BOAS] HANDBOOK OF AMERICAN INDIAN LANGUAGES 69 



therefore not the proper manners. It may be observed in this 

 connection that bad manners are always accompanied by rather 

 intense feelings of displeasure, the psychological reason for which can 

 be found only in the fact that the actions in question are contrary to 

 those which have become habitual. It is fairly evident that in our 

 table manners this strong feeling of propriety is associated with 

 the familiar modes of eating. When a new kind of food is presented, 

 the proper manner of eating which is not known, practically any 

 habit that is not in absolute conflict with the common habits may 

 readily establish itself. 



The example of table manners gives also a fairly good instance 

 of secondary explanation. It is not customary to bring the knife 

 to the mouth, and very readily the feeling arises, that the knife is not 

 used in this manner because in eating thus one would easily cut the 

 lips. The lateness of the invention of the fork, and the fact that 

 in many countries dull knives are used and that a similar danger 

 exists of pricking the tongue or the lips with the sharp-pointed steel 

 fork which is commonly used in Europe, show readily that this expla- 

 nation is only a secondary rationalistic attempt to explain a custom 

 that otherwise would remain unexplained. 



If we are to draw a parallel to linguistic phenomena in this case, 

 it would appear that the grouping of a number of unrelated actions 

 in one group, for the reason that they cause a feeling of disgust, 

 is brought about without any reasoning, and still sets off these 

 actions clearly and definitely in a group by themselves. 



On account of the importance of this question, it seems desirable 

 to give another example, and one that seems to be more deeply 

 seated than the one given before. A case of this kind is presented in 

 the group of acts which we characterize as modest. It requires 

 very little thought to see that, while the feelings of modesty are 

 fundamental, the particular acts which are considered modest or 

 immodest show immense variation, and are determined entirely 

 by habits that develop unconsciously so far as their relation to 

 modesty is concerned, and which may have their ultimate origin 

 in causes of an entirely different character. A study of the history 

 of costume proves at once that at different times and in different 

 parts of the world it has been considered immodest to bare certain 

 parts of the body. Wliat parts of the body these are, is to a great 



