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the golden bough-第231章

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ft to compensate the fish for their fellows who have been caught and eaten。 It is especially necessary to treat the first fish caught with consideration in order to conciliate the rest of the fish; whose conduct may be supposed to be influenced by the reception given to those of their kind which were the first to be taken。 Accordingly the Maoris always put back into the sea the first fish caught; with a prayer that it may tempt other fish to come and be caught。

Still more stringent are the precautions taken when the fish are the first of the season。 On salmon rivers; when the fish begin to run up the stream in spring; they are received with much deference by tribes who; like the Indians of the Pacific Coast of North America; subsist largely upon a fish diet。 In British Columbia the Indians used to go out to meet the first fish as they came up the river: They paid court to them; and would address them thus: 'You fish; you fish; you are all chiefs; you are; you are all chiefs。' Amongst the Tlingit of Alaska the first halibut of the season is carefully handled and addressed as a chief; and a festival is given in his honour; after which the fishing goes on。 In spring; when the winds blow soft from the south and the salmon begin to run up the Klamath river; the Karoks of California dance for salmon; to ensure a good catch。 One of the Indians; called the Kareya or God…man; retires to the mountains and fasts for ten days。 On his return the people flee; while he goes to the river; takes the first salmon of the catch; eats some of it; and with the rest kindles the sacred fire in the sweating house。 No Indian may take a salmon before this dance is held; nor for ten days after it; even if his family are starving。 The Karoks also believe that a fisherman will take no salmon if the poles of which his spearing…booth is made were gathered on the river…side; where the salmon might have seen them。 The poles must be brought from the top of the highest mountain。 The fisherman will also labour in vain if he uses the same poles a second year in booths or weirs; because the old salmon will have told the young ones about them。 There is a favourite fish of the Aino which appears in their rivers about May and June。 They prepare for the fishing by observing rules of ceremonial purity; and when they have gone out to fish; the women at home must keep strict silence or the fish would hear them and disappear。 When the first fish is caught he is brought home and passed through a small opening at the end of the hut; but not through the door; for if he were passed through the door; the other fish would certainly see him and disappear。 This may partly explain the custom observed by other savages of bringing game in certain cases into their huts; not by the door; but by the window; the smoke…hole; or by a special opening at the back of the hut。

With some savages a special reason for respecting the bones of game; and generally of the animals which they eat; is a belief that; if the bones are preserved; they will in course of time be reclothed with flesh; and thus the animal will come to life again。 It is; therefore; clearly for the interest of the hunter to leave the bones intact since to destroy them would be to diminish the future supply of game。 Many of the Minnetaree Indians believe that the bones of those bisons which they have slain and divested of flesh rise again clothed with renewed flesh; and quickened with life; and become fat; and fit for slaughter the succeeding June。 Hence on the western prairies of America; the skulls of buffaloes may be seen arranged in circles and symmetrical piles; awaiting the resurrection。 After feasting on a dog; the Dacotas carefully collect the bones; scrape; wash; and bury them; partly; as it is said; to testify to the dog…species; that in feasting upon one of their number no disrespect was meant to the species itself; and partly also from a belief that the bones of the animal will rise and reproduce another。 In sacrificing an animal the Lapps regularly put aside the bones; eyes; ears; heart; lungs; sexual parts (if the animal was a male); and a morsel of flesh from each limb。 Then; after eating the remainder of the flesh; they laid the bones and the rest in anatomical order in a coffin and buried them with the usual rites; believing that the god to whom the animal was sacrificed would reclothe the bones with flesh and restore the animal to life in Jabme…Aimo; the subterranean world of the dead。 Sometimes; as after feasting on a bear; they seem to have contented themselves with thus burying the bones。 Thus the Lapps expected the resurrection of the slain animal to take place in another world; resembling in this respect the Kamtchatkans; who believed that every creature; down to the smallest fly; would rise from the dead and live underground。 On the other hand; the North American Indians looked for the resurrection of the animals in the present world。 The habit; observed especially by Mongolian peoples; of stuffing the skin of a sacrificed animal; or stretching it on a framework; points rather to a belief in a resurrection of the latter sort。 The objection commonly entertained by primitive peoples to break the bones of the animals which they have eaten or sacrificed may be based either on a belief in the resurrection of the animals; or on a fear of intimidating other creatures of the same species and offending the ghosts of the slain animals。 The reluctance of North American Indians and Esquimaux to let dogs gnaw the bones of animals is perhaps only a precaution to prevent the bones from being broken。

But after all the resurrection of dead game may have its inconveniences; and accordingly some hunters take steps to prevent it by hamstringing the animal so as to prevent it or its ghost from getting up and running away。 This is the motive alleged for the practice by Koui hunters in Laos; they think that the spells which they utter in the chase may lose their magical virtue; and that the slaughtered animal may consequently come to life again and escape。 To prevent that catastrophe they therefore hamstring the beast as soon as they have butchered it。 When an Esquimau of Alaska has killed a fox; he carefully cuts the tendons of all the animal's legs in order to prevent the ghost from reanimating the body and walking about。 But hamstringing the carcase is not the only measure which the prudent savage adopts for the sake of disabling the ghost of his victim。 In old days; when the Aino went out hunting and killed a fox first; they took care to tie its mouth up tightly in order to prevent the ghost of the animal from sallying forth and warning its fellows against the approach of the hunter。 The Gilyaks of the Amoor River put out the eyes of the seals they have killed; lest the ghosts of the slain animals should know their slayers and avenge their death by spoiling the seal…hunt。

Besides the animals which primitive man dreads for their strength and ferocity; and those which he reveres on account of the benefits which he expects from them; there is another class of creatures which he sometimes deems it necessary to conciliate by worship and sacrifice。 These are the vermin that infest his crops and his cattle。 To rid himself o
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