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BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY 



[bull. 52 



traces of use is thus entirely wanting. The fact that the pebble was 

 nearly always an oblong one and flaked from the end has been used 

 to support the view that the fractured end was intended to be used 

 for cutting, scraping, or some like purpose. The experiments, 

 made^ however, with a view to settling this point show that it is 



c d 



Fig. 23. Examples of flaked pebbles from Argentina and District of Columbia, a, Pebble nucleus 

 of fine-grained stone from the Argentine coa^t, from which two teshoa flakes were struck by the 

 ancient workmen, b, Coarse-grained Potomac pebble nucleus from which flakes were .struck by 

 the author with two blows, c, The flakes restored to their place on the nucleus, d, The several 

 flakes separated from the nucleus. 



more difhcult to strike off a well-proportioned flake from the side 

 than from the end of a pebble. Besides, a stroke having enough 

 force to remove a large flake from the long margin of a pebble usually 

 resulted in cross-fracture and failure. In fact, aU the features of 



