ANTHROPOLOGY IN WESTERN HEMISPHERE AND PACIFIC ISLANDS. 51 



European Continent, where the knowledge of ancient peoples surpasses in 

 completeness and exactness that of any other part of the world. 



2. The second research should be primarily to solve the specific problem 

 of so-called glacial man; to determine whether man was in America in glacial 

 or pre-glacial time. If no evidence is found, the researches should be so 

 capably carried on that the absence of non-autochthonous man from America 

 in the above-named geological times would be satisfactorily proved to all 

 except those who would believe the other way. The inherent difficulty of 

 proving a negative is here in mind. 



In Europe the evidence of glacial man is abundant. Both the skeletal 

 and artifact remains are found at the very foot of the glaciers, and even 

 on promontories which, though not covered, were within the glaciated area. 

 When one sketches on a map of the United States the locations of those 

 skeletal and artifact remains over which the controversy of glacial man 

 largely exists to-day, he finds, suggestively, that most of them, except those 

 from California, are located in the zone of glacial terminal moraines extend- 

 ing from the Atlantic westward toward the Rocky Mountains. This strongly 

 suggests an important field for research. The zone of the terminal moraines 

 should be surveyed for all those available localities which in pre-glacial or 

 glacial times could well have furnished dwelling-place or occupation ground 

 for man. All caves, rock-shelters, glacial river-beds, exposed beaches, and 

 promontories which could have served as hunting-grounds or sites for look- 

 outs or dwellings should be systematically investigated for coveted evidence 

 of possible glacial or pre-glacial existence. The most trustworthy evidence 

 of man's existence would be found in the undisturbed glacial deposits, or 

 in interglacial deposits. It must be understood that the location of man's 

 remains in glacial deposits proves only the existence of man, not the geo- 

 graphic location of such existence; whereas, remains in interglacial deposits 

 afford definite knowledge as to location and time. 



The chief reasons why we in America, as compared with Europe, are 

 in such a state of uncertainty about early man in our continents are : first, the 

 lack of systematic and extended research; secondly, the ignorance and careless- 

 ness often shown in connection with discoveries which have been made. In the 

 majority of cases the lack of accurate information given by the discoverers 

 is the most striking thing about them. A case in point is that of the skele- 

 ton found in Quebec, said to have been "dug out of the solid schist rock," 

 which proved to be a Silurian formation ! 



Geologists and physical anthropologists have worked out certain criteria 

 for determining the geological and zoological position of human fossil remains. 

 All these criteria should be critically applied to every individual case by 

 experts on the spot. Otherwise some feature or relation of the relic or its 

 surroundings may be overlooked or misstated, thus rendering worthless, or 

 forever doubtful, the whole discovery. 



