SAVAGERY AND SURVIVALS. 395 



feud, or vendetta, still lingers as a survival almost in our very 

 midst, in the mountain regions of our South. It is not an uncom- 

 mon thing to read in our papers of the perpetration of some atro- 

 cious crime as the result of a long-standing feud between the 

 Hatfields and the McCoys, the Frenchs and Eversoles, or the 

 Jarvises and the Kendalls. And it is surprising that often when 

 the law once gets its grip upon these modern savages it does not 

 repress them by a wholesome administration of justice. As a mat- 

 ter of fact, it is difficult to secure a conviction or anything more 

 than a very light sentence for a willful aggressor in our Southern 

 vendetta. 



The international prize fight is a degenerate suggestion of the 

 old tribal champion, who was appointed to defend his country in 

 single combat against the representative of a hostile nation. Of 

 this primitive institution, the familiar stories of David and Goli- 

 ath, and the Horatii and the Curatii, are good illustrations. Pass- 

 ing now to a different branch of our subject, let us glance at a 

 few peculiarities of savage life with regard to dress, ornamenta- 

 tion, and bodily disfigurements. On these subjects Prof. Freder- 

 ick Starr's recent articles * in The Popular Science Monthly will 

 be found full of interesting and suggestive facts. 



It is a matter of uncertainty how dress has developed until it 

 has reached its present form among civilized peoples. While it 

 is probable that the desire for ornamentation, which is usually 

 the first thought in the savage mind, led to its adoption and devel- 

 opment, protection and modesty also contributed ; for, as Tylor 

 says, it was a custom among the Andaman-Islanders to plaster 

 themselves with a mixture of lard and clay as a shield against 

 the heat and mosquitoes. Among the rudest races, and even in 

 the warm climates, we find clothing worn, or, as a fitting substi- 

 tute the body is painted, tattooed, or plastered, as described. 



It was an early custom to wear a girdle about the waist, and 

 from this suspend skins, feathers, and other ornaments. In time 

 this led to the wearing of a loose robe for the covering of the 

 body, which is known as the southern type of dress, so common 

 in the Orient, notably in China, Japan, as well as in ancient 

 Egypt, Greece, and Rome ; while in the north, where the climate 

 demanded the greater protection of the body, the close-fitting gar- 

 ment, including jacket and trousers, at first made of skins, became 

 the prevailing costume. The Eskimos, for instance, have long 

 worn this type of dress. Skins and furs made the most durable 

 garments, and as a covering for our feet we have yet to find 

 something to supplant this inheritance of savage times. In the 



* Popular Science Monthly, August, October, November, December, 1891. Articles on 

 Dress and Adornment. 



