332 TRANSACTIONS OF THE CANADIAN INSTITUTE. — - [Vor VI: 
the “growing thin of animals.’ The Haidas derive three of their 
month-names from the arrival of various species of geese, note the 
coming and going of the bear and two varieties of salmon, and have, 
besides, two months named from the ripening of berries and one from 
the blossoming of flowers. The Shushwap, of British Columbia, have a 
erass-month, a root-digging month, two berry months, two salmon- 
months, and a month named from the travelling of deer. Their 
immediate neighbours, the Kootenays, have no fewer than four months 
named from the ripening of berries, and notice, besides, the appearance 
of the black bear with its young, the rutting of the white-tail deer, the 
falling of the leaves, the rising of the rivers, the breaking open of the 
ground. 
The Ojibwa name one month from fish (sucker), three from berries 
(strawberry, raspberry, blueberry), one from wild-rice, one from flowers, 
one from falling leaves, and one from the appearance of the crust on the 
snow. Their neighbours to the northwest, the Crees, name six of their 
months from observation of birds,—(May, June, July, August being 
respectively “ month when the birds lay their eggs” ; “ month when the 
young break out of the shell”; “month of moulting” ; “month when 
the young birds take to flight,’) one from the frogs, and one from the 
rutting of animals. The Delaware Indians remember in their month- 
names the coming of the chipmunks out of their holes, the croaking of 
the frogs, the arrival of the shad, reddening of the deer, the abundance 
of honey-bees, the turning gray of the deer, the falling of the leaves, and 
the crackling of the trees with the winters cold. With the Dakotas 
three months are named from the ripening of berries and fruits, two 
from rice, while one notes the arrival of the raccoon, another the rutting 
of deer, a third the shedding of their horns, and a fourth the prevalence 
of sore eyes. The Onondagas, one of the Iroquois tribes, name no 
fewer than four of their months from the length of daylight, three 
from the condition of the leaves of plants and trees, two from the condi- 
tion of the fur of the deer, and two from the presence of cold weather. 
Of the eighteen months in the calendar of the Quiché Indians of 
Guatemala, ten have more or less distinct reference to plants and plant- 
life, while the Tzentals, a cognate people, derive thirteen of their month- 
names from the same source. The Mayas, of Yucatan, and the Indians 
of Chiapas, each have named five of their eighteen months from obser- 
vation of the condition of the weather. What a range of nature study 
we have here! The beginnings of all the sciences have been trenched 
upon. Some of the month-names are commemorative of man more 
than nature. The Haidas used to call December “the moon when it 
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