8 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 
and regarded as having human or semi-human forms. The measure of 
the universe to the savages is truly and literally—Man. 
Among the Salish tribes it is uniformly believed that in the early 
days before the time of the tribal heroes or great transformers, the beings 
who then inhabited the world partook of the character of both man and 
animals, assuming the form of either apparently at will. After the 
advent of the Transformers they were mostly changed permanently to 
their animal forms, and lost their power to assume the human form, 
but their shades or spiritual essences still possess their human or semi- 
human forms, and these sometimes appear to people. Among the 
Alaskan tribes much the same is still held. Nelson informs us that the 
Eskimo around Behring Strait “believe that in early days all animate 
beings had dual existence becoming at will either like man or the 
animal forms they now wear. . . If an animal wished to assume 
its human form, the forearm, wing or other limb was raised and pushed 
up the muzzle or beak as if it were a mask, and the creature became 
man-like in form and feature. This idea is still held, and it is believed 
that many animals now possess this power. The man-like form 
thus appearing is called the inua, and is supposed to represent the 
thinking part of the creature, and at death becomes its shade.” He 
further tells us that they have masks representing their totemic animals, : 
the wearers of which are believed “to become actually the creature re- 
presented, or at least to be endowed with its spiritual essence.” Some 
of these masks are made with double faces, thus representing the dual 
nature and form of the totem or animal. In another passage he says: 
“ Nearly every attribute possessed by the shades of people is also pos- 
sessed equally by the shades of animals, and the inua or shade of every 
animal is believed to possess semi-human form.”? Again, “All animals 
are believed to have changed from the original human-like beings, 
taking thoughout life their present form, but the inua or shade is 
still similar to its former appearance.”*® And again: “All places, things, 
and the elements are supposed each to have a yua or mystery, which is 
human or semi-human in form . . , which are invisible except to 
Shamans and others especially gifted.”* 
Once more, “The nûn-wûm yua is the essence or mystery which is 
believed to be present in or near a lake, and when it goes away the 
lake dries up. These yüit are believed to have the forms of men and 
women; and when visiting remote lakes people make food offerings to 
them so that they may be propitiated.” 5 

* “The Eskimo about Bering Strait,’ by E. W. Nelson, XVIIIth Report 
of the American Bureau of Ethnology, pp. 394-5. 
“Ibid, p. 423. 8 Ibid, p. 427. # Ibid, p. 437. 5 Ibid, p. 448. 
