THE ANCIENT ISLANDERS 29 



I located several town-sites, and smaller settlements 

 at various places, the implements found showing a 

 people of more than ordinary intelligence and taste. 

 No record has been left of the names of these towns 

 on Santa Catalina, though those at Avalon and Ca- 

 brillo were very large and important. 



For these natives the island was a paradise, abound- 

 ing in marine game of all kinds, crayfish, abalones, 

 and other shells by the ton. The vast deposits 

 of these shells show how important a feature of 

 the life they were. In the mounds I found tuna 

 skeletons, limpets, four species of abalones, cone 

 shells, bones of sea-lions, dolphins, whales, seals, and 

 sea-elephants, showing that the natives were all-around 

 fishermen. 



At San Clemente I found numerous town-sites, and 

 the great and beautifully chiselled sand dune on the 

 southwest side has been a treasure-house to the eth- 

 nologist, and will be referred to in the chapter relating 

 to the island. 



So with the northern islands. Savages the natives 

 doubtless were; yet a savage who could make some of 

 the beautiful ollas and spear heads or beads I have 

 seen, stood high in the ranks of savagery. At San 

 Clemente, one find I saw Mexican Joe carefully cut 

 out of the damp sand from near a man's skeleton, was 

 a flute, made from the leg bone of a deer. The native 

 had covered it with bits of beautiful pearl (abalone), 

 fastening each piece on by asphaltum, the result being 

 a rude mosaic. It was difficult to consider this aesthetic 

 musician — whom we dug out carefully and sent to 

 the Smithsonian — as very much of a savage. He 

 was buried in the sand dune in a sitting position, his 



