In the following classified list of releases and the people who practice them, it is shown in a general way that the primary, secondary and tertiary releases are practiced by savage races to-day, as well as by certain civilized races of ancient times; while the Mediterranean and Mongolian releases, though originating early in time, have always characterized the civilized and dominant races. The exceptions to this generalization are curious: the Little Andaman islanders practicing the Mediterranean release, and the inhabitants of the Great Andaman Island practicing the tertiary release, are an illustration. The fact that the various groups of Eskimo practicing the Mediterranean release, and so far as I know being the only people who have designed a distinct form of arrow for this method, is exceedingly curious. Mr. John Murdock, who is engaged in a careful study of the Eskimo, has expressed to me a surmise that certain arts of the Eskimo may have been derived from Greenland through Scandinavian colonists; and this might explain the anomaly.

It may be shown that in tribes in which the bow is but little used, and then only tor small birds and game, the release is weak or irregular. The data, however, are altogether too few to establish any conclusions respecting this.