n of an entity. But when we remember that "the Dawn"
is a natural complimentary name for a beautiful girl opening into
womanhood, the genesis of the idea becomes, on the above hypothesis,
quite obvious.[32]

* * * * *

Another indirect verification is that we thus get a clear conception of
Fetichism in general. Under the fetichistic mode of thought, surrounding
objects and agents are regarded as having powers more or less definitely
personal in their natures; and the current interpretation is, that human
intelligence, in its early stages, is obliged to conceive of their
powers under this form. I have myself hitherto accepted this
interpretation; though always with a sense of dissatisfaction. This
dissatisfaction was, I think, well grounded. The theory is scarcely a
theory properly so-called; but rather, a restatement in other words.
Uncivilized men _do_ habitually form anthropomorphic conceptions of
surrounding things; and this observed general fact is transformed into
the theory that at first they _must_ so conceive them--a theory for
which the psychological justification attempted, seems to me inadequate.
From our present stand-point, it becomes manifest that Fetichism is not
primary but secondary. What has been said above almost of itself shows
this. Let us, however, follow out the steps of its genesis. Respecting
the Tasmanians, Dr. Milligan says:--"The names of men and women were
taken from natural objects and occurrences around, as, for instance, a
kangaroo, a gum tree, snow, hail, thunder, the wind," flowers in
blossom, etc. Surrounding objects, then, giving origin to names of
persons, and being, in the way shown, eventually mistaken for the actual
progenitors of those who descend from persons nicknamed after them, it
results that these surrounding objects come to be regarded as in some
manner possessed of personalities like the human. He whose family
tradition is that his ancestor was "the Crab," will conceive the crab as
having a disguised inner power like his own; an alleged descent from
"the Palm-tree" will entail belief in some kind of consciousness
dwelling in the palm-tree. Hence, in proportion as the animals, plants,
and inanimate objects or agents that originate names of persons, become
numerous (which they will do in proportion as a tribe becomes large and
the number of persons to be distinguished from one another increases),
multitudinous things around will acquire imagi