XXVIII. ANTHROPOLOGY, ETHNOLOGY, SOCIOLOGY, AND ECONOMICS ANTHROPOLOGY AND ETHNOLOGY GEORGE GRANT MACCURDY The Antiquity of Man.-The most | Pleistocene. The gravel bed is probimportant single event making for ably early Pleistocene and the human progress in anthropology and ethnol- remains are presumably of the same ogy during the year 1913 was the dis- age, since the skull and mandible covery in a gravel bed of the Ouse would not have remained in such Valley, at Piltdown Common, Fletch- close association had they been transing, Sussex, England, of human re- ported far from their original place mains associated with an ancient of deposition. The fragments comfauna, and of flint implements, usu- prise portions of the occipital, left ally referred to as eolithic and early frontal and left temporal, and right Chellean. The discovery, which was mandibular ramus with first and made by Charles Dawson, was official- second molars in situ. The cranial ly reported at a meeting of the Geo- wall is remarkable for its thickness. logical Society on Dec. 18, 1912, and Dr. A. Smith Woodward of the Natthe account published in the Quarterly ural History Museum, South KenJournal of the Geographical Society sington, has made a restoration of the for March, 1913. The gravel bed at skull, the correctness of which has Piltdown is 80 ft. above and a mile been challenged by Prof. Arthur removed from the present bed of the Keith of the Royal College of SurOuse. The physiographic features of geons. The difference of opinion this region have not changed percep- hinges largely on the estimated cratibly since Roman times. The rela- nial capacity and conformation. Dr. tion, therefore, of the present river Woodward has recently altered his bed to that which existed when the reconstruction somewhat by a "slight Piltdown gravels were formed indicate | widening of the back of the parietal for the latter a great antiquity. The region." The capacity is thus inrelics found in the gravel are at least creased a little over his original esas old as the bed itself; some, or even timate of 1,070 cu. cm., a figure which all, of them may be older. is not much above the minimum in All the bones, human as well as modern man. Prof. G. Elliot Smith, animal, are mineralized and stained a great authority on the human brain, to a ruddy-brown color, as are the accepts the modified Woodward ressands and chipped flints among which toration, declaring that the Piltdown they were found. The fragments show- skull affords evidence of a hitherto ing most wear from transport are the unknown group of the Hominidae, so remains of Mastodon and Stegodon, fundamentally distinct from all other both typically Pliocene forms. These fossil human remains as to justify and some of the eoliths are evidently the name Eoanthropus dawsoni, given derived from an older deposit. The to the Piltdown man by Dr. Woodteeth of Hippopotamus and other ward. Certain features, are particumammalian fragments are in about larly ape-like; others bear a closer rethe same condition of wear as are the semblance to modern man than can be human bones. The hippopotamus found in the much later Neandertal might be either upper Pliocene or race. While the cranium is not unlike that of the young chimpanzee, the lower jaw is even more ape-like. Professor Smith finds in this no incongruity; the development of the brain, as well as articulate speech, would logically precede the refinement of the features. The views held by Woodward and Elliot Smith would seem to be confirmed by the discovery on Aug. 30 of a canine tooth that obviously belongs to the half of the lower jaw originally discovered. This tooth is said to correspond to the lower canine of an ape in shape as well as in its mode of wearing on the upper canine. It differs from the canine of Dr. Woodward's published restoration only in being slightly smaller, more pointed, and a little more upright in the mouth. The Piltdown discovery serves to bring into relief the latest researches of Commont in the valley terraces of the river Somme in northern France. According to Commont (Congrès int.. d'anthrop. et d'arch. préhist., Genève, 1913), the recent loess with Mousterian and later industries at Amiens is to be correlated with the Würm glacial epoch and succeeding stages. The Acheulian culture of the ancient loess belongs to the last interglacial (Riss-Würm) epoch, and the preChellean industry to the Mindel-Riss interglacial epoch, that is to say, the epoch in which it is generally agreed the man of Heidelberg lived. Two papers bearing on man's evolution from the anthropoids were read at the Birmingham meeting (1913) of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. The authors, Prof. Carveth Read and Dr. Harry Campbell, both give special prominence to the abandonment of an arboreal for a terrestrial life and to a liking for animal food as determining factors in human evolution. Man's differentiation from an ape-like progenitor has been essentially a mental evolution. But advance in intelligence in order to be effective must have for stepping stones an appropriate physical medium. Only a being possessed of prehensile hands, capable of serving the mind's behests, could evolve into man. He alone could become a user and inventor of tools and weapons. The first employment of these was by the few, but it "created a new standard of mental fitness, and compelled a leveling up of the entire Professor Keith is not satisfied even with Woodward's modified restoration and has made one that gives for Eoanthropus a cranial capacity of 1,500 cub. cm. The average cranial capacity for modern European males is 1,506 cu. cm. The Piltdown skull, therefore, if male would have a capacity somewhat less, and if female considerably greater than in modern man. Keith sees in Piltdown confirmation of his previously expressed view that the modern type of man was coexistent with the Neandertal type and is of great antiquity. Dr. R. Anthony of Paris, an expert of international repute, is inclined to side with Professor Keith in regard to the capacity of the Piltdown skull, at the same time recognizing in the Piltdown skull a remarkable ensemble of primitive characters. If Keith and Anthony are correct in their inter-species to that standard." Polygamy pretation of cranial capacity, the question is once more raised as to whether skull and lower jaw belong to the same individual. If they do not, the name should be changed to Homo dawsoni; if they do, the term Eoanthropus is fully warranted, and in any event would apply to the lower jaw, which if separated from the cranium must have a name of its own. The prime fact, however, is not the disagreement among doctors, but that remains of the man of the dawn has been found; and not this alone, the remains have been found in association with a fossil fauna and a rude flint industry. served at least one good purpose in that the male who combined a good physique with high mental endowment became the tribal leader, secured the largest number of wives, and thus left the maximum number of offspring to transmit his excellence. The evolution of motherhood and the restrictions and obligations of communal life have had much to do with the moral evolution of the human mind. America.-In New World anthropology no one event of the year overshadows all others. Yet the student in almost any special field will find something new and of real merit in the year's output, the volume and nature of which are such as to defy comprehensive and popular treatment. The most useful single work of the year is the Handbook of American Indians North of Mexico, a publication of the Bureau of American Ethnology, ordered reprinted by resolution of Congress. Curiously enough the only general work covering the western hemisphere as a whole is by a French man, H. Beuchat, whose Manuel d'archéologie américaine was published in 1912 by Picard of Paris. Works of this kind can have a firm basis only in the reports of original investigations; the Manuel brings out in bold relief the present inadequacy of foundation materials. M. Beuchat has gone as one of the archeologists on the Stefansson Expedition into the unexplored territory north of the Canadian mainland. As this expedition is generously subsidized by the Canadian Government, and its equipment for anthropological research is ample, its return some three years hence is awaited with unusual expectancy. Canada. Ethnological and archeological explorations directed by Dr. E. Sapir and Harlan I. Smith are being carried on in various parts of Canada. They include a study of the social organization and material culture of the Iroquois, and ethnological and linguistic research among the Malecite and Micmac Indians of New Brunswick, as well as among the Athabascan tribes of the Mackenzie Valley. Mr. Smith inspected earth works in the vicinity of St. Thomas, Ont., and has recommended the establishment of a Dominion park for the preservation of one of these, the most perfect earth work remaining in Canada east of the Rocky Mountains, as far as is at present known. Remains of ancient semi-subterranean house sites have been discovered near Banff, Alberta, and have been set aside as national monuments by the Parks Branch of the Dominion Government. The remains at Banff mark the eastern limit of this type of semi-subterranean house. Important results were obtained through the exploration of mounds in Manitoba and of shell heaps along the Canadian east coast. Extensive anthropological exhibits consisting of a synoptic series illus trating the archeology of Canada, also ethnological series illustrating the life of the west coast tribes, Eskimo, and certain eastern woodland tribes have been thrown open to the public in the Victoria Memorial Museum, Ottawa. California. The Department of Anthropology of the University of California, under the direction of Professor Kroeber, has undertaken a study of the average physical content of shell mounds in the San Francisco Bay region, with a view to determining the changes in Molluscan fauna, and with the ultimate purpose of securing additional information on the age of these remains. Surveying and exploration of the mounds in this district have been temporarily brought to a close after 12 years' work, sufficient data and collections being now available for a preliminary formulation of the knowledge gained. Explorations of the shell mounds on Humboldt and San Diego bays in the extreme north and south of the state have been begun, as the first step in an extension of this line of work from the immediate vicinity of the University to cover systematically the whole of California. A more exact comparison of the words and structure of all the languages of California has revealed many far-reaching similarities, in part entirely unsuspected, and reduces by one-half the number of distinct language stocks or families in the California region, hitherto regarded as one of the most diversified in the world. A preliminary announcement on this matter appeared in Science of Feb. 7, 1913, and a somewhat enlarged statement is to be found in the American Anthropologist for July-September, 1913. West Coast.-The ninth volume of The North American Indian by Edward S. Curtis (Norwood, Mass., Plimpton Press, 1913) is largely devoted to the Salishan tribes of the Coast, more than a score of these being described with special reference to their culture and mythology. The Chimakum, Quilliute and Willapa are treated in like manner, although more briefly. Following these is an appendix with tribal summary, songs, and vocabularies. Southwest.-This favored region comes annually to the fore. The opening of the Southwest Indian Hall at the American Museum of Natural History, New York, was the occasion for the appearance of Indians of the Southwest, by Dr. P. E. Goddard. This little volume is No. 2 of the Museum's Handbook Series. Its three chapters deal with the ancient peoples, modern Pueblos, and the nomadic peoples respectively. The text is supplemented by a map, numerous illustrations, and a bibliography, thus making the work a guide not only to the Museum visitor, but also to those who are less fortunate. Dr. Spinden has resumed his researches into the ceremonial activities of the Rio Grande Pueblos and Mr. Nelson has completed an archeological reconnaissance of the same region, in both instances under the auspices of the American Museum of Natural History. Casa Grande, as the name suggests, is one of the most notable ruins of the Southwest. These ruins have recently been excavated and repaired by Dr. J. Walter Fewkes, Congress having placed with the Smithsonian Institution funds for that purpose. The report of Dr. Fewkes is the principal paper in the Twenty-eighth Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology (Washington, 1912), which contains likewise a second paper by Dr. Fewkes, also on the Southwest, "Antiquities of the Upper Verde River and Walnut Creek Valleys, Arizona." The author concludes that the culture of these two valleys points to a sedentary rather than a nomadic people, and to a connection with both the Pueblos and the inhabitants of the Colorado Valley. The kinship with the ancient inhabitants of the Gila and Salt River valleys is still more apparent. The Southwest is also the scene of investigations carried on jointly by the Bureau of American Ethnology and the School of American Archeology. Some of the results have appeared as Bulletin 54 of the Bureau (1913), "The Physiography of the Rio Grande Valley, New Mexico, in Relation to Pueblo Culture," by E. L. Hewett, J. Henderson, and W. W. Robbins. The various lines of evidence point to progressive desicca tion of the region since the beginning of the pueblo and cliff-dwelling period, although it is admitted that the decrease in population may possibly be ascribed to other causes. Meanwhile the linguistics of the Southwest have by no means been overlooked. The Franciscan fathers have issued from their Press at St. Michaels, Ariz., A Vocabulary of the Vavaho Language in two volumes. This work is supplemental to the Ethnologic Dictionary of the Navaho Language which appeared in 1910; it represents a labor of some ten years and is especially rich in mythological information, including names of ceremonies, mythological beings, ceremonial objects, and the like. The names of 67 different Navaho clans are given. There is disappointment very well expressed in a review by J. P., Harrington that nothing new was said concerning the origin of the name "Navaho." Harrington believes with Dr. Hewett that the name found ts way into the Spanish language from the Tewa spoken about Santa Fé, N. M., in which Navahu means "cultivated canyons" (nava, cultivated field, hu'u, canyon). Plains Tribes.-Under the patronage of George G. Heye the University Museum, Philadelphia, has had an expedition among the Oto Indians. Three members of the staff of the American Museum of Natural History have continued their researches in the Plains area. Drs. Wissler and Lowie studied the ceremonial organizations and social life. Mr. Skinner visited the Plains-Cree and the Plains-Ojibway, an interesting tribe of transitional culture. From the Menominee of Wisconsin Mr. Skinner obtained data on the celebrated Midewiwin ceremony of this tribe. Algonquian Tribes.-Truman Michelson's "Preliminary Report on the Linguistic Classification of Algonquian Tribes" appeared in 1912 as one of the papers in the Twenty-eighth Annual Report of the Bureau of American Ethnology. The author finds that Algonquian tribes linguistically fall into four major divisions, Blackfoot, Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Eastern-Central; the latter is divisible into two subtypes, Central and Eastern. The Eastern subtype may perhaps be di vided into two groups, Micmac and Abnaki. The Central subtype is composed of a number of linguistic clusters: Cree-Montagnais, Menominee, Sauk, Fox, Kickapoo, and Shawnee; Ojibwa, Ottawa, Potawatomi, Algonkin, and Peoria; Delaware and Natic. The Blackfoot type bears evident signs of contact with the Sauk, Fox, and Kickapoo of the Central subtype and with Eastern Algonquian. Cheyenne affinities are with the Ojibwa of the Central Algonquian, while the linguistic affinities of the Arapaho have not as yet been determined. A map showing the distribution and interrelation of the Algonquian dialects by J. R. Swanton and the author accompanies Dr. Michelson's paper. Members of the Bureau staff have also obtained a large amount of additional material concerning the myths and legends of the Algonquian tribes. Maine. The Department of Archeology at Andover has continued its survey of Maine, locating some hundred or more shell heaps and village sites. Forty-eight shell heaps were found within a radius of ten miles of Bar Harbor. Several of these were examined and yielded some hundreds of bone and stone implements. Most of the coast from Blue Hill to Bar Harbor was explored and cemeteries were located at Blue Hill and Sullivan Falls; from these about 100 stone objects were taken. At Boynton's Point in the town of La Moine a shell heap of great size was partially excavated, and about 300 articles in bone and stone were taken out of the trenches. The harpoons collected by the expedition number more than 40 and represent several methods of hafting and barbing. Lower Mississippi Valley.-Clarence B. Moore has continued his archeological survey of the South, results of which are embodied in his report on "Some Aboriginal Sites in Louisiana and Arkansas" (Jour. Acad. of Nat. Sci. of Phila., 1913). The regions selected proved on the whole to be rather unproductive, and yet their investigation was necessary on account of their geographic relation to Mr. Moore's earlier work. The rare and characteristic specimens found are admirably reproduced in the report, many of them in color. Mexico. The International School of American Archeology and Ethnology, under the direction of Prof. Jorge Engerrand, has continued the study of the succession of civilizations in the Valley of Mexico and made researches into the ethnology, folklore, and linguistics of the State of Oaxaca as well as those relative to the Tepecanos. In the Valley of Mexico, excavations were made at Santa Lucia and Azcapotzalco. Señor Gamio, in charge of the work, also explored a small artificial mound near Santa Lucia, where he found two admirable examples of a deity, probably Tonantzin. In order to verify the analogy supposed to exist between the cultural types of Michoacan Colima, Jalisco Tepic, and the hill civilization in the Valley, a number of excavations were made in the State of Colima. From these Dr. Engerrand is able to confirm a complete analogy between the Colima types and the most ancient known in the Valley. The exploration seems to demonstrate that in Colima there is but one civilization, while in the Valley there were at least three. The entire collection of Mexican archeology excavated by the School in 1912 under the direction of Professor Boas has been purchased by the University Museum in Philadelphia. The linguistic, ethnological, and folklore studies in Oaxaca were richly rewarded, as were also those among the Tepecanos of the Bolanos River (Jalisco). Dr. Radin found the Huave, an isolated language of Oaxaca, to be related to the Mixe. Mr. Mason's observations among the latter, like those of Professor Boas, demonstrate that the folk tales of the Indians are in a large measure of European origin, introduced after the conquest and modified by local influences. Maya Culture.-Two notable books on Maya culture have appeared during 1913. Dr. Herbert J. Spinden's A Study of Maya Art, its Subject Matter and Historical Development forms Volume VI of the Memoirs of the Peabody Museum of American Archæology and Ethnology, Harvard University. The author's most noteworthy contributions are to chronological sequence; his analysis of the designs and the principles of Maya |