{"collection":"myth-cosmogony","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_47845/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_47845","id":"gutenberg_47845","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/47845","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Mythology, Legends & Folklore","Category: Novels","Category: Science-Fiction & Fantasy","Industries, Primitive","Prehistoric peoples"],"text":"LONGHEAD:\n\n_THE STORY OF THE FIRST FIRE_\n\n\n\n\n\n\nL. C. PAGE & COMPANY\n\n53 Beacon Street, Boston, Mass.\n\n\n[Illustration: \"THEY CAUGHT SIGHT OF THE LIGHT MADE BY THE FIRE.\"\n\n(_See Page 63._)]\n\n\n\n\nLonghead: The Story of the First Fire\n\nBY C. H. ROBINSON\n\nAuthor of \"Hawk: The Young Osage,\" etc.\n\nIllustrated by CHARLES LIVINGSTON BULL\n\n\n  BOSTON      L. C. PAGE &\n  COMPANY      MDCCCCXIII\n\n\n  _Copyright, 1913_,\n  BY L. C. PAGE & COMPANY\n  (INCORPORATED)\n\n  _All rights reserved_\n\n\n  First Impression, July, 1913\n\n\n  THE COLONIAL PRESS\n  C. H. SIMONDS & CO., BOSTON, U. S. A.\n\n\n\n\nCONTENTS\n\n\n  CHAPTER                                      PAGE\n\n    I. INTRODUCTION OF FIRE                      1\n\n   II. WEAPONS--COOKED FOOD--COMPANIONSHIP      36\n\n  III. GERMS OF SOCIAL ORGANIZATION             62\n\n   IV. CO-OPERATION                             76\n\n    V. DAWN OF INVENTION, ART, MARRIAGE,\n  RELIGION AND GOVERNMENT                       97\n\n\n\n\nLIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS\n\n\n                                                     PAGE\n\n  \"THEY CAUGHT SIGHT OF THE LIGHT MADE\n  BY THE FIRE\" (_See page 63_)                   _Frontispiece_\n\n  \"A HUGE TIGER WHICH WAS SLOWLY CREEPING\n  UP BEHIND HIM\"                                       5\n\n  \"AFTER SOME VIGOROUS BLOWING, PRODUCED\n  FLAME\"                                              33\n\n  \"SOON THEY HAD A TOLERABLY FIRM PATH\n  FROM THE SOLID GROUND TO A PLACE\n  NEAR THE GREAT BEAST\"                               82\n\n\n\n\nLONGHEAD: THE STORY OF THE FIRST FIRE\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER I\n\nINTRODUCTION OF FIRE\n\n\n  \"A fire-mist and a planet,\n    A crystal and a cell,\n  A jelly-fish and a saurian,\n    And a cave where the cave-men dwell;\n  Then a sense of law and beauty\n    And a face turned from the clod,--\n  Some call it Evolution,\n    And others call it God.\"\n\nA strange-looking animal was running across the open glade toward the\nforest. It looked something like a human being, but was entirely naked.\nIts body, except on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet, was\ncovered with reddish-brown hair, but on the head it was nearly black\nand long and matted; while on the rest of the body it was short and\ncurled--nearly fur, in fact. Its arms were long, reaching below the\nknees, and the great toes, as it ran, stood nearly at right angles to\nthe others.\n\nThe animal carried no weapon of any kind, if we except a club or staff\nbroken from a dry branch, which it seemed to use in maintaining an\nupright position as it hurried toward a large tree with pendent branches\nwhich stood at the edge of the forest.\n\nJust as the creature reached the outer branches, which extended nearly\nto the ground, a storm, which had been rapidly approaching, burst with\ngreat violence. There was a loud clap of thunder, a bolt of lightning\ntore the tree to splinters, and the animal fell to the ground, stunned\nby the shock. It lay unconscious for some time, and the thunder shower\nhad passed, leaving the sun shining brightly, when it raised its head\nand sat up. At first it slowly rubbed its body and head, and then,\nreaching full consciousness, its attention was attracted by a roaring\nand crackling sound a short distance away.\n\nThe lightning had prostrated the tree and had set fire to a mass of\nbrush and logs lying at its roots. The beast sprang to its feet in\nastonishment and alarm.\n\nThe animal was one of our primitive ancestors, and he now saw fire for\nthe first time.\n\nAs his body, chilled by the recent rain, began to feel the warmth, he\nfirst drew near, but as the heat increased, he was compelled to\nwithdraw to a greater distance. He gazed as if fascinated, however, at\nthe curious sight for a long time.\n\nWhen it began to grow dark, he was surprised to see that the forest for\nsome distance around, remained nearly as light as day.\n\n[Illustration: \"A HUGE TIGER WHICH WAS SLOWLY CREEPING UP BEHIND HIM.\"]\n\nHis feeble intellect, however, soon wearied of the new sensation, and he\nwithdrew to an overhanging rock near-by. He knew of a small cave at its\nbase with a narrow entrance, and of this he at once took possession,\nrolling against the opening some masses of stone lying near and piling\nin others after he had entered, until he had secured the opening against\nany dangerous animal. He gave little further thought to the phenomena of\nthe fire, for man had not yet reached a development in intellect which\npermitted a consecutive train of thought for any considerable length of\ntime. He slept soundly, but when he crawled from his refuge in the\nmorning, the smoke still rising from the pile of logs and brush\nattracted his attention and recalled to his mind what had occurred the\nevening before. He approached the fire, which had nearly consumed its\nsupply of fuel, but was smouldering still in a large decayed log and the\nends of several poles which lay partly in a bed of glowing coals.\n\nSo much was the man now interested in this new phenomenon that he forgot\nfor a moment his usual caution when in the forest, and failed to observe\na huge tiger which was slowly creeping up behind him, and, but for the\nsharp sound of a dry stick breaking under the animal's weight, this\nstory would have ended then and there.\n\nThe man had just drawn from the fire a burning pole and was examining\nwith much curiosity its glowing end, when the sound caused him to turn,\nonly to meet the tiger, which had made its leap. The man bounded to one\nside, and at the same time, more by accident than design, he thrust the\nburning stick against the animal's breast. The fierce beast came against\nit with such impact that it penetrated through the skin and into the\nflesh. With a scream of terror and pain and many snarls and spits, the\ntiger began biting the injured spot and then turned and fled into the\nforest. Our man, who had given himself up for lost, stared in\nbewilderment at the retreating animal and then at the pole which had\nsaved his life. He thought longer and more deeply than he had ever done\nbefore, as he stood beside the smouldering embers. Without any\nparticular reason for his action, he gathered up some of the unconsumed\nends of the branches, cast them into the coals, and was much amused to\nsee them ignited and the flame renewed. It was a new plaything, and for\na long time he continued to pile sticks upon the coals and to delight in\nthe bright flame, the ascending smoke and the crackling sparks; but that\nhe could make any practical use of his new discovery had not yet been\nsuggested to his feeble intellect.\n\nTiring at length of the sport, he realized that he was hungry, and,\nturning into the forest, he sought for food. For some hours he roamed\nthe hills and valleys, striking down with his stick a small animal which\nhe devoured raw; finding a few grubs under fallen logs which he turned\nover; and he found also a few berries, prematurely ripened, and finally\nsatisfied his ravenous appetite by filling his stomach with buds of\nshrubs and some succulent roots, which experience had taught him were\nnot injurious and were at least satisfying.\n\nBy this time he had reached a part of the forest in which he had been\nmaking his home for a few weeks and, seeking out a tree, in which he had\nconstructed a sort of nest with interlaced sticks and leaves, he lay\ndown for a nap. He wakened late in the afternoon, climbed to the ground\nand started on an aimless walk through the forest, carrying his stick,\nbut no other weapon, for other weapons than stones for throwing and\nsticks for striking were then unknown.\n\nMost of the people in the group to which he belonged had short round\nheads, such as scientists call brachiocephalic, but this man was\ndolichocephalous, or longheaded, and this peculiarity had given him the\nname of Longhead among this group at the few gatherings of these people,\nwhich happened occasionally, more by accident than design, for they had\nno social organization whatever. They had no laws; no leaders; no\npermanent habitations and wore no clothing. They slept in nests built in\nthe branches of trees at night, or sought shelter in any chance caves\nof the region through which they roved. This had no defined boundaries\nand they remained in the locality only because they found food fairly\nplentiful.\n\nAs yet, there was not even family organization, for it was many ages\nafter this time before it dawned upon man anywhere that the male animal\nplayed any part in the propagation of species. To the ordinary and usual\nphenomena of nature our primitive forefathers never gave a thought or\nquestion, but accepted them without speculation as to their cause or\nfear as to their continuance, so long as regularity obtained. The rising\nand setting of the sun were to him perfectly natural events of daily\noccurrence from his childhood, and had so continued during the\nrecollection of the oldest members of the group, and it was only when\neclipses occurred, breaking this orderly continuity, that he felt at all\nalarmed. It was natural for the moon to shed her soft light when not\nobscured by clouds, and even its waxing and waning occasioned no alarm,\nfor this, likewise, had continued \"since the fathers fell asleep.\" There\nwas nothing strange about the gentle dew descending by night or rain\nfalling from the clouds; these he had observed from his earliest youth;\nbut when the loud thunders reverberated through the hills, and the\nforked lightnings flashed athwart the sky, frequently rending the giant\ntrees of the forest or bringing sudden death to a comrade, this\nmysterious and dangerous display of an unknown power, was, to him,\nalarming, and he early attributed these and all other infrequent or\nunaccountable phenomena to supernatural beings with whom his fancy\npeopled the hills and forests, the rivers and the sky.\n\nIt was entirely natural to primitive man that in the spring the trees\nand plants should bud and send forth leaves and blossoms, to be followed\nlater by fruit, \"each after its kind.\" This, also, had always occurred\nfrom his earliest recollection and that of his elders, and it occasioned\nno thought upon his part. It was only when floods, drouths and other\ncalamities interfered with this orderly sequence of events that any\nmystery was presented or any thought required. It is clear that among\nthese common and natural occurrences, which were simply accepted without\nquestion because they had always happened, must be classed the bringing\nforth of young by all mammals. Man had always observed that the females\nof all the animals about him brought forth young, \"each after its kind.\"\nThis was to be expected and gave him no surprise, nor, in the then\ncondition of his intellect, did it give rise to a thought as to its\ncause. Likewise, his own womankind gave birth to young, from time to\ntime, just as did the other animals, and there was no cause for\nspeculation or thought in regard to this; the occurrence was too common\nto be a mystery.\n\nThere being then no knowledge of fatherhood, there were no fathers, and\nfor many generations no relatives were known except in the female line.\nConsequently, there was no family hearthstone; no paternal love; no\nmarriage. The relations of the sexes was purely physical and were\ngenerally indiscriminate, as opportunity might afford; but doubtless,\nwith some, this companionship was continued for a longer or shorter\nperiod, as circumstances or congeniality might induce.\n\nIn these ages, and they were long ones among some peoples, it is obvious\nthat there could have been no such emotion as paternal love, for no man\neven suspected that he was a father. No man experienced the exquisite\npleasure of hearing the first cry of his first-born child; no man heard\n\"Dada,\" from infant lips. No man assisted in the support of his children\nor took part in their care, except unconsciously as he aided in the\nmaintenance of the children of the group or tribe; no man cared more for\nthe mother of his children than he did for any other woman who might\nattract his fancy or passion. Above all, the men and women of that long\nepoch were strangers to the sacred companionship, the life-long\nattachment and communion of souls with mutual interests which attach to\nthe true marriage of to-day. The children were the common care of the\ngroup or tribe; the boys that they might grow up to be hunters and\nwarriors, and the girls that they might contribute to the sensual\nenjoyment of the men, or, if it pleased the spirits, or stars, or some\nother supernatural agency, might become mothers for the perpetuation of\nthe tribe. In times of extreme danger, famine or privation, or when too\nfeeble to follow the migrations of the group, the babies, especially the\nfemale ones, were ruthlessly abandoned to wild beasts or slaughtered\noutright. There existed, doubtless, the mother instinct which prompts\nfemales, even among the lower animals, to care for and defend their\noffspring, but it certainly fell far short of the mother love among\ncivilized peoples.\n\nAfter wandering aimlessly a number of miles, Longhead encountered a\nfemale of his own species who was not altogether unknown to him. They\nhad met occasionally at the infrequent gatherings of the people who\ninhabited that part of the forest, and on one or two occasions had\nremained together for a few days in that anomalous companionship which\ntook the place of marriage in those far-off days. There was no kiss,\ncaress or other sign of affection or pleasure; the pair merely gave each\nother a friendly grin and grunted in a satisfactory tone. Words were\nscarce in the vocabulary of the people of that epoch, and they\ncommunicated with each other largely by means of signs, gesticulation\nand pantomime. The woman could not have been called handsome, according\nto our ideas of beauty. She, too, was naked and hairy, but the hair on\nher head was longer and less matted than on that of the man, and was\nheld back from her face by being drawn behind the ears with a strip of\nbark twisted about her head to keep it somewhat in that condition. Her\nbody was smaller than that of Longhead; but her limbs were slender and\nungainly and her stomach also protruded, in consequence of the\nquantities of coarse vegetable food required to sustain life. By an\naccident in childhood, she had lost one of her front teeth, and on this\naccount, she was known as Broken Tooth.\n\nThe woman soon gave Longhead to understand that she was hungry. The\nprotective, or probably, the sexual instinct, prompted him to act as a\nprovider, and he offered to assist her in a search for food. Together\nthey roamed, finding here a few grubs and there a juicy root, and\nfinally the man killed a small animal with his club, which they shared,\nLonghead tearing it in pieces with his hands and teeth and throwing\nsmall pieces to Broken Tooth, which he admiringly watched her devour.\nHer appetite finally satisfied, she lay back in the sunshine against the\nroots of a tree, closed her eyes in great contentment, and began a\nconversation with her companion in the few words then constituting the\nhuman vocabulary. She recalled their last meeting and asked why she had\nnot seen him at any of the gatherings of the group since. He told her\nthat in consequence of the jealousy of one of the giants of the group to\nwhich they both belonged, who had resented his attentions to one of the\nfemales of his harem, he had become involved in a fight with the giant\nin which he had been beaten nearly to death, and that, fearing to\nremain with his fellows, as well as on account of his serious injuries,\nhe had retired to a distant part of the forest where he had found\nsufficient food and had recovered his strength. He told her that he had\nrather enjoyed his isolation and, had present company been with him in\nhis forced retirement, he would have been entirely content. At this\nstatement, the woman merely gave an incredulous sniff.\n\nThe man then related numerous encounters with wild animals, in which, of\ncourse, he had come off successfully--and just here he recollected his\nstrange experience with the fire and his encounter with the tiger. With\ngreat truthfulness, and as much detail as his vocabulary permitted, he\ntold her what had occurred to him the evening before and that very\nmorning. How, seeking for refuge from a storm, he had been suddenly\nstricken unconscious, by what means he did not know; and the strange\nsight he had witnessed on recovery. He told her, also, of his adventure\nwith the tiger that morning and its discomfiture. Broken Tooth laughed\nlong and loudly at this and was wholly incredulous. Such a thing had\nnever happened before, and consequently could not have happened now. She\nasked him what kind of a weed he had been eating, and said she was not\nborn yesterday to believe such nonsense. This led to quite a discussion,\nthe man insisting upon the reality of his experiences and the woman\nridiculing the whole narrative as impossible. The colloquy finally ended\nby her asking him to conduct her to the place where he claimed such\nwonderful things had happened, that she might see if anything remained\nthere to confirm his absurd story. Longhead assented and, as it was not\nfar distant, they arrived at the locality a little before dark. The fire\nstill smouldered in the decayed log and numerous sticks still smoked at\ntheir ends. Mindful of his morning's amusement, Longhead gathered a\nnumber of the burning poles, placed their glowing ends together and\nthrew on them some dry leaves and twigs. In a moment a column of smoke\nbegan to ascend, followed soon by a tongue of bright flame and many\nrising and glowing sparks. One of these Broken Tooth caught in her\nhand, but dropped it with an exclamation of pain. \"If a small one hurts\nso much, I don't wonder your tiger fled when you thrust a large one\nagainst his breast,\" she said.\n\nLong they played with the fire, throwing upon it sticks and dry\nbranches, and the woman clapped her hands and screamed with delight at\neach succeeding shower of sparks.\n\nWhen at length night came on and the darkness made the firelight more\nbrilliant, the man piled a large number of sticks on the fire to show\nhow the forest was lighted up; but finally both became weary of the\nsport, and then he told her of the cave near-by--just large enough for\ntwo--and invited her to share it with him for the night. She consented,\nand as they were about to start, the man, without any thought of the\neffect, gathered up four or five of the sticks with live coals at the\nend and placed them together. These he waved in the air to amuse the\nwoman with the flying sparks, as they passed along, she still screaming\nat each successive sparkle, until suddenly a bright flame shot up and,\nby accident, like many other valuable discoveries, a torch was invented.\nBy its light they easily made their way to the rocky platform in front\nof the cave sheltered by the overhanging rock, and when Longhead cast\ndown the torch Broken Tooth placed the ends of the burning sticks\ntogether as she had seen him do, and again the flame shot up. The new\nexperience was too delightful to be given up, and, at the woman's\nsuggestion, they gathered large armfuls of dry branches and some heavy\nlogs which lay scattered about near the platform, which they piled up\nand from time to time added to the fire.\n\nThe night was cool, but as they sat back against the wall of rock under\nthe sloping cliff to watch the blaze and flying sparks, a pleasant\nwarmth, new to their experience, pervaded their bodies, and they gave\nthemselves up to the luxury of the sensation.\n\nThe fire roared and blazed merrily, Broken Tooth shouted in glee, and\nLonghead began to think, in a slow ponderous way, that this new agent in\nhis life might do much for his comfort if it could be perpetuated, but\nhis mental power was too limited to suggest any method for this.\n\nTheir shouts and laughter had attracted the attention of the wild\nanimals, and all at once Broken Tooth saw two glowing eyes and the\ncrouching form of a great tiger almost at the edge of the platform.\nLonghead caught sight of it at the same moment, and with a yell of fear\neach scrambled for the narrow entrance of the cave. Broken Tooth,\nlighter of form and quicker of movement, reached it a moment the\nsoonest, but no promptings of sex, gallantry or politeness prevented\nLonghead from throwing her roughly to one side while he attained the\ncoveted shelter. Once within, he began to fill the entrance with stones,\nleaving his companion to the fate which he supposed had already\nbefallen her, when, greatly to his surprise, she tumbled in unhurt.\nFilling the entrance so that it would not admit the body of the tiger,\nthey peered together through the openings and saw the disappointed\nanimal pacing back and forth just at the edge of the semi-circle of\nbrilliant light made by the fire. Long they watched the baffled beast,\nand at first they were unable to understand why the animal did not\napproach the entrance and attempt to remove the stones and secure his\nprey. At length Broken Tooth said: \"I believe he is afraid of the fire.\"\nShe did not, of course, use the word \"fire;\" she probably said\n\"brightness,\" or some equivalent word, if they had one. Longhead agreed\nthat this might be the case, and together they watched the animal with\ngreat interest. Finally Longhead, emboldened by the tiger's hesitation,\nremoved one of the stones, and, protruding his head, shouted in derision\nat his ancient enemy. The animal, whose rage or hunger made him\nmomentarily forget his fear, made a dash toward the cave, but, when he\ncame within the bright light and felt the heat of the fire, he retreated\nprecipitately. Longhead finally crawled outside and Broken Tooth soon\nfollowed him. They taunted the great cat with the vilest words they\nknew; threw stones at it, and simply revelled in their new sensation of\nsafety. Here was Old Saber-Tooth, the one animal of all others whose\nvicinage carried terror wherever he went, at bay at last. For a while\nthe animal would make dashes toward them, when Broken Tooth would\ntumble into the cave and Longhead draw near the entrance, ready for\ninstant retreat to safety; but each time the fear of the fire sent the\ntiger back beyond the charmed circle of its light, where it gave vent to\nits disappointment in savage growls and spittings. At length, wearied by\nthe unprofitable labor, and awed by the strange light and heat, the\nbeast disappeared; its snarls and growls grew fainter in the distance\nand ceased to be heard. Saber-Tooth had at last found something he\nfeared, and man a protector.\n\nDelighted with this new feeling of security from danger in the night,\nthe man and woman sat long before the cheerful blaze and enjoyed its\ngrateful warmth. They agreed that wild animals were afraid of this new\nagent, and if they could always have its protection they would have\nnothing to fear from them; but to their weak intellects no thought of an\nattempt to perpetuate the fire was suggested.\n\nWhen their fuel was exhausted and nothing but a bed of glowing coals\nremained, they retired to the cave, carefully closing the entrance\nagainst the possible return of the tiger or the attack of some other\nanimal, for they realized that the fire, being now nearly out, they\ncould no longer depend upon it for protection.\n\nLate in the morning Longhead and Broken Tooth emerged from the cave. The\nfire was out and the ashes cold. When they thought of the pleasurable\nwarmth it had produced and the protection it had afforded they indulged\nin some expressions of regret that it was gone, and then thought no more\nabout it. They soon made their way to the place of the smouldering log,\nbut it was now nearly consumed. Directly the woman noticed two or three\ntiny threads of smoke, and on investigation they found that some dry\nexcrescences, which we call \"punk,\" had fallen away from the burning log\nand that on one side of each was a small spark. Broken Tooth took up one\nof these and, noting the white ash so like the down on certain plants\nwhich she had often blown away in sport, she blew upon it as she held it\nin her hand, and was delighted to see the spark spread and glow afresh.\nLonghead, too, picked up a piece of the lighted punk and, after blowing\nupon it for a few minutes, dropped it carelessly at his feet, where it\nfell upon some dry rotten wood and leaves. Without noticing this, he\nwatched the amusement of his companion as she made the sparks fly from\nthe piece she held, and then, suddenly, with a yell of pain, he jumped\naside and hopped about on one foot, holding the other in his hand. The\nrotten wood and leaves upon which he had dropped the punk had ignited\nand the fire had reached his foot. He now understood the defeat of the\ntiger the morning before, and had ocular and painful demonstration of\nthe fact that punk will retain fire, at least for a few hours.\n\n[Illustration: \"AFTER SOME VIGOROUS BLOWING, PRODUCED FLAME.\"]\n\n\nLonghead now seemed to wake up; at last he had an idea, and he talked it\nover with the woman as they slowly returned to the cave platform, each\ncarrying a piece of the lighted punk. Once there, the man sought for\ndry, rotten wood and small twigs, which they piled upon the punk and,\nafter some vigorous blowing, produced flame.\n\nAn idea was born; a discovery was made; the greatest in all time. Broken\nTooth remained to maintain the fire by putting on fresh fuel, while\nLonghead carried armfuls of sticks and logs from the forest, together\nwith pieces of punk for future use. The punk he piled at the cave\nentrance to keep it dry, and man was now master of fire, the most\nbeneficent of nature's gifts. Thenceforth it only remained that a\nplentiful supply of dry fuel and punk should be maintained at the cave,\nand their comfort and safety were assured.\n\nTheir delight at their mutual discovery--for Longhead insisted that if\nBroken Tooth had not blown upon the punk for amusement, he would not\nhave discovered a method for the preservation of the fire--drew the two\ncloser together as having a great secret in common. The necessity that\nthe fire be supplied with fuel that it might be kept alive, and that\nfresh fire might occasionally be applied to the pieces of punk,\nsuggested that one should remain for that purpose; and when Longhead\nproposed that the two should remain permanently together, the woman to\nkeep the fire alive while the man sought for food for both, Broken Tooth\nagreed at once; and thus came about the first union resembling marriage\nin which the man became the provider and the woman the home-keeper.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II\n\nWEAPONS--COOKED FOOD--COMPANIONSHIP\n\n\nFor some months the man and woman maintained their residence in the\ncave, uninterrupted by any visits from other human inhabitants of the\nforest. Daily Longhead went forth in search of food, which he brought to\nthe cave and they shared it together. Sometimes there was plenty, but\noften their meals were scanty, as the only weapons then known were\nstones and clubs. Broken Tooth aided to some extent, by searching a\npiece of low moist ground not far from the cave for such roots and\ntubers as were palatable, and altogether, they managed to sustain life\nas well as before their union, but the woman never ventured far from the\nplatform for fear that by some accident their precious fire should go\nout.\n\nEvery night the fire blazed merrily upon the platform, fed with dry\nbranches and large sticks, which it was the task of the woman to procure\nduring the day. Frequently they saw wild animals in the forest at night\nor heard their growls as they prowled in the surrounding thickets, but\nnever after their experience with the tiger the first night of their\nfire, did one venture within the charmed circle of the light made by the\nflames.\n\nSometimes when it rained or the weather was cold, and sufficient food\nremained over from the night before, Longhead lingered about the cave\nand platform all day, enjoying the warmth and comfort of the fire, and\non these occasions the couple talked much of the benefits of their new\nacquisition.\n\nOne day Broken Tooth said: \"What shall we say if some of the people\nwander this way and find us? What shall we tell them about how we came\nin possession of this new comfort?\" Then they talked about this long and\nearnestly. They had no desire to benefit their fellows by sharing with\nthem their accidental discovery, for man was yet a purely selfish\nanimal, and there was no organized society of any kind; but they both\nrecognized the fact that when others became acquainted with its\nbenefits, they would soon acquire the fire, by force if necessary, and\nthat their own lives would stand for nothing, should they resist. They\nfelt sure that the matter could not long be concealed from other members\nof their group, for the first hunter who should wander to that part of\nthe forest would smell the smoke and would investigate. It was finally\nconcluded that, as they did not themselves know how the fire had\noriginated in the heap of logs and brush, they would say Longhead\nhimself had produced it in a mysterious manner, which they dare not\nreveal for fear it might be taken from them.\n\nThat they might not be observed in the mornings kindling the fire with\npunk and tinder, and their secret be thus exposed, it was agreed that\nall the punk should be kept in the cave, the fires lighted there, and\nonly brought out on the platform after the sticks were ablaze.\n\nEvery night two pieces of punk were ignited and laid carefully up on a\nsmall natural projecting shelf in the cave. They used two pieces,\nfearing that by some accident one might become extinguished. The fact\nis, this very thing did happen once. The lighted punk had been laid back\nagainst the rear wall of the platform when they went to bed, but a\nviolent storm had come on in the night and the rain had been driven in\nso that the punk was wet and the spark gone in the morning. Their\nprecious fire was only saved by Broken Tooth finding a tiny spark on the\nunder side of a log which the water had not happened to reach. They had\nbeen greatly alarmed, and so two pieces had been thereafter lighted and\nboth taken into the cave to avoid such another mishap.\n\nThis peaceful enjoyment of their new-found happiness and companionship\nhad continued for some months, when one evening a small animal which\nthey were about to tear to pieces for their evening meal, fell into a\nlarge bed of burning coals on the platform. Longhead was about to\nrecover it when Broken Tooth, whose sense of smell may have been more\nacute, said: \"Wait a minute; what is that delicious smell?\"\n\nUp to this time they had still continued to eat their food raw, and\nthere had been nothing to suggest to the mind of either that it would be\nbetter if exposed to heat. Now they continued for some minutes to\ninhale the new and agreeable odor, but it had the effect to make\nLonghead ravenously hungry, and he soon drew the animal from the coals\nwith a long stick. When he began to tear it the hot carcass burned his\nfingers, which alarmed him at first, but the demands of his appetite\nmust be satisfied, and, tearing it in pieces, he divided with the woman.\nAt first they both tasted gingerly and were a little afraid of the\nunaccustomed heat, but before either had finished the first morsel their\npleasure was evident. They devoured the whole of the animal, and\ndeclared it the finest eating they had ever experienced. Two or three\nother small animals lay beside the fire and they decided to repeat the\ncourse. Both had observed that the portions of the first animal which\nhad been most exposed to the heat had been made tender and more\nappetizing, and, on the suggestion of Broken Tooth, a long slender stick\nwas thrust through an animal, which was by this means held over the\nhottest part of the bed of coals by Longhead, who turned it from time to\ntime, that all parts might be thoroughly cooked. This was so much better\nthan the first that their appetites returned with renewed vigor, and\nwhen the second animal had been eaten, they again repeated the courses\nuntil all the food on hand had been devoured. They both declared that\nroasted meat was far superior to raw, and agreed that this should be the\nmethod of preparing meat for the future.\n\nOne day when Broken Tooth returned from the swamp with some wild carrots\nand other roots, she thrust one into a pile of hot ashes and burning\ncoals, merely as an experiment. She left it there while she collected\nsome fuel and replenished the fire, and when she drew it out and tasted\nit she was pleased to find that roots also were much improved by\ncooking. When Longhead returned in the evening he was treated to a\nsurprise--supper of two courses, broiled wood-rat and roasted carrot.\n\nEverything to be used for food was thereafter submitted to the cooking\ntest, and, whenever broiling or roasting in the ashes seemed to improve\nthe taste of any article of food, this was adopted.\n\nLonghead and Broken Tooth now found themselves really caring for each\nother and each sought to do things to please the other. As far as they\nwere concerned, the old selfishness was now gone. Their close\ncompanionship around the fire alone during the evenings; its cheerful\nlight and gay sparkle, its warmth and comfort tended to promote\nconversation and they found themselves talking more than they had ever\nbefore in their lives. They even coined a few words to express their new\nexperiences and feelings. Longhead would relate in detail the hunting\nadventures of the day and Broken Tooth would recount her own experiences\nin search of roots and eggs.\n\nBoth thoroughly enjoyed their new life at the fire-cave; indeed, it\nseemed to them they had never really lived before.\n\nNearly every day Longhead would go into the forest in search of small\nanimals for food. In his absence Broken Tooth first collected sufficient\nfuel to keep the fire alive for another twenty-four hours, then she\nwould visit the low ground for roots and tubers, eggs and nuts, for\nsince they had been experimenting with roasting, they had discovered\nthat a number of roots which had been rejected as bitter and\nunpalatable, when raw, were much improved by roasting, and these had\nbeen added to the bill of fare. Broken Tooth had found nesting places of\nthe waterfowl which frequented the swamp. Her first experiment in\nroasting eggs had been a partial failure. She placed a couple of eggs in\nthe hot ashes, noticing at the time that the shell of one was cracked;\nsoon there was an explosion and the egg with the sound shell was\ndestroyed. Thereafter she made a small hole in each for the escape of\nthe steam and all went well. Her worst trouble with eggs was the want of\na receptacle for transporting them to the fire-cave, for she wore not\neven an apron.\n\nWhen evening began to draw near, Broken Tooth found herself looking\noften into the forest and wishing for Longhead's return. She sometimes\nfeared a savage beast might have killed him. This was a new feeling for\nher. In the former life she had never cared for any one or cared\nparticularly to see others. One evening when the man finally appeared,\nshe ran into the forest to meet him and put her arms around his neck.\nLonghead looked at her in some surprise and then returned the caress,\nand they walked arm in arm to the platform. That evening they both\ntalked a great deal, and finally Broken Tooth said: \"I wonder what has\ncome over both of us. Even when together for a short time in the old\ndays, we spoke but seldom. I wonder if it is the fire.\"\n\nIt was indeed the fire, with its warmth and cheer, so different from the\nold days when each had shivered in the fork of a tree or had spent the\nnight in a dark and noisome cavern. Neither understood the nature of the\nchange which was being wrought in them, but if it was not yet real\nmarriage, it was at least the germ which in the long succeeding ages has\ndeveloped into real marriage.\n\nOne morning a cold rain was falling and Longhead sat long before the\nblazing fire, loth to leave the comfort he found there for the chilly\nand dripping forest. He drew a long slender stick from the fire and\nbegan to observe its glowing end. As the ashes accumulated and hid the\nred coal, he blew them away. After a few minutes, the fire on the stick\nwent out and the man, picking up a piece of stone, began idly and\nwithout purpose to scrape away the black or charred portion of the end.\nWhen he reached the unburned wood, he found it very hard and as he\ncontinued to scrape, he finally brought the stick to a very sharp point.\nHe felt this and thought it might be very good for killing small\nanimals, so when he finally started out for his day's search for food,\nhe took it with him. It was fortunate he did so, for late in the\nafternoon as he was turning toward home, after an unsuccessful hunt, a\npack of wild dogs attacked him. So close were they upon him before he\nwas aware, that the leader sprang at him to pull him down just before he\nreached a tree in which he was about to take refuge. In defense, he\nthrust the sharpened stick at the beast with all his might. It passed\nclear through the body of the dog, which fell dead and was quickly\ndevoured by its fellows, while the man scrambled to safety. When\nLonghead climbed down, after the dogs had dispersed, he secured the\nsharpened stick, and it was with a new feeling of safety he moved\nthrough the forest, spear in hand; for a spear had been invented. A few\ndays later he even ventured to attack a wild dog he found separated from\nthe pack; a thing he never would have done when armed with only a club\nor stone. He killed the animal and carried it in triumph to the\nfire-cave, for it was the first time, to his knowledge, a man, ever,\nsingle-handed, had killed so large an animal of a ferocious kind. Its\nroasted flesh supplied the man and woman food for several days.\n\nOne day, when kindling a fire on the platform, the woman was too\nindolent to remove some small boulders from the spot where she desired\nto make the fire, so she piled the fuel over them and was surprised to\nfind that the fire kindled more readily and burned better on account of\nthe fuel being raised from the ground, and thereafter, three or four\nstones were used to support the sticks. One morning, after the fire had\nburned for some time and the stones were red hot, a smart shower came\nup. The fire was too far under the slope of the shelving rock to be\ndirectly affected, but as it continued to rain for some time, a small\npool accumulated on top of the rock, which finally worked its way\nthrough the bed of leaves that had dammed its progress and, all at once,\nit poured over the face of the rock in a small column and fell directly\nupon one of the red-hot stones in the fire-place. The stone was a large\nnodule of flint; there was an immediate explosion, a dense cloud of\nsteam and ashes arose, and the alarmed owners of the cave rushed for\nsafety to its depths. When all was quiet they emerged to find that one\nof the stones which supported the sticks had disappeared. Instead of the\nstone, however, there were numerous sharp flakes of flint scattered\nabout, which Longhead first discovered when he cut his foot by stepping\non one.\n\nWith much curiosity, the man examined the flake which had injured him,\nthen picking up the carcass of a small animal lying near, he found that\nhe could cut it with the flake. He now carefully gathered up all the\nflakes he could find and carried them into the cave. When he returned\nfrom his day's hunt in the evening, he brought with him a long, slender,\ndry stick which he rubbed and polished with a flake until perfectly\nsmooth; then, with some fibrous roots, he bound the longest and sharpest\nof his flakes at the end of the pole, and the next day carried this with\nhim to the forest instead of the fire-hardened wooden spear. Later, he\ndiscovered that narrow strips of rawhide were better than roots for\ntying on a flake, and, after many years of progress, the long tendons of\nlarge animals were substituted as still better for the purpose.\n\nLonghead and his new deadly weapon had numerous encounters with small\nanimals, in each of which he found his new spear superior to anything he\nhad yet tried, and this gave him still greater confidence in himself. He\nno longer sneaked through the forest half bent to the ground and fearing\nnearly every animal he might meet, but went with head erect and a more\nfearless step.\n\nA few days later, while pursuing some half-grown wild pigs, and when\nthey were about to plunge into a den in the rocks, he threw his spear at\nthe last one, in disappointment. To his surprise, it passed clear\nthrough the animal, killing it at once. He carried the pig to the cave\nand that night sat long before the fire in deep thought. Finally, he\nselected a long and thin fragment of flint, rather broader than those he\nhad used for the spear, wrapped some small roots about it at one end to\nprotect his hand, and he had a knife--the first one in the world. The\nnext morning he tied a strip of bark around his waist to support the\nknife, and when he returned in the evening he brought with him several\ndry and slender sticks shorter than his spear and proceeded to bind a\nsharp splinter of flint to each. Thereafter, he always carried one of\nthese short ones in addition to his long spear, and thus a javelin was\ninvented. He practiced throwing this at every animal he saw, and,\nindeed, at other objects, and soon became quite expert in its use. He\nfound, too, that it was now much easier to keep the larder well\nsupplied.\n\nIn his wanderings, Longhead one day approached quite near the locality\nin which he had formerly resided with the group, and where he had\nreceived the terrible beating which had made him an exile. He gnashed\nhis teeth when he thought of the man who had vented his jealous rage\nupon him and was wondering in his mind how he could obtain revenge. At\nthat instant he turned around a point of rocks and found himself face to\nface with the giant himself. The fellow was all of a head taller and at\nleast fifty pounds heavier than Longhead; his strength was immense and\nhis temper ferocious. By reason of his size and fierce temper, as well\nas the surly grunts he generally used instead of words, he was known\namong the people of the group as the Bear. He was a veritable tyrant and\nmost of the others were practically his slaves. When Bear saw a man or\nwoman with food he wanted, he reached for it with a roar, and it was at\nonce given up or its owner was beaten nearly to death. He had a large\nnumber of the women so terrified that they did not dare to associate\nwith the other men; these he kept near himself and compelled them to\nsupply him with food. Longhead had once persuaded one of these women to\naccompany him on a trip in search of food. They were absent several\ndays, and on his return, Bear had given him the beating. Bear knew him\nat once, and with a howl of rage and uplifted club, rushed upon him.\nLonghead was terribly frightened, and for a moment forgot all about his\nspear, but in a second he recalled the fate of the pig and other animals\nand, with all his strength, he threw his javelin at the hairy breast of\nthe advancing enemy, now but a pace or two distant. It went nearly\nthrough his body and, with a yell of pain, the giant threw up his hands\nand fell to the ground. He tried to pull the weapon from his body, and\nfailing in this, writhed in agony for a few moments and then lay\nperfectly still. He was dead, and Longhead looked with wonder and awe at\nhis victim.\n\nFighting was not uncommon among the men of that period, but being\nwithout dangerous weapons, the fights had generally resulted in one or\nboth the combatants being more or less seriously but not dangerously\ninjured, and this was the first time Longhead had ever seen one human\nbeing killed by another. Deaths he had, of course, known, but they had\nbeen from disease, accident or wild animals.\n\nHe now heard some of the people approaching, and drawing his javelin\nfrom the corpse, he concealed himself near-by to observe the effect\nwhen they should discover the body. There were three of the party, and\nat first they thought Bear asleep and shouted to arouse him, but when\nthey discovered the blood and the hole in his breast, they perceived\nthat he was dead.\n\nLonghead in hiding heard no expressions of sorrow or regret, for, to\ntell the truth, Bear was no favorite with the group. His immense size\nand irascible disposition had made him a bully, and there were few who\nhad not been beaten by him at some time; therefore, the remarks\noverheard by the man in hiding were rather to the effect that the\nfinders were well enough pleased, but they expressed great wonder at the\nwound and could not conceive what animal had caused it, especially as\nthere were no marks of teeth or claws or any other wounds on the body.\nThey picked up the corpse, however, and started with it toward the late\nhabitation of the giant.\n\nLonghead left his retreat and proceeded thoughtfully toward the\nfire-cave. His revenge was gratified and he felt happy on that account,\nbut the wonderful character of his weapon was beginning to dawn upon his\ndull intelligence, and he no longer feared man or beast. He dimly\nrecognized that with such a weapon a small man was the equal of a\ngiant.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III\n\nGERMS OF SOCIAL ORGANIZATION\n\n\nAfter several months' residence at the fire-cave, during which none of\ntheir former neighbors had appeared in the vicinity, Longhead and Broken\nTooth were seated at their fire one evening enjoying a hearty meal of\ncooked flesh and roasted tubers and eggs. The man had, thanks to his\njavelin, brought home all the meat he could carry, the fire blazed\nmerrily and they were enjoying themselves to the utmost when they were\ngreeted by human voices from some trees near the cave. It appeared that\na couple of their old neighbors had been hunting in that part of the\nforest and, night coming on, they had sought safety from dangerous\nanimals by climbing a tree. This happened to be so near the cave that\nthey caught sight of the light made by the fire, and the strange sight\nexcited their curiosity. At first, they were greatly alarmed, never\nhaving seen fire before, but curiosity soon overcame fear, and, passing\nfrom tree to tree, they cautiously approached the platform. When quite\nnear they recognized Longhead and Broken Tooth as old acquaintances and\ncalled out to them. They were at once invited to come down, but declined\nat first, being afraid of the strange light, but, being assured by the\nman and woman that there was no danger, they soon descended, and very\ngingerly and with many pauses, after much encouragement, approached the\nplatform.\n\nThe genial warmth of the fire pleased them greatly and they asked\nLonghead what it was and where it came from. He made vague and\nmysterious answers and gave them little satisfaction. He told them,\nhowever, that the savage animals were afraid of the light and would not\ncome near it, relating their adventure with Saber-Tooth their first\nnight at the cave, and he assured them that if the fire was kept alive\nby a supply of fuel, one could sleep in the open forest at night without\ndanger, and showed them the effect of putting on fresh fuel. He invited\nthem to remain upon the platform for the night, informing them that but\none must sleep at a time, the other remaining awake to supply the fire\nwith wood, of which he showed them the pile and instructed them to put\nbut little on at a time, that it might not be exhausted before daylight.\n\nThere was a goodly supply of meat at the cave, for the man had been\nsuccessful in the day's hunt, and he and Broken Tooth now proceeded to\ncook some of it over the coals. When it was well done, they offered some\nto their guests. At first they were afraid of it and declined to taste\nuntil their hosts had eaten some, but, after the first taste they\ndevoured it ravenously and expressed great surprise and satisfaction at\nthe improvement over raw meat.\n\nAt a late hour Longhead and Broken Tooth retired to their cave, leaving\ntheir guests seated at the fire. They both remained awake all night,\nreplenishing the fire from time to time, as they had been instructed.\nThey thoroughly enjoyed the new sensation of light and warmth as\ncompared with the dark and chilly refuge of a tree-top, and they talked\nmuch of this new element and its mysterious character.\n\nWhen Longhead and Broken Tooth emerged from the cave in the morning,\ntheir visitors were gone, and so was the last scrap of meat, for their\nguests had enjoyed the unusual hospitality to the fullest extent, by\nspending the night in roasting and eating until gorged, and had taken\ntheir departure as soon as it was fully daylight.\n\nIt chanced that they returned to their group of people on the day of a\ngeneral gathering, and over and over again they told the marvels they\nhad witnessed the night before. Most of their auditors set them down as\nfirst-class liars, and not a few told them plainly what they thought of\nthe story. On the second day, however, three of the group agreed to\naccompany them to the fire-man's cave and verify the matter. The five\narrived near the platform about dusk, and brought with them several\nsmall animals they had killed on the way. As dark was coming on, the\nfire burned brightly on the rocky bench in front of the cave. The two\nwho had been visitors before advanced boldly, but when they neared the\nlight, the others promptly climbed trees to view the strange sight from\na position of safety. They saw Longhead and Broken Tooth seated by the\nfire, and, when their companions reached the platform, they saw them\nwelcomed and seated. These called to them to come on as there was\nnothing to fear, and finally, they climbed down and cautiously\napproached. Their surprise was great and their satisfaction unbounded\nwhen they felt the warmth; and now the first comers suggested a trial of\nthe new method of preparing food. Here a new surprise awaited them, for\nLonghead and Broken Tooth each produced a flint knife and proceeded to\ncut the animals in small pieces instead of tearing them,--a proceeding\nwhich the new-comers watched with great interest, for they had never\nbefore seen a knife. Longhead gave each a piece and showed how to hold\nit over the hottest part of the burning coals, and to turn it that all\nparts might be cooked and not scorched.\n\nThey took the delight of children in a new game, and besides, they were\nhungry from their long tramp, and the feast lasted until all the meat\nand roasted roots had been disposed of, many questions being asked,\nhowever, during the progress of the meal about the origin of the fire.\nThese the man and woman answered mysteriously, and finally retired to\nthe cave, leaving their guests more mystified than ever.\n\nThe visitors remained awake most of the night, one or two sleeping while\nthe others kept the fire supplied with fuel. It happened, also, that a\ncouple of tigers approached the light near enough to be seen by them,\nbut sneaked off, afraid of the strange sight.\n\nThis time they all remained until the man and woman arose in the\nmorning, and then insisted that Longhead should tell them where the fire\ncame from and how they could procure it for the benefit of the group. He\nanswered as mysteriously as before, and pointed to the sky as the place\nfrom whence it came; but he gave them to understand that he controlled\nthe mysterious agent; that there were plenty of caves in the ravine\nnear-by, and if the group would take these for their habitations, he\nwould not object to supplying them with the fire; and he showed them how\nit might be conveyed to a considerable distance by means of torches. He\nwas careful, however, not to say anything about its preservation by\nmeans of the punk, and he declined to give any explanation in regard to\nthe flint knives with which the meat had been cut.\n\nSince he had become acquainted with the use of fire, Longhead's\nintellect had expanded rapidly, and he now began to have a vague idea\nthat he could make use of these secrets to his own personal advantage.\n\nOn their return to the group, the party reported that all the first two\nhad said about the fire was true and the half had not been told. They\nenlarged upon the appetizing method of preparing food by roasting, and\nthe warmth and comfort of the heat, to say nothing of the terror in\nwhich the fire was held by the ferocious animals.\n\nThey told of the caves in the vicinity of the fire-man's habitation and\nhis offer to supply them all with fire, and proposed an immigration to\nthe locality, that all might enjoy this new agent for man's comfort.\n\nMost of the group agreed to the proposition, and the next day removed\nwith their few belongings and located themselves in the caves of the\nravine; but a few conservative old fellows said they would have nothing\nto do with such unnatural and mysterious business; and as to roasting\nmeat, it was surely intended that it should be eaten raw, else why were\nthey furnished with hands to tear and teeth to chew, and besides, had\nnot their fathers always eaten their meat raw? For their part, they\nwould remain at the old locality and follow the old and tried methods,\nat least, until they should see if any harm befell the immigrants on\naccount of the innovation.\n\nBy the time the procession of emigrants had arrived at the fire-cave,\nLonghead and Broken Tooth had determined upon their own course of\naction, and when the new-comers had selected their respective caves and\ncame to be instructed in the use of fire, Longhead told each that as\nthis mysterious agent was his property and he alone could produce or\ndestroy it, he would require of each that he should bring an armful of\nfuel or a present of food when he came for fire; and further, that if\nthe fire on any hearth should go out, it should not be rekindled with\nthat of a neighbor, but by a torch lighted at his own central fire; and\nhe threatened that if these rules should be violated, he would at once\nextinguish all the fires and retire to a distant part of the forest,\nleaving them in their former condition.\n\nSo beneficial did the people by this time believe the fire to be, that\nthey all readily agreed to his terms, and scattered through the forest\nto secure armfuls of fuel with which to purchase the blessing, except a\nfew who happened to have food to exchange. As each threw down his\ncontribution he received a lighted torch and was given instruction how\nto kindle his fire, and, by the time it became dark, the whole ravine\nwas brilliantly illuminated and merry with the shouts of old and young\nas they gathered for the first time around hearthstones and enjoyed\nlight and heat.\n\nThose who had visited the fire-cave before the immigration, proceeded at\nonce to roast their meat and tubers, and the others imitated them,\nthough a few concluded to eat theirs raw until they might see if the new\nmethod was injurious to those who tried it. The first touch of the hot\nmeat with lips or fingers brought exclamations of surprise or fear from\nsome, but, on the whole, cooking was voted a success and was thereafter\nuniversally practiced.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV\n\nCO-OPERATION\n\n\nA few days after the arrival of the colony of settlers at the fire-cave,\nthe conservatives of the group who had remained at the old home could no\nlonger control their curiosity, and so, one afternoon they approached\nthe vicinity of the new settlement, after cautiously reconnoitering from\nthe tree-tops. When discovered, they were cordially invited to approach,\nfor the old selfishness and exclusiveness seemed to melt away under the\ninfluence of fire and the companionship it inculcated, and they were\nsoon enjoying for the first time roasted carrots and broiled meat. They\nsoon lost their shyness and fear under the new conditions, and remained\npermanent denizens of the settlement.\n\nThe men of the group soon observed the flint knives and spear-heads used\nby Longhead; they at once appreciated their superior effectiveness as\nweapons, and importuned him to supply them with similar ones, or teach\nthem how to make them for themselves. He was now too shrewd, however, to\nrisk the loss of any of his prestige by revealing the secret of their\nmanufacture, but agreed to make them similar weapons for a\nconsideration, payment of which should be made in the shape of food and\nfuel, the only commodities at that time of any value.\n\nEach man now brought him suitable sticks for javelins and spears, and\nfor each he made a long spear, two javelins and a knife.\n\nWhen the first supply of flakes was exhausted, Longhead heated another\nnodule of flint and poured water on it from a piece of bark, but he was\ncareful to do this when none of the others were about; and thus\nmaintained both secrecy and a supply of materials.\n\nThe control of fire and the manufacture of these valuable and mysterious\nweapons, gave Longhead a standing in the group which none had ever\nbefore attained. Human society had not yet been organized in any form;\nthere were no laws, no rules and no chiefs. Each did exactly as he\npleased, and if there was any restraint at all upon a man's actions, it\ncame not from a sense of justice, morals or ethics, but simply the fear\nof a beating by the injured party, if any of his supposed rights were\ninfringed upon.\n\nSoon, however, individuals began to consult Longhead in regard to\nordinary affairs. One would ask him if there would be rain during the\nday; another, the direction he should take for a prosperous hunt, and,\nas he was always careful to make replies which were somewhat vague and\nmysterious, except where he had certain knowledge, he soon acquired a\nreputation for superior wisdom.\n\nLonghead, now relieved, to some extent, from the daily exertion\nnecessary to procure food for himself and Broken Tooth, by the\ncontributions of many who, through indolence or ignorance, permitted\ntheir fires to become extinguished, had much time for thought, and, as\nhe sat making weapons, the manufacture of which brought him additional\nsupplies, it one day occurred to him that if a number of the men armed\nwith the new weapons could be employed at the same time against larger\nanimals theretofore always avoided, the people might combat with them\nsuccessfully and thus the food supply might be largely increased. This\nwas the first suggestion of co\u00f6peration, and the idea but slowly took\nform in his mind, though it recurred to him almost daily. Up to this\ntime each man had hunted alone, and if two or more happened to be in\ncompany, it was by the merest accident; but, as Longhead worked out the\nproblem, he concluded that if a number could be directed by an\nintelligent leader, their efforts might be successful, and he determined\nto make the experiment at the earliest opportunity.\n\nAbout this time a hunter returned one afternoon in great excitement, and\nreported that a large rhinoceros had partly mired in a swamp near the\nsettlement. He said the huge animal was able to make but little progress\nand might be approached quite near without grave danger. This was\nLonghead's opportunity to try his experiment of co\u00f6peration.\nFortunately, there were quite a number of the men about that day, and he\nat once called them together, told them to bring their weapons and\naccompany him to the swamp. He assumed the leadership of the party, and\nwhen they approached the swamp, each was directed to gather a bundle of\ndry grass, reeds and brush. These he had thrown down as they progressed,\nto give them footing in the soft ooze, and soon they had a tolerably\nfirm path from the solid ground to a place near the great beast. On\ntheir approach the rhinoceros made no further attempt at progress, but\nhe turned his head with its long sharp horn toward his foes and, with\nloud snorts of rage, seemed to dare them to come nearer. Their ancient\nfear of this formidable animal made the men hesitate, but under the\nperemptory orders of Longhead, they ventured forward and threw their\njavelins into the body of the huge animal. It must be confessed that\nfor some time the attack seemed only to increase his rage, he made\nvigorous efforts to reach his tormentors and snorted loudly. But while,\nfor the most part, the javelins did not penetrate beyond the thick layer\nof fat which surrounded the animal's body, a few had reached some of the\nlarger blood-vessels, and when these were broken off or torn out in the\ndesperate struggles of the beast, the blood poured forth in torrents and\nhe soon began to weaken; his snorting was no longer so loud and he would\nlie down occasionally as if to rest, closing his eyes and breathing\nloudly but with evident difficulty. During one of these resting spells,\nLonghead came close to him and thrust his long spear with all his might\ninto the animal's body just back of his shoulder. When it was\nwithdrawn, the blood spouted from the wound and also from the mouth of\nthe beast, and soon its eyes grew dim, its struggles grew less frequent\nand violent, and finally ceased entirely, for the great rhinoceros was\ndead.\n\n[Illustration: \"SOON THEY HAD A TOLERABLY FIRM PATH FROM THE SOLID\nGROUND TO A PLACE NEAR THE GREAT BEAST.\"]\n\nLonghead now, for a while, lost control of the situation. The men went\nsimply wild. Their shouts filled the air, and to these were joined the\nshrill cries of the women and children who had approached the swamp and\nhad been interested witnesses of the battle and its result. The great\nanimal--an abundance of food for several days--was theirs. They had\noccasionally before this happened upon the body of one of these animals,\nkilled in one of the fights which frequently occurred between the males\nof the species, but, without knives, they had been unable to tear the\nthick hide, and even when it had been torn by wolves or bears, the meat\nwas so tough they were able to obtain but a few small pieces. Their\npresent hilarity might certainly be excused.\n\nSoon Longhead began issuing orders and enforcing them by punches with\nthe blunt end of his spear or sound blows with the pole, and some\nsemblance of order was obtained. By his direction, men, women and\nchildren joined in bringing more brush and grass. This was piled close\nto the carcass and the men with their flint knives proceeded to cut up\nthe huge body. The women and children carried loads of meat to the\nsettlement, and soon most of the flesh was removed. The head was\ndragged by the men to Longhead's cave and set upon a stick on the\nplatform as his trophy, while all stood around and roused the echoes of\nthe ravine with their yells and acclamations,--the first time a public\nacknowledgement was ever given a leader.\n\nSuch feasting the group had never known. At each fire, large pieces of\nrhinoceros steak were roasted on coals or sticks, and for several days,\nevery man, woman and child was literally too full for utterance.\n\nAfter this experience, Longhead, as the organizer and leader of the\nco\u00f6perative attack on the rhinoceros and the final slayer of the animal,\nwas, by common consent, regarded as the head of the group; his advice\nwas sought on all occasions, and his word was law. He gradually assumed\nthe direction of everything that was done.\n\nHaving demonstrated the strength of co\u00f6perative hunting, he organized\neasily a squad of the bravest and most active of the men as special\nhunters of large game. Each was armed with a long spear, two javelins\nand a knife, and he required them to practice javelin throwing until\neach became expert. On a hunt these men always kept within hearing or\nsight of each other, and they soon originated a code of rude signals by\nwhich the whole party might be informed of the appearance of any large\nanimal.\n\nThis band of hunters, on their first expedition, led by Longhead in\nperson, encountered a drove of wild hogs. When each man had hunted\nalone with stones and clubs as his only weapons, these savage creatures\nwere almost as much dreaded as the cave lion or the saber-tooth tiger,\nand now when they appeared, nearly every hunter, mindful of his old\nfear, scrambled into a tree; but at Longhead's command they descended,\nand he organized them into a compact body, back to back. When the hogs\ncharged in their usual manner, the slaughter wrought by the spears and\njavelins was so great that not an animal escaped, for, in accordance\nwith their habit, the hogs knew nothing of retreat, and the last\nsurvivor charged as bravely as if at the head of the herd.\n\nAgain co\u00f6peration had triumphed, and the settlement feasted for many\ndays.\n\nThe genius for leadership shown by Longhead, together with the\nsuperiority of the weapons he had invented, and, above all, his\nmysterious control of the fire, had now firmly established him as leader\nor chief, and none thought of questioning his authority in anything.\nThere had been no election to the office, nor, indeed, any consultation\non the subject; he simply assumed the leadership and the group\nacquiesced by compliance with his commands.\n\nThis first social organization for co\u00f6peration in hunting--the germ from\nwhich all governments and laws have grown--was not the only one\nresulting from the use of fire. The manifest blessings or comforts due\nto its use, and the mysterious manner of its production in the\nfire-cave hidden from the sight of all, began to give rise to the idea\nthat Longhead and Broken Tooth must be in communication with some\nsuperior being.\n\nIt cannot be said that man at that time had any religion, any conception\nof a god, or indeed, any definite idea of supernatural beings, but there\nwere many mysteries of nature which he could in no wise comprehend.\nIncapable of speculative thought, or, indeed, of much continuous thought\nof any kind, he was unable to distinguish clearly between the animate\nand inanimate; he attributed active life to all surrounding objects and\nbelieved even the trees and plants to put on foliage, blossom and\nproduce fruit because they desired to do so. When a rock, loosened by\nthe action of frost and storm, became detached from a cliff and rolled\ninto the valley below, it did so of its own accord and was regarded with\nfear. A man would make a wide circuit to avoid it in passing and none\nwould voluntarily approach it. They lived in a region of cliffs and\nmountains and when one gave a shout, under proper conditions, his words\nwere repeated, sometimes more than once; and none could find the\nmysterious beings who did the mocking; indeed, after vain searches, they\nbecame convinced that the tantalizing mockings came from beings\ninvisible to man, consequently his superiors and, therefore, dangerous.\nThey began to avoid the glens and valleys wherein echoes abounded, or,\nif compelled to pass through them, did so in silence that their\ndangerous neighbors might not be provoked to do them an injury. The\ncurling mist rolling silently down the mountain side, was to them\nanother mysterious being of whom they stood in awe, and thunder,\nlightning and storm each became to them personified and living\nsupernatural beings who terrified them. They had yet no belief that man\nhad a soul or spirit which existed after his death. This thought was to\ncome ages thereafter.\n\nIt was not long until it was suggested that Longhead must have subjected\nto his control one or more powerful but invisible beings whom he kept\nshut up in his cave under the guardianship of the woman, and who, at his\ncommand, produced the fire and wonderful weapons. That Broken Tooth was\nthe guardian of these beings, made mystery attach to her as well, and\nthey began to look upon her with fear and reverence also. The man and\nwoman encouraged this by becoming more mysterious than ever. When\nfurther questioned in regard to the fire, they boldly asserted that the\nwhispered stories were true; that their control of fire and the ability\non the part of the man to make superior weapons was due to supernatural\nbeings who frequented the cave and were subject to them. They asserted\nthat these beings were so powerful they could strike them all with\ninstant death, and would have done so but for the intercession of the\nfire-man and the woman to whose control they were subject; but the\npeople were assured that so long as Longhead and Broken Tooth should be\ntreated with proper respect, their wants satisfied and their commands\nobeyed, they would not permit these malevolent beings to molest any of\nthe group, and the fire should not be taken away.\n\nSoon the people of the group at the fire-cave were informed that the\nfire-spirits desired the man to remain most of the time at or near the\ncave that they might converse with him at all times and instruct him in\nadditional methods for promoting the happiness and welfare of the\npeople, and it would, therefore, be impossible for him to take part in\nthe daily hunt for game, though he would still lead them in important\nexpeditions. On this account he directed that each member of the group\nshould daily bring to the fire-cave contributions of food, sufficient\nnot only for the wants of the man, but of the woman and spirits also.\nThe people readily believed this, for they were incapable of conceiving\nthat such beings as spirits had not need of material food, and,\nconsequently, each brought his or her offering daily, either of food or\nfuel. If by reason of failure in the chase, an unfortunate hunter had no\noffering to bring, he was required to come to the cave and, through the\nmedium of Longhead, ask pardon of the spirits, and bring a double\nportion the next time.\n\nTo all this the people of the group readily submitted; Longhead and\nBroken Tooth lived in comfort, if not in luxury, without any effort upon\ntheir part; the people were educated to ask the forgiveness of superior\nand supernatural beings whose existence was shrouded in mystery, through\nthe medium of a priest whose natural wants they were required to supply;\nand thus a religious worship with a dedicated and supported priesthood,\nif not a religion itself, was established among men.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V\n\nDAWN OF INVENTION, ART, MARRIAGE, RELIGION AND GOVERNMENT\n\n\nAffairs at the settlement near the fire-cave now moved along smoothly.\nTheir new weapons enabled the hunters to secure abundance of food in a\ncountry teeming with animal life, now that they dared attack the larger\nanimals. Cooking made both the flesh and vegetables more nourishing as\nwell as more appetizing, and soon the enormous stomachs, no longer\ncontinually distended with raw and indigestible food, became reduced in\nsize and their bodies less unwieldy. Made confident by the use of fire\nand superior weapons, the men now walked fully erect and wandered\nthrough the forest with little fear. As their supply of nourishing food\nincreased, more children were born than before, and the mortality among\ninfants was greatly reduced. All this tended toward a rapid increase of\npopulation in the settlement. This increase in the population\nnecessitated more habitations, and this, at the time meant more caves,\nfor this was the epoch of cave-men. After all the available caves in the\nravine and vicinity had been appropriated, an enterprising young man of\nthe group who, by reason of mutual attachment and because of the\nexample, perhaps, of Longhead and Broken Tooth, had induced a young\nwoman to establish similar relations with him, being unable to find an\nunoccupied cave, concluded to establish housekeeping upon a horizontal\nledge overhung by a projecting rocky cliff. This location, protected\nonly in the rear, soon proved to be too exposed for comfort, and the\ncouple concluded to improve it. They took several good sized sticks of\ndifferent lengths which had been burned off by the fires and after\nleaning them up against the sloping rock, piled on brush and grass. This\nwas much better than the open front, but a coal from their fire having\nblown into the grass after it had dried, caused a conflagration which\nreduced them to their former condition. The man proved to be quite\nintelligent, and he began to select logs of the same length, burning\nthem off at the proper place when necessary; and these they sloped up\nside by side at the front as before, but, mindful of the fire, they\nfilled the interstices with sticks, stones and moss, finally plastering\nthe whole front, except for a small opening for entrance, with mud. This\nwas a great improvement over all former conditions; the rain and wind\nwere excluded, to a considerable extent; indeed, it was preferable to a\ncave. It was lighter and better ventilated, and, when they had learned\nto construct movable frames which could be securely fastened in the\ndoorways, to prevent incursions by wild animals, these lean-tos or\nrock-shelters, the remains of which have been found in many parts of\nEurope, became the favorite habitations of the people of the group.\n\nThe inhabitants of the caves and rock-shelters did not clean house every\nspring and fall, or, indeed, at any other time; the refuse and debris of\nthe household were allowed to accumulate upon the floors of the caves\nand rock-shelters, and to this we owe nearly all the knowledge possessed\nby civilized man of the domestic arts, weapons, food, etc., and the\ngeneral conditions under which the cave-men lived, as well as of the\nanimals which were their contemporaries. The floors of these ancient\ndwellings, when excavated by scientists, show several feet of debris or\naccumulations, which are called \"brecchia,\" being a conglomeration of\ndirt, bones of animals, bones of human beings, weapons, implements and\nother artifacts, which are frequently cemented with limestone\nformations caused by the drippings of the rocks and caves, in the nature\nof stalactites and stalagmites.\n\nNot only have we learned from this \"brecchia\" what progress the cave-men\nhad made in domestic art, but our knowledge of the animals which lived\nin the locality and were their contemporaries is almost wholly derived\nfrom rude pictures made by these cave people, who seem to have suddenly\ndeveloped an artistic sense and made such pictures by etching or\nscratching them with sharp flints upon pieces of bone, ivory and slate.\nThese drawings are by no means so crude and wanting in artistic skill as\nwe would be inclined to expect. The animals depicted are readily\nrecognizable; such drawings show groups of reindeer, now found only in\nthe arctic regions; the wild horse; the single horned rhinoceros; the\ngiant elk; and on a smooth piece of his own tusk, we see the\ncurved-tusked, hairy elephant of gigantic size--the mammoth, or _elephas\nprimigenius_, whose bones have been found in many parts of Europe and\nAsia, and of which at least one specimen was found whole with the flesh\nintact, in the frozen tundra of Siberia. But for these drawings--the\nnatural history of his time--left by cave-men, we would not know that\nimmense animals, now long extinct in Europe, had contested with men of\nthe cave period, the ownership of the forests, swamps, plains and\nmountains.\n\nIn the \"brecchia\" of these caves, are often found long bones of animals\nwhich have been split longitudinally to obtain the marrow, which was\nregarded as a great delicacy by primitive man; and as some long bones of\nthe human body have been found split in the same manner, some scientists\nhave concluded that cave men were cannibals, or at least occasionally\nmade a feast upon the bodies of prisoners captured in war, or upon such\nsacrifices when offered to the gods.\n\nAt the time when rock-shelters became favorite habitations of the people\nat the fire-cave, marriage relations were still loose, and any idea of\nmale parentage was yet to come, but in a few generations, instead of\naccepting the birth of children without thought, it was generally\nbelieved that the supernatural beings with whom their imaginations\npeopled the hills, valleys, groves and ravines, were responsible for\ntheir advent. However, the more frequent and intimate association of the\nsexes around the fires and in preparing food by roasting, had a great\neffect, and it was noticeable that men and women began to pair off in\nthe caves and rock-shelters; that such cohabitation continued for longer\nperiods of time, and there were a number who appeared to have formed\npermanent unions. There was something about the fire--the social\nhearthstone--which tended to prolong such associations. The cheerful\nlight of the fires; the measure of comfort they furnished, and the\ntalkativeness promoted by companionship as the hunters related around\nthe evening fires the adventures and experiences of that and former\ndays, all combined to make man more of a social being, and the same\ninfluences promoted more permanency of union between couples who found\nthemselves at all congenial.\n\nPerhaps the example of Longhead and Broken Tooth, who had remained true\nto each other, had something to do with this gradual change in the\nrelations of the sexes, but it was not until many generations after when\nthe fact of male parentage became known to mankind, that anything at all\nlike marriage was known or any man regarded any child or children as his\nown. There being no settled custom in this matter, many couples\ncontinued to unite and separate as they might feel inclined. The most\nthat can be said is, that the use of fire in some manner appeared to\npromote a longer union than was common before its discovery, and that,\nin the progress of ages, fire seems to have been one of the agencies\nwhich greatly assisted in bringing about the present sacredness of home\nand marriage.\n\nThe hunters of the group still continued their co\u00f6perative search for\nfood, and the fact that it was often impossible to determine who had\nkilled a particular animal, while it was frequently certain that the\nweapons and efforts of several had a part in it, brought about a system\nfor making an equitable distribution of all the animals taken in each\nexpedition. First the share required by Longhead and Broken Tooth would\nbe set apart, then the remainder was apportioned to each member of the\ngroup or to each habitation in proportion to the number of persons to be\nsupported.\n\nThe women, too, whose task it was to find the roots and vegetables,\neggs, berries and nuts which entered into their diet, began to imitate\nthe actions of the men in this respect. They soon arranged to leave the\nolder and more feeble women at the settlement to maintain the fires and\nlook after the younger children, and to these was allotted a share of\nthe food secured by the others.\n\nThese customs were established gradually and without definite\nenactments, or even agreements, but by common consent; they were,\nhowever, greatly promoted by Longhead, who seemed to make co\u00f6peration a\nsort of a hobby. They seemed to have just happened, but they were, in\nfact, the natural outgrowth of fire and the changed conditions due to\nits influence. In the course of years these customs crystallized into a\ncommunal organization in which all things, except perhaps, the weapons\nof a hunter and a very few personal belongings upon which the owner had\nexpended thought and labor, were regarded as the property of the group\nor tribe. This communal organization of society continued for thousands\nof years and its vestiges still exist amid the highest enlightenment, as\nthe foundation for business corporations, partnerships, and, indeed, all\ncommercial and other co\u00f6peration,--communism--the greatest good to the\ngreatest number, being the basis of all civilized laws.\n\nWhile the hunters of the settlement at the fire-cave scoured the forest\nfor animal food, and the women sought vegetables, nuts, berries and\neggs, Longhead was by no means idle. True, he was, by the contributions\nexacted from the group, relieved from the necessity of daily effort to\nsecure sustenance for himself, Broken Tooth and a bright-eyed little\ncave-boy who had been sent to the woman by the spirits, and he seldom\njoined in a hunting excursion; but, weapons were often broken or lost,\nand, as he still retained the secret of their manufacture, he was kept\ntolerably busy in replacing them. Continual experience in this work gave\nhim greater skill and a truer eye for symmetry of form coupled with\neffectiveness for use, and he also learned to distinguish the best\nmaterials of the vicinage. He invented no new weapons, for the bow and\narrow and even the stone axe, were to be the products of a much later\nepoch; but he discovered that a javelin could be thrown with much\ngreater accuracy if the two sides of the flint point were exactly alike\nand evenly balanced. Experience had also demonstrated to him that the\nweapon had greater penetrative force if the flake for the flint head was\nthin and the edges and point very sharp. He became more careful,\ntherefore, in the selection of his flakes, and when he found one\nsuitable for his use, except one side was larger than the other or the\nedges too thick, he found that he could batter off small pieces with\nlight blows of a pebble, or flake them by pressure with a bone, and\nthus bring it into shape. He discovered also that when the base of a\nflake had some notches near it, the fastenings remained more firm and\nthe point was less likely to become detached from the shaft. He\ntherefore began, by pecking and flaking, to form such notches where he\ndid not find them to suit him, and soon his spear and javelin heads\nassumed a conventional form. There was a slow but continuous improvement\nin the weapons of the period, but eventually these spear and knive heads\nbecame much like those still found upon the village sites of primitive\nman all over the world.\n\nThe worst trouble Longhead had to overcome in the manufacture of weapons\nwas the method of fastening the points to the shafts or handles. The\nsmall fibrous roots he used at first would fray and break when they\nbecame dry, and the points would be lost or fail the hunter at a\ncritical moment. The stringy bark he cut from trees with his knife was\nlittle better, but, one day when cutting up a large animal for cooking,\nhe found its hide so tough he could hardly penetrate it with the knife,\nan idea occurred to him, and he cut off a long narrow strip of the skin\nfor an experiment. This he hung up until he should have time to make the\ntest he had in mind, and when he came to try it he found that he could\nnot break it even by exerting all his strength. From the skin of the\nnext animal that came into his larder, he secured a number of long\nstrips, and, having dried these, he wet them to make them more pliable,\nand used some of them in lashing a point to a javelin. This weapon he\ntested by frequent use, and was pleased to note that the new lashing did\nnot fray or break when it became dry, nor did it loosen, but, on the\ncontrary, the strings of rawhide shrank when drying and held the point\nthe tighter. Thereafter the tough hides were removed, dried and prepared\nfor strings for this and other purposes, and it was not long until he\naccidentally discovered that wet wood ashes placed on a skin for a few\nhours would loosen the hair and permit its removal, leaving the skin\nimproved for making strings.\n\nAbout this time Broken Tooth made a discovery and, like the others, it\nwas also accidental. In her cooking operations, pieces of food were\ncontinually falling upon the ground or being laid upon it in course of\npreparation, and they became more or less covered with sand or fine\nparticles of grit, which did not taste good, and, besides, they hurt her\nteeth. She had no idea of their uncleanliness; it was simply a matter of\ndiscomfort. One day she observed a long strip of bark hanging to a tree\nwhich had recently blown over, and the idea occurred to her that if she\nhad some pieces of this bright, clean bark on which to place the food,\nthe disagreeable sand might be avoided. She tried to break the bark, but\nit was too tough and stringy, so she went to the cave and returned with\na flake of flint. It happened to have a sharp but very ragged edge, and\nshe found that by drawing the edge back and forth across the grain of\nthe bark and at the same time putting on some pressure, she could cut it\nrapidly. That evening she surprised Longhead by presenting his supper on\na set of clean bark dishes. The man examined them curiously and asked\nhow she had cut them. She produced the flint and demonstrated on one of\nthe plates how it would cut. She had invented, or at least, she had made\nthe first application of the saw.\n\nThe man examined the flake thoughtfully, and, picking up a piece of\nstick, tried it on that. He soon sawed it off, and was greatly pleased.\nTo get the staves of his spears and handles of javelins the right\nlength, he had been burning them off in the fire, but now he would use a\nsaw. He soon found that the more numerous and regular the notches the\nfaster the implement would cut, and, as few, if any, of the flakes came\noff the nodules in this condition, he applied pecking and pressure, and\nsoon had a saw with small and regular serrations or teeth, and found it\nvery useful.\n\nUp to this time, all his knives had been made of long flakes with a\nwrapping of roots at one end to protect the hand, but he had found it\ndifficult to secure many flakes long enough for both blade and handle.\nOne day he had the misfortune to break the shaft of his favorite spear.\nIt had a thin blade which was very long and sharp, and the rawhide\nstrings held it firmly. He attempted to untie the lashings, that he\nmight use the blade for another shaft, but they had become so hard and\ndry that he could not succeed in untying them. He picked up his saw to\ncut them, but first began idly to draw it across the shaft. At once he\nnoticed that if cut off at the point where he was sawing, the spear\nwould become a knife with a wooden handle. The operation was quickly\ncompleted, and he found the new style of knife much superior to the old.\nFlakes of this size were much more frequently produced in breaking a\nnodule with fire and water, and all his knives were thereafter furnished\nwith wooden handles.\n\nThe saw thus became one of the most useful of his few tools. Thus the\nflint saw, discovered by accident by a primitive woman, was the germ\nfrom which has been elaborated, with little change except for material,\none of the most useful tools known to civilized man.\n\nWhen the little cave-boy of their family was something over a year old,\na small girl was brought by the spirits, and as the children grew and\nthrived, Broken Tooth began to suggest that their present home was\nbecoming crowded. The cave was indeed a small one for two, three made it\nuncomfortable, and now four was certainly a crowd. Longhead first\nproposed searching for a cave of larger proportions, but to this Broken\nTooth raised several objections. All the larger caves in the vicinity\nwere already occupied, and, while they might no doubt use the authority\nof the spirits to compel the present occupants to vacate a cave for\ntheir use, this course was sure to create ill feeling which, sooner or\nlater, might work to their disadvantage; and, besides, where could they\nfind one with so large a platform in front and so well protected by\noverhanging rock. Could not some plan be devised to enlarge this one?\nand she called Longhead's attention to the fact that the rock inside was\nsoft and friable, and that small pieces were continually falling down,\nwhich she carried out and threw over the edges of the platform.\n\nThe man undertook to make the cavity larger by pulling down and removing\nall the loose pieces, but, when this was done, little increase in the\nsize of their home was apparent. On one side the man noticed that the\nrock was full of small cracks and seams, but these were so tightly\nfitted and irregular that he could remove but few of the stones with his\nhands. One piece that was quite loose he tried for a long time to pull\nout, but it pinched too tightly at one corner. In a rage, he picked up a\nlarge, sharp cornered piece of flint with both hands and struck it with\nall his might into the crack which held the tightest. The piece that\nbound it was broken and the stone fell out, followed by a number of\nothers. Another discovery of the value of flint pieces had been made--a\npick had been found, and daily both Longhead and Broken Tooth spent some\nhours digging at the loosened rocks until, in the course of time, they\nhad a cave sufficiently large for their needs, and in succeeding years\nthis was extended, as the growth of the family and their ideas of\ncomfort demanded.\n\nBy the same means Longhead removed the irregularities of the floor and\nside walls, and finally he somewhat enlarged the doorway, gave it a more\nregular shape, and substituted strong wooden bars, held in place by\nnotches cut in the stone, for the large stones they had formerly rolled\ninto the opening at night to prevent the entrance of dangerous animals.\nThe curious inhabitants of the settlement watched these operations, and\nit was not long until many other caves were thus enlarged and more\ncomfort secured.\n\nDuring the remainder of Longhead's life, little further progress was\nmade in the manufacture of weapons and implements, other domestic arts\nor the conditions of the group; but the flint saw became a common\nimplement and was applied to various uses; many of the families used\nbark dishes, and a sort of rude basket had been evolved from naturally\ncurled cylinders of bark into which a bottom of bark or interlacing of\nrawhide strings had been inserted. These were used to transport nuts,\nberries, wild fruit, eggs, etc., to the caves and as receptacles in\nwhich to retain the same afterwards. No basketry or other weaving\nprocess had been thought of, nor had there been any attempt made to\nmanufacture or use any kind of clothing, the skins of animals being used\nonly for strings, or occasionally to carry food products.\n\nSocial conditions also remained practically the same, but food was more\neasily procured in consequence of slowly extending co\u00f6peration, and the\nmethod of its preparation by cooking made it more nourishing,\nconsequently more of the children grew to manhood and womanhood, and the\naverage of life was longer. The possession of effective weapons\ncontinued to render men less fearful, they became more and more erect\nand grew to a taller stature.\n\nThe inventions and improvement in conditions already described were the\nnecessary and almost immediate results of the control and use of fire,\nand when this point was reached, further progress for many generations\ncan scarcely have been considerable. Primitive man was not fertile in\noriginal ideas, nor inventive, except from accident aided by necessity,\nand the use of the bow and arrow, stone axe, baskets, weaving and\npottery were to come many generations after the death of Longhead,\nBroken Tooth and their fellows of the fire-cave settlement. A method for\nproducing fire by friction of wood upon wood, after the method of the\nfire-drill, which has been common to nearly all primitive peoples who\nhave come under the observation of civilized men, probably came with the\nother later discoveries, but it was doubtless still longer before any\nclothing was used, and then, at first, it was most likely more for\nornament than for comfort or any feeling of modesty.\n\nHowever, the succeeding generations of the group described never lost\nthe inventions of Longhead, and in after ages, when the idea of a\nSupreme Being or beings had been elaborated as a religion, he was\ndeified and worshipped as a god and the founder of the tribe or people.\n\nThe descendants of Broken Tooth--for descent for many ages was still\nreckoned only in the female line--continued to be the weapon-makers and\nrulers of the tribe, and from them were the fire-priests always\nselected, when the worship of fire, with a consecrated priesthood and a\nmore or less elaborate ritual, had been developed.\n\nMany ages were to pass with a slow but continued upward progress before\nthis group of fire-people entered even the lowest stages of barbarism,\nbut certainly the discovery of the use and control of fire had much to\ndo with the early progress of the rude people described, and whose\nindividuals, we have assumed for the purposes of the story, were our own\nfar away ancestors.\n\n\nTHE END\n\n\n\n\nWorks of\n\nC. H. ROBINSON\n\n  LONGHEAD: The Story of\n    the First Fire         Net $1.00\n\n  HAWK: The Young Osage        $1.25\n\n\n\n\nPOLLYANNA\n\n\n_By Eleanor H. Porter_\n\nAuthor of \"Miss Billy,\" \"Miss Billy's Decision,\" etc.\n\n_12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated, net $1.25; postpaid $1.40_\n\n\"Enter Pollyanna! She is the daintiest, dearest, most irresistible maid\nyou have met in all your journeyings through Bookland. And you forget\nshe is a story girl, for Pollyanna is so real that after your first\nintroduction you will feel the inner circle of your friends has admitted\na new member. A brave, winsome, modern American girl, Pollyanna walks\ninto print to take her place in the hearts of all members of the\nfamily.\"\n\n_Of \"Miss Billy\" the critics have written as follows_:\n\n \"To say of any story that it makes the reader's heart feel warm and\n happy is to pay it praise of sorts, undoubtedly. Well, that's the very\n praise one gives 'Miss Billy.'\"--_Edwin L. Shuman in the Chicago\n Record-Herald._\n\n \"The story is delightful and as for Billy herself--she's _all right_!\"\n --_Philadelphia Press._\n\n \"There is a fine humor in the book, some good revelation of character\n and plenty of romance of the most unusual order.\"--_The Philadelphia\n Inquirer._\n\n \"There is something altogether fascinating about 'Miss Billy,' some\n inexplicable feminine characteristic that seems to demand the\n individual attention of the reader from the moment we open the book\n until we reluctantly turn the last page.\"--_Boston Transcript._\n\n \"The book is a wholesome story, as fresh in tone as it is graceful in\n expression, and one may predict for it a wide audience.\"--_Philadelphia\n Public Ledger._\n\n \"Miss Billy is so carefree, so original and charming, that she lives in\n the reader's memory long after the book has been laid aside.\"--_Boston\n Globe._\n\n \"You cannot help but love dear 'Billy;' she is winsome and attractive\n and you will be only too glad to introduce her to your friends.\"\n --_Brooklyn Eagle._\n\n\n\n\nTHE CAREER OF DR. WEAVER\n\n\n_By Mrs. Henry W. Backus_\n\n_12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated, net $1.25; postpaid $1.40_\n\nA big and purposeful story interwoven about the responsibilities and\nproblems in the medical profession of the present day. Dr. Weaver, a\nnoted specialist, and head of a private hospital, had allowed himself to\ndrift away from the standards of his youth in his desire for wealth and\nsocial and scientific prestige. When an expos\u00e9 of the methods employed\nby him in furthering his schemes for the glorifying of the name of\n\"Weaver\" in the medical world is threatened, it is frustrated through\nthe efforts of the famous doctor's younger brother, Dr. Jim. The story\nis powerful and compelling, even if it uncovers the problems and\ntemptations of a physician's career. Perhaps the most important\ncharacter, not even excepting Dr. Weaver and Dr. Jim, is \"The Girl,\" who\nplays such an important part in the lives of both men.\n\n \"The story becomes one of those absorbing tales of to-day which the\n reader literally devours in an evening, unwilling to leave the book\n until the last page is reached, and constantly alert, through the skill\n of the author, in following the characters through the twisted ways of\n their career.\"--_Boston Journal._\n\n \"The story is well-written, unique, quite out of the usual order, and\n is most captivating.\"--_Christian Intelligencer._\n\n\n\n\nTHE HILL OF VENUS\n\n\n_By Nathan Gallizier_\n\nAuthor of \"Castel del Monte,\" \"The Sorceress of Rome,\" \"The Court of\nLucifer,\" etc.\n\n_12mo, cloth decorative, with four illustrations in color, net $1.35;\npostpaid $1.50_\n\nThis is a vivid and powerful romance of the thirteenth century in the\ntimes of the great Ghibelline wars, and deals with the fortunes of\nFrancesco Villani, a monk, who has been coerced by his dying father to\nbind himself to the Church through a mistaken sense of duty, but who\nloves Ilaria, one of the famous beauties of the Court at Avellino. The\nexcitement, splendor and stir of those days of activity in Rome are told\nwith a vividness and daring, which give a singular fascination to the\nstory.\n\n_The Press has commented as follows on the author's previous books_:\n\n \"The author displays many of the talents that made Scott famous.\"--_The\n Index._\n\n \"The book is breathless reading, as much for the adventures, the\n pageants, the midnight excursions of the minor characters, as for the\n love story of the prince and Donna Lucrezia.\"--_Boston Transcript._\n\n \"Mr. Gallizier daringly and vividly paints in glowing word and phrases,\n in sparkling dialogue and colorful narrative, the splendor, glamor and\n stir in those days of excitement, intrigue, tragedy, suspicion and\n intellectual activity in Rome.\"--_Philadelphia Press._\n\n \"A splendid bit of old Roman mosaic, or a gorgeous piece of tapestry.\n Otto is a striking and pathetic figure. Description of the city, the\n gorgeous ceremonials of the court and the revels are a series of\n wonderful pictures.\"--_Cincinnati Enquirer._\n\n \"The martial spirit of these stirring times, weird beliefs in magic and\n religion are most admirably presented by the author, who knows his\n subject thoroughly. It belongs to the class of Bulwer-Lytton's\n romances; carefully studied, well wrought, and full of exciting\n incident.\"--_Cleveland Enquirer._\n\n \"Romance at its best.\"--_Boston Herald._\n\n\n\n\nTHE WHAT-SHALL-I-DO GIRL\n\n\nOr, The Career of Joy Kent\n\n_By Isabel Woodman Waitt_\n\n_12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated by Jessie Gillespie. Net $1.25;\npostpaid $1.40_\n\nWhen Joy Kent finds herself alone in the world, thrown on her own\nresources, after the death of her father, she looks about her, as do so\nmany young girls, fresh from the public schools, wondering how she can\nsupport herself and earn a place in the great business world about her.\nStill wondering, she sends a letter to a number of girls she had known\nin school days, asking that each one tell her just how she had equipped\nherself for a salary-earning career, and once equipped, how she had\nfound it possible to start on that career. In reply come letters from\nthe milliner, the stenographer, the librarian, the salesgirl, the\nnewspaper woman, the teacher, the nurse, and from girls who had adopted\nall sorts of vocations as a means of livelihood. Real friendly girl\nletters they are, too, not of the type that preach, but of the kind\nwhich give sound and helpful advice in a bright and interesting manner.\nOf course there is a splendid young man who also gives advice. Any\n\"What-shall-I-do\" young girl can read of the careers suggested for Joy\nKent with profit and pleasure, and, perhaps, with surprise!\n\n\n\n\nTHE HARBOR MASTER\n\n\n_By Theodore Goodridge Roberts_\n\nAuthor of \"Comrades of the Trails,\" \"Rayton: A Backwoods Mystery,\" etc.\n\n_12mo, cloth decorative, with a frontispiece in full color by John Goss.\nNet $1.25; postpaid $ 1.40_\n\nThe scene of the story is Newfoundland. The story deals with the love of\nBlack Dennis Nolan, a young giant and self-appointed skipper of the\nlittle fishing hamlet of Chance Along, for Flora Lockhart, a beautiful\nprofessional singer, who is rescued by Dennis from a wreck on the\ntreacherous coast of Newfoundland, when on her way from England to the\nUnited States. The story is a strong one all through, with a mystery\nthat grips, plenty of excitement and action, and the author presents\nlife in the open in all its strength and vigor. Mr. Roberts is one of\nthe younger writers whom the critics have been watching with interest.\nIn \"The Harbor Master\" he has surely arrived.\n\n _Of Mr. Roberts' previous books the critics have written as follows_:\n\n \"The action is always swift and romantic and the love is of the kind\n that thrills the reader. The characters are admirably drawn and the\n reader follows with deep interest the adventures of the two young\n people.\"--_Baltimore Sun._\n\n \"Mr. Roberts' pen has lost none of its cunning, while his style is\n easier and breezier than ever.\"--_Buffalo Express._\n\n \"It is a romance of clean, warm-hearted devotion to friends and duty.\n The characters are admirable each in his own or her own way, and the\n author has made each fit the case in excellent fashion.\"--_Salt Lake\n City Tribune._\n\n \"In this book Mr. Roberts has well maintained his reputation for the\n vivid coloring of his descriptive pictures, which are full of stirring\n action, and in which love and fighting hold chief place.\"--_Boston\n Times._\n\n \"Its ease of style, its rapidity, its interest from page to page, are\n admirable; and it shows that inimitable power--the story-teller's gift\n of verisimilitude. Its sureness and clearness are excellent, and its\n portraiture clear and pleasing.\"--_The Reader._\n\n\n\n\nTHE BLOSSOM SHOP\n\n\nA Story of the South\n\n_By Isla May Mullins_\n\n_Cloth decorative, illustrated by John Goss. Net $1.00; postpaid $1.15_\n\nOne of those exquisitely simple and appealing stories of mother love and\nsacrifice for a little blind daughter, written in a delightful vein,\ncombining humor and pathos. The reader will love little blind Eugene\n(the child had received the name of her dead father) and will rejoice\nwith the brave young mother, the heroine of the story, when the child's\nsight is restored. There is a time for rejoicing, too, when a lost will\nis found, bringing wealth and release from all worries, and the young\nmother is free to accept the love and protection that in her sorrow she\ndenied herself.\n\nSouthern types are amusingly contrasted with those of the North; and the\nsimple language and fine sentiment of the story will charm readers of\nall ages.\n\n\n\n\nJOHN O' PARTLETTS'\n\n\n_By Jean Edgerton_\n\n_12mo, cloth decorative, illustrated, net $1.25; postpaid, $1.40_\n\n\n\nThe reading public is no longer content with the old hackneyed love\nstory, the impossible mystery story or the superficial tale of\nadventure. It is necessary that a novel to be successful shall appeal to\nthe best in us--shall grip our hearts and fill our thoughts. Few first\nbooks by a new writer can supply such an exacting demand, but \"John O'\nPartletts'\" is among these few. Its simple, straightforward plot; its\nable and convincing portrayal of character--real character; the author's\nmastery of her art--these are the elements which make the book worthy of\nwide appreciation. No one character dominates the story, neither \"Witch\"\nBeevish, the eccentric old woman at war with the village, nor Jim, the\nlittle orphan, nor Henry Carruthers, the minister, nor even Kitty\nMerryweather, the shrewd-tongued gossip. But if there is a hero it is\nJohn O' Partletts', \"Witch\" Beevish's great dog, the friend and\nprotector of Little Jim.\n\nThis is a story to compare with \"Rab and His Friends\" and with \"A Dog of\nFlanders\"--a story that is bound to make its way.\n\n\n\n\nTranscriber's Note:\n\nItalic text is denoted by _underscores_ and bold text by =equal signs=.\n\np12: \"drouth\" is an old variant spelling of \"drought\"\n\nRetained non-standard hyphenation for several words, as in original text\n\np89: \"cooperation\" changed to \"co\u00f6peration\", the spelling used\nconsistently everywhere else in the book\n\np71: \"knive\" spelling as in original\n\nIn the ad for What-shall-I-do Girl: corrrected printer error, \"friendly\"\nfor \"riendly\"\n\nMoved ad for other books by same author to end of book, prior to ads for\nother authors.","title":"Longhead: The Story of the First Fire","tradition":"myth-cosmogony","translated_text":null,"word_count":18029}