﻿Vol.2] 
  THE 
  ARAUCANIANS 
  — 
  COOPER 
  749 
  

  

  disease 
  by 
  bodily 
  contact 
  to 
  a 
  lamb, 
  dog, 
  or 
  chicken, 
  and 
  then 
  killing 
  

   the 
  animal; 
  using 
  bones 
  and 
  stones, 
  especially 
  perforated 
  stone 
  club- 
  

   heads 
  (Housse, 
  1939, 
  pp. 
  95-97), 
  as 
  talismans; 
  depositing 
  offerings 
  in 
  

   certain 
  cupped 
  rocks 
  (Guevara 
  Silva, 
  1911, 
  pp. 
  211-16); 
  dissolving 
  

   bezoars 
  (probably 
  scrapings) 
  in 
  water 
  and 
  having 
  horses 
  drink 
  the 
  

   mixture 
  to 
  make 
  them 
  swift 
  in 
  battle, 
  and 
  passing 
  feathers 
  of 
  certain 
  

   birds 
  over 
  the 
  body 
  and 
  feet 
  of 
  horses 
  for 
  the 
  same 
  purpose 
  (Rosales, 
  

   1877-78, 
  1:115); 
  using 
  hairs 
  or 
  bits 
  of 
  clothing 
  of 
  a 
  person 
  to 
  harm 
  

   him 
  (Moesbach, 
  1936, 
  p. 
  369). 
  (For 
  fuller 
  details, 
  see 
  Guevara 
  Silva, 
  

   1908, 
  pp. 
  259-61; 
  1913, 
  pp. 
  266-69, 
  272-73, 
  and 
  passim 
  in 
  ch. 
  5.) 
  

  

  (e) 
  Ritual 
  patterns. 
  — 
  Some 
  of 
  the 
  more 
  outstanding 
  ones 
  were 
  the 
  

   following: 
  Aspersions 
  with 
  blood 
  or 
  chicha; 
  the 
  killing 
  of 
  llamas, 
  later 
  

   of 
  sheep, 
  with 
  extraction 
  of 
  the 
  heart 
  and 
  sucking 
  of 
  blood 
  from 
  same; 
  

   the 
  use 
  of 
  Drimys 
  winteri 
  as 
  the 
  sacred 
  tree; 
  four 
  as 
  the 
  sacred 
  number; 
  

   ritual 
  recognition 
  of 
  the 
  four 
  cardinal 
  points; 
  and 
  fumigations 
  with 
  

   tobacco 
  smoke. 
  

  

  (/) 
  Divination.— 
  Certain 
  forms 
  of 
  divination 
  were 
  used, 
  such 
  as 
  

   with 
  chicha 
  (Latcham, 
  1922 
  b, 
  pp. 
  516-17) 
  and 
  with 
  drops 
  of 
  water 
  

   placed 
  on 
  stone 
  ax 
  heads 
  (Guevara 
  Silva, 
  1898, 
  1:100), 
  but 
  divination 
  

   was 
  not, 
  it 
  seems, 
  very 
  highly 
  elaborated. 
  (See 
  also 
  under 
  Sham- 
  

   anism, 
  p. 
  750.) 
  

  

  (g) 
  Omens. 
  — 
  Dreams 
  figured 
  largely 
  in 
  omen 
  beliefs. 
  A 
  fox 
  bark 
  at 
  

   night, 
  a 
  mero 
  (Agriornis 
  livida 
  livida) 
  bird 
  on 
  the 
  hut, 
  or 
  the 
  cry 
  of 
  cer- 
  

   tain 
  nocturnal 
  birds 
  over 
  the 
  hut 
  were 
  omens 
  of 
  sickness 
  and 
  death. 
  

   Owls 
  were 
  birds 
  of 
  evil 
  augury. 
  A 
  fire 
  emitting 
  many 
  sparks 
  or 
  crack- 
  

   ling 
  as 
  if 
  the 
  wood 
  were 
  green, 
  and 
  a 
  loika 
  (Trupialis 
  sp.) 
  bird 
  singing 
  at 
  

   the 
  hut 
  door, 
  were 
  signs 
  of 
  guests 
  to 
  come. 
  Certain 
  carnivorous 
  birds 
  

   following 
  an 
  army 
  or 
  a 
  fox 
  passing 
  near 
  or 
  through 
  the 
  army 
  on 
  march 
  

   on 
  the 
  left 
  side 
  were 
  bad 
  omens. 
  Rosales 
  (1877-78, 
  1:165; 
  cf 
  . 
  Guevara 
  

   Silva, 
  1911, 
  p. 
  85) 
  states 
  that 
  twitches 
  felt 
  in 
  the 
  eyelids 
  or 
  the 
  arms 
  

   were 
  interpreted 
  as 
  omens 
  — 
  a 
  common 
  North 
  American 
  Indian 
  belief, 
  

   found 
  widely 
  in 
  other 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  world. 
  (For 
  further 
  details 
  on 
  

   omens, 
  cf.: 
  Olivares, 
  1864, 
  pp. 
  52-53 
  ; 
  Guevara 
  Silva, 
  1908, 
  pp. 
  313-16, 
  

   including 
  data 
  on 
  dreams 
  and 
  nightmares; 
  1913, 
  pp. 
  281-83; 
  Housse, 
  

   1939, 
  pp. 
  114-15.) 
  

  

  (h) 
  Taboos.— 
  Guevara 
  Silva 
  (1908, 
  pp. 
  226-30; 
  1929, 
  2:155-66) 
  

   lists 
  many 
  taboos; 
  some 
  of 
  these 
  are 
  purely 
  social 
  prohibitions; 
  others 
  

   may 
  be 
  more 
  of 
  the 
  " 
  negative 
  magic" 
  order. 
  To 
  give 
  just 
  three 
  

   examples: 
  Snakes 
  were 
  not 
  to 
  be 
  trod 
  upon; 
  good 
  beasts 
  and 
  birds 
  

   were 
  not 
  to 
  be 
  maltreated 
  or 
  insulted; 
  rotten 
  eggs 
  were 
  not 
  to 
  be 
  put 
  

   in 
  gardens 
  lest 
  the 
  harvest 
  turn 
  out 
  badly. 
  

  

  (i) 
  Oaths. 
  —Both 
  assertory 
  and 
  promissory 
  verbal 
  oaths 
  were 
  com- 
  

   mon, 
  and 
  oaths 
  were 
  recorded 
  from 
  earliest 
  post-Hispanic 
  times. 
  The 
  

   person 
  swore 
  by 
  Eponam6n 
  (Ercilla, 
  1910, 
  p. 
  xix), 
  by 
  the 
  sun 
  (Cox, 
  

   1863, 
  p. 
  88; 
  Robles 
  Rodriguez, 
  1942, 
  pp. 
  61-62; 
  Milanesio, 
  1898, 
  p. 
  41), 
  

  

  