ANTHROPOLOGY IN AVESTERN HEMISPHERE AND PACIFIC ISLANDS. 53 



These last three problems should be studied with trade routes, hunting 

 routes, fishing routes, and war routes in mind. 



The problem of the Antilles line of culture contact between South and 

 North America is an important one; so also is that of the presumptive 

 line across the Gulf of Mexico. Both these route-areas should be studied, 

 but the major part of the research work would need to be done among the 

 cultures, vanished or present, on the two continents at both ends of each 

 connecting island route. Among these peoples are living tribes whose culture 

 is entirely unknown, whose names even are unknown to anthropology. 



Among the prehistoric culture remains in the Western Hemisphere are 

 some of wonderful richness in the ruins of the advanced peoples in the high- 

 lands of Mexico, Central and South America. 



If it were not for the accompanying extensive report on the Maya of 

 Yucatan by Mr. Morley, it would be necessary to present in a much larger 

 way research opportunities among those advanced and marvelous cultures 

 to the south of us, which were suddenly blighted by Spanish conquest. 



There is the question as to whether Maya or Mexican culture was re- 

 sponsible for the beginning of the high development of their area, or whether 

 both raised themselves on the shoulders of a third, to use Seler's expression. 

 According to this authority, the two unquestionably had mutual influence. 



The relationships between the Inca and Aymara cultures of South 

 America, and the meaning of the general resemblance between these cultures 

 and those farther northward, as the Maya and the Mexican, are problems 

 of great importance and about which nothing is now definitely known. 



The culture of the Inca of Peru and Chili, that of the Aymara of Bolivia, 

 the Mexican of central Mexico, and the Maya of Yucatan and Guatemala 

 should be thoroughly studied; among them all are rich research opportunities 

 similar to those Morley presents for the Maya. A comparative study of the 

 cultures would be most enlightening. The excavation of the Inca capital, 

 Machu Picchu, needs only to be mentioned to convince the anthropologist 

 that South America has many small and many large prehistoric problems 

 demanding serious study. Some of the important Inca sites in which valu- 

 able research work could be carried on are Tiahuanaco (Keane calls this an 

 independent Aymara development); then the very important Sierra ruins; 

 those of Cajamarca, Chan-Chan, Nasco, Piura; the ruins of the Cuzco region 

 and of the unknown Moquequa region. These are virtually untouched fields. 

 One of the avenues open to research on the problem of the spread of 

 American culture is that of American and European archives. Many letters 

 were written and sent back to Europe by Europeans contemporary in America 

 with the last days of Mexican, Maya, and Inca culture. Several beautiful 

 Maya books have been found in European countries, and doubtless research 

 would bring to light a considerable amount of valuable data. 



The whole problem of the origin and spread of aboriginal American cul- 

 ture is varied and large. While this problem would necessitate much research 



