Morning journal and courier., 1888-11-13
THE NOTIONS OF SAVAGES.
Some Strange Beliefs of the SImpI
 Children of Earth.
 IF . RasSatt in an Fxchapoa

some
 Children of Earth.
 IF s. Bassett in Exchange1
 Savage beliefs regarding cosmogony, geog- merous that a volume would not contain them, and may be passed by, although some of them are exceedingly strange and inter estin4. Of greater interest to most readers are their notions about mankind, dress, do- mestie animals, furniture, &c.,, few of which will illustrate the character of the larger number that might be given.
 The first time natives of the province of Victoria, in Australia, saw an OK grazing the whole tribe turned out to watch him, and the most daring warriors begged him to give them the huge horns he wore. Many savages call the game by name in hunting, just as herdsman calls his COWS. Tupinam- ba women in Brazil go to the ant hills and call the ants out, promising them nuts, while those of New South Wales beg the fish to be caught. Ia the cabins of Canada Indians there was an individual especially charged with this duty.
 Bolivian Yuracaries would not feed corn to their fowls, saying that as they could not raise 1t they ought not to have it. Many tribes of Africa, Paraguay and Central Ah6T1ca anticipated OAEWlu15m HI GHS1I D0' | lief that monkeys were formerly men who have lost the art of speech because they are not made to labor.
 It is difficult for us to understand the be- l lief held by many savGges that they are the ! sole inhabitants of the earth. Comanches, Carlos, New Guinea tribes and Marquessns had no idea that there were any other people | on earth besides their own, and similar ideas were entertained by Rocky Mountain tribes, 1 Orinoco Indiapg, Australian aborigines, Mar rianne Islanders and natives of Tasmania. Forty years since natives of the Msrquesas l Islands professed like ignorance of any in
 hsbitants upon the earth outside their owr | island.
 1 Many of the natives of the West India and | South Sea Islands and Indian tribes of North and South America thought that the first white people they saw came from heaven | Esquimaux believed that the first ship arri- wing on their coast came from the sun or the moon, from which latter planet came the crew. A Senegal tribe, we'll the Ga ribs, maintained that the white people came 1 from the sea, and that ships were their only habitations.
 Some negroes on the eastern frontier o1 Congo were greatly astonished at finding all the white persons wearing clothing, not i'm I agining how they could procure so great quantity So pleased were the simple na- l tives of country to the south of Sahars l with buttons that Park was kept some time buttoning and unbutton1ng his coat to show l the use of these attachments. The king ot Rondo and his officers greatly admired ar umbrella, and were some time in learning ] how to use a machine so marvellous, and 1 New Zealanders were equally impressed with one, delighting to open and close it. The inhabitants of an island in the East believed that the man, his clothes and his shoes were | of one piece, and were only convinced of the contrary by close examination. Senegal | tribe was convinced that this must be the 1 case with the missionaries.
 . Some women on the borders of the Grea Sahara thought the Abbe Poiret had greer skin because he wore gloves of that hue, an6 others in a nomadic tribe of Morocco were
 very much frightened at seeing Drummoni Hay pull off his gloves. Tasmenians wer, very much surprised to see traveller do th,
 same. African Laus thought the boots wer,
 a part of the natural body, and wondered
 much that they should be dark while tn, faces were white. Another African trib
 thought that missionary was detaching hi
 feet when removing the shoes, and that hi black stockings were 8 detachable part of
 double skin with which he was provided l The Ua8aramos of Africa thought that an other, who wore glasses, had four eyes. on pair of which were detachable. Some Nev | Zsalanders were persuaded that wig wa but the skin of the head, and that it's remo val was accomplished by magic. Hawaiian i. thought Cooks officers were horned becAus z | they wore three cornered chapeaux, and be l lieved that their pockets were entrances i, great natural reservoirs of treasures withi 6 their bodies.
 ? Guinea negroes, Tahitians and tribes of ii t New Britain archipelago believed that olotl