CONGRES INTERNATIONAL D'HISTOIRE DES RELIGIONS. 35 
The following were among the principal papers read :— 
SeEcTIONS A and G united.—Germans, Celts, Slavs, non-civilised 
races, 
A long and very remarkable paper by M. Wenceslas 
Sieroszewski upon the religion, the beliefs, the rites, and the 
customs of the Yacoutas, and particularly upon Shamanism 
and the practice of sorcery. 
Count Goblet d’Alviella, the President of the Section, read 
a paper upon the employment of the comparative method in 
the study of religious phenomena, with a view of determining 
where it has its application, and where the strictly historical 
method alone is permissible. 
A paper by M. Raoul de la Grasserie was read upon the 
social part played by sacrifice, to which M. Marillier added 
some observations tending to complete the study of the 
subject. 
A paper by M. de la Grasserie upon Totemism in its 
relation with the formation of the clan, Zoolatry, and 
Metensomatose (? transmigration of the body). 
M. de Zmigrodski read a paper upon the history of 
primitive religion referring to the sun and fire, being an 
explanation at the same time historical and philosophical of 
a diagram on cloth 12 metres long bearing 1,500 figures 
(different forms of the swastica or solar wheel), The 
theories put forward in connection with this did not find 
general acceptance. 
Professor Oltramare, of the University of Geneva, then 
read a communication upon the application of the law of 
evolution with regard to religion. Religions, as he showed, 
were subject to change, but these changes are not reducible 
to uniform laws. 
M. L. Pineau read a paper upen the song of Hagbard and 
Signe, and the Myth: of Jupiter and Danaé, the origin of 
which he regarded as a solar myth. The connection of the 
two legends was admitted, but not the explanation. 
M. W. Bugiel read a communication upon the demonology 
of the people of Poland. 
Mr. Carus spoke of the influence of science upon religion. 
Captain Bertrand spoke of the transformation which has 
taken place, under the influence of Christian missions, in the 
religion of the ba-Rotsi and the ba-Ssouta. 
D2 
