Origin of the Indians 2777 
supplanted the Toltecs. Another branch of the same 
ancient stock were the Mayas of Yucatan. 
Looking then far back we have, according to the old 
traditions, a few people who had escaped a great cataclysm, 
when fire and water both fought against mankind; remnants 
perhaps of many tribes, who, when the lowlands were over- 
whelmed, escaped to the mountains, speaking a variety of 
languages, and bringing with them some remembrances of 
the civilisation of their ancient homes. They increased and 
multiplied in their new abodes. Some in Mexico, some in 
Yucatan, and others in Peru arrived at a great pitch of 
civilisation. Ages passed away, they had developed into 
several distinct peoples, all showing traces of their common 
descent, but having branched off in different directions in 
their lines of progress; all underlaid by a few great principles: 
in their religion, by the worship of the heavenly bodies; in 
their government, by complete and absolute obedience to 
their kings and leaders; in their mode of life all agriculturists 
and dwellers in regular towns and villages. They spread 
northward and occupied the valley of the Mississippi, and 
in summer time sent off large bodies of workmen to extract 
the copper of Lake Superior. Then came the nomadic tribes 
from the north-west, the Red Indians of the present day, 
and drove out the mound-builders, who were turned back 
on their ancient home, of which they had lost all recollection, 
and where they appeared as immigrants and invaders. In 
the subjugation of the ancient Choluans by the Toltecs, and 
afterwards the Toltecs by the Aztecs, we see what has often 
occurred in the world’s history—a highly civilised race 
conquered by a ruder people, who. had advanced farther in 
the arts of war, and so overcame the people who had advanced 
farther in the arts of peace. Therefore the Choluans were 
replaced by the more warlike Toltecs, the Toltecs by the 
ruder Aztecs, and those who look at the miserable towns 
and villages of the present inhabitants alongside of the 
ruins of the grand edifices, the roads and aqueducts of 
ancient Mexico and Peru, may say, the Aztecs by the less 
civilised Spaniards. 
The term Brown Indians has been proposed to distinguish 
the races of Mexico, Central and South America, from the 
1 Ancient America, by J. D. Baldwin, A.M. 
