thereafter; but eventually they spread open, exposing 
the ear. 
PrimitiIvE Nat-Tet RECONSTRUCTED 
In those characteristics which can be studied in archae- 
ological remains, Early Nal-Tel proves to be modern 
Nal-Tel with some of its characteristics in accentuated 
form. If it may be assumed that this is also true for 
other features, it is possible by extrapolation to recon- 
struct this precursor of the modern, though still some- 
what primitive race. 
So far as the characteristics of the ear are concerned, 
little extrapolation is needed. Primitive Nal-Tel ears 
were short, rather stubby, eight-rowed, with small, short, 
broad, flinty kernels. Such ears are beautifully depicted 
in one of the funerary urns from Oaxaca described and 
illustrated by Caso and Bernal, 1952, which is reproduced 
by permission of the authors in Plate XXXVI. Unfor- 
tunately, the exact dimensions of the urn are not avail- 
able. However, if it has approximately the same dimen- 
sions as other urns of this type, the ears represented on 
it are about 47 mm. long. This figure corresponds closely 
to the average length, 48 mm., of cobs of Early Nal- 
Tel, Type A. 
‘The ears were surrounded, but at maturity apparently 
not completely enclosed, by husks. The short, slender 
shanks indicate that the ears were borne at one of the 
higher nodes. 
For other characteristics, we turn to the data of Well- 
hausen et al (Tables 13-17) which show that the plants 
of modern Nal-Tel are the shortest of any living race in 
Mexico (averaging four feet) and bear the fewest leaves 
(averaging twelve). The leaves are among the shortest 
and, in proportion to length, the broadest. The inter- 
nodes above the ear are shorter and fewer than those of 
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