consist merely in eliminating the physical cause
of disease. As soon as any disease is stubborn there must be at the
bottom of it some spiritual source, and this source can be discovered
and removed only by magic.

Incantations therefore form an important part of Indian medicine. The
formulas therefor are the special property of the medicine-men, whom we
shall hereafter designate with the much more appropriate name of
Shamans. The shaman is wizard and physician at the same time. He is
also a prophet, augur, and oracle. His duty it is not only to protect
from evil, but to counteract it. He has charms and incantations which he
offers for the production of beneficial natural phenomena.

Magic for such purposes is regarded by the Indian as essential to the
existence of man. Magic, however, as a black art is the most heinous
crime which he can conceive. The difference between the two consists
mainly in their purpose; the manipulations are substantially the same,
so are the objects. To know those details is one of the attributes of
the shamans.

The latter constitute a circle of their own,--a cluster of adepts,
nominally in the arts of healing, but really in the arts of magic. That
circle is wide, and whoever stands outside of it has no right to
infringe upon the duties of its members by attempting to follow their
example. It is an institution, and its origin dates from untold
centuries. It is subdivided into groups, each of which practises charms,
incantations, or magic, relating to certain human interests. The Shyayak
are in possession of the spell which charms game, in other words they
are the shamans of the hunt. The Uakanyi practise magic in warfare, they
are the shamans of war. The Chayani are physicians who combine with the
knowledge of medicine proper, the knowledge of magic curative powers.
They are the shamans of medicine. Lastly the Yaya combine a knowledge of
all these different branches in their essence. They are the prophets and
priests. These groups may be described as, in a certain sense, guilds.
But they are secret societies also, inasmuch as the arts and practices
of each are special property which is kept secret from the others, and
from the uninitiated members in the tribe. In order to become a member
of a society of that kind secrecy is required and long apprenticeship.
The novice rises slowly from one degree of knowledge to another, and
only few attain the higher positions.

The members of these sec