connected with the Bureau of Ethnology. This branch of effort has been success- ful not only in this but in distant lands. The contributions already received from many parts of the world relating to the lower stages of culture among other peoples have been of great value in elucidating the problems presented in North America. ‘This collaboration has been obtained, first, by the wide circulation of the First Annual Report of the Bureau and of the three publications which preceded it, viz, ‘Introduction to the Study of Indian Languages,” ‘Introduction to the Study of Mortuary Customs,” and ‘Introduction to the Study of Sign Language,” also by the similar circulation of subse- quent publications hereinafter mentioned; second, by corre- spondence with persons whose ascertained abilities and oppor- tunities afforded a reasonable hope of their useful co-operation. xv XVI ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR By these agencies it has become generally known that contri- butions of the character explamed were invited and would be published speedily with due credit. The numerous and im- portant responses to requests for assistance have been and will continue to be thankfully acknowledged in the several publi- cations to which they are germane. The objects of savage and barbaric art contributed through the agencies mentioned have been deposited in the National Museum and receive ap- propriate public acknowledgment therefrom. PUBLICATIONS. INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY OF INDIAN LANGUAGES, BY MAJOR J. W. POWELL. In the year 1877 the Director of the Bureau published an “Introduction to the Study of Indian Languages,” which was widely distributed for the purpose of giving the direction and explanation necessary for the proper collection of linguistic material. More thorough knowledge on the subject and the experience of difficulties encountered demanded the prepara- tion of a new edition much enlarged and improved, with re- vised schedules of words, phrases, and sentences to be collected, which was issued by the Bureau in 1880. It now consists mainly in those explanations of characteristics which have been found to best meet the wants of persons practically at work in the field on languages with which they are not familiar. Besides the explanations of a strictly philologic character, such relating to other branches of anthropology were added (em- bracing arts, habits, customs, institutions, and opinions—in fact, the subject-matter of thought embodied in the several languages) as would assist in the full comprehension of the latter. A language, when mastered in this manner, affords in turn the key to most interesting and otherwise undiscoverable anthropologic facts. The scope of the attention given to such subjects, as they are connected with language, is exhibited by the list of the schedules of words and phrases other than those used for grammatic purposes, viz, Persons, Parts of the Body, OF THE BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. XVII Dress and Ornaments, Dwellings, Implements and Utensils, Food, Colors, Numerals, Measures, Divisions of Time, Stand- ards of Value, Animals, Plants, &c., Geographic Terms, the. Firmament, Meteorologic and other Physical Phenomena and Objects, Kinship, Social Organization, Government, Religion, Mortuary Customs, Medicine, Amusements. In each of the schedules above mentioned an explanation was given of certain anthropologic facts necessary to the proper understanding of the subjects, so that the student might as far as possible be put in possession of the thoughts of the Indian whose language he was endeavoring to compile. As the study of an unwritten language must commence by committing it to writing, and as no alphabet used by a civilized people will represent distinctly all the sounds of Indian lan- guages, the adoption of a proper alphabet became of prime importance. For many reasons the Roman alphabet was se- lected for use, with numerous modifications, the following fun- damental rules being observed: I. The Roman alphabet must be used without additions, and with only such diacritical marks as are found in ordinary fonts of type. II. Each sound must have a letter of its own. III. Each character must be used to represent but one sound. IV. The Roman alphabet must be used for sounds in the Indian tongue the same as or kindred to the sounds for which the letters are used in the English and other civilized lan- guages. This alphabetic scheme with copious illustrations by ex- amples has proved so successful in operation that collectors accustomed to former schemes have voluntarily, though at great labor, copied their manuscripts into that possessing such mani- fest advantages. Instruction specially adapted to Indian languages was also introduced upon the topics of new words, number and gender of nouns, demonstrative and adjective pronouns, personal and article pronouns, transitive verbs, possession, intransitive verbs, adjectives, adverbs, prepositions and nouns used as verbs, and II—E XVIII ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR voice, mode, and tense. Further sections were devoted to the suggestion of additional investigations, to the best mode of studying materials collected, and to the rank of Indian lan- guages as instruments for the expression of thought. The work therefore was designed, first, to briefly describe Indian lan- guages in those characteristics commonly found and more necessary to the student yet uninitiated; second, to lead the investigation by natural steps from that which is easily at- tained to that which is more difficult; third, to put the student in possession of such general anthropologic facts as are neces- sary to the intelligent prosecution of his work; and, fourth, to provide a practicable method of reducing an unknown lan- guage to writing. HOUSES AND HOUSE-LIFE OF THE AMERICAN ABORIGI- NES, BY LEWIS H. MORGAN. In the year 1881 the comprehensive and important work of Hon. Lewis H. Morgan, ‘‘ Houses and House-Life of the Ameri- can Aborigines,” was issued as Volume IV of Contributions to North American Ethnology. Its distinguished and lamented author, the pioneer of American anthropology, and recognized throughout the world as a leader in that science, has died since the publication of this his last scientific production, con- taining the matured results of the studies of his long and in- dustrious life. The main purpose of the work was to set forth the house- life and domestic institutions of the North American Indians as explaining the characteristics of Indian life. Earlier writers, with greater opportunities, have been markedly and unfortu- nately inattentive to this inquiry. These institutions appear to be more highly developed and firmly established than had been previously supposed, and faithfully portray the condition of mankind in two well-marked ethnic periods, viz, the Older Period and the Middle Period of barbarism, as they are called by Mr. Morgan, the first being well represented by the Iro- quois and several other tribes, and the second by the Aztecs, or ancient Mexicans, and the Indians of Yucatan and Central America. In no part of the earth now understood through OF THE BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. XIX history or exploration were these two stages of human prog- ress so well exemplified as by the Indian tribes of North America, with such diversities as varying degrees of advance- ment and varying degrees of environment of the several tribes would naturally produce. From the ascertained laws govern- ing that advance, from the uniformity of their operation, and from the necessary limitations of the development of intelli- gence, it may be inferred that our own remote ancestors passed through a similar experience and possessed corresponding in- stitutions. By this study, therefore, some portion of the lost history of our own race may be recovered, the Aryan family having preserved but to a limited extent, and that uncon- sciously, the data of its history prior to the closing period of barbarism. Mr. Morgan concludes from his researches that the family, during the abeve-mentionéd stages of progress, was too weak an organization to face alone the struggle of life, and sought a shelter for itself in large households composed of several fami- lies. The house for a single family was exceptional through- out aboriginal America, while the house large enough to accommodate several families was the rule. Moreover, the habitations were occupied as joint tenement houses. There was also a tendency to form the households on the principle of gentile kin, the mothers with their children being of the same gens or clan. The contents of the volume, which is illustrated by many plans and sketches, include: social and governmental organiza- tion; the law of hospitality and its general practice; com- munism in living; usages and customs with respect to land and food; and descriptions of the houses of Indians, classed as, 1st, those north of New Mexico; 2d, those of the sedentary Indians of New Mexico; 3d, houses in ruins of the sedentary Indians of the San Juan river and its tributaries; 4th, houses of the mound-builders; 5th, of the Aztecs, or ancient Mexi- cans; and, 6th, of the sedentary Indians of Yucatan and Cen- tral America. The work is of the highest value in correcting errors and exaggerations still prevalent, in removing the misconceptions xx ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR and erroneous interpretations encumbering the original records made by incompetent observers, and in directing further re- search on philosophic principles. LINGUISTIC WORK. As was explained in the First Annual Report, prime impor- tance is attached to linguistic researches. Without fundamental knowledge of those languages which can still be successfully studied, all other anthropologic peculiarities of the tribes speak- ing them will be imperfectly understood. The early publication of grammars and dictionaries connected with which are texts, or a body of literature obtained from Indian authorities, to illus- trate the facts and principles of the language, while also re- cording the genuine aboriginal philosophy and traditions, has, therefore, been regarded as essential. Interest in the Indians, which hitherto has been vague and ill-directed, even when most active, will by this means be gratified with an abundance of authentic material, and the models furnished will be imitated - and doubtless improved by scientific workers not connected with the Bureau. Three important contributions to Indian linguistics have been partly prepared and in part printed during the year, but on account of the slow progress through the press of publications of this character, requiring minute attention and many re- visions, they have not yet been issued. THE GEGIHA LANGUAGE, BY REV. J. OWEN DORSEY, The Qegiha language, spoken by that linguistic group of the great Siouan stock which is composed of the Ponka, Omaha, Kansas, Osage, and Kwapa tribes, has for a number of years been studied by Mr. Dorsey, who was long resident among those Indians, and has since revisited them for this special purpose. His Dictionary and Grammar, accompanied with myths, historical accounts and dictated papers, will be a more thorough presentation of an Indian language than has yet been published. GF THE BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. xXxI THE KLAMATH LANGUAGE, BY MR. A. S. GATSCHET. This Oregonian language, spoken by the Modoes and the Indians of Klamath Lake, shows many important character- istics. Its comprehensive and intelligent discussion by Mr. - Gatschet, with a copious dictionary and texts on the general plan before mentioned, is the result of his personal visits to the tribes, with the advantage of high linguistic attainments of a general character, by which the prosecution of the special study was rendered more expeditious and more accurate. His work is in press. THE DAKOTA LANGUAGE, BY REV. S. R. RIGGS. The constant study of the Dakota language by Rev. S. R. Riggs, during his life passed among the Indians of that stock, has shown that his Dictionary and Grammar, published in 1852 by the Smithsonian Institution, though of high and deserved repute, required correction, revision, and enlargement. This undertaking he commenced during the year 1880—81, and 665 quarto pages of it are now in type. The dialects embraced are those spoken by the body of Indians popularly known as Sioux, and designated by the Bureau as the Dakota division of the Siouan linguistic family. BIBLIOGRAPHY OF NORTH AMERICAN PHILOLOGY, BY MR. J. C. PILLING. The work of most general linguistic utility, which relates to all the languages of North America, is by Mr J.C. Pilling, being a Bibliography of North American Linguistics. It is an attempt to give, in alphabetic arrangement by authors, the full titles, in chronologic order, of all editions of works written in or upon any of the languages of North America. This re- pertory for the first time affords to students the essential infor- mation of all that has been done by their predecessors in the several directions toward which their studies may be turned. It will save in many cases duplication of labor, and bring into prominent notice material indispensable to thorough knowledge XXII ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR which otherwise would be unknown. In the preparation of this volume Mr. Pilling has, in addition to extensive corre- spondence, been compelled to visit distant parts of the country for personal examination of libraries and collections. Other linguistic volumes were in course of preparation dur- ing the year, no part of which was printed therein. Among these it is proper to mention the work of Mrs. Erminnie A. Smith, of Jersey City, on several of the Iroquoian dialects, and of Prof. Otis 'T. Mason on the Chata language. ETHNOLOGIC WORK. The First Annual Report of the Bureau, for the fiscal year 1879—80, was printed during the year 1881, forming a volume, in large octavo, of 638 pages. In addition to the papers in that Report, which it is not deemed necessary now to recapit- ulate, work upon other papers was continued or commenced during the year as follows: SIGN LANGUAGE AND PICTOGRAPHS, BY BREVET LIEUT. COL. GARRICK MALLERY, U. 8. A. The researches continued by Col. Garrick Mallery, upon gesture speech and pictographs, are connected on the one hand with philology and on the other with many points of anthropo- logic interest. These studies elucidate the attempts of the human mind in the expression of ideas independent of, whether or not prior to, the use of oral language. They show that di- rect visible expression of ideas, as distinct from their audible expression, has not been confined to the North American In- dians, though its systematic and general use by them is the most instructive exhibition of it now remaining among speak- ing men, and that a thorough comprehension of it as practiced by them is indispensable to any full discussion of the subject. Sufficient examples of it have been collected from many other bodies of men, ancient and modern, to suggest important rela- tions, not only between all the modes of expression, but be- OF THE BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. XXIII tween the particular visible forms produced by different peo- ples for the several ideas. Colonel Mallery’s paper on sign- language in the First Annual Report of the Bureau has been copied and noticed in scientific publications to such an extent as to awaken correspondence and collaboration of great value in the completion of the monograph on the subject in which he has been engaged. In addition, he has commenced an Intro- duction to the Study of Pictographs, with the hope of obtain- ing similar assistance in that study, so closely connected with the one last mentioned—sign language being the transient direct expression, and pictographs the permanent direct expression, of ideas totheeye. ‘The latter became the indirect expression when applied in the shape of writing to record oral speech. To the forms of pictographs, therefore, may probably be traced the structure of all the characters of writing used by man. The subject includes, besides ideographs, the interpretation of conventionalized or symbolic designs and the evolution of graphic art. Interesting results are expected from the com- parison of the large amount of material collected from North America with that known to exist in other parts of the world. MORTUARY CUSTOMS, BY DR. H. C. YARROW, U.S. A. Dr. Yarrow has continued researches into the mortuary cus- toms of the North American Indians, with discussion of com- parisons with them and parallels to them taken from history and all authorities in print or otherwise attainable. The large correspondence conducted and the fund of information accu- mulated for the monograph on this subject, in preparation by him, will render it exhaustive, while the correlation of facts collected increases its importance in relation to the philosophy and psychology of the whole human family. The scope of this work, the interest in which is popular as well as scientific, has been already explained in the First Annual Report. INDIAN CESSIONS OF LAND, BY MR. C. C. ROYCE, Mr. C. C. Royce was engaged during the year in the prep- aration of a Historical Atlas of Indian affairs, designed to show XXIV ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR by a series of charts the boundaries of the different cessions of land made to the United States from time to time by the various Indian tribes from the organization of the Federal Government to the present date. This work will also include within its scope a historical text, giving the date of each treaty, name of tribe or tribes with which concluded, an abstract of the principal provisions thereof, together with a narrative of the incidents connected with its negotiation and the causes leading thereto. The atlas will also contain a list of the prin- cipal mountain chains, rivers, lakes, and other natural objects, with a schedule of the different names by which each has been known from its earliest discovery to the present day, giving reference to authorities and dates. In the progress of this work much laborious research has been made among the maps and plats in the Library of Congress and the General Land Office. Original diagrams and reports have also been exam- ined and an extended correspondence conducted with individ- uals and historical societies in the several States. The necessary data for indicating the cessions of land within the present limits of the States of Ohio, Indiana, [linois, Ten- nessee, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, and Michigan have been almost wholly obtained. Much progress has also been made in a like manner with the States of Wisconsin, Iowa, Missouri, Arkansas, Minnesota, Kansas, and Nebraska. : This paper, when completed, will not only exhibit with authoritative detail many particulars now only vaguely known concerning the habitat and migrations of the several tribes, but will be of special convenience to lawyers and officials con- cerned in the investigation of original titles to land in the larger part of the United States. The difficult and tedious undertaking of classifying on a lin- guistic basis all the tribes, remaining and extinct, of North America has been continued by the Director, and progress has been made in their synonomy, or the reference to a correct standard of their multiplied and confusing titles as shown in literature and in common usage. The system of nomenclature OF THE BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. XXV decided upon, together with a series of charts displaying the habitat of all tribes when discovered and at subsequent periods, will be published as the most acceptable aid to working stu- dents of Indian history. Prof. Otis T. Mason was engaged during the year in a presentation of the important subject. of education among the Indians, embracing historically all the attempts made in that direction and their several results, together with the present condition of advance in literacy and general culture. The subject of the education and advance of the tribes in civilized industries, with an exhaustive account of their pristine industries and means of subsistence, was commenced by Mr. H. W. Henshaw. The following papers are in preparation: Introduction to the study of Sociology, as suggested by the tribal governments of North America; Introduction to the study of North American Mythology; Introduction to the study of North American Technology; and Introduction to the study of the Medicine Practices of the North American Indians. FIELD WORK. Mr. H. W. Henshaw spent a large part of the year in per- sonal examination of the tribes on the Pacific slope, including those of Washington Territory. Rev. S. D. Hinman visited the Dakotas, and Rev. Clay MacCauley, besides reporting upon the Ojibwas, made the first ethnologic exploration of the Semi- noles of Florida ever successfully attempted. The copious notes of these gentlemen will be utilized in future. The large amount of field work performed by Mrs. Ermin- nie A. Smith, Mr. Frank H. Cushing, and Mr. James Stevenson is hereinafter mentioned in connection with papers presented by them. XXVI ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR PAPERS ACCOMPANYING THIS REPORT. It has been before promised that the effort of this Bureau will be to prosecute work in the various branches of North American anthropology on a systematic plan, so that every important field may be cultivated, limited only by the amount appropriated by Congress. Each of the papers appended to this report has its proper place in the general scheme, the scope of which they, together with the other publications before noted, serve to indicate, and each was prepared with a special object. The line of research pursued by the several papers, with the circumstances attending their preparation, may be conveniently designated by some introductory remarks upon each of them in the order which they follow in this volume. ZUNI FETICHES, BY MR. FRANK HAMILTON CUSHING. Mention was made in the First Annual Report that Mr. Frank H.Cushing, of the Smithsonian Institution, had proceeded to and was at the time residing at the pueblo of Zuni, New Mexico, to study the language, mythology, sociology, and art of its inhabitants. During the winter of 187980 he had by diligent study acquired a conversational knowledge of the lan- guage of the Zunis, and had made numerous sketches and notes on their sacred dances and on the meetings of some of their secret societies, which he succeeded in observing. During the succeeding summer and autumn he continued his investigations into the mythology, traditions, and sacerdotal as well as governmental institutions of the Indians, and ex- plored many of the traditional ruins within a radius of 50 miles of Zuni. Before the end of the year he had so far ac- quired knowledge of the Zuni language as to take an important position in councils, and was made chief councilor of the nation. This increased knowledge also enabled him to learn tradi- tions bearing on historic matters. Among these was one concerning the ruin of Ke’id-kf-me, at the base of Té-ai-ydllon-ue (Thunder Mountain), a mesa stronghold three miles east of Zuni, which related to the death OF THE BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. XXVII of “The Black Mexican with thick lips,” in whom he recog- nized the “Barbary Negro Estevanico,” of Cabega da Vaca and Marco de Nica, known to have been killed about the year 1539 in the neighborhood. Inquiries instituted by this recog- nition led to the specific determination of the sites of nearly all the “‘Séven Cities of Cibola,” the principal of which—A-ha- cus, in Spanish (Ha-wi-kuhs, in Zuni)—was situated at Ojo Caliente. He conjectured, also, that Cibola was derived from the Zuni name of their country, She-wo-na or Shi-wi-na, which led to the belief, ultimately confirmed by old Spanish records, that there was no one city of Cibola, but that all together were known by that name. During the month of January, 1881, he made a trip with one companion along the line of ruins marking the sites of the pueblos referred to in the Zuni ritualistic recitals, as far west as the valley of the Colorado Chiquito. He not only dis- covered a series of monuments, but also verified the correct- ness of the recitals above referred to by a study of the myth- ologic pictographs with which many of them and the surround- ing rocks were covered. Some 15 miles south from the town of San Juan, or Bar- deto, he found in the same valley a remarkable line of conical hills, containing craters, the caverns of which had been used by the ancestors of the Zunis as sacrificial depositories. In these he had the good fortune to discover. numerous well-pre- served sacrificial plumed sticks, and many conventionally dec- orated prayer-slats or altar-tablets, bows, arrows, basket-work, and fabrics of the ancient inhabitants of the valley. One of his discoveries was that of ancient cigarettes of cane and corn- leaves, proving that the cigarette, as well as the pipe, was of American origin. During the succeeding spring, with one soldier and a citizen, he again set out for the cave country, re-exploring not only the caverns before visited but also other important grottoes on the Rio Concho, and the caves still used as sacrificial deposito- ries by the Zunis, near La Laguna del Colorado Chiquito, north of San Juan. The collections, the greater portions of which were cached, aggregated over two thousand specimens. XXVIII ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR On this expedition he examined also numerous important ruins, many of which were perfectly preserved. One, situated _ on a mesa 30 miles south of San Juan, proved to be unin- terruptedly over 3 miles in length, an example, doubtless, of successive occupation and abandonment. The results obtained by Mr. Cushing’s explorations in Zuni, where he still remains, have been worthy of the industry and ability, the courage and self-denial, with which they have been prosecuted. Important facts of the most varied character have been brought to light, many of them substantiated or illus- trated by objects discovered and transmitted. Copious notes on the several branches of study have been made by him, and on some of them he has commenced to write treatises, which he has withheld from publication only to insure their complete- ness and accuracy. The paper now presented, on Zuni Fe- tiches, is a specimen of the novel and curious information which his researches furnish. The philosophy of the Zunis is an admirable example of that stage in savagery where a transition is shown from zoétheism into physitheism, with survivals of hekastotheism. In this stage fetichism is the chief religious means of obtaining success and protection. The fetiches most valued by the Zunis are natural concretions or eroded rock-forms, having an obvious or fancied resemblance to certain animals, or objects of that nature in which the evident original resemblance has been heightened by artificial means. It is supposed that these fe- tiches are actual petrifactions of the animals represented’ by them, which retain their vital forces for certain magic powers and religious purposes. This belief is explained in a remarka- ble epic, metrical and sometimes rhythmical, and filled with archaic expressions, which is in part translated by Mr. Cushing A noticeable point in the paper is the elaborate and system- atized relationships shown among and between the animals, the animal gods, and other supernatural beings having animal or combined animal and human personalities. This consti- tutes a theistic society with an elaborate hierarchy and regu- lated domains, powers, and obligations. Such minuteness in multiformity, as well as the precision of the beliefs and cere- OF THE BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. XXIX monials stated, will be surprising, not only to persons who have been taught the old fiction of the Indian’s monotheism, but to those who have regarded his religious philosophy to be vague and chaotic. The facts are presented with the same corroboration of etymologies in language used so successfully by scholars in the study of Eurasian myths, and with further verification by objects in the National Museum, figured in the illustrations. MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS, BY MRS. ERMINNIE A. SMITH. The myths, mythic tales, and folk-lore of a savage or bar- barian people correspond with the literature of civilization. In them, with proper attention to the archeology embraced in the language, scientifically studied, in which they are ex- pressed, may be found all of its philosophy and all of its his- tory and prehistoric customs that can ever be known. These myths and tales are constantly repeated, often with publicity and ceremony, and the audiences having heard them many times, with the precise verbal memory characteristic of intelligent tribes to whom writing is unknown, are critical as to accuracy of rendition. Furthermore, certain words, espe- cially names and titles preserved in the narratives, are some- times archaic, requiring better etymologists than the modern Indians to ascertain their true meaning, and are only under- stood when the language has been reduced to writing by lin- guistic scholars. The narrators do not understand or pretend to explain what they have received as handed down to them, but simply produce what they have memorized. When col- lected with thorough understanding of the language, and with collation of the several versions, these oral traditions may be presented in substantial purity with intrinsic evidence of their antiquity. Many tales have been published of the sayings and doings of the Indian gods and heroes, and some relating to their home- life, institutions, and customs, but few of these have been free from blunder or perversion. Generally the dubious medium of interpreters was necessary, and the disposition to poetize or XXX ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR color with European sentiment was often apparent, even when distortion in support of favorite theories did not destroy the spirit and real significance of the original. It has been before mentioned that, by the plan of the Bu- reau, the myths and folk-lore of the several tribes are pre- served and recorded in their own languages, with interlinear translation, and without foreign coloring or addition, in con- nection with the several dictionaries of those languages. ‘The paper of Mrs. Erminnie A. Smith, though not at this time pre- senting the original language, is written after her reductions of the original to writing, in the course of her linguistic work, and after prolonged residence among the Iroquois tribes, into one of which, the Tuscarora, she was adopted. It is, there- fore, an authoritative rendering of some of the Iroquoian myths, both in their letter and spirit. Such of them as have appeared in other forms will be favorably contrasted with those versions in European languages, and others have been for the first time collected by her. Special interest will be awakened by the purely aboriginal character of the Great Heads, the Stone Giants, and the Echo God as now disclosed. ANIMAL CARVINGS FROM MOUNDS OF THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY, BY MR. HENRY W. HENSHAW. While industry is required to rescue from oblivion the lan- guages, institutions, and all anthropologic peculiarities of the Indians, so fast disappearing by absorption, no less care is needed to correct, by careful analysis, the many false state- ments which corrupt the mass of literature concerning them, upon which prevalent theories have been based. [ven after facts have been established and errors eliminated, the science of anthropology must call in the aid of other sciences to deter- mine the value and application of the data comprised in its field of study. The discreditable fact that until within a few years past no real advance has been made in the ethnology of North America is by no means owing to the paucity of published material, but rather to its enormous quantity, confused by its unordered bulk and filled with contradictions and absurdities. Of the costly libraries devoted to collections on this special OF THE BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. XXXxI subject, the catalogues of which are ponderous tomes, but few pages are of actual value except to a trained scholar who can discern the germ of truth even in a blundering statement, and whose own knowledge is a touchstone for the detection of spu- rious productions. The most active cause in the distortion and fabrication now easily exposed by scientific methods of examination, but once accepted as verity, was the general resolve to designate as before and above all other points of interest the particular body of men in the eastern hemisphere to which the Indians belonged and from which they made their exodus. That they did come from the ‘‘old” world, the one known to history, was postulated, and as all the so-called ‘‘races of mankind” were more confidently enumerated in past generations than by the most recent authorities, it was deemed essential to fix the place of the Americans in the then undoubted though now rejected classification. As a secondary but closely connected obliga- tion, their lines of migration within this continent were to be defined. With the unscrupulous zeal common to polemics, all observations were made through the medium adapted to a preconceived theory, while the garbling and perversion of the lower class of writers supplemented the phantasies of those better intentioned. Upon the discovery and partial exploration of the numerous mounds in the great basin of the Mississippi, a new field was opened to enthusiastic theorists. Ignoring the fact that many of the historic Indians have practised the building of mounds, indeed that some are still building them, it was assumed that these works were the vestiges of a dense and extinct popula- tion whose advance in civilization was much superior to that of the known American Indians. From the size and forms of the mounds, their location, and the objects contained in them, writers have set forth the origin, migration, numbers, institu- tions, art, and religions of their builders. This attempt was not illegitimate nor impracticable of execution if made after complete exploration and comparison in a scientific spirit, by experts possessing the requisite special training. It will be the duty of the Bureau of Ethnology to devote careful attention XXXII ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR to this interesting field of archeology. But those who have hitherto conducted the researches have betrayed a predetermi- nation to find something inexplicable on the simple hypothesis of a continuous Indian population, and were swept by blind zeal into serious errors even when they were not imposed upon by frauds and forgeries. Some of the latter, consisting of ob- jects manufactured for sale to supply the manifested craving afterthe marvelous, and even inscribed tablets suggesting alpha- betic or phonetic systems, have recently been exposed by the agency of this Bureau. Some of the most deservedly respected of the writers on the branch of research indicated have deduced important in- ferences from the asserted high degree of excellence in the animal carvings taken from the mounds, and their apparent portrayal of the forms of certain animals not now found in the same region. Mr: H. W. Henshaw, skilled as a naturalist, especially as an ornithologist, and familiar by personal ex- ploration with a large part of our national territory, was led to examine into the truth of these statements, repeated from author to author without question or criticism, and used as data in all discussions relating to the mounds. The result is in the important paper now published. His conclusions, which, from the evidence adduced, seem to be incontroverti- ble, are of such material consequence that they are here repeated, as follows: . ‘First. That, of the carvings from the mounds which can be identified, there are no representations of birds or animals not indigenous to the Mississippi Valley; and consequently, that the theories of origin for the Mound Builders suggested by the presence in the mounds of carvings of supposed for- eign animals are without basis. “Second. That a large majority of the carvings, instead of being, as assumed, exact likenesses from nature, possess in reality only the most general resemblance to the birds and animals of the region which they were doubtless intended to represent. “Third. That there is no reason for believing that the OF THE BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. XXXII masks and sculptures of human faces are more correct like- nesses than are the animal carvings. “Fourth. That the state of art-culture reached by the Mound Builders, as illustrated by their carvings, has been greatly overestimated.” Mr. Henshaw’s paper, while of high value as a successful destructive criticism, liberating an extensive field of research from much error and fraud, also furnishes an instructive com- parison of the art shown in the mounds with that of the modern Indians, and exhibits the relations of conventionalism to imitation in the evolution of graphic art. NAVAJO SILVERSMITHS, BY DR. WASHINGTON MAT- THEWS, U.S. A. © Dr. Washington Matthews, assistant surgeon in the United States Army, distinguished in anthropology from his ‘Eth- nography and Philology of the Hidatsa Indians” and other works, has spared time from his official duties at Fort Win- gate to continue his studies of the Indian tribes accessible from his post. With his persevering industry he has brought into notice the peculiar appliances and processes of the silver- smiths among the Navajos. Some interest connected with prehistoric inquiries is attached to this exhibition of aboriginal art. It is known that at the period of the Spanish invasion the Mexican tribes had attained some skill in metallurgy, and inference has been made that the sedentary Indians of New Mexico used the forge. The Navajos, from their proximity, may have learned the art from these sources, and their adap- tation to itis suggested by the expertness of other tribes in the same linguistic stock—the Athabaskan, though far distant in habitat, whose gold ornaments made in British Columbia and Alaska are remarkable for beauty. However the art may have become known to the Navajos, their productions in it have improved of late years by their notice of European appliances, especially their voluntary em- ployment of the fine files and emery paper now procurable. The paper of Dr. Matthews is a valuable chapter to the study of Indian industries, and presents additional evidence that the 1—E XXXIV ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR aboriginal mind is not incapable of arriving at success in civilized industries without violent compulsion or intermin- able training, provided that judgment be exercised in the work at first required. ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS, BY MR. WILLIAM H. HOLMES. This paper is an example of the proper mode of conducting research into the archeology of America, especially as it is to be studied from the mounds—one of the main respositories of all that may be learned of precolumbian human life. This mode is the correct classification of accurately observed facts, within such limits as to be practically exhaustive of the field selected, and by an observer especially adapted by talent and training to that selected field. The range of art in shell, though having well-defined limits, is more extensive than has hitherto been generally known. The shells of mollusks were doubtless used at a very early period as vessels for food and water, and were commonly known to pristine men who, attracted by the food products of the great waters, resorted to the sea shore or the banks of estuaries for residence or annual migrations. In time it was found that modifications of the natural shell would increase its usefulness, and the breaking away of useless parts and sharpening of edges were readily suggested. As transporta- tion became desirable, changes were made for that object, one obvious device being the artificial repetition of perfo- rations natural to certain shells, through which they were strung on vines or cords of fiber and suspended about the neck—probably originating the use of pendants as mere personal ornaments. The farther the objects became trans- ported from the source of supply, in the course of migrations or in barter, the higher became the value attached to them, the greater the varieties in their forms, and the more diverse the uses to which they were applied. As is known to travel- ers among far inland tribes, the shell of the sea has often be- come connected with their superstitions, and are consequently highly prized. OF THE BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. XXXV Shells, and the objects made from them, are so destructible that they have not often been preserved from antiquity to tell the stories of a prehistoric world more enduringly impressed in stone. Had not the practice prevailed of burying them with the dead in the repose of protected graves or tumuli, they would rarely appear as articles of archzxologic instruction. But in the great region in North America which is filled with artificial mounds, exploration discloses deposits of shells of so great a number and in such a variety as to form an impor- tant division supplementary to the age of stone. It is shown from these discoveries that the nature of the material has given a bias to artificial products, and has impressed its forms and functions upon art products in other materials. The shell art of the people who built the mounds records a noteworthy and unwonted effort of the human mind, distinctive in the forms developed as in the material, and so unprecedented in some of the ideas represented as not yet to be fully comprehended. What is already ascertained, however, constitutes an essential chapter in the evolution of human culture. Although Mr. Holmes enjoys high repute as an artist, his pursuits have also been scientitic, by which combination of training he is exceptionally fitted for the work undertaken. The artist appreciates beauty of execution and idea, can detect resemblances and ruling motives in art, and can provide the requisite graphic illustrations, in which the paper now pub- lished excels. The examination and discussion of the objects, with relegation to categories, demanded scientific methods. Severe study was also devoted to the comparison and applica- tion of all that can be gleaned from literature bearing upon the subject. With equal caution and modesty Mr. Holmes, while offering suggestions with force and penetration, has announced no the- ories. In the most original and individual part of his work— that discussing the engravings upon gorgets—he simply con- tends for their significance and for their elevation from the category of trinkets into a serious art, leaving for others the interpretation. A deduction not made by the author may per- haps be suggested by the comparisons from art and literature XXXVI ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR furnished by him, to the effect that the artistic methods of the Mound Builders are traceable among the historic tribes of North America, tending to show that, contrary to the once current belief based exclusively on the same evidence, there is no marked racial distinction between them. ILLUSTRATED CATALOGUES OF THE COLLECTIONS OB- TAINED FROM THE INDIANS OF NEW MEXICO AND ARI- ZONA IN 1879 AND 1880, BY MR. JAMES STEVENSON. During the field seasons of the years 1879 and 1880, extend- ing into 1881, Mr. James Stevenson was in charge of a party to make explorations in and obtain collections from the country occupied in part by the Indians of New Mexico and Arizona. The most important and most fruitful field was the pueblo of Zuni, but valuable specimens were also secured from Wolpi, Laguna, Acoma, Cochiti, San Domingo, Tesuque, Santa Clara, San Juan, Jemez, Old Pecos, the Cation de Chelley, and from the Jicarillas. The objects procured by these expeditions, now deposited in the National Museum and enumerated, to- gether with sufficient description, in the catalogue published, amount to three thousand nine hundred and five, the most in- teresting and typical of them being illustrated, for the benefit of students unable to examine the originals, in three hundred and sixty-eight figures. ‘The specimens consist of implements of war and hunting, articles used in domestic manufacture, cloth- ing and personal ornaments, basketry, horse trappings, images, toys, stone tools, musical instruments, objects used in religious ceremonies and in games, fabrics, paints, dye stuffs, medicines, and many other articles. The most precious part of the collec- tion, however, is the pottery, which Mr. Stevenson divides into six classes: 1, the red or uncolored; 2, the brown ware; 3, the black ware; 4, the cream white decorated in colors; 5, the red ware decorated; and 6, the ancient pottery. Mr. Stevenson’s remarkable success has been accomplished, not only by great energy, but by tact and skill in winning the confidence of Indian tribes, resulting from his experience in former expeditions. His catalogue is by no means a mere enumeration, but is accompanied by a judicious amount of dis- OF THE BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. XXXVI . cussion and comparison which render the paper in itself of sub- stantial value, He is engaged upon a further and more minute presentation of industries and technical processes. These expeditions have secured only just in time, and de- posited for permanent study, the materials necessary to under- stand the life and history of a most interesting body of people. While it wiil always be regretted that similar exhaustive ex- plorations, shown now to be feasible, had not been applied to many other tribes whose original possessions have been lost, some yet remain to reward well-directed effort, which it is the purpose of this Bureau to continue. CLASSIFICATION OF EXPENDITURES MADE DURING THE FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 1881. g g a ry Ey a er Es ge 58 eB g8 Bs EE Es Be Classification. Ee] EPI BS $3 Total. 5’o os BO =} os S os i=] i) aso 6 ss Ee Ee ae oe a 8 2 z i i Fy a Ac — SOI WICOS eases eae en eae meinen $3,322 40 | $4,666 92 | $8,860 32 $1,136 19] $12,985 83 *p —Traveling expenses - --.-- 44 25 988 70 C.—Transportation of propert 155 87 D.—Field subsistence ------- - 498 50 E.—Field supplies and expenses - 98 22 ¥.—Field material .....-....-.-..-.----- 95 60 LCR oe Lyte .o2 Ieoee ochoSocaso seabed ke pe ce send boeeeseccmec| PEStHonEeee | petetecseees Paamnatsecios H —Laboratory TICIPATE, gee tuck eae | Pete el [ete ee etal te ee el par ope a a I.—Photographic material. . 1, 272 04 K.—Books and maps 25 26 L.—Stationery and drawing m erial 191 85 M.—Illustrations for reports Sc2sss 570 65 IS UDOT oe boc saan sc eesosoe-| Sees acceted Resse ocecees| Fenecebennse PEBECe ep oso bosme. Seren O.—Office furniture -........---.-.--.--- ib 879 25 P.—Office supplies and repairs - 23 328 52 (ra es Te i See 100 R.—Correspondence. . ee 30 74 S —Articles for distribution to Indians... 552 92 T.—Specimens = 365 05 SRo tate eee aie eee roa 4, 299 73 7,391 95 7, 042 05 1, 266 27 20, 000 00 a Te Aa.) = a AS oe. ae aa » 7 4 7 = . ; i ie’ ‘ + = an. mi uUvsde Phe OCTET one apacettio saya ones tiicortez t ail ten? ei (ing eda sober Milbesiet rh as A ib zo ajuditiie Bost) TW snail meg: Dagan th : fot te yA havo lif rete five tata anaes dj dailee asia ak ag aN fary phan pana = i ae Tt 9 ee, adi ie aad ing VW “Syd iiorpees eng att ns . ‘hays iggy, oa welt ih tage Adee nora: Beane tpi I I : ; ee Hc ia ae pall tytiay Tre Lat et gpmoat pee ayes as ah bo thgigat tae] ie ae allieiagle at ee fe bey reer ist wits yeas rar diego aout ee a ; altel 1h Herth Luwnllbatwalwes (ord), sone do ‘wednneldp tly ah » aie a ‘ | ° Ss : ie wotg a is naar ROMO WF ae ae] Ware rs Leb oT seal iv : S rt r i ie Sy Hz 6 2, 4 ee: “ep i Wont ry’ La ie 7h =H a ot ee a Nie ¥ 5 , ] a : is fa pa. 2 ee Frcs sa i> Mi ; by ei eee toe ee ed brie ke © a ee ee ny: 5 4% iP # i BNE 4 _ * J be de . \ 78" ; 2 ae ere Rt ena 5 oat :* gn UREN a en ad i iat ‘ ¥ mo Ls py Boni of ah ' We ita Ve dit yy We “Ee als Lo Gd = i‘ 7 a a a 7 a a i a= An Die a : > 3 ad re a) ROE 4 ar a me = ‘ 1 ‘ , * ACCOMPANYING PAPERS. SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION——BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. Ae Eee TCH ES, BY FRANK HAMILTON CUSHING. CONTENTS. LAT NAGEL aaiooes Saba rlececc.s GoDsbe Gane 6 csccc: Smee enonoadas Geo teu nese sece Wrorshiplofanimalal =. ceessfoe ee cnia- So aroa sae eae caee csac necenianic so cse Oripinof Aun HOviCHISM |, eee ona case ces isanietaecneome Sense caeewes. Pe Aur iad ss car. case eee sae = sei oe a= sare cise\oesaycce cine clowjocontecnncs ANPOW Dry ROE TG) WUGHTG loa SS pl bneon Sse ce cSOSSHERbOIos0 CosS bee Roe JERR CieULOG) DGC) 5 Ae coacncns aacsoo Gocsos Hoe SSDS CobEed toes ceoenbods PTS yi GOGH Ob LHI Sis LOD TONS mee eee emia ten a eens =a e crise siscinces TDC GaN ET SSses.encece nee BANS s OSS Obs Boks con MAH ea CUCeCEanSa Coon BeSeae Ges hia) lol eee sete Re = Se eeece or cece cea ce May eect eceuess PLNSL PO WOM AS WMOGIAGONS eee oe aoe ocacl ee sa; sone Saetc woe eee s seeeasicese MSS OS Umer stn ices ee icteanteine = cieic ena nis oe tins Some bee seeceGoce bee bane PNG WOISHI estes cece cesar teen ase ee atch orsnesiecas sacewenelscss breygGodsotinertuntion sc omer ac tania aoe ieee ninsja seas = alse sieseeeaeees: heir relation totheiothers:.<-)=..-= 9. 4---- +-secc5s--soceseecccc wees saan sc Their origin..--....---.. he distruibutionlof the animals: sacs ssel ceise os cstse cose acts owelccs clee PE NOL E VAN BLOM em ettentateyesta ave clett assay sialsisate/ateaisiai aise aia sais. sic) S- paraiels ceerenere The Mountain Lion---Hunter God of the North.... ---.. ..---. ..---.- The Coyote—Hunter God of the West... ----. .---.----. 2 s--2 eee The Wild Cat—Hunter God of the South. .-.-.........--- et sen esee es The Wolt—Hunter God of the Past. --2....-.-c csc cwscooc concen cecces The Eagle—Hunter God of the Upper Regions..-....-...--.. vacates ee The Mole—Hunter God of the Lower Regions...-....---....-..--...- The Ground Owl and the Falcon...........-.... ....- ihe wsreleiivervalMmes as -mcs..ca- epee oa ianeatds cis secees «asics cas see cee TIN GNR ATE Nock aas ceGoee Sf 6 COGOSE SUS rice SE SERRE eon ae eee Mhewipesob ther worships. oo ose- eae = see.) eae a5 Sokieiwt celeb aeew: ose The Day of the Council of the Fetiches.........-.-.--.-.@-........-- Ceremontals Oltae HONG ase nsimenc oss ae S22 oc seen Sesencee 18 ZUNI FETICHES. will. Therefore make I thee the younger brother of the Eagle, the guardian and master of the Lower regions, for thou burrowest through the earth without tiring, and thy coat is of black, the color of the holes and eaves of earth,” ete. THEIR POWER AS MEDIATORS. Thus it may be seen that all these animals are supposed to possess not only the guardianship of the six regions, but also the mastership, not merely geographic, but of the medicine powers, ete., which are supposed to emanate from them; that they are the mediators between men and P6-shai-ay-ki’a, and conversely, between the latter and men. As further illustrative of this relationship it may not be amiss to add that, aside from representing the wishes of men to P6-shai-an-lia, by means of the spirits of the prayer plumes, which, it is supposed, the prey gods take into his presence, and which are, as it were, memoranda (like quippus) to him and other high gods of the prayers of men, they are also made to bear messages to men from him and his associated gods. For instance, it is believed that any member of the medicine orders who neglects his religious duties as such is rendered liable to punish- ment (Hii/-ti-a-Wia-na-k’ia=reprehension) by P6-shai-an-Wia through some one of his warriors. As illustrative of this, the story of an adventure of Mi-tsi, an Indian who ‘still lives, but limps,” is told-by the priests with great emphasis to any backsliding member. MI-TSI. Mi-tsi was long a faithfnl member of the Little Fire order (Ma-ke-tsa- na-kwe), but he grew careless, neglected his sacrifices, and resigned his rank as “Keeper of the Medicines,” from mere laziness. In vain his fathers warned him. He only grew hot with anger. One day Mi-tsi went up on the mesas to eut corral posts. He sat down to eat his dinner. A great black bear walked out of the thicket near at hand and leisurely approached him. Mi-tsi dropped his dinner and climbed a neighboring little dead pine tree. The bear followed him and climbed it, too. Mi-tsi began to have sad thoughts of the words of his fathers. “ Alas,” he eried, “ pity me, my father fromthe West-land!” In vain he promised to be a good Ma-ke-tsa-na-kwe. Had not P6-shai-ay-k’ia commanded ? So the black bear seized him by the foot and pulled until Mi-tsi screamed from pain; but, cling as he would to the tree, the bear pulled him to the ground. Then he lay down on Mi-tsi and pressed the wind out of him so that he forgot. The black bear started to go; but eyed CUSHING.] POWER AS MEDIATORS. 19 Mi-tsi. Mi-tsikicked. Black bear came and pressed his wind out again. It hurt Mi-tsi, and he said to himself, “Oh dear me! what shall I do? The father thinks Iam not punished enough.” So he kept very still. Black bear started again, then stopped and looked at Mi-tsi, started and stopped again, growled and moved off, for Mi-tsi kept very still. Then the black bear went slowly away, looking at Mi-tsi all the while, until he passed a little knoll. Mi-tsi crawled away and hid under a log, Then, when he thought himself man enough, he started for Zuni. He was long sick, for the black bear had eaten his foot. He “still lives and limps,” but he is a good Ma-ke-tsé-na-kwe. Who shall say that P6-shai- ay-Wia did not command ? THEIR WORSHIP. The prey gods,through their relationship to P6-shai-ay-k’ia, as “ Makers of the Paths of Life,” are given high rank among the gods. With this belief, their fetiches are held “as in captivity” by the priests of the various medicine orders, and greatly venerated by them as mediators between themselves and the animals they represent. In this character they are exhorted with elaborate prayers, rituals, and ceremonials. Grand sacrifices of plumed and painted prayer-sticks (Téthl-na-we) are made annually by the “Prey Brother Priesthood” (Wé-ma 4-pa-pa 4-shi-wa-ni) of these medicine societies, and at the full moon of each month lesser sacrifices of the same kind by the male members of the “Prey gentes” (Wé-ma 4-no-ti-we) of the tribe. PREY GODS OF THE HUNT. THEIR RELATION TO THE OTHERS. The fetich worship of the Zufis naturally reaches its highest and most interesting development in its relationship to the chase, for the We-ma-A-ha-i are considered par excellence the gods of the hunt. Of this class of fetiches, the special priests are the members of the “ Great Coyote People” (Sa-ni-a-l’ia-kwe, or the Hunting Order), their keepers, the chosen members of the Hagle and Coyote gentes and of the Prey Brother priesthood. The fetiches in question (Plate III) represent, with two exceptions, the same species of prey animals as those supposed to guard the six regions. These exceptions are, the Coyote (Sts-ki, Plate III, Fig. 2), which replaces the Black Bear of the West, and the Wild Cat (Té-pi, Plate III, Fig. 3), which takes the place of the Badger of the South. In the prayer-songs of the Sa-ni-a-kia-kwe, the names of all of these prey gods are, with two exceptions, given in the language of the Rio Grande Indians. This is probably one of the many devices for securing greater secrecy, and rendering the ceremonials of the Hunter Society mysterious to other than members. The exceptions are, the Coyote, or Hunter god of the West, known by the arcliaic name of Thiii/-k’ia-tehu, instead of by its ordinary name of Sts-ki, and the Prey Mole or god of the Lower regions (Plate II], Fig. 5), which is named Mai-tu-pu, also archaic, instead of K7iii/-lu-tsi. Yet in most of the prayer and ritualis- tic recitals of this order all of these gods are spoken of by the names which distinguish them in the other orders of the tribe. THEIR ORIGIN. While all the prey gods of the hunt are supposed to have functions differing both from thuse of the six regions and those of the Priesthood of the Bow, spoken of further on, they are yet referred, like those of the first class, to special divisions of the world. In explanation of this, however, quite another myth is given. This myth, like the first, is derived from the epic before referred to, and occurs in the latter third of the long recital, where it pictures the tribes of the Zunis, under the guidance of the Two Children, and the Ka/-ka at Ko-thlu-él-lon-ne, now a marsh-bordered lagune situated on the eastern shore of the Col- orado Chiquito, about fifteen miles north and west from the pueblo of 20 BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. In ae a Ae | PREY GOD FETICHES OF THE HUNT. CUSHING. ] ORIGIN OF THE HUNTER GODS. PA San Juan, Arizona, and nearly opposite the mouth of the Rio Concho. This lagune is probably formed in the basin or crater of some extinct geyser or volcanic spring, as the two high and wonderfully similar mountains on either side are identical in formation with those in which occur the cave-craters farther south on the same river. It has, how- ever, been largely filled in by the débris brought down by the Zuni River, which here joins the Colorado Chiquito. Ko-thlu-éllon signi- fies the “standing place (city) of the Ka/-ka” (from Kd=a contraction of Ka/-ka, the sacred dance, and thlu-él-lon=standing place). THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE ANIMALS. Men began their journey from the Red River, and the Ka/-ka still lived, as it does now, at K6-thlu-éllon-ne, when the wonderful Snail People (not snails, as may be inferred, but a tribe of that name), who lived in the “Place of the Snails” (K’id-ma-lW’ia-kwin), far south of where Zuni now is, caused, by means of their magic power, all the game animals in the whole world round about to gather together in the great forked cation-valley under their town, and there to be hidden. The walls of this cation were high and insurmountable, and the whole valley although large was filled full of the game animals, so that their feet rumbled and rattled together like the sound of distant thunder, and their horns crackled like the sound of a storm in a dry forest. All round about the cation these passing wonderful Snail People made a road (line) of magic medicine and sacred meal, which road, even as a corral, no game animal, even though great Elk or strong Buck Deer, could pass. Now, it rained many days, and thus the tracks of all these animals tending thither were washed away. Nowhere could the Ka/-ka or the children of men, although they hunted day after day over the plains and mountains, on the mesas and along the canon-valleys, find prey or trace of prey. Thus it happened that after many days they grew hungry, almost famished. Even the great strong Sha’-la-k’o and the swift Sa-la-mo-pi-a walked zigzag in their trails, from the weakness of hunger. At first the mighty Ka/-ké and men alike were compelled to eat the bones they had before cast away, and at last to devour the soles of their moccasins and even the deer-tail ornaments of their dresses for want of the flesh of Wiap-in-4-ha-i, Game animals. Still, day after day, though weak and disheartened, men and the Ka/- kA sought game in the mountains. At last a great Elk was given lib- erty. His sides shook with tallow, his dewlap hung like a bag, so fleshy was it, his horns spread out like branches of a dead tree, and his crackling hoofs cut the sands and even the rocks as he ran westward. He circled far off toward the Red River, passed through the Round Valley, and into the northern canons. The Sha’-la-k’o was out hunting. 22 ZUNI FETICHES. He espied the deep tracks of the elk and fleetly followed him. Passing swift and strong was he, though weak from hunger, and ere long he came in sight of the great Elk. The sight gladdened and strengthened him; but alas! the Elk kept his distance as he turned again toward the hiding-place of his brother animals. On and on the Sha’-la-k’o fol- lowed him, until he came to the edge of a great canon, and peering over the brink discovered the hiding-place of all the game animals of the world. “ Aha! so here you all are,” said he. ‘Vl hasten back to my father, Pa-u-ti-wa,* who hungers for flesh, alas! and grows weak.” And like the wind the Sha’ la-k’o returned to K6-thlu-él-lon-ne. Entering, he in- formed the Ka/-ka, and word was sent out by the swift Sa-la-mo-pi-at to all the We-ma-4-ha-i for counsel and assistance, for the We-ma-a-ha-i were now the Fathers of men and the Ka/-ka. The Mountain Lion, the Coyote, the Wild Cat, the Wolf, the Eagle, the Falcon, the Ground Owl, and the Mole were summoned, all hungry and lean, as were the Ka/-ké and the children of men, from want of the flesh of the game animals. Nevertheless, they were anxious tor the hunt and moved them- selves quickly among one another in their anxiety. Then the passing swift runners, the Sa-la-mo-pi-a, of all colors, the yellow, the blue, the red, the white, the many colored, and the black, were summoned to accompany the We-ma-a-ha-i to the canon-valley of the Snail People. Well they knew that passing wonderful were the Snail People, and that no easy matter would it be to overcome their medicine and their magic. But they hastened forth until they came uear to the canon. Then the Sha’-la-k’o,i who guided them, gave directions that they should make themselves ready for the hunt. When all were prepared, he opened by his sacred power the magic corral on the northern side, and forth rushed a great buck Deer. “Long Tail, the corral has been opened for thee. Forth comes thy game, seize him!” With great leaps the Mountain Lion overtook and threw the Deer to the ground, and fastened his teeth in his throat. The corral was opened on the western side. Forth rushed a Mountain Sheep. ““ Ooyote, the corral has been opened for thee. Forth comes thy game, seize him!” The Coyote dashed swiftly forward. The Mountain Sheep dodged him and ran off toward the west. The Coyote crazily ran about *The chief god of the Ké/-kA, now represented by masks, and the richest costum- ing known to the Zunis, which are worn during the winter ceremonials of the tribe. t'The Sa-la-mo-pi-a are monsters with round heads, long snouts, huge feathered necks, and human bodies. They are supposed to live beneath the waters, to come forth or enter snout foremost. They also play an important part in the Kaé/-ké or sacred dances of winter. { Monster human bird forms, the warrior chiefs of Pa-u-ti-wa, the representatives of which visit Zuni, from their supposed western homes in certain springs, each New Year. They are more than twelve feet high, and are carried swiftly about by per- sons concealed under their dresses. CUSHING. ] DISTRIBUTION OF THE ANIMALS, 23 yelping and barking after his game, but the: Mountain Sheep bounded from rock to rock and was soon far away. Still the Coyote rushed crazily about, until the Mountain Lion commanded him to be quiet. But the Coyote smelled the blood of the Deer and was beside himself with hun- ger. Then the Mountain Lion said to him disdainfully, ‘Satisfy thy hunger on the blood that I have spilled, for to-day thou hast missed thy game; and thus ever will thy descendants like thee blunder in the chase. As thou this day satisfiest thy hunger, so also by the blood that the hun- ter spills or the flesh that he throws away shall thy descendants forever have being.” The corral was opened on the southern side. An Antelope sprang forth. With bounds less strong than those of the Mountain Lion, but nimbler, the Wild Cat seized him and threw him to the ground. The corral was opened on the eastern side. Forth ran the O-ho-li (or albino antelope). The Wolf seized and threw him. The Jack Rabbit was let out. The Eagle poised himself for a moment, then swooped upon him. The Cotton Tail came forth. The Prey Mole waited in his hole and seized him; the Wood Rat, and the Falcon made him his prey ; the Mouse, and the Ground Owl quickly caught him. While the We-ma-a-ha-i were thus satisfying their hunger, the game animals began to escape through the breaks in the corral. Forth through the northern door rushed the Buffalo, the great Elk, and the Deer, and toward the north the Mountain Lion, and the yellow Sa-la-mo-pi-a swiftly followed and herded them, to the world where stands the yellow mount- ain, below the great northern ocean. Out through the western gap rushed the Mountain Sheep, herded and driven by the Coyote and the blue Sa-la-mo-pi-a, toward the great west- ern ocean, where stands the ancient blue mountain. Out through the southern gap rushed the Antelope, herded and driven by the Wild Cat and the red S4-la-mo-pi-a, toward the great land of summer, where stands the ancient red mountain. Out through the eastern gap rushed the O-ho-li, herded and driven by the Wolf and the white Sa-la-mo-pi-a, toward where “‘ they say” is the eastern ocean, the “Ocean of day”, wherein stands the ancient white mountain. Forth rushed in all directions the Jack Rabbit, the Cotton Tail, the Rats, and the Mice, and the Eagle, the Falcon, and the Ground Owl cir- cled high above, toward the great “Sky ocean,” above which stands the ancient mountain of many colors, and they drove them over all the earth, that from their homes in the air they could watch them in all places; and the S4-la-mo-pi-a of many colors rose and assisted them. Into the earth burrowed the Rabbits, the Rats, and the Mice, from the sight of the Eagle, the Falcon, and the Ground Owl, but the Prey Mole and the black Sé-la-mo-pi-a thither followed them toward the four caverns (wombs) of earth, beneath which stands the ancient black mountain. 24 ZUNI FETICHES. Then the earth and winds were filled with rumbling from the feet of the departing animals, and the Snail People saw that their game was escaping; hence the world was filled with the wars of the Ka/-ka, the Snail People, and the children of men. Thus were let loose the game animals of the world. Hence the Buffalo, the Great Elk, and the largest Deer are found mostly in. the north, where they are ever pursued by the great Mountain Lion; but with them escaped other animals, and so not alone in the north are the Buffalo, the Great Elk, and the Deer found. Among the mountains and the canons of the west are found the Mountain Sheep, pursued by the Coyote; but with them escaped many other animals; hence not alone in the west are the Mountain Sheep found. Toward the south escaped the Antelopes, pursued by the Wild Cat. Yet with them escaped many other animals; hence not alone in the south are the Antelopes found. Toward the east escaped the O-ho-li, pursued by the Wolf; but with them escaped many other animals ; hence not alone in the east are the O-ho-li-we found. Forth in all directions escaped the Jack Rabbits, Cotton Tails, Rats, and Mice; hence over all the earth are they found. Above them in the skies circle the Eagle, the Faleon, and the Ground Owl; yet into the earth escaped many of them, followed by the Prey Mole; hence beneath the earth burrow many. Thus, also, it came to be that the Yellow Mountain Lion is the mas- ter Prey Being of the north, but his younger brothers, the blue, the red, the white, the spotted, and the black Mountain Lions wander over the other regions of earth. Does not the spotted Mountain Lion (evi- dently the Ocelot) live among the high mountains of the south ? Thus, too, was it with the Coyote, who is the master of the West, but whose younger brothers wander over all the regions; and thus, too, with the Wild Cat and the Wolf. In this tradition there is an attempt, not only to explain the special distribution throughout the six regions, of the Prey animals and their prey, but also to account for the occurrence of animals in regions other than those to which, according to this classification, they properly belong. THEIR VARIETIES. We find, therefore, that each one of the six species of Prey animals is again divided into six varieties, according to color, which deter- mines the location of each variety in that one or other of the regions with which its color agrees, yet it is supposed to owe allegiance to its BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ANNUAL KR THE MOUNTAIN LION FETICHES OF THI) CHASE—HUNTER GOD OF THE NORTH. CUSHING. | THE MOUNTAIN LION. 25 representative, whatsoever this may be or wheresoever placed. For instance, the Mountain Lion is primarily god of the North, but he is supposed to have a representative (younger brother) in the West (the blue Mountain Lion), another in the South (the Red), in the Kast (the White), in the Upper regions (the Spotted), and in the Lower regions (the black Mountain Lion). Hence, also, there are six varieties of the fetich representing any one of these divisions, the variety being determined by the color, as expressed either by the material of which the fetich is formed, or the pigment with which it is painted, or otherwise, as, for example, by inlaying. (Plate III, Fig. 4, and Plate VII, Fig. 2.) THE MOUNTAIN LION—HUNTER GOD OF THE NORTH. According to this classification, which is native, the fetiches of the Mountain Lions are represented on Plate IV. They are invariably dis- tinguished by the tail, which is represented very long, and laid length- wise of the back from the rump nearly or quite to the shoulders, as well as by the ears, which are quite as uniformly rounded and not prominent. The fetich of the yellow Mountain Lion (Ha/k-ti tii/sh-a-na thltip-tsi- na), or God of the North (Plate IV, Fig. 1), is of yellow limestone.* It has been smoothly carved, and is evidently of great antiquity, as shown by its polish and patina, the latter partly of blood. The anus and eyes are quite marked holes made by drilling. An arrow-point of flint is bound to the back with cordage of cotton, which latter, however, from its newness, seems to have been recently added. The fetich of the blue Mountain Lion, of the West (Ha’k-ti ta/sh-a- na thli-a-na), is represented in Plate IV, Fig. 2. The original is com- posed of finely veined azurite or carbonate of copper, which, although specked with harder serpentinous nodules, is almost entirely blue. It has been carefully finished, and the ears, eyes, nostrils, mouth, tail, anus, and legs are clearly cut. The fetich of the white Mountain Lion, of the East (Ha/k-ti ti/sh-a na k’6-ha-na), is represented by several specimens, two of which are re- produced in Plate IV, Figs. 3 and 4. The former is very small and composed of compact white limestone, the details being pronounced, and the whole specimen finished with more than usual elaboration. The latter is unusually large, of compact gypsum or alabaster, and quite carefully carved. The eyes have been inlaid with turkoises, and there is cut around its neck a groove by which the beads of shell, coral, Wc., were originally fastened. A large arrow-head of chalcedony has been bound with cords of cotton flatwise along one side of the body. The only fetich representing the red Mountain Lion, of the South (H4’k-ti tii/sh-a-na 4-ho-na), in the collection was too imperfect for repro- duction. *JI am indebted to Mr. 8. F. Emmons, of the Geological Survey, for assisting me to determine approximately the mineralogical character of these specimens. 26 ZUNI FETICHES. The fetich of the spotted or many-colored Mountain Lion (Ha/k-ti tii/sh-a-na st-pa-no-pa or i-to-pa-nah-na-na), of the Upper regions, is also represented by two specimens (Plate IV, Figs. 5 and 6), both of fibrous aragonite in alternating thin and thick lamine, or bands of grayish yel- low, white, and blue. Fig. 5 is by far the more elaborate of the two, and is, indeed, the most perfect fetich in the collection. The legs, ears, eyes, nostrils, mouth, tail, anus, and genital organs (of the male) are care- fully carved, the eyes being further elaborated by mosaics of minute turkoises. To the right side of the body, “over the heart,” is bound with blood-blackened cotton cords a delicate flint arrow-point, together with white shell and coral beads, and, at the breast, a small triangular figure of an arrow in haliotus, or abalone. The fetich of the black Mountain Lion (H4/k-ti ta/sh-a-na shi-k’ia-na) (Pl. IV, Fig. 7) is of gypsum, or white limestone, but has been painted black by pigment, traces of which are still lodged on portions of its surface. THE COYOTE—HUNTER GOD OF THE WEST. The fetiches of the Coyote, or God of the West, and his younger brothers, represented on Plate V, are called Téthl-po-Wia, an archaic form of the modern word Sis-k’i wé-ma-we (Coyote fetiches), from téthl- nan, = a sacred prayer-plume, and pd-an, = an object or locality on or to- ward which anything is placed, a depository, and W’ia=the active participle. They are usually distinguished by horizontal or slightly drooping tails, pointed or small snouts, and erect ears. Although the Coyote of the West is regarded as the master of the Coyotes of the other five regions, yet, in the prayers, songs, and recitations of the Sa-ni-a-l’ia-kwe, and Prey Brother Priesthood, the Coyote of the North is mentioned first. I therefore preserve the same sequence observed in describing the Mountain Lion fetiches. The fetich of the yellow Coyote (Sts-l’i thlip-tsi-na), of the North, is represented. in Plate V, Fig. 1. The original is of compact white lime- stone stained yellow. The attitude is that of a coyote about to pursue his prey (la-hi-na i-mo-na), which has reference to the intemperate haste on the part of this animal, which usually, as in the foregoing tradition, results in failure. The fetich of the blue Coyote, of the West (Sas-k’i 1l6-l’ia-na—signify- ing in reality blue gray, the color of the coyote, instead of blue=thli-a- na), is shown in Plate V, Fig. 2. This fetich is also of compact white limestone, of a yellowish gray color, although traces of blue paint and large turkois eyes indicate that it was intended, like Plate III, Fig. 3, to represent the God of the West. The fetich of the red Coyote (Stis-k’i 4-ho-na), of the South, is repre- sented by Plate V, Fig. 4, which, although of white semi-translucent calcite, has been deeply stained with red paint. Two examples of the fetich of the white Coyote (Sts-k’i k’6-ha-na), of the East, are shown in Plate V, Figs. 4 and 5. They are both of com. BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. V — — _ ~ -—- — - — - —— - = THE COYOTE FETICHES OF THE CHASE—HUNTER GOD OF THE WEST. [eos oh, a = Pa Zz = D - : “| Pie = * “HLOOS AHL AO GOS UALNOM—aASVHO AHL AO SHHOILAA LVO GATIM ~ — ee = L a. 3 a = a = : ; : : 4 IA “Id [88T LYOdML TVANNV ADO'IONULA AO NVA CUSHING. ] THE COYOTE AND THE WILD-CAT. 27 pact white limestone. The first is evidently a natural fragment, the feet being but slightly indicated by grinding, the mouth by a deep cut straight across the snout, and the eyes by deeply drilled depressions, the deep groove around the neck being designed merely to receive the necklace. The second, however, is more elaborate, the pointed chin, horizontal tail, and pricked-up ears being distinctly carved, and yet in form the specimen resembles more a weasel than a coyote. The fetich of the many-colored Coyote (Sis-k’i i-to-pa-nah-na-na), of the Upper regions, is reproduced in Plate V, Fig. 6, which represents the male and female together, the latter being indicated merely by the smaller size and the shorter tail. They are both of aragonite. This conjoined form of the male and female fetiches is rare, and is significant of other powers than those of the hunt. The black Coyote (Sts-k’i shi-k’ia-na), of the Lower regions, is repre- sented by Plate V, Fig. 7, the original of which is of compact white limestone or yellowish-gray marble, and shows traces of black paint or staining. THE WILD-CAT—HUNTER GOD OF THE SOUTH, The fetiches of the Wild Cat, the principal of which is God of the South, are represented on Plate VI. They are characterized by short horizontal tails and in most cases by vertical faces and short ears, less erect than in the fetiches of the Coyote. Plate VI, Fig. 1, represents the fetich of the yellow Wild Cat (Lé-pi thlip-tsi-na) of the North. Although of yellow limestone, it is stained nearly black with blood. A long, clearly-chipped arrow-point of chal- cedony is bound with blood-stained cotton cordage along the right side of the figure, and a necklace of white shell beads (K6-ha-kwa), with one of black stone (Kewi-na-kwa) among them, encircles the neck. Plate VI, Fig. 2, represents the fetich of the blue Wild Cat (Té-pi thli-a-na), of the West. It is formed from basaltic clay of a grayish-blue color, and is furnished with an arrow-point of jasper (jasp vernis), upon which is laid a small fragment of turkois, both secured to the back of the specimen with sinew taken from the animal represented. Plate V1, Fig. 3, likewise represents the fetich of the Wild Cat of the West. It is a fragment from a thin vein of malachite and azurite, or green and blue carbonate of copper, and has been but little changed from its original condition. Plate VI, Fig. 4, represents the red Wild Cat (Té-pi 4-ho-na), of the South. Although formed from gypsum or yellow limestone, its color has been changed by the application of paint. It is supplied with the usual necklace and arrow-point of the perfect fetich, secured by bands of sinew and cotton. Both Figs. 5 and 6 of Plate VI represent the fetich of the white Wild Cat (Té pi k’6-ha-na), of the East, and are of compact white limestone carefully fashioned and polished, the one to represent the perfect animal, 28 ZUNI FETICHES. the other the fetus. This specimen, like Plate V, Fig. 6, has a signifi- cance other than that of a mere fetich of the chase, a significance con- nected with the Phallic worship of the Zunis, on which subject I hope ere many years to produce interesting evidence. Plate VI, Fig. 7, represents the fetich of the many-colored Wild Cat (Té-pi sa-pa-no-pa), of the Upper regions, which is made of basaltic clay, stained black with pitch and pigment, and furnished with a flake of flint and a small fragment of chrysocolla, both of which are attached to the back of the figure with a binding of sinew. Plate VI, Fig. 8, represents, according to the Zunis, a very ancient and valued fetich of the black Wild Cat (Té-pishi-lWia-na), of the Lower regions. It is little more than a concretion of compact basaltic rock, with slight traces of art. Its natural form, however, is suggestive of an animal. Long use has polished its originally black surface to the hue of lustrous jet. THE WOLF—HUNTER GOD OF THE EAST, The fetiches of the Wolf, God of the East, and of his younger brothers (It-na-wi-ko wé-ma-we) are represented on Plate VII. They are char- acterized by erect attitudes, usually oblique faces, pricked-up ears, and “hanging tails.” 5 Plate VII, Fig. 1, is a representation of the fetich of the ycllow Wolf (It-na-wi-ko thlip-tsi-na), of the North. It is of yellow indurated clay- stone. In this example the legs are much longer than in most speci- mens, for nearly all these figures are either natural fragments or con- cretions slightly improved on by art, or are figures which have been suggested by and derived from such fragments or concretions. More- over, the ceremonials to be deseribed further on require that they should be “able to stand alone”; therefore they are usually furnished with only rudimentary legs. The tail is only indicated, while in nearly all other Wolf fetiches it is clearly cut down the rump, nearly to the gam- bol joint. Plate VII, Fig. 2, represents a fetich of the blue Wolf (It-na-wi-ko thli-a-na), of the West. It is of gray sandstone, stained first red, then blue, the latter color being further indicated by settings of green tur- kois on either side and along the back, as well as in the eyes. Plate VII, ig. 3, represents the fetich of the red Wolf (It-na-wi-ko A-ho-na), of the South. It is but crudely formed from a fragment of siliceous limestone, the feet, ears, and tail being represented only by mere protuberances. Although the material is naturally of a yellowish- gray color, it has been stained red. Plate VII, Fig. 4, represents the fetich of the white Wolf (Iit-na-wi-ko }’o-ha-na), of the East. It is of very white, compact limestone. The hanging tail, erect ears, attitude, &e., are better shown in this than perhaps in any other specimen of the class in the collection. It has, however, been broken through the body and mended with black pitch. BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. VIT WOLF FETICHES OF THE CHASE—HUNTER GOD OF THE EAST. BUREAU OF RTIHNOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 18§1 rh Vill Pats . ae eis a 1] f EAGLE FETICHES OF THE CHASE—HUNTER GOD OF THE UPPER REGIONS, CUSHING. } THE WOLF AND THE EAGLE. 29 Plate VII, Fig. 5, represents the fetich of the many-colored Wolf (Iti-na-wi-ko i-to-pa-nah-na-na), of the Upper regions. The original is of fine-grained sandstone of a gray color, stained in some places faintly with red and other tints. The mouth, eyes, ear tips, and tail have been touched with black to make them appear more prominent. Plate VII, Fig. 6, represents the fetich of the black Wolf (Ii-na-wi-ko shi-l’ia-na), of the Lower regions. Although uncommonly large and greatly resembling in form the bear, it possesses the oblique face, up- right ears, hanging tail, and other accepted characteristics of the Wolf. THE EAGLE—HUNTER GOD OF THE UPPER REGIONS, The fetiches of the Eagle, God of the Upper regions, and his younger brothers of the other regions (IWiii/-k’iii-li wé-ma-we) are represented on Plate VIII. They are characterized merely by rude bird forms, with wings either naturally or very conventionally carved (Figs. 3 and 6). Further details are rarely attempted, from the fact that all the other principal prey animals are quadrupeds, and the simple suggesiion of the bird form is sufficient to identify the eagle among any of them. Plate VIII, Fig. ib represents the fetich of the yellow Eagle (Wiii/- Wiii-li thlup-tsi-na), of the Northern skies. It consists merely of the head and shoulders, very rudely formed of white limestone and painted with yellow ocher. This specimen is doubtless a natural fragment very little altered by art. Plate VIII, Fig. 2, represents the fetich of the blue Eagle (IVii/- Wiii-li 16-k’ia-na), of the Western skies. It is quite elaborately carved, supplied with a pedestal, and pierced through the body to facilitate suspension. For during ceremonials, to be described further on, the fet- iches of the Eagle are usually suspended, although sometimes, like those of the quadrupeds, they are placed on the floor, as indicated by the pedestal furnished to this specimen. Although of compact white limestone, this fetich is made to represent the blue Eagle by means of turkois eyes and a green stain over the body. A small pink chal- cedony arrow-point is attached to the back between the wings by means of a single sinew band passed around the tips of the latter and the tail and under the wings over the shoulders. Plate VIII, Fig. 3, represents the fetich of the red Nagle ICii/-Wiii-li 4-ho-na), of the Southern skies. Like Fig. 42, this is doubtless a nearly natural fragment of very fine-grained red sandstone, the wings being indicated by deep lines which cross over the back, and the ramp grooved to receive the cord with which to secure to the back an arrow-point. The breast is perforated. Plate VII, Fig. 4,is a nearly natural fragment of compact white limestone, representing the white Bagle (K7ii/-Iviii-li k’6-ha-na), of the Eastern skies. No artificial details, save the eyes, which are faintly indicated, have been attempted on this specimen. Plate VITL, Fig. 5, represents, in compact yellow limestone, the speckled 30 ZUNL FETICHES. Ragle (Wiii/-Wii-li si-tchu-tchon-ne) of the Upper regions, the drab color of the body being varied by fragments of pure turkois inserted into the eyes, breast, and back. A notch in the top and front of the head probably indicates that the specimen was once supplied with a beak, either of turkois or of white shell. It is perforated lengthwise through the breast. Plate VIII, Fig. 6, is a representation of a thoroughly typical conven- tional fetich of the black Hagle (K7ii/-k’ii-li kwin-ne) of the Lower re- gions. It is of calcite, stained lustrous black. A cotton cord around the neck supplies the place of the original ‘ necklace.” THE MOLE—HUNTER GOD OF THE LOWER REGIONS. The fetiches of the Mole, or God of the Lower regions (Kii/-lu-tsi wé-ma-we, in the sacred orders; Mai-tu-pu wé-ma-we, in the order of the Hunt), are represented in the collection by only two specimens, Plate II, Fig. 6, and Plate IX, Fig. 1. The figure of a third specimen, taken from one of my sketches of the original in Zuni, is given on Plate ILI, Fig. 5. These fetiches being unpopular, because considered less powerful than those of the larger gods of prey, are very rare, and are either rude con- cretions with no definite form (Plate II, Fig. 6), or almost equally rude exainples of art, as in Plate LX, Fig. 1, which represents the fetich of the white Mole (Mai-tu-pu ko-ha-na) of the Eastern Lower regions. It consists merely of a natural slab of fine white limestone. Nevertheless, value is sometimes attached to the Mole, from the fact that it is able by burrowing to lay traps for the largest game of earth, which it is supposed to do consciously. For this reason it is sometimes represented with surprising fidelity, as in Plate III, Fig. 5. THE GROUND OWL AND THE FALCON. The fetiches of the Ground Owl (the Prairie Dog variety—Thli-po- po-ke’-a’ wé-ma-we) of all regions, are still more rarely represented and even less prized than those of the Mole. The only example in the col- lection is reproduced in Plate IX, Fig. 2. The original is quite care- fully formed of soft white limestone, and is perforated to facilitate sus- pension. The Falcon fetiches (Pi-pi wé-ma-we) are included in the Eagle species, as they are called the younger brothers of the Eagle, and supply the place of the red Eagle which variety is met with very rarely. THEIR RELATIVE VALUES. The relative value of these varieties of fetiches depends largely upon the rank of the Animal god they represent. For instance, the Moun- tain Lion is not only master of the North, which takes precedence over BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. 1X THE MOLE AND THE GROUND-OWL FETICHES—IIUNTER GODS OF THE LOWER REGIONS AND ALL REGIONS THE NAVAJO FETICHES—PHALLIC GODS OF THE FLOCKS. CUSHING. ] RELATIVE VALUES. Bel all the other “ancient sacred spaces” (Té-thlii-shi-na-we) or regions, but is also the master of all the other Prey gods, if not of all other terrestrial animals. Notwithstanding the fact that the Coyote, in the Jrder of the Hunt (the Coyote society or the Sé-ni-a-Wia-kwe), is given for traditional reasons higher sacred rank than the Mountain Lion, he is, as a Prey Being, one degree lower, being god of the West, which fol- lows the North in order of importence. Hence we find the Mountain Lion and Coyote fetiches far more prized than any of the others, and correspondingly more numerous. The Coyote in rank is younger brother of the Mountain Lion, just as the Wild Cat is younger brother of the Coyote, the Wolf of the Wild Cat, and so on to the Mole, and less important Ground Owl. In relationship by blood, however, the yellow Mountain Lion is accounted older brother of the blue, red, white, spotted, and black Mountain Lions ; the blue Coyote, older brother of the red, white, yellow, mottled or spotted, and black Coyotes. Sothe Wild Cat of the South is regarded as the older brother of the Wild Cats of all the other five regions. And thus it is respectively with the Wolf, the Eagle, and the Mole. We find, therefore, that in the North all the gods of Prey are represented, as well as the Mountain Lion, only they are yellow. In the West all are represented, as well as the Coyote, only they are blue; and thus throughout the remaining four regions. The Mountain Lion is further believed to be the special hunter of the Elk, Deer, and Bison (no longer an inhabitant of New Mexico). His fetich is, therefore, preferred by the hunter of these animals. So, also, is the fetich of the Coyote preferred by the hunter of the Mountain Sheep; that of the Wild Cat, by the hunter of the Antelope; that of the Wolf, by the hunter of the rare and highly-valued O-ho-li; those of the Hagle and Falcon, by the hunter of Rabbits; and that of the Mole, by the hunter of other small game. The exception to this rule is individual, and founded upon the belief that any oneof the gods of Prey hunts to some extent the special game of all the other gods of Prey. Hence, any person who may discover either a concretion or natural object or an ancient fetich calling to mind or re- presenting any one of the Prey gods will regard it as his special fetich, and almost invariably prefer it, since he believes it to have been “meted to” him (an-ik-tchi-a-k’ia) by the gods. THEIR CUSTODIAN. Although these fetiches are thus often individual property, members of the Sa-ni-a-k’ia-kwe, and of the Eagle and Coyote gentes, as well as priests included in the Prey God Brotherhood, are required to deposit their fetiches, when not in use, with the ‘“‘ Keeper of the Medicine of the Deer” (Nal-e-ton i-lo-na), who is usually, if not always, the head member of the Eagle gens. 32 ZUNI FETICHES. It rests with these memberships and these alone to perfect the fetiches when found, and to carry on at stated intervals the ceremonials and worship connected with them. When not in use, either for such ceremonials or for the hunt, these tribal fetiches are kept in a very ancient vessel of wicker-work, in the House of the Deer Medicine (Nal-e-ton in-kwin), which is usually the dwelling place of the keeper. THE RITES OF THEIR WORSHIP. THE DAY OF THE COUNCIL OF THE FETICHES. The principal ceremonial connected with the worship of the Prey Beings takes place either a little before or after the winter solstice or national New Year. This is due to the fact that many of the members of the above-men- tioned associations also belong to other societies, and are required on the exact night of the New Year to perform other religious duties than those connected with the fetich worship. Tlence, the fetiches or gods of prey have their special New Year’s day, called Wé-ma-a-wa t-pu-Wia té-wa-ne (“The day of the council of the fetiches”). On this occasion is held the grand council of the fetiches. They are all taken from their place of deposit and arranged, according to species and color, in front of a symbolic slat altar on the floor of the council chamber in a way I have attempted to indicate, as far as possible, by the arrangement of the figures on the plates, the quadrupeds being placed upright, whilethe Eagles and other winged fetiches are suspended from the rafters by means of cotton cords. Busily engaged in observing other ceremonials and debarred from actual entrance, until my recent initiation into the Priesthood of the Bow, I have unfortunately never witnessed any part of this ceremonial save by stealth, and cannot describe it asa whole. I reserve the right, therefore, to correct any details of the following at some future day. The ceremonials last throughout the latter two-thirds of a night. Each member on entering approaches the altar, and with prayer-meal in hand addresses a long prayer to the assembly of fetiches, at the close of which he seatters the prayer-meal over them, breathes on and from his hand, and takes his place in the council. An opening prayer-chant, lasting from one to three hours, isthen sung at intervals, inwhich various members dance to the sound of the constant rattles, imitating at the close of each stanza the cries of the beasts represented by the fetiches. At the conclusion of the song, the ‘Keeper of the Deer Medicine,” who is master priest of the occasion, leads off in the recitation of a long metrical ritual, in which he is followed by the two warrior priests with shorter recitations, and by a prayer from another priest (of uncertain - CUSHING. | WORSHIP OF THE HUNTER GODS. 33 rank). During these recitations, responses like those of the litany in the Church of England may be heard from the whole assembly, and at their close, at or after sunrise, all members flock around the altar and re- peat, prayer-meal in hand, a concluding invocation. This is followed by a liberal feast, principally of game, which is brought in and served by the women, with additional recitations and ceremonials. At this feast, por- tions of each kind of food are taken out by every member for the Prey gods, which portions are sacrificed by the priests, together with the prayer plume-sticks, several of which are supplied by each member. CEREMONIALS OF THE HUNT. Similar midnight ceremonials, but briefer, are observed on the occa- sion of the great midwinter tribal hunts, the times for which are fixed by the Keeper of the Deer Medicine, the master and warrior priests of the Saé-ni-a-l’ia-kwe; and the religious observances accompanying and following which would form one of the most interesting chapters con- nected with the fetich worship of the Zunis. These ceremonials and tribal hunts are more and more rarely ob- served, on account of the scarcity of game and of the death a few years since of the warrior priest above mentioned, without whose assistance they cannot be performed. This position has been recently refilled, and I hope during the coming winter to be enabled, not only to witness one of these observances, but also to join in it; a privilege which will be granted to me on account of my membership in the order of the Priest- hood of the Bow. Any hunter, provided he be one privileged to participate in the above- described ceremonials—namely, a Prey brother—supplies himself, when preparing for the chase, not only with his weapons, &e., but also with a favorite or appropriate prey fetich. In order to procure the latter he proceeds, sooner or later before starting, to the House of the Deer Medicine (Nal-e-ton i/n-kwin), where the vessel containing the fetiches is brought forth by the Keeper or some substitute, and placed before him. Facing in the direction of the region to which belongs the par- ticular fetich which he designs to use, he sprinkles into and over the vessel sacred prayer or medicine meal. Then holding a small quantity of the meal in his left hand, over the region of his heart, he removes his head-band and utters the following prayer: Ma: Li-k’ia yit-ton-né, hom tii-tcha, hom tsi-t4, tom lithl ha té- Why! This day, my father, my mother, (to) thee here I . un- kwin-te té-a-tip, ond él-le-te-k’ia. Hothl yam 4-tiéi-tcha Ka-ka A/-shi- expectedly have trail overtaken. Soever formy Fathers sacred dance priest- (by) road ° wa-ni, wé-ma 4-shi-wa-ni, Kia-pin-a-ha-i awén ha lithl yam (gods), Prey priest-(gods), theanimal gods theirs I here my beings for them te-li-ki-na yel-le-te-u-k’o-na te-li-ki-n& i-thle-a-nén tom lithl ha o-na sacred things made ready (which) sacred things with (me) bringing unto here I road (plumes, etc., thee by trail literally rela- tives of the species.) 3 E 34 ZUNI FETICHES. éLle-te-k’id; tom lith] ha hil-lo-wa-ti-nan thle-a-ti tom an té-ap-k’o-nan overtaken (have); unto here I good fortune (ad)dress thy own wherewith (thou thee hast being) i/n-ti-shem-An a-k’id yam 4-wi-te-lin tsi-té, ha lithl té-uwsu a-kKid wishing for hence, tomy all earth mother I here (withprayer) hence, (-from), prayer 6ne yiithl kwai-k’ia-na. trail over go out shall. Lé-we tlokh nan thla-nd& tom te-ap-k’o-nén sho-hi-ta tom pi-nan Thus much (of the) great thy wherewith (thou (the) deer thy wind world hast being) breath (of ‘ life) a-kKid a-u-la-shé. Awen shi-nén, awen W’idh-kwin hothl 4n-ti-she-man by encirele about Their flesh their Life fluid soever wanting hence wanderaround. (blood) a-l’id le-hok té-u-su a k’id ha 6-ne yathl kwai k’ia-na. hence yonder prayer hence I trail over go out (shall). (from me) with Kwa-i-no-ti-nam hothl yam té-ap-k’oenaén a-k’id hom ta ke-tsi-ti- Without fail (unfailingly) where- _thy wherewith (thou hence(by) tome thon happy soever forme hast being) Wia-na. Hom ta té-lW’o-ha-né an-ik tehi-a-ti. (make, do). Untome thou (the) light meet with (do). FREE TRANSLATION. Why (of course)— This day, my father (or, my mother), here I, (as if) unexpectedly, meet thee with whatsoever I have made ready of the sacred things of my fathers, the priest gods of the sacred dances, the priest gods of the Prey (beings). These sacred things bringing I have here overtaken thee, and with their good fortune I here address thee. Wishing for that whereby thou hast being, I shall go forth from here prayerfully upon the trails of my earth-mother. Throughout the whole of this great country, they whereby thou hast being, the deer, by the command of thy wind of life (breath), wander about. It is wishing for their flesh and blood that I shall go forth yon- der prayerfully out over the trails. Let it be without fail that thou shall make me happy with that whereby thou hast being. Grant unto me the light of thy favor. Then scattering forth the prayer-meal in the direction he proposes to take on the hunt, he chooses from the vessel the fetich, and pressing it to or toward his lips breaths from it and exclaims: Ha! é-lah-kwa, hom ti-tchi (hom tsi-ta), li-k’ia EOE Ae o-né Ah! Thanks, my father, (my mother), this ay trails yithl éh-kwé ta-pan ha té-u-su a-Wia, o-né yiith] kwai-Wia-na. over ahead taking I prayer with trails over go out shall. FREE TRANSLATION, Ah! Thanks, my father (or, my mother), this day I shall follow (thee) forth over the trails. Prayerfully over the trails I shall go out. Should a party be going to the hunt together, all repair to the House of the Deer Medicine, repeating, one by one, the above prayers and ceremonial as the fetiches are drawn. The fetich is then placed in a little crescent-shaped bag of buckskin CUSIING. J THE HUNT. 35 which the hunter wears suspended over the left breast (or heart) by a buckskin thong, which is tied above the right shoulder. With it he returns home, where he hangs it up in his room and awaits a favorable rain or snow storm, meanwhile, if but a few days elapse, retaining the fetich in his own house. If a hunter be not a member of the orders above mentioned, while he must ask a member to secure a fetich for him, in the manner described, still he is quite as privileged to use it as is the member himself, although his chances for success are not sup- posed to be so good as those of the proper owner. During his journey out the hunter picks from the heart of the yucca, or Spanish bayonet, a few thin leaves, and, on reaching the point where an animal which he wishes to capture has rested, or whence it has newly taken flight, he deposits, together with sacrifices hereinafter to be mentioned, a spider knot (hé6-tsa-na mu kwi-ton-ne), made of four strands of these yucca leaves. This knot must be tied like the ordinary cat-knot, but invariably from right to left, so that the ends of the four strands shall spread out from the center as the legs of a spider from its body. The knot is further characterized by being tied quite awkwardly, as if by a mere child. It is deposited on the spot over which the heart of the animal is supposed to have rested or passed. Then a forked twig of cedar is cut and stuck very obliquely into the ground, so that the prongs stand in a direction opposite to that of the course taken by the animal, and immediately in front, as it were, of the fore part of its heart, which is represented as entangled in the knot. This process, in conjunction with the roar of the animal, which the fetich represents, and which is imitated by the hunter on the conelu- sion of these various ceremonials, is supposed to limit the power of flight of the animal sought, to confine him within a narrow circle, and, together with an additional ceremonial which is invariably performed, even without the other, is supposed to render it a sure prey. This is performed only after the track has been followed until either the animal is ip sight, or a place is discovered where it has lain down. Then, in exactly the spot over which the heart of the animal is supposed to have rested, he deposits a sacrifice of corn pollen (ta-dn-ia), sacred black war paint (tst-ha-pa)—a kind of plumbago, containing shining particles, and procured by barter from the Ha-va-su-pai (Cogoninos), and from sacred mines toward the west—and prayer or sacred meal, made from white seed-corn (emblematic of terrestrial life or of the foods of man- kind), fragments of shell, sand from the ocean, and sometimes turkois or green-stone, ground very fine, and invariably carried in pouches by all members of the sacred societies of Zuni. To this mixture sacred ~ shell beads or coral are sometimes added. Then, taking out the fetich, he breathes on it and from it, and exclaims “Si!”, which signifies ‘‘the time has come,” or that everything is in readiness. The exact meaning may, perhaps, be made clearer by an example. When all preparations have been made complete for a ceremonial, the word “Si!”, uttered by 36 ZUNI FETICHES. the master priest of the occasion, is a signal for the commencement of the ceremonials. It is therefore substituted for ‘“‘Ma!”, used in the foregoing prayer, whenever any preparations, like sacrifices and cere- monials, precede the prayer. With this introduction he utters the accompanying prayer: Li-Wia yiit ton-né, hom tii-tcha Wia-pin ha-i, to-pin-té yit-ton-né, to- This day my father game _ being, one day raw pin-té teh-thli-na-né, tom an o-né yiathl u-lap-nap-té. Hothl yam 4-wi- one night thy own trail over round about (even) However tome earth i hough. your te-lin tsi-tau-4n to-pin-té i-te-tchu-na hom taé an-k’o-ha-tina. Tom an mother (with) one step tome thou shalt grant (favor). Thy own Wiah-kwin an-ti-shi-ma-né, tom an shi-i-naén 4n-ti-shi-man a-lW’ia tom blood wanting, thy own flesh wanting, hence to thee, life-fluid lith] ha hil-lo-wa-ti-nan 4-thle-a-t thla 4-thle-a-a. Lé-we ta-kuthl po-ti/ here I good fortunes (ad)dress, treasure (ad)dress. Thus much woods round filled all the about hom an tom yii/t-ti-na tsti-ma-k’ie-na. Hom 4-ti-tchu, hom ton én-k’o- tome mine you grasping strong shall. My all-fathers, tome you favor ha-ti-na-wé. Hom ton té-k’o-ha-na an-ik-tchi-a-nap-tt. do (all). Tome you light (favor) meet with do. FREE TRANSLATION. Si! This day, my father, thou game animal, even though thy trail one day and one night hast (been made) round about; however, grant unto me one step of my earth-mother. Wanting thy life-blood, want- ing thy flesh, hence I here address to thee good fortune, address to thee treasure. All ye woods that fill (the country) round about me, (do) grasp for mestrongly. [This expression beseeches that the logs, sticks, branches, brambles, and vines shall impede the progress of the chased animal.] My fathers, favor me. Grant unto me the light of your favor, do. The hunter then takes out his fetich, places its nostrils near his lips, breaths deeply from them, as though to inhale the supposed magic breath of the God of Prey, and puffs long and quite loudly in the gen- eral direction whither the tracks tend. He then utters three or four times a long low ery of, ‘‘Hu-u-u-u!” It is supposed that the breath of the god, breathed in temporarily by the hunter, and breathed out- ward toward the heart of the pursued animal, will overcome the latter and stiffen his limbs, so that he will fall an easy prey; and that the low roar, as of the beast of prey, will enter his consciousness and frighten him so as to conceal from him the knowledge of any approach. The hunter then rises, replaces his fetich, and pursues the trail with all possible ardor, until he either strikes the animal down by means of his weapons, or so worries it by long-continued chase that it becomes an easy capture. Before the ‘“‘ breath of life” has left the fallen deer (if it be such), he places its fore feet back of its horns and, grasping its CUSHING. ] THE CAPTURE. 37 mouth, holds it firmly closed, while he applies his lips to its nostrils and breathes as much wind into them as possible, again inhaling from the lungs of the dying animal into his own. Then letting go he exclaims: Ha! é-lah-kwaé! hom ti-tehai, hom teha-lé. Hom ta taé-sho-na-né, Ah! Thanks! my father, my child. Tome thou seeds (of earth) Widi-she-ma 4n-ik-tchi-a-nap-tti. Hom ta té-k’o-ha-na, o-né, yathl k’ok- water (want) meet (grant) do. Tome thou light Here over good (favor) shi, 4n-ik-tehi-a-nap-ti. meet (grant) do. FREE TRANSLATION, Ah! Thanks, my father, my child. Grant unto me the seeds of earth (‘daily bread”) and the gift of water. Grant unto me the light of thy favor, do. As soon as the animal is dead he lays open its viscera, cuts through the diaphragm, and makes an incision in the aorta, or in the sac which incloses the heart. He then takes out the prey fetich, breathes on it, and addresses it thus: : Si! Hom ti-tehu, la-Wia yiit-ton-né, lith] Wia-pin-ha-i an l’idh-kwin Si! My father this day here Game animal its life-fluid (blood) a-k’ia tas i-Wiah-kwi-na, tas i/-ke-inan a-k’id i/-te-li-a-u-na: hence thou shalt dampen thyself, thou shalt (thy) hence add unto: with, heart with FREE TRANSLATION. Si! My father, this day of the blood of a game being thou shalt drink (water thyself). With it thou shalt enlarge (add unto) thy heart: He then dips the fetich into the blood which the sac still contains, continuing meanwhile the prayer, as follows: les-tik-lé-a ak’n’ ha-i’, Wia-pin-ha-i an I’iah-kwin, an shi-i-nan likewise cooked being, game being its fluid (oflife) its flesh done raw a-l’ia ha’s lithl yam i-ke-i-nan i-te-li-a-u-na. hence Ishall here my heart add unto (enlarge). with FREE TRANSLATION, likewise, I, a “done” being, with the blood, the flesh of a raw being (game animal), shall enlarge (add unto) my heart. Which finished, he scoops up, with his hand, some of the blood and sips it; then, tearing forth the liver, ravenously devours a part of it, and exclaims, “B-lah-kwa!” (Thanks). While skinning and quartering the game he takes care to cut out the tragus or little inner lobe of its ear, the clot of blood within the heart (a/-te mul ti-li-k’o-na), and to preserve some of the hair. Before leay- ing, he forms of these and of the black paint, corn pollen, beads of tur- kois or turkois dust, and sacred shell or broken shell and coral beads before mentioned, a ball, and on the spot where the animal ceased to 38 ZUNI FETICHES. breathe he digs a grave, as it were, and deposits therein, with prayer- meal, this strange mixture, meanwhile saying the following prayer: Si! Li-Wia yiit-ton-né, Wia-pin-ha-i, t6-pin-ta yat-ton-né t6-pin-ta Si! This day game being, one day, one Taw teh-thli-na-né, 1é-we tom o-né yiithl @-lap-na-l’ia tap-té li-Wia yat-ton-né night, thusmuch thy trail over circled about though this day (even) te-kwin-té te-ii-ti-p4, tom lithl ha an-ah-wW-thla-k’i4. Tom lith] ha ha/1-lo- (as if) unex- was it thou here I upward pulling To thee here, I good pectedly embraced. a-ti-ndn thle-a-ti. Tom lith] ha 6-ne-an thle-a-i. Tom lithl ha thla fortune address Tothee here I cornpollen address. Tothee here I _ treas- the yellow ure thle-a-t. Yam an-i-kwan-a-k’ia hii’l-lo-wa-ti-nan, 6-ne-an, thla i-thle-a-u- address. By thy knowledge-hence good fortune, the yellow, treas- (thyself) shall ure, nd ta thlimon ha-i i-ya-k’ianan hom an téu-su-pénan ak’ia ta dress thou new being making shall be my own prayer-speech hence thou (thyself) with, ya/-shu-a i-ti loh Wia-nd. K’ia-pin-4-ha-i 4-te-kwi a-k’ia4. Kwa hom conversing come and _ go (shall). Game beings relativeto with. Not mine raw animals in the di- f rection of i/-no-tinam tun a-l’ia tom lith] ha hi/1-lo-wa-ti-nan, 6-ne-an, thla, 4-thle- fail to hence, tothee here I good fortune, the yellow, treas- (have) all ure a-k’ia. Hom ta té-k’o-ha-na an/-ik-tehi-a-nap-ta. O-né yithl k’ok-shi addressed. To me thou light grant (meet) do. Trail over good hom ta tehaw’ il-lii/p 6-na yé-l’ia-nap-ta. tome thou children together ve finish, do. ra FREE TRANSLATION. Si! This day, game animal, even though, for a day and a night, thy trail above (the earth) circled about—tbis day it has come to pass that I have embraced thee upward (from it). To thee here I address good fortune. ‘To thee here I address the (sacred) pollen. To thee here I ad- dress treasure. By thy (magic) knowledge dressing thyself with this good fortune, with this yellow, with this treasure, do thou, in becoming a new being, converse with (or, of) my prayer as you wander to and fro. That I may become unfailing toward the Game animals all, I have here addressed unto thee good fortune, the yellow and treasure. Grant unto me the light of thy favor. Grant unto me a good (journey) over the trail of life, and, together with children, make the road of my existence, do. During the performance of these ceremonials the fetich is usually placed in a convenient spot to dry, and at their conclusion, with a bless- ing, it is replaced in the pouch. The hunter either seeks further for game, or, making a pack of his game in its own skin by tying the legs together and crossing them over his forehead like a burden strap, re- turns home and deposits it either at the door or just within. The wo- men then come, and, breathing from the nostrils, take the dead animal to the center of the room, where, placing its head toward the Hast, they lay on either side of its body next to the heart an ear of corn (signifi- CUBBING.] POWER. OF THE HUNTER GODS. 39 cant of renewed life), and say prayers, which, though short, are not less interesting and illustrative of the subject than those already given, but which, unfortunately, I cannot produce word for word. The fetich is returned to the Keeper of the Deer Medicine with thanksgiving and a prayer, not unlike that uttered on taking it forth, but which also I am unable to reproduce. It contains a sentence consign- ing the fetich to its house with its relatives, speaking of its quenched thirst, satisfied hunger, and the prospects of future conquests, etc. THEIR POWER. It is believed that without recourse to these fetiches or to prayers and other inducements toward the game animals, especially the deer tribe, it would be useless to attempt the chase. Untrammeled by the Medi- cine of the Deer, the powers of the fetiches, or the animals of prey represented, the larger game is unconquerable; and no man, however great his endurance, is accounted able to overtake or to weary them. It thus happens that few hunters venture forth without a fetich, even though they belong to none of the memberships heretofore mentioned. Indeed, the wearing of these fetiches becomes almost as universal as is the wearing of amulets and ‘‘ Medicines” among other nations and In- dian tribes; since they are supposed to bring to their rightful posses- sors or holders, not only success in the chase and in war (in the case of the Warriors or Priests of the Bow), but also good fortune in other matters. The successful hunter is typical of possession, since the products of his chase yield him food, apparel, ornament, and distinction. It is there- fore argued with strange logic that, even though one may not be a hun- ter, there must exist a connection between the possessions of the hun- ter and the possessions of that one, and that principally through the fe- tiches. A man therefore counts it the greatest of good fortune when he happens to find either a natural or artificial object resembling one of the animals of prey. He presents it to a proper member of the Prey Brotherhood, together with the appropriate flint arrow-point and the desirable amount of ornaments (thla-4) for dressing (thlé-a-l’ia-na) and finishing (i-ya-l’ia-na), as soon as possible. PREY GODS OF THE PRIESTHOOD OF THE BOW. THE KNIFE-FEATHERED MONSTER, THE MOUNTAIN LION, AND THE GREAT WHITE BEAR, The Priesthood of the Bow possesses three fetiches, two of which are of the We-ma-a-ha-i, (Plate X, Fig. 2, and Plate XI, Fig. 2.) The other is sometimes classed with these, sometimes with the higher beings, and may be safely said to form a connecting link between the idolatry proper of the Zunis and their fetichism. These three beings are, the Mount- ain Lion (Plate X, Fig. 2), the great White Bear (Plate XI, Fig. 2), (Ain-shi k’6-ha-na—the god of the scalp-taking ceremonials), and the Knife-feathered Monster (A-tchi-a lii-to-pa), (Plate X, Fig. 1). This curious god is the hero of hundreds of folklore tales, and the tu- telar deity of several of the societies of Zuni. He is represented as pos- sessing a human form, furnished with flint knife-feathered pinions, and tail. His dress consists of the conventional terraced cap ( representa- tive of his dwelling-place among the clouds), and the ornaments, badge, and garments of the Ka/-ka, His weapons are the Great Flint-Knife of War, the Bow of the Skies (the Rain-bow), and the Arrow of Light- ning, and his guardians or warriors are the Great Mountain Lion of the North and that of the Upper regions. He was doubtless the original War God of the Zunis, although now secondary, in the order of war, to the two children of the Sun mentioned at the outset. Anciently he was inimical to man, stealing and carrying away to his city in the skies the women of all nations, until subdued by other gods and men of magic powers. At present he is friendly to them, rather in the sense of an animal whose food temporarily satisfies him than in the beneficent character of most of the gods of Zuni. Both the Great White Bear and the Mountain Lion of the War Priest- hood are, as well as the Knife-feathered Demon, beings of the skies. For this reason the fetich of the Mountain Lion of the skies (of arago- nite) is preferred by a Priest of the Bow above all other kinds or colors. Unfortunately, none of the fetiches of this priesthood are to be found in the collections of the Bureau, and but one, with its pouch, has been reproduced from the original, which is in my possession. It was not presented to me with my other paraphernalia on the night of the final ceremonials of my initiation into the Priesthood of the Bow, but some months afterward when I was about to start ona dangerous expedition. At this time I was charged with carefully preserving it during life as my special fetich, and instructed in the various usages connected with 40. _ = ow of % S AN ) ae ~ ry a oF CUSHING. J GODS OF THE PRIESTHOOD QF THE BOW. 41 it. The other was drawn from a sketch made by myself of a fetich in Zuni. These fetiches—more usually of the Mountain Lion than of the others; very rarely of the Knife-feathered Demon—are constantly car- ried by the warriors when abroad in pouches like those of the Hunters, and in a similar manner. They are, however, not returned to the head- quarters of the society when not in use, but, being regarded, with the other paraphernalia of their possessor, as parts of his Sa-wa-ni-k’ia, are always kept near him. RESEMBLANCE TO THE PREY GODS OF THE HUNT. The perfect fetich of this order differs but little from those of the Hunters, save that it is more elaborate and is sometimes supplied with a minute heart of turkois bound to the side of the figure with smew of the Mountain Lion, with which, also, the arrow-point is invariably at- tached, usually to the back or belly. The precious beads of shell, tur- kois, coral, or black stone, varied occasionally with small univalves from the ocean, are bound over all with a cotton cord. These univalves, the oliva (tsu-i-ke-inan-ne= heart shell), are, above all other shells, sacred ; and each is emblematic of a god of the order. The wrist badges of the members are also made of these shells, strung on a thong of buckskin taken from the enemy. The arrow-point, when placed on the back of the fetich, is emblematic of the Knife of War (Sa-wa-ni-k’ia 4/-tchi- én-né), and is supposed, through the power of Sé-wa-ni-k’ia or the “magie medicine of war” (?) to protect the wearer from the enemy from behind or from other unexpected quarters. When placed ‘“‘under the feet” or belly, it is, through the same power, considered capable of effacing the tracks of the wearer, that his trail may not be followed by the enemy. THE RITES OF THEIR WORSHIP, The ceremonial observed by a Priest of the Bow, when traveling alone in a country where danger is to be apprehended from the enemy, may be taken as most illustrative of the regard in which the fetiches of his order are held. Under such circumstances the warrior takes out his fetich from the pouch, and, scattering a pinch or two of sacred flour toward each of the four quarters with his right hand, holds it in his left hand over 42 .ZUNI FETICHES. his breast, and kneels or squats on the ground while uttering the ac- companying prayer: Si! Li-k’ia yiit-ton-né, hom a-ti-tchii Wia-pin-4-ha-i 1é-we i-na-kwe ~ Si! This day, my Fathers, Animal Beings, a) (by) enemies us much po6-ti-tap-té hom ton té-hi-a-na-wé. Eth] tel-i-kwén-te thloth] .tchu-a filed through me ye precious render Not that (inany) way soever whom (of the) (all do). unexpected i-na-kwe hom kwa’-hothl a-k’i4 a-tsu-ma-na-wam-i-Wia-nda. Li-Wia yat- enemy my whatsoever with daring (existence) (pl.) shall. This day ton-né bom to le’—na tome ye thus [At this point, while still continuing the prayer, he scratches or cuts in the earth or sands with the edge of the arrow-point, which is lashed to the back or feet of the fetich, a line about five or six inches in length]. ai/-yil-lana-wa. Ethl thlothl-tchu-4 i-na-kwe i-pi-kwai-nam-tun a-k’ia shelter (pl.) eee give. Notthat whomsoever (of the) enemy pass themselves through to hence shie hom ton ai-yal-la-na-wa. [Here he scratches a second line.| Hak-ti- tome ye shelter shield (pl.) Tail-long shall (give), tii/sh-a-na, [scratches a third line.| A-tchi-a-li/-to-pa, [scratches a fourth (Mountain Lion), Knife-feathered, line] hom ton i-ke-i-nan ai-yil-la-na-wa. my ye heart shelter shield (pl.) shall give. [These lines, although made immediately in front of the speaker, re- late to the four points of the compass, the other two regions not being taken into account, since it is impossible for the enemy to bring harm from either above or below the plane on which the subject moves. It may be well to add, also, that four (the number of the true fingers) is the sacred numeral of the Zuiis, as with most all Indian tribes and many other lower races.| FREE TRANSLATION, Si! This day, my fathers, ye animal gods, although this country be filled with enemies, render me precious. That my existence may not be in any way so ever unexpectedly dared by the enemy, thus, O! shelter give ye to me (from them). (In order) that none of the enemy may pass through (this line) hence, O! shelter give ye to me (from them). Long Tail [Mountain Lion], Knife-feathered [God of the Knife Wings], O! give ye shelter of my heart from them. On the conclusion of this prayer the fetich is breathed upon and re- placed, or sometimes withheld until after the completion of the war- song and other chants in which the three gods mentioned above are, with others, named and exhorted, thereby, in the native belief, render- ing protection doubly certain. Iam of course thoroughly familiar with “CUSHING. ] RITES OF THEIR WORSHIP. 43 * these war chants, rituals, ete. They abound in archaic terms and are fraught with great interest, but belong more properly to another de- partment of Zuni worship than that of the mere fetichism; as, indeed, do most other recitations, chants, etc., of the War society, in any way con- nected with this worship. Before following the trail of an enemy, on finding his camp, or on overtaking and destroying him, many ceremonials are performed, many prayers are uttered, much the same as those described relative to the chase, save that they are more elaborate and more irrelevant to the subject in hand. As with the Hunter, so with the Warrior, the fetich is fed on the life-blood of the slain. OTHER FETICHES. FETICHES OF NAVAJO ORIGIN. THE PONY. Among other specimens in the collection to which these notes relate are several pieces representing the horse and domesticated sheep, of which Plate IX, Figs. 3 and 4, are the best examples. Both are of Na- vajo importation, by which tribe they are much prized and used. The original of Fig. 3 represents a saddled pony, and has been carefully carved from a small block of compact white limestone veined like Italian marble. This kind of fetich, according to the Zunis, is manufactured at will by privileged members of the Navajo nation, and carried about during hunting and war excursions in “medicine bags,” to insure the strength, safety, and endurance of the animals they represent. THE SHEEP. Plate IX, Fig. 4, represents a superb large sheep fetich of purplish- pink fluorspar, the eyes being inlaid with small turkoises. Such are either carried about by the shepherds or kept in their huts, and, together with certain ceremonials, are supposed not only to secure fecundity of the flocks, but also to guard them against disease, the animals of prey, or death by accident. AMULETS AND CHARMS. In addition to the animal fetiches heretofore described, many others are found among the Zunis as implements of their worship, and as amu- lets or charms for a variety of purposes. The painted and plumed prayer-sticks are of this character. The amulets proper may be roughly divided into three classes: 1. Concretions and other strange rock formations, which, on account of their forms. are thought to have been portions of the gods, of their weapons, implements, and ornaments, their té-ap-ku-na-we (the where- withals of Being). 2. The sacred relics of the gods, which are supposed to have been given to man directly by their possessors, in the “‘ days of the new,” and include the “ Gifts of the Gods” (yél-le-te-li-we). 3. The magic “medicines” which are used as protective, curative, and productive agencies, and are known as the é ta-we and 4-kwa-we (the ‘Scontained” and the “‘ medicines”). 44 CUSHING. ] AMULETS AND CHARMS. 45 One object, a mere concretion, will have something about it suggest- ing an organ of the human body. (See, for example, Fig. 1.) It will then be regarded as the genital organ of some ancient being, and will be highly prized, not only as a means of approaching the spirit of the god to whom it is supposed to have once belonged, but also as a valuable aid to the young man in his conquests with the women, to the young woman in her hope to bear male children. Again, certain minerals (Fig. 2), or fossils, ete. (Fig. 5), will be regarded as belonging to, or parts of, the gods, yet will be used as medicines ofwar or the chase, or by means of which water may be produced or crops stim- ulated, to say nothing of their efficacy as cures, or sources of strength, etc. For instance, Fig. 2 is of aragonite, hence referred to the Upper regions, and there- fore valuable to jj) give efficacy to the paint with which plume-sticks of rain prayers are decorated; while Fig. 3, from iis shape, is supposed to represent the relic of the weapon or tooth of a god, and therefore en- dowed with the power of Sa-wa-ni-k’ia, and hence is preserved for gen- erations—with an interminable vari- ety of other things—in the Order of the Warriors, as the ‘protective medicine of war” (Shom-i-ta-l’ia). A little of it, rubbed on a stone and mixed with much water, is a power- ful medicine for protection, with which the warrior fails not to anoint his whole body before entering battle. These amulets and implements of worship are well illustrated in the National Museum, and the subject merits extensive treatment. The facts connected with them will throw much light upon the mental char- acteristics and beliefs of the Zunis. At some future time I hope to set this matter forth more fully. Fre. 1.—Concretion. Fic. 2.—Mineral fetich. Fic. 3.—Fossil fetich. Norte.—It is to be regretted that the haste in which this paper was prepared by the author, before his departure for New Mexico, to resnme his researches among the Zuiis, made it impossible for him to discuss further this interesting subject. The abundant material in his possession, gained from actual membership in the order or society under discussion, would have rendered this comparatively easy under other circumstances.—Ed. SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. MAYSELS OF Ariel C) UO Fis. BY ERMINNIE A. SMITH. CiOuN Vis NES CHAPTER I.—GODS AND OTHER SUPERNATURAL BEINGS .....----.-------------- Hi-nu" destroying the giant animals. .-..- 0.2226 s2-<-0-ccces we enee os oe-- Avseneca legend Of Hi-nu” and Niagara, = ..2-~.- ci -c- sooces sees cn--=> - ses TRS UNG GS Soe a 505 ac ce be ec BSE dsb Gee Jee bo SeSeso cece aeeneoes (Ger nle iii aees «be saisc once cop DU eEse Goce 1) Sas mace nm aUnEoo Hoeeee cannes Cusick’s story of the dispersion of the Great Heads....-..-.......-..------ She NCOUe WlaAnGN WitGues sen ese cae eatin seiteyssieie emi abies elsee ninco sae te Mha/ Stone Giants challenge ---)-2= = oee 5 ces ijoa= 222 =\2 soe) ee sess ees = Hiawatha and the Iroquois wampum...-.--....... .-----.---..---- -------- (Oe Er MUSE ol Oe Sosionegnecod Daud -ene modes 6 Sad boom area ce aseson The warrior saved by pigmies.----- SHEERS CEO SHER Boer HORSE SESE oe eee The pigmies and the greedy hunters.......--. .-..-----..-----.---<-.----- TATED NS ace Sasbesietdens esac esosed cardas BaSEae SoCo meas eACsS CHAPTER IITI.—PRACTICE OF SORCERY ...------. .----. ---- - e200 -e-nes = 202 =e The origin of witches and witch charms...... .-..........-. .2--+- ---.-+-- Onginioh the Sences sed teine- eis e)s ss re oa aeolian =i ole een ai=in = =l=tee al PASE SIG] WITCH ShODYi-< aclosiecss co os oe oe celia toieio wine iri mek re ee eeicesciscinye Avcase Of WALCKCIALG scm =. mea =.qsccec aetapsiceiacs since Sees wees aelene os cesny An incantation to bring rain............--...----- de vievsjawwaisnep sees eaves AVOULOMOL AUS DOC lyse OCIOS ee ace. fe sat ate aes eiss seiSciele ws cst ee sciarmaite arora AG MILC HU Nate SM aporOl a COP seesaw yc eiean veeisnn sete ne wisiie sacl eles micisletewiale A man who assumed the shape of a hog.-...-...--.-..----.--------------- Uo tain TOR IArINGtlONE) Socom cee oe ie oe some eens Sas 6 ssc atenmecmeveaa/soels JAR Sirs min ne Nain Ne) Asean Soee poe ced Aaaene oe Se omeeeD so teb aac esaae CHAPTER 1] V.—MYTHOLOGIC EXPLANATION OF PHENOMENA.....--------------- (OTE Foy LNG: LAE ee eo cen aos Sea SESebes Pesere dace HOLM aon Pete nT tle Olan] se eee sea act le iielatsaioe eo acneicteis mins ala Howat hey bears lOstMistatleere ance oater amen nei mm tyeiainm oiaieies «sane eee (OW 8 WEG NONE) Ss eaco saber sencces - See soeege Se ccco ces ner nonce Sere Onieingon vamp UM ee eee see oe ee ea sa eee sete winner rine se (OETA GE CONOR Ral sean onancadanden elcsoadeces= seen otereseeeesrasieos (OIC aio) PUMA D nS Sho cccadsa sabe ce stan woes cons eeoneedes soe sesene meds Why the chipmunk has the black stripe on his back .....-.---- See reese Oripiniofssherconstellations=<-25--se-n=(-4-<1secneeia-eeeeae ess een Flac Rn epe Gla site mere sete ae eee naa Seer enc nas ae aes eee nals necator ate (CHV WERIR WA Wr S55 Sees coated cESO CaUS0E ~ 505 OauneG Lo boc aaSu oe eeoeessrs BOyIPOSCUGd hy sh DOAK nannies oa eee eice cane Soe aa nine aecie tesco == Infant nursed by bears .-----. Bee ne ees senctacte oe Sean aerate aee onset SRG Teen Or LVS re Oat oo Sane ee adesec atom oon ean Sade sege saceres sau se JUNE ins een OM eens saeco aseeed occ cee Dececeem seer seer Mheidesdshunter):.-22=.2--5 -5<--5-ceSec-cest ses Se estenoo scenes Hos ouS JOINS (Cr Orie ce oebe pene es SUenOce ies SECOnCee SHCA Cola co sEeescrac The old man’s lesson to his nephew ..-.-.--.------ Sogn coon cade cS nCanBaSEOr Mhethnntoex andohiswartyn less wat@cs- ccna a so =) a= oe nein ce = se eee 4E 49 eS eS eS ees es eS eS CHaartvran © 50 Cuapter V.—TaLtes—Continued. The charmed suit The boy and the corn The lad and the chestnuts The guilty hunters Ni bab PoyeeA YS) in eae an on oSED oaaon asoome ano cass UDSSascang eScce osc Sane The bunter and his dead wife PNG I WNGY WEN) a poeen ces Aco SSeo ce soos ooo sebe sencas sccooe assoccce chee sces Traveler’s jokes Kingfisher and his nephew The wild-cat and the white rabbit CHAPTER VI.—RELIGION New Year’s festival Tapping the maple trees. ..--- Planting corn Strawhberrycfestival 225 at eec tere ancient ieeiecineccice tee acer eene eae ee terete Green-corn festival Gathering the corn CONTENTS. ILLUSTRATIONS. PLaTE XII.—Returning thanks to the Great Spirit XTi: —Stonelpiant/oricanntballeesemee een eee ae eee eee cies teers XIV.—Atotarha, war chief XV.—The Flying Head put to flight...... ...-.. 2.22. -2.22. 22-0 ---- 56 60 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. By ERMINNIE A. SMITH. CHAPTER I. GODS AND OTHER SUPERNATURAL BEINGS. The principal monuments of the once powerful Iroquois are their myths and folk-lore, with the language in which they are embodied. As these monuments are fast crumbling away, through their contact with European civilization, the ethnologist must hasten his search among them in order to trace the history of their laws of mind and the records of their customs, ideas, laws, and beliefs. Most of these have been long forgotten by the people, who coutinue to repeat traditions as they have been handed down through their fathers and fathers’ fathers, from gen- eration to generation, for many centuries. The pagan Iroquois of to-day (and there are still many) will tell you that his ancestors worshiped, as he continues to do, the “Great Spirit,” and, like himself, held feasts and dances in his honor; but a careful study of the mythology of these tribes proves very clearly that in the place of one prevailing great spirit (the Indian’s earliest conception of the white man’s God) the Iroquois gods were numerous. All the mys- terious in nature, all that which inspired them with reverence, awe, terror, or gratitude, became deities, or beings like themselves endowed with supernatural attributes, beings whose vengeance must be propiti- ated, mercy implored, or goodness recompensed by thank-offerings. The latter were in the form of feasts, dances, or incense. Among the most ancient of these deities, and regarding which the traditions are the most obscure, were their most remote ancestors—cer- tain animals who later were transformed into human shape, the names of the animals being preserved by their descendants, who have used them to designate their gentes or clans. Many races in that particular stage of savagery when the human intellect is still in its child-like state, being impressed by the awful and incomprehensible power of Thunder, have classed it foremost among 51 52 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. their deities, with attributes proportioned to the disposition or status of the worshiper. Hi-nu®, the beneficent Thunder God of the a Thoaubie: compares most favorably with the same god as worshiped by other races. Ever ac- companied by his equally powerful assistants, his mission was under- stood to be only to promote the welfare of that favored people, though isolated personal offenses might demand from him a just retribution. It was therefore safe to make unto him, on his near approach to earth, his most acceptable offering, the burning tobacco, and so firmly rooted has become that ancient custom, that the aged superstitious Iroquois of to-day can often be seen making this little offering on the near ap- proach of every thunder-storm. It is not difficult to follow the crude reasoning by which was ascribed to Hi-nu" the goodness and glory of having destroyed the giant monsters which either poisoned the waters or infested the land. That such had existed was evident from the bones often discovered, and what power other than the crashing bolt of Hi-nu® could have accomplished their destruction? The similarity dis- coverable in the myths of many peoples regarding the Thunder God and his mission of destruction to giant animals, making this an almost universal myth, is probably traceable to this simple and natural expla- nation, and presents no argument that the myth itself has traveled. It may, then, be safely assumed that Hi-nu" was an indigenous god of the Iroquois, the product of their own crude reasoning powers. Brother of the great Hi-nu™ was the West Wind, who, with him, brought from the clouds the vivifying rain, and who finally assisted the Troquois in the extermination of the powerful stone giants. Therefore, the West Wind ranks as a beneficent deity or spirit. The North Wind brought only calamity in its train, often killing the unripe corn and freezing the rivers, thus depriving the people of their needed sustenance, and from the mere touch of his icy fingers the be- nighted hunter became stiff in death. This ranked as an evil deity ever to be feared and propitiated. Echo, the Mars of the Iroquois, only exercised his power during their wars with other tribes, in which, by repeating among the hills their cries of Go-weh, he insured their almost certain victory. He was ever honored with special thanksgiving. Of Ta-rhu®-hyid-wih-ku® (who bore the important office of Holder of the Heavens) there is little more known than that he brought out from their mother earth the six tribes composing the Iroquois. These are some of the Iroquois gods, a knowledge of whose existence is contained only in myths, for they belong to the charmed “ mythologic age.” As, however, the Iroquois tribes have not entirely passed the boundaries of that age, it is proper to mention some of their more mod- ern divinities, in whose worship are intermingled many of their ancient ceremonies. The ‘Great Spirit,” so popularly and poetically known as the god of “ITHIdS LVAD AHL OL SHNVHL DNINUVOALAY TMNT ATTN X9OIONHLY AO AvaUune IX “ld [88l LUOdaY TVANNV . 7 SMITH] GODS AND OTHER SUPERNATURAL BEINGS. 53 the red man, and the “ Happy Hunting-ground,” generally reported to be the Indian’s idea of a future state, are both of them but their ready conception of the white man’s God and Heaven. This is evident from a careful study of their past as gleaned from the numerous myths of their prehistoric existence. It may be true that many of the first missionaries found them in pos- session of such ideas, but the Indians had long been in contact with white men from whom those ideas were obtained, and there was no in- congruity in simply adding them to their former beliefs, as no funda- mental change was required. They accepted the Great Spirit, but re- tained in many instances their former gods as his attributes, consider- ing the thunder as his voice and the winds as his breath, and at the same time they introduced into their pagan worship a form of the trinity which is still preserved, consisting of the Great Spirit, the Sun, and Mother Earth. Good and evil spirits also play an important réle in Iroquoian mythol- ogy. Among the good spirits are the three sisters who still continue to preside over the favorite vegetables—corn, beans, and squashes. They are represented as loving each other very dearly and dwelling together in peace and unity. The vines of the vegetables grow upon the same soil and cling lovingly around each other. The spirit of corn is sup- posed to be draped with its long leaves and silken tassels. The sister who guards the bean has a wreath of its velvety pods with garments of the delicate tendrils, while the spirit of squashes is clothed with the bril- liant blossoms under her care. In bright nights the sisters can be seen flitting about or heard rustling among the tallcorn. To this day yearly festivals are held in their honor, and they are appealed to as ‘ Our life, our supporters.” Among the supernatural beings corresponding to good and evil genii were the Great Heads, with ever watchful eyes, and long hair which served them as wings to bear them on missions of mercy or of destruction. This pure product of the Indian imagination figures largely in the un- written literature of the Iroquois. There weve also in those days stone giants, always the mortal enemy of man, but whose final extermination furnished the theme for wonderful stories of daring deeds performed oftentimes under the influence of charms or magic, but never in too marvelous a manner to disturb the credulity of the eager listener. Although Atotarho and Hiawatha were contemporary personages, whose names are still continued in the list of chiefs of the present day, the myths which have accumulated around their history are so many and varied that it is impossible to define the vague boundary line sep- arating fact from fiction. They may, therefore, be properly classed as demigods. The name of the former, which signifies ‘“ the entangled,” together with his skill, cunning, and cruelty in. war, soon resulted in his becoming invested with the title of a wizard. The origin of his name is attributed to his marvelous hair, which consisted of living snakes, 54 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. and thus he is represented by the pictographers of his time. He isstill regarded by his tribe as having been a being with supernatural endow- ments. Among the same tribe, the Onondagas, are found what may be termed the “Hiawatha legends.” So numerous and yet different are these stories, that they may be regarded as the histories of a long line of Hiawathas, the Hiawatha being the official name of one of the most important functionaries in the tribal government. These stories, in their relation through many generations, have at last become applied to one person, who is thus most marvelously endowed, as far surpassing all in goodness as did Atotarho in the opposite attributes. To him is ascribed the honor of having established the Great Confederacy of the Iroquois which so long rendered them invincible in war. His name, which signifies “‘He who seeks the wampum belt,”* probably led to the superstition of his having invented wampum. To accomplish his won- derful feats, he was provided with a magic canoe which obeyed his bid- ding. The legendary apotheosis accorded him, in which he is repre- sented as ascending to Heaven in a white canoe, appears to be of modern origin. HI-NUX DESTROYING THE GIANT ANIMALS. A hunter in the woods was once caught in a thunder-shower, when he heard a voice calling upon him to follow. This he did until he found himself in the clouds, the height of many trees from the ground. Beings which seemed to be men surrounded him, with one among them who seemed to be their chief. He was told to look below and tell whether he could see a huge water-serpent. Replying that he could not, the old man anointed his eyes, after which he could see the monster in the depths below him. ‘They then ordered one of their number to try and kill this enemy to the human race. Upon his failing, the hunter was told to accomplish the feat. He accordingly drew his bow and killed the foe. He was then conducted back to the place where he had sought shelter from the storm, which had now ceased. This was man’s first acquaintance with the Thunder God and his assistants, and by it he learned that they were friendly toward the hu- man race, and protected it from dragons, serpents, and other enemies. A SENECA LEGEND OF HI-NUN AND NIAGARA. A beautiful Indian maiden was about to be compelled by her family to marry a hideous old Indian. * This is the interpretation given by the tribe, the real meaning, as Pére Cuoq sug- gests, being a “‘river maker,” which implies alliance befween nations, and as wam- pum was used for treaties, the original idea seems to have been retained after the word itself has become denotive. SMITH.) HI-NU* DESTROYING THE GIANT ANIMALS. 55 Despair was in her heart. She knew that there was no escape for her, so in desperation she leaped into her canoe and pushed it from shore on the roaring waters of Niagara. She heeded not that she was going to her death, preferring the angry waters to the arms of her de- tested lover. Now, the God of Cloud and Rain, the great deity Hi-nu", who watches over the harvest, dwelt in a cave behind therushing waters. From his home he saw the desperate lannching of the maiden’s canoe; saw her going to almost certain destruction. He spread out his wings and flew to her rescue, and caught her just as her frail bark was dashing on the rocks below. The grateful Indian girl lived for many weeks in Hi-nu”s cave. He taught her many new things. She learned from him why her people died so often—why sickness was always busy among them. He told her how a snake lay coiled up under the ground beneath the village, and how he crept out and poisoned the springs, because he lived upon human be- ings and craved their flesh more and more, so that he could never get enough if they died from natural causes. Hi-nu" kept the maiden in till he learned that the ugly old suitor was dead. Then he bade her return and tell her tribe what she had learned of the great Hi-nu*. She taught them all he had told her and begged them to break up their settlement and travel nearer to the lake; and her words pre- vailed. For a while sickness ceased, butit broke out again, for the ser- pent was far too cunning to be so easily outwitted. He dragged him- self slowly but surely after the people, and but for Hi-nu"’s influence wou'd have undermined the new settlement as he had the former one. Hi-nu® watched him until he neared the creek, then he launched a thunderbolt at him. . ‘ ‘ ~ a he SMITH.) GREAT HEAD. 61 warned to look out for the “Great Eyes,” which would be sure to see him, he called for a mole, to which he said, ‘‘I am going in this direc- tion and I want you to creep down under the grass where you will not be seen.” Having gone into the mole, he at last saw the Great Head through the blades of grass. Ever watchful, the head cried out “ Kui- ku,” “TI see thee.” The man in the mole saw that the “Head” was watching an owl, then drawing his bow, he shot an arrow into the Great Head, crying, “I came after you.” The arrow as it flew to its mark became very large, but as it was returning became as small as when it left the bow. Thereupon, taking the arrow, he ran swiftly toward home; but he had not gone far when he heard a great noise like the coming of astorm. It was the Great Head riding on a tempest. Unshaken by this, he continued to run until he saw that the Great Head was coming down to the spot where he was, when he drew his bow again, and as the arrow left the bow it became larger as it sped, and it drove the Great Head away as before it had done. These maneuvers were repeated many times. In the meanwhile the uncle had prepared a mallet, and now he heard the rush and roar of the coming hurricane and said, ‘The stranger has allured him home.” He now went to the door and said, ‘““We must hammer him; here, take this mallet.” As the Great Head came bursting through the door, the two men industriously plied their mallets to it. At this proceeding, the Great Head began to laugh, thus: “Si-h si-h si-h,” for he was pleased to see his brother. When the tumult had subsided, the uncle asked the Great Head to re- main, and gave him to eat the blocks which had been prepared for him. Then the two men told the Great Head about the brothers who were lost and about the stranger. Then the Great Head said, “I know where they have gone; they have gone to a place where lives a woman who is a witch and who sings continually.” Now, the Great Head said, ‘‘I have been here long enough; I want to go home; this young man is pretty bright, and if he wishes to go tosee this witch, I will show him her abode and all the bones of his brothers.” The young man consenting, he and the Great Head started on the morrow, and finally came to a place where they heard this song: ‘‘ Dy-gin-nya-de, he’’-on-we, he/-on-we-ni/’-4-h gi-di-of-ni-ah,” which the witch was singing. At length she spoke and said ‘‘Schis-t-ki-an”; this was the magical word at which, when heard, all turned to dry bones. Upon hearing this the Great Head said, “I will ask the question, ‘How long have you been here?’ and the hair will fall from my head and you must replace it, and it will grow fast, and then I will bite her flesh and pull it from her, and as it comes off you must take it from my mouth and throw it off, saying ‘Be a fox, a bird, or anything else,’ and it will then run off never to return.” They did as they had planned, and when the witch begged for mercy the Great Head said, “You had no mercy; see the dry bones; you must die”: and so they killed her, and her flesh was turned into animals, and birds, and fish. 62 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. When she had died, the Head said, ‘‘ Let us burn her to ashes.” When this was done, the Head said, ‘Let us search for the year-old bones and cause them to lie in rows,” and they worked together selecting those they thought were bones of the nine brothers, and placed them together. When this was done, the Great Head said, “I am going to my old home in the great mountain, and when I fly over here on a tempest then you say to these bones, ‘All arise,’ and they all will rise and you may go home with them.” Great Head departed, and then arose a storm and a terrific hurricane, and the Great Head out of the wind called to the nine brothers to awake, and they all arose to life, shouting for joy at seeing each other and their youngest brother again. CUSICK’S STORY OF THE DISPERSION OF THE GREAT HEADS. An old squaw who resided at Onondaga was alone in her wigwam one evening. While sitting by the fire parching some acorns one of the monstrous heads made its appearance at the door. Thinking that the woman was eating coals of fire, by which these monsters were put to flight, it suddenly disappeared, and none of its kind have been seen since that day. THE STONE GIANT’S WIFE. In the olden days the hunters always took their wives with them on their expeditions. It was a wife’s duty to fetch home the game that was killed and prepare and cook it. A great hunter set forth upon a hunting excursion and took his wife with him. He found so much game that finally he built a wigwam and settled down. One day he had gone hunting in one direction while his wife was sent in another to collect the game he had killed the pre- vious day. When she returned towards home one evening, laden with game, she was surprised at hearing a woman’s voice, and as she entered her sur- prise changed to fear, for she saw a stone giant woman nursing the chief’s child. ‘Do not be afraid,” said the giantess; ‘‘come in.” And as the wife obeyed she told her that she had run away from her cruel husband, who wanted to kill her, and that she wished to stay a while with the hunter’s family. She had come from very far, from the land of the Stone Giants, and was very tired, and added that they must be care- ful what food they gave her. She could not eat raw food, but it must be well cooked, so thoroughly cooked, indeed, that she could not taste the blood, for if she once tasted blood she might wish to kill them and SMITH.] STONE GIANT’S WIFE, ETC. 63 the child and eat them. She knew that the woman’s husband was a mighty hunter, and she knew that his wife brought in the game, but now ske would do it instead; then she said that she knew where to find it and would start after it at once. After a while she returned, bringing in one hand a load which four ordinary men could not have carried. The woman cooked it, and they dined together. ‘ As evening came on the Stone Giantess bade the woman go out and meet her husband and tell him of her visit; so she started, and the hunter was much pleased to hear of the help she had given. In the morning, after he had gone on his hunting expedition, the giantess said, ‘Now I have a secret for you: My husband is after me. In three days he will be here. We shall have a terrible fight when he comes, and you and your husband must help me to kill him.” In two days afterwards she said, “Now your husband must remain at home, for mine is coming. But do not be afraid; we shall kill him, only you must help catch and hold him. I will show you where to strike him so that the blow will go right through to his heart.” The hunter and his wife were both frightened at this, but she reassured them, and they all three awaited the coming of the giant. So she placed her- self in the entrance, and as he came in sight she was ready. She seized him and threw him onthe ground. ‘“ Now,” she said, “strike him on the arms, now on the back of the neck”; and so he was finally killed. Then said she, “I will take him out and bury him,” which she did. She staid a while quietly with the hunter and his wife, fetching in the game and being useful until, they were ready to leave and return to the settlement. Then she said, ““Now I must go home to my people, for I need fear nothing.” So she bade them farewell. And this is the end of the story of the Stone Giantess. THE STONE GIANT’S CHALLENGE. A Stone Giant challenged a Seneca chief to arace. The challenge was accepted, and the time for the start appointed two days later. The hunter employed the time in making a pair of moccasins, and in due time the race began. The hunter was in advance; he led the way over cornfields and through bushes, over and around brooks, and went a weary distance until he was very tired and his moccasins were nearly worn off his feet. At last he began to climb rocks. Now, the Stone Giant had no power to raise his head and could not tell where the hunter was when once he was above him, and in this dilemma he had recourse to a charm, and took from his pocket a human finger. He placed it upright upon his hand, and it immediately pointed the way for him to go. 64 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. Now, the hunter had turned and seen him do it, so he stooped and snatched the charm from him, whereupon the giant commenced crying and said: “You have won. You have taken my charm, and now you can always find game and all you want, for the finger will direct you to it.” HIAWATHA AND THE IROQUOIS WAMPUM. In one of his missions into the country of the Mohawks, Hiawatha once came upon the borders of alake. While deliberating in what man- ner he should cross it, the whole sky became filled with wild ducks, all of which finally alighted upon the surface of the water. After quench- ing their thirst and soaking their plumage they ascended again into the air in one great mass, and lo! the lake had become dry, while its bed was filled with shells. From these the wise chief and counselor proceeded to make the wam- pum which afterward so firmly cemented the union of the six tribes, thereby forming the great Iroquois Confederacy. ‘LHDITA OL LAd AVAH ONIATA DHL a My i ASOIONHLE AO NVaAUNe AX “Id [88[ LYOdaU IWANNV a ¥ CHAPTER II. PIGMIES. Another creation of the fertile Indian fancy consists of the race of pigmies, Lilliputian in size, but mighty in skill and deed. They carved out the beauties of rock, cliff, and cave, but also, like Hi-nu®, they were endowed with the mightier power of destroying the monster animals which endangered the life of man. Cliff, rock, and grotto attested the skill of that departed race, and the exhumed bones of giant animals bore as perfect witness to the truth of their existence as did the ‘“‘ Homo diluviz testis” of a century ago to the truth of the story of the deluge. THE WARRIOR SAVED BY PIGMIES. It was customary for the Iroquois tribes to make raids upon the Cherokees while the latter inhabited the swamps of Florida. One of these raiding parties had been away from home about two years, and on the very evening of the journey homeward one of its number was taken quite ill. After along consultation (the man con- tinuing to grow worse), the party concluded to leave him, and when they had reached one of the rivers of the Alleghany Mountains they abandoned him on the shore. After their arrival at home the warriors were questioned in regard to the missing war-chief. In reply, they said that they did not exactly know what had become of him, and that he must have been lost or killed in the ‘‘Southern country.” During the night the sick chief lying on the bank heard the soft sounds of a canoe’s approach, and saw three male pigmies landing hur- riedly. Finding him, they bade him to lie there until they returned, as they were going to a neighboring “salt-lick” where many strange animals watered, and where they were to watch for some of them to come up out of the earth. Reaching the place the pigmies found that the animals had not come out from the ground. They hid themselves and soon saw a male buffalo approach. The beast looked around and began to drink, and immediately two buffalo cows arose out of the lick. The three animals, after quenching their thirst, lay down upon the bank, The pigmies seeing that the animals were becoming restless and uneasy, concluded wisely to shoot them, and succeeded in killing the two buffalo cows. They returned to the man and told him that they would care for him. 5E . 65 66 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. This they did, and brought him to his friends, who from his story learned that the returned warriors were false, and they were accord- ingly punished. From a strong desire to see the “lick,” a large party searched for it and found it surrounded with bones of various large animals killed by the pigmies. THE PIGMIES AND THE GREEDY HUNTERS. The following story is told as having actually occurred: Mr. Johnson and others of the Seneca Reservation went out on a hunt- ing expedition to a region quite remote from their homes. Upon their arrival at the hunting grounds they found game so plentiful that they were obliged to throw away large quantities of meat to enable them to preserve and carry the skins of the many animals they had slain. Several months after their arrival they moved farther into the wil- derness, and found, to their sorrow, that game was growing scarcer each day until they could find none. As a consequence of their prodigality they were soon in want of that very meat which they had so wantonly thrown away, and were finally pushed to the verge of starvation. At length a pigmy appeared to the hapless hunters, and said that their present condition was a just punishment to them for their waste- fulness and greed for gain. In despair the hunters inquired of the pigmy what they must do to obtain food. The pigmy said that they must either starve or give up all the skins and furs which they had collected and prepared for use. The hunters asked how long they would be permitted to consider the proposition. The pigmy replied that when they had decided they could call one of his race by simply tapping on a rock, and then they could tell their decision. Not agreeing upon any answer after a long consultation, they called one of the pigmies to ask for better terms. The hunters said they would rather die than submit, if the amount of food were small, since, with a small supply and being in a strange, unknown country, they could not possibly find their way home. They further asked him to show them their homeward journey. The pigmy said that he could not grant their request without the full concurrence of his race, but that he would give them food enough to satisfy them in their present distress. He then showed them into a capacious and furnished cavern, in which they were to await the answer of the pigmies. On the following day the pigmy returned and said they had been forgiven for their wastefulness, and that they would be furnished with provisions without parting with their furs. He said that the hunters must remain in the cavern, and that some time in the night they would be called for. sMiTH.] THE PIGMY’S MISSION. 67 About midnight they were awakened and found themselves in their first camping-ground. The Senecas were informed that they were brought there by their ever-vigilant pigmy friends. THE PIGMY’S MISSION. There was once a pigmy living in a little cave. Near him dwelt a hunter in a wigwam. The pigmy sent to him and bade him visit him. The hunter went accordingly, and saw many wonderful things; the little people themselves in great numbers, and the corn and huckleberries and other berries which they had in plenty to eat. And the pigmy said: ‘This is our home, and all we have is given to us free, and al- though I am small I am stronger than you.” Then he showed him the games, and the bows and arrows and the dances, even the war dances and the hunter said when he had seen it all, “Let me go.” But the pigmy said, “Stay! Do you knowmy name? I am called Go.-Ga-Ah (little fellow). I had my choice of name. I will let you out when I have told you our mission. We are to help you, and we have never in- . Jured you, but now we are going to move away from here. We are go- ing where there is more danger from the giant animals, that we may help those who need our aid.” Then having finished his speech, he opened the door and let the hunter go on his way. CHAPTER III. PRACTICE OF SORCERY. The early history of the races of mankind, now civilized, is marked in all its course known to us by a belief in mysterious powers and influences. Sorcerers, men believed to be skilled in occult arts, have been known among them all. An examination into the actual practice of sorcery or magical arts among savage and barbaric tribes is therefore of peculiar interest. In none of the myths of the Iroquois which I have reason to believe antedate the appearance of Europeans do I find anything indicating a belief in Heaven or a separate spiritual world, although some of their customs indicate that they may have had such a notion. The only word for Heaven in the different dialects is evidently a literal transla- tion of the Christian idea, and signifies “in the sky.” It would seem that after the possession of that idea came the desire for intermediaries between living men and a spiritual world, indicating the first step to- ward a higher philosophy. Among the highly civilized Chaldeans, Egyptians, and Greeks, the success of magic depended upon the ignorance of the masses and the comparative learning of the few who practiced it. Among the Indians the knowledge of the medicine man and the more expert sorceress is little above that of the body of the tribe. Their success depends en- tirely upon their own belief in being supernaturally gifted, and upon the faith and fear of their followers. I do not believe that the Iroquois lives to-day who is not a believer in sorcery or who would not in the night time quail at seeing a bright light the nature of which he did not understand. The most intelligent, the wisest, and the best Christian whom I ever met among them told me of the wonderful marvels he himself had wrought. He had stayed the flames of a burning church by holding forth his right hand. He had lamed for life a man who was stealing cherries by pointing his finger at him. Few bad Indians came into his presence without begging him not to “bewitch” them. This good Tuscarora ranks as one of the leading Christians of his tribe and lives up to all the moral precepts of the Bible, from which he can quote a text considered by himse!f to be appropriate for each of the supersti- tions in which he so firmly believes. A few Tuscarora names with their definitions will serve to illustrate some of the practices and beliefs of the Iroquois. Ya-ku-wi-sdt: A person possessing within himself a live crystal which he could call from his mouth or nose. The crystal placed ina gourd of water, rendered visible the apparition of a person who had bewitched 68 sMiTu } ORIGIN OF WITCHES AND WITCH CHARMS. 69 another. By applying this crystal to one bewitched, hairs, straws, leaves, pebbles, &c., could be drawn forth. Rhu n-ta-ya ; A medicine man who by the use of a small kettle boiled roots or herbs, and by covering the head with a blanket and holding it over the kettle could see the image of an enemy who had bewitched either some one else or himself. Ya-tyuw7i-yi"7i: One who performed miraculous feats by drawing out with alder tubes, hairs, pieces of skin, leaves, &c., from people who had been bewitched with these things. Ré-ni-kwd-terha-yu-né-rhi: Superior medicine man. Us-ku®-rhd@-rlih: A carnivorous ghost bodied forth in a skeleton. U-h né"-wak: A departing ghost who will revisit its dead body. U-t-ku™-terhd@-ks"%: An evil spirit, from whom all witches received their power. U-ht-ki®-sit rh”: One who could assume a partly animal shape. Ya-ski-né®-né: The ghost of a living person. Ya tewin-hu-h-kwa-kwaé: An apparition which could emit flames of light. U-h-t-ki" : A natural-born witch or ghost. Nii-y-h-né-nyé-rhii-nyd@-a: A witch under the influence or power of a superior witch. Stories abound in which these personages or spirits are introduced. The belief in Yé-sku™i-nu®-nd, or that the spirit of a person could be in one locality and its body exist at the same time in another, explains much of the phenomena of witchcraft, and accounts for the strange con- fessions oftentimes made by those who were known to have been unjustly accused. Many customs still existing show that spirits are supposed to con- tinue to experience the wants of humanity after leaving the body. For some time after the death of an adult his accustomed portion of food is often dealt out for the supposed hungry spirit, and on the death of a nursing child two pieces of cloth are saturated with the mother’s milk and placed in the hands of the dead child so that its spirit may not re- turn to haunt the bereaved mother. When a living nursing child is taken out at night the mother takes a pinch of white ashes and rubs it on the face of the child so that the spirits will not trouble it, because they say that a child still continues to hold intercourse with the spirit world whence it so recently came. THE ORIGIN OF WITCHES AND WITCH CHARMS. A great many years ago boys were instructed to go out and hunt birds and other game for the support of their respective families and to learn from practice how to hunt. A certain boy while out hunting 70 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. came across a beautiful snake. Taking a great fancy to it, he caught it and cared for it, feeding it on birds, &¢., and made a bark bowlin which he keptit. He put fibers, down, and small feathers into the water with the snake, and soon found that these things had become living beings. From this fact he naturally conjectured that the snake was endowed with supernatural powers. He then continued his experiments, and dis- covered that whatever he put into this water became alive; so he went to another swamp and got other snakes, which he put into the bowl. While experimenting he saw other Indians putting things on their eyes to see sharp, so he rubbed some of this snake-water on his eyes, and climbing a tree he found that he could see things even if they were hidden. Finding that this snake liquid was powerful enough to improve his sight, he concluded that the more snakes he put into the waters the more powerful would be the liquid. He therefore hung a large number of snakes so that their oil dropped into the water, increasing its power and making more lively its strange inhabitants. He then learned that by simply putting one of his fingers into the liquid and pointing it at any person that person would immediately be- come bewitched. After placing some roots (which were not poisonous) into the snake liquid, he put some of the mixture into his mouth and found that it pro- duced a peculiar sensation. By blowing it from his mouth it would give a great light; by placing some in his eyes he could see in the dark and could go through all kinds of impassable places; he could become like a snake; he could even become invisible, and could travel faster than any other mortal. An arrow dipped into this liquid and shot at any living being, even if it did not hit its object, would nevertheless kill it. A feather dipped into this snake water and then pointed at any wished- for game, would immediately start for the desired thing and would al- ways kill it, and when the game was dissected the feather was always found in it. Having discovered the great power of this snake extract, he took into consideration the finding of counteracting agents. To ac- complish this end, he diligently searched for roots and herbs having the required qualities, and finally he was rewarded by obtaining antidotes which would work upon objects which he had bewitched or wounded. ORIGIN OF THE SENECA MEDICINE Nearly two hundred years ago a man went into the woods on a hunt- ing expedition. He was quitealone. Hecamped out ina field and was wakened in the night by the sound of singing aud a noise like the beat- ing of adrum. He could not sleep any more, so he rose and went in the direction of the sound. To his surprise the place had all the ap- sMITH.] A “TRUE” WITCH STORY. 71 pearance of being inhabited. On the one hand was a hill of corn, on the other a large squash vine with three squashes on it, and three ears of corn grew apart from all the others. He was unable to guess what it meant, but started off on his hunting once more, determined to re- turn some evening, being both curious and uneasy. In the night,as he slept near by, he again heard a noise, and awakening, saw a man look- ing at him, who said, “Beware! I am after you; what you saw was sacred; you deserve to die.” But the people who now gathered around said they would pardon it, and would tell him the secret they possessed: “The great medicine for wounds,” said the man who had awakened him, ‘‘is squash and corn; come with me and I will teach you.” He led him to the spot where the people were assembled, and there he saw a fire and a laurel bush which looked like iron. The crowds danced around it singing, and rattling gourd-shells, and he begged them to tell him what they did it for. Then one of them heated a stick and thrust it right through his cheek, and then applied some of the medicine to prove to him how quickly it could heal the wound. Then they did the same to his leg. All the time they sang a tune; they called it the “‘medicine song,” and taught it to him. Then he turned to go home, and all at once he perceived that they were not human beings, as he had thought, but animals, bears, bea\ ers, and foxes, which all flew off as he looked. They had given him direc- tions to take one stalk of corn aud dry the cob and pound it very fine, and to take one squash, cut it up and pound that, and they then showed him how much for a dose. Hewas to take water from a running spring, and always from up the stream, never down. He made up the prescription and used it with very great success, and made enough before he died to last over one hundred“years. This was the origin of the great medicine of the Senecas. The people sing over its preparation every time the deer changes his coat, and when it is administered to a patient they sing the medicine song, while they rattle a gourd-shell as accompaniment, and burn tobacco. Burn- ing tobacco is the same as praying. In times of trouble or fear, after a bad dream, or any event which frightens them, they say, ‘‘ My mother went out and burned tobacco.” The medicine is prepared now with the addition of meat. A “TRUE” WITCH STORY. Among the Senecas dwelt an old woman who was very stingy. All at once she began to suffer great pain in her eye. She consulted a con- jurer, who went out to a bush and covered it with a tent and then began 72 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. to sing, keeping time with his hand. After a while he returned to her and said: “You are bewitched. You refused to give milk to a poor woman who came to beg of you, and she has bewitched you. I have had her house revealed to me, and I saw her, but she was combing her hair over her face, so I could not see herfeatures. I would not recognize her again.” Next day he tried again; then he said: ‘Now I know who she is.” So they sent for a chief and told him all about it, and he brought the woman before them. She was a Chippewa anda witch. The chief had her brought to the old woman’s cabin. She owned that she had be- witched her, and said, “Fetch me the thigh-bone of a beaver from a man who is the child of Molly Brant, the child of Governor W. Johnson.” The bone was brought, and by the time it arrived she had scoured a brass kettle, and had clean water poured into it. As soon as she received the bone, which was hollow, she placed it against the eye that was not painful and spat through it. After a while she ceased spitting, and looked in the water. A spider was running around in the kettle. She covered it over with her handkerchief, then removed it, and a feather lay there instead of the spider. The pain left the old woman but the sight was not restored. ; A CASE OF WITCHCRAFT. The victim in this case was a Mary Jemison, who, having severe pains in her chest, concluded that she was bewitched, and consulted the witch- doctors, who applied their extractive bandages, which greatly relieved her. She saw a dog as an apparition coming toward her, and directed her friends to shoot it, but they did not succeed in killing it. In like manner a cat, which was invisible to other people, was seen by her. She finally recovered, but Andrew John, who was pronounced her be- witcher, and who was outwitched, is now dying from consumption. AN INCANTATION TO BRING RAIN. In a dry season, the horizon being filled with distant thunder-heads, it was customary to burn what is called by the Indians real tobacco as an offering to bring rain. On occasions of this nature the people were notified by swift-footed heralds that the children, or sons, of Thunder were in the horizon, and that tobacco must be burned in order to get some rain. Every family was supposed to have a private altar upon which its offerings were secretly made; after which said family must repair, bearing its tithe, SMITH.) CURE FOR ALL BODILY INJURIES. 73 to the council-house, where the gathered tithes of tobacco were burned in the council-fire. While the tobacco was burning, the agile and athletic danced the rain-dance. When this was done, Hi-nti, pleased with the incense of the burning tobacco, called forth huge dark banks of rain clouds and took personal charge of the gathering storm to guide it to wet the dry and parched earth. Hi-ni™ was considered a great lover of tobacco, but always in want of it. A CURE FOR ALL BODILY INJURIES. This was made from the dried and pulverized flesh of every known bird, beast, and fish. Equal portions of this flesh were mixed into a compound, which was divided among all true medicine-men. A WITCH IN THE SHAPE OF A DOG. Witches could and did assume animal shapes. On the Buffalo Reservation a man saw a “‘ witch-woman” coming, with fire streaming from her mouth. Crossing a creek and obtaining his gun the man returned and saw a dog at no great distance resting its fore- feet upon a log, and it had fire streaming from its mouth and nostrils. The man fired at it and saw it fall, but as it was very dark he dared not go near it; but on the following morning he went to the spot and saw where it had fallen, by the marks of blood from its wound. Track- ing it by this means he followed its path until it had reached a bridge, where the woman’s tracks took the place of the dog’s tracksiu the path. He followed the bloody trail to the Tonawanda Reservation, where he found the woman. She had died from the effect of the shot. A MAN WHO ASSUMED THE SHAPE OF A HOG. On the Tonawanda Reservation three boys were coming down a hill, when they saw a large hog, which they concluded to follow to iind its home. As they pursued the hog they continually kicked it, and it retaliated by biting at them at times. It retreated toward the bank of a small creek, reaching which it suddenly disappeared. They saw no reason to suppose that it had drowned itself in the stream ; but while searching for it they found on one of the banks an old man, who laughed and said, “ What do you seek?” They answered, “ A hog.” 74 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. After some moments the old man said that it was he, himself, whom they had been chasing, and by this the boys knew that he was a witch. WITCH TRANSFORMATION. A Canadian Indian says he saw, one evening, on the road, a white bull with fire streaming from its nostrils, which, after it had passed him, he pursued. He had never seen so large a bull, or in fact any white bull, upon the reservation. As it passed in front of a house it was transformed into a man with a large white blanket, who was ever afterward known as a witch. A SUPERSTITION ABOUT FLIES. There was once a species of fly so poisonous that sometimes merely the smell of them would eat the nose from a man’s face. A certain species of woodpecker was the only thing that could destroy them. Their homes were in trees, on which their poisonous tracks could be traced. They often entered the horns of a deer; hence, the Indian hunter’s first move after shooting a deer was to examine its horns, and if they were infected, the hunter would run away, since he knew that the moment the animal died the fatal insect would emerge from the horn. Around the trees in which they lived deer ever congregated, seem- ingly bewitched by these fierce and noxious little flies. Buckskin and deerskin were used to catch them. The bird that killed them for food was colored black and yellow. In the evening it came forth from its home in a hollow tree and scoured the forests for them. These birds were caught with buckskin traps and their feathers were used as charms, being fastened to the arrows of the hunter. An arrow thus made potent would surely bring down the deer. CHAPTER IV. MYTHOLOGIC EXPLANATION OF PHENOMENA. The instinctive desire in man to fathom the mystery of human lite, to solve the enigma of whence he came and whither he goes, and to ac- count for the marvels ever presented to his senses, has in all times ex- . cited the imagination and originated speculation. To explain the phenomena of life and nature the untutored mind has seized upon every analogy suggesting the slightest clew, and imagina- tion has aided the crude reasoning faculties. In the numerous Iroquois myths relating to the origin of both ani- mate and inanimate objects in nature there appears a reflex of the Indian’s mind as he solves, to his entire satisfaction, mysteries, many of which are the “ burning questions” of this enlightened age. These tales only vary with the temperament of the narrator or the exigencies of the locality. Where oft repeated they have in time been recorded on the hearts and minds of the people either as myths or folk- lore, embodying the fossilized knowledge and ideas of a previous age, misinterpreted, perhaps, by those who have inherited them. For the ethnologist who would trace in mythology the growth of the human mind, nowhere is the harvest more rich than among the abor- igines of our own country; and prominent among these, in this lore of ‘faded metaphors”, are the Iroquois. To what dignity their folk- lore might have attained had they been left to reach a lettered civil- ization for themselves we cannot know; but, judging from the history of other peoples, their first chroniclers would have accepted many of these oral traditions as facts. To many from whom the writer received these myths they were reali- ties, for there remain among these forest children those who still cling to their oft-told tales as the only link binding them to a happier past. Nor should they be considered as idle tales by the civilized man, who has not yet rid himself of the shackles of superstition in a thousand forms, and who sees daily his household gods torn down before him by comparative mythology and its allied sciences. Let him rather accept them reverently as the striving of the infant human mind in its search after the unknowable, revealing that inherent something in man which presupposes the existence of hidden forces, powers, or beings in nature. At first, perhaps, this is a mere blind feeling, but as man de- velops, it becomes an idea, then a recognized possibility; later, an ar- ticle of religious faith. (75) 76 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. ORIGIN OF THE HUMAN RACE. The Iroquois legend of an origin of the human race, which includes the creation of the spirits of good and evil, is undoubtedly of modern origin. In the great past, deep water covered all the earth. The air was filled with birds, and great monsters were in possession of the waters, when a beautiful woman was seen by them falling from the sky. Then huge ducks gathered in council and resolved to meet this wonderfu) creature and break the force of her fall. So they arose, and, with pinion overlapping pinion, unitedly received the dusky burden. Then the monsters of the deep also gathered in council to decide which should hold this celestial being and protect her from the terrors of the water, but none was able except a giant tortoise, who volunteered to endure this lasting weight upon his back. There she was gently placed, while he, constantly increasing in size, soon became a large island. Twin boys were after a time brought forth by the woman—one the spirit of good, who made all good things, and caused the maize, fruit, and tobacco to grow; the other the spirit of evil, who created the weeds and all ver- min. Ever the world was increasing in size, although occasional quak- ' ings were felt, caused by the efforts of the monster tortoise to stretch out, or by the contraction of his muscles. After the lapse of ages from the time of his general creation Ta-rhu®. hid-waih-ku®, the Sky Holder, resolve:! upon a special creation of a race which should surpass all others in beauty, strength, and bravery; so from the bosom of the great island, where they had previously subsisted upon moles, Ta-rhu®-hia-wah-ku® brought out the six pairs, which were destined to become the greatest of all people. The Tusearoras tell us that the first pair were left near a great river, now called the Mohawk. The second family were directed to make their home by the side of a big stone. Their descendants have been termed the Oneidas. Another pair were left on a high hill, and have ever been called the Onondagas. Thus each pair was left with careful instructions in different parts of what is now known as the State of New York, ex- cept the Tuscaroras, who were taken up the Roanoke River into North Carolina, where Ta-rhu®-hii-waih-ku" also took up his abode, teaching them many useful arts before his departure. This, say they, accounts for the superiority of the Tuscaroras. But each of the six tribes will tell you that his own was the favored one with whom Sky Holder made his terrestrial home, while the Onondagas claim that their possession of the council fire prove them to have been the chosen people. Later, as the numerous families became scattered over the State, some lived in localities where the bear was the principal game, and were called from that circumstance the cian of the Bear. Others lived where the beavers were trapped, and they were called the Beaver clan. For similar reasons the Snipe, Deer, Wolf, Tortoise, and Eel clans received their appellations. sMITH.] HOW THE BEAR LOST HIS TAIL. Ue FORMATION OF THE TURTLE CLAN. The Turtle clan originated in a simple and straightforward fashion. There were in early times many tortoises of the kind familiarly known as mud turtles, inhabiting a small lake or pool. During a very hot summer this pool became dry. The turtles thereupon set out on their travels over the country to look for a new habitation. One of them, who was particularly fat, suffered a good deal from this unaccustomed exercise. After a time his shoulders became blistered under his shell _ from the effect of his exertions in walking, and he, finally, by an extraor- dinary effort, threw off his shell altogether. The process of transfor- mation and development, thus commenced, went on, and in a short time this fat and lazy turtle became a man, who was the progenitor of the Turtle clan. : HOW THE BEAR LOST HIS TAIL. The following was recounted to me on the “Six Nations Reserve” in Canada, by Ka-an-er-wah, one of the few surviving grandchildren of Brant, the Mohawk, and might be termed a modern Indian story. It accounts for the tailless condition of the bear. A cunning fox saw a wagon load of fish and resorted to the following ruse to obtain some of the coveted delicacy: Feigning to be dead, he laid himself in the road by which the fisherman must pass, who, think- ing the skin of the fox worth preserving, tossed him into his wagon and drove on. After throwing out several fish, the fox slyly crawled out himself. Soon he met a wolf who was informed of his good luck, and advised to try the same experiment. The fisherman had, in the mean time, discovered the trick, and the wolf received a good thrashing instead of a fish dinner. The fox next met a bear who was also anxious to procure some fish. ‘‘ Well,” replied the fox, “‘down at the river you will tind an air-hole in the ice; just put your tail down into it as I did and you can draw out the fish as fast as you wish.” The bear followed the directions carefully, but, the weather being cold, instead of securing a fish his tail was frozen off. The bear was very angry and proposed to fight a duel with the fox. The fox chose as his seconds a dog and a cat; the bear chose a hog, and awaited the fox at the appointed hour. As the latter was late in ap- pearing the bear clambered into a tree to prospect, and reported that the fox was approaching with two men armed with guns. Thereupon the hog, greatly frightened, begged to be covered with leaves. Having accomplished this, the bear returned to his post in the tree. 78 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. The fox soon made his appearance, but instead of men his companions proved to be a dog and a lame cat. While awaiting in their turn, the cat, perceiving the slight motion of one of the uncovered ears of the hog, sprang upon it, whereupon the squeals of the invisible pig put the whole company to flight, and the bear never had the satisfaction of avenging the loss of his tail. ORIGIN OF MEDICINE. Chief Mt. Pleasant, one of the Bear clan, relates that once on a time a sickly old man, covered with sores, entered an Indian village where over each wigwam was placed the sign of the clan of its possessor; for in- stance, the beaver skin denoting the Beaver clan, the deer skin the Deer clan. At each of these wigwams the old man applied for food and a night’s lodging, but his repulsive appearance rendered him an object of scorn, and the Wolf, the Tortoise, and the Heron had bidden the abject old man to pass on. At length, tired and weary, he arrived at a wig- wam where a bear skin betokened the clanship of its owner. This he found inhabited by a kind-hearted woman who immediately refreshed him with food and spread out skins for his bed. Then she was in- structed by the old man to go in search of certain herbs, which she pre- pared according to his directions, and through their efficacy he was soon healed. Then he commanded that she should treasure up this se- cret. A few days after, he sickened with a fever and again commanded a search for other herbs and was again healed. This being many times repeated he at last told his benefactress that his mission was accom- plished, and that she was now endowed with all the secrets for curing disease in all its forms, and that before her wigwam should grow a hem- lock tree whose branches should reach high into the air above all others, to signify that the Bear should take precedence of all other clans, and that she and her clan should increase and multiply. ORIGIN OF WAMPUM. A man while walking in a forest saw an unusually large bird covered with a heavily clustered coating of wampum. Heimmediately informed his people and chiefs, whereupon the head chief offered as a prize his beautiful daughter to one who would capture the bird, dead or alive, which apparently had come from another world. Whereupon the war- riors, with bows and arrows, went to the “tree of promise,” and as each lucky one barely hit the bird it would throw off a large quantity of the coveted coating, which, like the Lernzan hydra’s heads, multiplied by emiTH.) ORIGIN OF TOBACCO, ETC. 79 being cropped. At last, when the warriors were despairing of success, a little boy from a neighboring tribe came to satisfy his curiosity by seeing the wonderful bird of which he had heard, but as his people were at war with this tribe he was not permitted by the warriors to try his skill at archery, and was even threatened with death. But the head chief said, “‘ He is a mere boy; let him shoot on equal terms with you who are brave and fearless warriors.” His decision being final, the boy, with unequaled skill, brought the coveted bird to the ground. Having received the daughter of the head chief in marriage, he divided the oh-ko-iih between his own tribe and that into which he had married, and peace was declared between them. Then the boy husband decreed that wampum should be the price of peace and blood, which was adopted by all nations. Hence arose the custom of giving belts of wampum to satisfy violated honor, hospitality, or national privilege. ORIGIN OF TOBACCO, A boat filled with medicine men passed near a river bank, where a loud voice had proclaimed to all the inhabitants to remain indoors; but some, disobeying, died immediately. The next day the boat was sought for and found, containing a strange being at each end, both fast asleep. A loud voice was then heard saying that the destroying of these crea- tures would result in a great blessing to the Indian. So they were decoyed into a neighboring council-house, where they were put to death and burned, and from their ashes rose the tobacco plant. ORIGIN OF PLUMAGE. In the beginning the birds, having been created naked, remained hid- den, being ashamed of their nakedness. But at last they assembled in a great council and petitioned the gods to give them some kind of cov- ering. They were told that their coverings were all ready, but were a long way off, and they must either go or send for them. Accordingly, another council was held to induce some bird to go in search of the plumage, but each had some excuse for not going. At last a turkey- buzzard volunteered to go and bring the feathery uniforms. It being a long journey to the place whence he must bring them, he (who had been a clean bird heretofore) was obliged to eat carrion and filth of all kinds; hence his present nature. At length, directed by the gods, he found the coverings, and selfishly appropriated to himself the most beautifully colored one, but finding he could not fly in this, he continued 80 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. trying them on until he selected his present suit, in which, although it is the least beautiful of any, he can so gracefully ride through the air. The good turkey-buzzard then returned, bearing the feathery gar- ments, from which each bird chose his present colored suit. WHY THE CHIPMUNK HAS THE BLACK STRIPE ON HIS BACK. Once upon a time the porcupine was appointed to be the leader of all the animals. Soon after his appointment he called them all together and presented the question, “Shall we have night all the time and darkness, or daylight with its sunshine?” This was a very important question, and a violent discussion arose, some wishing for daylight and the sun to rule, and others for continual night. The chipmunk wished for night and day, weeks and months, and night to be separate from the days, so he began singing, ‘The light will come; we must have light,” which he continued to repeat. Meanwhile the bear began singing, “‘ Night is best; we must have darkness.” While the chipmunk was singing, the day began to dawn. Then the other party saw that the chipmunk was prevailing, and were very angry; and their leader, the bear, pursued the chipmunk, who managed to escape uninjured, the huge paw of the bear simply grazing his back as he entered his hole in a hollow tree, leaving its black imprint, which the chipmunk has ever since retained. But night and day have ever continued to alternate. ORIGIN OF THE CONSTELLATIONS. Iroquois tradition tells us that the sun and moon existed before the creation of the earth, but the stars had all been mortals or favored ani- mals and birds. Ej Seven little Indian boys were once accustomed to bring at eve their corn and beans to a little mound, upon the top of which, after their feast, the sweetest of their singers would sit and sing for his mates who danced around the mound. On one occasion they resolved on a more sumptuous feast, and each was to contribute towards a savory soup. But the parents refused them the needed supplies, and they met for a feastlessdance. Their heads and hearts grew lighter as they flew around the mound, until suddenly the whole company whirled off into the air. The inconsolable parents called in vain for them to return, but it was _ too late. Higher and higher they arose, whirling around their singer, until, transformed into bright stars, they took their places in the firma- ment, where, as the Pleiades, they are dancing still, the brightness of sxuTa.] THE POLE STAR. 81 the singer having been dimmed, however, on account of his desire to return to earth. A party of hunters were once in pursuit of a bear, when they were attacked by a monster stone giant, and all but three destroyed. The three together, with the bear, were carried by invisible spirits up into the sky, where the bear can still be seen, pursued by the first hunter with his bow, the second with the kettle, and the third, who, farther be- hind, is gathering sticks. Only in fall do the arrows of the hunters pierce the bear, when his dripping blood tinges the autumn foliage. Then for a time he is invisible, but afterwards reappears. An old man, despised and rejected by his people, took his bundle and staff and went up into a high mountain, where he began singing the death chant. Those below, who were watching him, saw him slowly rise into the air, his chant ever growing fainter and fainter, until it finally ceased as he took his place in the heavens, where his stooping figure, staff, and bundle have ever since been visible, and are pointed out as Na4-gé-tci (the old man). An old woman, gifted with the power of divination, was unhappy because she could not also foretell when the world would come to an end. For this she was transported to the moon, where to this day she is clearly to be seen weaving a forehead-strap. Once a month she stirs the boiling kettle of hominy before her, during which occupation the cat, ever by her side, unravels her net, and so she must continue until the end of time, for never until then will her work be finished. As the pole star was ever the Indian’s guide, so the northern lights were ever to him the indication of coming events. Were they white, frosty weather would follow ; if yellow, disease and pestilence ; while red predicted war and bloodshed: and a mottled sky in the springtime was ever the harbinger of a good corn season. THE POLE STAR. A large party of Indians, while moving in search of new hunting grounds, wandered on for many moons, finding but little game. At last they arrived at the banks of a great river, entirely unknown to them, where they had to stop, not having the material to build boats. Lost and nearly famished with hunger, the head chief was taken very ill, and it was decided to hold a council to devise means for returning to their old homes. During the dance, and while the tobacco was burning, a littie being like a child came up, saying she was sent to be their guide. Accordingly they broke up their camp and started with her that night. Preceding them, with only a gi-with, or small war-club, she led them on until daylight and then commanded them to rest while she prepared their food. This they did, and when awakened by her they found a 65 82 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. great feast in readiness for them. Then she bade them farewell, with the assurance of returning to them again in the evening. True to her word, at evening she reappeared, bringing with her a skin jug, from which she poured out some liquid into a horn cup, and bade them each to taste of it. At first they feared to do so, but at last yield- ing they began to feel very strong. She then informed them that they had a long journey to make that night. Again they followed her, and in the early morn arrived at a great plain, where she bade them rest again for the day, with the exception of a few warriors who were to be shown where they could fine plenty of game. Two of the warriors had accom- panied her but a short distance when they encountered a herd of deer, of which she bade them kill all they wished in her absence, and then, again promising to return at night, she took leave of them. At night-fall she returned, saying her own chief would soon follow her to explain to. them how they could reach their own homes in safety. Ina short time he ar- rived, with a great number of his race, and immediately all held council together and informed the Indians that they were now in the territory of the pigmies, who would teach them a sign, already in the sky, which would be to them a sure guide whenever they were lost; and the pigmies pointed out the pole star and told them that in the north, where the sun never goes, while other stars moved about, this particular star should stand still, as the Indian’s guide in his wanderings, and that they were then but to follow its light and they would soon return to their tribe, where they would find plenty of game, &c. Then they thanked the good pigmies, and traveled every night until they arrived safely in their homes, where, when they had recounted all their adventures, the head chief called a meeting of all the tribes and said they ought to give this star a name. So they called it ti-yn-sou-da- go-érr (the star which never moves), by which name it is called unto this day. CHAPTER V. TALES. Distinct from the myths, which relate to the gods, supernatural beings, . and natural phenomena, are the tales, from which must be gleaned hints regarding the past hunter, warrior, and family life and history of the Troquois. In time of peace, during the long winter evenings, among his group of friends, the returned hunter narrated his achievements, or some famous story-teller told of those days in the past when men and animals could transform themselves at will and hold converse with one another. If musical, the entertainer would relate ingenious fables, with songs intro- duced, to give zest to the narration. All these historical traditions, legends of war and hunting, fairy tales, and fables have been handed down through the ages, kindling the en- thusiasm of the marvel-loving listener. These story-tellers were gifted with such imaginative powers, and were so free from the trammels of adapting their tales to any standard of possibility, that no easy task lies before the careful student who seeks to detect in them the scaffolding of truth around which so elaborate a superstructure has been reared. BOY RESCUED BY A BEAR. From their close relations with wild animals Indians’ stories of trans- formations of men into beasts and beasts into men are numerous and interesting. In nearly all of these, wherever the bear is introduced he figures as a pattern of benevolence, while many other animals, such as the porcupine, are always presented as noxious. One of these bear stories, as told me on the Cattaraugus Reservation by a grandson of Cornplanter, was as follows: A party of hunters, who were encamped a long distance from home, discovered, as they were preparing to return, that a young boy of their company was missing. After searching vainly for several days they concluded that he had been killed, and sadly de- parted without him. They were no sooner gone, however, than the lost child, in an almost famishing condition, was discovered by a very kind- hearted bear, who reasoned thus: ‘‘If I attempt to relieve the child in my present form, he will surely be frightened to death. I will therefore transform myself into a woman and take the boy home with me to become a playmate for my little cubs.” The boy was accordingly rescued from starvation, and, living in the same hollow tree with the bear cet; fed 84 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. with them upon nuts, corn, and berries. But when fall came, and with it the return of the hunters, the good bear explained her device to the boy, saying: ‘‘My cubs must now take care of themselves, and you can rejoin your friends; but always feel kindly toward the bear tribe”; upon which she resumed her proper shape and disappeared into the woods. The boy never, even when grown, was known to kill a bear. INFANT NURSED BY BEARS. A man and his wife and child went off hunting from an Indian village and encamped a long way from home. At first, good luck attended the hunter, who brought into camp plenty of deer and other game. At last, game became scarce, and day after day the hunter returned empty- handed and famishing with hunger. Before leaving, the hunter resolved to try his luck once more. Soon after he had lett the camp his wife, in searching for roots, found a hole in a large tree in which was a black bear. This she succeeded in killing, and after cutting it up and cook- ing some for herself and child she carefully secreted the remainder from her husband. But the boy hid a piece for his father, who soon returned, very weary. Then the hunter was enraged at the conduct of his wife, whom he forced to eat of the meat until she died, with her little infant to which she had given birth the same hour. Then the hunter buried his wife and threw the infant into the hollow tree. After this the hunter had better luck, and continued to live in the same place with his little boy. In the course of time he found that his little son must have had company, for little foot-prints were to be seen around his wigwam. So he left a second small bow and arrow, which, in time, he found had been used, and his son told him that a small boy had been playing with him. The next day the father watched and saw a little boy leave the tree where he had placed what he supposed to be the dead child. Then he entered his home and said to the child, “You are my child”; but the boy could not understand him, and was frightened and uneasy, and ran away to the tree, where the hunter dis- covered he had been nourished and cared for by a friendly bear. The hunter would not kill the kind benefactor, but took some of the soft bed of dried bark, to which the child had been accustomed, to his home, whereupon the child was happy and contented to remain with his father and brother. In time the two excelled in hunting and brought home owls and strange birds. Finally, they told their father they were going to the far west to kill the great beasts which were harming the human race. The hunter, who perceived that the children were becoming very strange, was afraid of them and consented. Then they bade him go back to his native home and get three of the bravest warriors to follow them to the west, where the warriors would find the carcasses of the animals smiTH.] THE MAN AND HIS STEPSON. 85 whick they would kill. So he went home and told his story, and the warriors started out and finally found traces of the boys, and in time found the carcasses of the animals almost reduced to'bones. Two of the men died of the stench. THE MAN AND HIS STEP-SON. This tale was narrated by a granddaughter of Brant. A certain man had a step-son whom he hated. He devised all means of getting rid of him. At last an ideastruck him. He went out hunt- ing very often, and one day he saw a porcupine’s hole. “The very thing,” said he. When he came home he called his step-son. ‘See here,” said he, “‘I have found a porcupine’s nest. I want you to creep into the hole and catch some of the youngones. Come, crawlin.” The boy obeyed, and as soon as his heels were in, the step-father closed up the hole and made him a prisoner. When he had found himself betrayed he cried and cried till he cried himself asleep. When he awakened he found that he was in a room. He saw an old woman walking around. She brought him something to eat, but it was so bitter that he refused. Then she called many animals around her to a council—wolves, bears, foxes, and deer. She told them that there was a boy there who could not eat the food that she lived on, and asked what they would advise to give which might support a human being? The fox said, “I live on geese and fowls. Ill take him, but still he can’t eat raw food.” The council decided that it was useless for him to assume the charge. Then the deer and each animal in turn told what they lived upon, but none could offer proper food for a lad. Last of all the bear spoke. ‘TI live,” said he, “on nuts, and he can live with my young ones.” So this was agreed to. All the animals promised to assist in getting the nuts, and the boy was given over to the keeping of the bear. He kept him for several years. One day the bear said, “‘A hunter is coming; he means to chop down the tree.” True enough, next day a dog ran barking up, and the tree was cut down and the old bear and two cubs were killed. The hunter thought there might be still another cub, so he looked into the tree. The boy madea noise just like the cubs. The hunter caught him, and was so astonished at his appearance that, instead of killing him, he took him to his wigwam, tamed him, and taught him to speak and to grow up likea man. After some years he forgot he had lived like a bear. He married a daughter of the hunter, but his mother-in- law was always angry because he never brought home tender bear-meat. So at last he went hunting and killed a bear, but on his return home he fell on a sharp stick and was instantly killed. 86 MYTHS Or THE IROQUOIS. THE BOY AND HIS GRANDMOTHER. An old woman lived with her grandson in the wilderness. The boy amused himself by shooting with his bow and arrows, and was very happy. His grandmother cooked and cleaned. She talked much to him of the future and the time when he should go out into the world. “Never, my grandson,” she would say, “‘never go west—go always to the east.” And the boy wondered very much at this, because, he said, all other boys went west, and they found much game there. But he promised. However, one day he asked his grandmother so often why she always forbade him to go west, that she told him: ‘Far away in the west,” said she, “there lives one who waits to destroy us, and if he sees you he will injure you and me. I warn you do not gothat way.” But the boy ques- tioned how and why, and thought to himself that on the first opportu- nity he would see for himself. So he struck out for the west, keeping a sharp lookout for the man, because his grandmother had taught him he should always bow first. As he neared the lake he heard the man’s voice, but, although he looked all around, he could see no one. The voice said: “Ah! ah! my little fellow, I see you.” Still he could see no one. “ What shall I do now?” thought he. Then the voice said, ‘‘ What would you think if I sent a hurricane to tear your grandmother’s cabin allup?” The boy replied, ‘Oh, I should like it. We have hard work to get wood. It would be a good thing.” And the voice replied, ‘‘ You had better run home and see.” So he went home to his grandmother. As he neared his cabin he heard a great noise, and his grandmother called to him, “Come in, come in; we shall be blown away. You have disobeyed me; now we Shall be destroyed. The hurricane is upon us.” But the boy only laughed and said, ‘“ We will throw the house into a rock.” And he turned it into a rock, and when the hurricane was over they were un- harmed, and found plenty of wood to burn. Then said the boy, ‘‘ Grandmother, we are all right.” But the old woman said, “‘ Do not venture any more; next time he will destroy us.” But the lad thought he would try again. In the morning he started off east as long as his grandmother could see him, then be turned to the west, and kept a sharp watch right and left as he neared the pond. Then, all at once, he heard the man’s voiceagain. ‘ What,” it asked, “ would you say if a great hailstorm came down upon your mother’s cabin, with spears as sharp as needles?” “Oh,” replied the youngster, “Thave always wanted some spears; I would be glad of some.” ‘ You had better go home and see,” said the voice. So home he sped, hearing the gathering of a great storm. The grandmother said, ‘‘ We are going to be destroyed with a hail- storm of spears.” But he laughed aloud and said, “ 1 need spears for fishing; let them come. We will turn the house into a rock again.” eMITH.] THE DEAD HUNTER. 87 And he did, and when the storm was ended he and his grandmother came out and the ground was covered with spears. ‘No matter,” said he; “I will get poles and fit them on for fishing”; but when he brought the pole he could not find any spears. “How is this?” he asked. And his grandmother said, ‘‘ They are melted—they were ice.” The boy was very much disappointed and mourned aloud. ‘“ What can I do to punish the old fellow?” he cried. “ Heed my warning,” said his grandmother, “and leave him alone.” But the lad was determined. He started off once more, taking with him a stone round his neck as a charm. He watched the direction in which he had heard the voice, and all at once he saw in the middle of the lake a great head, with a face on every side of it. He cried out, “Ha! ha! uncle, I have you now. How should you like it/if the lake dried up?” “That it will never do,” said the voice. ‘Go home,” mocked the lad, “and see!” And he threw the stone which he had. As it whirled through the air it became very large and fell into the lake, when, at once, the water began to boil. Then the boy returned to his grandmother’s cabin and told her all about it. She said, ‘It has been tried again and again, but no one has ever seen him before or has been able to hunt him.” Next morning he went over to the lake and found it all dried up and allthe animals dead, and only alarge frogremained, into which the man had been turned. So the boy killed the frog, and no more trouble ever came to him or his grandmother. THE DEAD HUNTER. A man and his wife went hunting, and after a hard day’s march they came to an empty wigwam. So they entered and found in it a dead man, laid out with his tomakawk and all his fine things. They found corn in plenty, and the squaw made bread, and then they all went to bed, the man on one side and the woman and her baby on the other. They placed some of the bread between them, and in the middle of the night they heard a noise, and the dead man was sitting up and eating. The hunter sprang up. “ We are all dead folks,” cried he, “if we re- main here”; so he made a pretense, and whispered to the squaw, “ You must go for water. I will mind the child.” As soon as she was gone, he pinched the baby till it cried. ‘ Oh,” said he, “I must follow the mother or the child will die; she is too long fetching the water.” He hastened and soon caught up with the woman, but behind him came the dead man, holding a lighted torch. To save themselves they put the child down on the ground, and the hunter seized his wife’s hand and hurried her on faster and faster, but the sound of steps behind them was plainer and plainer. So the man let his wife go, and fled on by himself as hard as he could. Soon he came to a hollow log, into 88 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. which he crept. The steps came nearer and nearer, until at last he felt the strokes of the dead man’s hatchet, and heard the dead man’s ~ voice saying, ‘Ah! you are here. I have caught you.” Then the dead man took a pole and tried to poke the hunter out of the hollow, but he could not. At last his hatchet broke, and then the hunter heard him say, ‘I must go; my night is coming on.” So, after a while, the hunter crept out of the hollow log and went after his wife and child, and returned to the settlement and told all about it ; and the chief sent and burnt up the dead man’s wigwam until it was nothing but ashes. A HUNTER’S ADVENTURES. This was told by Mr. Snow, Seneca Reservation : A hunter far from home had expended all of his arrows, when he ar- rived at a lake. He saw a great number of wild geese. Having been unsuccessful, he now reflected upon the best means of capturing some of these geese, and he finally concluded to pursue the following plan: He procured a quantity of second-growth bass-wood bark, which he tore into withes. ' These he fastened to his belt, then, swimming out into the lake, he dove down under the floating flock and succeeded in tying a few of the geese to his belt, whereupon the struggling geese, with their companions, flew up into the air, carrying the hunter with them. While unfastening a few of the tied ones, so that he might be let down to the ground in a gradual manner, the whole of the captured ones broke away, and the poor hunter fell intoa tall and hollow stump, from which he found it impossible to free himself. He remained in this miserable prison nearly two days, when he with joy heard a thumping sound upon the outside of the stump, and also the voices of women choppers, who were cutting down the stump for wood, but the cries of the man on the inside of the stump frightened the women so much that they went away in search of aid to secure the game which they supposed they had found in the stump. The hunter was finally delivered safely from his perilous situation, and he remained with his kind rescuers until he had again provided himself with a large stock of arrows, when he started anew for a hunt farther to the south. Having arrived at his destination, he built a lodge and had excellent luck in killing large numbers of deer, bears, and other game, the oil of which he carefully preserved in leathern bottles. When he concluded to return to his home and friends he remembered his ex- perience in flying, so he prepared wings for himself, which wings he made from thinly-dressed deer-skin. Taking his bottles of oil for bal- last, he started homeward, but as he passed over the lodges of the good women who had rescued him, he threw down several bottles to these his good friends, who to this day do not know from whence theycame. After sMITH.] THE OLD MAN’S LESSONS TO HIS NEPHEW. 89 this the flying hunter flew swiftly and safely to his home. His return to his clan was announced by runners, and all assembled to listen to the hunter’s narration of his exploits and adventures. THE OLD MAN’S LESSONS TO HIS NEPHEW. A man and his nephew lived together in a solitary place. The old man one day said to his nephew, ‘*You are nowa young man. You should be hunting larger game—a bear or a deer—for our support.” And he replied, “I will go.” Then the old man gave him the best bow and arrows, and in the morning he departed. When he returned home he brought that which he had killed—a deer—and thought himself lucky for a first attempt. ‘TI should like,” he said to his uncle, “to go every day.” Then the old man said, ‘‘Now and again you may see a bear go up a tree; if you see a hole in the tree and the marks of the bear’s claws you can be sure of the bear.” So one day as the young man was out he saw a hole in a tree, and he saw the claw marks of the bear, showing that he had gone up, so he returned and told his uncle, and in the morning they started together. The old man said, “I believe there is a bear inside now. Our plan is to knock around the outside of the tree and make the bear uneasy; presently he will come out.” So they knocked, and the first thing they knew the bear was sticking his head out of the hole. “ Now,” said the uncle, “I will tell you when to shoot. If you will shoot just where there is no hair, you will surely kill him.” The young man saw that the paws were without hair and he hit the bear on the fore-paw. “Shoot again,” said the uncle. So he shot the other paw. Then the old man pointed and said, ‘Shoot here.” And the nephew aimed and shot the point of his uncle’s finger. Then the old man’s hand hurt him, so to direct his nephew he pursed out his lips and pointed with them, and the young man shot through his lips. Then the bear came down and made his way off, while the uncle was explaining that his meaning had been to shoot under the fore legs. The young man asked, “Why did you not say so?” Then they started home for that day without game. ‘To-morrow morning,” said the uncle, “watch, for if you will look between the roots of the large trees you may find a bear in that way.” Accordingly, the next day the young man found a hole near the root of the tree and saw a large bear inside. So he weut home and asked his uncle for instructions how to get at the bear. The old man began to explain, but, unforiunately, in a way that he could not understand. He went into the corn field, gathered the corn-stalks and stuck them around the entrance to the hole, so that he surrounded the place where the bear must come out. Then he knocked on the other side of the tree, 90 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. and the bear came out, as, of course, there was no reason why he should not, for the stalks fell before him. The young man took his arms and went home. Then the uncle asked what he had done, and he told. “You did not understand,” said the old man. ‘You should have shot him as he left the den; first on one side then on the other.” ‘After this,” expostulated the young man, ‘“‘make your explanations clearer and do not give so many illustrations. Had you told me this at first all would have been right.” One day the old man said, ‘I’m going to make a feast. You can in- vite the guests. I cut sticks to represent so many friends. You invite them. Go to the highest tree you can find and leave this stick there. Then go along till you find a place all swamp—bad place, and leave one stick there,” &c. So the nephew went around and used up the sticks and returned. “Have you done as I said?” asked the old man. “Yes,” said he. Yet when the day came and the feast was ready, nobody came. “ Why,” asked the uncle, “has nobody come?” “ How,” inquired the young man, “could the tall tree and the swamp come here?” So they ate together, and then the young fellow went off in the world to learn his lessons by experience, for he had become tired of his uncle’s parables. THE HUNTER AND HIS FAITHLESS WIFE. Once on a time there was a man whose name was ‘“ Hemlock Bows.” He used to go hunting every day and always had good luck. He would kill so many deer that he could not carry them all home. One day he killed thirty deer. He was determined to carry them all home, sohe took them and shook them, and shook, and shook, till they were as small as squirrels, and he carried them all home, and when he got there he shook, and shook, and shook, till they were good-sized deer again. Sometimes when he killed so many he would sit up all night to fix the skins on his wigwam so he could make clothes for him- self and his children. One day a boy was born unto him; the father was very fond of him and he planted a few hills of corn and beans, but they lived mostly on meat. After the child was born the mother slept aloue with it on the other side of the fire-place. After three years more a little girl was born. After the birth of her second child the wife seemed to care no more for her husband. He was a great worker. He had a large boxful of skins all dressed for his children. When the father went hunting the mother would call the boy and make him go and bring her some water, and she would wash and dress up very fine and take a long strap and an ax and leave the children alone all day until almost time for the father to come home. Then she would hurry home to cook for the man. SMITH. ] THE HUNTER AND HIS FAITHLESS WIFE. 91 One night the little boy told his father all about his mother going away every day. He felt very badly when he heard it, and at once re- solved to follow her the next day and: find where she went. The next morning early he left the cabin and went off. The woman soon sent the boy for some water, and, after she had dressed, started with her ax and the long strap which was used in drawing wood. She passed her hus- band on her way but did not see him, but he tracked her very closely. Soon she came to a large black-ash tree, which was hollow, and upon which she pounded with her ax. A very nice-looking man came out of the tree to meet her. He wore a turban filled with bright feathers. He went up to her and kissed her, and seemed very much delighted to see her. Her husband was watching them all the time, and when the man kissed her he drew his bow and arrow and shot at the man, and the arrow went between him and the woman. She was very angry, and took a club and beat her husband till he could not see. Then she went home, put the boy and girl out in the cold and snow, and then set fire to the eabin and burned it down and went off. Soon the father came and found the children. He felt very badly when he saw them, but he told the boy he must mind the dog, for he must go after their mother. The dog fixed the boy and girl in a house in the snow, and the next day they started on a long walk. While the boy was traveling along with his little sister on his back she saw a flock of large white turkeys, and she wanted one. The boy put her down and ran in the bushes to find one for the little girl, but while he was after it a bear came and carried off the little girl, and the dog followed after the bear. The boy felt very bad. He cried and cried, and wished that he might die. He tried to hang himself, but the strap broke. Then he jumped down a steep place onto a lot of stones, but still he was unhurt. He traveled on and soon came toa lake. He plunged into the water, but it was very shallow. He walked a little way, when he saw a great fish coming towards him with its great mouth wide open. Now, not far from this lake lived a woman and her daughter. They had fences of osier fixed in the lake to catch fish. In the morning the girl went out to see if there were any fish caught, and she saw a very large one. They killed and dressed it, and when they cut it up there they found the boy alive. They were very glad to find the boy, and soon he told them all about himself and family. Some time after this they heard that the boy’s mother was going to be married to another man. The woman told the boy she thought he had better go and kill the man and his mother. So they fixed him up and he went and found them. There was a number of cabins and between two of them was a long stick put up, and on it was an eagle, and the one that shot the eagle was to marry the woman. She was very nicely dressed and sat on a raised platform. He saw his father near her, jooking very sick and sad. The boy went around among the wigwams, and in one he found his sister hanging to a crane in a chimney and near herthe dog. He got his father, sister, and dog away, and then went back 92 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. and set fire to the cabin his mother was in. It burned so fast that she could not get out and she died. When her head cracked open it shook the ground, and out of the ashes of his mother there rose up a screech owl. His father got well, and they all went to live with the woman and her daughter. The old man married the woman, and the boy the daughter, and so they were happy at last. THE CHARMED SUIT. Ap old man brought up his son very quietly in a solitary place. As he grew up, his father sent him daily into the woods and told him to listen and come home and tell what he had heard. So the boy sat on a log and waited to hear what might come. He heard a sound at last, “Ch-R-Ch,” so he ran to tell the old man and then thought he would wait till he heard it again. The Ch-R-Ch was repeated, and he ran to his home and cried out, “I have heard it! I have heard it!” “ Wait! wait!” said the old man, ‘ till I get my pipe,” and when he had lifted it he said, ‘* Now, what did you hear?” ‘Oh,” replied the lad, “I heard Ch-R-Ch; twice it was repeated.” ‘ That,” said the father “is not what I wanted you to hear; that was only a snow-bird.” So the boy went, morning after morning, and heard various sounds from snow-birds, wolves, owls, &c., but still never what the old man expected. One day whilst he was listening he heard quite a new sound and as the sun began to rise, it was like a voice singing. ‘‘That is strange” said he, ‘I never heard that before.” The song was like this: Ha-him-weh Ha-him-weh Wa-he-dim-na Sra-gua he, Ha him weh Ha him weh. Which means: I belong to the wolf clan. I belong to the wolf clan. I am going to marry him, Iam going to marry him. It was a sweet woman’s voice. So the boy listened and said to him- self, ‘Surely this is the song.” So he shouted for glee, and ran and fell near the door, he was so excited. ‘‘ Now,” he cried, “‘I bring the news”; but the father said, “* Wait! wait! till I get my pipe.” “ Now,” said he, as he smoked, “tell me.” So the boy began. ‘As I listened,” said he, “I heard a voice from the west, a woman’s voice, so IT turned and listened to it singing”: Hi-him-weh WaA-he-dim-nai Sra-gua-hi. sMiTH.] THE CHARMED SUIT. 93 “ Ah!” said the father, ‘that was what I was waiting for. The chief of a distant village sends his two daughters to see us. Run half way back and see if you can hear them again.” So he went and heard again the same song. Hi-him-weh, &c. He returned at once and told his uncle. “Now,” said the old man, “they are almost here. Sit down by the ashes.” And he took the shovel and threw ashes all over the boy’s bed and put on him his best feathers and astonished the boy very much by saying, “Do not look at the maidens when they come in; they come to see me, not you; hold your head down while they stay.” Then they heard the song: Ha-him-weh. Ha-him-weh. Sri-gui-he. The feathers were all on his head; still the old man repeated, ‘“‘ Now, keep still.” Soon the maidens arrived and the old man opened tbe door. The younger of the two carried a beautiful basket on her back; this she set down near the old man. The boy looked around a little, and his father called out, ‘Dirty boy; hold your head down.” The visitors looked around and thought, ‘What a place! what a place!” “Sit down, sit down,” said the old man to the visitors, but although they removed the blankets they stood still. So he smoked on quietly. When they saw how dirty it was where the boy sat they began to go around and clear up, and as the evening passed the lad did not know what to do with himself. They fixed themselves a clean bed on the other side of the wigwam. They refused to sit by the old man, and when at last the boy went to sleep they litted him out of his dirty bed, strewn with ashes, and put him into their clean bed. In the morning the younger one admired him and said, “ What a beautiful young man!” Then they said, ‘‘We had better cook some- thing.” So they cooked corn and rice, and the boy ate with them, and the old father smoked. After a while he said, ‘‘Good woman; can clean up, can cook, can make good wife.” Then he let the boy look up. The younger visitor sang again: Ha-him-weh. Hi-him-weh. So the old man smoked his pipe and the sisters went back to their people. Then the two lived qnietly together, but the young man often thought of the beautiful maidens. One day as they were conversing the old man said, “Now you have become a young man you must go.” ‘Which way,” asked he, and the uncle replied, “You must go where those young maidens are who are chief’s daughters. You must have fine bows and arrows; here they are— try them before you go. They give luck in hunting.” Then he looked where he kept all the fine things for the young warriors and dressed 94 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. him up well with a swan stuffed. “Now,” said he, “‘ when you take this outside it will be on your head, but it will soon come back to life, and when that happens you must run ina circle and return, and you will see that many deer and bears will follow your track.” So off he went. When he returned he said that so many bears and so many deer came out every time as he crossed the track and he shot them, and took the best out and sent them home to show them to the old man. And all the time the swan was alive and beautiful. , The old man exclaimed at his luck as he told his tale. ‘“ You have done well,” said his uncle. ‘We must save all the meat. Now, hold yourself ready to go to-morrow. I warn you there are dangers in your path. There is a stream that you must cross. There stands a man and he will try to kill you. He will call out to you that he has a couple of wild cats and will say, ‘My friend, come, help me kill these.’ Pay no attention; go right on along, or you will be in danger and never get to the town.” The nephew promised to obey, and his uncle brought outa curious thing, made of colored string and elk hair of deep red, about a foot long. ‘I shall keep this by me,” said he, “and so long as you are doing well it will hang as it is; but if you are in danger it will come down itself almost to the ground, and if it does reach the ground you will die.” ‘I will be careful,” said the young man, and so he started with his directions, following his uncle’s advice. He had almost reached his destination when he heard a noise, and there in his path stood a man while he watched two animals going up a tree, and he tried in vain to make them come down. As the young man approached him he said, “Please help me, if you can; but kill one of these animals; it will bea good thing. Do'help me.” So he begged, and the young man thought it could do no harm, so he took out his arrow and said, ‘ Don’t be in a hurry.” Then the old man handed him the arrows and asked him, “Where are you going?” and he told him; and the stranger said, ‘‘Stop all night with me; thatis along way you are going; go on to-morrow.” Now the uncle at home was watching the signal. He saw it go down almost to the ground, and he cried out in his alarm, ‘“*Oh! oh! my nephew is in danger, he will get into trouble with that old man.” But the young man listened to the persuasions of the tempter and agreed to remain with him all night, and the old man made up a fire and began to tell stories as they sat beside it till the youth fell asleep. Before they sat down he had gathered together some sharp prickly bark, pre- tending it gave a good light, and as the young man slept he said to himself, ‘“‘ Now, I can fix him.” So he took some of the sharp-pointed bark and placed it on him; so he writhed inagony. Then he took off the young man’s handsome clothes and dressed him up instead in his own old rags, dirty and rotten. “TI shall keep these things,” said he; “they are mine,” and forthwith he started off to the chief’s house where the beautiful women were, and he had the young maw’s pipe and his spotted deer skin, and the handsome bag made out of it, with little birds to eMITH.} THE CHARMED SUIT. 95 light the pipe. When he reached the chief’s cabin he went in and the younger sister was there. She was so disappointed when she saw him, she said, “This cannot be the young man.” But her elder sister said: “Yes, it ishe. He has the fine clothes and the deer skin, and the deer- skin bag, and the little birds to light his pipe.” But still the younger sister was disappointed, and then the people heard that the young man they expected had come from the east and many came to see him and watched all his movements. At length he got his pipe, which, when it was filled, the two little birds were expected to light, but they would not for a stranger, so he said it was because there were people all around, and he must be alone. The older sister believed him. Then he told her, too: ““When I spit it makes wampum, so spread out a deer skin and save my spittle.” So he spat many times and she did as he said and saved it up, but it never became wampum, although he did it every night. Each day he went hunting, but he killed only things not good to eat, and made the older sister, who became his wife, cook them. The younger one, however, would never go near him. Even when he commanded the little spotted deer-skin bag to stand up she observed that it did not obey him. One day she went out to the fields to husk corn, and as she finished her task she observed a man near a fire in the field. She drew near. He was fast asleep. She gazed at his face and recognized the beautiful young man, but how greatly changed! She stood for a while looking at him till he awakened. ‘Whoare you?” sheasked; “ whence do you come? where are you going?” “I come,” said he, “from the far east; I came only last evening.» And he related his story, and told how nicely he had been started by his uncle, until she was quite satisfied of the truth of his story. She did not tell him she was the daughter of the chief whom he sought, but she went home and fetched food for him. She laid meat and drink before him, and while he ate she returned to her task of husking corn. Then she went home. The old fellow meanwhile had asked often, “‘ Where is the young sister? Why does she never come to see me, or sit near whilst I smoke my pipe? May be she has found for herself a sickly man out in the field.” At last the younger sister told the young man who she was, and that the old man that had robbed him was in the chief’s cabin and had all his fine things ; and the young man felt better, and said, “I want my things back. I willmakeadream. Go and tell the chief, your father, that I have dreamed a dream and all the people must come to hear it, and I will tell how all the things the old man has are mine, and then the birds will obey, and all the things will come alive again.” Then the old chief listened to the entreaties of his youngest daugh- ter, and called a great council and the young man told his story in the form of a dream, and when he spoke of the birds they came and filled his pipe. and the swan skin when placed upon his head also came to life, and his spittle became wampum. So the chief knew he was the 96 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. rightful owner of the clothes and they were returned to him, and the impostor was obliged to resume his old rags. ‘The young man was then married to the faithful maiden, and returned to his home in Baty where he became in time a voted chief. THE BOY AND THE CORN. An old man brought up his nephew in a solitary place. One day as they walked through the field the uncle picked an ear of corn, but he did noteat it. Strange,” thought the boy, ‘that I never see him eating anything ;” and he watched him when the old man thought he was asleep. He saw him go to a hole and take out a kettle and afew grains of corn, which he put into it. Then he took a magic wand and tapped the kettle till it grew big; then he ate some corn and again tapped the kettle till it became small once more. In the morning when the uncle left home the boy got at the hole and did as he had seen him do, but as he tapped the kettle it grew so large that he could not stop it, and it went on growing until his uncle came home, who was very angry. ‘You do not know what harm you have been doing,” said he; “‘ we can get no more corn; it grows in a place that is so dangerous that few who go there come back alive.” ‘ We have plenty in the house,” said the boy. “And when it is gone, what then?” But the boy persisted that he knew where the corn grew, and could easily fetch some. ‘So, uncle,” he added, ‘‘ tell me how to pro- ceed.” ‘IT shall never see you again,” moaned the uncle. “Oh, yes, you will,” said the boy, and he started. Now, the uncle had warned him that he would come to a lake where the woman witches lived, and that he never could escape them. But he made himself a canoe and picked some peculiar nuts and launched himself upon the water. Then he threw the nuts before him to feed the fowls who guarded the shore, that they might not betray his coming. He landed on the other side safely and filled his pockets with corn, and was hastening to put off in his boat, but before he did so was curious to know what was in a lodge on the shore. So he peeped in and stole a bear’s leg which he saw. Now, all his nuts were gone; so when he passed the birds they were alarmed and set up their call and out came the witches with their hooks and cords. But he launched his canoe, and when a hook reached him he broke it off, and reached the opposite shore in safety. There he saw a number of ducks, and he stripped a tree of its bark and caught them and started home. As he neared his home he heard his uncle singing a dirge—“ My poor nephew, I shall never see him again.” The animals had been telling the old man sad tales of his death, so when the boy knocked at the door he did not believe that it was his nephew. But the boy heard the Hi- Wadi, and he knew his uncle. So he said, ‘‘ Uncle, SMITH.) THE BOY AND THE CORN. 97 I am coming, I am coming; stop your mourning.” His uncle thought it was an animal on the outside, and he called out, “ Put your hand through the hole.” So the nephew put his hand through and caught hold of the rope and pulled it out and tied it toa post, and then opened the door. And when the old man saw his nephew he called out, “So you have got home safe; where have you been?” and he made many inquiries. And the young man explained everything to him, and told how, at last, he had returned safely to his home with plenty of corn. THE LAD AND THE CHESTNUTS. This is another version of the foregoing tale: A man lived with his younger brother alone in the deep wilder- ness. Game was plentiful—very plentiful. The elder brother hunted it; the younger staid home to gather sticks and build the fire against the hunter’s return. When he came, bringing deer, the younger one said, ‘I will cook the venison; give it to me to prepare for supper.” The elder one replied, ‘‘I will smoke before I eat.” When he had smoked he went to lie down. “TI should think,” said the younger, “you would want to eat now.” But no, he slept instead of tasting the food, and when he awakened he bade his brother go to bed, and leave him to help himself. The lad wondered, but he obeyed. Still he found the same thing happened every day. In the mornings the elder brother left without eating; in the evenings he bade the boy leave him alone. This awak- ened the curiosity of the younger. ‘I will watch,” said he; and he watched. ‘He must eat something,” he added to himself, ‘‘or he would die. He must eat at night.” So he pretended to take no notice. At bedtime he lay down and made believe to sleep, but he kept one eye open, although he seemed to be sound asleep. After a while the elder brother rose and opened a trap-door, and, when below the ground, he began to make strange motions, and presently drew out a kettle and commenced scraping it on the bottom. Then he poured water onto it, and at last he took a whip and struck the kettle, saying, as he placed it over the burning wood, “ Now, my kettle will grow larger”; and as he struck it, it became bigger with every blow; and at length it was very large, and he set it to cool, and began greedily to eat the contents. “Ah,” thought the younger brother, as he watched, “‘now, to-morrow, I will find out what he eats;” and he went to sleep content. At daylight the elder set off to hunt. Now was the opportunity. Cautiously the boy lifted the trap-door, and there he at once saw the “kettle. In it lay half a chestnut. ‘‘ Now I know,” said he, “what my brother eats;” and he thought to himself, “I will fix it all ready for him TE 98 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. before he comes back.” As night drew on he took the kettle and scraped up the chestnut, put in some water, and found the stick. He at once commenced whipping the kettle as he had seen his brother do, saying, “‘Now my kettle will grow large;” and it did; but it kept on growing larger and larger, to his surprise, until it filled the whole room, and he had to go up on the roof to stir it from the outside. When the elder brother returned he said, ‘‘What are you doing?” “T found the kettle,” replied the younger, ‘‘and was getting your sup- per.” “ Woe is me,” said the elder, ‘now I must die.” He struck and struck the kettle, and reduced it by every blow, until at last he could restore it to its place. But he was sorrowful. When morning came he would not get up, nor eat of the venison, but asked for his pipe and smoked. Day by day passed. He grew weaker each day, and after each smoke sang, ‘Hah geh-he geh, Non ta ge je 6 dah!” “ Bring me my pipe and let me die.” The younger lad was very anxious. ‘ Where,” he asked his brother, “did you get the chestnuts? Let me go and seek some for you.” After many questions at length the brother said, ‘Far, far away is a large river, which it is almost impossible to cross. On the further side, at a great distance, stands a house; near it is a tree, a chestnut tree; there my forefathers gathered chestnuts long ago, but now none can reach it, for there stands night and day a white heron watching the tree and look- ing around on every side. He is set there by the women folks; half a dozen of them take care of him, and for them he watches. If he hears a sound he makes his Thr-hr-hr. Then the women come out with war-clubs and are always on their guard lest any one should gather the chestnuts, as many fallon the ground. Even a mouse is suspected of being a man. There is no chance, no chance at all.” But the brother said, “I must go and try this for your sake; I cannot have you die.” So he departed on his way, after he had made a little canoe about three inches long. He walked on and on, day and night, until at last he reached the river. Then he took out of his pouch his little canoe, and drew it out and out until it was a good size, and in it he crossed the river. Then he made it small again and put it in his pouch. On and on he walked until he could see the house, and before it the chest- nut tree. Then he called a mole out of the ground. The mole came and sniffed around a little plant, the seed of which the heron dearly likes. Itis like a bean. Some of these seeds the young lad took and then followed the mole to its hole, and crept under the leaves until he neared the heron. Then he threw the seeds to the bird. The heron saw them and began eating them. Whilst he was occupied and noticed nothing else, the boy filled his bag with chestnuts and set off home- wards; but now the heron, no longer occupied with his oh 6n hi, sus- _ pected danger and gave his warning Thr-hr-hr. But the lad was already far away near the great river. Once more he took out his canoe, and SMITH.) THE GUILTY HUNTERS. 99 was on the water when the women rushed out. They threw a long fish line and caught his canoe to pull him in, bnt he cut it and got loose. Again the second threw a line and caught him, but again he cut loose, and so on till they had no lines left. So he reached home at length, fearful lest he should find that his brother had died during his absence, but he found him still barely alive, and shouted, ‘Now, brother, ’m home with the chestnuts, will you have your pipe?” And he began cooking just as his brother liked them, and he narrated all his exploits, and the brother said, ‘‘ You have done me a great favor, now I shall be well, and we will be happy.” THE GUILTY HUNTERS. There was a certain tribe whose main occupation was to hunt and to fish. In one of its hunting excursions two families of different clans of this tribe happened to pitch their respective camps quite near to each other. One of these families, in which there was an infant, had very fine luck and the other poor luck. While the father of the child was out hunting, the mother went to a neighboring stream to get some water, but before she dipped her vessel she looked into the water and saw, peering up through the sparkling stream, a very handsome young man with painted cheeks. When her husband returned she told him what she had seen, and, after a consultation, they came to the conclu- sion that something strange was about to happen, for what the woman had seen was but the reflection of some one hidden in the branches overhanging the stream. They rightly judged that this was an evil omen, and naturally knew that something must be done to avert the impending misfortune, for the woman said that she recognized the face as that of a man from the adjoining camp. When night came the husband said to his wife, ‘‘ You and the child must be saved. Go; I shall meet misfortune.alone.” She then started with the child through the forest, and went on until she came to a hol- low log, into which she crept, and then she heard a great noise in the camp, and a voice saying, ‘‘You have bitten me.” Soon she saw the light of torches borne by people searching for her and the child; nearer and nearer they came, until they reached the log (her hiding-place), into which they pushed their sticks, but the woman remained quiet, and heard them say, ‘‘She must be somewhere near here; any way, she can- not live long.” She waited until they had left and all was quiet before she emerged from her refuge, and then traveled on as fast as she could until morning, when she came upon a trail, to which, instead of follow- ing it, she took a parallel course, and did not see any signs of life until she came to an opening, which appeared like a camping-ground. In the 100 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. center of this clearing stood a large hemlock tree, into which she climbed, and made herself and child as comfortable as she could. Soon after ascending the tree she heard approaching voices, one of which said, ‘‘We might as well stay here as to go further.” They were hunters, heavily laden with skins, meat, &c. During the night one of them said, ‘‘ My thumb is painful; what shall I say bitme?” ‘The woman heard the answer: “‘ Say a beaver bit you.” In the early dawn the men departed and the woman began to make her way down the tree, but she saw one of the party returning, so she remained until he, finding his bow, again started homeward. When all were out of sight she brought her child down, and, taking again the course parallel to the trail, she hurried onward during the day and reached home just at twilight. When once home she related what had happened to herself, child, and husband, to her many friends who se- creted her, and made preparations to have the matter investigated. The head chief was informed, and he sent out ‘“‘runners” to all the mem- bers of the tribe to call them to a general council. When the time for all to assemble had come, none but the hunters were absent, and they came after repeated and persistent requests to be present. When they did come the head chief said, “We have come to congratulate you in that you have prospered and been preserved from harm. Now, relate to us all the things that have happened to you and tell why you have returned without the other party.” The hunters refused to tell anything about their affairs and pretended to know noth- ing about the other party. The head chief, after sevérely cross-examining them, ordered that the woman be brought forth to tell her story. When she had finished her narrative of facts, as stated above, she told that one of them had his thumb bitten, explaining that he was bitten by her husband in defending himself against these robbers, who took from her murdered husband the skins and the meats which they had brought home. Hereupon the head chief gravely said to the waiting aud impatient warriors, ‘‘ Go, do your duty ;” and they, with their war-clubs and tomahawks, soon put to death the wicked hunters. MRS. LOGAN’S STORY. An old man and his little nephew once lived in a dark woods. One day the man went hunting, and just before leaving told the boy he must not go eastward. But the boy became tired of playing in one place, and was one day tempted to go in the forbidden direction until he came to a large lake, where he stopped to play. While thus en- gaged a man came up to him and said, “‘ Well, boy, where do you come from?” The boy told him that he came from the woods. Then the man sMITH.] MRS. LOGAN’S STORY. 101 said, “Let us play together at shooting arrows.” So they shot off their arrows up into the air, and the boy’s arrow went much the higher. Then the man said, ‘‘Let us see which can swim the farthest without breathing,” and again the boy beat the man. Then the latter said, ‘Let us go to the island, where you will see many pretty birds.” So they entered the canoe. Now, on either side of the canoe were three swans which propelled it. As soon as they were seated in the canoe the man began singing, and very soon they arrived at the island, around which they traveled for some time, and then the man took off all the boy’s clothes, and, jumping into his canoe, said, ‘‘ Come, swans, let us go home,” and he began to sing. When the boy perceived that he was deserted he went up the bank and sat down and cried, for he was naked and cold. It began to grow dark very fast, and he was greatly frightened when he heard a voice say, “‘ Hist! keep still,” and, looking around, he saw a skeleton on the ground near him, which beckoned him and said, ‘‘ Poor boy, it was the same thing with me, but I will help you if you will do something for me.” The boy readily consented. Then the skeleton told him to'go to a tree near by, and dig on the west side of it, and he would find a tobacco-pouch full of tobacco, a pipe, and a flint; and the boy found them and brought them to the skeleton. It then said, “ Fill the pipe and light it;” and he did so. ‘‘Put it in my mouth,” said the skeleton; and he did so. Then, as the skeleton smoked, the boy saw that its body was full of mice, which went away because of the smoke. Then the skeleton felt better, and told the boy that a man with three dogs was coming to the island that night to kill him, and in order to escape he must run all over the island and jump into the water and out again many times, so that the man would lose the trail. Then, after track- ing the island all over, he must get into a hollow tree near by, and stay all night. So the boy tracked the island all over and jumped into the water many times, and at last went into the tree. In the early morn- ing he heard a canoe come ashore, and, looking out, saw another man with three dogs, to whom the man said, ‘‘ My dogs, you must catch this animal.” Then they ran all over the island, but not finding him, the man became so angry that he killed one of the dogs and ate him all up. Then, taking the two remaining, he went away. The boy then came out from his hiding-place, and went to the skeleton, who said, ‘ Are you still alive?” The boy replied, ‘“ Yes.” ‘+ Well,” said the skeleton, “the man who brought you here will come to-night to drink your blood, and you must go down to the shore where he will come in, and dig a long pit and lie down in it and cover yourself up with the sand so he cannot see you, and when he comes ashore and is off, you must get into the canoe and say, ‘Come, swans, let’s go home,’ and if the man calls for you to come back you must not turn around or look at him.” The boy promised to obey and soon the man who had brought him came ashore on the island. Then the boy jumped into the canoe, saying, 102 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. “Come, swans, let’s go to our place;” and as they went he sang just as the man had done. They had gone but a little way when the man saw them. He began to cry, ‘‘Come back! Oh, do come back!” but the boy did not look around and they kept on their way. By and by they came to a large rock in which there was a hole, and the swans went up into the rock until they came toa door which the boy proceeded to open. Upon entering the cave he found his own clothes and many others, and also a fire and food all prepared, but no living person. After put- ting on hisclothes he went to sleep for the night. In the morning he found a fire and food, but saw no one. Upon leaving the cave he found the swans still waiting at the entrance, and, jumping into the canoe, he said, “Come, swans, let’s go to the island.” When he arrived there he found the man had been killed and nearly eaten up. He then went to the skeleton, which said, ‘‘ You are a very smart boy; now you must go and get your sister whom this man car- ried off many years ago. You must start to-night and go east, and by and by you will come to some very high rocks where she goes for water, and you will find her there and she will tell you what to do.” The boy started and in three days arrived at the rocks, where he found his sister, to whom he called, ‘‘Sister, come, go home with me”; but she replied, ‘No, dear brother, I cannot go; a bad man keeps me here, and youmust go, for he will kill you if he finds you here.” But as the boy would not be persuaded to leave without her she allowed him to stay. Now this very bad man had gone to a great swamp where women and children were picking cranberries. The sister then went to the house and, taking up the planks over which her bed was made, she dug a pit underneath it sufficiently largefor her brother to sit in; then she went to her brother and bade him follow her, and to be sure and step in her tracks and not touch anything with his hands or his clothes. So she covered him up in the pit she had prepared for him, and made her bed up again over the place. She then cooked a little boy for the man, put it with wood and water by his bed, and then went and lay down. Soon the man and dogs returned; then immediately the dogs began barking and tearing around as if they were mad. The man said, “ You surely have visitors”; she replied, ‘‘None but you.” And he said, “TI know bet- ter”; and he took a stick and commanded her to tell him the truth, but she denied it, saying, ‘‘ Kill me if you like, but Ihave none.” He then went to his bed and sat down to eat his sapper; but he said to himself, “ She has some one hidden; I will kill him in the morning.” He then called her to build a fire, but she replied, ‘‘ You have wood, build your own fire.” Then he said, ‘Come, take off my moccasins”; but she re- plied, ‘I am tired, take them off yourself.” Then he said to himself, “ Now I know she has seen some one, for she was never so saucy.” In the morning he started off for the swamp to get some children for his dinner. A short distance from home he concealed himself to watch the girl. As soon as he was gone she called her brother and said, ert.) MRS. LOGAN’S STORY. 103 “Come, let us take his canoe and go quickly.” So they ran and jumped into the canoe and went off, but the man saw them and ran, throwing a hook which caught the canoe, but as he was pulling it ashore the boy took a stone from the bottom of the canoe and broke the hook. Then they proceeded again very fast. Then the enraged man resorted to another expedient: Laying himself down upon the shore he began to drink the water from the lake, which caused the boat to return very fast. The man continued to drink, until he grew very big with so much water in him. The boy took another stone and threw it and hit the man so it killed him, and the water ran back into thelake. When they saw that he was dead they went back, and the boy said to the two dogs, “You bad dogs, no one will have younow; You must go into the woods and be wolves”; and they started for the woods and became wolves. Then the boy and his sister went to the island. The boy went to the skeleton, which said, ‘‘ You are a very smart boy to have recovered your sister—bring her to me.” This the boy did, and the skeleton continued, “ Now, gather up all the bones you see and put them ina pile; then push the largest tree you see and say, ‘All dead folks arise’; and they will all arise.” The boy did so, and all the dead arose, some having but one arm, some with but one leg, but all had their bows and arrows. The boy then said to his sister, ‘Come, let’s go home.” When they arrived home they found their own uncle; he looked very old. For ten years he had eried and put ashes upon his head for his little nephew, but now he was very happy to think he had returned. The boy then told the old man all that he had done, who said, “Tet us builda long house.” And they did so, and put in six fire-places. Then the boy went back to the island for his people and brought them to the house, where they lived peacefully many years. THE HUNTER AND HIS DEAD WIFE. Once upon a time there was a man and his wife who lived in the forest, very far from the rest of the tribe. They used to go hunting to- gether very often, but after a time there were so many things for the wife to do that she staid at home and he went alone. When he went alone he never had good luck. One day the woman was taken sick, and in a day or two she died. The man felt very badly and buried her in the cabin. He was very lonesome; and after a day or two he made a wooden doll about her size and dressed it in the clothes she used to wear. Then he put it down in front of the fire-place and felt better. Then he went hunting; and when he came back he would go up to the doll and brush the ashes off fro:n the face, for as the wood fell down the ashes would rattle onto the face. He had to do his cooking, mending, and making fire, for now there was no one to help him; and so a year 104 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. passed away. One day when he came home from hunting there was a fire and wood by the door. The next night there was wood and fire and a piece of meat all cooked in the kettle. He looked all over to see who had done this, but could find no one. The next time he went hunt- ing he did not go far and went back quite early, and when he came in sight of the cabin he saw a woman going into the house with wood on her shoulders; he saw, and opened the door quickly, and there was his wife sitting ina chair and the wooden doll was gone. Then she spoke to him, saying, ‘‘The Great Spirit felt sorry for you, so he let me come back to see you, but you must not touch me till we have seen all of our people; if you do, you will kill me.” So they lived along for some time, when one day the man said, “It is now two years since you died. Let us go home. So you will be well.” So he prepared meat for the jour- ney—a string of deer meat for her to carry and one for himself; and so they started. It was going to take them six days to get to the rest of their tribe; when they were within a day’s journey of the camp it began to snow, and as they were very weary they lighted fire and partook of food and spread their skins to sleep; but the desire of the man to once more clasp his wife in his arms was too great, and he went up to her and put out his hands; but she motioned him away and said, ‘‘ We have seen no one yet.” He would not listen to her, and he caught her in his arms, and, behold, he was holding the wooden doll! His sorrow was very great. He pushed on to the camp and there he told them all that had befallen him. Some doubted, and they went back with him and found the doll; they also saw the track of the two people in the snow, and the track just like the foot of the doll. The man was ever after very unhappy. A SURE REVENGE. Far in the ages of the past, a tribe of the Senecas settled upon the banks of Lake Erie. One eventful winter their enemies, the Illinois, came in great numbers upon the peaceful settlement, surprised the people in their homes, and, in spite of a stout resistance, killed a large number of them and took a middle-aged woman and a boy captive. They started off with the prisoners, and the first day’s journey was one of pain and restlessness to the captives. They were foot-sore and weary when camp was pitched for the night. Then around a roaring fire the warriors gloat- ed over the bloody deed. They called the boy and bid him join them in their songs of triumph, adding that they had no desire to hurt him; if he sang wellhe might enjoy himself. The lad pretended that he could not sing their language, but said that he would sing their song in his tongue, knowing that they could not comprehend a word of it. To this they agreed, and while they shouted out their jubilant delight he repeated, again and again, ‘I shall never forget what you have done to my people. SMITH} A SURE REVENGE. 105 You have stolen a helpless woman and a little boy from among them. I shall never forget it. If I am spared you will all lose your scalps.” The Illinois warriors understood not a word; they thought he was joining in their triumph, and were satisfied that he would soon forget his own people. After they had marched three days the woman became exhausted, and she was too faint to be dragged further. The warriors held a council, and she meanwhile spoke to the Seneca boy in earnest tones. ‘‘ Avenge my blood!” said she; “and when yor return to your own people tell them how the cruel Illinois took my life. Promise me you will never cease to be a Seneca.” As he finished promising all she asked, she was slain and left dead on the ground. Then they hurried forward, nearing their own settlement early in the evening. Next day two runners were sent to the village to proclaim their success and return, and all the population turned out with shouts and cries of joy to meet them. Now the fate of the boy had to be determined. He listened as the chief, with exaggerated gestures and exclamations, gave an account of the successful expedition. The people, as they listened, grew so excited that they beat the ground with their clubs and wished they could ex- terminate every Seneca in the world. They longed to kill the boy, but the chiefs held a council and decided that there was stuff in him, and they would therefore torture him, and if he stood the test, adopt him into their own tribe. The boy meantime had dreamed a dream, in which he had been forewarned that the Illinois would inflict horrible tortures upon him. “If he can live through our tortures,” said the chief, “he shall become an Illinois.” The council fire glowed red with burning heat. They seized the captive and held him barefooted on the coals until his feet were one mass of blisters. Then they pierced the blisters with a needle made of fish bone and filled up the blisters with sharp flint: stones. “Now run a race,” they recommended; “run twenty rods.” In his dream he had been told that if he could reach the Long House and find a seat on the wild-cat skin, they would vote him worthy of his life. His agony was intense, but up in his heart rose the memory of his tribe; and as the signal for his start was given he com- menced singing with all his might, saying, as they thought, their war song, but in reality the words: “I shall never forget this; never for- give your cruelty. If Iam spared you shall every one of you lose your scalps.” This gave him courage. He forgot his agony. He bounded forward and flew so swiftly that the Indians, who stood in rows ready to hit him as he passed with thorn-brier branches, could not touch him. He rushed into the Long House; it was crowded, but he spied a wild- cat skin on which an old warrior sat, and he managed to seat himself upon the tail, remembering his dream. The chiefs noticed his endur- ance and said again, “If we spare his life he will be worthy to become au Illinois; but he knows the trail, so we had better kill him.” 106 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS A solemn council was held. All the warriors agreed that he had borne the tortures well, and had stuff in him to make a warrior. ‘He may forget,” they said. Still others disagreed and gave their opinion that he ought to be tried still more severely. The majority finally decided that he must die, and in three days should be burned at the stake. When the day arrived a large fire of pine knots was prepared, and they bound the lad to a stake, and placed him in the midst. Torches were ready to set fire to them, when an old warrior suddenly approached from the forest. It was the chief who had trained other captive Indians. He stood and looked at the boy. Then he said, ‘His eye is bright. I will take him. I will make a warrior of him. I will inflict our last torture upon him, and if he survives I will adopt him into the tribe.” He cut the thongs that bound the boy, and led him away to a spring. “Drink!” he said. And as the lad stooped, he pressed him down under the water until he was well nigh strangled. ‘Three times he subjected him to this barbarity; then as he was still alive, although very weak, he took him to his wigwam and dressed his feet, and told him henceforth he should be an Illinois. No one guessed that revenge was in his heart. Time passed. He became aman. He had a chief’s daughter as his wife. The tribe thought he had lost all memory of his-capture. He fol- lowed the customs of the Illinois, and was as one of them. He was named Ga-geh-djo-wai. They did not permit him to join them in their warlike expeditions, but he joined in their war dances when they re- . turned. And so as the years passed on he was much esteemed for his feats as a hunter, and his strength and endurance were by-words among the Illinois. He had been fifteen years among them when he heard them speak of an expedition against the Senecas. He begged to join, and they listened with delight when he declared that he, Ga-geh-djo-wa, would bring home more scalps than any. ‘He is one of us,” they said, and gave him the permission he craved. Early in the morning the warriors started, and, delighted with his eloquence and readiness to go against his own ae they elected him chief of the expedition. They marched on and on for many days, little guessing how his heart beat as they approached the wigwams of the Seneca settlement. He began to issue orders for the attack. “Send scouts,” he said, “to the sugar camp, and let them hide in a bush, and return and tell us what they have seen.” Two warriors obeyed his directions, but returned saying there were no signs of the tribe. Then he sent others in a different direction. Their report was the same. Ashes everywhere, they reported, but no smoke and no fires. The Senecas must have left. Then at the council held that night Ga-geh-djo-w& proposed to go himself, with another warrior. This was agreed to, and they set out together. When they had gone five or six miles, the wily chief said to his companion, “ Let us sep- arate and each take a different pathway. You go over the hills; I sMITH.] A SURE REVENGE. 107 will go through the valley. We will meet on the mountain at dusk.” So they parted, and Ga-geh-djo-wa, remembering his way, sped where he guessed he should find some of his old tribe. He found, as he expected, a family he knew. In hurried words he explained to them their danger: “The treacherous Illinois are upon you. Warnall the tribe of Senecas: bid them come early and hide along the range above the valley. I will be there with a heron’s plume on my crest, and when I stumble it is the signal for the Senecas to attack. Go and tell the word of Ga-geh-djo-wi. He is true.” ‘ Returning to the appointed spot he reported that he had seen nothing, and hastened back to the camp. Then he said: ‘‘I remember these hills. I know where the Senecas hide. Give me the bravest warriors and we will go ahead. I can track them to their hiding-place. See! there below rises the smoke of their wigwams. Send two warriors after us at a short distance. We will surprise the Senecas.” Early morning saw the camp in activity, every warrior panting for the scalps he yearned to procure. Little they dreamed that already five hundred Senecas awaited them in the valley. The march commenced. As they entered the valley Ga-geh-djo-wi gazed anxiously around and delightedly caught sight of a face among the bushes. Now he knew the Senecas had heeded him. He led his men forward; then, pretemd- ing to miss his footing, he fell. Instantly the war-cry sounded; the Senecas rushed from their ambush, and he left his treacherous foes and rejoined his own people. The slaughter was great. AJl the Illinois warriors but two in the rear were slain. Three hundred scalps revenged the treachery of the Illi- nois.. Ga-geh-djo-wi was seized by the jubilant Senecas and borne in triumph to their settlement. Around the fires, as they displayed the scalps of their enemies, they listened to his recital of their cruelty, of his tortures, and of the woman’s death. Never again did he leave them, He lived many years, the most esteemed warrior and chief of the Sen- ecas, and when he died they buried him with the highest honors they knew, and have kept his name sacred in the legends of the tribe to this day. TRAVELER'S JOKES. An Indian traveler, tired of his uneventful journey, undertook to cre- ate an excitement after the following fashion: An old Indian custom is for runners, or those carrying important news, to announce the fact and gather the people together by crying, in singing tones, ‘“Goh-weh, goh-weh.” This the traveler began doing, and when the crowd called upon him to stop and tell his news, he began, “‘As I came through the last village the people were so delighted with my news that they all danced for joy, and shouted and kissed me.” This he told so earnestly 108 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. and sincerely that the people, not wishing to be outdone by any other tribe, also began singing and kissing him and making merry ; and while the excitement was at its height, pleased with his success, the facetious traveler escaped and continued his journeyings. Arrived at the next village he again began calling, “‘Goh-weh, goh- weh”; and the people and chiefs gathered around him, crying, ‘Let us hear.” And he answered, ‘‘ AsI passed through the last town some peo- ple wept at my news, others began quarreling, kicking, and fighting.” Immediately his contagious news produced its effect, and in the confu- sion he again escaped, saying to himself “‘ What fools people are.” That night, as he was preparing to camp out, a man passed who in- quired the distance to the next village; but the traveler said, “‘ You cannot reach it to-night. Let us camp together.” As they were each recounting stories, and the new-comer was boasting of his superior cun- ning, the traveler inquired, “‘ What log is that you now use for a pil- low ?” and he guessed hickory, elm, &c. But the traveler said, “No, it is everlasting sleep.” In the morning the traveler took some pitchy resin and rabbed over the eyes of his sleeping comrade and left, laughing at the probable chagrin the man would feel when attempting to open his eyes, and in the recollection of the warning regarding everlasting sleep and his boasts of superior cunning. . No further accounts of the traveler’s jokes are told. KINGFISHER AND HIS NEPHEW. An old man and his nephew were living together in a good home near the river, where they enjoyed themselves day after day. One morning the old man said to his nephew, “‘ When you are a man, remem- ber in hunting never to go west; always go to the east.” The young man reflected and said to himself, “Why should this be so?” My uncle To-bé-se-ne always goes west, and brings home plenty of fish. Why should he tell me not to go? Why does he never take me with him?” He made up his mind at last that he would go, never minding about the advice. So he set off in a roundabout way, and as he passed the marsh land near the river he saw his uncle. ‘Ha!” he thought, “now I know where he catches his fish”; and he watched him take from his pocket two sharp sticks and put them in his nose, and then plunge into deep water and come up with a nice fish. He watched him care- fully and then returned home. Presently the uncle came back, bringing some nice fish, but he never guessed that the nephew had seen him. The young man now felt certain that he could fish as well as his uncle. Accordingly, one day when the old man had gone deer hunting, he thought it a good opportunity to try the new method. He hunted SMITH.) KINGFISHER AND HIS NEPHEW. 109 among his uncle’s things until he found two sticks, and then he set off to the same log where he had seen his uncle sitting, which projected above the water in the river. He saw the fishes swimming about, so he at once stuck the two sticks into his nose, and plunged in. Then the sticks went deep into his nose and made it ache dreadfully, and he felt very sick. Home he hurried and lay down, thinking he should die of the agony. When his uncle came home he heard him groaning, and said, ‘What ails you? Are you sick?” ‘Yes, uncle,” replied he, “I think I shall die. My head is sore and pains me.” ‘ What have you been about?” asked the uncle, severely. ‘I have been fishing,” confessed the young man; “T took your things, and I know I have done wrong.” “You have done very wrong,” said the uncle; but he took the pincers and drew out the sticks, and the young man promised never again to fish in the west, and got well. After a while, however, he thought that he would go and see once more, although he had been forbidden. So he started west. He heard boys laughing, and he had none to play with, so he joined them. They invited him to swim with them and he accepted, and they had a very gay time together. At last they said, “It is time to go home; you go, too.” Then he saw that they had wings, and they gave him a pair and said, ‘‘There is an island where all is lovely; you have never been up there—over the tall tree up in the air; come.” So they started up in the air, far away above the trees, till they could see both sides of the river; and he felt very happy. ‘‘ Now,” said they, “you can see the island”; and he looked down and saw the print of their tracks on the island; so he knew they had been there. Then said they, ‘“‘Let us goin swimming again.” So they went into the water. Then they said, “Let us see which can go down and come up the farthest”; and they tried one at a time, and he was the last, so he must go the farthest; and while he was in the water the rest put on their wings and, taking his also, flew up in the air. He plead in vain for them to wait; but they called, as though speaking to some one else, ‘Uncle, here is game for you to-night.” Then they flew away in spite of his entreaties, and he thought to himself, ‘‘I shall surely be destroyed, perhaps by some animal.” As he looked around he perceived tracks of dogs which had clawed the different trees, and then he concluded that perhaps they would tear him to pieces. In order to confuse them in their scent he climbed each tree a little way, and so went on until he reached the last tree on the island, in which he remained and listened in suspense. He soon heard a canoe on the river and some one calling the dogs. Then he concluded his conjectures were true. After making a fire the man sent out his dogs. The man had a horrid-looking face, both behind and before, which the poor nephew could see by the fire-light. Then the dogs be- gan barking, having traced the tracks to the first tree; they made such a noise that the man concluded they had feund the game, and went to the tree, but found nothing. Sothey went on to the next, and the next, 110 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. with the same experience, and this they continued the night long. Then the old man said, very angrily, ‘‘There is no game here; my nephews have deceived me.” And he returned, leaving the last tree. After sunrise the poor fellow came down from the tree, saying, “I think I have escaped, for if those young fellows return I will watch them and contrive to get their wings from them.” He then concealed himself and patiently awaited their coming. Hesoon heard their voices, saying, ‘‘ Now we will have a good time.” They first jumped around to warm themselves, and then said, “ Let us all dive together.” Then he rushed out, and, taking all the wings, he put on one pair, and flew away, calling out, “Uncle, now there is plenty of game for you”; and when they entreated him he replied, ‘‘ You had no merey on me; I only treat you the same.” Then he flew on until he came to his old home, where he found his old uncle, to whom he recounted the whole story; and after that time he remained peacefully at home with his good uncle, where he still resides. c “So many times my old grandfather, chief Warrior, told me that story,” said Zachariah Jamieson to me on the Seneca Reservation. THE WILD-CAT AND THE WHITE RABBIT. [Told by Zachariah Jamieson. ] The wild cat, roaming disconsolately in the woods, experienced the sense of utter loneliness which calls for companionship. A friend he must have or die. Cats there were none within speaking distance, but rabbits it might be possible to entice. He commenced a plaintive ditty. His soul craved a white rabbit above all else, and his song was pathetic enough to entice the most obdurate : He gah yah neh He gah yah! He gih yah Di ho ni shu gua da-se He yah gah. His meaning was simple as his song, “When you are frightened, sweet rabbit, you run in a circle.” He was wise in his generation. A short distance off lay a white rab- bit in his lair; hearing the melodious ditty he pricked up his ears. “Heigho!” exclaimed he, “ that dangerous fellow, the wild-cat, is around; Thear his voice; I must scud”; and away he ran, turning from the direc- tion in which the voice came and hastening with all his might. He had gone but a short distance when he stopped, turned back his ears and listened. There was the song again: He gah yah! He gah yah! Di ho— SMITH] THE WILD-CAT AND THE WHITE RABBIT. dh: He waited to hearno more. On hesped fora while; then once more he laid back his ears and halted again; surely this time the song was nearer. He was still more frightened. “TI will go straight on” said he; but he thought he was following an opposite direction. On and on he sped, scarce daring to breathe; then a pause; alas! the singer is nearer—nearer yet. Unfortunate rabbit! he could but follow his instinct and run in a circle which brought him each time nearer his enemy. Still the song went on, until, circling ever nearer, white rabbit fell a victim to the wild-cat. CHAPTER VI. RELIGION. In a former chapter it was concluded that the ‘Great Spirit” is the Indian’s conception of the white man’s God. This belief in God is com- mon now to all of the Iroquois, but the Christian religion is professed by only about one-half of their number. The other half of the people are usually denominated “pagans.” The so-called Christian Indians are distributed among various sects, worship in churches, and profess Chris- tian creeds. The pagan Indians worship the sun, moon, stars, thunder, and other spirits rather vaguely defined. But though in talking with white men they frequently speak of the Great Spirit, yet in their worship there Seems to be no very well-defined recognition of the same, the term being used ina confused manner. ‘Their religious rites are chiefly in the form of festivals. Among these so-called pagan Iroquois of to-day no private worship is known, unless the offering of burning tobacco to Hinu’, or the occa- sional solitary dance, as practiced by some of the squaws, be so consid- ered. The annual public national and religious festivals are eight in num- ber, with the occasional addition of those specially appointed. As the nucleus to the ceremonies observed at these festivals we find many of their ancient practices retained, such as dancing, games, the use of in- cense, &e. And upon these have been grafted, according to their pecu- liar interpretation, varied forms from the Romish, Jewish, or Protestant churches, which to them seemed suitable and adaptable. Although the Tuscaroras of western New York retain many of the old supersti- tions none of the national festivals are there observed, and hardly a trace now remains of their old religious customs. ; About half of the Seneeas still adhere to paganism, but it is only among the Onondagas that all the oid festivals are strictlysand relig- iously observed, after the sequence and manner of the following account of the New- Year Festival: NEW-YEAR FESTIVAL. At the first new moon of the new year, which sometimes occurs three weeks after New Year’s Day, the chiefs assemble and call what they 9 ssuTH. J NEW-YEAR FESTIVAL. 113 = term a “holy meeting,” the order of which is as follows: A bench or table is placed in the center of the circle of chiefs, upon which are placed their strings of Indian wampum. One then rises and makes a long speech, in which he introduces the sayings, maxims, and teachings 0” Handsome Lake, who, nearly a century ago, introduced a new form into the Seneca religion. Speeches of this kind occupy four days. On the fiftl day the principal chiefs, taking hold of the wampun, say: ‘I put all my words in this wampum”; “I have been drunk”; or, ‘‘I have sinned,” &e. On the sixth day the warriors go through the same form of confession. On the following day the chiefs pass the wampum around among the assembly. At the conclusion of this portion of their ceremonies the U-stu-a-gu- ni, or feather dance, sometimes called the dance of peace, is per formed. For this there is a particular costume, by which it must always be accompanied. The dance is simple. Two men are chosen to stand in the center and are encircled by dancers. After this dance the clans are divided for the games as follows: Bear f Wolf. Deer j Beaver. Eel ¢ REASISY Snipe. Hawk } Turtle. The clans thus divided hold their feasts in separate houses, even although husband and wife be divided. On the fourth day each of these divisions, singing a chant, repairs to the Council House. The gambling then commences and continues three more days. The gam- bling and betting concluded, two Indians, costumed as medicine men, run into all the houses, and raking up the ashes call on all to repair to the Council House. In the evening of this day begins the “scaring of witches”; speeches are made; Indian songs or chants are sung the while an old man or woman enters, appearing to wish or search for something, the assembly guessing at the object desired. Should the guess be correct, a reply of “thank you” is made. He or she receives it, and as a return proceeds to dance. On the following evening a number of Indians in frightful costumes enter on their knees, yelling and groaning. Shaking their rattles, they proceed to the council fire, where they stir up the ashes. The chiefs then present to them Indian tobacco, and they are commanded to per- form all the errands and act as the messengers for the evening. On this same evening it is given forth that on the ensuing day, at a given hour, the white dog will be roasted. For this purpose a perfectly pure, unblemished white dog is selected, and five young men of the most spotless reputation are chosen to kill the dog, around whose neck two ropes are fastened, and the young men then pull the ropes till the dog is strangled. When dead it is presented tothe victorious gambling party, who proceed to comb out its hair carefully with teasels. It is then dec- 8E 114 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. orated with wampum, ribbons, Indian tobacco, strips of buckskin, small baskets, silver brooches, &e. The four winning clans then form in a circle around the dog and the four leading chiefs. The first chief chants around the dog; the second puts it upon his back; the third carries an extra basket trimmed with beads, brooches, and ribbons, and filled with Indian tobacco; the fourth chief, bareheaded and scantily clothed, follows as they pass in Indian file to the other Council House, where the defeated division makes an offering, which is accepted by the fourth chief. All then proceed to: gether to the appointed place for the dog roasting. While the fire is being lighted the chiefs chant and praise the Great Spirit, after which, while the warriors are shooting up at the sun, the dog is thrown into the fire, which ceremony unites all the clans. This is followed by chants. The leading chief then gives notice of the dance for the following day. At this first day of rejoicing or dancing the “feather dance” is repeated, and a chant is sung which embraces almost the entire language of the Protestant Episcopal canticle, Benedicite omnia opera Domini; but the translation, in place of commanding the works of God to render him praise, praises the works themselves. Instead of ‘O ye angels of the Lord,” that passage is rendered, ‘“‘O ye four persons who made us and have charge of us, we praise thee,” &e. The feast then follows, consisting of meats garnished with sunflower oil, &c. The third day of dancing is devoted to the war dance, which is dedicated to the sun, moon, stars, and thunder. The feather dance is again introduced, the women this time participating in it. In itself the dance is very monotonous, except for the variety introduced by whooping, beating the floor with the war clubs, occasional speeches, and offerings to the dancers. At the conclusion of the feather dance the Si-ti-ga-ni-ai, or shuffle dance, follows. ‘This is executed solely by the women, who do not lift their feet from the floor. The men keep time by drumming and using the rattles. Then succeeds the guide dance, performed as follows: Two or four men stand inside a circle and sing a dance song, while all the peo- ple join in the dance in pairs, the couples facing each other. Conse- quently, two out of each four have to go backwards, but at a signal in the music all change places. This is invariably the closing dance of the new year’s festival, but it is then arranged that seven days later the medicine men shall all reappear, and for a day and a night go about in the houses and chase away all diseases, &c. This closes by all re- pairing to the Council House, where a large kettle of burnt corn, sweet- ened with maple sagar, is prepared for the medicine men, who eat it from the kettle. From this Council House fire the medicine men throw the ashes upon the assembled people for the purpose of dispelling witches and disease. This concludes the new year’s festival ceremonies after a duration of three weeks. sMiTH.] TAPPING THE MAPLE TREES, ETC. 115 TAPPING THE MAPLE TREES. The next public service is at the tapping of the maple trees, and con- sists of the war dance, the performance of which will, it is hoped, bring on warmer weather and cause the sap to flow. As a special favor to ambitious parents, the dancing warriors often bear in their arms infant boys, who are supposed to become early inured and inspired with a desire for a warrior life. At the close of the sugar season follows the maple-sugar festival, the soups of which are all seasoned with the newly-made sugar. This festi- val, in which a number of dances are introduced, lasts but one day. PLANTING CORN. The corn-planting festival is very similar to that of the new year, in- troducing the confession of sins by the chiefs, the feather dance, &c. This lasts seven days. STRAWBERRY FESTIVAL. During the strawberry season, at a time appointed previously by the chiefs, the women proceed to the fields and gather the berries. The great feather dance follows; afterwards two children carry about a ves- sel containing the berries, mixed with water and sugar, and present it to each person, who is expected to give thanks as he receives it. More dancing ensues. The bean festival next occurs and is very similar to the strawberry festival. @REEN-CORN FESTIVAL. This is preceded by a hunt by the warriors for deer or bear meat to use for the soups. During their absence the ceremony of confession takes place, as in the New Year’s festival, and the women are engaged in roasting the corn preparatory to its being placed in the kettle with the beans for the suc- cotash. If the weather is very warm the hunters bring home the meat ready baked. On their return the feasting and dancing commence and continue for four days. The gambling, which is considered a religious ceremony, is then introduced, silver brooches, war clubs, jewelry, bead work, &c., being used as the wagers. Sometimes the clans play against each other, but frequently the women play against the men, and are oftener the winning party. This festival is the gala season of the Indian year, and all appear in their most fanciful decorations, some of the costumes laying an intrin- sic value of several hundred dollars. GATHERING THE CORN. The last public festival of the year is at the gathering of the corn. After the thanksgiving dance there is a repetition of the confession of sins and the feather dance. In the latter the gayly-colored corn is 116 MYTHS OF THE IROQUOIS. used as a decoration, sometimes whole strings of it, still upon the cob, being worn as ornaments. The above form the eight public vearly festivals of the Iroquois, but occasionally other dances are introduced. Among these are the raccoon dance and the snake dance, the latter being similar to the guide dance, but partaking more of a gliding, snake-like motion. Private dances are held by the medicine men, in which are introduced the K4-nai-kwi-ai, or eagle dance; the Tai-wa-nu-ta-ai-ki, or dark dance, performed in the dark; the Ka-hi-tu-wi, or pantomime dance; and the W-na-tai-nu-u-ni, or witches’ dance. On the death of a medicine mana special dance is held by his fraternity, and, during the giving of certain medicines, medicine tunes are chanted. No dances are held upon the death of private individuals, but at the expiration of ten days a dead feast is celebrated and the property of the deceased is distributed by gambling or otherwise. Occasionally speeches are made, but no singing or dancing is indulged in, except during a condolence council, when de- ceased chiefs are mourned and others chosen in their places. Private dances are not infrequently given by individual members of the tribe, who, having conceived a great affection for each other, pub- licly cement it by a friendship dance. SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION——BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. ANIMAL CARVINGS FROM - MOUNDS OF THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY. BY HENRY W. HENSHAW. 117 CONTENTS. Page. Rinad uctory case 2 ae see ee tne ee ee a ae acim mime een mneinaisineicel 123 WETS ae Conk oak Dine SoBe Sosa seseee AA ees Heeene pene conden. OU a cee Sa eee 125 Tiftienhat,oa-cco8 cues aap abso eee son scene Se eaeccs Renee eeetcreec noae Sitcar og 135 LEI WC) pec cieaee =e bee. See Bebe aace Bebo nee seers Sabu ceaeerso ade OOF oor 139 Knowledge of tropical animals by Wonnd-Biilderspeseasess eee eee eee eee 142 Other errors of identification. ---.--.-.----------------------------+------ 144 Skill in sculpture of the Mound-Builders --.--.------------------------------ 148 Generalization not designed -...--...---------------------+++-+------7° 7" 149 Probable totemic origin -..--.---.- --------=+--------9-- 9507222222 s 150 Jari in Pigmeseens Jeon obec sane Sense SSE ppEeoce BOC Ue Spo aoe ee Commas 152 The ‘“‘Blephant” mound... ..----. .-----+-----+ ---+ ---5 ee2- eer sree eee 152 The “Alligator” mound..-.~.-.-----.------ ------ = =--- += ------2 2-2 20---- 158 Human sculptures ....---..------- ---- --2----2--- +02 222 2re cone erro renee 160 Indian and mound-builders’ art compared....-.-----------------+------------ 164 (ESAS Gao LOT ace sac cee ar BhOS Der nIe Bei code Babb eo isaoded see pcesosseeeomn id 119 ILLUSTRATIONS. Page. Bice 4: —Ottertrom Squierand Davis. sess saeeeye asi iea elon i= elatctaeie sisi sae 128 bp. Ofterdrom Squier and avises--cej2sme= ene eee cee aneeele espe eee 128 6.—Otter from Rau. Manatee from Stevens.........-..----------------- 129 We—Man ates trom StOVENS oes ajc oes es cieaacees cep isis lciencle Seine Saiz 129 8.—Lamantin or Sea-Cow from Squier and Davis...-...----.---..------ 130 9.—Lamantin or Sea-Cow from Squier .....-. .---...--.-----+----.----- 130 10.—Manatee (Manatus Americanus, Cuv.)...-------------------+--------- 132 11.—Manatee (Manatus Americanus, Cuv.) .----.-------------------- ------ 132 12.—Cincinnati Tablet—back. From Squier and Davis. ..---..-----.----- 133 13.--Cincinnati Tablet—back. From Short........---..-----.----------- 134 14'—Toncanwromm Sqmlen snd WD awase es seer ar lalate ele imie ey ae wns 135 15.—Toucan from Squier and Davis. ..:..-.-~..-.---.. ...-.-.-=-------.- 135 16-—Toncantirome Squienrand.D)sivisere = moma sae ee = eee ema sai niente =o 136 17;—Toucan as figured! by-stevens: --- --- -- --2 -— a= ence ~ omen 137 18.—Keel-billed Toucan of Southern Mexico. ...-..-. Sooshoe coeseSececosesec 139 19°—Baroquet trom Sqmierand Daviga. seo. = oe erie 2 afm here 140 20/— Owl drom Squier andeD swiss. ean aer= == eeeeatee we ele ate nn 144 21. —GLOUSE COM SQ UIGE ANU eD) AVIS ent. an Pee Se tele ellos ries sein 144 22,—Turkey-baazard from Squier and Davis .-.--.-.--.----.--.--.--------- 145 AS ONDE OO S255 nea re eke be ge cena noes Baa ae Seeman openesseeene 145 DNC WOT «oa cneren de see deed entsbassnseses cespcestos suc soe osodee 146 2b. —Hapie trom quien and DaWas) «oss. Se eie c= oar sia oe ae woe omen ae 146 26.—Rattlesnuke from Squier and Davis ..-.-..---.----- .--------------. 147 27.—Big Elephant Mound in Grant County, Wisconsin ---.--..-.--- aaa 153 esi emilee, UGA céh5 2255 seebtscs secs snes nebecscosene cconeaacos 155 PA sSOG pei, LANNE, TOE doeeoe soecse oan seosete seeeber bobo. seep scccce 156 30.—The Alligator Mound near Granville, Ohio. ......---.-..-..----..----- 159 Sil Charen) OMG he oo peepee ree cose ber caSSeo ccBRes Socp Se SeSeceesec 162 CCAS Ge Ch 6 eos pooeee Hees co one OS Cece DeaeeeNS Soe soSor 162 BS) al Ofrvaiyeae) Gre lit Soe oe oes Cee eh onoeosnene Sop Sas So eeEeacoose- 162 ou (Orman eat Werle os Hoc oeonp cogs cheb co oc nepacsaces peSoecee codsegue 163 Shy = Cipatit OG AVtle 62 coos dsecas docoge HoUboU DENN Ebon cecKen descEoeagse 163 ANIMAL CARVINGS FROM MOUNDS OF THE MISSISSIPPL VALLEY. By H. W. HENSHAW. INTRODUCTORY. The considerable degree of decorative and artistic skill attained by the so-called Mound-Builders, as evidenced by many of the relics that have been exhumed from the mounds, has not failed to arrest the at- tention of archeologists. Among them, indeed, are found not afew who assert for the people conveniently designated as above a degree of artistic skill very far superior to that attained by the present race of Indians as they have been known to history. In fact, this very skillin artistic design asserted for the Mound-Builders, as indicated by the sculptures they have left, forms an important link in the chain of ar- gument upon which is based the theory of their difference from and su- periority to the North American Indian. Eminent as is much of the authority which thus contends for an ar- tistie ability on the part of the Mound-Builders far in advance of the attainments of the present Indian in the same line, the question is one admitting of argument; and if some of the best products of artistic handicraft of the present Indians be compared with objects of a similar nature taken from the mounds, it is more than doubtful if the artistic inferiority of the latter-day Indian can be substantiated. Deferring, however, for the present, any comparison between the artistic ability of the Mound-Builder and the modern Indian, attention may be turned to a class of objects from the mounds, notable, indeed, for the skill with which they are wrought, but to be considered first in another way and for another purpose than mere artistic comparison. Asthe term Mound-Builders will recur many times throughout this paper, and as the phrase has been objected to by some archeologists on account of its indefiniteness, it may be well to state that it is em- ployed here with its commonly accepted signification, viz: as applied to the people who formerly lived throughout the Mississippi Valley and raised the mounds of that region. It should also be clearly understood that by its use the writer is not to be considered as committing himself in any way to the theory that the Mound-Builders were of a different race from the North American Indian. 123 124 ANIMAL CARVINGS. Among the more interesting objects left by the Mound-Builders, pipes occupy a prominent place. This is partly due to their number, pipes being among the more common articles unearthed by the labors of explorers, but more to the fact that in the construction of their pipes this people exhibited their greatest skillin the way of sculpture. In the minds of those who hold that the Mound-Builders were the an- cestors of the present Indians, or, at least, that they were not neces- sarily of a different race, the superiority of their pipe sculpture over their other works of art excites no surprise, since, however, prominent a place the pipe may have held in the affections of the Mound-Builders, it is certain that it has been an object of no less esteem and reverence among the Indians of history. Certainly no one institution, for so it may be called, was more firmly fixed by long usage among the North American Indians, or more characteristic of them, than the pipe, with all its varied uses and significance. Perhaps the most characteristic artistic feature displayed in the pipe sculpture of the Mound-Builders, as has been well pointed out by Wilson, in his Prehistoric Man, is the tendency exhibited toward the imitation of natural objects, especially birds and animals, a remark, it may be said in passing, which applies with almost equal truth to the art productions generally of the present Indians throughout the length and breadth of North America. As some of these sculptured animals from the mounds have excited much interest in the minds of archeologists, and have been made the basis of much speculation, their examination and proper identification becomes a matter of considerable importance. It will therefore be the main purpose of the present paper to examine critically the evidence offered in behalf of the identification of the more important of them. If it shall prove, as is believed to be the Gase, that serious mistakes of identification have been made, attention will be called to these and the manner pointed out in which certain theories have natu- rally enough resulted from the premises thus erroneously established. It may be premised that the writer undertook the examination of the carvings with no theories of his own to propose in place of those hith- erto advanced. In fact, their critical examination may almost be said to have been the result of accident. Having made the birds of the United States his study for several years, the writer glanced over the bird carvings in the most cursory manner, being curious to see what species were represented. The inaccurate identification of some of these by the authors of ‘The Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley ” led to the examination of the series as a whole, and subsequently to the discussion they had received at the hands of various authors. The carv- ings are, therefore, here considered rather from the stand-point of the naturalist than the archeologist. Believing that the question first in importance concerns their actual resemblances, substantially the same kind of critical study is applied to them which they would receive were they from the hands of a modern zoological artist. Such a course has HENSHAW. ] MANATEE. 125 obvious disadvantages, since it places the work of men who were in, at best, but a semi-civilized condition on a much higher plane than other facts would seem to justify. It may be urged, as the writer in- deed believes, that the accuracy sufficient for the specific identification of these carvings is not to be expected of men in the state of culture the Mound-Builders are generally supposed to have attained. To which answer may be made that it is precisely on the supposition that the carvings were accurate copies from nature that the theories respecting them have been promulgated by archeologists. On no other supposi- tion could such theories have been advanced. So accurate indeed have they been deemed that they have been directly compared with the work of modern artists, as will be noticed hereafter. Hence the method here adopted in their study seems to be not only the best, but the only one likely to produce definite results. If it be found that there are good reasons for pronouncing the carv- ings not to be accurate copies from nature, and of a lower artistic standard than has been supposed, it will remain for the archeologist to determine how far their unlikeness to the animals they have been supposed to represent can be attributed to shortcomings naturally per- taining to barbaric art. If he choose to assume that they were really intended as imitations, although in many particulars unlike the animals he wishes to believe them to represent, and that they are as close copies as can be expected from sculptors not possessed of skill adequate to carry out their rude conceptions, he will practically have abandoned the position taken by many prominent archeologists with respect to the mound sculptors’ skill, and will be forced to accord them a position on the plane of art not superior to the one occupied by the North Ameri- ean Indians. If it should prove that but a small minority of the carv- ings can be specifically identified, owing to inaccuracies and to their general resemblance, he may indeed go even further and conclude that they form a very unsafe basis for deductions that owe their very exist- ence to assumed accurate imitation. MANATEE, In 1848 Squier and Davis published their great work on the Mounds of the Mississippi Valley. The skill and zeal with which these gentle- men prosecuted their researches in the field, and the ability and fidelity which mark the presentation of their results to the public are suffi- ciently attested by the fact that this volume has proved alike the mine from which subsequent writers have drawn their most important facts, and the chief inspiration for the vast amount of work in the same direc- tion since undertaken. On pages 251 and 252 of the above-mentioned work appear figures of an animal which is there called ‘‘ Lamantin, Manitus, or Sea Cow,” con- 126 ANIMAL CARVINGS. cerning which animal it is stated that “‘seven sculptured representations have been taken from the mounds.” When first discovered, the authors continue, “it was supposed they were monstrous creations of fancy; but subsequent investigations and comparison have shown that they are faithful representations of one of the most singular animal produc- tions of the world.” These authors appear to have been the first to note the supposed likeness of certain of the sculptured forms found in the mounds to animals living in remote regions. That they were not slow to perceive the ethnological interest and value of the discovery is shown by the fact that it was immediately adduced by them as affording a clew to the possible origin of the Mound-Builders. The importance they at- tached to the discovery and their interpretation of its significance will be apparent from the following quotation (p. 242): Some of these sculptures have a value, so far as ethnological research is concerned, much higher than they can claim as mere works of art. This value is derived from the fact that they faithfully represent animals and birds peculiar to other latitudes, thus establishing a migration, a very extensive intercommunication or a contemporaneous existence of the same race over a vast extent of country. _ The idea thus suggested fell on fruitful ground, and each succeeding writer who has attempted to show that the Mound-Builders were of a race different from the North American Indian, or had other than an autochthonous origin, has not failed to lay especial stress upon the pres- ence in the mounds of sculptures of the manatee, as well as of other strange beasts and birds, carved evidently by the same hands that por- trayed many of our native fauna. Except that the theories based upon the sculptures have by recent writers been annunciated more positively and given a wider range, they have been left almost precisely as set forth by the authors of the “An- cient Monuments,” while absolutely nothing appears to have been brought to light since their time in the way of additional sculptured evidence of the same character. It is indeed a little curious to note the perfect unanimity with which most writers fall back upon the above authors as at once the source of the data they adduce in support of the several theories, and as their final, nay, their only, authority. Now and then one will be found to dissent from some particular bit of evidence as announced by Squier and Davis, or to give a somewhat different turn to the conclusions derivable from the testimony offered by them. But in the main the theories first announced by the authors of “Ancient Monuments,” as the result of their study of the mound sculptures, are those that pass current to-day. Particular attention may be called to the deep and lasting impression made by the statements of these au- thors as to the great beauty and high standard of excellence exhibited by the mound sculptures. Since their time writers appear to be well satisfied to express their own admiration in the terms made use of by Squier and Davis. One might, indeed, almost suppose that recent HENSHAW.] MANATEE. 1 PAT writers have not dared to trust to the evidence afforded by the original carvings or their fac-similes, but have preferred to take the word of the authors of the “Ancient Monuments” for beauties which were perhaps hidden from their own eyes. Following the lead of the authors of the “Ancient Monuments,” also, with respect to theories of origin, these carvings of supposed foreign animals. are offered as affording incontestible evidence that the Mound- Builders must have migrated from or have had intercourse, direct or indirect, with the regions known to harbor these animals. Were it not, indeed, for the evident artistic similarity between these carvings of supposed foreign animals and those of common domestic forms—a sim- ilarity which, as Squier and Davis remark, render them “ indistinguish- able, so far as material and workmanship are concerned, from an entire class of remains found in the mounds”—the presence of most of them could readily be accounted for through the agency of trade, the far reaching na- ture of which, even among the wilder tribes, is wellunderstood. Trade, for instance, in the case of an animal like the manatee, found no more than a thousand miles distant from the point where the sculpture was dug up, would offer a possible if not a probable solution of the matter. But in- dependently of the fact that the practically identical character of all the carvings render the theory of trade quite untenable, the very pertinent question arises, why, if these supposed manatee pipes were derived by trade from other regions, have not similar carvings been found in those regions, as, for instance, in Florida and the Gulf States, a region of which the archeology is fairly well known. Primitive man, ss is the case with his civilized brother, trades usually out of his abundance; so that not seven, but many times seven, manatee pipes should be found at the cen- ter of trade. As it is, the known home of the manatee has furnished no carvings either of the manatee or of anything suggestive of it. The possibility of the manatee having in past times possessed a wider range than at present seems to have been overlooked. But as a matter of fact the probability that the manatee ever ranged, in comparatively modern times at least, as far north as Ohio without leaving other traces of its presenee than a few sculptured representations at the hands of an ancient people is too small to be entertained. Nor is the supposition that the Mound-Builders held contemporaneous possession of the country embraced in the range of the animals whose effigies are supposed to have been exhumed from their graves worthy of serious discussion. If true, it would involve the contemporaneous oc- cupaney by the Mound-Builders, not only of the Southern United States but of the region stretching into Southern Mexico, and even, accord- ing to the ideas of some authors, into Central and South America, an area which, it is needless to say, no known facts will fora moment justify us in supposing a people of one bloed to have occupied con- temporaneously. ; Assuming, therefore, that the sculptures in question are the work of 128 ANIMAL CARVINGS. the Mound-Builders and are not derived from distant parts through the agency of trade, of which there would appear to be little doubt, and, assuming that the sculptures represent the animals they have been supposed to represent—of which something remains to be said—the theory that the acquaintance of the Mound-Builders with these ani- mals was made in a region far distant from the one to which they subsequently migrated would seem to be not un. worthy of attention. It is necessary, however, before advancing theories to account for facts to first consider the facts themselves, and in this case to seek an answer to the question how far the identification of these carvings of sup- Fig. 4.—Otter. From Ancient Monuments. posed foreign animals is to be trusted. Before noticing in detail the carvings supposed by Squier and Davis to represent the manatee, it will be well to glance at the carvings of another animal figured by the same authors which, it is believed, has a close connection with them. Figure 4 is identified by the authors of the “‘Ancient Monuments” (Pig. 156) as an otter, and few naturalists will hesitate in pronouncing it to be a very good likeness of that animal; the short broad ears, broad head and expanded snout, with the short, strong legs, would seem to belong unmistakably to the otter. Added to all these is the indica- tion of its fish-eatching habits. Having thus correctly identified this animal, and with it before them, it certainly reflects little credit upon the zoological knowledge of the authors and their powers of discrimina- tion to refer the next figure (Ancient Monuments, Fig. 157) to the same animal, Fig. 5.—Otter of Squier and Davis. Of a totally different shape and physiognomy, if intended as an otter it certainly implies an amazing want of skill in its author. How- ever it is assuredly not an otter, but is doubtless an unfinished or rudely executed ground squirrel, of which animal it conveys in a general way a good idea, the characteristic attitude of this little rodent, sitting HENSHAW. ] MANATEE. 129 up with paws extended in front, being well displayed. Carvings of small rodents in similar attitudes are exhibited in Stevens’s “ Flint Chips,” p. 428, Figs. 61 and 62. Stevens’s Fig. 61 evidently represents the same animal as Fig. 157 of Squier and Davis, but is a better executed carving. In illustration of the somewhat vague idea entertained by archeolo- gists as to what the manatee is like, it is of interest to note that the carving of a second otter with a fish inits mouth has been made to do duty as a manatee, although the latter animal is well known never to eat fish, but, on the contrary, to be strictly herbivorous. Thus Stevens gives figures of two carvings in his “ Flint Chips,” p. 429, Figs. 65 and 66, call- ing them manatees, and says: “In one particular, however, the sculp- tors of the mound-period committed an error. Although the lamantin is strictly herbivorous, feeding chiefly upon subaqueous plants and littoral herbs, yet upon one of the stone smoking pipes, Fig. 66, this animal is represented with a fish in its mouth.” Mr. Stevens apparently pre- ferred to credit the mound sculptor with gross ignorance of the habits of the manatee, rather than to abate one jot or tittle of the claim pos- sessed by the carving to be considered a representation of that animal.- Stevens’s fish-catching manatee is the same carving given by Dr. Rau, in the Archeological Collection of the United States National Museum, p. 47, Fig. 180, where it is correctly stated to be an otter. This cut, which can scarcely be distinguished from one given by Stevens (Fig. 66), is here reproduced (Fig. 6), together with the second supposed manatee of the latter writer (Fig. 7). To afford a means of comparison, Fig. 154, from the “Ancient Monu- Fig. 6.—Otter of Rau; Manatee of Stevens. Fig. 7.—Manatee of Stevens. ments” of Squier and Davis, is introduced (Fig. 8). The same figure is also to be found in Wilson’s Prehistoric Man, vol. i, p. 476, Fig. 22. Another of the supposed lamantins, Fig. 9, is taken from Squier’s article in the Transactions of the American Ethnological Society, vol. ii, p. 188. A bad print of the same wood-eut appears as Fig. 153, p. 251, of the “Ancient Monuments.” It should be noted that the physiognomy of Fig. 6, above given, although unquestionably of an otter, agrees more closely with the sev- eral so-called manatees, which are represented without fishes, than with the fish-bearing otter, first mentioned, Fig. 4. Fig. 6 thus serves as a connecting link in the series, uniting the un- 9E 130 ANIMAL CARVINGS. mistakable otter, with the fish in its mouth, to the more clumsily exe- cuted and less readily recognized carvings of the same animal. Tt was doubtless the general resemblance which the several specimens of the otters and the so-called manatees bear to each other that led Stevens astray. They are by no means facsimiles one of the other. On the contrary, while no two are just alike, the differences are perhaps Fig. 8—Lamantin or sea-cow of Squier and Davis. not greater than is to be expected when it is considered that they doubtless embody the conceptions of different artists, whose knowledge of the animal, as well as whose skill in carving, would naturally differ widely. Recognizing the general likeness, Stevens perhaps felt that what one was all were. In this, at least, he is probably correct, and Fig. 9.—Lamantin or sea-cow of Squier. the following reasons are deemed sufficient to show that, whether the several sculptures figured by one and another author are otters or not, as here maintained, they most assuredly are not manatees. The most important character possessed by the sculptures, which is not found in the manatee, is an external ear. In this particular they all agree. Now, the manatee has not the slightest trace of a pinna or external ear, a sinall orifice, like a slit, representing that organ. To quote the precise language of Murie in the Proceedings of the London Zoological Society, vol. 8, p. 188: “In the absence of pinna, a small orifice, a line in diameter, into which a probe could be passed, alone represents the HENSHAW. ] MANATEE. : 131 external meatus.” In the dried museum specimen this slit is wholly in- visible, and even in the live or freshly killed animal it is by no means readily apparent. Keen observer of natural objects, as savage and barbaric man certainly is, it is going too far to suppose him capable of representing an earless animal—earless at least so far as the purposes of sculpture are concerned—with prominent ears. If, then, it can be assumed that these sculptures are to be relied upon as in the slightest degree imitative, it must be admitted that the presence of ears would alone suffice to show that they cannot have been intended to repre- sent the manatee. But the feet shown in each and all of them pre- sent equally unquestionable evidence of their dissimilarity from the manatee. This animal has instead of a short, stout fore leg, terminat- ing in flexible fingers or paws, as indicated in the several sculptures, a shapeless paddle-like flipper. The nails with which the flipper termi- nates are very small, and if shown at all in carving, which is wholly unlikely, as being too insignificant, they would be barely indicated and would present a very different appearance from the distinctly marked digits common to the several sculptures. Noticing that one of the carvings has a differently shaped tail from the others, the authors of the ‘Ancient Monuments” attempt to reconcile the discrepancy as follows: ‘Only one of the sculptures exhibits a flat truncated tail; the others are round. There is however a variety of the lamantin (Manitus Senigalensis, Desm.) which has a round tail, and is distinguished as the “‘round-tailed manitus.” (Ancient Monuments, p. 252.) The suggestion thus thrown out means, if it means anything, that the sculpture exhibiting a flat tail is the only one referable to the manatee of Florida and southward, the MW. Americanus, while those with round tails are to be identified with the so-called ‘‘ Round-tailed Laman. tin,” the MW. Senegalensis, which .lives in the rivers of Senegambia and along the coast of Western Africa. It is to beregretted that the above authors did not go further and explain the manner in which they sup- pose the Mound-Builders became acquainted with an animal inhabiting the West African coast. Elastic as has proved to be the thread upon which hangs the migration theory, it would seem to be hardly capable of bearing the strain required for it to reach from the Mississippi Val- ley to Africa. Had the authors been better acquainted with the anatomy of the manatees the above suggestion would never have been made, since the tails of the two forms are, so far as known, almost exactly alike. A rounded tail is, in fact, the first requisite of the genus Manatus, to which both the manatees alluded to belong, in distinction from the forked tail of the genus Halicore. Whether the tails of the sculptured manatees be round or flat mat- ters little, however, since they bear no resemblance to manatee tails, either of the round or flat tailed varieties, or, for that matter, to tails of any sort. In many of the animal carvings the head alone engaged the 2 ANIMAL CARVINGS. sculptor’s attention, the body and members being omitted entirely, or else roughly blocked out; as, for instance, in the case of the squirrel giyen above, in which the hind parts are simply rounded off into con- venient shape, with no attempt at their delineation. Somewhat the same method was. evidently followed in the case of the supposed mana- tees, only after the pipe cavities had been excavated the block was shaped off in a manner best suited to serve the purpose of a handle. Without, however, attempting to institute further comparisons, two views of areal manatee are here subjoined, which are fac-similes of Murie’s admirable photo-lithograph in Trans. London Zoological Society, vol. 8, 1872-74. A very brief comparison of the supposed manatees, with a modern artistic representation of that animal, will show the irreconcil- able differences between them better than any number of pages of writ- ten criticism. Fic. 10.—Manatee (Manatus Americanus, Cuv.). Side view. There would seem, then, to be no escape from the conclusion that the animal sculptures which have passed current as manatees do not really resemble that animal, which is so extraordinary in allits aspects and so totally unlike any other of the animal creation as to render its identification in case it had really served as a subject for sculpture, easy and certain. As the several sculptures bear a gen- eral likeness to each other and resemble with considerable closeness the otter, the well known fish-eating proclivities of this animal being shown in at least two Brg. 1.—Manavee (Manaus smericanus, of them, it seems highly probable that it is the otter that is rudely portrayed in all these sculptures. The otter was a common resident of all the region occupied by the Mound-Builders, and must certainly have been well known to them. Moreover, the otter is one of the animals which figures largely in the mythology and folk-lore of the natives of America, and has been adopted in many tribes as theirtotem. Hence, this animal would seem to be a peculiarly apt subject for embodiment in seulptured form. It matters very little, however, whether these sculptures were intended as AENSHAW.] CINCINNATI TABLET. 133 otters or not, the main point in the present connection being that they cannot have been intended as manatees. Before leaving the subject of the manatee, attention may be called to a curious fact in connection with the Cincinnati Tablet, “of which a wood-eut is given in The Ancient Monuments” (p. 275, Fig. 195). If the reverse side as there shown be compared with the same view as nd presented by Short in The North Americans of Antiquity, p. 45, or in MacLean’s Mound-Builders, p. 107, a remarkable discrepancy be- tween the two will be observed. In the former, near the top, is in- dicated what appears to be a shape- less depression, formless and un- meaning so far as its resemblance to any special object is concerned. The authors remark of this side of the tablet, “‘The back of the stone has three deep longitudinal grooves, and several depressions, evidently caused by rubbing,—probably pro- duced in sharpening the instrument used in the sculpture.” This ex- planation of the depressions would seem to be reasonable, although it has been disputed, and a “ peculiar significance” (Short) attached to : this side of the tablet. In Short’s Fic. 12.—Cincinnati Tablet. (Back.) From Squire engraving, while the front side cor- Emu DNA responds closely with the same view given by Squier and Davis, there is a notable difference observable on the reverse side. For the formless depression of the Squier and Davis cut not only occupies a somewhat different position in relation to the top and sides of the tab- let, but, as will be seen by reference to the figure, it assumes a distinet form, having in some mysterious way been metamorphosed into a figure which oddly enough suggests the manatee. It does not appear that the attention of archeologists has ever been directed to the fact that such a resemblance exists ; nor indeed is the resemblance sufficiently close to justify calling it a veritable manatee. But with the aid of a little imagination it may in a rude way suggest that animal, its earless head and the flipper being the most striking, in fact the only, point of like- ness. Conceding that the figure as given by Short affords a rude hint of the manatee, the question is how to account for its presence on this the latest representation of the tablet which, according to Short, Mr. Guest, its owner, pronounces ‘the first correct representations of the stone.” The cast of this tablet in the Smithsonian Institution agrees 134 ANIMAL CARVINGS. more closely with Short’s representation in respect to the details men- tioned than with that given in the “Ancient Monuments.” Nevertheless, if this cast be accepted as the faithful copy of the original it has been supposed to be, the engraving in Short’s volume is subject to criticism. In the cast the outline of the figure, while better defined than Squier and Davis represent it to be, is still very indefinite, the outline not only being broken into, but being in places, especially toward the head, indistinguishable from the surface of the tablet into which it insensibly Fic. 13.—Cincinnati Tablet. (Back.) From Short. grades. In the view as found in Short there is none of this irregularity and indefiniteness of outline, the figure being perfect and standing out clearly as thotgh just from the sculptor’s hand. As perhaps on the whole the nearest approach to the form of a manatee appearing on any object claimed to have originated at the hands of the Mound-Builders, and from the fact that artists have interpreted its outline so differently, HENSHAW.) TOUCAN. 135 this figure, given by the latest commentators on the Cincinnati tablet, is interesting, and has seemed worthy of mention. As, however, the authenticity of the tablet itself is not above suspicion, but, on the con- trary, is believed by many archeologists to admit of grave doubts, the subject need not be pursued further here. TOUCAN. The a priori probability that the toucan was known to the Mound-Build- ers is, of course, much less than that the manatee was, since no species of toucan oceurs farther north than Southern Mexico. Its distant hab- itat also militates against the idea that the Mound-Builders could have aequired a knowledge of the bird from intercourse with southern tribes, or that they received the supposed toucan pipes by way of trade. With- out discussing the several theories to which the toucan pipes have given rise, let us first examine the evidence offered as to the preseuce in the mounds of sculptures of the toucan. It is a little perplexing to find at the outset that Squier and Davis, not content with one toucan, have figured three, and these differing from each other so widely as to be referable, according to modern or- nithological ideas, to very distinct orders. The first allusion to the toucan in the Monuments of the Mississippi Valley is found on page 194, where the authors guardedly remark of a bird’s head in terra cotta (Fig. 79), “Tt represents the head of a bird, somewhat resembling the toucan, and is executed with much spirit.” This head is vaguely suggestive of a young eagle, the proportions of the bill of which, untilof someage, are considerably distorted. The posi- tion of the nostrils, however, and the contour of the mandibles, together with the position of the eyes, show clearly enough that it is a likeness of no bird known to ornithology. It is enough for our present purpose to say that in no particular does it bear any conceivable resemblance to the toucan. Of the second supposed toucan (Ancient Monuments, p., 260, Fig. 169) here illustrated, the authors remark : Fig. 14.—Touean of Squier and Davis. The engraving very well represents the original, which is delicately carved from a compact limestone. It is supposed to represent the toncan—a tropical bird, and one 136 ANIMAL CARVINGS. not known to exist anywhere within the limits of the United States. If we are not mistaken in supposing it to represent this bird, the remarks made respecting the sculp- tures of the manitus will here apply with double force. This sculpture is fortunately easy of identification. Among several or- nithologists, whose opinions have been asked, not a dis- senting voice has been heard. The Seat bird is a common Fic. 15.—Toucan of Squier and Davis. crow or a raven, and is one of the most happily executed of the avian sculptures, the nasal feathers, which are plainly shown, and the gen- eral contour of the bill being truly corvine. It would probably be practically impossible to distinguish a rude sculpture of a raven from that of a crow, owing to the general resemblance of the two. The pro- portions of the head here shown are, however, those of the crow, and the question of habitat renders it vastly more likely that the crow was known to the Mound-Builders of Ohio than that the raven was. What possible suggestion of a toucan is to be found in this head it is not easy to see. Turning to page 266 (Fig. 178) another and very different bird is held up to view as a toucan. Fic. 16.—Toucan of Squier and Davis. Squier and Davis remark of this sculpture : From the size of its bill, and the circumstance of its having two toes before and two behind, the bird intended to be represented would seem to belong to the zygodac- tylous order—probably the toucan. The toucan (Ramphastos of Lin.) is found on this continent only in the tropical countries of South America. In contradiction to the terms of their description their own figure, as will be noticed, shows three toes in front and two behind, or a total of five, which makes the bird an ornithological curiosity, indeed. How- HENSHAW.] TOUCAN. 137 ever, as the castin the Smithsonian collection shows three toes in front and one behind, it is probably safe to assume that the additional hind toe was the result of mistake on the part of the modern artist, so that four may be accepted asits proper quota. The mistake then chargeable to the above authors is that in their discussion they transferred one toe from before and added it behind. In this curious way came their zygodactylous bitd. This same pipe is figured by Stevens in Flint Chips, p. 426, Fig. 5. The wood-cut is a poor one, and exhibits certain important changes, which, on the assumption that the pipe is at all well illustrated by the cast in the Smithsonian, reflects more credit on the artist’s knowledge of what a toucan ought to look like than on his fidelity as an exact copyist. The etchings across the upper surface of the base of the pipe, mis- called fingers, are not only made to assume a hand-like appearance but the accommodating fancy of the artist has provided a roundish object in the palm, which the bird appears about to pick up. The bill, too, has been altered, having become rounded and decidedly toucan-like, while the tail has undergone abbreviation, also in the direction of likeness tothe toucan. — Fic. 17.—Toucan as figured by Stevens. In short, much that was lacking in the aboriginal artist's conception towards the likeness of a toucan has in this figure been supplied by his modern interpreter. This cut corresponds with the cast in the Smithsonian collection, in having the normal number of toes, four—three in front and one behind. This departure from the arrangement common to the toucan family, which is zygodactylous, seems to have escaped Stevens’s attention. At least he volunteers no explanation of the discrepancy, being, doubtless, influenced in his acceptance of the bird as a toucan by the statements of others. Wilson follows the cut of Squier and Davis, and represents the bird with five toes, stating that the touecan is “imitated with considerable accuracy.” He adds: ‘The most important deviation from correctness of detail is, it has three toes instead of two before, although the two are correctly represented behind.” How Wilson is guided to the belief that the sculptor’s mistake consists in adding a toe in front instead of one behind it would be difficult to explain, unless, indeed, he felt the neces- sity of having a toucan at all hazards. The truth is that, the question of toes aside, this carving in no wise resembles a toucan. Its long legs and proportionally long toes, coupled with the rather long neck and bill, indicate with certainty a wading bird of some kind, and in default of anything that comes nearer, an ibis may be suggested; though if in- tended by the seulptor as an ibis, candor compels the statement that the ibis family has no reason to feel complimented. 138 ANIMAL CARVINGS. The identification of this sculpture as a toucan was doubtless due less to any resemblance it bears to that bird than to another circum- stance connected with it of a rather fanciful nature. As in the case of several others, the bird is represented in the act of feeding, upon what it would be difficult to say. Certainly the four etchings across the base of the pipe bear little resemblance to the human hand. Had they been intended for fingers they would hardly have~been made to extend over the side of the pipe, an impossible position unless the back of the hand be uppermost. Yet it was probably just this fancied resemblance to a hand, out of which the bird is supposed to be feeding, that led to the suggestion of the toucan. For, say Squier and Davis, p. 266: In those districts (i. e., Guiana and Brazil) the toucan was almost the only bird the aborigines attempted to domesticate. The fact that it is represented receiving its food from a human hand would, under these circumstances, favor the conclusion that the sculpture was designed to represent the toucan, Rather a slender thread one would think upon which to hang a theory so far-reaching in its consequences. Nor was it necessary to go as far as Guiana and Brazil to find in- stances of the domestication of wild fowl by aborigines. Among our North American Indians it was a by no means uncommon practice to capture and tame birds. Roger Williams, for instance, speaks of the New England Indians keeping tame hawks about their dwellings ‘“ to keep the little birds from their corn.” (Williams’s Key into the Lan- guage of America, 1643, p. 220.) The Zunis and other Pueblo Indians keep, and have kept from time immemorial, great numbers of eagles and hawks of every obtainable species, as also turkies, for the sake of the feathers. The Dakotas and other western tribes keep eagles for the same purpose. They also tame crows, which are fed from the hand, as well as hawks and magpies. A case nearer in point is a reference in Lawson to the Congarees of North Carolina. He says, “they are kind and affable, and tame the cranes and storks of their savannas.” (Lawson’s History of Carolina, p. 51.) And again (p. 53) “these Congarees have an abundance of storks and cranes in their savannas. They take them before they can fly, and breed them as tame and familiar as a dung-hill fowl. They had a tame crane at one of these cabins that was scarcely less than six feet in height.” So that even if the bird, as has been assumed by many writers, be feeding from a human hand, of which fact there is no sufficient evidence, we are by no means on this account driven to the conclusion, as appears to have been believed, that the sculpture could be no other than a toucan. As in the case of the manatee, it has been thought well to introduce a correct drawing of a toucan in order to afford opportunity for com- parison of this very striking bird with its supposed representations from the mounds. For this purpose the most northern representative of the family has been selected as the one nearest the home of the Mound-Builders. HENSHAW.] PAROQUET. 139 The particulars wherein it differs from the supposed toucans are so many and striking that it will be superfluous to dwell upon them in de- tail. They will be obvious at a glance. Thus we have seen that the sculptured representation of three birds, to- tally dissimilar from each other, and not only not resembling the toucan, but conveying no conceivable hint of that very marked bird, formed the basis of Squier and Davis’ speculations as to the presence of the toucan in the mounds. These three supposed toucans have been copied and recopied by later authors, who have accepted in full the remarks and deductions accompanying them. At least two exceptions to the last \, statement may be made. It is refresh- ing to find that two writers, although apparently accepting the other iden- tifications by Squier and Davis, have drawn the line at the toucan. Thus Rau, in The Archeological Collec- tions of the United States National Museum, pp. 46-47, states that— The figure (neither of the writers men_ tioned appear to have been aware that there was more than one supposed toucan) is not Fic. 18.—Keel-billed Toucan of Southern of sufficient distinctness to identify the orig- Mexico (Rhamphastos carinatus.) inal that was before the artist’s mind, and it would not be safe, therefore, to make this specimen the subject of far-reaching speculations. Further on he adds, “‘ Leaving aside the more than doubtful toucan, the imitated animals belong, without exception, to the North American fauna.” Barber, also, after taking exception to the idea that the sup- posed toucan carving represents a zygodactylous bird, adds in his arti- cle on Mound Pipes, pp. 280-281 (American Naturalist for April, 1882), “Tt may be asserted with a considerable degree of confidence that no representative of an exclusively exotic fauna figured in the pipe sculpt- ures of the Mound-Builders.” PAROQUET. The presence of a carving of the paroquet in one of the Ohio mounds has been deemed remarkable on account of the supposed extreme south- ern habitat of that bird. Thus Squier and Davis remark (“Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley,” p. 265, Fig. 172), “Among the most spirited and delicately executed specimens of ancient art found in the mounds, is that of the paroquet here presented.” = : 140 ANIMAL CARVINGS. “The paroquet is essentially a southern bird, and though common along the Gulf, is of rare occurrence above the Ohio River.” The above language would seem to admit of no doubt as to the fact of the decided resemblance borne by this carving to the paroquet. Yet the bird thus positively identified as a paroquet, upon which identification have, without doubt, been based all the conclusions that have been published concerning the presence of that bird among the mound sculpt- ures is not even distantly related to the parrot family. It has the bill of a rap- torial bird, as shown by the distinct tooth, Fic. 19.—Paroquet of Squier and Davis. and this, in connection with the well defined cere, not present in the paroquet, and the open nostril, con- cealed by feathers in the paroquet, places its identity as one of the hawk tribe beyond doubt. In fact it closely resembles several of the carvings figured and iden- tified as hawks by the above authors, as comparison with figures given below will show. The hawks always appear to have occupied a prom- inent place in the interest of our North American Indians, especially in association with totemic ideas, and the number of sculptured represen- tations of hawks among the mound relics would argue for them a simi- lar position in the minds of the Mound-Builders. A word should be added as to the distribution of the paroquet. The statement by Squier and Davis that the paroquet is found as far north as the Ohio River would of itself afford an easy explanation of the manner in which the Mound-Builders might have become acquainted with the bird, could their acquaintance with it be proved. But the above authors appear to have had a very incorrect idea of the region inhabited by this once widely spread species. The present distribution, it is true, is decidedly southern, it being almost wholly confined to lim- ited areas within the Gulf States. Formerly, however, it ranged much farther north, and there is positive evidence that it occurred in New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Nebraska. | Up to 1835 it was extremely abundantin Southern Illinois, and, as Mr, Ridgway informs the writer, was found there as late as 1861. Specimens are in the Smithsonian collection from points as far north as Chicago and Michigan. Over much of the region indicated the exact nature of its occurrence is not understood, whether resident or a more or less casual visitor. But as it is known that it was found as far north as Pennsylvania in winter it may once have ranged even farther north than the line just indicated, and have been found in Southern Wisconsin and Minnesota. Occurring, as it certainly did, over most of the mound region, the pe- culiar habits of the paroquet, especially its vociferous cries and manner HENSHAW.) PAROQUET. 141 of associating in largé flocks, must, it would seem, have made it known to the Mound-Builders. Indeed from the ease with which it is trapped and killed, it very probably formed an article of food among them as it has among the whites and recent tribes of Indians. Probable, however, as it is that the Mound-Builders were well acquainted with the paro- quet, there appears to be no evidence of the fact among their works of art. KNOWLEDGE OF TROPICAL ANIMALS BY ‘MOUND- BUILDERS. The supposed evidence of a knowledge of tropical animals possessed by the ancient dwellers of the Mississippi Valley which has just been discussed seems to have powerfully impressed Wilson, and in his Pre- historic Man he devotes much space to the consideration of the matter. His ideas on the subject will be understood from the following quota- tion: sy the fidelity of the representations of so great a variety of subjects copied from animal life, they furnish evidence of a knowledge in the Mississippi Valley, of the fauna peculiar not only to southern but to tropical latitudes, extending beyond the Isthmus into the southern continent; and suggestive either of arts derived from a for- eign source, and of an intimate intercourse maintained with the central regions where the civilization of ancient America attained its highest development: or else indicative of migration, and an intrusion into the northern continent, of the race of the ancient graves of Central and Southern America, bringing with them the arts of the tropics, and models derived from the animals familiar to their fathers in the parent-land of the race. (Vol. 1, p. 475.) The author subsequently shows his preference for the theory of -a migration of the race of the Mound-Builders from southern regions as being on the whole more probable. Wilson does not, however, content himself with the evidence afforded by the birds and animals which have just been discussed, but strengthens his argument by extending the list of supposed exotic forms known to the Mound-Builders in the following words (vol. 1, p. 477): ~ But we must account by other means for the discovery of accurate miniature repre- sentations of it (i.e. the Manatee) among the sculptures of the far-inland mounds of Ohio; and the same remark equally applies to the jaguar or panther, the cougar, the toucan; to the buzzard possibly, and also to the paroquet. The majority of these ani- mals are not known in the United States; some of them are totally unknown within any part of the North American continent. (Italics of the present writer.) Others may be classed with the paroquet, which, though essentially a southern bird, and common in the Gulf, does occasionally make its appearance inland; and might possibly become known to the untraveled Mound-Builder among the fauna of his own northern home. ; The information contained in the above paragraph relative to the range of some of the animals mentioned may well be viewed with sur- prise by naturalists. To begin with, the jaguar or panther, by which vernacular names the Felis onca is presumably meant, is not only found in Northern Mexico, but extends its range into the United States and appears as far north as the Red River of Louisiana. (See Baird’s Mam- mals of North America.) Hence a sculptured representation of this animal in the mounds, although by no means likely, is not entirely out of the question. However, among the several carvings of the cat family 142 HENSHAW.] KNOWLEDGE OF TROPICAL ANIMALS. 143 that have been exhumed from the mounds and made known there is not one which can, with even a fair degree of probability, be identified as this species in distinction from the next animal named, the cougar. The cougar, to which several of the carvings can with but little doubt be referred, was at the time of the discovery of America and is to-day, where not exterminated by man, a common resident of the whole of North America, including of course the whole of the Mississippi Valley. It would be surprising, therefore, if an animai so striking, and one that has figured so largely in Indian totemism and folk-lore, should not have received attention at the hands of the Mound-Builders. Nothing resembling the toucan, as has been seen, has been found in the mounds; but, as stated, this bird is found in Southern Mexico. ‘The buzzard is to-day common over almost the entire United States, and is especially common throughout most of the Mississippi Valley. As to the paroquet, there seems to be no evidence in the way of carv- ings to show that it was known to the Mound-Builders, although that such was the case is rendered highly probable from the fact that it lived at their very doors. It therefore appears that of the five animals of which Wilson states “the majority are not known in the United States,” and “some of them are totally unknown within any part of the North American continent,” every one is found in North America, and all but one within the limits of the United States, while three were common residents of the Missis- sippi Valley. As a further illustration of the inaccurate zoological knowledge to which may Le ascribed no small share of the theories advanced respect- ing the origin of the Mound-Builders, the following illustration may be taken from Wilson, this author, however, being but one of the many who are equally in fault. The error is in regard to the habitat of the coneh shell, Pyrula (now Busycon) perversa. After exposing the blunder of Mr. John Delafield, who describes this shell as unknown on the coasts of North and South America, but as abundant on the coast of Hindostan, from which supposed fact, coupled with its presence in the mounds, he assumes a migration on the part of the Mound-Builders from Southern Asia (Prehistoric Man, vol. 1, p. 219, ibid, p. 272), Wilson states. No question can exist as to the tropical and marine origin of the large shells ex- humed not only in the inland regions of Kentucky and Tennessee, but in the northern peninsula lying between the Ontario and Huron Lakes, or on the still remoter shores and islands of Georgian Bay, at a distance of upwards of three thousand miles from the coast of Yucatan, on the mainland, the nearest point where the Pyrula perversa is Sound in its native locality. (Italics of the present writer.) Now the plain facts on the authority of Mr. Dall are that the Busycon (Pyrula) perversa is not only found in the United States, but extends along the coast up to Charleston, 8. C., with rare specimens as far north as Beaufort, N. C. Moreover, archeologists have usually confounded 144 ANIMAL CARVINGS. this species with the Busycon carica, which is of common occurrence in the mounds. The latter is found as far north as Cape Cod. The facts cited put a very different complexion on the presence of these shells in the mounds. OTHER ERRORS OF IDENTIFICATION. The erroneous identification of the manatee, the toucan, and of sev- eral other animals having been pointed out, it may be well to glance at certain others of the sculptured animal forms, the identification of which Fic. 20.—‘‘ Owl,” from Squier and Davis. by Squier and Davis has passed without dispute, with a view to deter- mining how far the accuracy of these authors in this particular line is to be trusted, and how successful they have been in interpreting the much lauded “ fidelity to nature” of the mound sculptures. Fig. 20 (Squier and Davis, An- cient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley, p. 225, Fig. 123) represents a tube of steatite, upon which is . carved, as is stated, ‘in high relief the figure of an owl, attached with its back to the tube.” This carving, the authors state, is ‘remarkably bold and spirited, and represents the bird with its claws contracted and drawn up, and head and beak elevated as if in an attitude of de- Fic. 21.—“Grouse," from Squier and Davis. fense and defiance.” This carving differs markedly from any of the avian sculptures, and probably was not intended to represent a bird at all. The absence of feather etchings and the peculiar shape of the wing are especially noticeable. It more nearly resembles, if it can be said to resemble anything, a bat, with the features very much distorted. HENSHAW.] ERRORS OF IDENTIFICATION. 145 Fig. 21 (Fig. 170 from Squier and Davis) it is stated, “will readily be recognized as intended to represent the head of the grouse.” The cere and plainly notched bill of this carving clearly indicate a hawk, of what species it would be impossible to say. Fic. 22.—‘' Turkey Buzzard,” from Squier and Davis. Fig. 22 (Fig. 171 from Squier and Davis) was, it is said, “probably ‘intended to represent a turkey buzzard.” If so, the suggestion is a very vague one. The notches cut in the mandibles, as in the case of the Fic. 23.—‘‘Cherry-bird,” from Squier and Davis. carving of the wood duck (Fig. 168, Ancient Monuments), are perhaps meant for serrations, of which there is no trace in the bill of the buz- zard. As suggested by Mr. Ridgway, it is perhaps nearer the cormo- rant than anything else, although not executed with the detail neces- sary for its satisfactory recognition. Fig. 23 (Fig. 173 from Squier and Davis) it is claimed “ much resem- bles the tufted cherry-bird,” whith is by no means the case, as the bill 10 E 146 ANIMAL CARVINGS. bears witness. It may pass, however, as a badly executed likeness of the tufted cardinal grosbeak er red-bird. The same is true of Figs. 174 and 175, which are also said to be “ cherry-birds.” Fig. 24 (Fig. 179 from Squier and Davis), of which Squier and Davis say it is uncertain what bird it is intended to represent, is an unmis- takable likeness of a woodpecker, and is one of the best executed of the series of bird carvings. To undertake to name the species would be the merest guess-work. Vic. 24.—Woodpecker, from Squier and Davis. The heads shown in Fig. 25, which the authors assert “was probably intended to represent the eagle” and ‘are far superior in point of finish, spirit, and truthfulness to any miniature carving, ancient or modern, which have fallen under the notice of the authors,” cannot be identified further than to say they are raptorial birds of some sort, probably not eagles but hawks. Fig. 26 (Fig. 180 from Squier Fi. 25.—'‘ Eagle,” from Squier and Davis. and Davis), according to the authors, ‘certainly represents the rattlesnake.” It certainly represents a snake,but there is no hint in it of the peculiarities of the rattlesnake ; which, indeed, it would be difficult to portray in a rude carving like this without showing the rattle. This is done in another carving, Fig. 196. The extraordinary terms of praise bestowed by the authors on the heads of the hawks just alluded to, as well as on many other of the sculptured animals, suggest the question whether the illustrations given in the Ancient Monuments afford any adequate idea of the beauty and artistic excellence asserted for the carvings, and so whether they are fair objects for criticism. While of course for the purpose of this paper an HENSHAW. ] ERRORS OF IDENTIFICATION. 147 examination of the originals would have been preferable, yet, in as much as the Smithsonian Institution contains casts which attest the general ac- curacy of the drawings given, and, as the illustrations by other authors afford no higher idea of their artistic execution, it would seem that any criticism applicable to these illustrations must in the main apply to the originals. With reference to the casts in the Smithsonian collection it may be stated that Dr. Rau, who had abundant opportunity to acquaint himself with the originals while in the possession of Mr. Davis, informs the writer that they accurately represent the carvings, and for purposes of study are practically as good as the originals. The latter are, as is well known, in the Blackmore Museum, England. Fic. 26.—‘‘ Rattlesnake,” from Squier and Davis. Without going into further detail the matter may be summed up as fol- lows: Of forty-five of the animal carvings, including a few of clay, which are figured in Squier and Davis’s work, eleven are left unnamed by the authors as not being recognizable; nineteen are identified correctly, in a general way, as of a wolf, bear, heron, toad, &c.; sixteen are demon- strably wrongly identified, leaving but five of which the species is cor- rectly given. From this showing it appears that either the above authors’ zoological knowledge was faulty in the extreme, or else the mound sculptors’ ability in animal carving has been amazingly overestimated. However just the first supposition may be, the last is certainly true. SKILL IN SCULPTURE OF MOUND-BUILDERS. In considering the degree of skill exhibited by the mound sculptors in their delineation of the features and characteristics of animals, it is of the utmost importance to note that the carvings of birds and animals which have evoked the most extravagant expressions of praise as to the exactness with which nature has been copied are uniformly those which, owing to the possession of some unusual or salient characteristic, are ex- ceedingly easy of imitation. The stout body and broad flat tail of the beaver, the characteristic physiognomy of the wild cat and panther, so utterly dissimilar to that of other animals, the tufted head and fish-eat- ing habits of the heron, the raptorial bill and claws of the hawk, the rattle of the rattlesnake, are all features which the rudest skill could scarcely fail to portray. It is by the delineation of these marked and unmistakable features, and not the sculptor’s power to express the subtleties of animal char- acteristics, that enables the identity of a comparatively small number of the carvings to be established. It is true that the contrary has often been asserted, and that almost everything has been claimed for the cary- ings, in the way of artistic execution, that would be claimed for the best products of modern skill. Squier and Davis in fact go so far in their admiration (Ancient Monuments, p. 272), as to say that, so far as fidelity is concerned, many of them (7. e., animal carvings) deserve to rank by the side of the best efforts of the artist naturalists in our own day—a statement which is simply preposterous. So far, in point of fact, is this from being true that an examination of the series of animal sculptures cannot fail to convince any one, who is even tolerably well acquainted with our common birds and animals, that it is simply impossible to recognize specific features in the great majority of them. They were either not intended to be copies of particular species, or, if so intended, the artist’s skill was wholly inadequate for his purpose. Some remarks by Dr. Coues, quoted in an article by E. A. Barber on Mound Pipes in the American Naturalist for April, 1882, are so apropos to the subject that they are here reprinted. The paragraph is in re- sponse to a request to identify a bird pipe: As is so frequently the probable case in such matters, I am inclined to think the sculptor had no particular bird in mind in executing his rude carving. It is not necessary, or indeed, permissible, to suppose that particular species were intended to be represented, Not unfrequently the likeness of some marked bird is so good as to be unmistakable, but the reverse is oftener the case; and in the present instance I can make no more of the carving than you have done, excepting that if any par- ticular species may have been in the carver’s mind, his execution does not suffice for its determination. 148 HENSHAW.] GENERALIZATON NOT DESIGNED. 149 The views entertained by Dr. Coues as to the resemblances of the carvings will thus be seen to coincide with those expressed above. Another prominent ornithologist, Mr. Ridgway, has also given verbal expression to precisely similar views. So far, therefore, as the carvings themselves afford evidenee to the naturalist, their general likeness entirely accords with the supposition that they were not intended to be copies of particular species. Many of the specimens are in fact just about what might be expected when a workman, with crude ideas of art expression, sat down with intent to carve out a bird, for instance, without the desire, even if possessed of the requisite degree of skill, to impress upon the stone the details nec- essary to make it the likeness of a particular species. GENERALIZATION NOT DESIGNED. While the resemblances of most of the carvings, as indicated above, must be admitted to be of a general and not of a special character, it does not follow that their general type was the result of design. Such an explanation of their general character and resemblances is, indeed, entirely inconsistent with certain well-known facts regarding the mental operations of primitive or semi-civilized man. To the mind of primitive man abstract conceptions of things, while doubtless not en- tirely wanting, are at best but vaguely defined. The experience of nu- merous investigators attests how difficult it is, for instance, to obtain from a savage the name of a class of animals in distinction from a par- ticular species of that class. Thus it is easy to obtain the names of the several kinds of bears known to a savage, but his mind obstinately re- fuses to entertain the idea of a bear genus or class. It is doubtless true that this difficulty is in no small part due simply to the confusion arising from the fact that the savage’s method of classification is differ- ent from that of his questioner. For, although primitive man actually does classify all concrete things into groups, the classification is of a very crude sort, and has for a basis a very different train of ideas from those upon which modern science is established—a fact which many in- vestigators are prone to overlook. Still there seems to be good ground for believing that the conception of a bird, for instance, in the abstract as distinct from some particular kind or species would never be enter- tained by a people no further advanced in culture than théir various relics prove the Mound-Builders to have been. In his carving, there- fore, of a hawk, a bear, a heron, or a fish, it seems highly probable that the mound sculptor had in mind a distinct species, as we understand the term. Hence his failure to reproduce specific features in a recog- nizable way is to be attributed to the fact that his skill was inadequate to transfer the exact image present in his mind, and not to his intention to carve out a general representative of the avian class. 150 ANIMAL CARVINGS. To carry the imitative idea farther and to suggest, as has been done by writers, that the carver of the Mound-Building epoch sat down to his work with the animal or a model of it before him, as does the accurate zoological artist of our own day, is wholly insupported by evidence de- rivable from the carvings themselves, and is of too imaginative a char- acter to be entertained. By the above remarks as to the lack of spe- cific resemblances in the animal carvings it is not intended to deny that some of them have been executed with a considerable degree of skill and spirit as well as, within certain limitations heretofore expressed, fidelity to nature. Taking them as a whole it can perhaps be asserted that they have been carved with a skill considerably above the general average of attainments in art of our Indian tribes, but not above the best efforts of individual tribes. That they will by no means bear the indiscriminate praise they have received as works of art and as exact imitations of nature may be as- serted with all confidence. PROBABLE TOTEMIC ORIGIN. With reference to the origin of these animal sculptures many writers appear inclined to the view that they are purely decorative and orna- mental in character, 7. ¢., that they are attempts at close imitations of nature in the sense demanded by high art, and that they owe their origin to the artistic instinct alone. But there is much in their general appearance that suggests they may have been totemic in origin, and that whatever of ornamental character they may possess is of secondary importance. With, perhaps, no exceptions, the North American tribes practiced totemism in one or other of its various forms, and, although it by no means follows that all the carving and etchings of birds or animals by these tribes are totems, yet it is undoubtedly true that the totemic idea js traceable in no small majority of their artistic representations, what- ever their form. As rather favoring the idea of the totemic meaning of the carvings, it may be pointed ont that a considerable number of the recognizable birds and animals are precisely the ones known to have been used as totems by many tribes of Indians. The hawk, heron, woodpecker, crow, beaver, otter, wild cat, squirrel, rattlesnake, and others, have all figured largely in the totemic divisions of our North American Indians. Their sacred nature too would enable us to under- stand how naturally pipes would be selected as the medium for totemic representations. It is also known to be a custom among Indian tribes for individuals to carve out or etch their totems upon weapons and im- plements of the more important and highly prized class, and a variety of ideas, superstitious and other, are associated with the usage; as, HENSHAW.) TOTEMIC ORIGIN. 15 for instance, in the case of weapons of war or implements of the chase, to impart greater efficiency to them. The etching would also serve as a mark of ownership, especially where property of certain kinds was regarded as belonging to the tribe or gens and not to the individual. Often, indeed, in the latter case the individual used the totem of his gens instead of the symbol or mark for his own name. As a theory to account for the number and character of these animal carvings the totemic theory is perhaps as tenable as any. The origin and significance of the carvings may, however, involve many different and distinct ideas. It is certain that it is a common practice of Indians to endeavor to perpetuate the image of any strange bird or beast, espe- cially when seen away from home, and in order that it may be shown to his friends. As what are deemed the marvellous features of the animal are almost always greatly exaggerated, it is in this way that many of the astonishing productions noticeable in savage art have originated. Among the Esquimaux this habit is very prominent, and many individ- uals can show etchings or carvings of birds and animals exhibiting the most extraordinary characters, which they stoutly aver and doubtless have come to believe they have actually seen. ANIMAL MOUNDS. As having, for the purposes of the present paper, a close connection with the animal carvings, another class of remains left by the Mound- Builders—the animal mounds—may next engage attention. As in the case of the carvings, the resemblance of particular mounds to the ani- mals whose names they bear is a matter of considerable interest on ac- count of the theories to which they have given rise. The conclusion reached with respect to the carvings that it is safe to rely upon their identification only in the case of animals possessed of striking and unique characters or presenting unusual forms and propor- tions, applies with far greater force to the animal mounds. Perhaps in none of the latter can specific resemblances be found sufficient for their precise determination. So general are the resemblances of one class that it has been an open question among archeologists whether they were intended to represent the bodies and arms of men, or the bodies and wings of birds. Other forms are sufficiently defined to admit of the statement that they are doubtless intended for animals, but without enabling so much as a reasonable guess to be made as to the kind. Of others again it can be asserted that whatever significance they may have had to the race that built them, to the uninstructed eyes of mod- ern investigators they are meaningless and are as likely to have been intended for inanimate as animate objects. There are many examples among the animal shapes that possess peculiarities affording no hint of animals living or extinct, but which are strongly suggestive of the play of mythologic fancy or of conven- tional methods of representing totemic ideas. As in the case of the animal carvings, the latter suggestion is perhaps the one that best cor- responds with their general character. THE ‘‘ELEPHANT” MOUND. By far the most important of the animal mounds, from the nature of the deductions it has given rise to, is the so-called ‘ Elephant Mound,” of Wisconsin. By its discovery and description the interesting question was raised as to the contemporaneousness of the Mound-Builder and the mastodon, an interest which is likely to be further enhanced by the more recent bringing to light in Iowa of two pipes carved in the semblance of the same animal, as well as a tablet showing two figures asserted by some archeologists to have been intended for the same animal. 152 HENSHAW. ] ELEPHANT MOUND. 153 Although both the mound and pipes have been referred in turn to the peceary, the tapir, and the armadillo, it is safe to exclude these animals from consideration. It is indeed perhaps more likely that the ancient inhabitants of the Upper Mississippi Valley were autoptically acquainted with the mastodon than with either of the above-named an- imals, owing to their southern habitat. Referring to the possibility that the mastodon was known to the Mound-Builders, it is impossible to fix with any degree of precision the time of its disappearance from among living animals. Mastodon bones have been exhumed from peat beds in this country at a depth which, so far as is proved by the rate of deposition, implies that the animal may have been alive within five hundred years. The extine- tion of the mastodon, geologically speaking, was certainly a very recent event, and, as an antiquity of upwards of a thousand or more years has been assigned to some of the mounds, it is entirely within the possibilities that this animal was living at the time these were thrown up, granting even that the time of their erection has been over- estimated. It must be admitted, therefore, that there are no inherent absurdities in the belief that the Mound-Builders were acquainted with the mastodon. Granting that they may have been acquainted with the animal, the question arises, what proof is there that they act- ually were? The answer to this question made by certain archeol- ogists is—the Elephant Mound, of Wisconsin. All) Wy ; AIT Fann, =>=— —= === RN \\\ Wy My a ~ 2 Hii * Scale 34 feet to the inch. Fic. 27.—The Elephant Mound, Grant County, Wisconsin. Reealling the fact that among the animal mounds many nondeseript shapes occur which cannot be identified at all, and as many others which have been called after the animals they appear to most nearly resemble, carry out their peculiarities only in the most vague and 154 ANIMAL CARVINGS. general way, it is a little difficult to understand the confidence with which this effigy has been asserted to represent the mastodon; for the mound (a copy of which as figured in the Smithsonian Annual Report for 1872 is here given) can by no means be said to closely represent the shape, proportions, and peculiarities of the animal whose name it bears- In fact, it is true of this, as of so many other of the effigies, the identity of which must be guessed, that the resemblance is of the most vague and general kind, the figure simulating the elephant no more closely than any one of a score or more mounds in Wisconsin, except in one important particular, viz, the head has a prolongation or snout-like appendage, which is its chief, in fact its only real, elephantine charac- ter. If this appendage is too long for the snout of any other known animal, it is certainly too short for the trunk of a mastodon. Still, so far as this one character goes, it is doubtless true that it is more sug- gestive of the mastodon than of any other animal. No hint is afforded of tusks, ears, or tail, and were it not for the snout the animal effigy might readily be called a bear, it nearly resembling in its general make- up many of the so-called bear mounds figured by Squier and Davis from this same county in Wisconsin. The latter, too, are of the same gigan- tic size and proportions. If it can safely be assumed that an animal effigy without tusks, with- out ears, and without a tail was really intended to represent a mastodon, it would be stretching imagination but a step farther to call all the large- bodied, heavy-limbed animal effigies hitherto named bears, mastodons, attributing the lack of trunks, as well as ears, tusks, and tails, to inatten- tion to slight details on the part of the mound artist. It is true that one bit of good, positive proof is worth many of a neg- ative character. But here the one positive resemblance, the trunk of the supposed elephant, falls far short of an exact imitation, and, as the other features necessary to a good likeness of a mastodon are wholly wanting, is not this an instance where the negative proof should be held sufficient to largely outweigh the positive ? In connection with this question the fact should not be overlooked that, among the great number of animal effigies in Wisconsin and else- where, this is the only one which even thus remotely suggests the mas- todon. As the Mound Builders were in the habit of repeating the same animal form again and again, not only inthe same but in widely distant localities, why, if this was really intended for a mastodon, are there no others like it? It cannot be doubted that the size and extraordinary features of this monster among mammals would have prevented it be- ing overlooked by the Mound-Builders when so many animals of inferior interest engaged their attention. The fact that the mound is a nonde- seript, with no others resembling it, certainly lessens the probability that it was an intentional representation of the mastodon, and increases the likelihood that its slight resemblance was accidental; a slide of earth from the head, for instance, might readily be interpreted by the modern HENSHAW.] ELEPHANT PIPES. 155 artist as a trunk, and thus the head be made to assume a shape in his sketch not intended by the original maker. As is well known, no task is more difficult for the artist than to transfer to paper an exact copy of such a subject. Especially hard is it for the artist to avoid uncon- sciously magnifying or toning down peculiarities according to his own conceptions of what was originally intended, when, as is often the case, time and the elements have combined to render shape and outlines ob- scure. Archologic treatises are full of warning lessons of this kind, and the interpretations given to ancient works of art by the erring pen- cil of the modern artist are responsible for many an ingenious theory which the original would never have suggested. It may well be that future investigations will show that the one peculiarity which distin- guishes the so-called Elephant Mound from its fellows is really suscepti- ble of a much more commonplace explanation than has hitherto been given it. ; Even if such explanation be not forthcoming, the ‘Elephant Mound” of Wisconsin should be supplemented by a very considerable amount of corroborative testimony before being accepted as proof positive of the acquaintance of the Mound-Builders with the mastodon. As regards likeness to the mastodon, the pipes before alluded to, copies of which as given in Barber’s articles on Mound Pipes in Amer- ican Naturalist for April, 1882, Figs. 17 and 18, are here presented, while not entirely above criticism, are much nearer what they have been sup- posed to be than the mound just mentioned. Fic. 28.—Elephant Pipe, lowa Of the two, figure 29 is certainly the most natural in appearance, but, if the pipes are intentional imitations of any animal, neither can be re- garded as having been intended for any other than the mastodon. Yet, as pointed out by Barber and others, it is certainly surprising that if intended for mastodons no attempt was made to indicate the tusks, which with the trunk constitute the most marked external peculiarities of all the elephant kind. The tusks, too, as affording that most important pro- duct in primitive industries, ivory, would naturally be the one peculiarity of all others which the ancient artist would have relied upon to fix the 156 ANIMAL CARVINGS. identity of the animal. It is also remarkable that in neither of these pipes is the tail indicated, although a glance at the other sculptures will show that in the full-length figures this member is invariably i Hi “TahMyy Roa Fic. 29—Elephant Pipe, Iowa. shown. In respect to these omissions, the pipes from Iowa are strik- ingly suggestive of the Elephant Mound of Wisconsin, with the pecu- liarities of which the sculptor, whether ancient or modern, might almost be supposed to have been acquainted. It certainly must be looked upon as a curious coincidence that carvings found at a point so remote from the Elephant Mound, and presumably the work of other hands, should so closely copy the imperfections of that mound. In considering the evidence afforded by these pipes of a knowledge of the mastodon on the part of the Mound-Builders, it should be borne in mind that their authenticity as specimens of the Mound-Builders’ art has been called seriously in question. Possibly the fact that the same person was instrumental in bringing to light both the pipes has had largely to do with the suspicion, especially when it was remembered that although explorers have been remarkably active in the same re- gion, it has fallen to the good fortune of no one elseto find anything conveying the most distant suggestion of the mastodon. As the man- ner of discovery of such relics always forms an important part of their history, the following account of the pipes as communicated to Mr. Barber by Mr. W. H. Pratt, president of the Davenport Academy (American Naturalist for April, 1882, pp. 275, 276), is here subjoined: The first elephant pipe, which we obtained (Fig. 17) a little more than a year ago. was found some six years before by an illiterate German farmer named Peter Mare, while planting corn on a farm in the mound region, Louisa County, Iowa. He did not care whether it was elephant or kangaroo; to him it was a curious ‘Indian stone,’ and nothing more, and he kept it and smoked it. In 1878 he removed to Kansas, and when he left he gave the pipe to his brother-in-law, a farm laborer, who also smoked it. Mr. Gass happened to hear of it, as he is always inquiring about such things, hunted up the man and borrowed the pipe to take photographs and casts from it. He could not buy it. The man said his brother-in-law gaye it to him and as it was a curious thing—he wanted to keep it. We were, however, unfortunate, or fortunate, HENSHAW.) ELEPHANT PIPES. 157 enough to break it; that spoiled it for him and that was his chance to make some money out of it. He could have claimed any amount, and we would, as in duty bound, have raised it for him, but he was satisfied with three or four dollars. Dur- ing the first week in April, this month, Rev. Ad. Blumer, another German Lutheran minister, now of Genesee, Illinois, having formerly resided in Louisa County, went down there in company with Mr. Gass to open a few mounds, Mr. Blumer being well acquainted there. They carefully explored ten of them, and found nothing but ashes and decayed bones in any, except one. In that one was a layer of red, hard-burned clay, about five feet across and thirteen inches in thickness at the center, which rested upon a bed of ashes one foot in depth in the middle, the ashes resting upon the natural undisturbed clay. In the ashes, near the bottom of the layer, they found a part of a broken carved stone pipe, representing some bird; a very small beautifully- formed copper ‘axe,’ and this last elephant pipe (Fig. 18). This pipe was first discoy- ered by Mr. Blumer, and by him, at our earnest solicitation, turned over to the Academy. It will be seen from the above that the same gentleman was instru- mental in bringing to light the two specimens constituting the present supply of elephant pipes. The remarkable archeologic instinct which has guided the finder of these pipes has led him to even more important discoveries. By the aid of his divining rod he has succeeded in unearthing some of the most remarkable inscribed tablets which have thus far rewarded the diligent search of the mound explorer. It is not necessary to speak in detail of these here, or of the various theories to which they have given rise and support, including that of phonetic writing, further than to call atten- tion to the fact that by a curious coincidence one of the tablets contains, among a number of familiar animals, figures which suggest in a rude way the mastodon again, which animal indeed some archeologists have confidently asserted them to be. The resemblance they bear to that animal is, however, by no means as Close as exhibited by the pipe carv- ings; they are therefore not reproduced here. Both figures differ from the pipes in having tails; both lack trunks, and also tusks. Archeologists must certainly deem it unfortunate that outside of the Wisconsin mound the only evidence of the co-existence of the Mound- Builder and the mastodon should reach the scientific world through the agency of one individual. So derived, each succeeding carving of the mastodon, be it more or less accurate, instead of being accepted by archeologists as cumulative evidence tending to establish the genuine- ness of the sculptured testimony showing that the Mound-Builder and mastodon were coeval, will be viewed with ever increasing suspicion. This part of the subject should not be concluded without allusion to a certain class of evidence, which, although of a negative sort, must be accorded very great weight in considering this much vexed question. It may be asked why, if the Mound-Builders and the mastodon were contemporaneous, have no traces of the ivory tusks ever been exhumed from the mounds? No materialis so perfectly adapted for the purposes of carving, an art to which we have seen the Mound- Builders were much addicted, as ivory, both from its beauty and the ease with which it is 158 ANIMAL CARVINGS. worked, to say nothing of the other manifold uses to which it is put, both by primitive and civilized man. The mastodon affords an abun- dant supply of this highly prized substance, not a particle of which has ever been exhumed from the mounds either in the shape of imple- ments or varving. Yet the exceedingly close texture of ivory enables. it to successfully resist the destroying influences of time for very long periods—very long indeed as compared with certain articles which com- monly reward the search of the mound explorer. Among the articles of a perishable nature that have been exhumed from the mounds are large numbers of shell ornaments, which are by no means very durable, as well as the perforated teeth of various animals; sections of deers’ horns have also been found, as well as ornaments made of the claws of animals, a still more perishable material. The list also in- cludes the bones of the muskrat and turtle, as of other animals, not only in their natural shape, but carved into the form of implements of small size, as awls, etc. Human bones, too, in abundance, have been exhumed in a sufficiently well preserved state to afford a basis for various theo- ries and speculations. But of the mastodon, with which these dead Mound-Builders are sup- posed to have been acquainted, not a palpable trace remains. The tale of its existence is told by a single mound in Wisconsin, which the most ardent supporter of the mastodon theory must acknowledge to be far from a fae simile, and two carvings and an inscribed tablet, the three latter the finds of a single explorer. Bearing in mind the many attempts at archeological frauds that re- cent years have brought to light, archeologists have a right to demand that objects which afford a basis for such important deductions as the coeval life of the Mound-Builder and the mastodon, should be above the slightest suspicion not only in respect to their resemblances, but as regards the circumstances of discovery. If they are not above sus- picion, the science of archzology can better afford to wait for further and more certain evidence than to commit itself to theories which may prove stumbling-blocks to truth until that indefinite time when future investigations shall show their illusory nature. THE “ALLIGATOR” MOUND. Although of much less importance than the mastodon, a word may be added as to the so-called alligator mound, more especially because the alligator, owing to its southern habitat, is not likely to have been known to the Mound-Builders of Ohio. That it may have been known to them either through travel or hearsay is of course possible. A copy of the mound from the “Ancient Monuments” is subjoined. The alligator mound was described under this name for no other reason — HENSHAW. ] ALLIGATOR MOUND. 159 than because it was knownin the vicinity as such, this designation having been adopted by Squier and Davis, as they frankly say, “for want of a better,” adding “although the figure bears as close a resemblance to the lizard as any other reptile.” (Ancient Monuments, p. 99.) Tn truth it bears a superficial likeness to almost any long-tailed ani- mal which has the power of curling its tail—which the alligator has not— as, for instance, the opossum. It is, however, the merest guess-work to attempt to confine its resemblances to any particular animal. Never- theless recent writers have described this as the “ alligator mound” without suggesting a word of doubt as to its want of positive resem- blance to that saurian. bh > qi 2 j = 5 = \ = Ny i NY 5 N i oe Ww ~ i ANS i 1 ; =~ = ’ S cS } = E : = om & el | ff 5 an & Sc ba} 5 & a 5 ; ny Y = 2 Ses Sa Rae) ys k= ma 2 ys Ie } & ar) t x aye Cy = 4 a Sap, ; § co 3 PRS iS S 4 ;—- pass HUMAN SCULPTURES. The conclusion reached in the foregoing pages that the animal sculp- tures are not ‘“exactand faithful copies from nature,” butare imitations ofa generalratherthan of aspecial character, suchas comport better with the state of art as developed among certain of the Indian tribes than among a people that has achieved any notable advance in culture is im- portant not only in its bearing on the questions previously noticed in this paper, but in its relation to another and highly interesting class of sculptures. If a large proportion of the animal carvings are so lacking in artis- tic accuracy as to make it possible to identify positively only the few possessing the most strongly marked characters, how much faith is to be placed in the ability of the Mound sculptor to fix in stone the features and expressions of the human countenance, infinitely more difficult sub- ject for portrayal as this confessedly is? That Wilson regards the human sculptures as affording a basis for sound ethnological deductions is evident from the following paragraph, taken from Prehistoric Man, vol. 1, p. 461: Alike from the minute accuracy of many of the sculptures of animals, hereafter referred to, and from the correspondence to well known features of the modern Red Indian suggested by some of the human heads, these minature portraits may be as- sumed, with every probability, to include faithful representations of the predominant physical features of the ancient people by whom they were executed. Short, too, accepting the popular idea that they are faithful and ree- ognizable copies from nature, remarks in the North Americans of An- tiquity, p. 98, ibid., p. 187: There is no reason for believing that the people who wrought stone and clay into perfect effigies of animals have not left us sculptures of their own faces in the images exhumed from the mounds;” and again, ‘‘The perfection of the animal representa- tions furnish us the assurance that their sculptures of the human face were equally true to nature. Squier and Davis also appear to have had no doubt whatever of the capabilities of the Mound- Buildersin the direction of human portraiture. They are not only able to discern in the sculptured heads niceties of ex- pression sufficient for the discrimination of the sexes, but, as well, to enable them to point out such as are undoubtedly ancient and the work of the Mound-Builders, and those of a more recent origin, the product of the present Indians. Their main criterion of origin is, apparently, that: all of fine execution and finish were the work of the Mound sculp- tors, and those roughly done and ‘immeasurably inferior to the relics of the mounds,” to use their own words, were the handicraft of the tribes found in the country by the whites. Conclusions so derived, it may strike some, are open to criticism, however well suited they may be to meet the necessities of preconceived theories. After discussing in detail the methods of arranging the hair, the paint lines, and tattooing, the features of the human carvings, Squier 160 DENSILAW. | HUMAN SCULPTURES. 161 and Davis arrive at the conclusion that the “physiological character- istics of these heads do not differ essentially from those of the great American family.” Of later writers some agree with Squier and Davis in believing the type illustrated by these heads to be Indian; others agree rather with Wilson, who dissents from the view expressed by Squier and Davis, and, in conformity with the predilections visible throughout his work, is of the opinion that the Mound-Builders were of a distinct type from the North American Indian, and that “the majority of sculptured human heads hitherto recovered from their ancient depositories do not repro- duce the Indian features.” (Wilson’s Prehistoric Man, vol. 1, p. 469.) Again, Wilson says that the diversity of type found among the human sculptures ‘“‘proves that the Mound-Builders were familiar with the American Indian type, but nothing more.”—ZIbid, p. 469. The varying type of physiognomy represented by these heads would better indicate that their resemblances are the result of accident rather than of intention. For the same reason that the sculptured animals of the same species display great differences of form and expression, ac- cording to the varying skill of the sculptors or the unexacting demands made by a rude condition of art, so the diversified character of the hu- man faces is to be ascribed, not to the successful perpetuation in stone by a master hand of individual features, but simply to a want of skill on the part of the sculptor. The evidence afforded by the animal sculpt- ures all tends to the conclusion that exact individual portraiture would have been impossible to the mound sculptor had the state of culture he lived in demanded it; the latter is altogether improbable. A glance at the above quotations will show that it is the assumed fidelity to nature of the animal carvings and their fine execution which has been relied upon in support of a similar claim for the human sculptures. As this claim is seen to have but slight basis in fact the main argument for asserting the human sculptures to be faithful representations of phys- ical features, and to embody exact racial characters falls to the ground, and it must be admitted as in the last degree improbable that the art of the mound sculptor was adequate for the task of accurate human por- traiture. To base important ethnologic deductions upon the evidence afforded by the human sculptures in the present state of our knowledge concerning them would seem to be utterly unscientific and misleading. 11 E 162 ANIMAL CARVINGS. Copies of several of the heads as they appear in “Ancient Monu- ments” (pp. 244-247) are here subjoined to show the various types of physiognomy illustrated by them: Fic, 31. Fic. 32. Fie. 33. Human Carvings from the Mounds. HENSHAW. ] HUMAN SCULPTURES. 163 Human Carvings from the Mounds. Could the many other stone and terra-cotta sculptures of the human face which have been ascribed to the Mound-Builders be reproduced here it would be seen that the specimens illustrated above are among the very best. In not a few, traces of the grotesque are distinctly visible, and there is little in their appearance to suggest that they had a different origin or contain a deeper meaning than similar productions found among present Indians. As each of the many carvings differ more or less from every other, it will at once be perceived that the advocates of different theories can readily find in the series abundant testimony in support of any and all assumptions they may choose to advance. INDIAN AND MOUND-BUILDERS’ ART COMPARED. Turning from special illustrations of the artistic skill of the Mound- Builders, brief attention may be paid to their art in its more general features, and as compared with art as found among our Indian tribes. Among some of the latter the artistic instinct, while deriving its characteristic features, as among the Mound-Builders, from animated nature, exhibits a decided tendency towards the production of conven- tional forms, and often finds expression in creatious of the most grotesque and imaginative character. While this is true of some tribes it is by no means true of all, nor is it true of all the art products of even those tribes most given to con- ventional art. But even were it true in its broadest terms, it is more than doubtful if the significance of the fact has not been greatly over- estimated. Some authors indeed seem to discern in the introduction of the grotesque element and the substitution of conventional designs of animals for a more natural portrayal, a difference sufficient to mark, not distinct eras of art culture merely, but different races with very different modes of art expression. To trace the origin of art among primitive peoples, and to note the successive steps by which decorative art grew from its probable origin in the readily recognized adornmepts of nature and in the mere “ acci- dents of manufacture,” as they have been termed, would be not only interesting but highly instructive. Such a study should afford us a clew to the origin and significance of conventional as contrasted with imitative art. The natural process of the evolution of art would seem to be from the purely imitative to the conventional, the tendency being for artistic expression of a partially or wholly imaginative character to supplant or supplement the imitative form only in obedience to external influ- ences, especially those of a religious or superstitious kind. In this con- nection it is interesting to note that even among tribes of the Northwest, the Haidahs, for instance, whose carvings or paintings of birds and animals are almost invariably treated in a manner so highly conven- tional or are so distorted and ecaricatured as to be nearly or quite unrecognizable, it is still some natural object. as a well known bird or animal, that underlies and gives primary shape to the design. How- ever highly conventionalized or grotesque in appearance such artistic productions may be, evidences of an underlying imitative design may always be detected ; proof, seemingly, that the conventional is a later stage of art superimposed upon the more natural by the requirements of mythologic fancies. As it is with any particular example of savage artistic fancy, s so is it with the art of certain tribes as a whole. Nor does it seem possible 164 HENSHAW.) CONVENTIONALISM IN ART. 165. that the growth of the religious or mythologic sentiment has so far pre- ceded or outgrown the development of art as to have had from the fifst a dominating influence over it, and that the art of such tribes as most strongly show its effect has never had what may be termed its natural phase of development, but has reached the conventional stage without having passed through the intermediate imitative era. It is more natural to suppose, so far, at least as the North American Indians are concerned, that the road to conventionalism has always led through imitation. The argument, therefore, that because a tribe or people is less given than another to conventional methods of art, it therefore must neces- sarily be in a higher stage of culture, is entitled to much less weight than it has sometimes received. Squier and Davis, for instance, refer- ring to the Mound-Builders, state that ‘“‘many of these (7. e., sculptures) exhibit a close observance of nature such as we could only expect to find among a people considerably advanced in the minor arts, and to which the elaborate and laborious, but usually clumsy and ungraceful, not to say unmeaning, productions of the savage can claim but a Bent approach.” It is clearly not the intention of the above authors to claim an en- tire absence of the grotesque method of treatment in specimens of the Mound-Builder’s art, since elsewhere they call attention to what appears to be a caricature of the human face, as well as to the disproportionate size of the heads of many of the animal carvings. Not only are the heads of many of the carvings of disproportionate size, which, in in- stances has the effect of actual distortion, but in not a few of the sculp- tures nature,instead of being copied, has been trifled with and birds and animals on peculiarities unknown to science and which go far to prove that the Mound-Builders, however else endowed, possessed lively imag- inations and no little creative fancy. Decided traces of conventionalism also are to be found in many of the animal carvings, and the method of indicating the wings and feath- ers of birds, the scales of the serpent, &¢., are almost precisely what is to be observed in modern Indian productions of a similar kind. Few and faint as are these tendencies towards caricaturing and con- ventionalizing as compared with what may be noted in the artistic pro- ductions of the Haidahs, Chinooks, and other tribes of the Northwest, they are yet sufficient to show that in these particulars no hard and fast line can be drawn between the art of the Indian and of the Mound-Builder. As showing how narrow is the line that separates the conventional and imitative methods of art, it is of interest to note that among the Esquimaux the two stages of art are found flourishing side by side. In their curious masks, carved into forms the most quaint and grotesque, and in many of their carvings of animals, partaking as they do of a half human, half animal character, we have abundant evidence of what authors have characterized as savage taste in sculpture. But 166 ANIMAL CARVINGS. the same tribes execute carvings of animals, as seals, sea-lions, whales, bears, &c., which, though generally wanting in the careful modeling necessary to constitute fine sculpture, and for absolute specific resem- blance, are generally recoguizable likenesses. Now and then indeed is to be found a carving which is noteworthy for spirited execution and faithful modeling. The best of them are far superior to the best exe- euted carvings from the mounds, and are much worthier objects for com- parison with modern artistic work. As deducible from the above premises it may be observed that, while the state of art among primitive peoples as exemplified by their artistic productions may be a useful index in determining their relative posi- tion in the scale of progress, unless used with caution and in connec- tion with other and more reliable standards of measurement it will: lead to very erroneous conclusions. If, for instance, skill and inge- nuity in the art of carving and etching be accepted as affording a proper idea of a people’s progress in general culture, the Esquimaux of Alaska should be placed in the front rank of American tribes, a position needless to say which cannot be accorded them from more gen- eral considerations. On the other hand, while the evidences of artistic skill left by the Iroquoian tribes are in no way comparable to the work produced by the Esquimaux, yet the former have usually been assigned a very advanced position as compared with other American tribes. GENERAL CONCLUSIONS. The more iniportant conclusions reached in the foregoing paper may be briefly summed up as follows: That of the carvings from the mounds which ean be identified there are no representations of birds or animals not indigenous to the Missis- sippi Valley. And consequently that the theories of origin for the Mound Builders suggested by the presence in the mounds of carvings of supposed for- eign animals are without basis. Second. That a large majority of the carvings, instead of being, as assumed, exact likenesses from nature, possess in reality only the most general resemblance to the birds and animals of the region which they were doubtless intended to represent. Third. That there is no reason for believing that the masks and seulpt- ures of human faces are more correct likenesses than are the animal carvings. Fourth. That the state of art-culture reached by the Mound Builders, as illustrated by their carvings, has been greatly overestimated. SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION——BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. NAVAJO SILVERSMITHS. BY Dr. WASHINGTON MATTHEWS, U.S. A. 167 - tp ei ; u CS h , i ‘ ; ‘ . ‘ ; pik hh Op De ee ete Sal Mince as ILLUSTRATIONS. Page. PEATE XVii-— Objects! silver-.-=-25- <-2..-= sos citemtes slob cmeesemesriccccsices- 172 EXSV Lie ——Naiv.ajO NVOLKSHO Pes ae ama wala e ain seen a elnino ew cee 175 XVIII.—Crucible, and Sandstone molds for shaping silver objects. ....-. 175 xX Ob ectainisilvoreccesaae nee oe eee eee eae aaes aoesiarion ce sins 177 XX.—Navajo Indian with silver ornaments......-...---..----..----- 178 169 1 ~ . : y oS ‘ : se * 7 , ¥ Pe , . rT i . NAVAJO SILVERSMITHS. By WASHINGTON MATTHEWS. Among the Navajo Indians there are many smiths, who sometimes forge iron and brass, but who work chiefly in silver. When and how the art of working metals was introduced among them I have not been able to determine; but there are many reasons for supposing that they have long possessed it; many believe that they are not indebted to the Europeans for it. Doubtless the tools obtained from American and Mexican traders have influenced their art. Old white residents of the Navajo country tell me that the art has improved greatly within their recollection; that the ornaments made fifteen years ago do not compare favorably with those made at the present time; and they attribute this change largely to the recent introduction of fine files and emery-paper. At the time of the Conquest the so-called civilized tribes of Mexico had attained considerable skill in the working of metal, and it has been inferred that in the same period the sedentary tribes of New Mexico also wrought at the forge. From either of these sources the first smiths among the Navajos may have learned their trade; but those who have seen the beautiful gold ornaments made by the rude Indians of British Columbia and, Alaska, many of whom are allied in language to the Navajos, may doubt that the latter derived their art from a people higher in culture than themselves. The appliances and processes of the smith are much the same among the Navajos as among the Pueblo Indians. But the Pueblo artisan, living in a spacious house, builds a permanent forge on a frame at such a height that he can work standing, while his less fortunate Navajo confrére, dwelling in a low hut or shelter, which he may abandon any day, constructs a temporary forge on the ground in the manner here- after described. Notwithstanding the greater disadvantages under which the latter labors, the ornaments made by his hand are generally conceded to be equal or even superior to those made by the Pueblo Indian. A large majority of these savage smiths make only such simple arti- cles as buttons, rosettes, and bracelets; those who make the more elaborate articles, such as powder-chargers, round beads (Pl. XVJ), tobacco cases, belts, and bridle ornaments are few. Tobacco cases, made in the shape of an army canteen, such as that represented in 171 172 NAVAJO SILVERSMITHS. Fig. 6, are made by only three or four men in the tribe, and the design is of very recent origin. Their tools and materials are few and simple; and rude as the results of their labor may appear, it is surprising that they do so well with such imperfect appliances, which usually consist of the following articles: A forge, a bellows, an anvil, crucibles, molds, tongs, scissors, pliers, files, awls, cold-chisels, matrix and die for molding buttons, wooden imple- ment used in grinding buttons, wooden stake, basin, charcoal, tools and materials for soldering (blow-pipe, braid of cotton rags soaked in grease, wire, and borax), materials for polishing (sand-paper, emery-paper, powdered sandstone, sand, ashes, and solid stone), and materials for whitening (a native mineral substance—almogen—saltand water). Fig. 1, taken from a photograph, represents the complete shop of a silver- ciniti which was set up temporarily in a summer lodge or hogan, near Fort Wingate. Fragments of boards, picked up around the fort, were used, in part, in the construction of the hogan, an old raisin-box was made to serve as the curb or frame of the forge, and these things de- tracted somewhat from the aboriginal aspect of the place. A forge built in an outhouse on my own premises by an Indian silver- smith, whom I employed to work where I could constantly observe him, was twenty-three inches long, sixteen inches broad, five inches in height to the edge of the fire-place, and the latter, which was bowl-shaped, was eight inches in diameter and three inches deep. No other Navajo forge that I have seen differed materially in size or shape from this. The In- dian thus constructed it: In the first place, he obtained a few straight sticks—four would have sufficed—and laid them on the ground to form a frame or curb; then he prepared some mud, with which he filled the frame, and which he piled up two inches above the latter, leaving the depression for the fire-place. Before the structure of mud was com- pleted he laid in it the wooden nozzle of the bellows, where it was to remain, with one end about six inches from the fire-place, and the other end projecting about the same distance beyond the frame; then he stitek into the nozzle a round piece of wood, which reached ‘fon the nozzle to the fire-place, and when the mud work was finished the stick was withdrawn, leaving an uninflammable tweer. When the structure of mud was barlered a flat rock about four inches thick was laid on at the head of the forge—the end next to the bellows—to form a back to the fire, and lastly the bellows was tied on to the nozzle, which, as mentioned above, was built into the forge, with a portion projecting to receive the bellows. The task of constructing this forge did not oceupy more than an hour. A bellows, of the kind most commonly used, consists of a tube or bag of goatskin, about twelve inches in length and about ten inches in diameter, tied at one end to its nozzle and nailed at the other to a cir- cular disk of wood, in which is the valve. This disk has two arms: one above for a handle and the other below for a support. Two or more BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. XVI OBJECTS IN SILVER, MATTHEWS.) NAVAJO WORKSHOPS. 173 rings or hoops of wood are placed in the skin-tube to keep it distended, while the tube is constricted between the hoops with buckskin thongs, and thus divided into a number of compartments, as shown in PI]. XVII. The nozzle is made of four pieces of wood tied together and rounded on the outside so as to form a cylinder about ten inches long and three inches in diameter, with a quadrangular hole in the center about one inch square. The bellows is worked by horizontal movements of the arm. Ihave seen among the Navajos one double-chambered bellows with a sheet-iron tweer. This bellows was about the same size as the single chambered one described above. It was also moved horizontally, and by means of an iron rod passing from one end to the other and at- tached to the disks, one chamber was opened at the same time that the other was closed, and vice versa. This gave a more constant current of air than the single-chambered implement, but not as steady a blast as the bellows of our blacksmiths. Such a bellows, too, I have seen in the Pueblo of Zuni. For an anvil they usually use any suitable piece of iron they may happen to pick up, as for instance an old wedge or a large bolt, such as the king-bolt ofa wagon. A wedge or other large fragment of iron may be stuck in the ground to steady it. A bolt is maintained in position by being driven into a log. Hard stones are still sometimes used for anvils and perhaps they were, at one time, the only anvils they pos- sessed. Crucibles are made by the more careful smiths of clay, baked hard, and they are nearly the same shape as those used by our metallurgists, having three-cornered edges and rounded bottoms. They are usually about two inches in every dimension. Fig. 1, Pl. XVIII represents one of ordinary shape and size, which I have in my collection. The Navajos are not good potters; their earthen- ware being limited to these crucibles and a few unornamented water- jars; and it is probably in consequence of their inexperience in the ceramic art that their crucibles are not durable. After being put in the fire two or three times they swell and become very porous, and when used for a longer time they often crack and fall to pieces. Some smiths, instead of making crucibles, melt their metal in suitable fragments of Pueblo pottery, which may be picked up around ruins in many localities throughout the Navajo country or purchased from the Pueblo Indians. The moulds in which they cast their ingots, cut in soft sandstone with a home-made chisel, are so easily formed that the smith leaves them behind when he moyes his residence. Each mould is cut approximately in the shape of the article which is to be wrought out of the ingot cast in it, and it is greased with suet before the metalis poured in. In Figs. 2 and 3, Pl. XVIII, are represented pieces of sand-stone, graven for molds, now in my possession. The figures are one-third the dimensions of the subjects. In the middle cavity or mould shown in Fig. 2, Pl. “XVIII, was cast the ingot from which was wrought the arrow-shaped 174 NAVAJO SILVERSMITHS. handle of the powder-charger shown in Pl. XIX; in the lower cavity depicted in the same figure was moulded the piece from which the bowl of this charger was formed. ‘The circular depression, delineated in the lower right corner of Fig. 3, Pl. XVIII, gave form to the ingot from which the sides of the canteen-shaped tobacco-case (Fig. 6) was made. Tongsare often made by the Navajo silversmiths. One of these which I saw had a U-shaped spring joint, and the ends were bent at right angles downwards, so as more effectually to grasp the flat-sided cruci- ble. Often nippers or scissors are used as tongs. Ordinary scissors, purchased from the whites, are used for cutting their metal after it is wrought into thin plates. The metal saw and metal shears do not seem as yet to have been imported for their benefit. Some of the more poorly provided smiths use their scissors also for tongs, regardless or ignorant of consequences, and when the shears lose their temper and become loose-jointed and blunt, the efforts of the In- dian to cut a rather thick plate of silver are curious to see. Often, then, one or two bystanders are called to hold the plate in a horizontal position, and perhaps another will be asked to hold the points of the scissors to keep them from spreading. Scissors are sometimes used as dividers, by being spread to the desired distance and held in position by being grasped in thehand. By this means I have seen them attempt to find centers, but not to describe circles. Itis probable that had they trusted to the eye they might have found their centers as well. Their iron pliers, hammers, and files they purchase from the whites. Pliers, both flat-pointed and round-pointed, are used as with us. Of files they usually employ only small sizes, and the varieties they prefer are the flat, triangular, and rat-tail. Files are used not only for their legitimate purposes, as with us, but the shanks serve for punches and the points for gravers, with which figures are engraved on silver. The Indians usually make their own cold-chisels. These are not used where the scissors and file can be conveniently and economically em- ployed. The re-entrant rectangles on the bracelet represented in Fig. 4, Pl. XIX, were cut with a cold-chisel and finished with a file. Awls are used to mark figures on the silver. Often they cut out of paper a pattern, which they lay on the silver, tracing the outline with an awl. These tools are sometimes purchased and sometimes made by the Indians. I have seen one made from a broken knife which had been picked up around the fort. The blade had been ground down to a point. Metallic hemispheres for beads and buttons are made in a concave matrix by means of a round-pointed bolt which I will call a die. These tools are always made by the Indians. On one bar of iron there may be many matrices of different sizes; only one die fitting the smallest concavity, is required to work the metal in all. In the picture of the smithy (Pl. XVII, in the right lower corner beside the tin-plate), a piece of an old horse-shoe may be seen in which a few matrices have been worked, and, beside it, the die used in connection with the matrices. PL ANNUAL REPORT 1881 SAU OF ETHNOLOGY NAVAJO SILVERSMITH. WORKSHOP OF RRP : ay ete BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. XVII 2 - = = = a Let- ees = aes : = CRUCIBLE, AND SANDSTONE MOLDS FOR SHAPING SILVER OBJECTS. MATTHEWS. ] TOOLS EMPLOYED. 175 A little instrument employed in levelling the edges of the metallic hemispheres, is rude but effective. In one end of a cylinder of wood, about three or four inches long, is cut a small roundish cavity of such a size that it will hold the hemisphere tightly, but allow the uneven edges to project. The hemisphere is placed in this, and then rubbed on a flat piece of sandstone until the edges are worn level with the base of the wooden cylinder. The uses of the basin and the wooden stake are described further on. Their method of preparing charcoal is much more expeditious than that usually employed by our charcoal-burners, but more wasteful ; wood, however, need not yet be economized on the juniper-covered mesas of New Mexico. They build a large fire of dry juniper, and when it has ceased to flame and is reduced to a mass of glowing coals, they smother it well with earth and leave it to cool. If the fire is kindled at sunset, the charcoal is ready for use next morning. The smith makes his own blow-pipe, out of brass, usually by beating a piece of thick brass wire into a flat strip, and then bending this into atube. The pipe is about a foot long, slightly tapering and curved at one end; there is no arrangement for retaining the moisture proceeding from the mouth. These Indians do not understand our method of making an air chamber of the mouth; they blow with undistended cheeks, hence the current of air directed on the flame is intermitting. The flame used in soldering with the blow-pipe is derived from a thick braid of cotton rags soaked in mutton suet or other grease. Their borax is purchased from the whites, and from the same source is derived the fine wire with which they bind together the parts to be soldered. I have been told by reliable persons that it is not many years since the Navajos employed a flux mined by themselves in their own country ; but, finding the pure borax introduced by the traders to be much better, they gradually abandoned the use of the former substance. For polishing, they have sand-paper and emery-paper purchased from the whites; but as these are expensive, they are usually required only for the finishing touches, the first part of the work being done with powdered sandstone, sand, or ashes, all of which are used with or with- out water. At certain stages in the progress of the work, some articles are rubbed on a piece of sandstone to reduce the surfaces to smooth- ness; but the stone, in this instance, is more a substitute for the file than for the sand-paper. Perhaps I should say that the file is a sub- stitute for the stone, for there is little doubt that stone, sand, and ashes preceded file and paper in the shop of the Indian smith. ~ For blanching the silver, when the forging is done, they use a min- eral substance found in various parts of their country, which, I am in- formed by Mr. Taylor, of the Smithsonian Institution, is a “hydrous sulphate of alumina,” called almogen. This they dissolve in water, in a metal basin, with the addition, sometimes, of salt. The silver, being first slightly heated in the forge, is boiled in this solution and in a short. time becomes very white. 176 NAVAJO SILVERSMITHS. The processes of the Navajo silversmith may be best understood from descriptions of the ways in which he makes some of his silver orna- ment. I once engaged two of the best workmen in the tribe to come to Fort Wingate and work under my observation for a week. They put up their forge in a small outbuilding at night, and early next morning they were at work. Their labor was almost all performed while they were sitting or crouching on the ground in very constrained positions; yet I never saw men who worked harder or more steadily. They often la- bored from twelve to fifteen hours a day, eating their meals with dis- patch and returning to their toil themoment they had done. Occasion- ally they stopped to roll a cigarette or consult about their work, but they lost very few moments in this way. They worked by the job and their prices were such that they earned about two dollars a day each. The first thing they made was a powder charger with a handle in the shape of a dart (Fig. 2, Pl. XIX). Having cut in sandstone rock (Fig. 2, Pl. XVIII) the necessary grooves for molds and greased the same, they melted two Mexican dollars—one for the bowl or receptacle, and one for the handle—and poured each one into its appropriate mold. Then each smith went to work on a separate part; but they helped one an- other when necessary. The ingot cast for the receptacle was beaten into a plate (triangular in shape, with obtuse corners), of a size which the smith guessed would be large enough for his purpose. Before the pro- cess of bending was quite completed the margins that were to form the seam were straightened by clipping and filing so as to assume a pretty accurate contact, and when the bending was done, a small gap still left in the seam was filled with a shred of silver beaten in. The cone, at this stage, being indented and irregular, the workman thrust into it a conical stake or mandrel, which he had formed carefully out of hard wood, and with gentle taps of the hammer soon made the cone even and shapely. Next, withdrawing the stake, he laid on the seam a mix- ture of borax and minute clippings of silver moistened with saliva, put the article into the fire, seam up, blew with the bellows until the sil- ver was at a dull red-heat, and then applied the blow-pipe and flame until the soldering was completed. In the meantime the other smith had, with hammer and file, wrought the handle until it was sufficiently formed to be joined to the receptacle, the base of the handle being filed down for a length of about a quarter of an inch so that it would fit tightly into the orifice at the apex of the receptacle. The two parts were then adjusted and bound firmly together with a fine wire passing in various directions, over the base of the cone, across the protuber- ances on the dart-shaped handle, and around both. This done, the parts were soldered together in the manner already described, the ring by ‘which it is suspended was fastened on, the edge of the receptacle was clipped and filed, and the whole was brought into good shape with file, sand, emery-paper, &c. The chasing was the next process. To make the round indentations on ee ee et ae i a a > a ae “a ORT 1881 = z ~ < BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY OBJECTS IN SILVER. MATTHEWS. | TOOLS EMPLOYED. 177 the handle, one smith held the article on the anvil while the other ap- plied the point of the shank of a file—previously rounded—and struck the file with a hammer. The other figures were made with the sharp- ened point of a file, pushed forward with a zigzag motion of the hand. When the chasing was done the silver was blanched by the process be- fore referred to, being occasionally taken from the boiling solution of almogen to be rubbed with ashes aud sand. For about five hours both of thesmiths worked together on this powder-charger; subsequently, for about three hours’ more, there was only one man engaged on it; so that, in all, thirteen hours labor was spent in constructing it. Of this time, about ten hours were consumed in forging, about one and one-half hours in filing and rubbing, and about the same time in ornamenting and cleaning. In making the hollow silver beads they did not melt the silver, but beat out a Mexican dollar until it was of the proper tenuity—frequently annealing it in the forge as the work advanced. When the plate was ready they carefully described on it, with an awl, a figure (which, by courtesy, we will call a circle) that they conjectured would include a disk large enough to make half a bead of the required size. The disk was then cut out with scissors, trimmed, and used as a pattern to cut other circular pieces by. One of the smiths proceeded to cut out the rest of the planchets, while his partner formed them into hollow hemi- spheres with his matrix and die. He did not put them at once into the cavity from which they were to get their final shape, but first worked them alittle in one or more Jarger cavities, so as to bring them gradually to the desired form. Next the hemispheres were leveled at the edges by a method already described, and subsequently perforated by holding them, convex surface downwards, on-a piece of wood, and driving through them the shank of a file with blows of a hammer. By this means of boring, a neck was left projecting from the hole, which was not filed off until the soldering was done. The hemispheres were now strung or, I may say, spitted on a stout wire in pairs forming globes. The wire or spit referred to was bent at one end and supplied with a washer to keep the heads from slipping off, and all the pieces being pressed closely together were secured in position by many wraps of finer wire at the other end of the spit. The mixture of borax, saliva, and silver was next applied to the seams of all the beads; they were put into the fire and all soldered at one operation. When taken from the fire they were finished by filing, polishing and blanching. These Indians are quite fertile in design. In Pl. XIX are shown two powder-chargers, which I consider very graceful in form. I have seen many of these powder-chargers, all very graceful, but no two alike except in cases where duplicates had been specially ordered. Their designs upon bracelets and rings are of great variety. Ornamerts for bridles, consisting of broad bands of silver, sufficient in size and number to al- most entirely conceal the leather, are not particularly handsome, but 125 178 NAVAJO SILVERSMITHS. are greatly in demand among the Navajos and are extensively manu factured by them. Leather belts studded with large plates of silver are favorite articles of apparel, and often contain metal to the value of forty or fifty dollars. Pl. XX represents an Indian wearing such a belt, in which only three of the plates are shown. Single and double crosses of silver are represented attached to his necklace. The cross is much worn by the Navajos, among whom, I understand, it is not intended to represent the “‘ Cross of Christ,” but is a symbol of the morning star. The lengthening of the lower limb, however, is probably copied from the usual form of the Christian emblem. ‘These savage smiths also display much ingenuity in working from models and from drawings of objects entirely new to them. They are very wasteful of material. They usually preserve the clippings and melt them in the crucible, or use them in soldering ; but they make no attempt to save the metal carried off in filing, polishing, and by oxidizing in the forge, all of which is considerable. In one arti- cle of silver, for which, allowing for clippings saved, 836 grains were given to the smith, and the work on which I watched so closely through- out that I am certain none of the material was stolen, there was a loss of 120 grains, or over 14 per cent. The smiths whom I have seen working had no dividers, square, meas- ure, or any instrument of precision. As before stated, { have seen scissors used as compasses, but as a rule they find approximate centers with the eye, and cut all shapes and engrave all figures by the unaided guidance of this unreliable organ. Often they cut out their designs in paper first and from them mark off patterns on the metal. Even in the matter of cutting patterns they do not seem to know the simple device of doubling the paper in order to secure lateral uniformity. Here ends my description of the smithcraft of a rude but docile and progressive people. I trust that it may serve not only to illustrate some aspects of their mental condition, their inventive and imitative talents, but possibly to shed some light on the condition and diffusion of the art of the metalist in the prehistoric days of our continent, not- withstanding the fact that some elements of their craft are of recent in- troduction and others of doubtful origin. BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ~ ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. XX NAVAJO INDIAN WITH SILVER ORNAMENTS. SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION. BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. An? EN SEELE OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. Y WILLIAM H. HOLMES. 179 CONTENTS. [PTR NATE Se ee Ses 2 Song SIS SENOS eee eee See ey ee, ee Implements and utensils Unworked shells SOLA DOTS pak cee yaaa eee eee een Sea e eoenise Sacco cc ee wscn ees anes ASTICHMTA LUA SMO S eee re ee see neise enya s sa satan Sales oa Seciseseiee- Soa EUS Eon eve) DELET COS bee ete oie tr ee = ane em eae Sm sie eise aa Bee epueeeie: MGHTDOUTE, cosas ides dee e8s sind ShG Case eR n Corte See ee ee eee ee Tweezers MARREV GID OAUS tots mae tes = A OO ee ocise Sea u suis ade obularibeads«----a- 55 4-- 2s eee See ees tae tals atic a2 ieee eye meses WRUNLEGS eee mae eee se ee meee See ems c se cones ccbece ce bacciceceed BBAGRIAS CHIRON CYien anes ease cieisin eeeeiens eicetelaea as ac cs Cseencce sees Mnemonic use of beads ......-..--.------ wees IRD TG EIN Race gnBsossqacstaescase sasco eae a Sboe BE Bee ae eee Retoranedap apeseeem eee ree ae meen eer socio boa n tas asaccenccsees InP raveds COUP OS mere me tena are aceneiie = a ewn = clscceseccke eee asene cee PRHOIGORS eee ee ene sae ema rates tee sacesawaSerecckascncess heiseallopedidiskssess oer ese eo waa sec sce aeindco aes Ser anseaeeceee's Whey bird ost cceccsc-eccncses< So coCUE GORD EDO D OBR EEC Ee BEEEO CeIOere PRUGIRDIOCR ee ee cee sae Sane sesaceenctae qaestcsesces scecct tees teeccane JU TONE SRG tiibos CHS SEBS SOROS Cle Bee OAR OEE OEE eae eae (MhemumaniiacOcs eases sseass omc cma cisees cc wssncieus Harmon’s Journal, p. 287. 4Swan: The Northwest Coast, p. 155. 5Powers: Contributions to North American Ethnology, Vol. III, p. 263. 234 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. Sir John Lubbock, in his “‘ Prehistoric Times,” expresses surprise at the great number of beads sometimes found, instancing the Grave Creek mound of Virginia, which contained between three and four thousand. This number will, however, appear very insignificant when compared with a collection such as the costume of the great King Philip could have furnished. Drake relates that Philip had a coat ‘‘made all of wampampeag,” which, when in need of money, he ‘cuts to pieces, and distributes it plentifully among the Nipmoog sachems and others, as well to the east- ward as southward, and all round about.”! By adding to this store of beads the contents of two belts, one of which was nine inches in breadth, and so long that when placed upon the shoulders it reached to the ankles, we conclude that the greatest collection ever taken from a prehistoric mound could not compare for a moment with the treasure of this one historic chieftain. A great deal of art is shown in the stringing and mounting of beads. The simplest form is a single strand, a twisted string of vegetable fiber, a strip of buckskin, or a bit of sinew being passed through the perfora- tions. Again, rows of strands are placed side by side and fastened at intervals in such a manner as to keep them approximately parallel, or the beads when long are put on equidistant cross strands, the longitu- dinal strands serving to keep them in place; they are also woven into the fabric by being mounted upon one of the strands before twisting. It is also a very usual practice to sew then on strips of cloth or buckskin, patterns being produced by using beads of different colors. The man- ner of stringing in the manufacture of belts will be given in detail under Mnemonic Uses of Beads. BEADS AS CURRENCY. It will probably be impossible to prove that the prehistoric peoples of North America employed a medium of exchange in a manner corre- sponding to our use of money. It isa well-known fact, however, that a currency of shell beads was in general use throughout the Atlantic coast region very early in the historic period. Of all objects within the reach of savage peoples, shells, either in their natural forms or in fragments artificially fashioned for convenience of use, are the best adapted for such a purpose. In examining the contents of ancient cemeteries and mounds where all objects of value were to some extent deposited, we find no other relics that could have been conveniently used for such a purpose. It is not probable that objects subject to rapid decay, such as wood, fruits, and seeds, could ever have come into general use for money, although such objects are employed to some extent by savages in dif- ferent parts of the world. The unlimited supply or easy manufacture of these objects would be against their use for this purpose, whereas the difficulty of shaping and perforating the flinty substance of shells would prevent such a plentiful production as to destroy the standard of value. !Drake: Book of Indians, p. 27. HOLMES.) ANCIENT USE OF WAMPUM. 235 Objects and substances having a fairly uniform value, resulting from their utilitarian attributes, have been employed by primitive peoples as standards of value; as, for instance, cattle, in ancient Rome; salt, in Assyria; tin, in Britain, and cocoa, in Mexico. But such mediums of exchange are local in use. With these articles this function is only accidental. The utilization of shells for money would naturally orig- inate from the trade arising from their use as utensils and ornaments in districts remote from the source of supply. Yielding in the worked state a limited supply, and at the same time filling a constant demand, they formed a natural currency, their universal employment for pur- poses of ornament giving them a fixed and uniform value. They have undoubtedly been greatly prized by the ancient peoples, but on the part of the open-handed savage they were probably valued more as personal ornaments than as a means of gratifying avaricious propensities. Lewis H. Morgan, who had access to all the sources of information on the subject, says that “‘wampum has frequently been called the money of the Indian; but there is no sufficient reason for supposing that they ever made it an exclusive currency, or a currency in any sense, more than silver or other ornaments. All personal ornaments, and most other articles of personal property, passed from hand to hand at a fixed value; but they appear to have had no common standard of value until they found it in our currency. If wampum had been their currency it would have had a settled value, to which all other articles would have been referred. There is no doubt that it came nearer to a currency than any other species of property among them, because its uses were so general, and its transit from hand to hand so easy, that everyone could be said to need it.” Yet he admits that ‘the use of wampum reaches back to a remote period upon this continent”; and further, that it was an original Indian notion which prevailed among the Iriquois as early at least as the formation of the League. He goes on to state that “the primitive wampum of the Iriquois consisted of strings of a small fresh- water spiral shell called in the Seneca dialect Ofte ko-d, the name of which has been bestowed upon the modern wampum.”! Loskiel says that “before the Europeans came to North America, the Indians used to make strings of wampom chiefly of small pieces of wood of equal size, stained either black or white. Few were made of muscle, which were esteemed very valuable and difficult to make; for, not hav- ing proper tools, they spent much time in finishing them, and yet their work had a clumsy appearance.”? Hutchinson is of the opinion that ‘‘the Indians resident northeastward of the province of New York had originally no knowledge of this sort of money or medium of trade.” The great body of our historical evidence goes to show, however, that 1 Morgan, in Fifth Annual Report on the New York State Cabinet of Natural His- tory, pp. 71, 73. %Loskiel: Mission of the United Brethren, Latrobe trans., p. 34. 3Hutchinson: History of Mass., Vol. I, p. 406. 236 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. a currency of shell was in use among the Atlantic coast tribes when first encountered by the Europeans. Thomas Morton, in speaking of the Indians of New England as far back as 1630, says that ‘they have a kinde of beads in steede of money to buy withal such things as they want, which they call wampampeak; and it is of two sorts, the one is white and the other is a violet coloure. These are made of the shells of fishe; the white with them is as silver with us, the other as our gould, and for these beads they buy and sell, not only amongst themselves, but even with us. We have used to sell them any of our commodities for this wampampeak, because we know we can have beaver again from them for it: and these beads are current in all parts of New England, from one end of the coast to the other, and although some have endeavoured by example to have the like made, of the same kinde of shels, yet none has ever, as yet, obtained to any perfection in the composure of them, but the Salvages have found a great difference to be in the one and the other; and have knowne the counterfett beads from those of their owne making and doe slight them.” According to Roger Williams also, the Indians of New England, as far back as his observations extend, were engaged in the manufacture of shell money as a well-established industry. It seems altogether impos- sible that such a custom should have been successfully introduced by the English, as the Indian is well known to be averse to anything like labor excepting in his traditional occupations of war and the chase, and if the whites had introduced it, would certainly have looked to them for a supply by means of trade in skins and game rather than apply himself to a new and strange art. Roger Williams says that ‘they that live upon the Sea side generally make of it, and as many as they will. The Indians bring downe all their sorts of Furs, which they take in the countrey, both to the Indians and to the English for this Indian Money: this Money the English, French and Dutch, trade to the Indians, six hundred miles in severall ports (north and south from New England) for their Furres, and whatsoever they stand in need of from them.” Their methods were also aboriginal, another indication that the art was not of European introduction; and Williams states that “before ever they had awle blades from Europe, they made shift to bore their shell money with stones.” ? That wampum was also manufactured farther south we learn from Lindstrém, who is writing of the Indians of New Sweeden: “Their money is made of shells, white, black, and red, worked into beads, and neatly turned and smoothed; one person, however, cannot make more in a day than the value of six or eight stivers. When these beads are worn out, so that they cannot be strung neatly, and even on one thread, they no longer consider them good. Their way of stringing them is to rub the whole thread full of them on their noses; if they find it slides 1Thomas Morton, in Historical Tracts, Vol. II, p. 29. 2 Williams: A Key into the Language of America, p. 144. HOLMES. | ANCIENT USE OF WAMPUM. PAM ( smooth and even, like glass beads, then they are considered good, other- wise they break and throw them away.”' Although Beverly did not write until the beginning of the eighteenth century, his statements are probably based upon accurate information. Speaking of the Virginia Indians, he says that they “had nothing which they reckoned riches before the English went among them, except Peak, Roenoke, and such-like trifles made out of the Cunk Shell. These past with them instead of Gold and Silver, and serv’d them both for Money and Ornament. It was the Hnglish alone that taught them first to put a value on their Skins and Furs, and to make a Trade of them.”? From Lawson, who wrote in 1714, but whose statements deserve consideration, we also learn that the money of the Carolina Indians is ‘all made of shells which are found on the coast of Carolina, which are very large and hard so that they are very difficult tocut. Some English smiths have tried to drill this sort of shell-money, and thereby thought to get an advantage; but it proved so hard that nothing could be gained.” Speaking of its use and value in New York, he remarks that “an Englishman could not afford to make so much of this wampum for five or ten times the value; for it is made out of a vast great shell, of which that country affords plenty; where it is ground smaller than the small end of a tobacco pipe, or a large wheat straw.” * * * ‘This the In- dians grind on stones and other things until they make it current, but the drilling is the most difficult te the Englishman, which the Indians manage with a nail stuck in a cane or reed. Thus they roll it continu- ally on their thighs with their right hand, holding the bit of shell with their left; so, in time, they drill a hole quite through it which is a very tedious work; but especially in making their ronoak, four of which will scarce make one length of wampum. The Indians are a people that never value their time, so that they can afford to make them, and never need to fear the English will take the trade out of their hands. This is the money with which you may buy skins, furs, slaves, or anything the Indians have; it being their mammon (as our money is to us) that en- tices and persuades them to do anything, and part with everything they possess, except their children for slaves. As for their wives, they are often sold and their daughters violated for it. With this they buy off murders; and whatsoever a man can do that is ill, this wampum will quit him of and make him, in their opinion, good and virtuous, though never so black before.”4 Adair confirms the statements made by these writers, and adds em- phasis to the fact that the shell beads had, among the Cherokees and other southern Indians, a fixed value as currency. ‘With these they 1 Penna. Historical Society, Vol. IL, p. 131. 2 Beverly: History of Virginia, p. 195. 3 Lawson: History of North Carolina; Raleigh reprint, 1860, p. 315. 4On this point, however, the author quoted is apparently at fault, as there is abun- dance of proof that the whites often engaged successfully in the manufacture of this shell money. 238 ' ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. bought and sold at a stated current rate, without the least variation for circumstances either of time or place; and now they will hear noth- ing patiently of loss or gain, or allow us to heighten the price of our goods, be our reasons ever so strong, or though the exigencies and changes of time may require it.”' We find plentiful evidence in the stories of the early Spanish adven- turers that beads made from sea shells were held in high esteem by the Indians of the south, but, so far as I am aware, there is no statement in- dicating that they formed a well-regulated medium of exchange. In regard to the manufacture of wampum by the whites, the follow- ing quotations will be instructive: “Many people at Albany make the wampum of the Indians, which is their ornament and their money, by grinding some kinds of shells and muscles; this is a considerable profit to the inhabitants.”? “Besides the Europeans, many of the native Indians come annually down to the sea shore, in order to catch clams, proceeding with them afterwards in the manner I have just described. The shells of these clams are used by the Indians as money, and make what they call their wampum: they likewise serve their women as an ornament, when they intend to appear in full dress. These wampums are properly made of the purple parts of the shells, which the Indians value more than the white parts. A traveller, who goes to trade with the Indians, and is well stocked with them, may become a considerable gainer; but if he take gold coin, or bullion, he will undoubtedly be a loser; for the Indians, who live farther up the country, put little or no value upon these metals which we reckon so precious, as I have frequently observed in the course of my travels. The Indians formerly made their own wampums, though not without a deal of trouble: but at present the Huropeans employ themselves that way; especially the inhabitants of Albany, who get a considerable profit by it. In the sequel I intend to relate the manner of making wampum.° “The article was highly prized as an ornament, and as such consti- tuted an article of trafic between the sea-coast and the interior tribes. * * *® “The old wampum was made by hand, and was an exceedingly rude article. After the discovery, the Dutch introduced the lathe in its manufacture, polished and perforated it with exactness, and soon had the monopoly of the trade. The principal place of its manufacture was at Hackensak, in New Jersey. The principal deposit of sea shells was Long Island, where the extensive shell banks left by the Indians, on which it is difficult to find a whole shell, show the immense quantities that were manufactured.” 4 The name wampum is often applied to shell beads indiscriminately, 1 Adair: History of the American Indians, p. 170. ?Kalm’s Travels, London, 1772, Vol. II, p. 100. 3Ibid., Vol. I, pp. 190, 191. 4Ruttenber: Indian Tribes of the Hudson River, p. 26. HOLMES. } ANCIENT USE OF WAMPUM. 239 but frequently has a more restricted significance, referring to the small cylindrical varieties used in strings and belts. It was known first in New England as wampumpeag, wampompeage, peag, wompam and wam- pum; the Dutch of New Sweden knew it as seawan, sewant, and sea- want, while on the Virginia coast, it was called peak, a roughly made discoidal variety being known as ronoak or roenoke, and heavy flattish beads pierced edgeways were called runtees. Itis probable that all of these names are American in origin, although there is some difference of opinion as to their derivation. Loskiel says that wampom is an Tro- quois word meaning muscle, but according to Morgan, who is probably the best modern authority on this subject, the word wampum is not Iro- quois in origin but Algonkin, as it was first known in New England as wampumpeage. Roger Williams, speaking of the money of the New England Indians, probably the Narragansetts (Algonkin), says that “their white they call Wompam (which signifies white); their black Suckanhock (Sdcki, signifying black).” In another place he gives the word wompi for white. Wood mentions two varieties of beads known in New England zampom- peage and mowhackees. The latter is probably derived from mozcésu, which, according to Williams, also signifies black. It would seem that we have but little evidence of the ancient use of shell money amongst the tribes of the Mississippi Valley or the Pacific coast; yet we are not without proofs that it came into use at a very early date throughout the entire West, and even today the custom is by no means obsolete. The ancient burial places of the Pacific coast are found to contain large quantities of beads precisely similar to those now used as money by the coast tribes. Lewis and Clark, speaking of traffic among the Indians of the Colum- bia River, state that shell beads are held in very high esteem by these people, and that to procure them they will “sacrifice their last article of clothing or their last mouthful of food. Independently of their fond- ness for them as an ornament these beads are the medium of trade by which they obtain from the Indians still higher up the river, robes, skins, ehappeled bread, bear grass.”! The Dentalium shell has always been the favorite currency of the peoples of the Northwest and is highly valued, especially by the inland tribes. Itis frequently found in ancient graves at great distances from the sea-shore. A few specimens have been found in burial places in the Ohio Valley, but we have no means of determining the source from which they were derived. As the modern use of this currency has but little archzologic interest, I will not enlarge upon the subject here. For further information the reader is referred to the following authors: J. K. Lord, The Naturalist in British Columbia, Vol. II, pp. 20 to 26; R. E. C. Stearns in the American Naturalist, Vol. III, No. 1, and in pro- ceedings of the California Academy of Sciences, Vol. V, Part II, p. 113; W. H. Pratt in proceedings of the Davenport Academy of Natural 1Lewis and Clark: Expedition up the Missouri, p. 73. 240 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. Sciences, Vol. II, Part I, p. 38; and Stephen Powers in Vol. 3, Contri- butions to North American Ethnology, pp. 21, 24, 30. MNEMONIO USE OF BEADS. One of the most remarkable customs practiced by the American In- dians is found in the mnemonic use of wampum. This custom had in it a germ of great promise, one which must in time have becomea power- ful agent in the evolution of art and learning. It was a nucleus about which all the elements of culture could arrange themselves. I shall not at present undertake to divest the custom of adventitious features such as have been introduced by contact with European influence. Yet there is no reason to fear that any of the important or essential features have been derived from outside sources. It is not possible from any known records to demonstrate the great antiquity of this use of wampum. It does not seem probable, however, that a custom so unique and so wide-spread could have grown up within the historic period ; nor is it probable that a practice foreign to the genius of tradi- tion-loving races could have become so well established and so dear to their hearts in a few generations. Mnemonic records are known to have come into use among many na- tions at a very early stage of culture. Picture writing as developed in the north is but another form of mnemonic record, a fact, a thought, a verse of a song being associated with an ideographic design, more or less suggestive of the subject. The Peruvians had their quipus, in which the record was made by associating things to be remembered with knots made in cords of different colors, each combination having a fixed asso- ciation. The Mexicans had gone further and had achieved a system of picture writing that was very unique and curious, in which a phonetic element had already made its appearance, while the Mayas could boast the discovery of a true phonetic system with an alphabet of twenty- seven sounds. The mnemonic use of wampum is one which, I imagine, might readily develop from the practice of gift giving and the exchange of tokens of friendship, such mementos being preserved for future reference as.re- minders of promises of assistance or protection. In time the use of such mementos would develop into a system capable of recording affairs of varied and complicated nature; particular facts or features of treaties would be assinged to particular objects, or portions of objects. With this much accomplished, but one step was necessary to the attainment of a hieroglyphic system—the permanent association of a single object or sign with a particular idea. The wampum records of the Iroquois were generally in the form of belts, the beads being strung or woven into patterns formed by the use of different colors. By association simply they were made to record history, laws, treaties, and speeches—a fact, a law, a stipulation, or a declaration being “talked into” a particular part or pattern of the de- sign with which it was ever afterwards associated, thus giving addi- Dy neqygey ur oyvid v jo aus “TIONNOOD NVICNI NI SLTIAA WOdWVM AO ASH SS rere SS SO a , 1 , i Z + Cee : } i fi a) © i » ca ean ; < : i. “bp An ik} : f i sf @ iti a a > o U \ HOLMES.] SYMBOLIC USES OF WAMPUM. 241 tional permanency to tradition and bringing it one step further forward in the direction of written records. Such records were, of course, quite useless without the agency of an interpreter. Among the Iro- quois, according to Morgan, one of the Onondaga sachems was made hereditary “‘ keeper of wampum,” whose duty it was to be thoroughly versed in its interpretation. But knowledge of the contents of these records was not confined to the keeper, or even to the sachems. At a certain season each year the belts were taken from the treasure-house and exposed to the whole tribe, while the history and import of each was publicly recited. This custom is kept up to the present day. Itis recorded by Ruttenber that among the Mohicans a certain sachem had charge of the bag of peace which contained the wampum belts and strings used in establishing peace and friendship with the different nations. ! Aside from records wampum was used in the form of strings and belts for a variety of purposes; some of them were probably mnemonic, others only partially so, being based either upon its association with the name of some chief or clan, or upon a semi-sacred character result- ing from its important uses. It was employed in summoning councils, and the messenger who journeyed from tribe to tribe found in it a well recognized passport. When a council was called it was presented by the delegates from the various tribes as their credentials; it was used in the ceremony of opening and closing councils, as was also the calumet; it assisted in solemnizing oaths and in absolving from them; white, it was a messenger of peace; black, it threatened war, and covered with clay, it expressed grief. ‘ White wampum was the Iroquois emblem of purity and faith, it was hung around the neck of the white dog before it was burned; it was used before the periodical religious festivals for the confession of sins, no confession being re- garded as sincere unless recorded with white wampum; further than this, it was the customary offering in condonation of murder, although the purple was sometimes employed. Six strings was the value of a life, or the quantity sent in condonation, for the wampum was rather sent as a regretful confession of the crime, with a petition for forgive- ness, than as the actual price of blood.”” We readily recognize the in- fluence of the Christian missionary in a number of these symbolic uses of wampum. The literature of wampum would fill a volume, but I forbear present- ing more than will give an outline of the subject, confining myself to such quotations as will serve to show clearly the extent and importance of this ancient custom and its attendant practices. The method of handling the belts of wampum in the presence of cer- emonial assemblies is extremely interesting, and cannot be better pre- sented than in the words of eye-witnesses. 1Ruttenber: Indian Tribes of the Hudson River, page 43. * Morgan, in Fifth Annual Report on the condition of the New York State Cabinet of Natural History, page 73. 16E 242 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. The following is quoted from Brice, who is describing a council held in the Muskingum Valley in 1764: *“ An Indian council, on solemn occasions, was always opened with preliminary forms, sufficiently wearisome and tedious, but made indis- pensable by immemorial custom, for this people are as much bound by their conventional usages as the most artificial children of civilization. The forms were varied, to some extent, according to the imagination of the speaker, but in all essential respects they were closely similar throughout the tribes of the Algonkin and and Iroquois lineage. “They run somewhat as follows, each sentence being pronounced with great solemnity, and confirmed by the delivery of a wampum belt: ‘ Brothers, with this belt I open your ears that you may hear; I remove grief and sorrow from your hearts; I draw from your feet the thorns that pierced them as you journeyed thither; I clean the seats of the council-house, that you may sit at ease; I wash your head and body, that your spirits may be refreshed; I condole with you on the loss of the friends who have died since we last met; I wipe out any blood which may have been spilt between us.’ This ceremony, which, by the delivery of so many belts of wampum, entailed no small expense, was never used except on the most important occasions; and at the coun- cils with Colonel Bouquet the angry warriors seem wholly to have dis- pensed with it. * * * And his memory was refreshed by belts of wampum, which he delivered after every clause in his harangue, as a pledge of the sincerity and truth of his words. “These belts were carefully preserved by the hearers as a substitute for written records, a use for which they were the better adapted, as they were often worked in hieroglyphies expressing the meaning they were designed to preserve. Thus at a treaty of peace the principal belt often bore the figure of an Indian and a white man holding a chain be- tween them.” From an account of a council held by the Five Nations at Onondaga nearly two hundred years ago, to which the governor of Canada sent four representatives, I make the following extract: ‘ During the course of the proceedings Cannehoot, a Seneca sachem presented a proposed treaty between the Wagunhas and the Senecas, speaking as follows: ‘We come to join the two bodies intoone. * * * Wecome to learn wisdom of the Senecas (giving a belt). We by this belt wipe away the tears from the eyes of your friends, whose relations have been killed in the war. We likewise wipe the paint from your soldiers’ faces (giving a second belt). We throw aside the ax which Yonondio put into our hands by this third belt.’ A red marble sun is presented—a pipe made of red marble. ‘ Yonondio is drunk; we wash our hands clean from his ac- tions (giving afourth belt). * * * We have twelve of your nation prison- ers; they shall be brought homein the spring (giving a belt to confirm the promise). We will bring your prisoners home when the strawberries 1 Brice: History of Fort Wayne, 1868, page 28. RT 1881 PL. (8) ANNUAL REP XXXVIII BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY = ull dy add a Madi du 11 dB Mat Per NE EI REPT EER AMMAN NNN AAA TNE AANA NACA AC MAMAN POAT AAA RARE MPRA AMAA ARN . Mohawk Belt. 2 1. Mohawk Belt. WAMPUM BELTS, HOLMES. | WAMPUM IN TREATIES. 243 shall be in blossom, at which time we intend to visit Corlear (the gov- ernor of New York), and see the place where wampum is made.’ “The belts were accepted by the Five Nations, and their acceptance was a ratification of the treaty. A large belt was also given to the mes- sengers from Albany as theirshare. A wampum belt sent from Albany was, in the same manner, hung up and afterwards divided.”! This indicates a most extravagant use of belts; but since it is probable that as many were received in return this was a matter of little impor- tance. The great profusion of wampum used in some of the later treaties is a matter of surprise. Ina council held between four Indian ambassa- dors from New England and the French thirty-six fine large belts were given by the ambassadors to thank them that their people had not been treated with hostility.” ‘The appendix to the second volume of Proud’s History of Pennsyl- vania contains the journals of Frederick Christian Post, who was sent by Governor Denny, in 1758, to make a treaty with the Alleghany In- dians; and in delivering the governor’s answer to the chiefs, on his second visit in the same year, after proposing to them to unite in a treAty of peace which had lately been concluded vith the Indians at Easton, and producing sundry belts, one of which was marked with figures representing the English and the Indians delivering the peace- belt to one of the commissioners, he proceeds to say: ‘Brethren on the Ohio, if you take the belts we just now gave you, as we do not doubt * you will, then by this belt’—producing another and using their figurative style of speech—‘I make a road for you, and invite you to come to Philadelphia, to your first old council-fire, which we rekindle up again, and remove disputes, and renew the first old treaties of friendship. This is a clear and open road for you; therefore, fear nothing, and come to us with as many as can be of the Delawares, Shawanese, or the Six Nations; we will be glad to see you; we desire all tribes and nations of Indians who are in alliance with you may come.’ Whereupon a large white belt, with the figure of a man at each end and streaks of black representing the road from the Ohio to Philadelphia, was then given to them.”* Lafitau, whose statements are considered unusually trustworthy, as they were based chiefly on personal observation of the Indian tribes of Canada, gives the following very instructive account of the mnemonic use of wampum: “All affairs are conducted by means of branches [strings] and neck- laces [belts] of porcelain [wampum] which with them take the place of compacts, written agreements, and contracts. * * * The shell, which is used for affairs of state, is worked into little cylinders of a quarter of an inch in length and large in proportion. They are distrib- uted in two ways, in strings and in belts. The strings are composed ‘Events in Indian History, Lancaster, Pa., 1841, page 143. 2 History and description of New France, Vol. II, page 256. 2Penn, in Memoirs Hist. Soc. Penn’a, Vol. VI, p. 222. 244 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS of cylinders threaded without order one after another, like the beads of a rosary; the beads are usually quite white, and are used for affairs of little consequence, or as a preparation for other more considerable presents.! “The belts are large bands, in which little white and purple cylin- ders are disposed in rows, and tied down with small thongs of leather, which makes a very neat fabric. The length and size and color are pro- portioned to the importance of the affair. The usual belts are of eleven rows of a hundred and eighty beads each. “The ‘fisk,’ or public treasure, consists principally of these belts, which, as I have said, with them, take the place of contracts, of public acts, and of annals or registers. For the savages, having no writing or letters, and therefore finding themselves soon forgetting the trans- actions that occur among them from time to time, supply this deficiency by making for themselves a local memory by means of words which they attach. to these belts, of which each one refers to some particular af- fair, or some circumstance, which it represents while it exists. “They are so much consecrated to this use that besides the name Gaionni, which is their name for the kind of belts most used, they bestow that of Garihona, which means a transaction; that of Gaouenda, voice or word, and of Gaianderenfera, which means grandeur or nobility; be- cause all the affairs dignified by these belts are the endowment and province of the agoianders or nobles. It is they who furnish them; and it is among them that they are redivided when presents are made to the * village, and when replies to the belts of their ambassadors are sent. “The agoianders and the ancients have, besides this, the custom of looking over them often together, and of dividing among themselves the care of noting certain ones, which are particularly assigned to them; so that in this way they do not forget anything. “heir wampum would soon be exhausted if it did not circulate; but in almost all affairs, either within or without, the law requires a reply, word for word, that is to say, for one belt one must give another, to be of about the same value, observing, however, a slight difference in the number of beads, which must be proportioned to the rank of the per- sons or nations with which they treat. “They do not believe that any transaction can be concluded with- out these belts. Whatever proposition is made to them, or reply given them, by word of mouth alone, the affair falls through, they say, and they let it fall through very effectually, as though there had been no question about it. Wuropeans little informed or little concerned about their usages have slightly inconvenienced them on this point in retain- ing their belts without giving them a similar response. To avoid the inconvenience which might arise from this they acquired the style of giving only a small quantity, excusing themselves on the plea that their 1In order to make the authors meaning quite clear, a free translation has been given of such words as porcelaine, branches, colliers, etc., as his use of them is somewhat confusing. BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. XXXIX ie ai a4 =a] | y mh jana ‘EF DEERIBKER ATE , epee ween SRM ped IPB OUROE ray 100) 0 ODUEHNNY Bp 1 = qa —=' a t LOADED LE, HH He ie oH | | | ui = LY A Wy Hy Nici aR | win i SMH Ct aH Han AL WI a i" aman ee ] WY IU id ma Maui I ea H Za EEF H = NBICHRIE Mt M Mh a my il oy 4 1 ete ut HF hs miso avraanensct a mie l yy A 3 \ {i = WAMPUM BELTS BELONGING TO THE ONONDAGAS. ee ; rey se os ie me b Mitt ‘a HOLMES.] WAMPUM IN TREATIES. 245 Wampum was exhausted ; and they supplied the rest with packages of deer-skin, in return for which they were given trinkets of small value, so that transactions between the Europeans and them have become a sort of trade. “Although all the savage nations of America make various kinds of ornaments of shells, I believe that it is only those of North America who employ them in transactions. I cannot even affirm that all of these do.”? A very complete account of wampum is given by Loskiel, from whose work the following extract is made: ‘ «‘ Four or six strings joined in one breadth, and fastened to each othe with fine thread, make a belt of wampom, being about three or four inches wide, and three feet long, containing, perhaps, four, eight, or twelve fathom of wampom, in proportion to its required length and breadth. This is determined by the importance of the subject which these belts are intended either to explain or confirm, or by the dignity of the persons to whom they are to be delivered. Everything of moment transacted at solemn councils, either between the Indians themselves or with Europeans, is ratified and made valid by strings and belts of wampom. Formerly, they used to give sanction to their treaties by de- livering a wing of some large bird ; and this custom still prevails among the more western nations, in transacting business with the Delawares. But the Delawares themselves, the Iroquois, and the nations in league with them, are now sufficiently provided with handsome and well- wrought strings and belts of wampom. Upon the delivery of a string, a long speech may be made and much said upon the subject under con- sideration, but when a belt is given few words are spoken ; but they must. be words of great importance, frequently requiring an explanation. Whenever the speaker has pronounced some important sentence, he de- livers a string of wampom, adding, ‘I give this string of wampom as a confirmation of what I have spoken’; but the chief subject of his dis- course he confirms with a belt. The answers given to a speech thus de- livered must also be confirmed by strings and belts of wampom, of the same size and number as those received. Neither the colour nor the other qualities of wampom are a matter of indifference, but have an immediate reference to those things which they are meant to confirm. The brown or deep violet, called black by the Indians, always means something of severe or doubtful import ; but the white is the colour of peace. Thus, if a string or belt of wampom is intended to confirm a warning against evil, or an earnest reproof, it is delivered in black. When a nation is called upon to go to war, or war declared against it, the belt is blask, or marked with red, called by them, the colour of blood, having in the middle the figure of an hatchet inwhitewampom. * * * They refer to them as public records, carefully preserving them in a chest made for that purpose. At-certain seasons they meet to study their meaning, and to renew the ideas of which they were an emblem 1Lafitan: Meurs des Sauvages Ameriquains, 1724, tom. II, pp. 502~3 and 506~7. 246 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. or confirmation. On such occasions they sit down around the chest, take out one string or belt after the other, handing it about to every person present, and that they may all comprehend its meaning, repeat the words pronounced on its delivery in their whole convention. By these means they are enabled to remember the promises reciprocally made by the different parties; and it is their custom to admit even the young boys, who are related to the chiefs, to their assemblies ; they be- come early acquainted with all the affairs of the State; thus the con- tents of their documents are transmitted to posterity, and cannot be easily forgotten.” ! It is to be presumed that if a treaty or a promise were broken, the belt would be released from its office and in the same form, or worked into another, could again be used. Otherwise the records, if properly kept, would in time become extremely cumbersome. The repudiation of a treaty and of the wampum which accompanied it is recorded by Brice. It was at a council held at Miami, in 1790, between Mr. Gamelin and a number of tribes. Mr. Gamelin in begin- ning his speech presented each nation with strings of wampum, but “the Indians were displeased with the treaty, and after consulta- tion returned the wampum, saying: ‘From all quarters we receive speeches from the Americans and not one is alike. We suppose that they intend to deceive us. Then take back your branches of wampum. The Pottawatomies were better pleased with the speeches and accepted the wampum.” 2 Another good example which illustrates the manner of canceling treaties, confirmed by wampum, is given by Mr. Gilpin: “ When Washington, then but a youth of twenty-one, was intrusted by the colonial governor of Virginia with a mission to the western wilds of Pennsylvania, where the French from Canada were then pen- etrating and had already established, as was believed, four posts with- in our limits and were seeking to unite the natives in alliance against us, * * * he found that such an alliance had indeed been formed. He found that they had exchanged with the French, as its symbol, a wampum belt on which four houses were rudely embroidered—the rep- resentations of the posts which were to be defended, even at the risk of war. Influenced by his remontrances, the Indian sachems consented to withdraw from the alliance ; but they declared that the belt of wam- pum must be returned before the agreement could be abolished; and one of the sachems repaired to the French commander in order to re- store to him the token of the warlike compact, and to proclaim the in- tention of the red men to take no part in the impending struggle.” Heckewelder relates that ‘it once happened that war messengers en- deavored to persuade and compel a nation to accept the belt by laying it on the shoulders or thigh of the chief, who, however, after shaking it 1 Loskiel: Missions of the United Brethren. Trans. by La Trobe, Book 1, p. 26. 2 Brice: History of Fort Wayne, p. 118. 3 Gilpin, in Memoirs of the Hist. Soc. of Penna. Vol. VI, p. 248. PL. XL 4 a NPIPETERTES PRECIP EERE TEE EDPeRNIFILE RI APRER OVC EF LEURIF POPPED IEIELEL RIPLEINIPRIPESREE LED PELE ES | _\VETIEFEPIERET IT EDIDELES IP CUFF RENLEEDIEAEI ISU ER EID URDI FEMIMUELLERRECR CEE CICUEL ELLE LEI ERE) SOUELEIETEE FUE IRETEEC EI EMCEE MIEEE IMT ERP LUNE It FEIT UEIDIFFEEEDEIRHISBIE REL SH 1394 | UNTETPIPELE TEIP AE CEE CEDEEMEETFEPPIETERIUPERNEES TEEUEIER IO RIC EE ETEIEDS| PET ENROL REN PEFERPUNE SEER! APEFTTEFES CEADIPED EEE ER DEDEESELUPIENPP UE LIVI PEDR EPP EPI EEL EEPOURILERLECE NSC IMECIRUEREL PEPIPTEIPREEI ERE EP EP IE PIPE RIP ERECILENPEUIEMIERPINE l PEF EMIRIRPPEREEEUIPEUE WEF ORE UERMEALEIE RIT TFIN ITED PLEREIKIEDER IO DORR UCIIRETE LEIS INIPEPEVESTEPEESESICEIFETE SUELPLERS PPEVEWEEIER IP PCIPEIN ENP RODE EERE RERDE | i PITT RIEPCUBIPPIP ICT EECINIEREEETIEFIEERIETEREE RUUD PVEURDIPGIPPORIDERCIEUPEPALPIPIEROEICIEREFININIT RULE E BECIPECINERLIBEECEELE) PIREELELRRICEOEN PERE NER) EORERDERIESERECEIIRIPEr TEE ELM | PELICECINUIENPERIEROIC TEC UMPIRE ELUEUCES UE OE ei 10 1 AUAL0 $4 £0 aM AAO AR UT 34435348609 A SNM 140s 3439) fA AAA 8 CHL SATA PYRENEES TTC TT TART ESR TEY cL pt nn TEE WENEMEENENEMEER EIB | MENEERE IRENA ERS PECELERLERELEVOUNY ) PRUE EIU ILE eI IRV EMPIRE RLELERE) eRe RE IUERE CREE). | Fl PET EVEN PERER ENE WOME WEE PERUSE IELEEEEPEERED ELE! | UCI Hs a WL (UNERLUPERCIEELEES DTT TT PYREPIEY AEELE DEEN ERENEE CULES TE ERP EL RESt PPUPRLECILAT NEUE FEMEDERIELUPEPRDED EERE BERLIOS] PERI ELUNIMIEIE PUIER RE NES DEDER EME EE El VETER URI PIER UEIEERRRERCRERIIET TEEN EVI START ENREN ELE ELE RIP ENED VIAANG AY GINA IG SNSUS IA SH SN 973 VANS43A YG $A NGS 0MATS AGAMA 24 hg SSF NBN MAM AS 29 Sit ANNUAL REPORT 1881 TEE CELERIREFPIEEOIELEPRET EP IEE TREC EEE EEUERIENEEES REPIPEE RET ER IEE IEEE) ty EPRELE| 44 N4ill PACED IEVERLEL HL LURES PL EDEC EOP EEE ULE) PETER IRE ENT alk aaa TA AG a NagadOainga 8 IVE | PERLE PREP RGEDE 134501393.) LU SSA SS Az! PRVEV LTC CRUEL UL CUO EPEERPIRE DU UDEITOPe MOUTON TTT UEP STERUTEE RS FHI ERE EERE PEELE EMEPE LTE TREO i PIPTPIPEIEEE CMI CEPTEE FY PIRCIPIY PIPPI Mee PEI POPIPeCRecIE TS EILE THREE TPE Eee EDEL | VA TTEIETSPEDSTe TT: PFEIES MET PIE MEP CERPOE Tey NUES TU kT DEPIEPE PEURPIE IPE EEEPIEEEIE CLIRILIPES URL EE EERG RD masse WANALGAG4A 99 gF a SgUMUMIAY ON SOE TES Sa TEC ETTTET EN PE ETES ELLER TER IREL PEE EPS TELNET EL ia FS aia seaes ns atest ayaa Taam ga ga AUN TNA AY ANA ATL SUNITA LAAN EET rE PELE EIR EOC NICTERU PERT EPL E (Pe EEO ESE ETPELIOL EEC IPeie ECR res CePA EDS a Ain aivebseargocni MUS 194994 4 ZA MOSANG AVS HAMIL AVINASH 3 94 AA VS AS HAS ASA ASI ON ad SS eT ASTRA trier Ter aka aa STA PETHIPENTPEMETITT TET EMPTINETEEM TTT AM PRERTRIRIT PIPE TOTP EESTI LPID EDEN SIERO er ese SSSI ee ee er oe eo ee UIT CEM SE ME rte aad t3aai | STEEP re re eee SSN SHS830 194 3AT45 57195 /48 480TH ang 4SH SAMA ASA HALAS ALANNA L502 49 a 00 SUNG A MLA NUIT ASA SLAMS BE | CETECTEUL ES TETECECTEON DUCE IRIE TERIERERURSELE APD EADT eae EATER A3N399990993 SANIT gd NUUASNSH INSU adds SUE 200 VAN SEH CUAL RPIPNIN CRE RII REESE ESC ERU RENEECRINVeL EP EU CERN RPE EDM psWaa dang ANA a masa Wagga HSA NTI LEER SLE sl Sin ue BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY as Maddala TEPPER EP RERIE DI Ey aU FEI RIRPEC RUE? ENE EEOC ECUREL FAERSELIER LU RDEEEET OU RUN EE ILEIUN PIRUEVVERIDEUPRTELEN PEER I TPREEV PLE REPRE REL OLE eu — EEEPTERIVENDIPIRIUID EAS NDP LELPCENUL PCIE MPU OIELRIIURIES TEESE LI - Merete ue repped PEEP IEVIELIECRRIPREIEDPRIREI EP REM DUNO UIP MRENIEL ENED 477/S TRUIEBIECEN ERI ELI LER EL DEUE IPED RRERLADRE MEIN Perr PREMIERS MPRE PIER TREE CER EL 7 ‘ PRPENINIPUNE IPE IREN EMR EAU EEL A TUUPRERFEEreERERP ren Dry DoT tL Or UI PRMEIEEIRIEEEINeMOr Dae Mur OT TUNG MUS 531d MA ANTM A AR A at RYED] PIER Le PRURVENEEREPBELULEUNDERUEDNERUPDEL LEED ED TLAENVED KOREN ODNEIN CEPR ==. Massa agnaya MA dSISINAS EON MM SSSA oh IRIPRERU EPRI ELRROUULIENVPITTE EEEMOUZy 4 Taina SANA UDA io MTT Mr REDE >< = EPID PE ET . 4 CLT CP PRU ELE Een CE ULE) Tithe; <—— 7 Ve TSN 3 CANS AS Aaa cy Nd a ea RIE 2 = HILT NINE ie FR ELERUTY Nm A NS fr SN rh) RAMI VINA AS? dau cae TURP PEPEERUUELEEEPE PCA ER UD, POSEVIPURCECRNIRE IDO ORE UED ED SS TREE UE EEL RES ETB RRUMLIY EREIERD 40349 101 rr a nN aes as AANA SS AANA sana gs MRREV LL SS BRIE ELEM ELLER REPEL EULA me ro. == PROPIA LEP ELT ERED | WN APIRTEEMRU EPEC ESD RS UPD REEP ELL Ss, —— =— ONONDAGAS, TO THE NGING LT BELO WAMPUM BE HOLMES. ] WAMPUM AND OTHER MNEMONIC SYMBOLS. 247 off without touching it with his hands, afterwards, with a stick, threw it after them,as if he threw a snake or toad out of his way.”! It is remarkable that other objects were not more frequently used for mnemonic records. We can only explain the partiality shown to wam- pum on the supposition that the idea of value was not entirely lost sight of and that importance was attached to a record which in itself merited preservation. Yet instances of the use of other objects are often met with. Parkman states that “ the figures on wampum belts of the Iroquois were for the most part simply mnemonic. So also were those carved in wooden tables, or painted ov bark or skin, to preserve in memory the songs of war, hunting, or magic.”! At one of the councils at Onondaga in 1690, a treaty was pledged and recorded in wampum by all the contracting parties but the New Eng- land colonies, which sent a wooden model of a fish as a token of their adherence to the terms of the treaty. ® Hunter, speaking of the manners and customs of the Osages, states that ‘they use significant emblems, such as the wing of the swan and wild goose, wampum, and pipes, in overtures for peace, while arrows, war clubs, and black and red painting, are used as indications or decla- rations of war. Any article, such as a skin painted black, or the wing of a raven, represents the death of friends, and when colored or striped with red, that of enemies. Amongst the Canada Indians when peace was conceded, a reddened hatchet was buried as asymbol of the oblivion of all past hostility between the contracting parties. A mutual ex- change of neck ornaments sealed the treaty after its terms were debated and determined. But all was not yet over, for the chiefs on each side proffered and accepted presents of rare articles, such as calumets of peace, embroidered deer skins, &c. This kind of ceremonial barter be- ing terminated to their mutual satisfaction, or otherwise, the conference broke up.”4 Gumilla says thatthe Oronoco Indians ratify. their treaties with sticks which they give reciprocally,® and the Araucanians, according to Molina, carry in their hands, when they conclude a peace, the branches of a tree, regarded as sacred by them, which they present to each other. ® I have already enumerated the various kinds of beads and shown the sources from which they were derived and the uses to which they were applied. I have yet to describe the manner in which they are strung or combined in strings and belts. The beads chosen as most convenient for stringing or weaving into fabrics were small cylinders from one-eighth to one-quarter of- an inch in diameter, and from one-quarter to one-half an inch in length. White strings or belts were sufficient for the expression of simple ideas or the 1 Heckewelder: Indian Nations, 1876, p. 110. 2?Parkman: Jesuits in North America, p. xxxiii. 3Events in Indian History, Lancaster, Pa., 1841, p. 143. 4}Iunter: Indian Manners and Customs, p. 192. Gumilla: Histoire de Orinoque, Vol. III, p. 91. 6Molina: History of Chili, Vol. I, p. 119. 248 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. association of simple facts, but the combinations of colors in patterns rendered it possible to record much more complicated affairs. In belts used for mnemonic purposes the colors were generally arranged with- out reference to the character of the facts or thoughts to be intrusted to them, but in a few cases the figures are ideographic, and are significant of the event to be memorized. Strings cannot be utilized in this way. Wampum in strings.—From Mr. Beauchamp’s notes I have compiled the following brief account of the use of strings of wampum among the modern Iroquois. Six strings of purple beads united in a cluster repre- sent the six nations. When the tribes meet the strands are arranged in a circle, which signifies that the council is opened. The Onondagas are represented by seven strings, which contain a few white beads; the Cayugas by six strands, all purple, and the Tuscaroras by seven strands, nearly all purple. The Mohawks have six strings, on which there are two purple beads to one white. These are illustrated in Fig. 2, Plate XLIV. There are four strings in the Oneida cluster; these contain two purple to one white bead. The Senecas have four strings, with two purple beads to one white. The three nations which were brothers are repre- sented by similar clusters. When a new chief is installed the address delivered on the occasion is “ talked into” ten very long strings of white wampum. Three strings, mostly white, represent the name of the new chief. One of these clusters is shown in Fig. 1, Plate XLIV.'! When a chief dies he is mourned on ten strings of black wampum. If he has merely Jost his office, six short strings are used. According to Mr. Beauchamp, possession of beads gives authority, and they are also used as credentials, or, as the Indians express it, “‘Chief’s wampum all same as your letter.” Such of these strings as remain in existence are still in use among the Iroquois, and are consid- ered very precious by them, being made of antique hand-made beads. Tn the literature relating to our Indian tribes we find occasional ref- erence to the use of strings of wampum in ways that indicate that they were invested with certain protective and authoritative qualities, doubt- less from their association with the name of some chief, clan, or tribe. It is recorded that on one occasion Logan, the Mingo chief, saved a captive white from torture by rushing through the circle of Indians and throwing a string of wampum about the prisoner’s neck. Through the virtue of this string he was enabled to lead him away and adopt him into his family. A somewhat different use is mentioned by Pike, to whom a Chippewa chief made a speech, during which he presented his pipe to Mr. Pike to bear to the Sioux. Attached to the pipe were seven strings of wam- pum, which signified that authority was given by seven chiefs of the Chippeway to conclude peace or make war.? Wampum belts—In the manufacture of belts a great deal of skill and 1From an original sketch by Mr. Beauchamp. : Pike: Travels through the Western Territories of N. A., 1805~7, p. 103. ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. XLI iY BUREAU OF RTHNOLOC WE HVE Sf ROMS ee A AT SAA OO AULOC j F ! I ENE RIK I if CO NDIA ALATA NO PY th FRER SPP ROME TESORO Me FA TENNEY: EE CANAAN INN HA I CEUCROUANEREGCUME THEE TARGERAMAREMEAGMRGR EMR the rattle om AME RNA BG LPN OR LB VEO MEOMANENBET SFR) ERENCES OO PDC G NEESER BOR RAN ER MOBAE F KES CMM NON AANA RMA NNR Hs Ss emer t i jel mt Lt LL SOAR RAND ANNUALS B= 60 A MA ‘ ERLE PENDS Seamea LSA aE TD — Mi Ly — NTN: 5 URAPAAINY TNA iN? ERATOR iif. e 82 DOOM URONAMB ERAN RONDA EW EE PEPRETEEA | BR ie —\ ARUN ER pe FV (EPRAIANA DLO AMON EE = RUMEN OE Woke de 10 Fe OUI. NAR UN HLA Pte AY MATAR TAS BE | ZA Hat i zara mn et ara stem EP Wi AMMDOINEL We Ce =9) lig ie 55¢\ ORPRIA: Inet = B NESE LER EER EV EMAUDGIEE CRNA EO ARNE? 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AURPREREOFOUCRUBEDEDEEFISEDIGUFERRUFEL EEBUEREEEDE lee seis EDEIPEEREEDEE RF RIPRIEE EC TE RURORIEURSERRPCDEED ERY ae 5 FHNETERERMECENES GENRE SIPS C/ENRNEF OS RUE ERNE EES ERIE EL mage EFPEUERUEE UEP URLERMEV EES EEL a Oa PESREERUERENERUEHERNE BLERLED ES EIED ELE RERIIEED BVIREVLEEUEFER PEL 0 RE PURERRVEMHEHEPHERNERMEUEFER REMESME) ERIECURURBRUEPDER EF BEET | MEER BE PFE IE BREEAM PER WEWED EE HErEEteERUSS BRIE RIE ni HUI zee PONE ans LUPO Wiberg ESFEM ONES ELE DS MDMMME SER IEE Ey OMS EDDM ENE AOR ENE RE (NRO 6 iE Bai MIRED HC MMBRRRELCRE RERWORRLE FREELY SN sa Be] ANI ON OMI Nee 3! iB EME | FOREN = 9 E rRNA, ANB DEMME RE ES UNDE OME UENERONS PROFEE EAABE RENT KE! 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DEED EUREARTE PEERIFH DPESENERRENENENE 2 ECESKEREEESE FERIESEIEUSEPEENENRE we Et BECREPEREER EEE KORE CE ENEVEREDT ERLE NEUF BEE BERLE FS PU TIPRIE EU) PIRBUEUENS DEFINE UR UENERE BE PPHELT WEN PUPVERUEEPISIENCBUFIER RNFERDEENETER EF IEFLEMEREUETEEE REERIENDER PIL GRENERREPEEHIEUENIRG SHEUBLBEBUEURUERERELGHESLEUEUBEUEEET IRE EREEEUREFR PVEUPEEENE RDU IELE BDEREBIEPERUFERER BRC ESUEURELEFRIKMELYIEIIERLUEITEIS REERVENEPNEFPDERLE ek IRE ELEY FRUU EEO ENRENFSIETE RT fa: slam ERR BIIBRO! “A OREDEEURRSM Lill L t Ll PCE : — FSU EV ORONDEFS = Ya MEF S WRNEMMNE LS | = | BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY COTO EL RANGA OH NMC UCANMUIAUIN: VE USS NEUE SE WEE PETE Hd HOOD na SQA UAUUUILUEO A HY POT gai soul wii i Lei wn EF A f “ONAN NU OM AMAT RAR YEE A LOA 1 NAA san AR CONAN mm cis HIE R= 21 EE TRA RII ET nn fet WAMPUM BELT BELONGING TO THE ONONDAGAS ORT 1881 PL BUREAU OF ETINOLOGY ANNUAL RE THEM TALL ee CULL CU CTT eal era ——S 7 = SSersanrnccranareon AE HZACVALUAA VME A ACINT a9 (ANT EEE! CLT OOP CO UU aia a | rene a Te AAAHOCOMALOATE MEAT wo aN MONE i KOT 1) eC NY a PATO CECT a MORMON TMA AN sang (MOC TAAL woe HER aS Ar Etats aN FTO ATONE NMRA Ne MRA Ow ~ 08 AG BRCT Ea MAHA AT A wT CT t ONCOGENE RAO RN AT PKCM OKMMLCA COMLOLGL ENE KE gent NEOCRON E SNE RCO ON HAP EDO RANKONE CN CoNN ieee EYTIE DA Mean HONEA LEER i is C [il a TOM GAMREAEMHONEEL Ben on 10 AAU TAO PO at CARTOONS ADA iB RUE ee Mgt SH My) CUMLANEL UNAS TOOL IU ew eat p ULI AN ENED was eng ATTA Tce Fe eee entxa ERE MC. Dem =N IO ANAT purer ees tL LU mInRENATE AMINE ARIANA SOHNE een eee ig) fa Ree SEMEL ORO CUNT LO Ae 2D ws 2 I Tal ning beeeaerrttt SATE ROTEL CUENTA TOP Arr Mur LTA UT ORT ALE OM GRNBLLE A CORA ERTIAANR MELE ia ad a THE PENN BELT. (4) Loe aT t . iia u] . ri Loe uM € % F) i une | a ty fh ; $ i ‘ j 5 i 5 pal eA i r , bape 2 Sey ot ee : ha i >) e749 -—— ‘* Mohawk.” 9 1. Name of New Chief. STRINGS OF WAMPUM. HOLMES.) PENDANT ORNAMENTS. 255 PENDANTS. It would probably be vain to attempt to determine how pendant or- naments first came into use, whether from some utilitarian practice or through some superstitious notion. It matters not, however, whether the first pendant was an implement, a utensil, or a fetichitic talisman ; it has developed by slow stages into an ornament upon which has been lavished the best efforts of culture and skill. The simple gorget of shell suspended upon the naked breast of the preadamite is the proto- type of many a costly jewel and many a princely decoration. With the American savage it was a guardian spirit, invested with the mystery and the power of the sea, and among the more cultured tribes became in time the receptacle of the most ambitious efforts of a phenominal art. The important place the gorget has taken in ornament and as a means of displaying personal aggrandizement has made it a most pow- erful agent in the evolution of the arts of taste. Asa rule the larger and more important pendants are employed as gorgets, but vast numbers of the smaller specimens are strung with beads at intervals along the strings, attached as auxiliary pendants to the larger gorgets, suspended from the nose, ears, and wrists, or form tinkling borders to head-dresses and garments. These pendants con- sist either of entire shells, or of parts of shells, pierced or grooved to facilitate suspension. The purely artificial forms are infinitely varied. The character of the shell, however, has much to do with the form of the finished ornaments, deciding their thickness and often their outline. In size they range from extremely minute forms to plates six or more inches in diameter. The perforations, in position and number, are greatly varied, but as a rule the larger discoidal pendants will be found to have two marginal perforations for suspension. These nicely-polished shell-disks afforded tempting tablets for the primitive artist, and retain many specimens of his work as an engraver. The engraved specimens, however, should be treated separately, accord- ing to the class of design which they contain. Plain pendants need but a brief notice, and may be treated together as one group, with such subdivisions only as may be suggested by their form, their derivation, or their geographical distribution. Plain pendants.—It will be unnecessary to cite authorities to show that our ancient peoples were fond of pendant ornaments, and wore them without stint, but to illustrate the manner in which they were used and the methods of combining them with other articles of jewelry in necklaces, bracelets, &c., I shall refer briefly to the literature of the period of American discovery. The inhabitants of Mexico are said to have been very simple in the matter of dress, but displayed much vanity in their profuse employ- ment of personal ornament. Besides feathers and jewels, with which 256 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. they adorned their clothes, they wore pendants to the ears, nose, and lips, as well as necklaces, bracelets, and anklets. The ear ornaments of the poor were shells, pieces of crystal, amber, and other brilliant stones, but the rich wore pearls, emeralds, amethysts, or other gems, set in gold.!' The priestly personages so graphically delineated in the an- cient Aztee manuscripts are as a rule loaded down with pendant orna- ments. In traveling north along the west coast of Mexico the Friar Niza encountered Indians who wore many large shells of mother of pearl about their necks, and farther up toward Cibola the inhabitants wore pearl shells upon their foreheads ;? and Cabega de Vaca when among the pueblos of New Mexico noticed beads and corals that came from the “South Sea.” Ornaments made from marine shells are found in many of the ancient ruins to-day. They are also highly valued by the modern Indians of this region. In the-earliest accounts of the Indians of the Atlantic coast we find frequent mention of the use of pendants and gorgets, and the manner of wearing them as ornaments. Beverly, after having described beads made of a shell resembling the English buglas, says that they also make “‘runtees” of the same shell, and grind them as smooth as peak. ‘These are either large like an oval Bead, drill’d the length of the Oval, or else they are circular and flat, almost an Inch over, and one Third of an Inch thick, and drill’d edgeways. Of this Shell they also make round Tablets of about four Inches Diameter, which they polish as smooth as the other, and sometimes they etch or grave there- on Circles, Stars, a half Moon, or any other Figure suitable to their Fancy. These they wear instead of Medals before or behind their Neck, and use the Peak, Runtees, and Pipes for Coronets, Bracelets, Belts, or long Strings hanging down before the Breast, or else they lace their Garments with them, and adorn their Tomahavks, and every other thing that they value.”* The “Pipes” here spoken of were probably long, heavy cylindrical beads. In referring to this class of ornaments, Lafitau says: “The collars which the savages sometimes wear around the neck are about a foot in diameter, and are not different from those which one now sees on some antiques, on the necks of statues of barbarians. The northern savages wear on the breast a plate of hollow shell, as long as the hand, which has the same effect as that which was called Bulla among the Romans.” Wood, speaking of the Indians of Northern New England, in 1634, says: ‘‘Although they be thus poore, yet is there in them the sparkes of naturall pride, which appeares in their longing desire after many kinds of ornaments, wearing pendants in their eares, as formes of birds, beasts, and fishes carved out of bone, shels, and stone, with long brace- 1Clavigero: History of Mexico, Trans. by Cullen, vol. I, p. 437. *Davis: Spanish Conquest of New Mexico, p. 121. Beverly: History of Virginia, p. 196. 4Lafitau: Moeurs des Sauvages Ameriquains, p. 61. ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. XLV = — — a BUREAU OF RTHNOLOGY . Necklaces, from Lafitau. 6, 7, 8. From ancient sculptures. 1, 2 "3. From De Bry. 9. Bracelet from a Peruvian grave. 4,5. From Mexican paintings. ANCIENT PENDANTS. HOLMES. J ANCIENT PENDANT ORNAMENTS. 257 lets of their curious wampompeag and mowhackees, which they put about their necks and loynes.”! Kalm says of the Indians of Lorette, near Quebec, Canada, that “round their necks they have a string of violet wampums, with little white wampums between them. These wampums are small, of the fig- ure of oblong pearls, and made of the shells which the English call clams. At the end of the wampum strings many of the Indians wear a large French silver coin, with the king’s effigy, on their breasts; others have a large shell on the breast, of a fine white colour, which they value very high, and is very dear; others, again, have no ornament at all round the neck.”? Pendants of metal and medals of European manufacture soon replaced in a great measure the primitive gorgets of shell; and early in the his- tory of the tribes a heterogeneous collection of native beads, silver crosses, and traders’ medals, ornamented the breasts of the simple savages. In studying the habits and customs of our native peoples we look with a great deal of interest upon the earliest historical records, but generally find it prudent to remember that the “‘ personal equation” was unusually large in those days, and in studying the illustrations given in the works of early writers we must make due allowance for the well- known tendency to exaggerate as well as for the fact that the artist has more frequently drawn from descriptions than from sketches made on the spot. In Plate XLV two examples are given which seem to me to be trust- worthy, as they agree with the descriptions given, and are in a general , way characteristic of the American aborigines. Fig. 1 is reproduced, original size, from Plate 2, Volume II, of Lafitau, and shows a broad necklace ornamented with figures that resemble arrow heads. From this, by means of a cord, is suspended a large circular disk with con- cave front, which undoubtedly represents a shell gorget. In front of this and suspended from the necklace are two long strands of beads of various sizes and shapes, which give completeness to a very tasteful ornament. In the same plate is a pretty fair drawing of a native in costume. He is represented wearing a necklace similar to the one just described. An enlarged drawing of this ornament is given in Fig. 2. In Fig. 3 I reproduce a necklace from a plate in De Bry, which consists of a string of beads with two large disks that look more like metal than shell. A similar ornament is shown in Fig. 4, but with figured disks and secondary pendants. It is copied from the Codex of the Vatican. A common form of necklace among the ancient Aztecs con- sisted of small univalve shells suspended from a string. One of these, with other pendants, is shown in Fig. 5. Itis also copied from the Vatican Codex. Others of a much more complex nature may be found 1Wood: New England Prospect, p. 74. *Kalm: Travels in North America, 1772, vol. ii, p. 320. 17 E 258 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. in the same manuscript. Of even greater interest are the beautiful necklaces, with their pendants, found in the sculptures of Mexico and Yueatan.' Three of these are shown in Figs. 6, 7, and 8. One has a disk with human features engraved upon it, another has across with equal arms, and another a T-shaped cross. All have more or less auxiliary ornamentation. In Fig. 9 I present a bracelet of beads and pendants from Peru which illustrates one of the simpler uses of pendants. I have not learned whether the parts of this ornament were originally arranged as given in the cut or not; the original stringing may have been some- what different. The beads are mostly of shell, and are of a variety of colors, white, red, yellow, and gray. The discoidal and cylindrical forms are both represented. The former range from one-eighth to three-eighths of an inch in diameter; the latter are one-eighth of an inch in thick- ness and three-eighths in length. The larger pendants, made of whitish shell, are carved to represent some life form, probably a bird; a large perforation near the upper end passes through the head, two oblique notches with deep lines at the sides, define the wings, and a series of notches at the wide end represent the tail. Two smaller pendants are still simpler in form, while another, with two nearly cen- tral perforations and notched edges, resembles a button. Eastern forms.—The great number of elaborately carved and engraved gorgets of shell found among the antiquities of the Atlantic slope, all of which need careful descriptions, so overshadow the simple forms illustrated in Plate XLVI, that only a brief description of the latter need be given. RKudeness of workmanship and simplicity of form do not in any sense imply greater antiquity or a less advanced state of art. The simpler forms of plain pendants constituted the every-day jewelry of thee average people and, like beads, were probably used freely by all who de- sired to do so. Many forms are found—circular, oval, rectangular, tri- angular, pear-shaped, and annular. The more ordinary forms are found in mounds and graves in all parts of the country; other forms are more restricted geographically, and probably exhibit features peculiar to the works of a particular clan, tribe, or group of tribes. Even these simple forms may have possessed some totemic or mystic significance ; it is not impossible that the plainer disks may have had significant figures painted upon them. Such of the forms as are found to have definite geographic limits become of considerable interest to the archeologist. In method of manufacture they do not differ from the most ordinary implements or beads, the margins being trimmed, the surfaces polished and the perforations made in a precisely similar manner. In Plate XLVI I present a number of plain circular disks. The larger specimens are often as much as four or even five inches in diam- eter and the smaller fraternize with beads, as I have shown in Plate XLY. Figs. 1 and 2 are from a mound at Paint Rock Ferry, Tenn. They are neat, moderately thin, concavo-convex disks, with smooth sur- 1 Vide Kingsborough, Waldeck, Bancroft, &c. BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. r | XLVI PENDANT ORNAMENTS—EASTERN FORMS, HOLMES.|| PENDANT ORNAMENTS OF THE MOUND-BUILDERS. 259 faces and rounded edges. The first has two perforations at the upper edge, while the other has similarly placed but much smaller ones, be- sides a small central perforation surrounded by an incised circle. The national collection contains similar specimens from most of the Atlantic States; they differ from the larger discoidal beads only in the method of perforation. A typical specimen of this class, four and ahalf inches in diameter, is shown in Fig. 3. It was associated with the remains of a number of children in a mound in Hardin County, Ohio. Disks of this class were usually suspended upon the breast with the concave side out. That many of the specimens described were suspended in this way is indicated by the character of the abrasion produced by the cords. On the concave side the cord of suspension has worn deep grooves between the perforations, and on the opposite or convex side similar grooves extend obliquely upward from the holes toward the margin of the disk, indicat- ing the passage of the cord upward and outward around the neck of the wearer. A large white disk, similar to the one just described, was obtained from a grave at Accotink, Va. It is five inches in diameter and has one central and three marginal perforations. It is made from a Busycon per- versum, and is neatly shaped and well polished. A fine specimen two inches in diameter was obtained from a mound on the French Broad River, Tenn., and, with many other similar speci- mens, is now in the national collection. The central perforation is often very much enlarged. A number of specimens, recently sent to the National Museum, from a mound in Auglaize County, Ohio, show several stages of this enlargement. One specimen five inches across has a perforation nearly one inch in diame- ter, while in another the perforation is enlarged until the disk has be- come aring. These gorgets show evidences of long use, the surfaces and edges being worn and the perforations much extended in the man- ner described above. They have been derived from the Busycon per- versum. In Fig. 4 I illustrate an annular gorget from a mound in Alexander County, Ill. It was found associated with ornaments of copper by the side of a human skull, and is hence supposed to have been an ear or- nament. It is fragmentary and has suffered greatly from decay, the surface being mostly covered with a dark film of decomposed shell sub- stance, which when broken away, exposes the chalky surface of the shell. These shell rings, so far as I can learn, have been found in the States of Ohio and Illinois only. Rectangular pendants are much more rare. The national collection contains one rude specimen from Texas. It is about two inches wide by two and a half long, and is made from the base of some large dex- tral-whorled shell. A similar but much more finished specimen comes from Georgia, and is preserved in the New York Natural History Mu- seum. 260 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. A large keystone-shaped gorget with rounded corners was obtained ‘from an ancient burial place at Beverly, Canada. It is illustrated in Plate L, Fig. 1. The small pendant shown in Fig. 5is given by Schoolcraft in “Notes on the Iroquois.” It represents rudely the human figure, and is orna- mented with eight perpendicular and four or five transverse dots. It was found on thesite of an old fort near Jamesville, N. Y. In the same work Mr. Schoolcraft illustrates another small pendant, which is repro- duced in Fig. 6. The body is heart-shaped, the perforation being made through a rectangular projection at the upper end. It was found at Onondaga, N. Y. The small pendant presented in Fig. 7 is from West Bloomfield, N. Y. It has been suspended by means of a shallow groove near the upper end. It is made from the basal point of a dextral-whorled shell. The handsome little pendant shown in Fig. 8 was found with similar specimens in Monroe County, New York—probably on some ancient vil- lage site. Itis well preserved and has been made from the columella of a dextral-whorled shell. An ornamental design, consisting of lines and dots, is engraved upon the face. A small, deeply countersunk perfora- tion has been made near the upper end. These objects have appar- ently been strung with beads, as the perforations show evidence of such abrasion as beads would produce. Many of the New York specimens have a new look, and their form suggests the possibility of civilized in- fluence. They are certainly more recent than the western and southern specimens. A small cylindrical pendant is illustrated in Fig. 9. A large, neat perforation has been made at the upper end, and the middle portion of the body is ornamented by a series of encircling grooves. This speci- men has been made from a large Unio and was obtained from a mound in Union County, Ky. Western forms.—In variety of form the plain pendants of the Cali- fornia coast excel all others. Specimens from the graves are generally well preserved, not having lost their original iridescence, although so much decayed as to suffer considerably from exfoliation. As indicated by the present well preserved condition of these shell ornaments, they are probably not of very ancient date; indeed it is highly probable that many of them are post-Columbian. Cabrillo visited the island of Santa Rosa in 1542 and found a numer- ous and thriving people. In 1816 only a small remnant of the inhabi- tants remained, and these were removed to the main-land by Catholic priests. Their destruction is attributed to both war and famine. The history of the other islands is doubtless somewhat similar. Articles made from shell are found to resemble each other very closely, whether from the islands or the main-land. All probably belong to the same time, and although the peoples of the islands are said to have spoken a different language from those of the main-land, their arts were BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. XLVIT PLAIN PENDANTS—PACIFIC COAST FORMS. fly AT) . HOLMES.) PENDANT ORNAMENTS OF THE ANCIENT CALIFORNIANS. 261 apparently pretty much the same. They do not differ, as far as works in shell are concerned, from the modern tribes of the main-land. There is also a noticeable resemblance between the art of the ancient Cali- fornia Islanders and that of the present inhabitants of the great Pacific archipelagoes. The record of many of the specimens obtained from these islands seems to be very incomplete, scarcely more being known than the fact that they were obtained from the ancient graves. Since, however, they are almost exclusively ornaments belonging probably to a single period, detailed accounts of their methods of occurrence would not add greatly to their value. In previous chapters vessels, hooks, and beads made of the Haliotis have been described, and the high estimation in which they are every- where held briefly noted. The variety of ways in which this shell is utilized is indeed remarkable and the multitude of forms into which it is worked for ornament is a matter of surprise. All are neatly and effect- ively worked, and evince no little skill and taste on the part of the makers. The Haliotis is not the only shell used, but it has no rival in point of beauty. Bivalve shells are utilized to a considerable extent, many tasteful things being made from the Fissurella, the Mytilus, the Pachydes- ma, and the Pecten. The perforations are generally neatly made and are more numerous than in similar eastern specimens; besides those for suspension there are frequently many others for the attachment of sec- ondary pendants and for fastening to the costume. Many specimens are ornamented with edgings of notches and crossed lines but very few have been found on which significant characters have been engraved, and we look in vain tor parallels to the curious designs characteristic of the gorgets of the mound-builders. A glance at the numerous examples givenin Plates XLVII, XLVIII, and XLIX will give a good idea of the multiplicity of forms into which these ornaments are wrought. A rather remarkable group of pendants is represented by Fig.1. They are characterized by a deep scallop at the left, with a long curved hook- like projection above. They take their form from the shape of the lip of the Haliotis, from which they are made—the hook being the upper point of the outer lip where it joins the body, and the scallop the line of the suture. The body of the ornament is formed from the lip of the shell. In size they vary to some extent with the shells from which they are derived. The body is at times quite oval and again slender and hooked like the blade of a sickle. The perforations are generally very numerous, a fact that indicates their use as central pieces for composite pendants. Itisapparent that the wearers thought more of the ex- quisite coloring of these ornaments than of the outline or surface finish. This is only one of many instances that prove the innate and universal appreciation of beauty of color by savage peoples. 262 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. In Fig. 2 a fine example of the subtriangular or keystone-shaped pendants is presented. The edges are very neatly cut and the corners slightly rounded. The back is ground smooth, but on the front the original surface of the shell is preserved, the colors being extremely rich and brilliant. A single perforation has been drilled near the upper end. It is made from a Haliotis rwfescens, and was obtained from the island of Santa Rosa. The handsome specimen shown in Fig. 3 was obtained from a grave on the island of San Miguel. It has suffered much from decay. ‘There are four neatly made perforations near the center. It has apparently been cut from the same shell as the preceding. Fig. 4 is a small keystone-shaped specimen having two perforations. Fig. 5 represents a small, delicate specimen of rectangular shape, having two minute perforations. This, as well as the preceding, was obtained from a grave on the island of San Miguel. Fig. 6 illustrates a small oval, wafer-like specimen, the edges of which have been ornamented with a series of crossed lines. It has three neat perforations on the line of the longer axis. It is from the island of Santa Cruz. Fig. 7 represents a small button-like disk with a central perforation ; the margin is ernamented with a series of radiating lines. It was ob- tained from Santa Barbara. A pendant of very peculiar form is shown in Fig. 8. The oval body has three marginal projections, all of which are perforated ; there is also a perforation near the center. The surface retains a heavy coating of some dark substance, which gives the ornament much the appearance of corroded metal. It was obtained from San Miguel Island. In a number of cases advantage has been taken of the natural per- forations of the shell, both to give variety to the outline of small pend- ants and to save the labor of making artificial perforations. A very handsome little specimen is shown in Fig. 9. The two indentations above and below represent two of the natural perforations of the shell; artificial perforations are made in each of the four corners or wings. It was also obtained from the island of San Miguel. Fig. 10 represents a leaf-shaped pendant with notched edges and a single perforation. It comes from the island of Santa Cruz. The examples given are typical of the very large class of ornaments derived from the Haliotide. The striking specimens shown in Plate XLVIII are, with one exception, made from shells of this class. The two sickle-shaped pendants illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2 are made from the broadened inner lip of the Haliotis californianus (?). In one asingle perforation has been made near the upper end; in the other there are two, one near each end. The faces have been neatly dressed and the corners ornamented with minute notches. They are from graves on Santa Cruz Island. Two exquisite specimens, also from Santa Cruz Island, are presented in Figs. 3 and 4. They have been cut from the body of a rr BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. XLVIII 1-7. Pendants made of the Haliotis. (}) 8. Pendant made of a Cyprea. (}) PENDANT ORNAMENTS OF THE PACIFIC COAST. = notmes.) PENDANT ORNAMENTS OF THE ANCIENT CALIFORNIANS. 263 Haliotis splendens (?), and finished with much care. Two perforations have been made near the upper margin, which is arched or curved while the lower is nearly straight. The edges are neatly notched. Although somewhat altered by exposure these objects are still very pretty. A very neat, well preserved little pendant is shown in Fig. 5. The specimen presented in Fig. 6 is peculiar in having a series of five per- forations, one near the middle and the others near the ends. The ex- ample givenin Fig. 7 has two perforations, one at each end. These are all made from species of the Haliotis. The specimen presented in Fig. 8 is made from the lip of a Cyprea spadicea with very little change except the carefully made perforation. Tt is from the island of San Miguel. The idea of beautifying orna- ments made from the Haliotis and other shells by notching the edges may have been suggested by the natural notches characteristic of the Cypreas. Figs. 1, 2, and 3, Plate XLIX, illustrate a group of small, delicate, ladle-shaped pendants. The perforation for suspension is at the upper end of the handle and the body has an oval or circular perforation, which is often so enlarged as to leave only a narrow ring, like the rim of an eyeglass. The specimen shown in Fig. 3 has two lobes, with a large perforation or opening in each. In one instance the handle is quite wide at the upper end and ornamented by two deep lateral notches. The edges of these specimens are nearly always adorned with notches or crossed lines. All are fashioned from the Haliotis, and although con- siderably stained are still well enough preserved to show the pearly lusters of that shell. Circular and oval disks are also numerous and vary much in finish; some have a great number of perforations or indentations, and nearly all are neatly notched around the margins. Examples are given in Figs. 4 and 5. The national collection contains a number of rings and pieces of rings made from the valves of a large clam, probably a Pectunculus, one ex- ample of which is shown in Fig. 6. The convex back of the shell is ground off until a marginal ring only remains. A perforation is made near the angle of the beak. The shell is from the California coast, but the rings were collected mostly if not entirely from Arizona and New Mexico. It is not impossible that the tribes of the interior procured these articles from white traders, as they are known to have secured other shell ornaments in this way. The natives of the California coast were not slow in taking advantage of natural forms to aid their art or to save labor. The shells of the Fissurellide as well as of the Haliotide have been in great favor. They have been used as beads and pendants in their natural state or the nat- ural perforations have been enlarged until only a ring has been left, or the margin and sides have been ground down until nothing of the origi- nal form or surface remained. ‘Two of these forms are shown in Figs. 7 264 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. and 8. They are from graves on San Miguel Island, and are made from the Lucupina crenulata ; others come from Santa Cruz Island, and proba- bly also from the adjoining islands as well as from the mainland. Rings are also made from other shells. Examples made from the Aemea mitra and Oyprea spadicea are shown in Figs. 9, 10,and 11. They come from San Miguel. PERFORATED PLATES. We find that pendant gorgets grade imperceptibly into another group of objects, the use or significance of which have not be fully determined. These objects are more frequently made of stone or copper, but good examples in shell have been found. As a rule they take the form of thin oblong plates which exhibit great variety of outline. The perfora- tions are peculiar, and have not been designed for ordinary suspension, but are placed near the middle of the specimen as if for fixing it to the person or costume by means of cords. Many theories have been ad- vanced in attempting to determine their use. They have been classed as gorgets, badges of authority, shuttles, armor plates, wrist protectors, and as implements for sizing sinews and twisting cords. Objects of this class in stone have been frequently illustrated and described. They are made of many varieties of stone, some of which seem to have been selected on account of their beauty. They have been neatly shaped and often well-polished. The edges are occasionally notched and the surfaces ornamented with patterns of incised lines. The perforations vary from one to four, the greater number of speci- mens, however, having only two. In the early days of mound explora- tion objects of this class were even greater enigmas, if possible, than they are to-day. Even the material of which a number of them were formed remained for a long time undetermined. Schoolcratt has published an illustration of a large specimen from the Grave Creek Mound, Va. This drawing is reproduced in Fig. 3, Plate L. The original was six inches long, one and three-tenths inches wide, and three-tenths of an inch in thickness. He expresses the opinion that it was one of those ancient badges of authority formerly in such general use among the Indians.! Another specimen, very much like the lastin size and shape, but made of shell, supposed at the time of discovery to be ivory, was found asso- ciated with human remains in the Grave Creek Mound. It is described by Mr. Tomlinson in the American Pioneer,’ and the cut given in Plate L, Fig. 4, is copied from that work. A remarkable specimen of this class is given in Fig. 5. It is made 1 Schoolcraft, in Trans. Am. Eth. Soc., Vol. II, Plate 1. ?Tomlinson, in The American Pioneer, Vol. II, p. 200. BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY — ANNUAL REPORT 188L PL. XLIX PLAIN PENDANTS—PACIFIC COAST FORMS. G) AOLMES.] CENTRALLY PERFORATED TABLETS. 265 from the body of a large Busycon perversum, and is nine and a half inches long by three inches in width at the widest part. The concave surface has been highly polished, but is now somewhat roughened by weathering; the back has been slightly ground to take off the rougher ridges of growth; the edges are even and rounded and in many places quite thin. The peculiarity of its shape is such as to give it very much the appearance of the sole of a sandal. The perforations are three in number, one being near the middle and the others near the broader end, about one and a half inches apart; they are very neatly made and are slightly bi-conical and a little countersunk. There appears to be no evi- dence whatever of abrasion by use. It was found associated with human remains in a mound at Sharpsburg, Mercer County, Ohio. A similar specimen from the same locality is nearly nine inches in length, and lacks but a little of three and a half inches in width. As in the speci- men illustrated, one perforation is placed near the middle and two others near the broader end. This specimen is highly polished on the broader part of the back, and is evenly smoothed on the concave side. It bears evidence of considerable use, and the two holes are much worn by a string or cord, which, passing from one hole to the other on the concave side of the plate, gradually worked a deep groove between them. On the back or convex side, the perforations show no evidence of wear. The central perforation is not worn on either side. The letter of Mr. Whitney, transmitting this relic to the National Museum, states that there were in the mound “ about ten pairs of the shell sandals of different sizes, and made to fit the right and left feet.” From the latter remark I should infer that some were made from dextral and others from sinis- tral shells; the two described are made from the Busycon perversum. An extremely fine specimen, much like the preceding, was exhumed from an ancient mound in Hardin County, Ohio. It was found on the head of a skeleton which occupied a sitting posture near the center of the mound. It is nine inches in length by three and one-half inches in width, and in shape resembles the sole of a moccasin, being somewhat broader and less pointed than the specimen presented in Fig.5. It had been placed upon the skull with the wider end toward the back, but whether laid there as a burial offering simply or as constituting a part of the head-dress of the dead savage we have no means of determin- ing. The perforations are three in number, and are placed similarly to those in the specimen illustrated in Fig. 5. Two other skeletons had similar plates associated with them, which differed from the one de- scribed in size only, the smaller one being less than six inches in length. Lithographs of two of these specimens are given by Mr. Matson, in whose very excellent report they were first described.’ The gorget presented in Fig. 1 of this plate is copied from School- craft.2 It was taken, along with many other interesting relics, from 1 Matson, in Ohio Centennial Report, p. 131. 2Schoolcraft: History of the Indian Tribes, &c., part I, plate XIX. 266 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS, one of the ossuaries at Beverly, Canada West. It is formed from some large sea shell, and is three inches in width by three and three-fourths inches in length. Its perforations are four in number, and are so placed as to be conveniently used either for suspension by a single cord or for fixing firmly by means of two or more cords. It seems to hold a mid- dle place between pendants proper and the pierced tablets under con- sideration.’ The unique specimen given in Fig. 2 is from Cedar Keys, Florida, but whether from a grave or a shell-heap I am at present unable to state. In its perforations, which are large and doubly conical, it resembles very closely the typical tablet of stone. The outline is peculiar; being rounded at the top, it grows broader toward the base like a celt, and terminates at the outer corners in well-rounded points, the edge between being ornamented with a series of notches or teeth. It has been cut from the wall of a Busycon perversum, and is sharply curved. The sur- face is roughened by time, but there is no evidence of wear by use either in the perforations or in the notches at the bas. In studying these remarkable specimens the fact that they so sel- dom show marks of use presents itself for explanation. Dr. Charles Rau, whose opinions in such matters are always worthy of considera- tion, remarks “that at first sight one might be inclined to consider them as objects of ornament, or as badges of distinction; but this view is not corroborated by the appearance of the perforations, which ex- hibit no trace of that peculiar abrasion produced by constant suspen- sion. The classification of the tablets as ‘ gorgets,’ therefore, appears to be erroneous.” ? The same argument could, however, be brought with equal force against their use for any of the other purposes suggested. The perfo- rations, if not used for suspension or attachment, would be subject to wear froin any other use to which they could be put. But, as we have already seen, one of the specimens in shell exhibits well-defined evidence of wear, and that of such a character as to indicate the passage of a cord between the perforations in a position that would produce abrasion be- tween the holes on the coneave side of the plate, but would leave the back entirely unworn. This peculiar result could only be produced by attachment in a fixed position, concave side out, to some object perfo- rated like the plate, the cord passing directly through both. The per- forations of pendants necessarily show wear on both sides; a like result would follow from the use of these plates in any of the other ways men- tioned. Those made of shell could not, on account of their warped 1The ossuaries here mentioned are in the township of Beverly, twenty miles from Dundas, at the head of Lake Ontario. They are situated in a primitive forest, and were discovered upwards of thirty years ago through the uprooting of a tree. Large numbers of skeletons had been deposited longitudinally in trenches, with many imple- ments, utensils, and ornaments. Two brass kettles were found in one of the graves. (Schooleraft: Red Races of America, p. 326.) ?Rau: Archeological Collection of the National Museum, p. 33. SS ee eC BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. L 1. Ornament from Beverly, C. W- 2. Ornament from Florida. 3, 4. Objects from the Grave Creek Mound, Va. 5. Perforated plate from Ohio. PERFORATED PLATES, ——— notmns.] CLASSIFICATION OF PENDANT GORGETS. 267 shape, be used for shuttles; besides, they show no evidence of marginal wear, Such as would result from this use. The fact, too, that the mate- rial had to be brought from the distant sea-shore would seem to render it too rare and precious to be employed in the ordinary arts when wood, stone, and bone would serve the purpose as well. Owing to the care- lessness or negligence of collectors we have but little information in regard to their relation to the human remains with which they were deposited. Such facts as we have, however, tend, I believe, to show that they were used for personal decoration. Again, the material of which they are formed is, on account of its beauty, especially adapted for ornament, and for this use it has been almost exclusively reserved by peoples as distant from the sea as were the ancient peoples of the Ohio Valley. ENGRAVED GORGETS. It has already been suggested that the simpler forms of pendants with plain surfaces may have had particular significance to their pos- sessors, as insignia, amulets, or symbols, or that they may have re- ceived painted designs of such a character as to give significance to them. For ornament the natural or plainly polished surface of the shell possessed sufficient beauty to satisfy the most fastidious taste—a beauty that could hardly be enhanced by the addition of painted or incised figures. But we find that many of the larger gorgets obtained from the mounds and graves of a large district have designs of a most interest- ing nature engraved upon them, which are so remarkable in conception and execution as to command our admiration. Such is the character of these designs that we are at once impressed with the idea that they are not products of the idle fancy, neither is it possible that they had no higher office than the gratification of barbarian vanity. I have given much time to their examination, and, day by day, have become more strongly impressed with the belief that no single design is without its significance, and that their production was a serious art which dealt with matters closely interwoven with the history, mythology and polity of a people gradually developing a civilization of their own. . Although these objects were worn as personal ornaments they proba- bly had specialized uses as insignia, amulets, or symbols. As insignia, they were badges of office or distinction. The devices en- grayed upon them were derived from many sources and were probably sometimes supplemented by numeral records representing enemies killed, prisoners taken, or other deeds accomplished. As amulets, they were invested with protective or remedial attributes and contained mystic devices derived from dreams, visions, and many other sources. 268 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. As symbols they possessed, in most cases, a religious character, and were generally used as totems of clans. They were inscribed with char- acters derived chiefly from mythologic sources. A few examples con- tain geometric designs which may have been time-symbols, or they may have indicated the order of ceremonial exercises. That these objects should be classed under one of these heads and not as simple ornaments engraved with intricate designs for embel- lishment alone is apparent when we consider the serious character of the work, the great amount of labor and patience shown, the frequent recurrence of the same design, the wide distribution of particular forms, the preservation of the idea in all cases, no matter what shortcomings occur in execution or detail, and the apparent absence of all lines, dots, and figures not essential to the presentation of the conception. In describing these gorgets I have arranged them in groups distin- guished by the designs engraved upon them.' They are presented in the following order: The Cross, The Scalloped Disk, The Bird, The Spider, The Serpent, The Human Face, The Human Figure: and to these I append The Frog, which is found in Arizona only, and although carved in shell does not appear to have been used as a pendant, as no perforations are visible. Within the United States ancient tablets containing engraved designs are apparently confined to the Atlantic slope, and are not found to any extent beyond the limits of the district occupied by the stone-grave peoples. Early explorers along the Atlantic coast mention the use of engraved gorgets by a number of tribes. Modern examples may be found occasionally among the Indians of the northwest coast as well as upon the islands of the central Pacific. THE OROSS. The discoverers and early explorers of the New World were filled with surprise when they beheld their own sacred emblem, the cross, mingling with the pagan devices of the western barbarian. Writers have specu- lated in vain—the mystery yet remains unsolved. Attempts to con- nect the use of the cross by prehistoric Americans with its use in the East have signally failed, and we are compelled to look on its occur- rence here as one of those strange coincidences so often found in the practices of peoples totally foreign to each other. If written history does not establish beyond a doubt the fact that the cross had a place in our aboriginal symbolism, we have but to turn 'The handsome illustrations presented in the accompanying plates were mostly drawn by Miss Kate C. Osgood, who has no superior in this class of work. BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. LI ae J 1. From a mound, Union County, Il. 2. From Charleston, Me. SHELL GORGETS—THE CROSS. (+) HOLES.) THE CROSS OF THE MOUND-BUILDERS. 269 to the pages of the great archxologic record, where we find that it occupies a place in ancient American art so intimately interwoven with concep- tions peculiar to the continent that it cannot be separated from them. It is found associated with other prehistoric remains throughout nearly the entire length and breadth of America. Lhave the pleasure of presenting a few new examples of this emblem, obtained from the district at one time occupied by the mound-builders. The examples are carved in shell or engraved upon disks of shell which have beenemployed as pendant gorgets. In the study of these particu- lar relics, one important fact in recent history must be kept constantly in mind. The first explorers were accompanied by Christian zealots, who spared no effort to root out the native superstitions and introduce a foreign religion, of which the cross was the all-importantsymbol. This emblem was generally accepted by the savages as the only tangible feature of a new system of belief that was filled with subtleties too profound for their comprehension. As a result, the cross was at once introduced into the regalia of the natives; at first probably in a European form and material attached to a string of beads in precisely the manner that they had been accustomed to suspend their own trinkets and gorgets; but soon, no doubt, delineated or carved by their own hands upon tab- lets of stone and copper and shell, in the place of their own peeuliar con- ceptions. From the time of La Salie down to the extinction of the sav- age in the middle Mississippi province, the cross was kept constantly be- fore him, and its presence may thus be accounted for in such remains as post-date the advent of the whites. Year after year articles of European manufacture are being discovered in the most unexpected places, and we shall find it impossible to assign any single example of these crosses toa prehistoric period, with the assurance that our statements will not some day be challenged. It is certainly unfortunate that the American origin of any work of art resembling EKuropean forms must rest forever under a cloud of suspicion. As long as a doubt exists in regard to the origin of a relic, it is useless to employ it ina discussion where import- ant deductions are to be made. At the same time it should not be for- gotten that the cross was undoubtedly used as asymbol by the prehis- toric nations of the South, and consequently that it was probably also known in the North. ) five ee be ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. LXvI BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY 5. From an 4.ztec painting. 6. Stone disk, Carthage, Ala. 7. Painted on rock, Nicaragua. 1. Shell gorget, Georgia. 2. Shell gorget, Tennessee. 3.4. Painting, Peru. THE SERPENT. HOLMES. ] THE SERPENT—THE HUMAN FACE. 293 much like the Sevierville specimens and is made of the same species of shell. The markings of the space beneath the head are peculiar, and in some other details it differs from the other specimens. Fig. 6 illustrates a large specimen now’in the National Collection. It is also from Tennessee, and resembles the- preceding examples quite closely. The specimens illustrated in Plate LXV represent a somewhat differ- ent type of design, but are found associated with the others. The three shown in Figs. 2, 6, and 7 belong to the Peabody Museum, and are from mounds in East Tennessee. The others are in the National Collec- tion, and come from the same region. It was my intention to pursue this study somewhat further, and the illustrations presented in Plate LX VI were partially prepared for the purpose of instituting comparisons between these northern forms and others of the south, but the time at my disposal will not permit of it. Fig. 1 is an outline of a rattlesnake gorget, probably trom Georgia, which is preserved in the Natural History Museum of New York. It is four inches in length by three and one-half in width. The same spec- imen is figured by Jonesin Plate XXX of his “Antiquities of the South- ern Indians.” Fig. 2 represents a large specimen from Tennessee, which is now pre- served in the National Collection. The design is placed upon the gorget somewhat differently from the other specimens, the mouth of the ser- pent being near the top and the neck below at the right. There is also a dotted belt at the right of the head which is not found in any of the specimens described. Figs. 3 and 4 represent drawings of serpents’ heads found in the an- cient city of Chimu, Peru.' Fig. 5 is copied from one of the codices of Goldsborough, and is a very spirited representation of a plumed and spotted rattlesnake. The tablet shown in Fig. 6 has already been described under “ scal- loped disks.” The remarkable plumed and feathered serpent given in Fig.7 is painted upon the rocks at Lake Nijapa, Nicaragua.? THE HUMAN FAOE. A very important group of shell ornaments represent, more or less distinctly, the human face. By a combination of engraving and sculpt- ure a rude resemblance to the features is produced. The objects are generally made from a large pear-shaped section of the lower whorl of heavy marine univalves. The lower portion, which represents the neck and chin, is cut from the somewhat restricted part near the base of the shell, while the broad outline of the head reaches the first suture of the noded shoulder of the body whorl. The simplest form is represented 1$quier: Peru, p. 186. *? Bancroft: Native Races of the Pacific States, vol. IV., p. 37. 294 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. by a specimen from a mound at Sevierville, Tenn. It is a plain, pear- shaped fragment, with evenly dressed margin and two perforations, which take the position of the eyes. A sketch of this is presented in Fig.1, Plate LXIX. Similar specimens have been obtained from mounds in other States. A little further advance is made when the surface of the most convex part is ground away, with the exception of a low ver- tical ridge, which represents the nose. Further on a boss or node ap- pears below the nose, which takes the place of the mouth, as seen in Fig. 2. From the elementary stages exhibited in these specimens a gradual advance is made by the addition of details and the elaboration of all the features. A corona encircles the head, the ears are outlined (Fig. 5, Plate LXX), the eyes are elaborated by adding one or more concen- tric circles or ovals, brows are placed above, and groups of notched and zigzag lines extend downward upon the cheeks. The node at the mouth is perforated or cut in intaglio in circular or oblong figures, and the chin is embellished by a variety of incised designs. Illustrations of the various forms are given in Plates LXIX and LXX. These objects are especially numerous in the mounds of Tennessee, but their range is quite wide, examples having been reported from Ken- tucky, Virginia, Illinois, Missouri, and Arkansas, and smaller ones of a somewhat different type from New York. In size they range from two to ten inches in length, the width being considerably less. They are generally found associated with human remains in such a way as to suggest their use as ornaments for the head or neck. There are, how- ever, no holes for suspension except those made to represent the eyes, and these, so far as I have observed, show no abrasion by a cord of suspension. Their shape suggests the idea that they may have been used as masks, and as such may have been placed upon the faces of the dead in the same manner that metal masks were used by some oriental nations. { Among the large number of interesting objects of shell obtained from the McMahon Mound at Sevierville, Tenn., were a number of these shell masks. In the notes of the collector they are mentioned as having been found on the breast or about the heads of skeletons. The example shown in Fig. 1, Plate LX VI, is a medium-sized, rather plain specimen from the above-named locality. It is seven and one-fourth inches long and nearly six inches wide, and has been made from a Busycon perversum. The margins are much decayed, and the convex surface is pitted and discolored. The inside is smooth, and has a slight design rudely en- graved upon it. Of a very different type is the specimen shown in Fig. 2. It is new looking, and well preserved. The slightly translucent sur- face is highly polished, and the engraved lines are quite fresh looking. It was collected by J. D. Lucas, and is labeled Aquia Creek, Va. It is five and one-half inches in length by five in width, and is apparently made from some dextral-whorled shell. The outline is somewhat rece- BUREAU OF E' NOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. LXVII 4 2 1, Mask-like ornament, Tennessee. (4). THE HUMAN FACE. 2. Mask-like ornament, Virginia. (}) BUREAU OF ETHNOLOG) ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. LXVur SHELL MASK. Virginia. (4) HOLMES. ] MASK-LIKE GORGETS. 295 tangular, the upper surface being pretty well rounded and ornamented . with a corona of incised lines, which are arranged in six groups of four each. Inside of these a single incised line runs parallel with the edge, from temple to temple. The eyes are represented by small circles with small central pits, and the lids are indicated by long, pointed ellipses. From each of the eyes a group of three zigzag lines extends downward across the cheek, terminating near the edge of the plate, opposite the mouth. These lines may be interpreted in two ways: First, if the ob- ject is a mourning mask, made with especial reference to its use in burial, they may signify tears, since, in the pictographic language of many tribes, tears are represented by lines descending from the eyes, and, with other nations, running water is symbolized by curved or zig- zag lines; in the second place, these lines may represent figures painted upon the face during the period of mourning, or they may simply rep- resent the characteristic lines of the painting or tattooing of the clan or tribe to which the deceased belonged. It is not at all improbable that these objects were further embellished by painted designs which have been obliterated. The nose is represented by a flat ridge, which terminates abruptly below, the nostrils being indicated by two small excavations. The mouth is represented by an oval node, in which a horizontal groove has been made. The most elaborately engraved example of these masks yet brought to the notice of the public is shown in Plate LX VIII. It was obtained by Mr. Lucien Carr from a large mound, known as the Ely Mound, near Rose Hill, Lee County, Virginia, and is described and illustrated by that gentleman in the tenth annual report of the Peabody Museum.' Wishing to present this fine specimen to the best advantage possible, I have had a large cut made from a photograph furnished by Professor Putnam, curator of the Peabody Museum. Parts of the design which were obscure I have strengthened, following the guidance of such frag- ments of lines as were still traceable, or by simply duplicating the lines of the opposite side, as these designs are in all cases bi-symmetrical. Having described a great number of relics exhumed from this mound, Mr. Carr goes on to say “that the most interesting of the articles taken from this grave was an engraved shell made from the most dilated por- tion of the Strombus gigas, and carved on the convex side into the like- ness of a human face.” It measures 138 millimeters in length, by 120 in breadth. It is perforated with three holes, “the two upper of which are surrounded with circles, and represent eyes; between these is a raised ridge of shell, in place of the nose, and below this is a third hole, which is just above a series of lines that were probably intended as the mouth. Four lines, parallel to each other during three-fourths of their length, begin at the outer corner of the eye and are zigzaged to the lower jaw, where they are drawn to a point. The concave side of the ' Carr, in Tenth Annual Report Peabody Museum, p. 87. 296 ART IN SHELL OF THE ANCIENT AMERICANS. shell is perfectly plain, and still preserves its high polish, though the right portion of the face on the carved or convex side shows the sad Oe fects of time and exposure.” Although I have not had an opportunity of examining ans specimen closely, I am inclined to the opinion, judging by its outlines, that the shell from which it was made has been sinistrally whorled, and hence a Busycon perversum. I should also prefer to consider the hole beneath the nose as representing the mouth, as it certainly does in many other cases, and the peculiar figure—the three vertical lines which extend downward from the hole and the two banded figures that cross them at right angles—as a representation of some painted or tatooed design characteristic of the builders of the mound. Other examples of these objects are represented in Plate LXIX. Of especial interest I may mention the specimen shown in Fig. 4, obtained, with other similar examples, by Professor Putnam, from the Lick Creek mound, in East Tennessee. The perforations which represent the eyes are surrounded by two concentric circles, and the zigzag lines beneath are supplemented by two sets of pendant figures formed of notched lines, the two longer of which extend down the sides of the nose, the others being connected with the lower margin of the eye. In one ex- ample four parallel lines pass from the mouth downward over the chin. Fig. 3 represents a specimen from the Brakebill Mound, East Ten- - nessee. The mouth is not indicated, and the nose is but slightly re- lieved. Each eye, however, is inclosed by a figure which extends down- ward over the cheek, terminating in three sharp points. So far as the specimens at hand show, this peculiar embellishment of the eyes and mouth is characteristic of Virginia and East Tennessee. A small specimen from Georgia, now preserved in the Natural History Museum at New York, has a somewhat similar ornamentation of the eyes. This specimen is shown in Fig. 6, Plate LXX. In Fig. 8 of the same plate we have the representation of a face mod- eled in clay, on which a number of incised lines, similar to those en- graved on shell, have been drawn. The crown of notches is also pres- ent. The specimen has been illustrated by Professor Jones.’ It is now in the museum of Natural History at New York, and was probably ob- tained from the Etowah Valley, Georgia. Examples in stone are also numerous, and show certain features in common with those in shell. Fig. 9 is from Northern Ohio, and is carved from a nodule of iron ore. The very beautiful little head shown in Figs. 1 and 2 is from a cave at Mussel Shoals, Ala. It is made of shell, and is somewhat altered by decay. The crown is peculiarly notched, and resembles a very common Mexican form. The notch in the middle of the forehead can be traced to a division in the head-dress noticed in the more elaborately carved Mexican specimens. The example shown in Figs. 3 and 4 is copied from a rather rude cut 1Jones: Antiquities of the Southern Indians, p. 430. BUREAU OF ETITNOLOGY A\\(\! i eT 4 im ish at } iy oo. ra ih Bit } i ines \ h i iN neh ; wei itee a sh i \ Ave *) bi ie | ee ccm ih Wie, x i | y i! fie Li ue 4 i Hit . vg fat Lap) i’ a We Ut} [x “/ / | | wf ; i. i it it ‘i a] i ar H - — al ' eazy SO ty \ ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. LXIX THE HUMAN FACE. | AY \ N) AY Wh ) "Y\\ ‘ si / / : AN A fi he WY ! = } Wy my a | f +f / \ Tita | Pen ee / Ai f +f ti » bi |i fhe sr ey ded LOY ae Ly WES te ¥ 1. McMahan Mound, Tenn. 2. McMahan Mound, Tenn. 3. Brakebill Mound, Tenn. 2 Lick Creek Mound, Tenn. Acquia Creek, Va. 6. Mound, Ely County, Va. BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY ANNUAL REPORT 1881 PL. LXx 1, 2. Shell ornament from a cave, Alabama. (}) 7. Shell ornament from Tennessee. (}) 8, 4. Shell ornament from New York.,(}) 8. Face modeled in clay, Georgia. 5. Shell ornament, stone grave, Tennessee. 9. Face carved in iron ore, Ohio. 6. Shell ornament from Georgia. (4) THE HUMAN FACE, HOLMES. ] THE HUMAN FACE—THE HUMAN FIGURE. 297 given by Schooleraft, who describes it as follows: “This well-sculptured article was discovered in the valley of the Kasauda Creek, Onondaga County. The material is a compact piece of sea-shell. It still pre- serves in a considerable degree the smoothness and luster of its origi- nal finish, * * * At the angle of the temples are two small orifices for suspending it around the neck. The entire article is finished with much skill and delicacy.” ! The very rude specimen presented in Fig. 7 is from a monnd at Frank- lin, Tenn. It seems to have been some natural form, but slightly changed by art. A somewhat similar specimen from a mound in Ten- nessee may be seen in the Peabody Museum. The cut presented in Fig. 5 is taken from Jones’s Antiquities of Ten- nessee, page 48. The specimen was obtained from the stone grave of a child at the foot of a mound near Nashville, Tenn. It has diamond- shaped eyes, a feature of very rare occurrence in the art of this region. THE HUMAN FIGURE. I now come to a class of works which are new and unique, and in more than one respect are the most important objects of aboriginal art yet found within the limits of the United States. These relics are four in number, and come from that part of the mound-building district’ occupied at one time by the “stone grave” peoples—three from Ten- nessee and one from Missouri. Similar designs are not found in other materials, and, indeed, nothing at all resembling them can be found, so far as I know, either in stone or in clay. If such have been painted or engraved on less enduring materials they are totally destroyed. I shall first describe the specimens themselves, and subsequently dwell at some length upon their authenticity, their significance, and their place in art. First, I present, in Plate LXXI, a shell gorget on which 1s engraved a rather rude delineation of a human figure. The design occupies the concave side of a large shell disk cut from a Busycon perversum. Near the upper margin are the usual holes for suspension. The en- graved design fills the central portion of the plate and is inclosed by two approximately parallel lines, between which and the edge of the shell there is a plain belt three-fourths of an inch wide. A casual ob- server would probably not recognize any design whatever in the jumble of half obliterated lines that occupies the inclosed space. It will first be noticed that a column about three-fourths of an inch in width stands erect in the center of the picture; from this spring a number of lines, forming serpentine arms, which give the figure as much the ap- pearance of an octopus crowded into a collector’s alcohol jar as of a human creature. -~n iene. wid near ee : 9 Teavt i SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION——BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. ILLUSTRATED CATALOGUE OF THE COLLECTIONS OBTAINED FROM THE INDIANS OF NEW MEXICO AND ARIZONA IN 1879. BY JAMES STEVENSON. 307 > 5 * os | Fs =e "aa c es > n . j a ee ‘ _ e # zs v= a -S : werd Hr TAME Ras . Liv Peta Pre eT ie. Oe ha = as Hit Wee ATE Or : : ; = - ~ Ge f Aa oi 4 4) Ak iia i 3 | if bd . 4 ¥ ” INT OME The following catalogue of the collections made during 1879 was prepared for the First Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology, but owing to want of space was not included in that volume. Before the necessity of this action was made apparent the matter had been stereotyped and it was impossible to change the figure numbers, ete. This will explain the seeming irregularity in the numbering of the fig- ures—the first one of this paper following the last one of the above- mentioned report. The second catalogue, that of the collection of 1880, also included in this volume, has been made to correspond with the first, the figure numbers following in regular order. 309 ; a rr Pil 43 | t aS = dl Te Seis dur valet gy TAPOTE hy KL Si 18) re Weed arya) save ails al m oat .cyopton 1k? a Debatag) ah eared tenis amie a Pare Leer meee ak ee wen iit: acta i fi ? 4} Tay boopetien intl alte Nimetiecil, Uo yte tita acer wnili¢s dae vA aie ‘ ti aeisi a7 (H "ls iene SE bir ea) ei a vei, © 10) 0) Bohl) 0 ee “sayy Peel! | is Qalvwtint Wie ut voy tl a eet f 7 ; s i, ee . LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. WASHINGTON, January 3, 1881. Sm: [have the honor to submit herewith an illustrated catalogue exhibiting in part the results of the ethnologic and archologic explora- tions made under your direction in New Mexico and Arizona during the summer of 1879. As you are already familiar with the mode of travel and the labor necessary in making such investigations and explorations, as well as the incidents common to such undertakings, and as I do not consider them of any special interest or value to the catalogue, I have omitted such details. I beg, however, in this connection, to refer to the services of Messrs. F. H. Cushing, ethnologist of the Smithsonian Institution, and J. K. Hillers, photographic artist of the Bureau of Ethnology, both of whom accompanied me on the expedition. Mr. Cushing’s duties were performed with intelligence and zeal throughout. After the field-work of the season was completed he re- mained with the Indians for the purpose of studying the habits, customs, manners, political and religious organizations, and language of the people ; also to explore the ancient caves of that region. His inquiries will prove of the utmost interest and importance to science. Mr. Hillers labored with equal zeal and energy. His work is of the greatest value in illustrating some of the most interesting features of our investigations. He made a large series of negatives depicting nearly every feature of the Pueblo villages and their inhabitants. The beauty and perfection of the photographs themselves fully attest the value and importance of his work. i would extend most cordial thanks to General Sherman for the special interest he manifested in our work, and for directions given by him to the officers of the Army serving in the West to assist us in carrying out the objects of the expedition; and to the officers who so cordially rendered such aid. To General Edward Hatch, commanding the district of New Mexico, we are indebted for valuable information and material assistance, which were liberally granted, and to which in great part our success was due. The party also received valuable aid from Gen. George P. Buell, U.S. A., who was in command at Fort Wingate during our work at Zuni, for which I am pleased to extend thanks. ar ale LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL. The large number and variety of objects collected by the members of the expedition, and the many difficulties incident to such undertak- ings, as well as the limited time devoted to the preparation of the cata- logue, will account for any imperfections it may contain. Hoping, however, that, notwithstanding these, it may serve useful ends in the continuation of such work, IT am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, JAMES STEVENSON. Prof. J. W. POWELL, Director Bureau of Ethnology. CONTENTS. Page. Pex DOn RG KNB AN SMUTDAT (aise sic(cleeia ciclatoa st olte viet oc ccewceeis Seo ee eee 311 HIS TR OIG AI S058 case pasa ce POR See Be eet a ere 9 () PAI NCIC RES PIR VON Gp meet mn ata a a ateln a icinte oie oe SEE sn Seon eee eb be Le 320 LATO OAR, S55 Ae ah HR ESOS POE Cae ae nn hae ee Po 7) WERSTICN SIDE aa Ss Sos RES Re ee ee ee ree fe en eee 334 Caleehionstrompy inn ike eee et eae is aa, Soe Sal a ee os dase S80 337 LMN@IES (PF ROE. 5.55, ata Sere OSE ES eS oe ee ee eee ee eS Df JAEGER) HET yO Till ec oe ee Os See Ieee eee eee = eee em = Sy Metates, or grain-grinders, and pestles............-.....---.----..- - 340 OTIS FUSS OS CUCS 6 SoS ASCE aS ene Sanne ase sea 340 MIRCEM AN EONS OD IECCtNEE rE Rae nels oa sl S oan Seenreaiciea ce soot eee dees 342 ARTE EON OEN ch se.5555Se05555e CeCe en IEEE ee ee een eee eee eae 343 WV cl UCIAM SOS ten mete siete eae isa) se sicdaic.se ccisc cis ctkeet cwetscbeuece a uee be 343 VEER Mp Ua | AUS eae cee ea aie alam imiainsicisiisaiccieicl eaeenmeeeee ene. 347 UM Pau sean Cleo ONMS ee - aphelte bo arn no pf, COLLECTIONS FROM ZUNI. ARTICLES OF STONE. AXES, HAMMERS, AND MAULS. (40139). Flat rubbing or grinding stone of silicified wood. (40551). Stone axe, 0/-l@-ki-le, with groove near the larger end. . (40552). Imperfectly-made stone axe, 6/-ld@-ki-le, grooved at each edge; basalt. . (40553). Large axe, with groove around the middle; sandstone. . (40554). Axe, grooved at the middle, square and flat on top; basalt. . (40555). Small centrally-grooved axe; schistose rock. . (40556). Axe, grooved in the middle. . (40557). Axe, grooved near the blunt end, which is shaped similarly to the edge. (40558). Axe, grooved near the end. (40559). Small hatchet, o’-la-ki-le, of basalt doubly eetored edge beveled from both sides, hammer end about one and a half inches in diameter. (40560). Grooved axe, 6’-la-ki-le, of fine black basalt, well polished ; groove well worn. The face or side is intended to be near the holder when in use. Fig. 352. This specimen was found in Ari- zona, near Camp Apache, and was presented by Mrs. George P. Buell. It is one of the largest in the collection with such perfect finish. . (40561). Grooved in the center; of porous basalt. . (40562). Hammer grooved in the center, rounded off at each end. . (40563). Small hatchet-shaped instrument, square at the back, and rounded at the front edge. . (40563a). Rudely-made axe, grooved near the blunt end. . (40564). Small axe, with a groove round the body quite near the blunt end; basalt. (40565). Axe, three and a half inches long. . (40566). Quite small, probably a hatchet, of firm basalt, grooved near the hammer end. . (40567). Much larger than the last, basaltic ; groove quite deep and smooth, hammer end circular, large, and blunt. . (40568). Grooved axe of quartzitic rock. . (40569). Pick-shaped axe, grooved entirely around, with imperfect depressions which were in the water-worn boulder from which it was made; about six inches in length. . (40570). Boulder of sandstone with groove near the middle. (40571). Flat basaltic boulder, grooved near the center, straight on the back, and tapering above and below the groove. 22 5 337 338 24, 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31 32, 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42, 43, 44, 45. 46. 47. COLLECTIONS OF 1879—ZUNI. (40572). Small basaltic hammer and axe with groove near the large end. (40573). Small grooved axe composed of hard sandstone; hammer end large, edge quite perfect. (40574). Small boulder of basalt, ground to an edge at one end and rounded off at the other; doubly grooved. (40575). Large basaltic stone considerably chipped off from pound- ing hard substances, grooved near the center, both ends quite blunt; probably used as a pounding stone. (40576). Flat basaltic boulder, used as a pounder. (40577). Basaltic hatchet grooved in the middle; quite rough. (40578). Grooved axe of a very heavy, solid character, apparently designed more for mauling than cutting. (40579). Large, heavy basaltic hammer and axe with groove around the body near the hammer end; about seven inches long. (40580). Axe, grooved in the middle, upper or hammer end unusu- ally long in proportion to the size. (40581). Flat axe made from a water-worn boulder, oval in outline, both edges designed for cutting or splitting. Deep groove encir- cling the body, with protrusions above and below it to prevent the handle from slipping out ; greenstone. (40582). Hard, fine-grained sandstone axe wedge-shaped, without a groove. (40583). Grooved axe with round body. (40584). Fig. 349. Axe with abroad, shallow groove near the upper end, which is much narrower and smaller than the lower; of mot- tled volcanic rock, white, green, and black. (40585). Axe grooved in the middle, irregular in shape, and much chipped off at the lower edge and rounded off at the top. (40806). Made from a very fine, hard metamorphic rock, small enough to be classed as a hatchet; crescent-shaped at the top. (40703). Fig. 348. A very dark brown axe, speckled with reddish spots. This axe bears a much finer polish than most of those in the collection. (40704). Axe, grooved near the upper end, which is cone-shaped. (40705). An almost square axe of basaltic rock, grooved on the sides, flat on top. (40706). Axe of quartzitic rock, flat and thin; grooved. (40900). Long, narrow axe, grooved near the upper end. (40901). Axe, made from a water-worn boulder, almost to its present shape. (40902). Small, round axe of basalt, having a shallow groove near the larger end. (40903). Grooved basaltic axe. (40904). Maul, with rough surface, one side flat, the other convex, with a groove. Fic. 347 Wie. 348 Fic. 349 Fic. 350 39903 (3) Fie. 351 FIG. 352 40560 3 Fies. 347-352.—Zuni Grooved Axes. a at a STEVENSON. ARTICLES OF STONE. 339 . (40258). Double-grooved axe of porphyry, well polished and quite perfect. . (41260). Grooved axe of compact sandstone; wedge-shaped. . (42204). Stone maul of basalt, with groove; very rough. — . (42205). Grooved axe of basalt. Fig. 351. This specimen was ob- tained at Fort Wingate, in New Mexico, but was probably found in or around some of the ruins. . (42229). This is one of the finest specimens in the collection, and, as shown by the cut, Fig. 347, has the handle attached, ready for use. This is formed of a willow withe bent round the axe and doubled, extending out far enough to form a handle and wrapped with a buckskin string; of compact basalt. . (42230). Shallow-grooved axe of basalt. . (42231). Axe, with a shallow groove near the larger end. . (42232), Axe of basalt, grooved on the sides. . (42233). Grooved axe, in size and shape the same as (42226). . (42234). Grooved axe of a peculiar black mottled rock, with white, marble-like streaks through it; groove surrounding it in the center. . (42235). Irregularly-shaped axe with a wide and deep groove sur- rounding it, curiously mottled with reddish and green streaks. Specimens of this kind are quite rare. . (42236). Grooved axe; sides well polished and exhibiting peculiar reddish spots. . (42237). Small grooved axe of metamorphic rock. . (42238). Grooved axe. 62. (42239). Small grooved axe of schistose rock, much flaked off at each end. . (42240). Axe, grooved on three sides; similar in size and shape to (42223), . (42241). Grooved axe with flattened top. . (42242). Same as the preceding. . (42242). Grooved axe with two edges. . (42244), Celt-shaped axe of basalt; it appears to have been used as a rubbing stone. . (39869). Zuni maul with circular groove around the centre, used generally for grinding or pounding soft foods, such as red-pepper pods; of porous lava. . (39903). Double-edged axe, 6’-l@-ki-le, with groove around the mid- dle; volcanic rock, from Zuni. See Fig. 350. . (42349). Rounded end of a sandstone metate grinder converted into a flat hammer by grooving it at the opposite edges. . (41291). Pounder of sandstone. It was originally a common axe. Thumb and finger depression on the sides. . (40871). Lava Chili pounder with cap-shaped ends; grooved. . (40906). Lava rock pounder; small. 340 COLLECTIONS OF 1879—ZUNI. METATES, OR GRAIN-GRINDERS, AND PESTLES. 74. (40870). Square red sandstone metate. 75. (42280). Flat sandstone grinding slab. 76-82. The following numbers represent the rubbers accompanying the metates. The Indian name is yd/-lin-ne: 76, (40909); 77, (40910); 78, (40911); 79, (40912); 80, (40913); 81, (40914); 82, (41259); sandstone rubber. MORTARS, PESTLES, ETC. These are found in use at all the pueblos, but are more common in Zuni and the Moki villages than elsewhere, as these Indians use mineral pigments more extensively and in greater variety than any of the others. The pestles and mortars obtained from these tribes are all too small to be used for any other purpose than grinding pigments. Many of them appear to be quite old, and were probably handed down from dis- tant ancestors, or obtained from the ruins. Some of them are evidently of modern manufacture. ; 83. (40707). Mortar; a round, flat, quartzitic boulder with round cavity on one side about one inch in diameter and half an inch deep, and a square depression on the other about an inch deep and two inches in width; indigo still clinging to the surface of the depression. 84, (40708). Mortar of quartzite, the body nearly square and flat; de- pression round and about four inches in diameter, quite shallow. 85. (40709). Mortar of coarse-grained sandstone, almost perfectly round, the cavity quite deep, and lined with red ochre or vermilion. 86. (40710). Mortar of .a flat sandstone with irregular rim about four inches in diameter. 87. (40711). Paint mortar of a small round quartz boulder. 88. (40712). Mortar of fine-grained sandstone about six inches long by three wide; sides square. This mortar was in use by the Zunians for the purpose of grinding a pigment of yellowish impure clay, colored by the oxide of iron, with which they decorate their pot- tery, and which produces the brown and reddish-brown colors. 89. (40713). Small mortar of sandstone. 90. (40714). Mortar made from a flat water-worn quartz boulder with a circular depression about half an inch deep. The bottom of this mortar shows evidence of its having been used as a grinding stone previous to being converted into a mortar, or it may have been used for both purposes, as both the paint cavity and the rubbing side show recent use. (40715). Paint mortar of basalt, used for grinding the yellow pig- ment for ornamenting pottery; about four inches in diameter, cavity about one inch deep, bottom ground flat. 92. (40716). Flat paint mortar, of quartz rock, almost round, about an inch thick, depression quite shallow; used for grinding a pigment 91 Fic. 353 Fic, 356 41259 Fic. 358 Fires. 353-358.—Stone Implements from Zufi. a BTEVENSON.} ARTICLES OF STONE. 341 93. 94, 95. 96. 97. 113. of azurite or carbonate of copper, small nodules of which they col- lect at copper mines. This pigment is used in painting and deco- rating wooden images and gods. (40717). Mortar similar to the above, and used for the same pur- pose. (40718). Paint mortar made from a large irregularly round ferrugi- nous sandstone. Used in pulverizing a reddish pigment for deco- rating pottery. (40719). Mortar of a globular shape, made from a coarse-grained sandstone, used for grinding or mixing vermilion. (40720). Paint mortar of sandstone. The whole mortar is only about an inch thick; made from a section of an old metate rubber. (40722). Paint mortar of quartzite; blue pigment grinder. Size about four by three inches. This, like many of the flat mortars, has been first used as a rubbing stone and subsequently converted into a paint mortar. . (40723). Mortar made from a ee boulder. . (40724). Sandstone mortar. . (40725). Paint mortar of sandstone, very flat. . (40726). Paint mortar, with oblong shallow depression; sandstone. . (40728). Square paint mortar; cavity about half an inch deep; sand- stone impregnated with iron. Quartzitic pestle accom-panying it. . (40729). Paint mortar of quartzite; almost square; depression al- most worn through by use; quartz pebble pestle accompanying it. (40730). Small round paint mortar of basalt, with white quartz pebble pestle. . (40731). Fig. 353. Paint mortar and pestle of quartz, with a knob on the end, which serves asa handle. This mortar was used in grinding an azurite pigment. (40732). Mortar shaped somewhat like a ladle; the projecting end is provided with a small groove out of which the paint is poured. (40733). Small sandstone mortar. . (40864), Paint mortar of sandstone. . (40868). Paint mortar of basalt, almost square. . (40869). Flat, square sandstone paint mortar; black water-worn pebble for Beale! (40907). Chili or red pepper mortar of very porous lava rock; oval bottom, shallow cavity, about four inches thick and eight in diame- ter. These lava mortars may have been used for other purposes, but at the present time the Indians use them in crushing the pods and seeds of red pepper, and occasionally for crushing parched corn. They are quite common. . (40908). Food mortar of lava rock; square with flat bottom. Mor- tars of this kind are used in crushing grain and seeds. (42272). Fig. 358. Paint mortar of very hard, fine-grained sand- stone. The specimen is a very fair type of all the square paint 342 114. 115. 116. LTS 118. 119. 120, 122. 123. 124. COLLECTIONS OF 1879—ZUNI.. mortars and pestles. The depression is often square instead of round. In grinding pigments the Indians generally move the pestle backward and forward instead of around as is done by our drug- gists. ; (41273). Small sandstone paint mortar, much like the preceding. (40227). Small egg-shaped paint pestle of white quartz. The gen- eral name of these in Zuni is dh-shdc-ton-ne. (42276). Flat sandstone, circular and about five inches in diameter ; used as a quoit; originally a rubbing stone. MISCELLANEOUS OBJECTS. (39755). Eight specimens not very well defined. They are flint flakes, showing, by their shape, that they were designed for scrap- ers and groovers, being flat or slightly concave on one side and oval on the other. (41289). Fig. 356. This is a sandstone mould for shaping metal into such forms as suit the fancy of the Indians for bridle and other ornaments; one cavity is rectangular, about four inches long by one in width; the other about two inches in diameter. Silver, which has long been a metal of traffic among these tribes, is the one which is usually melted down for ornamental purposes. After it is taken from the mould it is beaten thin, then polished. (41290). Is a portion of the same mould, with one cavity square and the other in the shape of a spear-head. 121. (42266), Fig. 354, and (42267), are crucibles, which were used in connection with the moulds for melting silver and other metals. Many other ornaments are made in the same manner. (40808). Fig. 357. This is a large, rudely chipped spear-head of mica schist, obtained at Zuni, which was carried in the hand of one of the performers in a dance. It does not show any evidences of having been used in any other way. They called it déh!-chi-dn-teh- G-hla. (42245). Fig. 335. Handsomely-shaped and well-polished skinning knife of a remarkably fine-grained silicious slate. Above the shoul- ders on one side it is worn off to an oval surface, and is flat on the other. (40915). Round sandstone, which is called a gaming stone; it is quite round, and bears the same name in Zuni as the pestle, ah- kd-mon-ne. . (40916). Quartz stone, flat and rounded at the ends as a sort of last to keep moccasins in shape while being sewed; called yd/-lin-ne. . (41239). String of alabaster beads, tem-thla. (41240). Charm, representing the upper part of the body and head of a bird. ; (41241), Charm; representing a horse; quartz. (41242), Charm; bird’s head and upper part of body. Fie, 359 Fic. 360 39916. (i) Figs. 359, 360.—Zuni Water Vases. Fic. 361 Fie. 362 Figs. 361, 362.—Zuni Water Vases. BTEVENSON.] ARTICLES OF STONE AND CLAY. 343 130. 131. 132. 133. 134, 135. 136. 137, 139, 140. 141. 142. 143, (41243). Charm; horse and saddle. (41244). Charm; representing entire bird; quartz. (41245). Charm; head and upper part of body of a bird. (41246). Charm; the same. (41247). Agate arrow-head. (40870). Disk of sandstone, slightly convex in the centre; used in games. (42325). Flat sandstone slab, with the horns-of male and female deer engraved on one side. 138. (40721) and (41249). Flat sandstones, used for baking Wi-a-V1, a thin, wafer-like bread, by heating the rocks and then spreading a gruel-like mixture of corn meal over them. The largest one of these stones is about three feet in length by twoin width. They are used by the Zuii and Moki pueblos quite extensively. (42324). Eighty chip flints and flakes of agate, quartz, chalcedony, &e. ARTICLES OF CLAY. WATER VASES. (39871). Form and decorations shown in Fig. 359. The slender shading lines only are brown, the rest of the figuring black; the base in this as in most Zui pottery is reddish or slate colored. This may be considered as the type of one variety of decorations, readily distinguished by the unadorned circular spaces, the large scrolls, and the absence of animal forms. The larger forms of these vases are called by the Zufiians kah'-wi-nd-kd-téhl-le ; the smaller forms, det-tsan-na. (39916). The ornamentation is well shown in Fig. 360. The combi- nations on this piece are rare on Zuii pottery, and the chief figure on the body is more symmetrical than is usual in this group of ware. This may also be considered as representing a second type of decorations of which there is but one other example in the col- lection. (39920). This belongs to the variety represented by Fig. 360, and varies chiefly in having the neck decorated with leaf-like figures, and in having the scrolls replaced by triangles with inner serratures. (39934). The largest size; Fig. 361. The decorations of this piece belong to a third variety, distinguished chiefly by the presence of the elk or deer. Attention is called to the three figured zones or belts on the body, the upper with the arch inclosing an elk; the middle and narrow belt adorned with figures of birds with a long crest feather. The helix or scroll is freely introduced in this variety. The one here figured is typical of quite a large group. The ani- mals are usually black, as are the lines separating the spaces. 344 144, 145, 146. 147. 148. 149. 150. 151. 152. 153. 154. 155. 156. 157. 158. 159. 160. 161. 162. 163. COLLECTIONS OF 1879—ZUNI. (41150). This is similar in size and decorations to Fig. 361, and is shown in Fig. 362. The difference in the form of the bird in this from that in the preceding is worthy of notice. (39933). Similar to No. 143 (Fig. 361); bird scrolls as in No. 144, (40322). Medium size, represented in Fig. 364. It may be grouped in the variety of which Fig. 359 is given as the type. (89936). Large size; decorations resembling those in Fig. 364, but with two belts of scrolls on the body. (41154). Medium size; figures as in No. 147. (41155). ) Medium size; decorations similar to the preceding, except (41162). } that No. 150 (41162) has figures of sheep on the neck. (41158). Large size; the ornamentation of this piece, as will be seen by reference to Fig. 363, belongs to the variety represented by Fig. 359 and 364, but differs in having on the body a middle zone of bird-like figures. (41161). Large size; similar to Fig. 363. (39943). Decorations very similar to those shown in Fig. 359. (39937). Medium size; ornamentation similar to that seen in Fig. 361. (40312). Large size; shown in Fig. 865. As will be seen by com- parison the decorations are the same as those in Fig. 361, except that the elk is omitted and a figure of scrolls introduced in its place. (40310). Fig. 366. Large size. In the decorations of this piece we observe a new feature, a rosette or flower, showing a decided appreciation of the beautiful, either suggested by the flowers of the Helianthus or by something introduced by Europeans, but most probably the former. The different forms of this figure found on this ware furnish perhaps the best evidence of taste exhibited by the Zuiiian artists. (40313). Fig. 368. Large size. In this we see the same figures as in Figs. 363 and 366 brought into combination with the rosette, the birds being replaced by sheep. (40318). Large size; similar to No. 149, except that the rosette is introduced in place of the circle. (40314). \ 1 ecorati long to the variety shown in Fig. 361 (40316). \ ecorations belong to the variety shown in Fig. 361. (40317). Fig. 367. A little study of these figures will satisfy any one that although there is an apparently endless variety in details, there are, in fact, but comparatively few different figures. (41146). Fig. 370. This belongs to the same variety as Fig. 368. (40315). Large size, similar to that represented in Fig. 370, but varying in form, having the expansion at the shoulder more promi- nent and tapering more rapidly from thence to the base. The fig- ures remind us of the trappings often seen in Japanese cuts. FIG. 363 41158. 3) 40322. (3) Figs. 363, 364.—Zuni Water Vases. - ~ 1 Fie. 365 Fic. 366 40310. 6) Fics. 365, 366.—Zuni Water Vases, oc Fic. 367 40317. (3) Fic. 368 40313 (5) Figs. 367, 368.—Zuni Water Vases. Fic. 369 * Fic. 370 406. (4) Figs. 369, 370.—Zuni Water Vases. Fia. 372 41149 (@) Fics. 371,372.—Zuti Water Vases. Fic. 37: Fic. 374 ,374.—Zuni Water Vases. Figs. 373 STEVENSON.] ARTICLES OF CLAY. 345 164. 165. 166. 167. 168. 169. 170. 171. 172. 173. 174. 175. 176. Pfs 178. 179. 180. 181. (40319). Medium size; decorations similar to those in Fig. 361, ex- cept that here the elk or deer stands on a broad black band in which there is a row of white diamonds. (40321). Medium size; of the variety represented in Fig. 361, but in these smaller pieces the bird zone is omitted, and there is but one figured zone on the body. In this example a small elk is repre- sented as standing on the back of a larger one. (40700). Medium size, belonging to the same type as the preceding. On the neck are figures of grotesque kite-shaped birds. (40701). Medium size; Fig. 369. This and the preceding one are not designated as vases in the original Smithsonian Catalogue, nor in my field list, but according to the form should be classed in this group. (41165). Medium size; decorations similar to those of Fig. 367, but varying in having the figure of a bird introduced in the middle belt with a small double scroll arising out of the back. The lower belt has the same bird reversed. (39935). Medium size. The unusual decorations of this piece are shown in Fig.371. It differs, as does also Fig. 369, from the usual form; the body is more nearly spherical, the neck more gracefully curved, and the rim slightly flaring. The proportions are also different; height, 8.75 inches; diameter of body, 10; of mouth, 6.5. 41144 Decorations similar to those in Fig. 364; (41144) varies ( a): in having the figures of elk or deer on the neck and in Cie): the coarser or ruder scrolls. (41149). This somewhat abnormal form is well shown in Fig. 372. It is of medium size. (41152). This belongs to the same type, both as to form and decorations. (41153). Large size; of the usual form, but the decorations on the body peculiar, the design being crudely architectural. (41156). Medium size, belonging to the type represented by Fig. 361. (41163). Medium size. This pretty vase has a somewhat peculiar decoration, which can be best described as a kind of patch-work representing small fragments of pottery. (41166). Medium size, with the usual elk and scroll figures. (41167). This specimen, which is rather above medium size, presents one of the most chaste designs in the entire group. It is repre- sented in Fig.374. Attention is called especially to the leaves and to the simple meander in the stripes. (41168). Marked with the usual elk and scroll figures. Medinm size. (39774). The decorations of this piece, shown in Fig. 373, may be classed with the peculiar type with oblique and vertical bands represented inFig. 374. (39917). Figures similar to those in Fig. 363. 346 COLLECTIONS OF 1879—ZUNL 182. (40768). The decorations on this piece consist entirely of represen- tations of pyramids or possibly of pueblos, and are arranged in bands, one on the neck and two on the body; the two upper bands show the figures inverted. No. 183 is decorated with scrolls and bird scrolls and a 183. (40770). scalloped line around the shoulder; No. 184 with elkg 184, (40771). and scrolls on the body. 185-188. 185, (40800). Fig. 378. The grotesque or kite-like bird seen on the neck, though rarely seen on the large water vase, is common on the small ones. ‘To this type belong the following Nos. 186, (40769) ; 187, (40772); 188, (40791). 189. (40773). ! These have the usual triangular and scroll designs with- 190. (40776). § out animal figures, as in Fig. 364. 191. (40792). Fig. 377. The decorations on this evidently belong to the same type as those represented in Fig. 359, the bird on the neck being the only variation. To this type also belong the following numbers: 192, (40778); 193, (40792); 194, (40794). 195. (40779). 196. (40781). 197. (40783). 198. (40787). 199. (40788). 200. (40801). 201. (40780). The decorations on these are similar to those shown in 202, (40784). Figs. 366, 367, 368, and 370, in which the rosette is a 203, (40786). distinguishing characteristic. Nos. 201, 202, and 203 204. (40790). are without figures of animals; No. 204 has a double belt of elk figures between the rosettes. 205. (40782). The designs on this remain unfinished; except that the triangles on the neck and the arches in which it was evidently the intention to place the figures of animals, are shown. 206. (40785). Fig. 375. This pretty vase, as will be seen by reference to the figure, has the diameter greater in proportion to the height than usual. Although the design is tasteful the lines are coarse and not so well drawn as the figure indicates. 207. (40789). On this there is an evident attempt to represent a pueblo or communal dwelling and the ladders. 208. (40793). Shown in Fig. 376. 209. (40795). Neck and lower belt of the body marked with vertical lines and oblique diamonds; upper belt with inverted pyramidal figures. 210. (40849). Very small; marked with oblique scalloped lines. 211. (40850). Very small; elk and grotesque bird on the body. 212, (40851). Very small; decorations similar to those on the middle belt of Fig. 373. These belong to the type represented by Fig. 361, dis- tinguished chiefly by the elk, triangular figures, and scrolls. Fics. 375-378.—Zuni Water Vases. ia ae Se eee eS) ae ee ee —— > oa FIG.380 (39618 ) FIG. 381(40798 }) FIG, 382 ( 39592 | FIG.384(41052) PIG.3 (41145) JULIUS BIEN, LITH Figs. 379 -384—ZUNI POTTERY. ¥ NATURE BTEVENSON.] ARTICLES OF CLAY, 347 213. (41105). Similar to that shown in Fig. 361. 214, (40774). Marked with transverse lines and scrolls; design simple and unique. The following specimens are red ware: 215, (40311). Large size; without ornamentation. 216. (40775). Small; form peculiar, diameter of the body greatest at the base, mouth flaring; decorations in black, consisting of triangles pointing downwards, and lines. 217. (40798). Medium size. See Fig. 381. 218. (40799). 219. (40802). “220. (41145). Large. See Fig. 383. 221, (41052). Medium size. See Fig. 384, 222. (41151.) 223, (41157). {ream size; without ornamentation. 224, (41159). 225. (41160). Medium size; with a scalloped band in black around the rim and shoulder. Black ware: 226. (35930). Larges ize; without ornamentation. The only black water vase obtained at Zuni; it was doubtless pro- cured from some other tribe. The black ware obtained from this tribe is in nearly all cases used for cooking, or holding liquids or moist foods. As remarked in another place, the Zuni black ware is generally small except in cases where large quantities of food are to be cooked, which occurs at feast times, when very large vessels are employed. } Small; without ornamentation. WATER JUGS AND JARS. These vary so greatly in form that it is impossible to give any genera description that would convey a correct idea. : 227. (39885). Somewhat mug-shaped, with handle; the top is rounded to the small mouth, no neck. White ware with scalloped bands and a Maltese cross. 228, (39886). Similar in form, but smaller, without handle or decora- tions. 229. (39899). Somewhat similar in form to the preceding, except that it is lower and more depressed, and instead of a mouth at the top there is an orifice at the side as in the canteens, with which this should probably be classed. 230. (39940). Similar to No. 228. 231. (40062). Similar in form to No. 227, but without handle; with a double sealloped band around the constricted portion, and a single one around the mouth; figure of an insect on the upper half; ap- parently intended to represent a butterfly or large moth. 232. (40608). Small-unhandled jug in the form of a smelling bottle. Unadorned. 348 COLLECTIONS OF 1879—ZUNI. 233. (40611). Similar to No. 232. 254. (40607). \ Like No. 228, with slight decorations. 235. (40608). 236. (41140). An amphora or slender jug with two handles. 237. (39528). A jar shown in Fig. 399. 238. (39922). Mé-hé-to, canteen of large size. Plain brown, as are also the following specimens : 239-242. 239, (40079); 240, (40081) ; 241, (40082), this has a small flower on one side; 242, (40083). 243-245. 243, (40088) ; 244, (40090) ; 245, (40091). . 246-248, 246, (40085) ; 247, (40086), and 248, (40676), plain white. 249, (40077). White with color decorations. . Fig. 387. The following eight specimens are also white with colors: 250. (40078). Decorated profusely with scrolls, leaves, and other figures. See Fig. 400. 251. (40080). Figure of a coiled snake or worm, without head or other character to indicate what it was intended to represent. 252. (40084). Usual scroll figures. 253. (40087). Decorated with simple loops and bands. 254, (40089). Radiating serrate lines. 255. (40092). Vase-shaped, with three colored bands. 256. (40093). Shown in Fig. 385. 257. (40886). Handsome piece, with floweret at the apex, scrolls on the side, and a scalloped band around the middle. The bands are al- ways horizontal, the vessel being on its side. See Fig. 398. 258. (39914). Mé-hé-to-tsdn-na, canteens of small size. Red. Double, with two sets of handles and two chambers, but with only one orifice. Decorations in white, those on the larger piece consisting of meanders of the simplest form, a figure very unusual on Zuni pottery. 259. (39659). Brown, with handle and decorations in black. See Fig.379. 260. (39923). Plain brown. The following are also plain brown, red, or yellow : 261-271. 261, (40094); 262, (40095) ; 263, (40096); 264, (40097), Fig. 390; 265, (40099); 266, (40100); 267, (40101); 268, (40687), Fig. 386; 269, (40688); 270, (40689) ; 271, (40690). 272. (40102). White, with an oblique scalloped band. 273. (39872). White, shown in Fig. 389. 274. (40686). White, decorations as in Fig. 389. 275. (40685). White, with a single flower. 276. (40691). White, egg-shaped, with a single handle; decorated with a figure of the horned toad. 277. (40692). White, form and decorations like those shown in Fig. 385. 278. (40098). With outline figures of birds. 279. (40695). White, shown in Fig. 388. Although obtained at Zuii, this piece may have been manufactured at one of the other pueblos. Fic. 385 40077 (6) Figs. 385-387, —Zuni Canteens ——_ 7 a Fic 388 39872 ae. a Fic. 390 Fic. 391 Figs, 388-391.—Zuii Canteens. 39889 i a Fic. 393 Figs 392-394.—Zuni Canteens. Fic. 396 Fic. 397 Fires. 395-397.—Zuni Canteens. STEVENSON. | ARTICLES OF CLAY. 349 JUGS OF FANCIFUL FORMS. 280. (39913). Fig. 395. Zuni name: Meé!-wi-i-pi-chin. * 281. (39887). Similar to No. 280. 282. (39889). Fig. 392. Meé!-wi-ké-lik-ton-ne. Plain red. 283. (39915). Fig. 394. 284, (40103). White, bottle-shaped, with constriction below the middle; scalloped bands and bird figures around the upper third. See Fig. 402. 285. (40104). Shown in Fig. 393. 286. (40105). Similar to No. 285. Marked with the figure of a bird hay- ing the wings spread. Navajo. 6’-sé-tém-me. 287. (40106). Fig. 391. 288. (39887). Tig. 896. A double-globed canteen; triangular, with ori- fice at upper convexity. 289. (39914). Fig. 397. Red ware, with white lines on the lower globe and decorations in black on the upper, with orifice in each globe. PITCHERS. These are of the usual form of such vessels, except that they are gen- erally without the lip. It is possible that to a certain extent they have been patterned after those observed in use among the Europeans or white races with whom these Indians have come in contact. But we shall presently find specimens similar in form among the ancient pottery found in the ruins of the cliff houses. We are inclined to believe that the form is original and not borrowed. The figures introduced will suf- fice to illustrate the form and usual decorations. The specimens ob- tained are generally small, varying in capacity from a pint to half a gallon. These are known in Zuii by the name H’-misch-ton-ne. 290. (39918). Shown in Fig. 403. 291. (40668). With scalloped margin and decorations similar to those on Fig. 403. 292. (40669). Without handle and should be classed with the cups. Fig- ures of plants. 293, (40671). Triangles on the upper portion; simple meander on the bowl. 294, (40672). Similar to the following. 295. (40673). With scalloped margin and zigzag lines on white ground; small right-angle handle. 296. (40674). With scalloped marginal and middle bands. The following are brown ware with but slight decorations: 297-310. 297, (40838); 298, (40839); 299, (40841); 300, (40843), outline figures similar to those on No.293; 301, (40844); 302, (40887); 303, (40888) ; 304, (40889); 305, (40890), is really black but not polished; 306, (40891); 307, (40893); 308, (40894) ; 309, (40897); 310, (40898). 311. (40842). Scalloped rim and siiilsror in size and shape to 298, (40839). 350 COLLECTIONS OF 1879—ZUNI. 312. (40845). Small, white, with decorations and of unusual form, in fact in the original field list is classed among the canteens. The . mouth is prolonged obliquely in the form of a large tube. It should perhaps be classed with the water jugs. 313. (40892). Form and decorations shown in Fig. 405. 314, (40895). Scalloped margin; decorated with scrolls. 315. (40896). Scalloped margin. Figures of the little water animal so often represented on the earthenware baskets. 316. (40899). Without handle; diamond figures on the neck. 317. (41005). Fig. 406. 318. (41013). Slender neck and small mouth; jug-shaped, marked with twigs and leaves. This does not appear to be of Zui manufacture. 319. (41136). Fig. 407. 820. (40840). Shown in Fig. 404. CUPS OR CUP-SHAPED VESSELS. Under this general head are included two forms: one, closely re- sembling the true cup, as shown in the figures and to which the Zuiis apply the name sat-tsdn-nd-mi-ya, and those in the form of ollas or bowls, and without handles. The decorations of the true cup- shaped vessels, especially on the inner surface, follow somewhat closely the patterns found on the bowls. Here we see the zigzag marginal line, the scalloped bands, the interlaced or tessellated bands with star points, triangles, scrolls, &c.; but the elongate triangle or lance point is seldom present. As no new figure is introduced it is unnecessary for me to de- scribe the decorations. A few are of red or brown ware. The following numbers refer to true cups: 321-345. 321, (40058) ; 322, (40615); 323, (40616), Fig. 408; 324, (40617) ; 325, (40618); 326, (40619); 327, (40620); 328, (40621), Fig. 409; 329, (40622) ; 330, (40623) ; 331, (40624) ; 332, (40625) ; 333, (40627) ; 334, (40638) ; 335, (40639) ; 336, (40640) ; 337, (40641) ; 338, (40643); 339, (40644) ; 340, (40837); 341, (40847); 342, (40848); 343, (40880) —this is an unusually large cup and although having a handle may have been used as a bowl]; 344, (40998); 345, (41148), an un- burnt specimen. The following are without handles and are either small bowls or paint cups: 346-355. 346, (40426); 347, (40436); 348, (40453); 349, (40642); 350, (40853), a small bowl-shaped cup, sdt-tsin-nd; 351, (40994); 352, (40995); 353, (40996); 354, (40997); 355, (41000). EATING BOWLS. The smaller forms are called sdat-tsdn-nd. 356, (39962). Fig. 410. The ornamentation is typical of a variety very common on Zuni bowls. The design on the outer surface is more constant than that on the inner, in which the figures of animals, FIG 402( 40103) FIG. 400 (40078) FIG. 401 (40486) JuuWwS BIEN, LTH Figs. 398-402 - ZUNI POTTERY Y% NATURE 404 Fic. Fic. 403 Fic. 406 Fic. 405 Figs. 403-406.—Zuni Water Pitchers. ot Fic. 407 Fic. 408 tiara ————————— 7p ili mgm 40285 fa) Figs. 407-412.—Zunli Water Pitcher, Cups, and Eating Bowls. “4 sk ay re trap . aa a7 ae al STEVENSON. ] ARTICLES OF CLAY. 351 especially the elk, are sometimes introduced. The distinguishing feature of this type is the zigzag line on the inner margin. The following numbers belong to the same type: 357-378. 357, (39746); 358, (39973); 359, (39975); 360, (39981); 361, (39984) ; 362, (39988); 363, (39989) ; 364, (39991) ; 365, (39993) ; 366, (39994) ; 367, (39997) ; 368, (39999); 369, (40004), duplicate of Fig. 411; 370, (40005); 371, (40231); 372, (40234); 373, (40236); 374, (40239); 375, (40246); 376, (40249) ; 377, (40250) ; 378, (40259). 379-396. 379, (40260) ; 380, (40266), shown in Fig. 411; 381, (40274); 382, (40285), shown in Fig. 412; 383, (40504) ; 384, (40512) ; 385, (40513) ; 386, (40516) ; 387, (40517); 388, (40519); 389, (40522); 390, (40527) ; 391, (40530) ; 392, (40541) ; 393, (40546) ; 394, (40528) ; 395, (40203) ; 396, (40211). 397. (39951). Decorated, on the inner margin only, with triangles. 398. (39952). Similar to that shown in Fig. 411, except that the inner marginal line is scalloped. The following numbers may be classed in the same group: 399, 400. 399, (40205); 400, (40210). 401. (40521). Similar to No. 397, except that it has the interior below the marginal line decorated with scrolls. 402. (39902). Decorated on the inner surface only, with the usual scrolls; marginal band simply a narrow line or entirely wanting. The following belong to the same type: 403-417. 403, (39960); 404, (40002); 405, (40006); 406, (40232); 407, (40233); 408, (40237) ; 409, (40263); 410, (40268); 411, (40284), in this small specimen there are but few figures; 412, (40503); 413, (40505); 414, (40520); 415, (40524); 416, (40981); 417, (40987). 418. (40906). The decorations of this piece belong to a variety which is readily distinguished by the broad checkered band on the inner margin. There are two sub-varieties, one with and one without figures on ‘the external surface. This and the following specimens belong to the latter group: 419, 420. 419, (40533); 420, (39890). 421. (40001). This belongs to the former group, as represented by Fig. 412, 422. (39898). External decorations as in Fig. 410, except that the lower margin of the oblique line is furnished with scrolls as in Fig. 375, inner surface with leaves, and a zigzag marginal line. 423, (39908). This and the following thirty-one specimens have the ex- ternal surface ornamented as in Fig. 410, the decorations of the inner surface varying and differing from those already enumerated, In this the marginal line is simple. 424, (39909). Marginal line scalloped; central rosette of simple lines. 425. (39963). Zigzags in irregular lines, no marginal band; form semi- globular. 352 COLLECTIONS OF 1879—ZUNI. 426. (39963), Triangles and scrolls; somewhat mug-shaped. 497 (39972). Usual form; decorations as in the preceding. 428, (39975). Ornamentation as represented in Fig. 422 429, (39976). Double scrolls; no marginal bands. 430. (40000). Margin as in Fig. 422; no other inner decorations. 431. (40204). Seroll figures; no marginal band; form hemispherical. 432, (40216). Similar to Fig. 423, as are also the following specimens: 433-443, 433, (40218); 434, (40223); 435, (40238); 436, (40240); 437, (40284) ; 438, (40286); 439, (40501); 440, (40506) ; 441, (40507) ; 442, (40510) ; 443, (40514); the inner decorations of this piece vary in having the figures of the elk below the marginal band. 444-447, 444, (40515); 445, (40547); 446, (40985); 447, (40217). Zigzag marginal band; no other inner decorations. 448, (40241). Marginal band double, upper line undulate, lower, straight with star points. 449, (40245). Marginal band composed of rows of stars, as in Fig. 414, 450. (40251). Only the inner decorations consist of radiating serrate lines. 451. (40258). Similar to that shown in Fig. 424. 452. (40273). Inner decorations apparently intended as floral ; ere ‘line very slender. 453. (40275). Inner figures ; radiating scrolls. 454, (40287). Similar to No. 453. 455. (40558). Inner figures in the form of blocks or tiles; marginal band undulating. 456. (40549). Inner decorations consist of two narrow crenate bands, one marginal and the other just below it. 457. (39891.) This and the following thirty-nine specimens are without external ornamentation. In this one the inner figures are radiating scrolls, and birds. 458. (39892). Slender marginal scalloped band only. 459. (39893). Serrate marginal band only. 460. (39953). Similar to Fig. 424. 461. (59954). Birds with wings spread, and scrolls. 462. (39958). Differs from the usual form in having the margin undulat- ing. The inner decorations consist chiefly of combinations of tri- angles. Similar to 463. (39971). Similar to the preceding. 464. (39959). Scrolls and triangles. 465. (39960). Scrolls and leaves. 466. (39961). Oblique serrate lines. 467. (39986). Broad net-work, marginal band, as seen in Fig. 414; form unusual, being constricted near the base. 468. (39992). Marginal band composed of sigmoid figures. 469. (39996). Very small; central diameter with rays from the points ; the marginal band is simply a narrow line. + Y a Ds Mi liminiy 413 Fic. 414 Fic. 415 Fic. Zuni Eating Bowls, 1G@s. 413-415, — BR STEVENSON.) ARTICLES OF CLAY. 353 470. 471. 472. 473. 474. 475. 476. 477. 478. 479. 480. (40209). Ornamental marginal band only. (40212). Scalloped marginal band, and central rosette or flower. (40224). Scalloped marginal band, and figures of deer. ( 5). Zigzag band and the usual scroll figures. ( ). Two slender bands, and central radiating scrolls. ( ). Zigzag marginal line only. (40248). Narrow scalloped marginal band; no other figurés. (40252). Zigzag band and floral decorations. (40253). No marginal band ; oblique triple and dotted lines. (40265). Serrate marginal band and central rosette. (40270). No band except a simple line bounding the central figure of radiating leaves. . (40272). Three plain bands. . (40481). Broad marginal band in figures arranged in square blocks. . (40485). Very small; marginal net-work band, central floral figure. . (40490). Similar to the preceding. . (40489). Plain maginal band; central floral figures. . (40492). Zigzag marginal band as in Fig. 425. . (40498). Marginal band as in Fig. 414. . (40499). Scalloped marginal band. . (40508). Zigzag band and floral decorations. . (40511). Marginal band composed of lines of stars. . (40530). Similar to No, 486, having also a central figure. . (40536). Marginal band of scrolls and triangles. . (40537). Net-work marginal band. . (40539). Scalloped band and central figure of twigs and leaves; unusually chaste design. . (40542). Like No, 467. . (40545). Scalloped marginal band. . (39967). Do. . (39965). Zigzag inner marginal band; figures of the elk externally and internally. . (39966). External and internal zigzag marginal band. . (39969). No external decorations; marked internally with oblique lines, no band. . (3970). Scroll figures on the inner surface ; on the outer, triangles pointing in opposite directions ; no bands. 2. (39977). Dish-like, undulate, external and internal marginal band. . (39978). Inner band of crosses, and central figure, outer serrate marginal band. . (39982). ) Decorations same as those represented in Fig. 414, with a . (39983). . (39985). Both surfaces decorated with scroll figures. . (39987). Inner surface with scroll figures, outer with but a marginal wide, latticed, marginal band on the inner side of the bowl. scalloped band. 23 E 354 508. 509. 510. 511. 512. 513. COLLECTIONS OF 1879—ZUNI. (39990). Both surfaces marked with oblique serrate lines; unusu- ally flaring. (39998). Inner surface with reversed elks ; outer with oblique lines, with each side serrate. (40007). Inner surface with serrate band and birds; outer with ser- rate band. (40213). Elk and scrolls internally; an outer scalloped band. (40215). Resembles No. 501. (40219). The decorations on this bowl are unusual; those of the inner surface consist of a slender crenate marginal band, and be- low this a woman holding a child and apparently closely wrapped in a robe of some kind and placed transversely ; the outer margin is marked with a broad band of crosses regularly spaced by per- pendicular lines. The following numbers belong to the type represented in Figs. 356, 411, and 412: 514-520. 514, (39979); 515, (40220); 516, (40221); 517, (40243); 518, 621. 522. 523. 524. 525. (40274); 519, (40493); 520, (40523), inner marginal band consists of scrolls and triangles. (40227). Inner marginal band broad and divided into diamond spaces; outer surface ornamented with figures similar to those on vase represented by Fig. 372. (40230). Although classed with the bowls this is shaped somewhat like the paint pots; outer and inner bands. (40247). Resembles No. 504. (40254). Two broad undulate lines on the external surface; inner surface with blocks and scrolls. (40256). Inside with crenate marginal lines, and circular space and triangles as in Fig. 359. External surface with a simple scal- loped band. 526. (40264). External surface as in the preceding; internal scrolls and triangles. 527-533. 527, (40267); 528, (40269); 529, (40487); 530, (40495); 531, 534, 535. 536. 537. 538. 539. (40509); 532, (40529); 533, (40531). The decorations on these specimens belong to the same general type as those of No. 526. (40271). Mug-shaped with flat bottom; outer surface marked with five scalloped bands ; inner with scrolls. (40279). Outer surface with triangular figures ; inner with a scal- loped marginal band and a similar band below. (40482). Similar in form to No. 534. Outer and inner decorations consist almost entirely of triangles. (40483). Without bands; interior, scrolls; exterior, geometrical figures. ; (40488). This belongs to the type represented by Fig. 411; rosette on the inner surface. , (40491). Similar in form and decorations to No. 534, Fiaes. 416-418.—Zuni Eating Bowls. r > ’ é s Mi, 7 »- ‘ - = 7 es ~- - a . ‘i . ,, ~ ; ’ . —, = r = 7 ” : . : 5 = } A . . ; - ; . 2 = STEVENSON. ] ARTICLES OF CLAY. 355 540. (40496). Form like the preceding ; inner face decorated with stars; outer with the usual triangular figures. 541. (40497). Flat, finger-bowl shaped, single scalloped band externally ; scrolls and circular figures internally. 542, (40502). Double band of triangles externally; internally zigzag lines precisely like those in Fig. 371. 543. (40535). Inner serrate marginal band and radiating scrolls; no ex- ternal decorations. 544. (40540). Central flower internally ; a single serrate band externally. 545, (40980). Pan-shaped; inner surface marked with geometrical fig- ures; outer without decorations. 546, 547. 546, (40988), 547, (40993). Without external ornamentation, marked with zigzag inner marginal line, central scroll, and trian- gular devices. 548. (40991). Oblique serrate lines externally; zigzag inner marginal line. 549. (40992). No external decorations; inner marginal line crenate; central flower. Brown, red, or yellow ware. Usually without ornamentation. 550. (39907). Small rosettes or flowers on inner surface. The following numbers are without ornamentation of any kind: 551-572. 551, (39968); 552, (40003); 553, (40207); 554, (40214); 555, (40226) ; 556, (40235) ; 557, (40244) ; 558, (40257); 559, (40276) ; 560, (40277); 561, (40278); 562, (40280) ; 563, (40281) ; 564, (40494) ; 565, (40526) ; 566, (40528) ; 567, (40534) ; 568, (40543); 569, (40544); 570, (40982) ; 571, (40984) ; 572, (40989). The following have slight decorations; wherever the band is mentioned it is to be understood as marginal unless otherwise specified : 573. (39974). Narrow external band. 574, (39981). Floral figure on inner surface. 575. (39995). Triangles externally; narrow sub-marginal band inter- : nally. 576. (40206). Outline leaf-like figures on inner face. 577. (40222). Inner crenate band and cross lines. 578. (40229). Slender bands and scrolls. 579. (40288). Inner band of geometrical figures. 580. (40550). With slender outer band. 581. (40980). Inner zigzag band and triangular figures. 582. (40983). Inner central white flower. 583. (40990). Inner band of scrolls. The larger forms, following, are called I’-tdn-d-ka-sah-le. 584. (40041). Represented in Fig. 413. The broad check ered band on the inner margin forms the distinguishing characteristic. The following are similarly decorated : 585, 586. 585, (40010); 586, (40167). 356 COLLECTIONS OF 1879—ZUNI. 587. (40033). As closely resembling the preceding, I introduce here q variety with a latticed marginal band shown in Fig. 414. The following specimens belong to the same variety, the chief dif- ferences, being the inner central figures: 588. (40164). Fig. 415. 589. (40177). Do. 590. (40181). This specimen has no ornamentation except the band. 591. (40296). Fig. 416. This varies in having the figures of birds with wings spread and of elks on the inner surface below the marginal line. These are but partially shown in the figure. 592, 593. 592, (4096 5) and 593 (40955) belong to the same variety, but their inner decorations resemble more closely those represented in Fig. 415. 594. (40493). Fig. 417. The decorations on this piece belong to the very common variety shown in Figs. 356, 411, and 412. 595-600. To this type belong the following numbers: 595, (40008); 596, (40009) ; 597, (40012); 598, (40013); 599, (40020); G00, (40021), this varies in having no ornamentation on the outer surface. 601-608. 601, (40176), shown in Fig. 418; 602, (40031); 603, (40038); 604, (40043); 605, (40046); 606, (40047); 607, (40050); 608, (40052) 609-628. 609, (40151); 610, (40152); 611, (40163); 612, (40168); 6183, (40170); 614, (40171); 615, (40175); 616, (40185) ; 617, (40186); 618, (40188); 619, (40189), Fig. 419; 620, (40191); 621, (40193); 622, (40194); 628, (40195); 624, (40196); 625, (40197); 626, (40199); 627, (40200) ; 628, (40293), this piece is properly a bread bowl], Mo’- tsin-i-ka-sd-le. : 629-638. 629, (40295); 630, (40297); 631, (40298); 632, (40310); -633, (40305) ; 634, (40306) ; 635, (40308); 636, (40309); 637, (40930) ; 638, (40931), shown in Fig. 420. I would call attention here to the strong similarity of the inner decorations of this bowl with those on the body of the vase represented in Tig. 359. This is properly a bread bowl. 639-646. 639, (40938); 640, (40957); 641, (40958); 642, (40967); 643, (40971); 644, (40974); 645, (40975); 646, (41171), Fig. 421. The following specimens have the same external decorations as those represented in Figs. 413-421, but differ in regard to the figures on the inner surface. 647. (40014). Fig. 422. The cut fails to show the figures of the elk placed among the scroll ornaments. 648, 649. 648, (40023) ; 649, (40026). 650-658. 650, (40028), shown in Fig. 423; 651, (40035); 652, (40042) ; 653, (40045) ; 654, (40049); 655, (40051), these two are bread bowls; 656, (40153) ; 657, (40156) ; 658, (40178). 659-663. 659, (40183); 660, (40198); 661, (40202); 662, (40927), Fig. 424; and 663, (40932), Fig. 425. Fic. 419 Figs. 419-421.—Zuii Eating Bowls. Fic. 422 Figs. 422-424.—Zuni Eating Bowls. * i ' . 4 . . : ‘ * « s . = “ - . \ - x : ‘ i ‘ . 1 - 4 a : B \ . ' im ‘ é i : f i » Fic. 425 Fic. 426 Fic. 427 40290 Fies. 425-427.—Zuni Eating Bowls. STEVENSON. ] ARTICLES OF CLAY. 357 664-669. 664, (40951); 665, (40952); 666, (40960); 667, (40976); 668, 670. (40977); and 669, (40016), may be grouped together, as strongly resembling each other in regard to their inner decorations. (40027). Inner marginal band with diamond spaces and colored tri- angles, scrolls, and small rosettes or flowers below. 71. (40030). No inner band; geometrical figures. . (40035). Narrow simple marginal band; elk and scrolls. 3. (40179), Fig. 426. Each of the following specimens has a similar marginal band, but the inner central figures differ. 674-682. 674, (40037); 675, (40044); 676, (40187); 677, (40300); 678, 683. 684. 685. 686. 687. 688. 689. 690. 691. 692. 693. 701, 703. 704. (40937); 679, (40966); 680, (40969); 681, (40973); 682, (40040). Patch-work figures, resembling pieces of broken pottery. (40157). Somewhat like Vig. 424, the perpendicular lines of the band being doubly scalloped. (40169). Marginal band a vine with leaves and flowers; central figures similar to those ou vase shown in Fig. 371. (40182). No inner band; scroil figures. (40190). No inner band; elks and geometrical figures. (40201). Marginal band with triple lines similar to those in Fig. 424. (40290). Shown in Fig. 427. (40292). Marginal band similar to that on Fig. 427; scrollfigures in central portion. (40294). Fig. 430. In this the outer decoration varies in having the elongate triangle or lance point double, and the inner in hav- ing the figure of a mule or donkey. (40304). No marginal band; scroll figures. (40302). Fig. 429. (40486). A broad bowl; inner marginal band, the upper portion of which has a line of diamond spaces. The under side of the oblique line on the outer surface is bordered with scrolls as in Fig, 375. This is a very large specimen, being eighteen inches in diameter. See Fig. 401. . (40928). Inner surface marked with geometrical figures. . (46970). No figures on the inner surface. . (40972). Inner decorations as in Fig. 419. . (40017). No outer decorations; inner surface with marginal band and large white cross; remainder brown. . (40015). Outer and inner faces marked with triangles and slender leaves. - (40024). Outer scalloped band, scroll figures internally. . (40022). Outer surface with scalloped band and large oblique dia- monds; inner with double scalloped band and scrolls. 702. 701, (40158) ; 702, (40159). Outer face without decorations; inner with large vermiform figures. (40166). Both faces with oblique lines of scrolls. (40192). Stems and leaves externally and internally. 358 COLLECTIONS OF 1879—ZUNI. 705. (40195). Interior decorations profuse ; scrolls, and diamond-shaped figures. 706, (40934). Four scalloped bands on outer face; scroll figures on inner surface. 707. (40935). No outer decorations ; inside marked with a marginal band of dots and lines; central scrolls. 708. (40939). Both surfaces with geometrical figures. 709. (40950). Marked externally with double lance points; internally with scrolls. 710. (39954). Shown in Fig. 428. Here we see the head of the grotesque bird reduced to a simple scroll. Brown or yellow ware. Decorations in black or red, without exter- nal ornamentation unless otherwise stated. 711-713. 711, (40011); 712. (40936); 713, (40962). Four large leaves forming a cross. 714. (40018). Broad external band of horizontal and oblique dotted lines. No figures on the inner surface. 715. (40032). External scalloped band; reversed pyramids or pueblos internally. 716. (40039). Broad marginal band of half pyramids, alternately re- versed. 717. (40048). White vermiform figures. 718, 719, 718, (40154); 719, (40184). These are similarly marked, the margin in both being also white. The following specimens are without decorations of any kind: 720-733. 720, (40019) ; 721, (40036) ; 722, (40160) ; 723, (40162) ; 724, (40165) ; 725, (40180); 726, (40307); 727, (40929); 728, (40953); 729, (40954); 730, (40959); 731, (40962); 732, 40963); 733, (40968). 734. (40155). Patch-work. 735. (40172). Four serrate or scalloped bands on outer face. Similar inner marginal band in outline; and outline pyramidal figures. 736. (40174). Outline pyramidal figures. 737-739. 737, (40173); 738, (40289); 739, (40964). Marginal band of double outline scrolls. 740. (39618). Brown ware with decorations in black. Colored Fig. 380. 741. (39592). Brown ware with decorations in black. Colored Fig. 382. COOKING VESSELS. These vessels are generally of medium size, though in some instances the dimensions vary exceedingly. Those used in cooking for feasts are quite large, sometimes with a capacity of about ten gallons; the small- est, designed only for family use, are less than four inches in diameter and not quite three inches high. They are of two general forms, one similar to the ordinary pots used on cooking stoves, the other bowl- shaped. Two specimens in the collection are provided with legs; to these the Zuflians apply the name sd-mi yén-sd-qui-pd. See Fig. 432, As a general rule, the rims of these vessels are flared, and on some of Fic. 428 ITS S\ Nsom A Fic. 430 Figs, 428-430.—Zuni Eating Bowls. Fic. 431 Fic. 433 41092 I 2 Fic. 435 Fic. 436 Fias. 431-436.—Zuni Cooking Vessels. STRVENSON.] ARTICLES OF CLAY. 359 them, close to the rim on the outside, are ear-like projections, which are probably intended as catches by which, with pokers or sticks, they can be removed from or arranged in position on the fire. They are never ornamented, and have no coloring other than that which is acquired in baking. These vessels are used in cooking such foods as contain liquids. Three names are applied to cooking pots, having reference to size, viz: pah-téh-le is the large cylindrical pot; the smaller pot of the same form is paéh-téhl-tsdn-na@; and wdah-li-ch-ki-tehl-le is the common cooking pot. The Olla or bowl-suaped pot, Fig. 433, is called sd-mi-yén. The following numbers belong to the pédéh téhl-tsdn-n@ group and pre- sent no variations worthy of special notice. 742,743. 742,(41113). Fig. 436; 743, (41114), Pig. 433. These illustra- tions represent a form and have the appearance of the so-called ancient ware; the latter specimen bears the impress of the grass which was produced in the baking process. 744, (40865). Pig. 435. Cooking pot. The following numbers represent specimens of cooking pots of varying sizes, though generally small and of the form of No. 744, though some few present the appearance of bowls: 745-766. 745, (41115); 746, (41116); 747, (41117); 748, (41118); 749, (41119) ; 750, (41120); 751, (41121); 752, (41122); 753, (41123); 754, (41124) ; 755, (41125); 756, (41126); 757, (41127); 758, (41128) ; 759, (41129) ; 760, (41130); 761, (41131) ; 762, (41132); 763, (41137) ; 764, (41138) ; 765, (41140) ; 766, (41141). The following belong to the sé-ma-yén bovwls : 767-S04. 767, (41055); 768, (41056); 769, (41057); 770, (41058); 771, (41059) ; 772, (41060) ; 773, (41061); 774, (41062); 775, (41063) ; 76, (41064) ; 777, (41065) ; 778, (41066) ; 779, (41067); 750, (41068) ; 781, (41069) ; 782, (41070) ; 783, (41071); 784, (41072); 785, (41073) ; 786, (41074) ; 787, (41075) ; 788, (41076) ; 789, (41077); 790, (41078); 791, (41079) ; 792, (41080); 793, (41081); 794, (41082) ; 795, (41083); 796, (41084) ; 797, (41085); 798, (41086) ; 799, (41087); 800, (41088) ; 801, (41089); 802, (41090); 803, (41091); 804, (41092), shown in Fig. 34. ; 805-826. 805, (41093); 806, (41094); 807, (41095); 808, (41096); 809, (41097,; 810, (41098); 811, (41099); 812, (41100); 813, (41101); 814, (41102); 815, (41103) ; 816, (41104) ; 817, (41106); 818, (41107); 819, (41108); 820, (41109); 821, (41110); 829, (41111); 823, (41112) ; 824, (41133); 825, (41139) ; 826, (41143). This isan unburnt speci- men of unusual form, resembling in this respect a sugar bowl, its margin and sides undulated. 827, 828. 827, (40853), bowl-shaped with conical bottom; 828, (41053), Fig. 432, pot-shaped, but with four legs. 829, 830. 829, (41134), 830, (41135), are really pitchers, as will be seen by reference'to Fig. 431, which represents the latter, but they ap- pear to be made for cooking purposes, as they are designated by the name sd-mi-yén. 360 COLLECTIONS OF 1879—ZUNI. LADLES. Called by the Zuiians sd-sho-kon-ne. These are of two forms, one re- sembling somewhat an oyster-shell, the other with a handle resembling aspoon. The forms and decorations are shown in the figures. They are of white ware usually with figures on the inner surface, and of red ware without ornamentation. They vary in size from eight inches in length and five inches across the bow] to four and a half and two and a half inches. 831-839. 831, (89884); 832, (39894), Fig. 438; 833, (40430); 834, (40431); 835, (40432), flower in the bowl; 836, (40433); 837, (40460); 838, (40461) ; 839, (41254). With handles. 840-S41. 840, (39895) ; $41, (39896), figures of elks in the bowl. With- out handles. 842. (39929). 843, 844. 843, (40408) scrolls; 844, (40417), Fig. 440. 845, 846. 845, (40418); 846, (40419), this has a pretty marginal band, and the figure of a slender bird in the bowl. 847-851. 847, (40420); 848, (40421); 849, (40422), Fig. 439; 450, (40423) ; 451, (40424), resembles Fig. 440. 852-868. 852, (40425); 853, (40427); 854, (40428); 855, (40429); 856, (40434) ; 857, (40435) ; 858, (40437); 859, (40433) ; 860, (40439) ; 861, (40441); 862, (40442); 863, (40459); 864, (40462); 865, (40463) ; 866, (40675) ; 867, (40677); 868, (40678), Fig. 441. 869, 870. 869, (40679) ; 870, (40875), Fig. 437. BASKETS. Called by the Zunians, ah-wéhl-wi-dh-pd-sahl. These vessels, which vary in size from four to eight inches in diameter and from two to five in depth, are in the form of bowls, sometimes with a handle over the top like a basket handle, sometimes without. The margin is either scalloped, as in Fig. 452, or terraced so as to resemble the section of a pyramid or pueblo, being cut in this form with a horse-hair while soft. They are always of white ware decorated with black. The margin is uni- formly black, and there is often an inner and outer submarginal narrow band following the undulations or terraces. The figures most com- mon, and in fact almost exclusively used, are those resembling tadpoles, but which, as I learned, are intended to represent a small crustacean or the larva of an insect common in the water-pools and streams of the Zuni country; and the somewhat grotesque figures of the horned toad (Phrynosoma). These figures are placed both on the outer and inner surfaces, though the figure of the reptile is generally found on the outer. These singular vessels are used by the Indians only in their sacred and ceremonial dances. In them is placed a small quantity of meal; they are then borne in the hands of the women, who, during the dance, take a small quantity of the meal, just as much as they can hold between the ‘So[pw'T 1UNZ—"T pb-zep ‘sol (9) L1VOb OFF ‘OL 68h “OIL ag #) Fic. 444 Fic. 443 9 Fic. 44 Fic. 447 Fic. 446 Fic. 445 Fias. 442-447.—Zuni Clay Baskets. Fic. 448 of Ye) + cS =