ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT XXXV 



coincidences was formulated as a convenient generaliza- 

 tion of the facts connected with independent development 

 of devices produced in the constant adjustment of the 

 intelligent organism to its environment. At first the law 

 of activital coincidences rested chiefly on industrial arti- 

 facts ; then it was found to have equal support in the 

 esthetic products of various peoples; next it was found 

 to have still stronger and moi-e direct support in institu- 

 tions, in the devices and features of social organization; 

 while certain features of language were found also to 

 indicate the extent and efficiency of coincidental interac- 

 tion between mind and nature in shaping the activital 

 products. Hitherto most investigators of mythology 

 have been content with discrete studies and explorations, 

 or, at most, with exoteric parallels. Accordingly many of 

 them have stopped with the inference of former contact 

 or kinship on which the students of industrial artifacts 

 rested a quarter century ago, that is, theu' studies were such 

 as to bring out resemblances among the mythic systems 

 examined, but not such as to detect and properly empha- 

 size the essential differences. Now, Mr Mooney's com- 

 parisons, although not exhaustive, are sufficiently general 

 to permit discrimination of the exoteric coincidences from 

 esoteric motives in the myths. Accordingly they clear 

 the way for the application of the law of activital coinci- 

 dences to primitive mythology, if not to sophiology in 

 general. The greater part of the material completed for 

 publication has been incorporated in the memoir on 

 "Myths of the Cherokee," published in the Nineteenth 

 report. 



Another comparative study of myths has been carried 

 forward by Mr J. N. B. Hewitt; and this investigation 

 is noteworthy in that the comparisons are confined to a 

 limited group of confederated tribes (of the Iroquoian 

 stock) and in that the features compared are in excep- 

 tional degree esoteric. The myths were obtained at first 

 hand and carefully recorded and verified in the aboriginal 

 terminology, after which literal and free translations were 

 made, so that each chapter of the work is at once a 



