Clarke courier. [volume] (Berryville, Va.) 1869-1997, 1906-10-03
WAMPUM.
What II In and How the Indians Used
TO Make IL.


What IL In and How the Indians Used
to Make IL.
When Columbus discovered America
he found the Indians carrying on trade
from tribe To tribe with wampum.
Anything that has value may be used
as money. In ancient Syracuse and
Britain tin was used as money, and we
ind that iron was so used at one time
In Sparta, pieces OF silk In China. cat
tie I'm Rome and Germany. leather
among the Carthaginians, nails in Scot.
land, lead in Burma. platinum in Rus
STA, cubes Of pressed tea in Tartary,
slaves among the Anglo-Saxons. salt
In Abyssinia, etc.
Wampum is from an Algonquin word
meaning white" The Indians have
ever been fond OF ornaments. partIcu-
larry Of beads. They used TO make
beads of seashells in the following
way: \ fragment of stone was with
much care worked doEn' to the size
of small nail, having one end quite
pointed, and it was then fastened to a
piece OF cane or reed. With this
simple tool the Indian workman chin
ped off n bit Of the inside of a conch
shell or a part of the shell Of a hard
clam and rubbed 1t down to the size
desired. This bit OF shell he held In his
hand, placed the sharp end of the
stone against it and then turned the
stone around and around until n hole
was drilled entirely through the shell.
The she'll beads thus tediously manu-
featured were called wampum. These
beads were either white or OF a purple
color, the last being valued much high
er than the first. 1t was the very Ia
borious way of making wampum that
gave it value. The wampum was arts
tically strung upon hempen threads
and used as necklaces, bracelets and
rings. Often Ii was woven into belts
about three inches in width and two
feet in length.
The wampum belt served many pur-
poses. 1t was sent from tribe to tribe
with solemn promises and messages.
1t was used in making peace, in asking
for aid in time OF war, for personal
adornment and also as circulating
medium" The coast tribe Indians
were the wampum makers. The in
terror Indians spent their time hunting
and exchanged game of all kinds for
the wampum made by the coast tribes.
For q long time after white people
had settled In the new world small
coins were scarce and wampum was
used as change. Finally the palefaces
set up lathes by treadles for the pur-
pose OF making wampum quickly, and
soon the Indian wampum makers were,
as we say nowadays, tout of job"
Problem at Cambridge.
When Lord Rayleigh. the British
scientist. was a student at Cambridge
the examiners set among other prob
lens one which they based on an ar
tiole in z German mathematical period
ical supposed unlikely to have pene-
tratcd 10 Cambridge Only two mon
solved ii. Mr.. Stutt Qord Rayleigh)
and another. The examiners asked the
other man about this problem. "Oh."
he said. II take the - (mentionin1
the name Of the perlodicaD, and / was
very glad to find that, thanks to an
article i'm the last number. that prob-
lem CAME out quite easily" When Mr.
STRUTS turn came they expected n
similar answer. but he astonisbed
them by replying: THE fact is. gentle
men, that I sometimes contribute To
-. and | could not help feeling great
~ hattered that you should have
thought my little problem worthy OF a
place In this examination" He was
awarded the prize.