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BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY 



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if by attrition witli fine sand. On wasliing out tlie bore in tlie larger piece of 

 stone I discovered tliat the bone tube had not extended to the end of tlie l)oring 

 from below; that, in fact, it reached only half way, and that the size of the 

 hole diminished, so that it could not enter any farther. On cleaning out the 

 earth the fact was developed that the borings from opposite ends of the tablet 

 had not met accurately, as indicated in figure [213, a] , . . and the conclusion 

 was at once reached that the drill was probably being employed, when the work 

 ceased, to enlarge the bore, witli the intention of making more complete con- 

 nection from end to end. The use of the tubular drill of cane, bone, or native 

 metal by primitive peoples, and even by many well-advanced nations, is well 

 known. The tube was twirled by rolling between tlie hands or by a pump or 

 bow drill, and sand of suitable fineness and hardness was employed as the 

 cutting agent. That a tubular drill was used in the present case is proved by 

 the presence of a well-developed core at the base of the boring from the upper 



Fig. 213. Alabaster talilet with the bone drill found in place, a, Si'ctiou of tablet. 

 hj Drill (one-half actual size). 



end, . . . and, though the proof may not be absolute that this piece of bone was 

 actually in u.se as a drill, the probabilities are strongly in favor of the correct- 

 ness of the assumption that it was so used, and it is also highly probable that 

 in addition we have here a correct suggestion of the manner in which the tubu- 

 lar drill was employed in enlarging and straiglitening defective borings, a 

 measure often necessary where devices were of such imperfect construction.^ 



The earth removed from the hore of this specimen was submitted 

 to Prof. O. C. Farringtoii, of the Fiekl Museum of Natural History, 

 for examination. He reported that altliough finely coimninuted bits 

 of bone and travertine were found, it contained grains of a variety 

 of minerals, including some of the hardness of 7. The latter would 

 have been effective in the abradine; work. 



^ Holmes, Archeological Studies Among the Ancient Cities of Mexico, pp. 304-308. 



