and children to be removed to a place of safety, but three of the old women refused to go. (Their lodges are represented in Nos. 3, 4, and 5.) Five Ojibwa escaped through the brush in a northwest direction (indicated in No. 6).

The Sioux surrounded the lake and the fight took place on the ice. Twenty of the Ojibwa were killed, the last to die being the chief of the party, who, from appearances, was beaten to death with a tomahawk. No. 7 represents three bear skins; Nos. 8, 9, and 10, respectively, deer, grouse, and turtle, the kinds of game hunted there during the several seasons. The canoe (No. 11) indicates the manner of hunting along the shore and the stream connecting the lakes, Nos. 12, 13, 14, and 15. The short lines near the shore line of the lake at No. 14 indicate that wild rice is found there.

The Ojibwa had been made by the Sioux the

The Ojibwa frequently spent part of a season at the middle lake (No. 13), and at another time had a skirmish with the Sioux farther north, on a small lake indicated at No. 15. scattered about, but when the attack was former rapidly came to the rescue both by boat (No. 16) and on foot (noted in No. 17), so that the enemy was gradually driven off. In the first-named battle seventy Sioux were killed, their bodies being subsequently buried in the lake by cutting holes through the ice. The openings are shown at No. 18, the lines representing bodies ready to be put down into the water.

Fig. 13 is a copy of a record which was made to commemorate a treaty of peace between the Ojibwa and Assiniboin Indians.

No. 1 represents the Ojibwa chief and

No. 2 the chief acting on the part of the Assiniboins.

No. 3 is the pipe used previous to the undertaking, while
No. 4 represents the flag, used also as an emblem of peace.
No. 5 is the drum used as an accompaniment to the songs.

undulating lines issuing from the mouths represent smoke.

The

As before remarked, women may take the degrees of the Mede'win, but, so far as. I could ascertain, their professions pertain chiefly to the treatment of children and to tattooing for the cure of headache and chronic neuralgia.

Tattooing is accomplished by the use of finely powdered charcoal, soot, or gunpowder, the pricking instrument being made by tying together a small number of needles, though formerly, it is said, fish spines or sharp splinters of bone were used for that purpose. The marks consist of round spots, when single pricked from one-half to three-fourths of an inch in diameter immediately over the affected part, the intention being to drive out the disease demon. Such spots are usually found upon the temples, though an occasional one will be found over the nasal eminence, or higher up, on the forehead.

When the pain extends over considerable space the tattoo marks are smaller and are arranged in rows or continuous lines. Such marks may be found upon some individuals to run outward over either or both cheeks from the alæ of the nose to a point near the lobe of the ear, clearly indicating that the tattooing was done for toothache or neuralgia.

The female Mede' is usually present at the initiation of new members, but her duties are mainly to assist in the singing and to make herself generally useful.

Geographic charts and characters to indicate direction are sometimes made, the former being remarkably accurate considering the difficulty of obtaining courses in a timbered country without the aid of proper instruments. The latter are used by members of a family when they go on a fishing or hunting trip. The trail is known to all concerned, but, should the hunter desire to leave it at any given. spot, he will smoothe or perhaps remove the bark of a conspicuous tree

FIG. 14.

FIG. 15.

FIG. 16.

and cut or paint the outline of a human figure with one arm pointing horizontally in the direction thenceforth to be followed. Figs. 14 15, and 16 are copies of such characters observed in the forest near Red Lake. The original figures are more than twelve inches in length.

Various figures of mythologic signification are frequently found upon embroidered or beaded belts, bags, etc., which are employed in ceremonies, but it is impracticable to enter into a comparison of art designs in connection with the subject of the Mede'win.

Read before the Society at its 138th regular meeting, May 1, 1888.

THREE FORMS OF EXPIATION.-All observers testify that the religious practices of the common people in Japan and Corea are of a very simple and childlike character. A prevalent religious idea is a belief in the influence of demons who can be defeated by various incantations. Any epidemic or like affliction is looked upon as the work or possession of an evil spirit. The following curious instances of superstition illustrate this fact. The first happened in the town of Kagoshima, Japan, and is referred to by a native newspaper. Cholera being prevalent there and very severe, the populace, not satisfied to leave its extirpation to the officials, resorted to a singular but customary means of banishing the plague. Each house in every street is assessed three sen, or cents, and, with the money thus raised, for each street a straw image fifteen to twenty feet high and a straw boat twelve to eighteen feet long are procured.

The boat, with the image in it, is then carried down the street by boys who yell in front of each house that has contributed and whose inmates then ring bells, beat drums and empty kerosene tins, and make all the noise they can to hunt the pestilence into the idol. When the ceremonies have been finished the boats and images are carried down to the beach and launched amid great clamor.

The inhabitants of the neighboring Island of Lakurajima show great terror whenever the winds waft these vessels towards them. They congregate on the shore, leaping, gesticulating, ringing bells, clashing tin pans, &c., and yelling Kuruna! kuruna! (Don't come! don't come!) Several young men are detailed and kept day and night in boats to stave off with poles and destroy as best they can the fleet of pestilential invaders.

In Corea when a man feels the need of getting rid of the evil that is within him he buys, usually from a bonze, or priest, a small, oddlymade manikin of straw. This he dresses up to look like himself and at night throws it away at the crossing of roads. Now, he has carefully hidden in the straw image a number of cash, copper coins about one mill in value, knowing that persons who hunt for these will tear the figure to pieces and thinking that so his guilt will fly away. That night he feasts for joy.

At the cross roads these expiatory offerings sometimes accumulate in such numbers that the passers by make bonfires of them, perhaps with the intention of more effectually destroying the misdeeds and sins they represent. This account was collected from Mr. Pin, a Corean living in Washington, who gave this explanation in reference to a straw figure from Corea in the Museum.

The Sengirese Malays suspend in the reception halls of their houses small models of their proæ, or boats, in order that, they say, diseases may embark to sea in them. (Jour. Anthrop. Inst. Gt. Britain and Ireland, XVI, Nov., 1886, p. 141.) This custom has been noticed among the Malays of several other islands.

WALTER HOUGH.

THE NEGRO GENESIS.-A recent article in the New Orleans Times Democrat describes a number of bird beliefs current among the negroes. Most of these ideas are similar to those held by the peasantry of Europe, but several, dealing with the origin of the earth and vegetation, are strikingly like the Indian creation myths. Thus the jay brought in his bill-nobody knows from where-the "first grit of dirt" to form the earth, and on every Friday from 9 o'clock in the morning until 1 o'clock in the afternoon every jay in the world is obliged to leave the upper earth and carry a grain of sand to the underground king, perhaps by way of a tribute in return for the "first grit." After the world was made the dove dug into the earth with her bill and thus gave man the first springs, and she also brought and planted for his use the first grain of corn. The robin planted the tree from which all the cedars in the world have sprung. As these myths do not seem to be of European origin and can hardly have been derived from the Indians it would be interesting to know how they compare with the African creation myths. If of Indian origin, they were probably borrowed from the Choctaws.

JAMES MOONEY.

THE NEPHRITE QUESTION.*

BY DR. A. B. MEYER,

Director of the Royal Ethnographic Museum of Dresden.

The term nephrite question or jade question has been applied to an ethnologic problem which if not fully solved appears to be very nearly so. The time will come when it will be a matter for surprise that it was ever looked upon as a problem at all. The "jade question" is as follows:

In nearly every part of the earth, especially America, Europe, Asia, and New Zealand, objects of a very hard and generally green stone, in the shape of hatchets, jewelry, etc., are found. They are discovered in mounds, prehistoric settlements, etc. Similar objects are still worn by wild and uncivilized peoples, and also by the highly civilized. The origin of these objects is in many cases inexplicable, since Asia and Oceanica are the only places within our knowledge where the crude material may be found.†

It is now supposed that the American objects owe their origin to Asia, whence they were carried to Europe and by chance to America, as well as directly from Asia to America. This is the opinion of Prof. H. Fischer, of Freiburg, in Baden, and of a great many other savants in Europe and in America.

I shall try to prove that this theory is untenable and that the occurrence of these objects must be otherwise explained.

The nephrite question should properly be called the jadeite and nephrite question, because not one but two minerals are concerned which resemble each other in appearance and which are to be distinguished from each other only by specific gravity, chemical analysis and microscopic examination. Both minerals, as nature produced them, have not as yet been fully tested and their value is therefore

* Abstract of Dr. Meyer's paper entitled Die Nephritfrage kein ethnologisches Problem. Berlin, 1883.

† Lieut. G. M. Stoney has found nephrite in place in Alaska at a locality known as the Jade mountains, near the Kowak river, about 150 miles above its mouth. A report upon the chemical and microscopical composition of the mineral by Prof. Clarke and Mr. Merrill will soon appear in a Bulletin of the U. S. National Museum.-Eds.