Waterbury evening Democrat., 1888-10-17
NOTIONS OF SAVAGES.
SOME STRANGE BELIEFS OF THE SIM
 PILE CHILDREN OF EARTH.

Darwinism Anticipated by Tribes of Af
 rica-Curious Ideas Concerning White
 People-what savases Thought of the
 Clothing of Civilization-Animals.
 Savage beliefs regarding cosmogony, geog- raphy and the kindred sciences are so numer ous that a volume would not contain them, and may be passed by, although some of them are exceedingly strange and interesting. Of greater interest to most readers are their no tions about mankind, dress, domestic animals, furniture, etc., 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 asAa herdsman calls his COWS. Tupinamba women ill 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. In the cabins of Canada Indians there was an indi- vidual especially charged with this duty
 Bolivian Yuracaries woulE not feed corn to their fowls, saying that as they could not raise it they ought not to have it. Many tribes of Africa, Paraguay and Central America anticipated Darwinism in their be- 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- lief held by many savages that they are the sols inhabitants of the earth Comanches Carlos, New Guinea tribes and Marquesans had no idea that there were any other people on earth besides their own, and similar ideas wese entertained by Rocky Mountain tribes, Ornpco Indians, Australian aborigines, Ma rianne Islanders and natives of Tasmania Forty years since natives of the MarqueSaS Islands professed like ignorance of any in habitants upon the earth outside their own island.
 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 arriv- ing on their coast came from the sun or the moon, from which latter planet came the crew. 4 Senegal tribe, as we'll as the Caribs, maintained that the white people came from the sea, and that ships were their only hab- i itations
 ! Some negroes on the eastern frontier of Congo were greatly astonished at finding all tho white persons wearing clothing, not lm- agining how they could procure so great a quantity. So pleased were the simple na- tives of a country to the south of Sahara with buttons that Park was kept some time buttoning and unbuttoning his coat, to show the use of these attachments. The king of Bondo and his officers greatly admired an umbrella, and were some time ill learning how to use a machine so marvellous, and New Zealanders were equally impressed with one, delightinG to open and close it. The inhab i itants 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. A Senegal tribe was convinced that this must be the case with the missionaries.
 | Some women on the borders of the Great Sahara thought the Abbe Poiret had greer skin because he wore gloves of that huc anG others in Q nomadic tribe of Morocco were very much frightened at seeing DrummonG Hay pull off his gloves. Tasmanians were very much surprised to see a traveller do the same. African Laus thought the boots were a part of the natural body, and wondered much that they should be dark while the faces
 were white. Another African tribe thought l that a missionary was detaching his fec
 when removing the shoes. and that his blacl stockings were detachable part of q double skin with which he was provided The UaZa
 ramos of Africa thought that another, wht
 wore glasses, had four eyes, one pair of whicl
 were detachable. Some New ZealanCler
 were persuaded that a wig was but the ski. of the head, and that it's removal was accom- 1 plished by magic. HawaiianS thought Cook
 officers were horned because they wore three
 cornered chapeaux, and believed that thei
 pockets were entrances to great natural res
 ervoirs of treasures within their bodies fI1inpa To t,,,b o
 the New Britain archipelago, believed tha
 cloth, arms, hatchets, mirrors and other ob
 jects of the kind were fruits of the earth an,
 Tahitian5 sowed nails to raise a crop, whil
 Carlos planted gunpowder in the ground
 with similar expectation.
 Several Australian tribes as we'll as native of New South Wales and Mexicans, though the horse and rider inseparable, and were ex ; ceedingly astonished to see the human par
 of the Centaur descend from his percE
 South Sea islanders thought the first hors brought on shore was pig, to which latte animal they were accustomed.
 kamschatkans thought all animals under , stood their language, and addressed to ther most fiattering words. Yacuts of Siberia cal 5 the bear lord, illustrious old man, good father , and beg of him humbly the permission to COT tinue their journey. The tiger is named Tor or grandfather by Cambodia tribes, and tn
 Annamite call him Sir Tiger, and addres } prayers to him. Philippine islanders beg tn 3 crocodiles not to do them any harm whil
 inhabitants of one of the Fiji islands thin l the shark will not attack them if they ca , out T am from Coloumban (their village) 7 Negroes usually think wine is blood, O v first seeing it. Some Esquimaux though biscuit dried seals flesh. When Canadia ) Indians saw white men, for the first tim, ] eat bread and drink wine they thought thel l wood and blood One African tribe is coI t vinced that rivers of rum flow on the Euro l pean soil. Missionaries enumerated rum ( r ono of the blessings of paradise to the Veze
 a Madagascar tribe-F. s. Bassett.
 ], Deposit of the Great Rivers. 6 The average discharge from the Missoul U into the Mississippi is estimated at TO cub