watched by Professor Holmes and Mr William Dinwiddie, without, however, the finding of a single artificial object in the previously undisturbed gravels. This negative result is believed to be of great importance to American archeology. Special examinations, frequently requiring excavations, were made of the ancient soapstone quarries of the District of Columbia and in Virginia, Mr Dinwiddie and Mr Gerard Fowke aiding in the work; and toward the close of the year Mr De Lancey W. Gill, of the United States Geological Survey, was detailed to make an examination of the ancient mica mines of North Carolina. Valuable collections of material representing aboriginal arts and industries grew out of this work.

In December Professor Holmes was placed in charge of the exhibit of the Bureau of Ethnology for the World's Columbian Exposition at Chicago, and several months were occupied mainly in preparing, classifying, labeling, and arranging the exhibit, which includes (1) a series of collections illustrating aboriginal quarrying, mining, and implement-making industries; (2) various collections of ethnologic material made chiefly by collaborators of the Bureau; and (3) a series of life-size figures illustrating the domestic life, arts, and industries of the aborigines. It is a pleasure to observe that this exhibit attracted great attention among visitors to the Exposition. Messrs Henry W. Henshaw, James Mooney, F. H. Cushing, and Gerard Fowke aided in the preparation of this exhibit.

At intervals throughout the year Professor Holmes continued researches concerning the development of the shaping arts. Hitherto, American archeologists have in general been content to accept the classification of prehistoric peoples into culture stages based on the products of art work in stone, the classification being derived from European studies. During the last decade different archeologists have devoted much attention to the development of pristine culture as indicated by the artificial stone implements, weapons, and other objects found in many parts of this country, and have come to question the applicability of the European classification. While the investigation can not be regarded as complete, it is worthy of note that a

large body of data has been brought together which seem to afford a basis for an indigenous classification of primitive American art products. This classification will, it is believed, eventually give character to that branch of American archeology which deals with art in stone.

The researches concerning the ancient Indian mounds distributed over many portions of the country, particularly the Mississippi valley, have been continued by Dr Cyrus Thomas. The chief work during the year has been the preparation of matter for publication and the revision of proofs of text and illustrations. The principal results of Dr Thomas' researches are incorporated in a monograph of over 700 pages in the twelfth annual report. Several minor papers relating to differ

ent classes of articles collected from mounds are also in various stages of preparation, two being ready for publication.

In addition to his special work on the Indian mounds, Dr Thomas was able to devote some time to the study of Mexican codices of exceptional archeologic interest. Considerable progress has been made in analyzing the characters of the Maya codices, and it is believed that these highly significant inscriptions may ultimately be deciphered by means of the methods. devised and pursued by him.

Mr Cosmos Mindeleff continued his study of the Pueblo relics and prepared an elaborate treatise on the subject for the press. This work, under the title "Aboriginal Remains in Verde Valley, Arizona," is now completed, and forms part of the thirteenth annual report. It illustrates in detail the architecture and various industrial arts recorded in the ruined cities of pre-Columbian tribes in the southwest.

In addition to the surveys and researches already noted, Mr Gerard Fowke was employed for several months in archeologic explorations in Ohio. He was able to obtain much valuable material.

WORK IN SOCIOLOGY

As indicated on earlier pages, the demotic relations of the Indian tribes are of great significance; for not only was it found necessary to classify the Indians on a demotic basis, but

it was ascertained that the institutions of several tribes are wonderfully elaborate and reveal the germ of higher systems of social organization. Albeit unwritten, primitive law is hardly less definite than that of civilized nations governed by statutes, and is frequently better understood by the people. The institutions are often highly complex, yet they are maintained and rendered definite by a variety of ingenious devices, while custom and etiquette, which appear meaningless to the casual observer, often express the experience of generations and carry the force of law. The researches concerning the social organization and institutions of the Indians have been eminently productive.

During the last year the work on the sociology of the American Indians was continued by Mr H. W. Henshaw. Throughout the earlier months he was occupied in collecting sociologic and linguistic materials among the Indians of Butte, Mendocino, and San Diego counties, California, the records of his work being duly transmitted to the office at Washington.

It is greatly to be regretted that early in 1893 Mr Henshaw was compelled by ill health to ask for indefinite leave of absence. For several years he had been engaged in researches relating to the social customs and organizations of the Indian tribes, and had accumulated in the Bureau archives a large body of valuable information which he was engaged in preparing for the press when his health began to fail, and he was transferred to field work. In addition to his scientific researches he had also aided constantly in the administrative work of the office. While the material accumulated by his years of labor remains in the office, it is not in form for immediate publication; and both author and Bureau suffer, disappointment and loss in the interruption of the work at this important stage. Ethnologic students everywhere will doubtless share the hope that Mr Henshaw's recovery and resumption of scientific work may not long be delayed.

About the middle of June Mr W J McGee entered the Bureau as Ethnologist in charge, and commenced researches concerning the relation of primitive arts and institutions to environment.

Mr James Mooney spent the greater part of the year in the field collecting information concerning the ghost dance of the Sioux, and regarding the habits, customs, and social relations of the Kiowa and other tribes, visiting the Sioux Indians at Pine Ridge, South Dakota, the Shoshoni and northern Arapaho in Wyoming, and the Cheyenne, southern Arapaho, Kiowa, Comanche, and associated tribes in Oklahoma. The ghost dance study was pushed to completion, and a memoir on the subject was prepared to accompany this report. In addition to valuable literary material, he made important collections of objects representing aboriginal life, including a series of Kiowa shield models with illustrative pictography affording data for a study of primitive heraldry, and three important calendars.

In December Mr Mooney was commissioned to make collections among the Navaho and Hopi of New Mexico and Arizona for exhibition at the World's Columbian Exposition. This work resulted in a remarkable collection of unique material from two of our most interesting native tribes, including the products of industrial arts, costumery, etc, as well as the photographs and materials needed for preparing and exhibiting a series of groups of life-size figures illustrating domestic life, industries, and ceremonies. In addition an unprecedentedly extensive collection of Indian food products was obtained for the National Museum.

WORK IN LINGUISTICS

With a view to rendering the classification of the Indian tribes so nearly exhaustive as practicable, it is the policy of the Bureau to utilize every opportunity for the collection of linguistic material among the aborigines. A part of the collaborators are expert linguists who are employed in collecting, comparing, classifying, and arranging vocabularies and grammars; in addition, much valuable material is obtained through correspondence with travelers and local students, and especially from teachers and missionaries employed among the Indians. All such material is suitably arranged in fireproof vaults and kept constantly accessible for study. It is not considered desirable to publish minor linguistic collections, partly

because they are commonly fragmentary, partly because it is found that the arrangement of the material is improved and its significance made clearer with each new addition; it is the policy to publish extended and well arranged linguistic collections from time to time, and one such monograph, on the Dakota language, was sent to press during the year as volume 1x of the Contributions to North American Ethnology. With the increase in linguistic data new relations are found among dialects, and the definition of the linguistic stocks is found to grow more trenchant; at the same time it becomes possible to trace more clearly the history and laws of the development of the dialects and stocks and the comparisons and the principles discovered thereby throw much light on the general subject of linguistic development. Thus the linguistic researches have been found remarkably fruitful.

During the year linguistic researches were continued by the Director, with the collaboration of Messrs J. Owen Dorsey, Albert S. Gatschet, and J. N. B. Hewitt.

Mr Dorsey was occupied in part with the preparation of the work on Indian synonymy, in connection with which he made a thorough study of the Catawba tribes and their habitats. He also resumed work on the Biloxi language, at first using the material collected during the previous year, arranging the Biloxi verbs in fourteen conjugations, making a list of Biloxi onomatopes, and compiling a Biloxi-English vocabulary of about two thousand entries together with a catalog of Biloxi roots. For the purpose of carrying this investigation to completion, he visited Lecompte, Louisiana, during the winter and spent two months with the survivors of this interesting tribe. In addition, he practically finished the work of editing the manuscript of Riggs' "Dakota Grammar, Texts and Ethnography," which constitutes volume IX of the series of Contributions to North American Ethnology. Proofs of this work were revised during the later portion of the year.

The earlier part of the year was spent by Dr Gatschet in the study of the Wichita language at the Educational Home for Indian Boys in Philadelphia. Special attention was given to the Wichita verb, which, like the verb of all the Caddoan