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[This e-text includes characters that will only display in UTF-8
(Unicode) text readers:

  Ē ā ē ī ō ū (vowel with macron or “long” mark)
  Ă Ĕ Ĭ ă ĕ ĭ ŏ (vowel with breve or “short” mark)
  Ś ś ć (s, c with “acute”:
    mainly in Recording Indian Languages article)
  ⁿ (small raised n, representing nasalized vowel)
  ɔ ʞ ʇ (inverted letters)
  ‖ (double vertical line

There are also a handful of Greek words.

Some compromises were made to accommodate font availability:

  The ordinary “cents” sign ¢ was used in place of the correct form ȼ,
    and bracketed [¢] represents the capital letter Ȼ.
  Turned c is represented by ɔ (technically an open o).
  Bracketed [K] and [T] represent upside-down (turned) capital K and T.
  Inverted V (described in text) is represented by the Greek letter Λ.

If your computer has a more appropriate character, feel free to replace
letters globally.

Syllable stress is represented by an acute accent either on the main
vówel or after the syl´lable; inconsistencies are unchanged. Except
for special characters noted above, and obvious insertions such as
[Illustration] and [Footnote], brackets are in the original. Note that
in the Sign Language article, hand positions identified by letter
(A, B... W, Y) are descriptive; they do not represent a “finger
alphabet”.

Italics are shown with _lines_. Boldface (rare) is shown with +marks+;
in some articles the same notation is used for +small capitals+.

The First Annual Report includes ten “Accompanying Papers”, all
available from Project Gutenberg as individual e-texts. Except for
Yarrow’s “Mortuary Customs”, updated shortly before the present text,
the separate articles were released between late 2005 and late 2007. For
this combined e-text they have been re-formatted for consistency. Some
articles have been further modified to include specialized characters
shown above, and a few more typographical errors have been corrected.

For consistency with later Annual Reports, a full List of Illustrations
has been added after the Table of Contents, and each article has been
given its own Table of Contents. In the original, the Contents were
printed _only_ at the beginning of the volume, and Illustrations were
listed _only_ with their respective articles.

Errors and inconsistencies are listed separately at the end of each
article and after the combined Index. Differences in punctuation or
hyphenization between the Table of Contents, Index, or List of
Illustrations, and the item itself, are not noted.]


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               FIRST ANNUAL REPORT

                     of the

              BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY

                     to the

    Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution

                    1879-’80

                       by

                 J. W. POWELL
                    Director


                 [Illustration]


                   WASHINGTON
           Government Printing Office
                      1881




  SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, Bureau of Ethnology,
    _Washington, D.C., July, 1880._

  Prof. SPENCER F. BAIRD,
    _Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution_,
      _Washington, D.C._:

SIR: I have the honor to transmit herewith the first annual report of
the operations of the Bureau of Ethnology.

By act of Congress, an appropriation was made to continue researches in
North American anthropology, the general direction of which was confided
to yourself. As chief executive officer of the Smithsonian Institution,
you entrusted to me the immediate control of the affairs of the Bureau.
This report, with its appended papers, is designed to exhibit the
methods and results of my administration of this trust.

If any measure of success has been attained, it is largely due to
general instructions received from yourself and the advice you have ever
patiently given me on all matters of importance.

I am indebted to my assistants, whose labors are delineated in the
report, for their industry; hearty co-operation, and enthusiastic love
of the science. Only through their zeal have your plans been executed.

Much assistance has been rendered the Bureau by a large body of
scientific men engaged in the study of anthropology, some of whose names
have been mentioned in the report and accompanying papers, and others
will be put on record when the subject-matter of their writings is fully
published.

I am, with respect, your obedient servant,

  J. W. POWELL.




TABLE OF CONTENTS.


REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR.
                                                               Page.

  Introductory                                                    xi
  Bibliography of North American philology, by J. C. Pilling      xv
  Linguistic and other anthropologic researches,
      by J. O. Dorsey                                           xvii
  Linguistic researches, by S. R. Riggs                        xviii
  Linguistic and general researches among the Klamath
      Indians, by A. S. Gatschet                                 xix
  Studies among the Iroquois, by Mrs. E. A. Smith               xxii
  Work by Prof. Otis T. Mason                                   xxii
  The study of gesture speech, by Brevet Lieut. Col.
      Garrick Mallery                                          xxiii
  Studies on Central American picture writing,
      by Prof. E. S. Holden                                      xxv
  The study of mortuary customs, by Dr. H. C. Yarrow            xxvi
  Investigations relating to cessions of lands by Indian
      tribes to the United States, by C. C. Royce              xxvii
  Explorations by Mr. James Stevenson                            xxx
  Researches among the Wintuns, by Prof. J. W. Powell          xxxii
  The preparation of manuals for use in American research      xxxii
  Linguistic classification of the North American tribes      xxxiii


ACCOMPANYING PAPERS.
                                                                Page.

ON THE EVOLUTION OF LANGUAGE, BY J. W. POWELL.

  Process by combination                                           3
  Process by vocalic mutation                                      5
  Process by intonation                                            6
  Process by placement                                             6
  Differentiation of the parts of speech                           8

SKETCH OF THE MYTHOLOGY OF THE NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS, BY J. W. POWELL.

  The genesis of philosophy                                       19
  Two grand stages of philosophy                                  21
  Mythologic philosophy has four stages                           29
  Outgrowth from mythologic philosophy                            33
  The course of evolution in mythologic philosophy                38
  Mythic tales                                                    43
    The Cĭn-aú-äv Brothers discuss matters of importance
      to the Utes                                                 44
    Origin of the echo                                            45
    The So´-kûs Wai´-ûn-ats                                       47
    Ta-vwots has a fight with the sun                             52

WYANDOT GOVERNMENT, BY J. W. POWELL.

  The family                                                      59
  The gens                                                        59
  The phratry                                                     60
  Government                                                      61
    Civil government                                              61
    Methods of choosing councillors                               61
    Functions of civil government                                 63
    Marriage regulations                                          63
    Name regulations                                              64
    Regulations of personal adornment                             64
    Regulations of order in encampment                            64
    Property rights                                               65
    Rights of persons                                             65
    Community rights                                              65
    Rights of religion                                            65
    Crimes                                                        66
    Theft                                                         66
    Maiming                                                       66
    Murder                                                        66
    Treason                                                       67
    Witchcraft                                                    67
    Outlawry                                                      67
    Military government                                           68
    Fellowhood                                                    68

ON LIMITATIONS TO THE USE OF SOME ANTHROPOLOGIC DATA, BY J. W. POWELL.

  Archæology                                                      73
  Picture writing                                                 75
  History, customs, and ethnic characteristics                    76
  Origin of man                                                   77
  Language                                                        78
  Mythology                                                       81
  Sociology                                                       83
  Psychology                                                      83

A FURTHER CONTRIBUTION TO THE STUDY OF THE MORTUARY CUSTOMS OF THE NORTH
AMERICAN INDIANS, BY H. C. YARROW.

  List of illustrations                                           89
  Introductory                                                    91
  Classification of burial                                        92
  Inhumation                                                      93
    Pit burial                                                    93
    Grave burial                                                 101
    Stone graves or cists                                        113
    Burial in mounds                                             115
    Burial beneath or in cabins, wigwams, or houses              122
    Cave burial                                                  126
  Embalmment or mummification                                    130
  Urn burial                                                     137
  Surface burial                                                 138
    Cairn burial                                                 142
  Cremation                                                      143
    Partial cremation                                            150
  Aerial sepulture                                               152
    Lodge burial                                                 152
    Box burial                                                   155
    Tree and scaffold burial                                     158
    Partial scaffold burial and ossuaries                        168
    Superterrene and aerial burial in canoes                     171
  Aquatic burial                                                 180
  Living sepulchers                                              182
  Mourning, sacrifice, feasts, etc.                              183
    Mourning                                                     183
    Sacrifice                                                    187
    Feasts                                                       190
    Superstition regarding burial feasts                         191
    Food                                                         192
    Dances                                                       192
    Songs                                                        194
    Games                                                        195
    Posts                                                        197
    Fires                                                        198
    Superstitions                                                199

STUDIES IN CENTRAL AMERICAN PICTURE WRITING, BY E. S. HOLDEN.

  List of illustrations                                          206
  Introductory                                                   207
  Materials for the present investigation                        210
  System of nomenclature                                         211
  In what order are the hieroglyphs read?                        221
  The card catalogue of hieroglyphs                              223
  Comparison of plates I and IV (Copan)                          224
  Are the hieroglyphs of Copan and Palenque identical?           227
  Huitzilopochtli, Mexican god of war, etc.                      229
  Tlaloc, or his Maya representative                             237
  Cukulcan or Quetzalcoatl                                       239
  Comparison of the signs of the Maya months                     243

CESSIONS OF LAND BY INDIAN TRIBES TO THE UNITED STATES, BY C. C. ROYCE.

  Character of the Indian title                                  249
  Indian boundaries                                              253
  Original and secondary cessions                                256

SIGN LANGUAGE AMONG NORTH AMERICAN INDIANS, BY COL. GARRICK MALLERY.

  Introductory                                                   269
  Divisions of gesture speech                                    270
  The origin of sign language                                    273
    Gestures of the lower animals                                275
    Gestures of young children                                   276
    Gestures in mental disorder                                  276
    Uninstructed deaf-mutes                                      277
    Gestures of the blind                                        278
    Loss of speech by isolation                                  278
    Low tribes of man                                            279
    Gestures as an occasional resource                           279
    Gestures of fluent talkers                                   279
    Involuntary response to gestures                             280
    Natural pantomime                                            280
  Some theories upon primitive language                          282
    Conclusions                                                  284
  History of gesture language                                    285
  Modern use of gesture speech                                   293
    Use by other peoples than North American Indians             294
    Use by modern actors and orators                             308
  Our Indian conditions favorable to sign language               311
  Theories entertained respecting Indian signs                   313
    Not correlated with meagerness of language                   314
    Its origin from one tribe or region                          316
    Is the Indian system special and peculiar?                   319
    To what extent prevalent as a system                         323
    Are signs conventional or instinctive?                       340
    Classes of diversities in signs                              341
  Results sought in the study of sign language                   346
    Practical application                                        346
    Relations to philology                                       349
    Sign language with reference to grammar                      359
    Gestures aiding archæologic research                         368
  Notable points for further researches                          387
    Invention of new signs                                       387
    Danger of symbolic interpretation                            388
    Signs used by women and children                             391
    Positive signs rendered negative                             391
    Details of positions of fingers                              392
    Motions relative to parts of the body                        393
    Suggestions for collecting signs                             394
  Mode in which researches have been made                        395
  List of authorities and collaborators                          401
    Algonkian                                                    403
    Dakotan                                                      404
    Iroquoian                                                    405
    Kaiowan                                                      406
    Kutinean                                                     406
    Panian                                                       406
    Piman                                                        406
    Sahaptian                                                    406
    Shoshonian                                                   406
    Tinnean                                                      407
    Wichitan                                                     407
    Zuñian                                                       407
    Foreign correspondence                                       407
  Extracts from dictionary                                       409
  Tribal signs                                                   458
  Proper names                                                   476
  Phrases                                                        479
  Dialogues                                                      486
    Tendoy-Huerito Dialogue.                                     486
    Omaha Colloquy.                                              490
    Brulé Dakota Colloquy.                                       491
    Dialogue between Alaskan Indians.                            492
    Ojibwa Dialogue.                                             499
  Narratives                                                     500
    Nátci’s Narrative.                                           500
    Patricio’s Narrative.                                        505
    Na-wa-gi-jig’s Story.                                        508
  Discourses                                                     521
    Address of Kin Chē-Ĕss.                                      521
    Tso-di-a´-ko’s Report.                                       524
    Lean Wolf’s Complaint.                                       526
  Signals                                                        529
    Signals executed by bodily action                            529
    Signals in which objects are used in connection with
      personal action                                            532
    Signals made when the person of the signalist
      is not visible                                             536
  Scheme of illustration                                         544
  Outlines for arm positions in sign language                    545
  Types of hand positions in sign language                       547
  Examples                                                       550

CATALOGUE OF LINGUISTIC MANUSCRIPTS IN THE LIBRARY OF THE BUREAU OF
ETHNOLOGY, BY J. C. PILLING.

  Introductory                                                   555
  List of manuscripts                                            562

ILLUSTRATION OF THE METHOD OF RECORDING INDIAN LANGUAGES. FROM THE
MANUSCRIPTS OF MESSRS. J. O. DORSEY, A. S. GATSCHET, AND S. B. RIGGS.

  How the rabbit caught the sun in a trap, by J. O. Dorsey       581
  Details of a conjurer’s practice, by A. S. Gatschet            583
  The relapse, by A. S. Gatschet                                 585
  Sweat-Lodges, by A. S. Gatschet                                586
  A dog’s revenge, by S. R. Riggs                                587




FIRST ANNUAL REPORT

OF THE

BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY.


BY J. W. POWELL, _Director._




INTRODUCTORY.


The exploration of the Colorado River of the West, begun in 1869 by
authority of Congressional action, was by the same authority
subsequently continued as the second division of the Geographical and
Geological Survey of the Territories, and, finally, as the Geographical
and Geological Survey of the Rocky Mountain Region.

By act of Congress of March 3, 1879, the various geological and
geographical surveys existing at that time were discontinued and the
United States Geological Survey was established.

In all the earlier surveys anthropologic researches among the North
American Indians were carried on. In that branch of the work finally
designated as the Geographical and Geological Survey of the Rocky
Mountain Region, such research constituted an important part of the
work. In the act creating the Geological Survey, provision was made to
continue work in this field under the direction of the Smithsonian
Institution, on the basis of the methods developed and materials
collected by the Geographical and Geological Survey of the Rocky
Mountain Region.

Under the authority of the act of Congress providing for the
continuation of the work, the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution
intrusted its management to the former director of the Survey of the
Rocky Mountain Region, and a bureau of ethnology was thus practically
organized.

In the Annual Report of the Geographical and Geological Survey of the
Rocky Mountain Region for 1877, the following statement of the condition
of the work at that time appears:


ETHNOGRAPHIC WORK.

  During the same office season the ethnographic work was more
  thoroughly organized, and the aid of a large number of volunteer
  assistants living throughout the country was secured. Mr. W. H.
  Dall, of the United States Coast Survey, prepared a paper on the
  tribes of Alaska, and edited other papers on certain tribes of
  Oregon and Washington Territory. He also superintended the
  construction of an ethnographic map to accompany his paper,
  including on it the latest geographic determination from all
  available sources. His long residence and extended scientific labors
  in that region peculiarly fitted him for the task, and he has made a
  valuable contribution both to ethnology and geography.

  With the same volume was published a paper on the habits and customs
  of certain tribes of