632 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



bers which the same kindred has counted in the past. At a designated 

 day, all the members of the family present themselves there to make 

 their sacrifices. The ceremonies are directed by the nearest or most 

 aged relative. The character of the offerings depends upon the tastes 

 the ancestors are supposed to have had while living. No pictures or 

 6tatues of the ancestors are erected to preserve their features ; only 

 the name is to be seen on the altar, inclosed in a little tabernacle and 

 written in large letters upon a tablet. The image of the ancestor is in 

 the Annamite's heart, and is not represented materially by painting or 

 sculpture. It is not presumed that the souls of the ancestors are pres- 

 ent at the repast which is prepared for them ; but it is understood 

 that, in offering sacrifices to them, gratitude is expressed for the time 

 when the worshiper was the object of their constant solicitude, and 

 faithful recognition is given of the days when he was held upon their 

 knees, and the painful moment is recalled when they were forever 

 separated from their children. Filial piety is the motive of all the 

 acts of the Annamites' life. Their feeling was thus described to M. 

 d'Estrey by an Annamite : " We have a desire to discharge the debt 

 that we owe to our parents ; to that tender mother who carried us in 

 her womb, who brought us forth in pain, nourished us with her milk, 

 and caressed us on her knees for years ; to that watchful father 

 who laboriously brought us up and constituted himself our first guide 

 in the labyrinth of the world. It is a common remark that every 

 service rendered ought to be recompensed. The benefaction by which 

 it is given us to enjoy life, to know what is, to raise ourselves through 

 the spectacle of the virtue of our parents, from the simple creature to 

 the most high what other can be compared to it ? It is for this rea- 

 son before every other one, to render ourselves worthy of our parents, to 

 make their name as illustrious as possible, that we try to obtain a rank 

 among men that shall do honor to our house, and in which we may 

 some day serve the great interests of humanity. We hope that in this 

 way the spirits of our parents may enjoy a peaceful happiness in con- 

 templating us from the celestial world." 



M. Mahe de la Bourdonnais has given an account, also in the 

 " Revue Scientifique," of tribes of people inhabiting portions of An- 

 nam, who, although considered savages by the Annamites them- 

 selves, are still possessed of a civilization which is of the greatest 

 interest. 



Some of them pay tribute to the King of Siam, others to Annam, 

 while all are more or less under the control of certain prefects. A 

 chief, whom they regard as a father, acts as judge, punishes the 

 guilty, and vigilantly guards the observation of the ancient rites and 

 ceremonies. Much respect is shown to these patriarchs, and their peo- 

 ple aid them in building, labor in their fields, and yield implicit obe- 

 dience to them. The wives of the chiefs generally marry one of their 

 own rank, but this is not compulsory. If they marry beneath them, 



