Chapter V: The Interpretation of the Fire-Festivals (2)

91 The Rev. G. Brown, quoted by the Rev. B. Danks, “Marriage Customs of
the New Britain Group,” _Journal of the Anthropological Institute_,
xviii. (1889) pp. 284 _sq._; _id._, _Melanesians and Polynesians_
(London, 1910), pp. 105-107. Compare _id._, “Notes on the Duke of
York Group, New Britain, and New Ireland,” _Journal of the Royal
Geographical Society_, xlvii. (1877) pp. 142 _sq._; A. Hahl, “Das
mittlere Neumecklenburg,” _Globus_, xci. (1907) p. 313. Wilfred
Powell’s description of the New Ireland custom is similar
(_Wanderings in a Wild Country_, London, 1883, p. 249). According to
him, the girls wear wreaths of scented herbs round the waist and
neck; an old woman or a little child occupies the lower floor of the
cage; and the confinement lasts only a month. Probably the long
period mentioned by Dr. Brown is that prescribed for chiefs’
daughters. Poor people could not afford to keep their children so
long idle. This distinction is sometimes expressly stated. See
above, p. 30. Among the Goajiras of Colombia rich people keep their
daughters shut up in separate huts at puberty for periods varying
from one to four years, but poor people cannot afford to do so for
more than a fortnight or a month. See F. A. Simons, “An Exploration
of the Goajira Peninsula,” _Proceedings of the Royal Geographical
Society_, N.S., vii. (1885) p. 791. In Fiji, brides who were being
tattooed were kept from the sun (Thomas Williams, _Fiji and the
Fijians_, Second Edition, London, 1860, i. 170). This was perhaps a
modification of the Melanesian custom of secluding girls at puberty.
The reason mentioned by Mr. Williams, “to improve her complexion,”
can hardly have been the original one.

92 Rev. R. H. Rickard, quoted by Dr. George Brown, _Melanesians and
Polynesians_, pp. 107 _sq._ His observations were made in 1892.

93 R. Parkinson, _Dreissig Jahre in der Südsee_ (Stuttgart, 1907), p.
272. The natives told Mr. Parkinson that the confinement of the
girls lasts from twelve to twenty months. The length of it may have
been reduced since Dr. George Brown described the custom in 1876.

M28 Seclusion of girls at puberty in New Guinea, Borneo, Ceram, and Yap.

94 J. Chalmers and W. Wyatt Gill, _Work and Adventure in New Guinea_
(London, 1885), p. 159.

95 H. Zahn and S. Lehner, in R. Neuhauss’s _Deutsch Neu-Guinea_
(Berlin, 1911), iii. 298, 418-420. The customs of the two tribes
seem to be in substantial agreement, and the accounts of them
supplement each other. The description of the Bukaua practice is the
fuller.

96 C. A. L. M. Schwaner, _Borneo, Beschrijving van het stroomgebied van
den Barito_ (Amsterdam, 1853-1854), ii. 77 _sq._; W. F. A.
Zimmermann, _Die Inseln des Indischen und Stillen Meeres_ (Berlin,
1864-1865), ii. 632 _sq._; Otto Finsch, _Neu Guinea und seine
Bewohner_ (Bremen, 1865), pp. 116 _sq._

97 J. G. F. Riedel, _De sluik- en kroesharige rassen tusschen Selebes
en Papua_ (The Hague, 1886), p. 138.

98 A. Senfft, “Ethnographische Beiträge über die Karolineninsel Yap,”
_Petermanns Mitteilungen_, xlix. (1903) p. 53; _id._, “Die
Rechtssitten der Jap-Eingeborenen,” _Globus_, xci. (1907) pp. 142
_sq._

M29 Seclusion of girls at puberty in Mabuiag, Torres Straits.

99 Dr. C. G. Seligmann, in _Journal of the Anthropological Institute_,
xxix. (1899) pp. 212 _sq._; _id._, in _Reports of the Cambridge
Anthropological Expedition to Torres Straits_, v. (Cambridge, 1904)
pp. 203 _sq._

M30 Seclusion of girls at puberty in Northern Australia.

100 Dr. C. G. Seligmann, in _Reports of the Cambridge Expedition to
Torres Straits_, v. (Cambridge, 1904) p. 205.

101 L. Crauford, in _Journal of the Anthropological Institute_, xxiv.
(1895) p. 181.

102 Dr. C. G. Seligmann, _op. cit._ v. 206.

103 Walter E. Roth, _North Queensland Ethnography, Bulletin No. 5,
Superstition, Magic, and Medicine_ (Brisbane, 1903), pp. 24 _sq._

104 Walter E. Roth, _op. cit._ p. 25.

M31 Seclusion of girls at puberty in the islands of Torres Straits.

105 Dr. C. G. Seligmann, in _Reports of the Cambridge Anthropological
Expedition to Torres Straits_, v. (Cambridge, 1904), p. 205.

106 From notes kindly sent me by Dr. C. G. Seligmann. The practice of
burying a girl at puberty was observed also by some Indian tribes of
California, but apparently rather for the purpose of producing a
sweat than for the sake of concealment. The treatment lasted only
twenty-four hours, during which the patient was removed from the
ground and washed three or four times, to be afterwards reimbedded.
Dancing was kept up the whole time by the women. See H. R.
Schoolcraft, _Indian Tribes of the United States_ (Philadelphia,
1853-1856), v. 215.

107 Dr. C. G. Seligmann, in _Reports of the Cambridge Anthropological
Expedition to Torres Straits_, v. 201 _sq._

M32 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Indians of California.

108 A. L. Kroeber, “The Religion of the Indians of California,”
_University of California Publications in American Archaeology and
Ethnology_, vol. iv. No. 6 (September, 1907), p. 324.

109 Roland B. Dixon, “The Northern Maidu,” _Bulletin of the American
Museum of Natural History_, vol. xvii. Part iii. (May, 1905) pp. 232
_sq._, compare pp. 233-238.

110 Stephen Powers, _Tribes of California_ (Washington, 1877), p. 85
(_Contributions to North American Ethnology_, vol. iii.).

111 Stephen Powers, _op. cit._ p. 235.

M33 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Indians of Washington State.

112 Charles Wilkes, _Narrative of the United States Exploring
Expedition_, New Edition (New York, 1851), iv. 456.

113 Franz Boas, _Chinook Texts_ (Washington, 1894), pp. 246 _sq._ The
account, taken down from the lips of a Chinook Indian, is not
perfectly clear; some of the restrictions were prolonged after the
girl’s second monthly period.

M34 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Nootka Indians of Vancouver
Island.

114 G. M. Sproat, _Scenes and Studies of Savage Life_ (London, 1868),
pp. 93 _sq._

115 Franz Boas, in _Sixth Report on the North-Western Tribes of Canada_,
pp. 40-42 (separate reprint from the _Report of the British
Association for the Advancement of Science_, Leeds meeting, 1890).
The rule not to lie down is observed also during their seclusion at
puberty by Tsimshian girls, who always sit propped up between boxes
and mats; their heads are covered with small mats, and they may not
look at men nor at fresh salmon and olachen. See Franz Boas, in
_Fifth Report on the North-Western Tribes of Canada_, p. 41
(separate reprint from the _Report of the British Association for
the Advancement of Science_, Newcastle-upon-Tyne meeting, 1889); G.
M. Dawson, _Report on the Queen Charlotte Islands, 1878_ (Montreal,
1880), pp. 130 B _sq._ Some divine kings are not allowed to lie
down. See _Taboo and the Perils of the Soul_, p. 5.

M35 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Haida Indians of the Queen
Charlotte Islands.

116 George M. Dawson, _Report on the Queen Charlotte Islands, 1878_
(Montreal, 1880), p. 130 B; J. R. Swanton, _Contributions to the
Ethnology of the Haida_ (Leyden and New York, 1905), pp. 48-50 (_The
Jesup North Pacific Expedition, Memoir of the American Museum of
Natural History_, New York). Speaking of the customs observed at
Kloo, where the girls had to abstain from salmon for five years, Mr.
Swanton says (p. 49): “When five years had passed, the girl came
out, and could do as she pleased.” This seems to imply that the girl
was secluded in the house for five years. We have seen (above, p.
32) that in New Ireland the girls used sometimes to be secluded for
the same period.

M36 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Tlingit Indians of Alaska.

117 G. H. von Langsdorff, _Reise um die Welt_ (Frankfort, 1812), ii. 114
_sq._; H. J. Holmberg, “Ethnographische Skizzen über die Völker des
Russischen Amerika,” _Acta Societatis Scientiarum Fennicae_, iv.
(Helsingfors, 1856) pp. 319 _sq._; T. de Pauly, _Description
Ethnographique des Peuples de la Russie_ (St. Petersburg, 1862),
_Peuples de l’Amérique Russe_, p. 13; A. Erman, “Ethnographische
Wahrnehmungen und Erfahrungen an den Küsten des Berings-Meeres,”
_Zeitschrift für Ethnologie_, ii. (1870) pp. 318 _sq._; H. H.
Bancroft, _Native Races of the Pacific States_ (London, 1875-1876),
i. 110 _sq._; Rev. Sheldon Jackson, “Alaska and its Inhabitants,”
_The American Antiquarian_, ii. (Chicago, 1879-1880) pp. 111 _sq._;
A. Woldt, _Captain Jacobsen’s Reise an der Nordwestküste Americas,
1881-1883_ (Leipsic, 1884), p. 393; Aurel Krause, _Die
Tlinkit-Indianer_ (Jena, 1885), pp. 217 _sq._; W. M. Grant, in
_Journal of American Folk-lore_, i. (1888) p. 169; John R. Swanton,
“Social Conditions, Beliefs, and Linguistic Relationship of the
Tlingit Indians,” _Twenty-sixth Annual Report of the Bureau of
American Ethnology_ (Washington, 1908), p. 428.

M37 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Tsetsaut and Bella Coola
Indians of British Columbia.

118 Franz Boas, in _Tenth Report of the Committee on the North-Western
Tribes of Canada_, p. 45 (separate reprint from the _Report of the
British Association for the Advancement of Science_, Ipswich
meeting, 1895).

119 Franz Boas, in _Fifth Report of the Committee on the North-Western
Tribes of Canada_, p. 42 (separate reprint from the _Report of the
British Association for the Advancement of Science_,
Newcastle-upon-Tyne meeting, 1889); _id._, in _Seventh Report_,
etc., p. 12 (separate reprint from the _Report of the British
Association for the Advancement of Science_, Cardiff meeting, 1891).

M38 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Tinneh Indians of British
Columbia.

120 “Customs of the New Caledonian women belonging to the Nancaushy
Tine, or Stuart’s Lake Indians, Natotin Tine, or Babine’s and
Nantley Tine, or Fraser Lake Tribes,” from information supplied by
Gavin Hamilton, chief factor of the Hudson’s Bay Company’s service,
who has been for many years among these Indians, both he and his
wife speaking their languages fluently (communicated by Dr. John
Rae), _Journal of the Anthropological Institute_, vii. (1878) pp.
206 _sq._

M39 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Tinneh Indians of Alaska.

121 Émile Petitot, _Traditions Indiennes du Canada Nord-ouest_ (Paris,
1886), pp. 257 _sq._

122 Fr. Julius Jetté, S.J., “On the Superstitions of the Ten’a Indians,”
_Anthropos_, vi. (1911) pp. 700-702.

123 Compare _The Magic Art and the Evolution of Kings_, i. 70 _sqq._

M40 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Thompson Indians of British
Columbia.

124 James Teit, _The Thompson Indians of British Columbia_, pp. 311-317
(_The Jesup North Pacific Expedition, Memoir of the American Museum
of Natural History_, New York, April, 1900). As to the customs
observed among these Indians by the father of a girl at such times
in order not to lose his luck in hunting, see _Spirits of the Corn
and of the Wild_, ii. 268.

M41 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Lillooet Indians of British
Columbia.

125 James Teit, _The Lillooet Indians_ (Leyden and New York, 1906), pp.
263-265 (_The Jesup North Pacific Expedition, Memoir of the American
Museum of Natural History_, New York). Compare C. Hill Tout, “Report
on the Ethnology of the Stlatlumh of British Columbia,” _Journal of
the Anthropological Institute_, xxxv. (1905) p. 136.

M42 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Shuswap Indians of British
Columbia.

126 Franz Boas, in _Sixth Report of the Committee on the North-Western
Tribes of Canada_, pp. 89 _sq._ (separate reprint from the _Report
of the British Association for the Advancement of Science_, Leeds
meeting, 1890).

127 James Teit, _The Shuswap_ (Leyden and New York, 1909), pp. 587 _sq._
(_The Jesup North Pacific Expedition, Memoir of the American Museum
of Natural History_, New York).

M43 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Delaware and Cheyenne
Indians.

128 G. H. Loskiel, _History of the Mission of the United Brethren among
the Indians of North America_ (London, 1794), Part i. pp. 56 _sq._

129 G. B. Grinnell, “Cheyenne Woman Customs,” _American Anthropologist_,
New Series, iv. (New York, 1902) pp. 13 _sq._ The Cheyennes appear
to have been at first settled on the Mississippi, from which they
were driven westward to the Missouri. See _Handbook of American
Indians north of Mexico_, edited by F. W. Hodge (Washington,
1907-1910), i. 250 _sqq._

M44 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Esquimaux.

130 H. J. Holmberg, “Ueber die Völker des Russischen Amerika,” _Acta
Societatis Scientiarum Fennicae_, iv. (Helsingfors, 1856) pp. 401
_sq._; Ivan Petroff, _Report on the Population, Industries and
Resources of Alaska_, p. 143.

131 E. W. Nelson, “The Eskimo about Bering Strait,” _Eighteenth Annual
Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology_, Part i. (Washington,
1899) p. 291.

M45 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Guaranis, Chiriguanos, and
Lengua Indians of South America.

132 Jose Guevara, “Historia del Paraguay, Rio de la Plata, y Tucuman,”
pp. 16 _sq._, in Pedro de Angelis, _Coleccion de Obras y Documentos
relativos a la Historia antigua y moderna de las Provincias del Rio
de la Plata_, vol. ii. (Buenos-Ayres, 1836); J. F. Lafitau, _Mœurs
des Sauvages Ameriquains_ (Paris, 1724), i. 262 _sq._

133 Father Ignace Chomé, in _Lettres Édifiantes et Curieuses_, Nouvelle
Édition (Paris, 1780-1783), viii. 333. As to the Chiriguanos, see C.
F. Phil. von Martius, _Zur Ethnographie Amerika’s, zumal Brasiliens_
(Leipsic, 1867), pp. 212 _sqq._; Colonel G. E. Church, _Aborigines
of South America_ (London, 1912), pp. 207-227.

134 A. Thouar, _Explorations dans l’Amérique du Sud_ (Paris, 1891), pp.
48 _sq._; G. Kurze, “Sitten und Gebräuche der Lengua-Indianer,”
_Mitteilungen der Geographischen Gesellschaft zu Jena_, xxiii.
(1905) pp. 26 _sq._ The two accounts appear to be identical; but the
former attributes the custom to the Chiriguanos, the latter to the
Lenguas. As the latter account is based on the reports of the Rev.
W. B. Grubb, a missionary who has been settled among the Indians of
the Chaco for many years and is our principal authority on them, I
assume that the ascription of the custom to the Lenguas is correct.
However, in the volume on the Lengua Indians, which has been edited
from Mr. Grubb’s papers (_An Unknown People in an Unknown Land_,
London, 1911), these details as to the seclusion of girls at puberty
are not mentioned, though what seems to be the final ceremony is
described (_op. cit._ pp. 177 _sq._). From the description we learn
that boys dressed in ostrich feathers and wearing masks circle round
the girl with shrill cries, but are repelled by the women.

M46 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Yuracares of Bolivia.

135 Alcide d’Orbigny, _Voyage dans l’Amérique Méridionale_, vol. iii.
1re Partie (Paris and Strasburg, 1844), pp. 205 _sq._

M47 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Indians of the Gran Chaco,
and Brazil.

136 A. Thouar, _Explorations dans l’Amérique du Sud_ (Paris, 1891) pp.
56 _sq._; Father Cardus, quoted in J. Pelleschi’s _Los Indios
Matacos_ (Buenos Ayres, 1897), pp. 47 _sq._

137 A. Thouar, _op. cit._ p. 63.

138 Francis de Castelnau, _Expédition dans les parties centrales de
l’Amérique du Sud_ (Paris, 1850-1851), v. 25.

139 D. Luis de la Cruz, “Descripcion de la Naturaleza de los Terrenos
que se comprenden en los Andes, poseidos por los Peguenches y los
demas espacios hasta el rio de Chadileuba,” p. 62, in Pedro de
Angelis, _Coleccion de Obras y Documentos relativos a la Historia
antigua y moderna de las Provincias del Rio de la Plata_, vol. i.
(Buenos-Ayres, 1836). Apparently the Peguenches are an Indian tribe
of Chili.

140 J. B. von Spix und C. F. Ph. von Martius, _Reise in Brasilien_
(Munich, 1823-1831), iii. 1186, 1187, 1318.

141 André Thevet, _Cosmographie Universelle_ (Paris, 1575), ii. 946 B
[980] _sq._; _id._, _Les Singularitez de la France Antarctique,
autrement nommée Amerique_ (Antwerp, 1558), p. 76; J. F. Lafitau,
_Mœurs des Sauvages Ameriquains_ (Paris, 1724), i. 290 _sqq._,

M48 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Indians of Guiana. Custom of
beating the girls and of causing them to be stung by ants.

142 R. Schomburgk, _Reisen in Britisch Guiana_ (Leipsic, 1847-1848), ii.
315 _sq._; C. F. Ph. von Martius, _Zur Ethnographie Amerika’s, zumal
Brasiliens_ (Leipsic, 1867), p. 644.

143 Labat, _Voyage du Chevalier des Marchais en Guinée, Isles voisines,
et à Cayenne_, iv. 365 _sq._ (Paris, 1730), pp. 17 _sq._ (Amsterdam,
1731).

144 A. Caulin, _Historia Coro-graphica natural y evangelica dela Nueva
Andalucia_ (1779), p. 93. A similar custom, with the omission of the
stinging, is reported of the Tamanaks in the region of the Orinoco.
See F. S. Gilij, _Saggio di Storia Americana_, ii. (Rome, 1781), p.
133.

145 A. R. Wallace, _Narrative of Travels on the Amazon and Rio Negro_,
p. 496 (p. 345 of the Minerva Library edition, London, 1889).

M49 Custom in South America of causing young men to be stung with ants
as an initiatory rite.

_ 146 Taboo and the Perils of the Soul_, pp. 105 _sqq._; _The Scapegoat_,
pp. 259 _sqq._

147 J. B. von Spix and C. F. Ph. von Martius, _Reise in Brasilien_
(Munich, 1823-1831), iii. 1320.

148 W. Lewis Herndon, _Exploration of the Valley of the Amazon_
(Washington, 1854), pp. 319 _sq._ The scene was described to Mr.
Herndon by a French engineer and architect, M. de Lincourt, who
witnessed it at Manduassu, a village on the Tapajos river. Mr.
Herndon adds: “The _Tocandeira_ ants not only bite, but are also
armed with a sting like the wasp; but the pain felt from it is more
violent. I think it equal to that occasioned by the sting of the
black scorpion.” He gives the name of the Indians as Mahues, but I
assume that they are the same as the Mauhes described by Spix and
Martius.

149 Francis de Castelnau, _Expédition dans les parties centrales de
l’Amérique du Sud_ (Paris, 1850-1851), v. 46.

150 L’Abbé Durand, “Le Rio Negro du Nord et son bassin,” _Bulletin de la
Société de Géographie_ (Paris), vi. Série, iii. (1872) pp. 21 _sq._
The writer says that the candidate has to keep his arms plunged up
to the shoulders in vessels full of ants, “as in a bath of vitriol,”
for hours. He gives the native name of the ant as _issauba_.

151 J. Crevaux, _Voyages dans l’Amérique du Sud_ (Paris, 1883), pp.
245-250.

M50 Custom of causing men and women to be stung with ants to improve
their character and health or to render them invulnerable.

152 H. Coudreau, _Chez nos Indiens: quatre années dans la Guyane
Française_ (Paris, 1895), p. 228. For details as to the different
modes of administering the _maraké_, see _ibid._ pp. 228-235.

153 Father Geronimo Boscana, “Chinigchinich,” in _Life in California by
an American_ [A. Robinson] (New York, 1846), pp. 273 _sq._

154 F. Stuhlmann, _Mit Emin Pascha ins Herz von Afrika_ (Berlin, 1894),
p. 506.

M51 In such cases the beating or stinging was originally a purification;
at a later time it is interpreted as a test of courage and
endurance.

155 As a confirmation of this view it may be pointed out that beating or
scourging is inflicted on inanimate objects expressly for the
purpose indicated in the text. Thus the Indians of Costa Rica hold
that there are two kinds of ceremonial uncleanness, _nya_ and
_bu-ku-rú_. Anything that has been connected with a death is _nya_.
But _bu-ku-rú_ is much more virulent. It can not only make one sick
but kill. “_Bu-ku-rú_ emanates in a variety of ways; arms, utensils,
even houses become affected by it after long disuse, and before they
can be used again must be purified. In the case of portable objects
left undisturbed for a long time, the custom is to beat them with a
stick before touching them. I have seen a woman take a long
walking-stick and beat a basket hanging from the roof of a house by
a cord. On asking what that was for, I was told that the basket
contained her treasures, that she would probably want to take
something out the next day, and that she was driving off the
_bu-ku-rú_. A house long unused must be swept, and then the person
who is purifying it must take a stick and beat not only the movable
objects, but the beds, posts, and in short every accessible part of
the interior. The next day it is fit for occupation. A place not
visited for a long time or reached for the first time is _bu-ku-rú_.
On our return from the ascent of Pico Blanco, nearly all the party
suffered from little calenturas, the result of extraordinary
exposure to wet and cold and of want of food. The Indians said that
the peak was especially _bu-ku-rú_, since nobody had ever been on it
before.” One day Mr. Gabb took down some dusty blow-guns amid cries
of _bu-ku-rú_ from the Indians. Some weeks afterwards a boy died,
and the Indians firmly believed that the _bu-ku-rú_ of the blow-guns
had killed him. “From all the foregoing, it would seem that
_bu-ku-rú_ is a sort of evil spirit that takes possession of the
object, and resents being disturbed; but I have never been able to
learn from the Indians that they consider it so. They seem to think
of it as a property the object acquires. But the worst _bu-ku-rú_ of
all, is that of a young woman in her first pregnancy. She infects
the whole neighbourhood. Persons going from the house where she
lives, carry the infection with them to a distance, and all the
deaths or other serious misfortunes in the vicinity are laid to her
charge. In the old times, when the savage laws and customs were in
full force, it was not an uncommon thing for the husband of such a
woman to pay damages for casualties thus caused by his unfortunate
wife.” See Wm. M. Gabb, “On the Indian Tribes and Languages of Costa
Rica,” _Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society held at
Philadelphia_, xiv. (Philadelphia, 1876) pp. 504 _sq._

M52 This explanation confirmed with reference to the beating of girls at
puberty among the South American Indians. Treatment of a girl at
puberty among the Banivas of the Orinoco. Symptoms of puberty in a
girl regarded as wounds inflicted by a demon.

156 J. Chaffanjon, _L’Orénoque et le Caura_ (Paris, 1889), pp. 213-215.

M53 Seclusion of girls at puberty among the Hindoos, in Southern India.

157 Shib Chunder Bose, _The Hindoos as they are_ (London and Calcutta,
1881), p. 86. Similarly, after a Brahman boy has been invested with
the sacred thread, he is for three days strictly forbidden to see
the sun. He may not eat salt, and he is enjoined to sleep either on
a carpet or a deer’s skin, without a mattress or mosquito curtain
(_ibid._ p. 186). In Bali, boys who have had their teeth filed, as a
preliminary to marriage, are kept shut up in a dark room for three
days (R. Van Eck, “Schetsen van het eiland Bali,” _Tijdschrift voor
Nederlandsch Indië_, N.S., ix. (1880) pp. 428 _sq._).

158 (Sir) H. H. Risley, _Tribes and Castes of Bengal, Ethnographic
Glossary_ (Calcutta, 1891-1892), i. 152.

159 Edgar Thurston, _Castes and Tribes of Southern India_ (Madras,
1909), vii. 63 _sq._

160 Edgar Thurston, _op. cit._ iii. 218.

161 Edgar Thurston, _op. cit._ vi. 157.

162 S. Mateer, _Native Life in Travancore_ (London, 1883), p. 45.

163 Arthur A. Perera, “Glimpses of Singhalese Social Life,” _Indian
Antiquary_, xxxi. (1902) p. 380.

M54 Seclusion of girls at puberty in Cambodia.

164 J. Moura, _Le Royaume du Cambodge_ (Paris, 1883), i. 377.

165 Étienne Aymonier, “Notes sur les coutumes et croyances
superstitieuses des Cambodgiens,” _Cochinchine Française: Excursions
et Reconnaissances_, No. 16 (Saigon, 1883), pp. 193 _sq._ Compare
_id._,_ Notice sur le Cambodge_ (Paris, 1875), p. 50; _id._, _Notes
sur le Laos_ (Saigon, 1885), p. 177.

M55 Traces of the seclusion of girls at puberty in folk-tales. Danish
story of the girl who might not see the sun.

166 Svend Grundtvig, _Dänische Volksmärchen_, übersetzt von A.
Strodtmann, Zweite Sammlung (Leipsic, 1879), pp. 199 _sqq._

M56 Tyrolese story of the girl who might not see the sun.

167 Christian Schneller, _Märchen und Sagen aus Wälschtirol_ (Innsbruck,
1867), No. 22, pp. 51 _sqq._

M57 Modern Greek stories of the maid who might not see the sun.

168 Bernhard Schmidt, _Griechische Märchen, Sagen und Volkslieder_
(Leipsic, 1877), p. 98.

169 J. G. von Hahn, _Griechische und albanesische Märchen_ (Leipsic,
1864), No. 41, vol. i. pp. 245 _sqq._

170 Laura Gonzenbach, _Sicilianische Märchen_ (Leipsic, 1870), No. 28,
vol. i. pp. 177 _sqq._ The incident of the bone occurs in other
folk-tales. A prince or princess is shut up for safety in a tower
and makes his or her escape by scraping a hole in the wall with a
bone which has been accidentally conveyed into the tower; sometimes
it is expressly said that care was taken to let the princess have no
bones with her meat (J. G. von Hahn, _op. cit._ No. 15; L.
Gonzenbach, _op. cit._ Nos. 26, 27; _Der Pentamerone, aus dem
Neapolitanischen übertragen_ von Felix Liebrecht (Breslau, 1846),
No. 23, vol. i. pp. 294 _sqq._). From this we should infer that it
is a rule with savages not to let women handle the bones of animals
during their monthly seclusions. We have already seen the great
respect with which the savage treats the bones of game (_Spirits of
the Corn and of the Wild_, ii. 238 _sqq._, 256 _sqq._); and women in
their courses are specially forbidden to meddle with the hunter or
fisher, as their contact or neighbourhood would spoil his sport (see
below, pp. 77, 78 _sq._, 87, 89 _sqq._). In folk-tales the hero who
uses the bone is sometimes a boy; but the incident might easily be
transferred from a girl to a boy after its real meaning had been
forgotten. Amongst the Tinneh Indians a girl at puberty is forbidden
to break the bones of hares (above, p. 48). On the other hand, she
drinks out of a tube made of a swan’s bone (above, pp. 48, 49), and
the same instrument is used for the same purpose by girls of the
Carrier tribe of Indians (see below, p. 92). We have seen that a
Tlingit (Thlinkeet) girl in the same circumstances used to drink out
of the wing-bone of a white-headed eagle (above, p. 45), and that
among the Nootka and Shuswap tribes girls at puberty are provided
with bones or combs with which to scratch themselves, because they
may not use their fingers for this purpose (above, pp. 44, 53).

M58 The story of Danae and its parallel in a Kirghiz legend.

171 Sophocles, Antigone, 944 _sqq._; Apollodorus, _Bibliotheca_, ii. 4.
1; Horace, _Odes_, iii. 16. 1. _sqq._; Pausanias, ii. 23. 7.

172 W. Radloff, _Proben der Volkslitteratur der türkischen Stämme
Süd-Sibiriens_, iii. (St. Petersburg, 1870) pp. 82 _sq._

M59 Impregnation of women by the sun in legends.

173 H. Ternaux-Compans, _Essai sur l’ancien Cundinamarca_ (Paris, N.D.),
p. 18.

174 George Turner, LL.D., _Samoa, a Hundred Years ago and long before_
(London, 1884), p. 200. For other examples of such tales, see Adolph
Bastian, _Die Voelker des Oestlichen Asien_, i. 416, vi. 25; _Panjab
Notes and Queries_, ii. p. 148, § 797 (June, 1885); A. Pfizmaier,
“Nachrichten von den alten Bewohnern des heutigen Corea,”
_Sitzungsberichte der philosoph. histor. Classe der kaiser. Akademie
der Wissenschaften_ (Vienna), lvii. (1868) pp. 495 _sq._

M60 Traces in marriage customs of the belief that women can be
impregnated by the sun. Belief in the impregnation of women by the
moon.

175 Thomas J. Hutchinson, “On the Chaco and other Indians of South
America,” _Transactions of the Ethnological Society of London_, N.S.
iii. (1865) p. 327. Amongst the Lengua Indians of the Paraguayan
Chaco the marriage feast is now apparently extinct. See W. Barbrooke
Grubb, _An Unknown People in an Unknown Land_ (London, 1911), p.
179.

176 Monier Williams, _Religious Thought and Life in India_ (London,
1883), p. 354.

177 H. Vambery, _Das Türkenvolk_ (Leipsic, 1885), p. 112.

178 Hans Egede, _A Description of Greenland_ (London, 1818), p. 209.

_ 179 Revue des Traditions Populaires_, xv. (1900) p. 471.

M61 The reason for the seclusion of women at puberty is the dread of
menstruous blood.

_ 180 Taboo and the Perils of the Soul_, pp. 145 _sqq._

M62 Dread and seclusion of menstruous women among the aborigines of
Australia.

181 H. E. A. Meyer, “Manners and Customs of the Aborigines of the
Encounter Bay Tribe, South Australia,” _The Native Tribes of South
Australia_ (Adelaide, 1879), p. 186.

182 E. J. Eyre, _Journals of Expeditions of Discovery into Central
Australia_ (London, 1845), ii. 304.

183 E. J. Eyre, _op. cit._ ii. 295.

184 R. Brough Smyth, _The Aborigines of Victoria_ (Melbourne and London,
1878), i. 236.

185 Samuel Gason, in _Journal of the Anthropological Institute_, xxiv.
(1895) p. 171.

186 Baldwin Spencer and F. J. Gillen, _Native Tribes of Central
Australia_ (London, 1899), p. 473; _idem_, _Northern Tribes of
Central Australia_ (London, 1904), p. 615.

187 James Dawson, _Australian Aborigines_ (Melbourne, Sydney, and
Adelaide, 1881), pp. ci. _sq._

M63 Severe penalties inflicted for breaches of the custom of seclusion.

188 Rev. William Ridley, “Report on Australian Languages and
Traditions,” _Journal of the Anthropological Institute_, ii. (1873)
p. 268. Compare _id._, _Kamilaroi and other Australian Languages_
(Sydney, 1875), p. 157.

189 A. W. Howitt, _The Native Tribes of South-East Australia_ (London,
1904), pp. 776 _sq._, on the authority of Mr. J. C. Muirhead. The
Wakelbura are in Central Queensland. Compare Captain W. E. Armit,
quoted in _Journal of the Anthropological Institute_, ix. (1880) pp.
459 _sq._

M64 Dread and seclusion of menstruous women in the Torres Straits
Islands, New Guinea, Galela, and Sumatra.

_ 190 Reports of the Cambridge Anthropological Expedition to Torres
Straits_, v. (Cambridge, 1904) pp. 196, 207.

191 Ch. Keysser, “Aus dem Leben der Kaileute,” in R. Neuhauss’s _Deutsch
Neu-Guinea_ (Berlin, 1911), iii. 91.

192 M. J. van Baarda, “Fabelen, Verhalen en Overleveringen der
Galelareezen,” _Bijdragen tot de Taal- Land- en Volkenkunde van
Nederlandsch-Indië_, xlv. (1895) p. 489.

193 J. L. van der Toorn, “Het animisme bij den Minangkabauer der
Padangsche Bovenlanden,” _Bijdragen tot de Taal- Land- en
Volkenkunde van Nederlandsch-Indië_, xxxix. (1890) p. 66.

M65 Dread and seclusion of menstruous women among the tribes of South
Africa, Central and East Africa.

194 W. H. I. Bleek, _A Brief Account of Bushman Folk-lore_ (London,
1875), p. 14; compare _ibid._, p. 10.

195 Rev. James Macdonald, “Manners, Customs, Superstitions and Religions
of South African Tribes,” _Journal of the Anthropological
Institute_, xx. (1891) p. 138; _id._, _Light in Africa_, Second
Edition (London, 1890), p. 221.

196 Dudley Kidd, _The Essential Kafir_ (London, 1904), p. 238; Mr.
Warren’s Notes, in Col. Maclean’s _Compendium of Kafir Laws and
Customs_ (Cape Town, 1866), p. 93; Rev. J. Macdonald, _Light in
Africa_, p. 221; _id._, _Religion and Myth_ (London, 1893), p. 198.
Compare Henri A. Junod, “Les conceptions physiologiques des Bantou
Sud-Africains et leurs tabous,” _Revue d’Ethnographie et de
Sociologie_, i. (1910) p. 139. The danger of death to the cattle
from the blood of women is mentioned only by Mr. Kidd. The part of
the village which is frequented by the cattle, and which accordingly
must be shunned by women, has a special name, _inkundhla_ (Mr.
Warner’s Notes, _l.c._).

197 Rev. J. Roscoe, “The Bahima, a Cow Tribe of Enkole,” _Journal of the
Royal Anthropological Institute_, xxxvii. (1907) p. 106.

198 Rev. J. Roscoe, _The Baganda_ (London, 1911), p. 419.

199 Rev. J. Roscoe, _The Baganda_, p. 96.

200 Rev. J. Roscoe, “Notes on the Manners and Customs of the Baganda,”
_Journal of the Anthropological Institute_, xxxi. (1901) p. 121;
_id._, “Further Notes on the Manners and Customs of the Baganda,”
_Journal of the Anthropological Institute_, xxxii. (1902) p. 39;
_id._, _The Baganda_, p. 352.

201 Rev. J. Roscoe, _The Baganda_, p. 459.

202 C. W. Hobley, “Further Researches into Kikuyu and Kamba Religious
Beliefs and Customs,” _Journal of the Royal Anthropological
Institute_, xli. (1911) p. 409.

203 Mervyn W. H. Beech, _The Suk, their Language and Folklore_ (Oxford,
1911), p. 11.

204 H. S. Stannus, “Notes on some Tribes of British Central Africa,”
_Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute_, xl. (1910) p. 305;
R. Sutherland Rattray, _Some Folk-lore Stories and Songs in
Chinyanja_ (London, 1907), p. 191. See above, p. 27.

M66 Dread and seclusion of menstruous women among the tribes of West
Africa.

205 Jakob Spieth, _Die Ewe-Stämme_ (Berlin, 1906), p. 192.

206 Anton Witte, “Menstruation und Pubertätsfeier der Mädchen in
Kpandugebiet Togo,” _Baessler-Archiv_, i. (1911) p. 279.

M67 Powerful influence ascribed to menstruous blood in Arab legend.

207 Th. Nöldeke, _Geschichte der Perser und Araber zur Zeit der
Sassaniden, aus der arabischen Chronik des Tabari übersetzt_
(Leyden, 1879), pp. 33-38. I have to thank my friend Professor A. A.
Bevan for pointing out to me this passage. Many ancient cities had
talismans on the preservation of which their safety was believed to
depend. The Palladium of Troy is the most familiar instance. See
Chr. A. Lobeck, _Aglaophamus_ (Königsberg, 1829), pp. 278 _sqq._,
and my note on Pausanias, viii. 47. 5 (vol. iv. pp. 433 _sq._).

M68 Dread and seclusion of menstruous women among the Jews, in Syria,
India, and Annam.

208 J. Mergel, _Die Medezin der Talmudisten_ (Leipsic and Berlin, 1885),
pp. 15 _sq._

209 Maimonides, quoted by D. Chwolsohn, _Die Ssabier und der Ssabismus_
(St. Petersburg, 1856), ii. 483. According to the editor (p. 735) by
the East Maimonides means India and eastern countries generally.

210 L’abbé Béchara Chémali, “Naissance et premier âge au Liban,”
_Anthropos_, v. (1910) p. 735.

211 Eijūb Abēla, “Beiträge zur Kenntniss abergläubischer Gebräuche in
Syrien,” _Zeitschrift des deutschen Palaestina-Vereins_, vii. (1884)
p. 111.

212 J. Chalmers, “Toaripi,” _Journal of the Anthropological Institute_,
xxvii. (1898) p. 328.

213 W. Crooke, _Tribes and Castes of the North-Western Provinces and
Oudh_ (Calcutta, 1896), ii. 87.

214 W. Crooke, _in North Indian Notes and Queries_, i. p. 67, § 467
(July, 1891).

215 L. K. Anantha Krishna Iyer, _The Cochin Tribes and Castes_, i.
(Madras, 1909) pp. 201-203. As to the seclusion of menstruous women
among the Hindoos, see also Sonnerat, _Voyage aux Indes Orientales
et à la Chine_ (Paris, 1782), i. 31; J. A. Dubois, _Mœurs,
Institutions et Cérémonies des Peuples de l’Inde_ (Paris, 1825), i.
245 _sq._ Nair women in Malabar seclude themselves for three days at
menstruation and prepare their food in separate pots and pans. See
Duarte Barbosa, _Description of the Coasts of East Africa and
Malabar in the beginning of the Sixteenth Century_ (Hakluyt Society,
London, 1866), pp. 132 _sq._

216 G. Hoffman, _Auszüge aus Syrischen Akten persisischer Martyrer
übersetzt_ (Leipsic, 1880), p. 99. This passage was pointed out to
me by my friend Professor A. A. Bevan.

217 J. B. Tavernier, _Voyages en Turquie, en Perse, et aux Indes_ (The
Hague, 1718), i. 488.

218 Paul Giran, _Magie et Religion Annamites_ (Paris, 1912), pp. 107
_sq._, 112.

M69 Dread and seclusion of menstruous women among the Indians of South
and Central America.

219 Joseph Gumilla, _Histoire Naturelle, Civile, et Géographique de
l’Orenoque_ (Avignon, 1758), i. 249.

220 Dr. Louis Plassard, “Les Guaraunos et le delta de l’Orénoque,”
_Bulletin de la Société de Géographie_ (Paris), v. Série, xv. (1868)
p. 584.

221 J. Crevaux, _Voyages dans l’Amérique du Sud_ (Paris, 1883), p. 526.
As to the customs observed at menstruation by Indian women in South
America, see further A. d’Orbigny, _L’Homme Americain_ (Paris,
1839), i. 237.

222 Chas. N. Bell, “The Mosquito Territory,” _Journal of the Royal
Geographical Society_, xxxii. (1862) p. 254.

223 H. Pittier de Fabrega, “Die Sprache der Bribri-Indianer in Costa
Rica,” _Sitzungsberichte der philosophischen-historischen Classe der
Kaiserlichen Akademie der Wissenschaften_ (Vienna), cxxxviii. (1898)
pp. 19 _sq._

M70 Dread and seclusion of menstruous women among the Indians of North
America.

224 Gabriel Sagard, _Le Grand Voyage du Pays des Hurons_, Nouvelle
Édition (Paris, 1865), p. 54 (original edition, Paris, 1632); J. F.
Lafitau, _Mœurs des Sauvages Ameriquains_ (Paris, 1724), i. 262;
Charlevoix, _Histoire de la Nouvelle France_ (Paris, 1744), v. 423
sq.; Captain Jonathan Carver, _Travels through the Interior Parts of
North America_, Third Edition (London, 1781), pp. 236 _sq._;
Captains Lewis and Clark, _Expedition to the Sources of the
Missouri_, etc. (London, 1905), iii. 90 (original edition, 1814);
Rev. Jedidiah Morse, _Report to the Secretary of War of the United
States on Indian Affairs_ (New Haven, 1822), pp. 136 _sq._; _Annales
de l’Association de la Propagation de la Foi_, iv. (Paris and Lyons,
1830) pp. 483, 494 _sq._; George Catlin, _Letters and Notes on the
Manners, Customs, and Condition of the North American Indians_,
Fourth Edition (London, 1844), ii. 233; H. R. Schoolcraft, _Indian
Tribes of the United States_ (Philadelphia, 1853-1856), v. 70; A. L.
Kroeber, “The Religion of the Indians of California,” _University of
California Publications in American Archaeology and Ethnology_, vol.
iv. No. 6 (Berkeley, September, 1907), pp. 323 _sq._; Frank G.
Speck, _Ethnology of the Yuchi Indians_ (Philadelphia, 1909), p. 96.
Among the Hurons of Canada women at their periods did not retire
from the house or village, but they ate from small dishes apart from
the rest of the family at these times (Gabriel Sagard, _l.c._).

M71 Dread and seclusion of menstruous women among the Creek, Choctaw,
Omaha, and Cheyenne Indians.

225 James Adair, _History of the American Indians_ (London, 1775), pp.
123 _sq._

226 Bossu, _Nouveaux Voyages aux Indes occidentales_ (Paris, 1768), ii.
105.

227 Edwin James, _Account of an Expedition from Pittsburgh to the Rocky
Mountains_ (London, 1823), i. 214.

228 William H. Keating, _Narrative of an Expedition to the Source of St.
Peter’s River_ (London, 1825), i. 132.

229 G. B. Grinnell, “Cheyenne Woman Customs,” _American Anthropologist_,
New Series, iv. (New York, 1902) p. 14.

M72 Dread and seclusion of menstruous women among the Indians of British
Columbia.

230 C. Hill Tout, “Ethnological Report on the Stseelis and Skaulits
Tribes of the Halokmelem Division of the Salish of British
Columbia,” _Journal of the Anthropological Institute_, xxxiv. (1904)
p. 320.

231 James Teit, _The Thompson Indians of British Columbia_, pp. 326
_sq._ (_The Jesup North Pacific Expedition, Memoir of the American
Museum of Natural History_, New York, April, 1900).

M73 Dread and seclusion of menstruous women among the Chippeway Indians.

232 Samuel Hearne, _Journey from Prince of Wales’s Fort in Hudson’s Bay
to the Northern Ocean_ (London, 1795), pp. 314 _sq._; Alex.
Mackenzie, _Voyages through the Continent of North America_ (London,
1801), p. cxxiii.; E. Petitot, _Monographie des Dènè-Dindjié_
(Paris, 1876), pp. 75 _sq._

233 C. Leemius, _De Lapponibus Finmarchiae eorumque lingua vita et
religione pristina_ (Copenhagen, 1767), p. 494.

234 E. W. Nelson, “The Eskimo about Bering Strait,” _Eighteenth Annual
Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology_, Part i. (Washington,
1899) p. 440.

M74 Dread and seclusion of menstruous women among the Tinneh or Déné
Indians. Customs and beliefs of the Carrier Indians in regard to
menstruous women.

235 The Carriers are a tribe of Déné or Tinneh Indians who get their
name from a custom observed among them by widows, who carry, or
rather used to carry, the charred bones of their dead husbands about
with them in bundles.

M75 Seclusion of Carrier girls at puberty.

236 Hence we may conjecture that the similar ornaments worn by Mabuiag
girls in similar circumstances are also amulets. See above, p. 36.
Among the aborigines of the Upper Yarra river in Victoria, a girl at
puberty used to have cords tied very tightly round several parts of
her body. The cords were worn for several days, causing the whole
body to swell very much and inflicting great pain. The girl might
not remove them till she was clean. See R. Brough Smyth, _Aborigines
of Victoria_ (Melbourne and London, 1878), i. 65. Perhaps the cords
were intended to arrest the flow of blood.

M76 Seclusion of Carrier women at their monthly periods. Reasons for the
seclusion of menstruous women among the Indians.

237 Rev. Father A.G. Morice, “The Western Dénés, their Manners and
Customs,” _Proceedings of the Canadian Institute_, Toronto, Third
Series, vii. (1888-89) pp. 162-164. The writer has repeated the
substance of this account in a later work, _Au pays de l’Ours Noir:
chez les sauvages de la Colombie Britannique_ (Paris and Lyons,
1897), pp. 72 _sq._

238 A. G. Morice, “Notes, Archaeological, Industrial, and Sociological,
on the Western Dénés,” _Transactions of the Canadian Institute_, iv.
(1892-93) pp. 106 _sq._ Compare Rev. Father Julius Jetté, “On the
Superstitions of the Ten’a Indians,” _Anthropos_, vi. (1911) pp. 703
_sq._, who tells us that Tinneh women at these times may not lift
their own nets, may not step over other people’s nets, and may not
pass in a boat or canoe near a place where nets are being set.

239 A. G. Morice, in _Transactions of the Canadian Institute_, iv.
(1892-93) pp. 107, 110.

240 James Teit, _The Thompson Indians of British Columbia_, p. 327 (_The
Jesup North Pacific Expedition, Memoir of the American Museum of
Natural History_, New York, April 1900).

241 See above, p. 53.

M77 Similar rules of seclusion enjoined on menstruous women in ancient
Hindoo, Persian, and Hebrew codes.

_ 242 Laws of Manu_, translated by G. Bühler (Oxford, 1886), ch. iv. 41
sq., p. 135 (_Sacred Books of the East_, vol. xxv.).

_ 243 The Zend-Avesta_, translated by J. Darmesteter, i. (Oxford, 1880)
p. xcii. (_Sacred Books of the East_, vol. iv.). See _id._, pp. 9,
181-185, _Fargard_, i. 18 and 19, xvi. 1-18.

M78 Superstitions as to menstruous women in ancient and modern Europe.

244 Pliny, _Nat. Hist._ vii. 64 _sq._, xxviii. 77 _sqq._ Compare
_Geoponica_, xii. 20. 5 and 25. 2; Columella, _De re rustica_, xi.
357 _sqq._

245 August Schleicher, _Volkstümliches ans Sonnenberg_ (Weimar, 1858),
p. 134; B. Souché, _Croyances, Présages et Traditions diverses_
(Niort, 1880), p. 11; A. Meyrac, _Traditions, Coutumes, Légendes et
Contes des Ardennes_ (Charleville, 1890), p. 171; V. Fossel,
_Volksmedicin und medicinischer Aberglaube in Steiermark_2 (Graz,
1886), p. 124. A correspondent, who withholds her name, writes to me
that in a Suffolk village, where she used to live some twenty or
thirty years ago, “every one pickled their own beef, and it was held
that if the pickling were performed by a woman during her menstrual
period the meat would not keep. If the cook were incapacitated at
the time when the pickling was due, another woman was sent for out
of the village rather than risk what was considered a certainty.”
Another correspondent informs me that in some of the dales in the
north of Yorkshire a similar belief prevailed down to recent years
with regard to the salting of pork. Another correspondent writes to
me: “The prohibition that a menstruating woman must not touch meat
that is intended for keeping appears to be common all over the
country; at least I have met with it as a confirmed and active
custom in widely separated parts of England.... It is in regard to
the salting of meat for bacon that the prohibition is most usual,
because that is the commonest process; but it exists in regard to
any meat food that is required to be kept.”

246 R. Andree, _Braunschweiger Volkskunde_ (Brunswick, 1896), p. 291.

247 W. R. Paton, in _Folk-lore_, i. (1890) p. 524.

M79 The intention of secluding menstruous women is to neutralize the
dangerous influences which are thought to emanate from them in that
condition. Suspension between heaven and earth.
M80 The same explanation applies to the similar rules of seclusion
observed by divine kings and priests. Suspension between heaven and
earth.

248 The Greeks and Romans thought that a field was completely protected
against insects if a menstruous woman walked round it with bare feet
and streaming hair (Pliny, _Nat. Hist._ xvii. 266, xxviii. 78;
Columella, _De re rustica_, x. 358 sq., xi. 3. 64; Palladius, _De re
rustica_, i. 35. 3; _Geoponica_, xii. 8. 5 _sq._; Aelian, _Nat.
Anim._ vi. 36). A similar preventive is employed for the same
purpose by North American Indians and European peasants. See H. R.
Schoolcraft, _Indian Tribes of the United States_ (Philadelphia,
1853-1856), v. 70; F. J. Wiedemann, _Aus dem inneren und äussern
Leben der Ehsten_ (St. Petersburg, 1876), p. 484. Compare J.
Haltrich, _Zur Volkskunde der Siebenbürger Sachsen_ (Vienna, 1885),
p. 280; Adolph Heinrich, _Agrarische Sitten und Gebräuche unter den
Sachsen Siebenbürgens_ (Hermannstadt, 1880), p. 14; J. Grimm,
_Deutsche Mythologie_,4 iii. 468; G. Lammert, _Volksmedizin und
medizinischer Aberglaube aus Bayern_ (Würzburg, 1869), p. 147. Among
the Western Dénés it is believed that one or two transverse lines
tattooed on the arms or legs of a young man by a pubescent girl are
a specific against premature weakness of these limbs. See A. G.
Morice, “Notes, Archaeological, Industrial, and Sociological, on the
Western Dénés,” _Transactions of the Canadian Institute_, iv.
(1892-93) p. 182. The Thompson Indians of British Columbia thought
that the Dawn of Day could and would cure hernia if only an
adolescent girl prayed to it to do so. Just before daybreak the girl
would put some charcoal in her mouth, chew it fine, and spit it out
four times on the diseased place. Then she prayed: “O Day-dawn! thy
child relies on me to obtain healing from thee, who art mystery.
Remove thou the swelling of thy child. Pity thou him, Day-Dawn!” See
James Teit, _The Thompson Indians of British Columbia_, pp. 345
_sq._ (_The Jesup North Pacific Expedition, Memoir of the American
Museum of Natural History_, New York, April, 1900). To cure the
painful and dangerous wound inflicted by a ray-fish, the Indians of
the Gran Chaco smoke the wounded limb and then cause a woman in her
courses to sit astride of it. See G. Pelleschi, _Eight Months on the
Gran Chaco of the Argentine Republic_ (London, 1886), p. 106. An
ancient Hindoo method of securing prosperity was to swallow a
portion of the menstruous fluid. See W. Caland, _Altindisches
Zauberritual_ (Amsterdam, 1900), pp. 57 _sq._ To preserve a new cow
from the evil eye Scottish Highlanders used to sprinkle menstruous
blood on the animal; and at certain seasons of the year, especially
at Beltane (the first of May) and Lammas (the first of August) it
was their custom to sprinkle the same potent liquid on the doorposts
and houses all round to guard them from harm. The fluid was applied
by means of a wisp of straw, and the person who discharged this
salutary office went round the house in the direction of the sun.
See J. G. Campbell, _Superstitions of the Highlands and Islands of
Scotland_ (Glasgow, 1900), p. 248. These are examples of the
beneficent application of the menstruous energy.

_ 249 Taboo and the Perils of the Soul_, pp. 1 _sqq._

250 For a similar reason, perhaps, ancient Hindoo ritual prescribed that
when the hair of a child’s head was shorn in the third year, the
clippings should be buried in a cow-stable, or near an _udumbara_
tree, or in a clump of _darbha_ grass, with the words, “Where
Pushan, Brihaspati, Savitri, Soma, Agni dwell, they have in many
ways searched where they should deposit it, between heaven and
earth, the waters and heaven.” See _The Grihya-Sûtras_, translated
by H. Oldenberg, Part ii. (Oxford, 1892) p. 218 (_Sacred Books of
the East_, vol. xxx.).

M81 Stories of immortality attained by suspension between heaven and
earth.

251 Petronius, _Sat._ 48; Pausanias, x. 12. 8; Justin Martyr, _Cohort ad
Graecos_, 37, p. 34 c (ed. 1742). According to another account, the
remains of the Sibyl were enclosed in an iron cage which hung from a
pillar in an ancient temple of Hercules at Argyrus (Ampelius, _Liber
Memorialis_, viii. 16).

252 A. Kuhn und W. Schwartz, _Norddeutsche Sagen, Märchen und Gebräuche_
(Leipsic, 1848), p. 70, No. 72. 1. This and the following German
parallels to the story of the Sibyl’s wish were first indicated by
Dr. M. R. James (_Classical Review_, vi. (1892) p. 74). I have
already given the stories at length in a note on Pausanias, x. 12. 8
(vol. v. pp. 292 _sq._).

253 A. Kuhn und W. Schwartz, _op. cit._ pp. 70 _sq._, No. 72. 2.

254 A. Kuhn und W. Schwartz, _op. cit._ p. 71, No. 72. 3.

255 Karl Müllenhoff, _Sagen, Märchen und Lieder der Herzogthümer
Holstein und Lauenburg_ (Kiel, 1845), pp. 158 _sq._, No. 217.

M82 How Balder, the good and beautiful god, was done to death by a
stroke of the mistletoe.

_ 256 Die Edda_, übersetzt von K. Simrock8 (Stuttgart, 1882), pp.
286-288. Compare pp. 8, 34, 264. Balder’s story is told in a
professedly historical form by the old Danish historian Saxo
Grammaticus in his third book. See below, p. 103. In English the
story is told at length by Professor (Sir) John Rhys, _Celtic
Heathendom_ (London and Edinburgh, 1888), pp. 529 _sqq._ It is
elaborately discussed by Professor F. Kauffmann in a learned
monograph, _Balder, Mythus und Sage_ (Strasburg, 1902).

M83 Tale of Balder in the older _Edda_.

257 Gudbrand Vigfusson and F. York Powell, _Corpus Poeticum Boreale_, i.
(Oxford, 1883) p. 197. Compare _Edda Rhythmica seu Antiquior, vulgo
Saemundina dicta_, Pars iii. (Copenhagen, 1828) pp. 39 _sq._; _Die
Edda_, übersetzt von K. Simrock8 (Stuttgart, 1882), p. 8; K.
Müllenhoff, _Deutsche Altertumskunde_, v. Zweite Abteilung (Berlin,
1891), pp. 78 _sq._; Fr. Kauffmann, _Balder, Mythus und Sage_, pp.
20 _sq._ In this passage the words translated “bloody victim”
(_blauþom tivor_) and “fate looming” (_ørlog fólgen_) are somewhat
uncertain and have been variously interpreted. The word _tivor_,
usually understood to mean “god,” seems to be found nowhere else.
Professor H. M. Chadwick has kindly furnished me with the following
literal translation of the passage: “I saw (or ‘have seen’) held in
safe keeping the life of Balder, the bloody god, Othin’s son. High
above the fields (_i.e._ the surface of the earth) grew a mistletoe,
slender and very beautiful. From a shaft (or ‘stem’) which appeared
slender, came a dangerous sorrow-bringing missile (_i.e._ the shaft
became a ... missile); Hodr proceeded to shoot. Soon was a brother
of Balder born. He, Othin’s son, proceeded to do battle when one day
old. He did not wash his hands or comb his head before he brought
Balder’s antagonist on to the pyre. But Frigg in Fen-salir (_i.e._
the Fen-abode) lamented the trouble of Valholl.” In translating the
words _ørlog fólgen_ “held in safe keeping the life” Professor
Chadwick follows Professor F. Kauffmann’s rendering (“_das Leben
verwahrt_”); but he writes to me that he is not quite confident
about it, as the word _ørlog_ usually means “fate” rather than
“life.” Several sentences translated by Professor Chadwick (“Soon
was a brother of Balder born ... he brought Balder’s antagonist on
the pyre”) are omitted by some editors and translators of the
_Edda_.

258 G. Vigfusson and F. York Powell, _Corpus Poeticum Boreale_, i. 200
_sq._; _Edda Rhythmica seu Antiquior, vulgo Saemundina dicta_, Pars
iii. pp. 51-54; _Die Edda_, übersetzt von K. Simrock8 pp. 10 _sq._;
K. Müllenhoff, _Deutsche Altertumskunde_, v. Zweite Abteilung, pp.
84 _sq._

M84 The story of Balder as related by Saxo Grammaticus.

259 Saxo Grammaticus, _Historia Danica_, ed. P. E. Müller (Copenhagen,
1839-1858), _lib._ iii. vol. i. pp. 110 _sqq._; _The First Nine
Books of the Danish History of Saxo Grammaticus_, translated by
Oliver Elton (London, 1894), pp. 83-93.

M85 Balder worshipped in Norway.

_ 260 Fridthjofs Saga, aus dem Altisländischen_, von J. C. Poestion
(Vienna, 1879), pp. 3 _sq._, 14-17, 45-52.

M86 The legendary death of Balder resembles the legendary death of the
Persian hero Isfendiyar in the epic of Firdusi.

_ 261 The Epic of Kings, Stories retold from Firdusi_, by Helen Zimmern
(London, 1883), pp. 325-331. The parallel between Balder and
Isfendiyar was pointed out in the “Lexicon Mythologicum” appended to
the _Edda Rhythmica seu Antiquior, vulgo Saemundina dicta_, Pars
iii. (Copenhagen, 1828) p. 513 note, with a reference to _Schah
Nameh, verdeutscht von Görres_, ii. 324, 327 _sq._ It is briefly
mentioned by Dr. P. Wagler, _Die Eiche in alter und neuer Zeit_, ii.
Teil (Berlin, 1891), p. 40.

M87 The myth of Balder was perhaps acted as a magical ceremony. The two
chief incidents of the myth, namely the pulling of the mistletoe and
the death and burning of the god, have perhaps their counterparts in
popular ritual.
M88 European custom of kindling bonfires on certain days of the year,
dancing round them and leaping over them. Effigies are sometimes
burnt in the fires.

262 See Jacob Grimm, _Deutsche Mythologie_4 (Berlin, 1875-1878), i. 502,
510, 516.

263 W. Mannhardt, _Der Baumkultus der Germanen und ihrer Nachbarstämme_
(Berlin, 1875), pp. 518 _sq._

264 In the following survey of these fire-customs I follow chiefly W.
Mannhardt, _Der Baumkultus_, kap. vi. pp. 497 _sqq._ Compare also J.
Grimm, _Deutsche Mythologie_,4 i. 500 _sqq._; Walter K. Kelly,
_Curiosities of Indo-European Tradition and Folk-lore_ (London,
1863), pp. 46 _sqq._; F. Vogt, “Scheibentreiben und Frühlingsfeuer,”
_Zeitschrift des Vereins für Volkskunde_, iii. (1893) pp. 349-369;
_ibid._ iv. (1894) pp. 195-197.

M89 Seasons of the year at which the bonfires are lit.

_ 265 The Scapegoat_, pp. 316 _sqq._

266 The first Sunday in Lent is known as _Invocavit_ from the first word
of the mass for the day (O. Frh. von Reinsberg-Düringsfeld,
_Fest-Kalender aus Böhmen_, p. 67).

M90 Custom of kindling bonfires on the first Sunday in Lent in the
Belgian Ardennes.

267 Le Baron de Reinsberg-Düringsfeld, _Calendrier Belge_ (Brussels,
1861-1862), i. 141-143; E. Monseur, _Le Folklore Wallon_ (Brussels,
N.D.), pp. 124 _sq._

268 Emile Hublard, _Fêtes du Temps Jadis, les Feux du Carême_ (Mons,
1899), pp. 25. For the loan of this work I am indebted to Mrs.
Wherry of St. Peter’s Terrace, Cambridge.

269 É. Hublard, _op. cit._ pp. 27 _sq._

M91 Bonfires on the first Sunday of Lent in the French department of the
Ardennes.

270 A. Meyrac, _Traditions, coutumes, légendes et contes des Ardennes_
(Charleville, 1890), p. 68.

271 L. F. Sauvé, _Le Folk-lore des Hautes-Vosges_ (Paris, 1889), p. 56.
The popular name for the bonfires in the Upper Vosges
(_Hautes-Vosges_) is _chavandes_.

272 E. Cortet, _Essai sur les fêtes religieuses_ (Paris, 1867), pp. 101
_sq._ The local name for these bonfires is _bures_.

M92 Bonfires on the First Sunday of Lent in Franche-Comté.