METALLIC IMPLEMENTS OF NEW YORK INDIANS 19 



blows proflncinq: a rfiitnil liduf. Mr Tlionias \\'ilson, of the 

 Sniil lisouiaii ijisl il iil imi, loM IIm- wrijcf of his <'.\|K'iiiiu'iits in 

 sncli for^in.ii-, mikI ^avf a lii^Ii laiiU lo liic aboriginal workman, 

 ffc fonnd ]KM*nliai' (lidicnll ics in bnidiiij:; (»\«'i' I Ik- lowor cdtjf'S 

 to lorni llic sockt'l. Tliis lea hue ajipcais in S(jine iMU'oin-an 

 bronzes locally tei'nu'fl win,c;r'rl rclts. Sonio Vow York articles 

 show fjreater skill lliafi any copjMM^ celts in Washino^ton. 



The Indians, however, s(H)n learned to cast metals, if repoi'ts 

 are trne. Ro^er Williams said of those in Now Knirland: 

 " Thev have an excellent y\rt to cast oni* Pewter and Rrasse into 

 very neate and arlificiall I'ipes." Snch pi]K'S were fonnd in New 

 Yoi'k, bnl mclliiif;' bi'ass has diflirnlties, and such a native art 

 may be donbted. INff^tal was sometimes nsed for lininj^ ]>ipes, 

 both of horn and stone, and there are other examples where 

 stone and metals were otherwise combined. All these are 

 recent. 



The distribution of early copper articles in New York is some- 

 what uniform on the whole, excluding the lower Hudson and 

 Long Island. Cattaraugus and Chautauqua counties have some 

 reputation in this way but the rather indefinite reports seem 

 exaggerated. A good antiquarian says that in HO years resi- 

 dence he has seen but one native copper ai'rowhead there. 

 Onondaga county and the drainage of the Genesee river have 

 afforded many. Fine examph^s have come from .Teffei'son county 

 and the islands of the St Lawrence. Lake Chami)lain and the 

 upper waters of the Hudson are well represented by these early 

 relics. Some have been found on the Susquehanna. 



It seems certain that the Iroquois had no metallic articles 

 which thev did not have from the whites. These ti.ev gladlv 

 adopted and the advent of the Dutch became a new era in their 

 life. All Europeans were termed by them Ascronul, INFakers of 

 axes, but this was si)ecifically the name of the Dutch. This 

 was the definition of Father Bruyas, an excellent authority. 

 Megapolensis interpreted it differently': '' They call us Assi/rconi^ 

 that is Cloth-Makers, or Charistooni, that is Iron- Workers, be- 

 cause our People first brought Cloth and Iron among them.*' — 



