480 THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 
By putting together some such characteristic and persistent 
elements, perhaps some well-defined minor waves of widespread'culture 
may be made out by which—comparing especially their Old World 
“stratification” with their New World “‘stratification,’’—early human 
chronology might be considerably advanced. Geology began with 
just such crude hypotheses from estimates of stratification. History, 
archaeology, philology and geology all put together, need still whatever 
helps sociology can bring them in their gropings into the prehistoric 
developments of our race; but there and here it is possible to raise a 
few signposts even if the miles cannot be given. 
