NA TURE 



[November i, 1900 



Indians, especially as this is supplemented by the valu- 

 able work done by Dr. G. M. Dawson, Dr. Franz Boas, 

 Mr. C. Hill Tout, and others on these or allied tribes of 

 British Columbia, under the auspices of the British 

 Association for the Advancement of Science. 



The Upper Thompson Indians live in the valley of 

 the Thompson River, while the Lower Thompson 

 Indians dwell on the Fraser River. They appear to 

 have decreased to one-third since the advent of the 

 white man in 1858. The birth-rate is about equal to the 

 deaths, but there is great mortality among young 

 children ; at the present time the population in some 

 places seems to be about stationary, or is slowly in- 

 creasing. The Lower Thompson Indians are quieter 

 and steadier than the people of the upper division, but 

 are slower and less energetic ; they are also better 

 fishermen and more expert in handling canoes, while 

 the Upper Thompson Indians are better horsemen. 



In this copiously-illustrated memoir Mr. Teit has care- 

 fully described the handicrafts of the Thompson Indians. 

 Most of their implements were made of stone, bone, 

 wood, bark, skins, matting or basketry. Work in stone, 

 bone and wood was done by the men, while the prepara- 

 tion of skins, matting and basketry work fell to the share 

 of the women. There was a certain amount of division 

 of labour, as workmen skilful in any particular line of 

 work exchanged their manufactures for other com- 

 modities. 



The various kinds of habitations and clothing and 

 ornaments are fully described, and the changes that have 

 ensued since 1858 are recorded. For example, beads and 

 dyed porcupine quills were largely used for embroidery 

 before that date ; but these were soon replaceci by em- 

 broidery done in silk thread, and most of the patterns 

 wrought at the present day are copies of the white man's 

 patterns. Full accounts are given of the arts, of subsist- 

 ence, varieties and preparation of food, hunting, fishing 

 and the like, as well as of travel, transportation, trade 

 and warfare. 



The games and pastimes of adults and children are 

 carefully dealt with, and this account usefully supple- 

 ments what has been previously recorded for similar 

 tribes. It is a pity that the author describes as a " bull- 

 roarer" quite another kind of toy, which Culin calls a 

 buzz ; the latter is an oblong or circular piece of thin 

 wood, with two holes near the centre through which a 

 string is passed. It iswidelydistributedamongthe Indians 

 of North America, and, so far as is known, has little in 

 common with the true bull-roarer. The smaller boys and 

 girls play "cats' cradle," and we are told they make 

 many forms such as the " beaver," " deer," " man steal- 

 ing wood," &c. Fig. 270 illustrates two of these puzzles, 

 one — " dressing a skin " — is very difficult to follow ; 

 the second — " pitching a tent "—is simpler, and, strangely 

 enough, is precisely similar to the "fish-spear" string 

 puzzle of the Torres Straits Islanders. 



Very interesting and instructive are the accounts given 

 of the social organisation and festivals of the people, and 

 of the customs relating to birth, childhood, puberty, 

 marriage and death. Their religion is fully dealt with, 

 and it is worthy of note that no totemism is recorded for 

 these people ; but each individual has a guardian spirit, 

 NO. 1 618, VOL. 63] 



which was acquired during the puberty ceremonials. 

 Only a few shamans inherited their guardian spirits 

 without such ceremony from their parents, who had been 

 particularly powerful. The guardian spirits of these 

 parents appeared to them, uncalled for, in dreams and 

 visions. The moral code is excellent, and the young 

 people are often admonished and advised. It is good to 

 be pure, cleanly, honest, truthful, brave, friendly, hospit- 

 able, energetic, bold, virtuous, liberal, kind-hearted to 

 friends, diligent, independent, modest, affable, social, 

 charitable, religious or worshipful, warlike, honourable, 

 stout-hearted, grateful, faithful and revengeful to enemies. 

 Various legends are noted, and there are the usual con- 

 stellation myths ; but several of the stars or constellations 

 have not been identified, so that no comparative study is 

 possible. The traditions have been published in full by 

 Mr. Teit in the Memoirs of the American Folk-lore 

 Society^ vol. iv. 



The memoir concludes with a chapter on art and a 

 summary, both by Dr. Boas. The decorative art of the 

 Thompson Indian is very crude ; form and decoration 

 have no intimate connection, comparatively few designs 

 are primarily decorative, their fundamental idea being 

 symbolic. For this reason, by far the greater number 

 of designs may be described as pictographs rather than 

 as decorations. 



The Thompson Indians are in appearance and culture 

 a plateau tribe, influenced, however, to a great extent by 

 their eastern neighbours, to a less extent by the tribes 

 of the coast. Their whole social organisation is very 

 simple, and the range of their religious ideas and rites is 

 remarkably limited when compared with those of other 

 American tribes. This may be one of the reasons why, 

 in contact with other tribes, the Salish have always 

 proved to be a receptive race, quick to adopt foreign 

 modes of life and thought, and that their own influence 

 has been comparatively small. 



If all the field-work done by the numerous investiga- 

 tors on the staff of the Jesup North Pacific Expedition 

 is as complete and workmanlike as the present memoir, 

 and is published in similar first-class style, the result 

 will be a dignified monument to the ability of American 

 anthropologists and to the enlightened munificence of 

 Dr. Jesup. Alfred C. Haddon. 



OUR BOOK SHELF. 

 Lubrication and Lubricants. By L. Archbutt and R. M. 



Deeley. Pp. xxiv -I- 451. (London: C. Griffin and 



Co., Ltd., 1900.) 

 Messrs. Archbutt and Deeley have, in this treatise, 

 placed before engineers and power users what is known 

 of the theory and practise of lubrication. 



Until the introduction of mineral oils as lubricants, 

 there was comparatively little difficulty in obtaining good 

 oils ; the animal oils, such as sperm and lard, and the 

 vegetable oils, such as castor, will keep a bearing cool, 

 while mineral oils of the same apparent viscosity will 

 allow it to heat. Oil users can only meet this difficulty 

 by subjecting the oil to both chemical and mechanical 

 tests. . 



The work is divided into two portions : the first treat- 

 ing of the theory of friction and the properties of lubri- 

 cating substances, while the second describes the forms of 

 bearings. The experiments of Mr. Beaucamp Towers and 



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