In giving 1, 2, 3, 5, 10, or any other small number as a system limit, it
must not be overlooked that this limit mentioned is in all cases the limit
of the spoken numerals at the savage's command. The actual ability to count
is almost always, and one is tempted to say always, somewhat greater than
their vocabularies would indicate. The Bushman has no number word that will
express for him anything higher than 2; but with the assistance of his
fingers he gropes his way on as far as 10. The Veddas, the Andamans, the
Guachi, the Botocudos, the Eskimos, and the thousand and one other tribes
which furnish such scanty numeral systems, almost all proceed with more or
less readiness as far as their fingers will carry them. As a matter of
fact, this limit is frequently extended to 20; the toes, the fingers of a
second man, or a recount of the savage's own fingers, serving as a tale for
the second 10. Allusion is again made to this in a later chapter, where the
subject of counting on the fingers and toes is examined more in detail.

In saying that a savage can count to 10, to 20, or to 100, but little idea
is given of his real mental conception of any except the smallest numbers.
Want of familiarity with the use of numbers, and lack of convenient means
of comparison, must result in extreme indefiniteness of mental conception
and almost entire absence of exactness. The experience of Captain
Parry,[47] who found that the Eskimos made mistakes before they reached 7,
and of Humboldt,[48] who says that a Chayma might be made to say that his
age was either 18 or 60, has been duplicated by all investigators who have
had actual experience among savage races. Nor, on the other hand, is the
development of a numeral system an infallible index of mental power, or of
any real approach toward civilization. A continued use of the trading and
bargaining faculties must and does result in a familiarity with numbers
sufficient to enable savages to perform unexpected feats in reckoning.
Among some of the West African tribes this has actually been found to be