74 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 



specifically idealt with here, but apparently from independertt study of 

 the subject, viz. : that " the basis of individual toteiaism seems to be 

 the same, as that of ■fetichism." Elsewhere in the same article he 

 writes: "This view [i.e., of the indwelling obsessing spirit of the 

 totem in its owner] suggests that the interpiretation suggested for indi- 

 vidual totemism can also be applied to clan totems." ^ 



And even Mr. Andrew Lang, writing in his recent paper on " The 

 origin of Totem names and beliefs," remarks : "Tho.ugh the attitude of 

 a private person to his nagual, or of a magical society to its protective 

 animal, may often closely resemble the attitude of the group to its 

 hereditary totem, still the origin of this attitude may be different in each 

 ■case." - Thus, while admitting the force of the evidence in this con- 

 nection, he is led to explain it away or regard it as different, partly be- 

 cause he is under the impression that the personal totem is not heredit- 

 able, but more particulairly because of a singular misconiception he has 

 regarding the transmissibility of male property and rights under 

 matriarchy. He argues thus: Totemism is a pheuom'enon peculiarly 

 characteristic of tribal society under mother-right, and though it may 

 occasionally descend to the later state of father-right, it rightly belongs 

 to, and had its origin under, the former. Now, under these conditions 

 descent is reckoned in the female line; how then can a man become the 

 founder of a family and transmit his personal totem to his children?" 

 These are not his actual words, but I think he will admit that they state 

 his position accurately. Thus, in his criticism of " Miss A. Fletcher's 

 theory," he writes : " The conclusion of Miss Fletcher's valuable essay 

 shows at a glance that her hypothesis contains the same fundamental 

 error as that of Dr. Wilken, namely the totem of the kin is derived from 

 the manitu or personal friendly object of an individual, a male ancestor. 

 This cannot, we repeat, hold good for that early stage of society which 

 reckons descent in the female line, and in which ancestors do not found 

 houses, clan names or totem-kin." And in writing of the view expressed 

 by myself, he says : '' Mr. Hill-Tout has evolved a theory out of the 

 customs of the laborigines of British Columibia, among whom 'the clan 

 totems are a development of the personal or individual totem or tutelar 

 spirit.' The Salish tribes, in fact, seek for 'Sulia, or tutelar spirits,' 

 and these 'give rise to the personal totem,' answering to manitu, nyarong, 

 nagiial and so forth. ' From the personal and family crest is but a step 

 to the clan crest.' Unfortunately witli descent in the female line, this step 

 cannot he taTcen. Interesting as is Mr. Hill-Tout's account of the Salish 

 Indians, we need not dwell longer on an hypothesis which makes village 

 communities prior to the evolution of totemism." 



^ Man, Aug-UiSt, 1902, «Art. 86. 



'' Folk Loire, Vol. XIII, No. 4, Dec. 1902. 



