The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-06-16

COWS The relics are classified, and each
one is numbered and given full descrip-
ton in a catalogue which is carefully pre-
served by Mr.. Lincoln. When he was
asked how many relics he and his brother
had collected, David said he had long ago
lost count. He guessed, however, that the
collection numbered somewhere in the
neighborhood of 5000 articles, and with a
very few exceptions all of them were found
by his brother and himself in the imme-
diate vicinity of West Brookfield says the
Springfield Republican.
A large and interesting book might be
written about this collection, and it will be
impossible in this article to give more than
a general idea of some of the more con-
spiCuous articles. A corn hoe and an In
dian hammer were the first specimens
shown. The hoe was roughly fashioned
from coarse grained stone, and grooves in
its side showed where the handle had been
attached. A spheroidal piece of smooth
and very hard stone was pronounced "a
hammer, and a num Der of lamentations on
one OF the tlatter sheds were pointed out
as evidence that it had been good for that
purpose. A number of elongated pieces
of Stone, varying in length from 2 inches
to l foot, were pronounced needless,
which were used by the Indians
in the weaving of nets from grass
anu strong bWlSS. i mere were
pestles of all sizes and from two inches to
two'feetin length, which has been used in
grinding corn, and in the dooryard of the
house Mr.. Lincoln showed a fine large
mortar, whose followed top indicated the
purpose it had been used. Three pipes,
two made of soapstone and the other of
some harder material, were interesting re-
minders of the use of tobacco among the
red men. And then Mr.. Lincoln displayed
very Misunderstanding war club, and re-
marked that he would give it to his visitor
if he could pronounce the name of the
lake at Chester where the relic was found.
This is the name:
ugogogogogogunamung.
The instrument is still in the possession
of Mr.. Lincoln. There are fifteen toma-
hawks, all made of stone ana all found
spearhead made of flint, which had been
full accuracy. This head Mr.. Lincoln
picked up, one day in a gravel pit on the
Boston and Albany road. A piece of stone
shaped in the segment of circle and
sharpened on the curved edge was calmly
announced to be sealping-knife, and
the collector displayed eighteen notches
on the upper edge, which he said
there was the best reason to believe
indicated the number of times it had dis
charged the function. A round piece of
stone, oddly shaped was declared to be an
amulet or charm, but the five notches on
this are supposed by ethnologists to stand
for the number of pappooses which its
wearer has brought into the world.
A full set of Indian jewelry Mr.. Lincoln
considers very valuable, and he has one in
his collection. 1t was found near West
Brookfeld and consists of small amulet,
upon which is roughly carved bow and
arrow and chain, and two earrings,
which are fashioned with considerable
skill. The carving is particularly inter-
estng, as the inscription probably means
something, and consequently illustrates
one OF the embryotic stages of the art of
writing. Several copper arrow points,
which were found on what is known TO
have been the site of the camp of Shattoo-
gus, the chief from whom the settlers
bought the Quaboag country, indicates
that before the Indians left the valley they
had begun to emerge from the stone age.
A piece OF stone almost spherical in shape
ana about the size of a tennis ball Mr..
Lincoln said was used by the Indians in
playing game which was formerly known
by the homely name of Skinny" but
which is now somewhat changed, and re-
lolces under the more artistic appellation
of E'polo.'
A ''rubstone" was roughly fashioned
from hard rock, and evidently had been
used to grind down and shape pestles and
peiSA PlciiiCubS. n DdlLle-ax, SDaOeQ
somewhat like an ordinary sledge and
weighing seven pounds, Mr.. Lincoln
was especially proud Of He found
it near West Brooktield. There were
three medicine or drinking cups made
of stone, amulets of various sizes and
shapes and about half bushel of frap-
ments OF pottery, to say nothing of several
receptacles made of clay and sun baked:
two skulls, which smiled cheerfuIly upon
the spectators and which, from their forma-
ton, had evidently belonged to persons of
no very. great intellectual attainments;
string of wampum-peage (smaH pieces of
shells strung tightly together and making
a rather pretty chain); stone gouges used
for following out the logs and transform
ing them finally into canoes, and various
other articles, some of which Mr.. Lincoln
frankly said he knew nothing about except
that he had found them and that appar-
entity they were the workmanship of Indi-
ans. AS matter of course arrow heads
are Mr.. Lincoln's best hold, and in the
past thirty-five years he has collected
enough to sink a good-sized ship, and
many are very finely made and finished.
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