Science (journal)/Volume 5/No. 100/Why is Water Considered Ghost-Proof?
Why is water considered ghost-proof?
As a possible partial explanation of the fact referred to by Dr. Edward B. Tylor, in his address before the Anthropological society of Washington {see Science, iv. 548, col. 2), of the wide-spread belief among savages 'that water is impassable to spirits,'the obstacle which it presents to dogs in pursuing their prey by scent may be suggested. This latter fact must be well known to most uncivilized races; and the mystery of tracking by scent must furnish a fertile theme for the exercise of the savage imagination, while the scent itself of a human being would be readily attributed to his spirit. Can anthropologists show any 'historical connection' between the fact and the belief? Lester F. Ward
This work was published before January 1, 1929, and is in the public domain worldwide because the author died at least 100 years ago.
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