638 THE POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



the gesture-reader. They generally suppose some degree of real 

 or perfunctory respect, but may indicate pride as well as hu- 

 mility, familiar affection or cold formality, welcome or aversion, 

 even irony or derision. The Poles and Cossacks use the phrase, 

 " With the forehead to you/' when, in fact, there is no "bow made. 

 This is on the same principle as the phrase, " I kiss your hands," 

 when the hands are not kissed. Both expressions are relics of 

 actions, and neither means more than the English " my respects." 

 Likewise, through the Eussian Empire, " I fall at your feet," is 

 often said to men, and " I kiss your feet " to women, though those 

 performances do not take place. 



The above considerations lead to the conclusion that several 

 known motions expressive of emotions, both separately and to- 

 gether, tend to explain the bow. Furthermore, these motions, and 

 the emotions or concepts expressed by them, seem to be as ancient 

 as any known to have been common among men. It will, there- 

 fore, appear that the genesis of our bow does not appear exclu- 

 sively and among all peoples in the groveling of the whipped 

 hound or the cowering of the dastard slave. Perhaps on examin- 

 ing all the tribes of men a theory that prostration was but an 

 exaggerated bow might be as well maintained as one that the 

 bow is a relic and symbol of prostration, but it is now only sug- 

 gested that the two expressions may be independent. 



Clapping Hands. At this point an attempt may be made 

 to explain the curious custom of clapping the hands in salu- 

 tation. 



Among the Uvinza, "when two ' grandees ' meet, the junior 

 leans forward, bends his knees, and places the palms of his hands 

 on the ground on each side of his feet, while the senior claps his 

 own hands six or seven times. They then change round, and the 

 junior slaps himself first under the left armpit, and then under 

 the right. But, when a ' swell ' meets an inferior, the superior 

 only claps his hands, and does not fully return the salutation by 

 following the motions of the one who first salutes. On two com- 

 moners meeting, they pat their stomachs, then clap hands at each 

 other, and finally shake " (i. e., take) " hands. These greetings 

 are observed to an unlimited extent, and the sound of patting and 

 clapping is almost unceasing." Serpa Pinto found this ceremonial 

 clapping in violent exercise among the Ambuellas. Paul du 

 Chaillu reports the salute of the Ishogos to be clapping the 

 hands together and stretching them out alternately several times. 

 Among the Walunga, in the morning, on every side a continuous 

 clapping of hands goes on, with the accompaniment of " Kwi-tata, 

 Tcwi-tata ? " which is their mode of saying, " How d'ye do ? " If 

 a chief passes, they drop on their knees, bow their heads to tho 

 ground, clap vigorously, and humbly mutter, "Kwi-tata, Tcwi- 



