TRANRiACTIONS OF SECTION 11. 



915 



by sava^jt. 



il appoint - 

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 t last tliiy 



n may not 

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 thin Avbicli 

 ■ly society, 

 ditions. 

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 nd be is ti. 

 js ; that is. 

 lie result (if 

 lie selection 

 ly, as tlius 

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 £?amy. 

 roup, lar^ei 

 bited. Til. 

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tics 

 , p. 



of il"^ 

 294. 



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estiug 



Thi 

 Dbject. Till 

 ■nerally fvon. 

 islate as eye- 

 re strikingly 

 inp, allurinf;-. 

 HTerent words 

 ^reat number 

 lajies, several 

 jjnoble; IMi's. 

 iders in tliesf 



uj the Zuvh 



to prove tbo 

 s a])plied to a 

 'ucti.scd in tlic 

 !COunt of tllr 



formation of tlie Zuili p-ourds, or wator-v(>ssels, show in;; bow they were covered 

 witli wicker-work in order to preserve them. The Zufiis regard t'li.' bowls tho\ 

 make as possessing- sometliing of the nature of life or spirit; tliey place iood and 

 water near the vessel, and as the woman completes it she inia^jinc^ silio has made 

 sometbinir like a living being. The ditl'erent sounds made by the |iots when they 

 are struck, or as their contents boil, are believed to be the voices of tti-; beings which 

 are associated with the vessels. Apertures or blank spm-cs are left fir the escape 

 of the si)irit. A Zufii woman, as she closes the apex of a point(;d chiy vessel, turns 

 her eyes away, and says she is fearful to watch this operation. 'i\w Zuuis in re- 

 jiresenting animals always show a kind of line or passage leading from tiiu throut 

 to the heart. In conclusion the author referred to the probable origin of the shapes 

 used in the pottery ol' America. 



3. Tlic IIawn-Ii-oqiwi.'<, a typical race of Auierlcan Aborigines. 

 By Dr. Daniel Wil-o\. 



4. Anthr(i])oloijical Discover ids in Canada. By C. A. HiR-i* u; ;:I;:ikr. 



The ancicTit remains of Canada have, as yet, been by no meaus satisfactorilv 

 examined, and consequently but supertieially described; and althougli wo have n > 

 stone ruins, still that does not detract from t lie interest of the prohis'.orie wojk.s 

 found scattered over various sections of this country, wliieli are v.ell worth\ 

 of a thorough seienlific examination. 'J'lio forts, which were built piinci]ially of 

 earth, although stone was not riufrequently used to some extent in their con- 

 struction, are particularly interesting from two points of view — viz,, the almost 

 ])erfect symmetrical shape, and the advantageous positions whicii were invariably 

 chosen. As to the iirst-named feature, they bear a .striking res'Uiblance to the 

 ancient earthworks of the Western States, by which some writers have en- 

 deavoured to prove that the authors of those works must have been advanced iu 

 certain sciences. A s to the situation of these forts, their ancient builders seem to have 

 carefully studied localities, and to have fully appreciated the advantages to bn 

 gained thereby, as the situations chosen were invariably sucli as to either commiind 

 a view for a long distance over the country, or, if near the water, bO be so con- 

 structed that a fleet of canoes could be seen a long distance away, so that sudden 

 attacks by water would be impracticable. 



The forts were generally made either circular or oval, although one or two 

 surveyed were crescent or semicircular, the form probably depending upon the lio 

 of the land ; and it is very singular that there has not been, to my knowledge, a 

 single fort discovered in Canada which even approaches a scpiare. I'hitrenchment s 

 seem to have been a not uncommon mode of defence, and have every appearance 

 of being anterior to the wall or embankment forts ; the largest one surveyed was 

 half a mile in circumference, of a circular form, and, judging by coiuiting the con- 

 rentric rings of trees growing right in the ditch, which nnist have grown after the 

 fort was constructed, also by decayed vegetable-matter and other evidences, was 

 computed to be from 800 to 1,000 years old. 



Ancient burial-places may be classed under three heads— mounds, ossuaries, and 

 single graves. Mounds are not of frequent occurrence in Canada, and all which 

 have '0 far been examined have contained hiunan bones, proving II'.it were u'=r(l as 

 buriai vopositorios. These tumuli (if they may bo so termed) are )iot by any means 

 large ; they generallv measure about one hundred feet in circumference, and are 

 only about five feet high. Tiie dead seem to have been buried without any regular 

 system, each mound containing from six to twelve bodies. 



The ossuaries are probably the most interesting remains we have. They consist 

 of round symmetrical holes dug to the required depth, in which the bodies were 

 promiscuously deposited : some of the larger ones contain the remains of several 

 thousand bodies. 



The single graves are the most ordinarv remains, and are generally foiuid on 

 high ground, a hill-top beirg a favourite 'site. In dwelling o)i >he q^^stion of 



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