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perience "The genuine Wood-Wedda always speaks the truth; we never heard a lie from any of them; all their statements are short and true." 1 A Veddah who had committed murder and was tried for it, instead of telling a lie in order to escape punishment, said simply nothing.2

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Other instances of extreme truthfulness are provided by various uncivilised tribes in India. The Saoras of the province of Madras, “like most of the hill people, . . . are not inclined to lying. If one Saora kill another he admits it at once and tells why he killed him.3 The highlander of Central India is described as "the most truthful of beings, and rarely denies either a money obligation or a crime really chargeable against him." A true Gond "will commit a murder, but he will not tell a lie." The Kandhs, says Macpherson, "are, I believe, inferior in veracity to no people in the world. It is in all cases imperative to tell the truth, except when deception is necessary to save the life of a guest.' And to break a solemn pledge of friendship is, in their opinion, one of the greatest sins a man can commit. The Korwás inhabiting the highlands of Sirgúja-though they show great cruelty in committing robberies, putting to death the whole of the party attacked, even when unresisting-" have what one might call the savage virtue of truthfulness to an extraordinary degree, and, rightly accused, will at once confess and give you every required detail of the crime." The Santals are noted for veracity and fidelity to their word even in the most trying circumstances. A Kurubar "always speaks the truth." 10 Among the Hos "a reflection on a man's honesty or veracity may be sufficient to send him to self-destruction." 11 Among the Angami Nagas simple truth is highly regarded; it is rare for a statement to be made on oath, and rarer still for it to be false.12 In the Chittagong Hills the Tipperahs are the only people among whom Captain Lewin

1 Sarasin, Forschungen auf Ceylon, iii. 541. Cf. ibid. iii. 542 sq.; Schmidt, Ceylon, p. 276.

2 Sarasin, op. cit. iii. 543.

Fawcett, Saoras, p. 17.

Forsyth, Highlands of Central India, p. 164. Cf. ibid. p. 361; Sleeman, Rambles and Recollections of an Indian Official, ii. 109; Hislop, Aboriginal Tribes of the Central Provinces, p. 1.

5 Dalton, Ethnology of Bengal, p. 284. Cf. Forsyth, op. cit. p. 155.

Macpherson, Religious Opinions and Observances of the Khonds,' in

Jour. Roy. Asiatic Soc. vii. 196.

7 Macpherson, Memorials of Service in India, p. 94.

8 Dalton, op. cit. p. 230.

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9 Elliot, of the Population of Central and Southern India,' in Jour. Ethn. Soc. London, N.S. i. 106 sq.

10 Ibid. i. 105.

11 Dalton, op. cit. p. 206. Cf. ibid. p. 204 sq. ; Bradley - Birt, Chota Nagpore, p. 103.

12 Prain, Angami Nagas,' in Revue coloniale internationale, v. 490.

has met with meanness and lying; and they, too, have previously been said to be, "as a rule, truthful and simpleminded." 992 The Karens of Burma have the following traditional precept :-" Do not speak falsehood. What you do not know, do not speak. Liars shall have their tongues cut out." ."3 Among the Bannavs of Cambodia "severe penalties, such as slavery or exile, are imposed for lying."

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The Andaman Islanders call falsehood yūbda, that is, sin or wrong-doing. The natives of Car Nicobar are not only very honest, but "the accusation of untruthfulness brings them up in arms immediately." The Dyaks of Borneo are praised for their honesty and great regard for truth.8 Mr. Bock states that if they could not satisfactorily reply to his questions they hesitated to answer at all, and that if he did not always get the whole truth he always got at least nothing but the truth from them. Veracity is a characteristic of the Alfura of Halmahera 10 and the Bataks of Sumatra, who only in cases of urgent necessity have recourse to a lie.1 The Javanese, says Crawfurd, "are honourably distinguished from all the civilised nations of Asia by a regard for truth." 12 "In their intercourse with society," Raffles observes, "they display, in a high degree, the virtues of honesty, plain dealing, and candour. Their ingenuousness is such that, as the first Dutch authorities have acknowledged, prisoners brought to the bar on criminal charges, if really guilty, nine times out of ten confess, without disguise or equivocation, the full extent and exact circumstances of their offences, and communicate, when required, more information on the matter at issue than all the rest of the evidence." 13 Among the natives

1 Lewin, Wild Races of SouthEastern India, p. 191.

2 Browne, quoted by Dalton, op. cit. p. 110.

3 Smeaton, Loyal Karens of India, P. 254.

4 Comte, quoted by Mouhot, Travels in Indo-China, Cambodia, and Laos, ii. 27. For the truthfulness of the uncivilised races of India see also Sleeman, op. cit. ii. 110 sqq.; Dalton, op. cit. p. 256 (Oraons); Crooke, Tribes and Castes of the North-Western Provinces, ii. 478 (Hâbûra); Fraser, Tour through the Himala Mountains, pp. 264 (inhabitants of Kunawur), 335 (Bhoteas); Iyer, in the Madras Government Museum's Bulletin, iv. 73 (Nayādis of Malabar); Walhouse, 'Account of a Leaf-wearing Tribe on

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of the Malay Archipelago there are some further instances of trustworthy and truthful peoples; whereas others are described as distrustful and regardless of truth. Thus the natives of Timor-laut lie without compunction when they think they can escape detection, and of the Niase it is said that "truth is their bitter enemy."

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Veracity and probity were conspicuous virtues among various uncivilised peoples belonging to the Russian Empire. Georgi, whose work dates from the eighteenth century, says of the Chuvashes that they "content themselves with a simple affirmation or denial, and always keep their word";5 of the Barabinzes, that "lying, duplicity, and fraud, are unknown among them"; of the Tunguses, that they "always appear to be what they really are," and that "lying seems to them the absurdest thing in the world, which prevents them being either suspicious or necessitated to accompany their affirmations by oaths or solemn protestations"; of the Kurilians, that they always speak the truth "with the most scrupulous fidelity."8 Castrén states that the Zyrians, like the Finnish tribes generally, are trustworthy and honest, and that the Ostyaks have no other oaths but those of purgation. Among them "witnesses never take the oath, but their words are unconditionally believed in, and everybody, with the exception of lunatics, is allowed to give evidence. Children may witness against their parents, brothers against brothers, a husband against his wife and a wife against her husband." 10

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The Aleuts were highly praised by Father Veniaminof for their truthfulness :--"These people detest lying, and never spread false rumours. . . . They are very much offended if any one doubts their word." They "despise hypocrisy in every respect," and "do not flatter nor make empty promises, even in order to escape reproof." 11 The regard in which truth is held by the Eskimo seems to vary among different tribes. Armstrong blames the Western Eskimo for being much

Riedel, De sluik- en kroesharige rassen tusschen Selebes en Papua, p. 96 Serangese). St. John, Life in the Forests of the Far East, ii. 322 (Malays of Sarawak).

2 Marsden, History of Sumatra, p. 209 (natives of the interior of Sumatra). Riedel, op. cit. p. 314 (natives of the Luang-Sermata group). Steller, De Sangi-Archipel, p. 23.

Forbes, A Naturalist's Wanderings in the Eastern Archipelago, p. 320.

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addicted to falsehood, and for seldom telling the truth, if there be anything to gain by a lie. The Point Barrow Eskimo "are in the main truthful, though a detected lie is hardly considered more than a good joke, and considerable trickery is practised in trading." 2 Of the Eskimo at Igloolik, an island near Melville Peninsula, we are told that "their lies consist only in vilifying each other's character, with false accusations of theft or ill behaviour. When asking questions of an individual, it is but rarely that he will either advance or persist in an untruth. . . . Lying among them is almost exclusively confined to the ladies." In his description of the Eskimo on the western side of Davis Strait and in the region of Frobisher Bay, Mr. Hall says that they despise and shun one who will shag-la-voo, that is, "tell a lie," and that they are rarely troubled by any of this class. The Greenlanders are generally truthful towards each other, at least the men.5 But if he can help it, a Greenlander will not tell a truth which he thinks may be unpleasant to the hearer, as he is anxious to stand on as good a footing as possible with his fellow-men."

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The Thompson River Indians of British Columbia maintain. that it is bad to lie, that if you do so people will laugh at you and call you a "liar." 7 Speaking of the Iroquois, Mr. Morgan says that the love of truth was a marked trait of the Indian character. "This inborn sentiment flourished in the period of their highest prosperity, in all the freshness of its primeval purity. On all occasions and at whatever peril, the Iroquois spoke the truth without fear and without hesitation. Dissimulation was not an Indian habit. . . . The Iroquois prided themselves upon their sacred regard for the public faith, and punished the want of it with severity when an occasion presented itself."8 Loskiel likewise states that they considered lying and cheating heinous and scandalous offences. Among the Chippewas there were a few persons addicted to lying, but these

1 Armstrong, Discovery of the NorthWest Passage, p. 196 sq.

2 Murdoch, Ethnological Results of the Point Barrow Expedition,' in Ann. Rep. Bur. Ethn. ix. 41.

3 Lyon, Private Journal during the Voyage of Discovery under Captain Parry, p. 349.

4 Hall, Arctic Researches, p. 567. Dalager, Grønlandske Relationer, p. 69. Cranz, History of Greenland, 1. 171, 175. Nansen, Eskimo Life, p. 158.

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6 Nansen, Eskimo Life, p. Idem, First Crossing of Greenland, ii. 334 sq.

7 Teit, 'Thompson Indians of British Columbia,' in Memoirs of the American Museum of Natural History, Anthropology, i. 366.

8 Morgan, League of the Iroquois, PP. 335, 338.

9 Loskiel, History of the Mission of the United Brethren among the Indians in North America, i. 16.

were held in disrepute.1 The Shoshones, a tribe of the Snake Indians, were frank and communicative in their intercourse with strangers, and perfectly fair in their dealings.2 The Seminole Indians of Florida are commended for their truthfulness. With special reference to the Navahos, Mr. Matthews observes, "As the result of over thirty years' experience among Indians, I must say that I have not found them less truthful than the average of our own race." Among the Dacotahs lying "is considered very bad"; yet in this respect "every one sees the mote in his brother's eye, but does not discover the beam that is in his own," 5 want of truthfulness and habitual dishonesty in little things being prevalent traits in their character. So, also, the Thlinkets admit that falsehood is criminal, although they have recourse to it without hesitation whenever it suits their purpose. Of the Chippewyans, again, it is said that they carry the habit of lying to such an extent, even among themselves, that they can scarcely be said to esteem truth a virtue. The Crees are

not very strict in their adherence to truth, being great boasters." Heriot 10 and Adair 11 speak of the treacherous or deceitful disposition of the North American Indians; but the latter adds that, though "privately dishonest," they are "very faithful indeed to their own tribe."

Of the regard in which truth is held by the Indians of South America the authorities I have consulted have little to say. The Coroados are not deceitful.12 The Tehuelches of Patagonia nearly always lie in minor affairs, and will invent stories for sheer amusement. "In anything of importance, however, such as guaranteeing the safety of a person, they were very truthful, as long as faith was kept with them. After a time," Lieutenant Musters adds, "when they ascertained that I invariably avoided deviating in any way from the truth, they left off lying to me even in minor matters. This will serve to show that they are not of the treacherous nature assigned to 1 Keating, Expedition to the Source of St. Peter's River, ii. 168.

Lewis and Clarke, Travels to the Source of the Missouri River, p. 306.

Maccauley, Seminole Indians of Florida,' in Ann. Rep. Bur. Ethn. v.

491.

Matthews, Study of Ethics among the Lower Races,' in Jour. of American Folk-Lore, xii. 5.

Schoolcraft, Indian Tribes of the United States, ii. 196.

Eastman, Dacotah, p. xvii.

7 Douglas, quoted by Petroff, Report on Alaska, p. 177.

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Richardson, Arctic Searching Expedition, ii. 18. Cf. ibid. ii. 19.

9 Richardson, in Franklin, Journey to the Shores of the Polar Sea, p. 63. 10 Heriot, Travels through the Canadas, p. 319.

11 Adair, History of the American Indians, p. 4.

12 von Spix and von Martius, Travels in Brazil, ii. 242.

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