116 BULLETIN 139, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM 



strike-a-lights came from England, where an industry continued from 

 Neolithic times supplied the world with a professional product made 

 of the best material by the "flint knappers ". of Brandon. On account 

 of the demand for flints this industry is still carried on. 



Steels came to America through trade in goods of the Enghsh, 

 French, and Spanish principally. They were also brought in person- 

 ally by immigrants from various countries. 



Steels were of different sizes, adapted to use in the family tinder 

 box, for carrying on the person by travelers and hunters, and some- 

 times in neat cases for carrying in the pocket. Three well-marked 

 types are found in America; the straight bar with curved handle, of 

 English make, usually found in the sheet-iron tinder boxes common 

 in New England and called a "flourish"; a straight bar with curved 

 handles at either end bent over and meeting at the middle, the ends 

 bent into an incurved hook, Russian; curved bar with handles bent 

 over and brought down to the bar, forming two finger loops, Spanish 

 and French; strip of steel bent to form the letter C, United States 

 trade; and strip of steel in form of letter O, Holland. Most of the 

 specimens found in America are made from files. Aside from the 

 types mentioned there are pieces of files and nondescript examples 

 made by local smiths. In Mexico there is sometimes encountered 

 a steel of V shape, the extremities of the arms bent inward into a 

 volute and the base chisel shape, as in a screw driver. This is evi- 

 dently a survival of a combination tool, part of the equipment of 

 soldiers using the old flintlock and perhaps matchlock gun. A simi- 

 lar combination was made in England stamped "Jukes, Coulson and 

 Co., No. XLI," date unknown. It is in the form of an oval loop. 



Europe. — The forms of steel of Em-opean derivation found in 

 America may be taken as representative of the geographical area 

 under consideration. The steel t^^pical of Europe is a loop shaped 

 much like the oval drop handles used on furniture. Less common 

 is the variant in which the prongs are bent down to form two loops, 

 as in the Spanish examples. Some of these are specimens of artis- 

 tic ironwork. The loop form has had almost world-wide distribution. 



Asia. — European forms of steels have the widest distribution in 

 Asia and crop up in the regions most accessible to commerce. In 

 northern Asia, especially Mongolia and China, the flint and steel 

 has been the object of more inventive thought than elsewhere. The 

 curved steel is mounted in the lower margin of a pouch with flap in 

 which the flint and tinder are carried. The pouch has a handle to 

 which a cord is secm-ed for fastening the apparatus to the belt. Such 

 pouches from Mongolia are often incrusted with gold and silver, set 

 with turquoise and coral. The apparatus is a complete unit as defi- 

 nitely adapted to its purpose as a watch. Aside from the great area 

 coming under Chinese trade, influence, and customs, the North 

 Asiatic strike-a-light is simple as in other parts. 



