1 52 EVOLUTION OF THE EARTH 



white fishermen in northern Newfoundland and Labrador, 

 where the conditions are much better than in the home of the 

 Eskimos, is a pointed answer to this question. 



The effect of climate upon material resources and of ma- 

 terial resources upon civilization is well illustrated by a com- 

 parison of the Indians of California and Utah with their 

 Pueblo neighbors in New Mexico. The pre-Columbian in- 

 habitants of California and Utah were abject savages. They 

 dwelt in flimsy brush huts, and ate rabbits, lizards, grass- 

 hoppers, acorns, and other equally poor kinds of food. 

 Because food was so scanty they lived in very small communi- 

 ties, and were forced frequently to move from place to place. 

 Because of their wandering, isolated life they had only the 

 rudiments of social and political organization. All in all, 

 they were well-nigh the lowest of the American aborigines. 

 The Pueblo Indians, on the other hand, had risen far beyond 

 mere savagery and were well along in the stage of culture 

 known as barbarism. They had an excellent diet of corn, 

 beans, and squashes, with enough meat to keep them in health. 

 Not being obliged to wander, they lived in compact, well-made 

 adobe houses. Their villages were large enough and near 

 enough to one another so that intercourse was frequent, hence 

 they had a highly organized social and governmental system. 

 They had also developed a series of complex religious cere- 

 monials that did much credit to their mental powers. Among 

 the aboriginal people of America they stood not far from 

 the top. 



The contrast between these two neighboring types was ap- 

 parently not due to racial differences. The Hopis, who were 

 among the most advanced Pueblo people, were apparently 

 of the same race as the Utes, who were among the lowest of 

 the other type. Material resources seem to have been the 

 main cause of the contrast. The Pueblos had behind them 

 the resources of agriculture, while their savage neighbors 



