RECORDS OF THE AMERICAN INDIAN 



165 



transformation of the Indian's life has 

 been made infinitely harder by the white 

 man's cupidity. Not only have we been 

 unfair to the Indian; but as a nation 

 rightly and proudly giving considerable 

 study to man, we have also neglected a 

 very great opportunity. Much has been 

 done, it is true — ethnological research of 

 importance has been conducted during 

 recent years — yet a vast amount re- 

 mains to be done. The American In- 

 dians possess many noble traits which 

 were no doubt not common to the aver- 

 age primitive man of the same state of 

 development. By some strange chance 

 the precursors of this branch of the 

 human race were held for ages in the 

 grip of darkness, perhaps due to isola- 

 tion, perhaps an instance of retrogres- 

 sion. Possibly time will throw light 

 upon the cause. This however is cer- 

 tain: the American Indian has afforded 

 advanced science in an age of civilization 

 an excellent opportunity to study primi- 

 tive man at a most interesting period. 

 Geologically speaking that period is the 



one immediately following the acquisi- 

 tion of implements — the period when he 

 was yet awkward in the use of such tools 

 as his sluggishly inventive brain had 

 evolved, and before the inventive faculty 

 had yet fully awakened to the fact that 

 successful existence depended upon rea- 

 son more than upon instinct. 



Again, the students of the world are 

 searching and analyzing the earliest of 

 the known scriptures, the "Vedas," for 

 insight into primitive religious thought, 

 belief and practice, and here in the 

 United States we have a living "Veda," 

 a great people possessing primitive be- 

 liefs and practices. As a nation we have 

 not given even a small fraction of the at- 

 tention to this subject which it deserves. 

 Financial support has been lacking. Also 

 men with the ability to do justice to the 

 task have turned their attention in other 

 directions. It is not however altogether 

 too late. Let us trust that there will 

 come an awakening and that the utmost 

 will be made of the last of this oppor- 

 tunity. 



