BULL. 30] 



EXCHANGE 



447 



water and closed when pulled np, thus 

 entangling the shells. These shells were 

 valued in proportion to their individual 

 lengths. In w. Washington the standard 

 of value was 40 to the fathom, and the 

 value fell off rapidly above that number, 

 while very long single shells were worth 

 more than a dollar. A fathom of 40 was 

 formerly equivalent to a slave, according 

 to Giljbs, and in his time would Ijring $b. 

 In California and on the plateaus farther 

 N. the shells had incised designs. Among 

 the Hupa of California they are decorated 

 by being wrapped spirally with fish skin 

 or snake skin, and in addition usually 

 bear a tuft of red feathers, probably from 

 the woodpecker's crest. The following 

 further description of these is given by 

 Goddard: 



"The individual shells are measured 

 and their value determined by the creases 

 on the left hand. The longest known 

 shells were about 2j in. long. One of 

 them would reach from the crease of 

 the last joint of the little finger to the 

 crease on the palm opposite the knuckle 

 joint of the same finger. The value of 

 such a piece in early days was about $5. 

 Shells of this length were called dlilket. 

 Tlie next smaller shells were called kike- 

 tukutxoi, and measured about 2| in. 

 They were worth about $51.50 each. A 

 shellaboutlj in. long was called /c(ro/r(/u7. 

 Their value was from 25 to 50 cents. 

 Shells smaller than these were not rated 

 as money and had no decoration. The 

 length of the shells smaller than the first 

 mentioned was determined by apph'ing 

 them to the creases of the middle and 

 other fingers of the left hand. 



"This money was strung on strings 

 which reached from the thumb nail to 

 the point of the shoulder. Eleven of the 

 largest size rilled such a string and was 

 therefore called moanala. Twelve shells 

 of the next smaller size composed a string 

 and were called rndananas. Thirteen 

 shells are called moanatak, and 14 of the 

 smallest shells, called moanadink, was the 

 largest number placed on a string. These 

 strings are approximately 25 in. long. 

 This, as it appears, was the least com- 

 mon multijile of the individual standard 

 lengths. 



"Since all hands and arms are not of 

 the same length, it was necessary for the 

 man, when he reached his maturity, to 

 establish the values of the creases on his 

 hand by comparison with money of 

 known length as measured by someone 

 else. He also had a set of lines tattooed 

 on the inside of the left forearm. These 

 lines indicated the length of 5 shells of 

 the several standards. The measures 

 were subdivided, there being lines of 

 moamda long and mdanala short, and so 

 on. This was the principal method of 



estimating the money. The first 5 on the 

 string were measured by holding the tip 

 of the first shell at the thumb nail and 

 drawing the string along the arm and 

 noting the tattooed mark reached by the 

 Initt of the fifth shell. In like manner 

 the last and intermediate sets of 5 were 

 measuretl." This shell money was car- 

 ried in special elk-horn Ijoxes. 



Among the coast tribes n. of Vancou- 

 ver id., dentalia were not so much in 

 vogue, but were used for ornamental pur- 

 poses and in trade with the interior Indi- 

 ans. The standard of value among the 

 Kutchakutchin and neighboring tribes 

 consisted of lines of beads 7 ft long 

 joined together at the distance of a foot, 

 and called ?K(A-( eik ( ' l)ead clothing ' ) . The 

 whole r/aki eik, according to Jones, "is 

 equal to 24 made beaver, and one of the 

 lines is one or more beaver skins, accord- 

 ing to the value of the beads." 



In central and s. California circular, 

 disk-shaped shell beads were used. 

 Among the Maidu they were counted in- 

 stead of being measured in strings, al- 

 though for each 10 beads a stick was 

 laid down as a counter (Dixon). Ac- 

 cording to Powers the Miwok rated shell 

 beads at $5 a yai-d, while the Yokuts val- 

 ued a string reaching from the point of 

 the middle finger to the elbow at 25 cents. 

 These latter sometimes strung with them 

 a section of bone very white and pol-- 

 ished, about 2^ in. long, which they rat- 

 ed at 12i cents. The Miwok strung to- 

 gether other shells which Powers be- 

 lieved to be olivella, valuing them at §1 

 a yard, as well as fancy marine shells, 

 rated from ?3 to $10 or $15 a yard, ac- 

 cording to their beauty. 



So far inland were these shells carried 

 that dentalia were found among the Da- 

 kota, and it is probable that shells from 

 both the Atlantic and the Pacific reached 

 the same tribes. 



A more usual standard of value among 

 interior people, however, was the pelt, 

 especially the skin of the beaver. Even 

 on the Atlantic coast it was used from the 

 very earliest times side by side with wam- 

 pum, and in 1613 the statement is made 

 that it was the basis of all trade between 

 the French of Canada and the Indians. 

 In 1670 (]Margry, Dec, i, 164, 1878) it is 

 learned that a beaver skin was worth a 

 fathom of tobacco, a fourth of a pound 

 of powder, 6 knives, or a portion of 

 little blue beads. According to Hunter 

 it was also the standard of value among 

 the Osage, Kansa, Oto, Omaha, and their 

 neighbors. He adds that 2 good otter 

 skins, from 10 to 12 raccoon, or 4 or 5 

 wildcat skins were valued at one beaver 

 skin. Here this standard i)assed out 

 very rapidly with the coming of white 

 men; but in the great fur regions of Can- 



