BULL. 30] 



MECADACUT MEDALS 



829 



joints of the first, second, and third fin- 

 gers, taken as above. 4. Four finger 

 widths: the width of the terminal joints 

 of all four fingers of one hand, taken un- 

 der the same conditions. 5. The joint: 

 the length of a single digital phalanx, 

 usually the middle phalanx of the little 

 finger. 6. The palm: the width of the 

 open palm, including the adducted thumb. 

 7. The finger stretch: from the tip of the 

 first to the tip of the fourth finger, both 

 fingers being extended. 8. The span: 

 the same as our span, i. e., from the tip 

 of the thumb to the tip of the index fin- 

 ger, both stretched as far apart as pos- 

 sible. 9. The great span: from the tip of 

 the thumb to the tip of the little finger, 

 all the digits being extended, while 

 the thumb and little finger are strongly 

 adducted. 10. The cubit: from the point 

 of the elbow to the tip of the extended 

 middle finger, the arm being bent. 11. 

 The short cubit: fronl the point of the 

 elbow to the tip of the extended little 

 finger. 12. The natural yard: from the 

 middle of the chest to the end of the 

 middle finger, the arm being outstretched 

 laterally at right angles with the body; 

 this on a tall Indian equals 3 feet or more; 

 among some tribes the measure is taken 

 from the mouth to the tip of the middle 

 finger. 13. The natural fathom, or brace: 

 measured laterally on the outstretched 

 arms, across the chest, from the tip of one 

 middle finger to the tip of the other; this 

 is twice the natural yard, or about 6 feet. 

 The stature of white men usually equals 

 or exceeds this measure, while among 

 Indians the contrary is the rule — the arm 

 of the Indian being usually proportion- 

 ally longer than the arm of the white. 

 This standard was commonly adopted by 

 Indian traders of the N. in former days. 

 They called it "brace," a word taken 

 from the old French. There seems to be 

 no evidence that the foot was ever em- 

 ployed by the Indians as a standard of 

 linear measure, as it was among the 

 European races; but the pace was em- 

 ployed in determining distances on the 

 surface of the earth. 



Circular measures. — 1. The grasp: an 

 approximate circle formed by the thumb 

 and index finger of one hand. 2. The 

 finger circle: the fingers of both hands 

 held so as to inclose a nearly circular 

 space, the tips of the index fingers and 

 the tips of the thumbs just touching. 3. 

 The contracted finger circle: like the 

 finger circle but diminished by making 

 the first and second joints of one index 

 finger overlap those of the other. 4. The 

 arm circle: the arms held in front as if 

 embracing the trunk of a tree, the tips of 

 the middle fingers just meeting. 



Scales and weights were not known on 

 the western continent previous to the dis- 



covery. There is no record of standards 

 of dry or liquid measure, but it is prob- 

 able that vessels of uniform size may have 

 been used as such. See Exchange, and 

 the references thereunder. (w. m. ) 



Mecadacut. An Indian village on the 

 coast of Maine, between Penobscot and 

 Kennebec rs., in Abnaki territory, in 

 1616. 



Macadacut.— Smith (1629), Virginia, ii, 183, repr. 

 1819. Mecadacut.— Smith (1616) in Mass. Hist. Soc. 

 Coll., 3d s., 111,22, 1833. Mecaddacut.— Smith (1629), 

 Virginia, ii, 192, repr. 1819. 



Mecastria. Mentioned by Onate (Doc. 

 Ined., XVI, 114, 1871) as a pueblo of the 

 Jemez in New Mexico in 1598. It can 

 not be identified with the present native 

 name of any of the ruined settlements in 

 the vicinity of Jemez. In another list by 

 Onate (ibid., 102), Quiamera and Fia 

 are mentioned. A comparison of the lists 

 shows the names to be greatly confused, 

 the mera. (of Quiamera) and/<a making a 

 contorted form of "Mecastria." 



Mechemeton. A division of the Sisseton 

 Sioux, perhaps the Miakechakesa. 



Machemeton. — Carte des Poss. Angl., 1777. Meche- 

 meton.— Del' Isle, map (1703) InNeill, Hist. Minn., 

 161, 1858. Mechemiton.— Anville, map of N. Am., 



1752. 



Mechgachkamic. A former village, per- 

 haps belonging to the Unami Delawares, 

 probably near Hackensack, N. J. 



Mechgachkamic- Doc. of 1649 in N. Y. Doc. Col. 

 Hist., XIII, 25, ISM. Mochgeychkonk. — Doc. of 1665, 

 ibid., 48 (identical?). 



Mechkentowoon. A tribe of the Mahi- 

 can confederacy formerly living, accord- 

 ing to Ruttenber, on the w. bank of Hud- 

 son r. above Catskill cr., N. Y. De Laet 

 and early maps place them lower down 

 the stream. (j. m. ) 



Machkentiwomi.— De Laet, Nov. Orb., 72, 1633. 

 Mechkentiwoom. — Map ca. 1614 in N. Y. Doc. Col. 

 Hist., I, 1856. Mechkentowoon.— Wassenaar (ca. 

 1630) in Ruttenber, Tribes Hudson R., 71, 1872. 

 Wechkentowoons, — Ruttenber, ibid. ,86 (misprint). 



Mecopen. An Algonquian village, in 

 1585, s. of Albemarle sd., near the mouth 

 of Roanoke r., N. C. 



Mecopen.— Smith (1629), Virginia, I, map, repr. 

 1819. Moquopen.— Dutch map (1621) in N. Y. Doc. 

 Col. Hist., I, 18.56. 



Medals. From time immemorial loyalty 

 has been rewarded by the conferring of 

 land and titles of nobility, by the per- 

 sonal thanks of the sovereign, the pre- 

 sentation of ii'edals, and the bestowal of 

 knightly orders the insignia of which 

 were hung on the breast of the recipient. 

 With the Indian chief it was the same. 

 At first he was supplied with copies of his 

 own weapons, and then with the white 

 man's implements of war when he had be- 

 come accustomed to their use. Brass 

 tomahawks especially were presented to 

 the Indians. Tecumseh carried such a 

 tomahawk in his belt when he was killed 

 at the battle of the Thames, in Canada, 

 and his chief warrior, John Naudee, 



