762 REPORT— 1895. 



Altlioiigh travel in these wild regions is vei-y rough, still the people dAvelliug 

 on the outskirts of the main chain are kind, polite, and hospitable to a degree. 

 Many of their customs and superstitions are very curious. They hold a strong 

 iDelief in the power of foxes, loadgers, wasps, &c., to ' possess' human beings, of 

 which the writer has had odd personal experiences. 



In times of drought strange ceremonies, sometimes accompanied by sacrifices, 

 are performed on some of the mountain tops with the object of obtaining rain. 



Ontake, an extinct volcano to the south of the range, 10,000 feet high, is. next 

 to Fujisan, the loftiest sacred mountain in Japan. Pilgrims visit it every summer 

 to practise a sort of hypnotic trance called hami-orosJn, or • bringing down the 

 gods.' Through the intervention of a skilled ' medium ' communication is said to 

 be held with the .spirits of departed heroes, &c. Oracular replies are given to 

 questions dealing with the prospects of future health, business, weather, \-c. It is 

 a fast dying-out survival of a curious l"\ar P^astern presentment of the Delphic 

 Oracle. 



TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17. 

 The following Report and Papers were read : — 

 1. Report on Explorations in South Arabia. See Reports, p. 491. 



2. Formosa. By John Dodd. 



This paper gives an account of observations and explorations in the island of 

 Formosa made by the author during his residence there from 1864 to 1890. After 

 referring to the work of British naval officers, consular officers, commissioners of 

 Chinese customs, and others, and giving a general geographical description of the 

 island and its commerce, the paper goes on to discuss the probable origin of the 

 aboriginal tril)es occupying the highest mountain districts. The mode of life of 

 the savage inhabitants is described — their dress, weapons, methods of hunting, mar- 

 riage customs, &c. — and special reference is made to the practice of head-hunting, 

 whether indulged in from motives of revenge or as a pastime merely. The paper 

 next deals with the Pepawbano, or descendants of the savages of the plains, their 

 spoliation by Chinese immigrants, and the work of the Dutch missionaries amongst 

 them. In the concluding section the author refers to the colonisation of parts of 

 Formosa by immigrants from Fokien, and to the Ilakka invasion of the hill dis- 

 tricts. Some account is given of the opening up of foreign trade, especially in 

 camphor, coal, and tea, and an estimate is formed of the commercial resources of 

 Formosa and of the prospects of their development. 



3. Russian Possessions in Central Asia. Bij Dr. A. Markoff. 



A comprehensive survey of Russia's Central Asian possessions is a task of great 

 difficulty for anyone who is not a Russian, on account of the Russian language. 

 An attempt is here made to give reliable data for a geographical description of this 

 part of the world, where the three largest empires meet. 



The Russian possessions are : (1) The Transcaspian district, parcelled up into 

 the provinces of Manghishlak, Krasnovodsk, Askhabad, Tejen, Merv ; (2) Turkes- 

 tan with Samarkand, Syr Darya, and Fergana ; (tl) the Khanat of Khiva ; and 

 (4) Bokhara. 



The author described the different districts and their boundaries ; the population, 

 Russian, Persian, Tartar, Armenian, and others; industries, such as fishing, agri- 

 culture, gardening, the cultivation of silk, cotton, and grapes ; stock-breeding, 

 mining, and commerce. 



The soil and climatic conditions of Turkestan were described. Turkestan is 

 gradually losing its vegetation and drying up. Great changes in Russian commerce 



