XLIV ANNUAL REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR 
with to the present date. In this manner attention is paid in 
an orderly sequence to the history-traditions, to De Soto’s ex- 
pedition, to the early contact with Virginia and Carolina colo- 
nists, to the territory and population at the period of the En- 
clish settlement, to successive boundaries and cessions, and to 
the various controversies ensuing. Through the paper appear 
biographical notices, details of life in the years of the colonies 
and the infant republic, accounts of the trials and struggles 
produced by deportation and conflict, and statistics of fluctu- 
ating gains and losses, all of deep interest and importance. It 
is believed that the care and skill devoted by Mr. Royce to 
make the statement both accurate and comprehensive, fortify- 
ing it also by the citation of the best authorities, will render it 
valuable to statesmen, historians, and lawyers. 
THE MOUNTAIN CHANT: A NAVAJO CEREMONY, BY DR. WASHING- 
TON MATTHEWS, U. S. A. 
This paper isamost important contribution explanatory of the 
philosophy of the North American Indians. It gives in detail, 
as seen bya thoroughly equipped witness, one of the most illus- 
trative of the ceremonies of the Navajo, a large body of In- 
dians of the Athabascan linguistic stock now occupying a res- 
ervation which embraces parts of New Mexico and Arizona, 
though until a period commencing less than fifty years ago 
the range of these people extended much farther south. The 
essay is divided into (1) a translation, with incidental explana- 
tions of the myth on which the ceremonies are based, (2) the 
ceremonies themselves, including the mythologie sand paintings, 
and (3) the originals and translations of the songs and prayers 
used in the ceremonies, which all refer to the myth. 
This myth exhibits the stage in mythologic philosophy in 
which zoétheism and physitheism are both represented. In it 
the phenomena of nature are the work of animal gods, but 
these gods are becoming anthropomorphic. A strong general 
resemblance appears between this myth and those recorded 
from Algonkian and Iroquoian sources, but it is presented by 
Dr. Matthews in a much more pure and accurate manner than 
those published by Schoolcraft and other oft-quoted authors. 
