86 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



from the uniformity of that size, and the absence of narrower and 

 shallower grooves. As to the period, they may have been in use in 

 Onondaga County and vicinity for a hundred years after the form- 

 ing of the Iroquois League, but probably less. 



The Indians of the present day have simple methods of arrow 

 making, and whether their fathers made these grooves with so much 

 labor, for this purpose, may be a question still. The strong point 

 is that there is no other apparent use for them. 



Grooves of another kind are not rare, and among these are the 

 sharper cuts made by sharpening tools on boulders. A large stone 

 was often very convenient for this purpose, and some may still.be 

 seen on old village sites. As the Indians learned to melt and cast 

 metals, they sometimes made use of a small stone for a matrix, and 

 such stones are occasionally found. So are whetstones, easily 

 recognizable by their marks of use. They are commonly slender 

 and small. '. 



After the foregoing was written, Mr. A. G. Richmond described a 

 large grooved boulder, weighing 1970 pounds. Of this he says, 

 ' There are three grooves at one end, pretty well off on the slope. 

 Three more toward the center, and a seventh one started in the 

 center.' He thinks they were certainly used in working arrow 

 shafts, and while there are certain difficulties in the position of those 

 found in place, he makes suggestions worthy of consideration. 

 These are quoted here, ' My theory is, and it would answer on every 

 stone I have seen, that they sat astride, and worked the arrow in 

 front of them, as my observation is that they all have grooves across, 

 rather than lengthwise of the stone. Another thing makes me think 

 they were made for this purpose, and that is that when the groove 

 reaches a width sufficient for the maximum size of arrow shafts, 

 they proceed to make a second groove. If it was for some purpose 

 that did not require a uniform or absolute size, one groove would 

 answer every purpose.' 



The crosswise grooving, however, while general is not invariable. 

 The uniformity of the grooves, of which he speaks, is one of the re- 

 markable features of these curious stones. 



