California, we find natives believing the spirits of their dead to enter into bears, and travellers have heard of a tribe begging the life of a wrinkle-faced old she grizzly bear as the recipient of the soul of some particular grandam, whom they fancied the creature to resemble.[1] So, among the Esquimaux, a traveller noticed a widow who was living for conscience' sake upon birds, and would not touch walrus-meat, which the angekok had forbidden her for a time, because her late husband had entered into a walrus.[2] Among other North American tribes, we hear of the Powhatans refraining from doing harm to certain small wood-birds which received the souls of their chiefs;[3] of Huron souls turning into turtle-doves after the burial of their bones at the Feast of the Dead;[4] of that pathetic funeral rite of the Iroquois, the setting free a bird on the evening of burial, to carry away the soul.[5] In Mexico, the Tlascalans thought that after death the souls of nobles would animate beautiful singing birds, while plebeians passed into weasels and beetles and such like vile creatures.[6] So, in Brazil, the Içannas say that the souls of the brave will become beautiful birds, feeding on pleasant fruits, but cowards will be turned into reptiles.[7] Among the Abipones we hear of certain little ducks which fly in flocks at night, uttering a mournful hiss, and which fancy associates with the souls of the dead;[8] while in Popayan it is said that doves were not killed, as inspired by departed souls.[9] Lastly, transmigration into brutes is also a received doctrine in South America as when a missionary heard a Chiriquane woman of western
- ↑ Schoolcraft, 'Indian Tribes,' part iii. p. 113.
- ↑ Hayes, 'Arctic Boat Journey,' p. 198.
- ↑ Brinton, 'Myths of New World,' p. 102.
- ↑ Brebeuf in 'Rel. des Jés.' 1636, p. 104.
- ↑ Morgan, 'Iroquois,' p. 174.
- ↑ Clavigero, 'Messico,' vol. ii. p. 5.
- ↑ Martius, 'Ethnog. Amer.' vol. i. p. 602; Markham in 'Tr. Eth. Soc.' vol. iii. p. 195.
- ↑ Dobrizhoffer, 'Abipones,' vol. ii. pp. 74, 270.
- ↑ Coreal in Brinton, l. c. See also J. G. Müller, pp. 139 (Natchez), 223 (Caribs), 402 (Peru).
