CHAPTER XXVII.

SOME ABORIGINAL¹ IDEAS—WISE MEN AT WORK—MOUND² BUILDING FROM FORCE OF HABIT—SUBTERRANEAN MISCELLANY—THE LOST TRIBE THEORY WON’T DO—AUTOGRAPH SPECIMEN³ OF PICTURE WRITING—LIGHT AT LAST—PICTURESQUE HABITS OF THE INDIANS.

The origin of the North American Indian has always been shrouded⁴ in the deepest mystery, and wise-heads of every age and clime have sought to tear aside the veil and show us our aboriginal brother in his true colors.

Some of these learned gentlemen have carried their zeal⁵ to the extent of renting wigwams in the Indian country, and living 207among these primitive⁶ children of the forest, hoping, by dint⁷ of listening at key-holes, to overhear some remark dropped by them that would reveal where they emigrated from, but nothing came of it but premature⁸ baldness to the wise-head so investigating. Others again have comfortably settled down into the belief that these singular members of society are a revised edition of the strayed or stolen tribes of Israel that have so long been advertised for in vain.

In support of this theory the latter class of philosophers has dived into side hills, (supposed to have been thrown up by an eccentric race of Indians known as mound builders,) turning up every conceivable article of second-hand⁹ Indian miscellany, and asking the world to believe that these mysterious “mounds” were simply 208subterraneous pawnbroker’s shops, built and conducted in obedience¹⁰ to a well-known national instinct, and that the articles they contain are nothing more nor less than unredeemed pledges “left” by impecunious¹¹ prehistoric¹² ladies and gentlemen who were compelled to resort to that means of raising the wind.

On page 209 our artist shows us the exponents¹³ of the latter theory at work, and also gives us a singularly correct drawing of some of the bric-a-brac which they have unearthed¹⁴. We will take the liberty of explaining further, and tell all we know concerning the supposed uses of these mysterious articles.

A is supposed to be a surgical¹⁵ instrument. B, an instrument of torture. C, toilet article. D, lady’s ear ornament¹⁶. E, 209ancient drinking vessel¹⁷. F, tombstone, with inscription¹⁸. G, pottery¹⁹. H, musical instrument. I, skull²⁰ of native (deceased).

MEN OF SCIENCE “WORKING” A MOUND.

210In the lower series we have: No. 1, artist’s utensil²¹. 2, uses unknown to the author. 3, patent hen’s nest (badly out of repair). 4, vinaigrette. 5, projectile²². 6, bracelet²³. 7, war club. 8, burglar’s tool (very ancient). 9, cooking utensil.

After going carefully over this array of evidence one naturally hesitates before looking further for a theory. But, taking for granted that the Indians really are a remnant of those mislaid Israelites, the difficulty next arises as to how the dickens they got here, for when the Israelites were first missed there was as yet no railway communication between this country and Asia, and unless they tunneled their way 211up through, via China, it is difficult to account for their presence here.

In common with other great minds, we, too, have devoted²⁴ much of our spare time to the effort of setting our red brother on his legs before the world, and of tracing his footprints back through the ages, but until quite recently we have been uniformly baffled. The fact is, our red brother ought really to have kept a diary. He would thus have saved us wise-acres much trouble and unnecessary expense. The next time we hope he will not overlook this important detail.

As we said, all our efforts to trace the Indians back to their origin had failed until recently. We rejected the “remnant” theory after a fair trial. We compared this remnant with the original piece 212(so claimed), and found it a bad match. In the face of strong evidence we renewed our efforts, which were destined²⁵ to meet with reward, as will be seen presently.

A month or two since it luckily occurred to us to address a letter to a skillful sachem, (who happens to be an acquaintance of ours, and is at present located out West,) upon this interesting subject.

This gentleman, who is of the Choctaw persuasion²⁶, and was christened Gimmechawtybackee, (Billious Jake,) sent us a most courteous²⁷ and comprehensive reply, which came to hand a few days since, and which covers the whole ground in the most lucid²⁸ manner. We wonder we never thought of it before.
213

The Sachem’s Letter.
214

215We here insert Billious Jake’s letter verbatim. It is a master-piece of composition, and sets the matter forever at rest. (Daily papers please copy.)

Before changing the subject, we should really like to pictorially²⁹ look into the habits of these strange victims of circumstances. Examine page 214, if you please. In No. 1 we see a stony-hearted savage³⁰ taking a very mean advantage of a white captive, and torturing him to death in the most horrible and deliberate manner. No. 2, an early settler pursued by a native. No. 3, Indian barber. And lastly, in No. 4, we have an Indian gentleman journeying towards the setting sun on dead-head principles.

“His faithful dog shall bear him company.”—Campbell.

1 aboriginal   

adj.（指动植物）土生的，原产地的，土著的

参考例句：

• They managed to wipe out the entire aboriginal population.他们终于把那些土著人全部消灭了。
• The lndians are the aboriginal Americans.印第安人是美国的土著人。

2 mound   

n.土墩，堤，小山；v.筑堤，用土堆防卫

参考例句：

• The explorers climbed a mound to survey the land around them.勘探者爬上土丘去勘测周围的土地。
• The mound can be used as our screen.这个土丘可做我们的掩蔽物。

3 specimen   

n.样本，标本

参考例句：

• You'll need tweezers to hold up the specimen.你要用镊子来夹这标本。
• This specimen is richly variegated in colour.这件标本上有很多颜色。

4 shrouded   

v.隐瞒( shroud的过去式和过去分词 )；保密

参考例句：

• The hills were shrouded in mist . 这些小山被笼罩在薄雾之中。
• The towers were shrouded in mist. 城楼被蒙上薄雾。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 zeal   

n.热心，热情，热忱

参考例句：

• Revolutionary zeal caught them up,and they joined the army.革命热情激励他们，于是他们从军了。
• They worked with great zeal to finish the project.他们热情高涨地工作，以期完成这个项目。

6 primitive   

adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物

参考例句：

• It is a primitive instinct to flee a place of danger.逃离危险的地方是一种原始本能。
• His book describes the march of the civilization of a primitive society.他的著作描述了一个原始社会的开化过程。

7 dint   

n.由于，靠；凹坑

参考例句：

• He succeeded by dint of hard work.他靠苦干获得成功。
• He reached the top by dint of great effort.他费了很大的劲终于爬到了顶。

8 premature   

adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的

参考例句：

• It is yet premature to predict the possible outcome of the dialogue.预言这次对话可能有什么结果为时尚早。
• The premature baby is doing well.那个早产的婴儿很健康。

9 second-hand   

adj.用过的，旧的，二手的

参考例句：

• I got this book by chance at a second-hand bookshop.我赶巧在一家旧书店里买到这本书。
• They will put all these second-hand goods up for sale.他们将把这些旧货全部公开出售。

10 obedience   

n.服从，顺从

参考例句：

• Society has a right to expect obedience of the law.社会有权要求人人遵守法律。
• Soldiers act in obedience to the orders of their superior officers.士兵们遵照上级军官的命令行动。

11 impecunious   

adj.不名一文的，贫穷的

参考例句：

• He is impecunious,does not know anyone who can lend mony.他身无分文，也不认识任何可以借钱的人。
• They are independent,impecunious and able to tolerate all degrees of discomfort.他们独立自主，囊中羞涩，并且能够忍受各种不便。

12 prehistoric   

adj.（有记载的）历史以前的，史前的，古老的

参考例句：

• They have found prehistoric remains.他们发现了史前遗迹。
• It was rather like an exhibition of prehistoric electronic equipment.这儿倒像是在展览古老的电子设备。

13 exponents   

n.倡导者( exponent的名词复数 )；说明者；指数；能手

参考例句：

• Its tendency to archaic language was tempered by the indolence of its exponents. 它的应用古语的趋势却被用语者的懒散所冲淡。 来自辞典例句
• The exponents of this trend are trying to lead us towards capitalism. 这股思潮的代表人物是要把我们引导到资本主义方向上去。 来自互联网

14 unearthed   

出土的（考古）

参考例句：

• Many unearthed cultural relics are set forth in the exhibition hall. 展览馆里陈列着许多出土文物。
• Some utensils were in a state of decay when they were unearthed. 有些器皿在出土时已经残破。

15 surgical   

adj.外科的，外科医生的，手术上的

参考例句：

• He performs the surgical operations at the Red Cross Hospital.他在红十字会医院做外科手术。
• All surgical instruments must be sterilised before use.所有的外科手术器械在使用之前，必须消毒。

16 ornament   

v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物

参考例句：

• The flowers were put on the table for ornament.花放在桌子上做装饰用。
• She wears a crystal ornament on her chest.她的前胸戴了一个水晶饰品。

17 vessel   

n.船舶；容器，器皿；管，导管，血管

参考例句：

• The vessel is fully loaded with cargo for Shanghai.这艘船满载货物驶往上海。
• You should put the water into a vessel.你应该把水装入容器中。

18 inscription   

n.（尤指石块上的）刻印文字，铭文，碑文

参考例句：

• The inscription has worn away and can no longer be read.铭文已磨损，无法辨认了。
• He chiselled an inscription on the marble.他在大理石上刻碑文。

19 pottery   

n.陶器，陶器场

参考例句：

• My sister likes to learn art pottery in her spare time.我妹妹喜欢在空余时间学习陶艺。
• The pottery was left to bake in the hot sun.陶器放在外面让炎热的太阳烘晒焙干。

20 skull   

n.头骨；颅骨

参考例句：

• The skull bones fuse between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five.头骨在15至25岁之间长合。
• He fell out of the window and cracked his skull.他从窗子摔了出去，跌裂了颅骨。

21 utensil   

n.器皿，用具

参考例句：

• The best carving utensil is a long, sharp, flexible knife.最好的雕刻工具是锋利而柔韧的长刻刀。
• Wok is a very common cooking utensil in every Chinese family.炒菜锅是每个中国人家庭里很常用的厨房食用具。

22 projectile   

n.投射物，发射体；adj.向前开进的；推进的；抛掷的

参考例句：

• The vertical and horizontal motions of a projectile can be treated independently.抛射体的竖直方向和水平方向的运动能够分开来处理。
• Have you altered the plans of the projectile as the telegram suggests?你已经按照电报的要求修改炮弹图样了吗?

23 bracelet   

n.手镯，臂镯

参考例句：

• The jeweler charges lots of money to set diamonds in a bracelet.珠宝匠要很多钱才肯把钻石镶在手镯上。
• She left her gold bracelet as a pledge.她留下她的金手镯作抵押品。

24 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

25 destined   

adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的

参考例句：

• It was destined that they would marry.他们结婚是缘分。
• The shipment is destined for America.这批货物将运往美国。

26 persuasion   

n.劝说；说服；持有某种信仰的宗派

参考例句：

• He decided to leave only after much persuasion.经过多方劝说，他才决定离开。
• After a lot of persuasion,she agreed to go.经过多次劝说后，她同意去了。

27 courteous   

adj.彬彬有礼的，客气的

参考例句：

• Although she often disagreed with me,she was always courteous.尽管她常常和我意见不一，但她总是很谦恭有礼。
• He was a kind and courteous man.他为人友善，而且彬彬有礼。

28 lucid   

adj.明白易懂的，清晰的，头脑清楚的

参考例句：

• His explanation was lucid and to the point.他的解释扼要易懂。
• He wasn't very lucid,he didn't quite know where he was.他神志不是很清醒，不太知道自己在哪里。

29 pictorially   

绘画般地

参考例句：

• Depth is established pictorially. 深度是用图表表示出来的。

30 savage   

adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人

参考例句：

• The poor man received a savage beating from the thugs.那可怜的人遭到暴徒的痛打。
• He has a savage temper.他脾气粗暴。