NAMES OF TRIBES AND PERSONS. BED 
they vary the form. Thus they use No’-to, No-to-nan’, and No-toang’-kau 
which may be rendered “easters”, “easterns”, and “easterners”. So con- 
tracted are their journeyings and their knowledge that they do not need 
a complicate@ system of names. If there are any people living twenty 
miles away they are not aware of their existence. In consequence of this 
it was almost impossible for me to learn any fixed names of tribes. There 
are the Pu-su’-na, at the mouth of American River, north side; the Kwo- 
to’-a, at Placerville; the Ko-lo’-ma, at Coloma; and the Wa-pum’-ni, near 
Latrobe. Indeed, I doubt if there is any considerable number of tribal 
names, for they are such a nomadic nation (within small limits) that they 
exist in a continual chaos. ‘They move their camps so often that they have 
not even names for them, properly speaking; that is, no name separate and 
apart from that of the spring, bowlder, tree, creek, or what not, where they 
happen at any particular time to be camping. Hence, in designating one 
another, they always use the points of the compass—to’-shim, ko'-mo, no’-to, 
tai (north, south, east, west)—in various forms; and those living near Bear 
River always add kaw (place), as Ta’-sing-kau, Ko-moang’-kau, No-toang’- 
kau, Taing’-kau. 
There are also some curious peculiarities in regard to personal names. 
One can very seldom learn an Indian’s and never a squaw’s Indian name, 
though they will tell their American titles readily enough. It is a greater 
breach of decorum to ask a squaw her name than it is among us to ask a 
lady her age. I have often made the attempt and never yet have learned 
a squaw’s Indian name from her own lips. A husband never calls his wife 
by name on any account, and it is said that divorces have been produced 
by no other provocation than that. It is amusing to note the resemblances 
between feminine human nature in the aboriginal and the civilized state. 
No squaw will reveal her own name, but she will tell all her neighbors’ that. 
she can think of. For the reason above given many people believe that 
half the squaws have no names at all. So far is this from the truth that 
every one possesses at least one and sometimes two or three. Hel’-la Ni-o’- 
chi-chit was mentioned as an instance of two; and I[le/-wal-la Kle’-gli 
Num’-num of three. As usual in California a great majority of the names 
have no significance, being merely such collections of sounds as are 
