Note 7 — Chapter XV

In regard to this ceremony—the blood-covenant, or “blood-friendship”—see H. C. Trumbull’s Blood Covenant (3rd ed., Philadelphia, 1898); he describes it as performed in many countries and in all ages, in various forms; its purposes, methods, and symbolism; and its meaning in the Bible. In brief, it appears to be a primitive form of expressing personal union and friendship in the closest bonds, which may not be broken without dishonor.