XXX BUREAU OF AMKRICAN ETHNOLOGY 



order made definite by custom; at the same time they 

 acquire sacredness with age, and some of them become 

 so far esoteric that they may not be repeated by youths, 

 or perhaps even by laymen, when they are the exclusive 

 property of sages or shamans. Now, the fable in itself 

 is seldom vigorous enough to pass unaided into the esoteric 

 lore of the tribe ; l)ut when it serves to interpret some 

 interesting natural phenomenon, either in its original 

 form or in its subsequent association, it is thereby fer- 

 tilized, and, with the combined vitality of fable and 

 interpretation, enjoys greatly increased chance of siirvival. 

 Sometimes the historical element is also added, when the 

 composite intellectual structure is still further strength- 

 ened, and may persist until history blends with fancy - 

 painted prehistory, and the story becomes a full-fledged 

 cpsmogonic myth. Accordingly, the character and the 

 age of myths are correlated in significant fashion. Mr 

 Mooneyes memoir is incorporated in the Nineteenth 

 Annual Report, which was sent to the printer on March 

 28, and proofs were in hand before the close of the fiscal 

 year. Since it is the first of a series of memoirs on the 

 Cherokee by the same author, it was thought well to pref- 

 ace the publication with an extended review of the his- 

 tory of the Cherokee Indians from the time of their first 

 contact with the whites, and in collecting material for 

 this historical sketch Mr Mooney was able to throw new 

 light not only on the movements of the tribesmen them- 

 selves, but on the routes of travel taken by various 

 explorers, from De Soto down. 



Although handicapped by illness, Mrs M. C. Steven- 

 son continued the prepai-ation of the final chapters in 

 her monograph on Zuui mythology and ceremonies. The 

 work was nearly comideted at the end of the fiscal year. 



Dr Fewkes's observations on the winter ceremonies of 

 the Hopi Indians yielded important data of the nature 

 suggested in previous paragraphs, and on his return from 

 the field he at once took u|) the preparation of a memoir 

 designed for incorporation in an early report. 



A notable acquisition of the year was the Pawnee 



