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  INDIAN 
  LINGUISTIC 
  FAMILIES. 
  

  

  to 
  which 
  is 
  much 
  less 
  precise, 
  and 
  the 
  doubt 
  and 
  confusion 
  respecting 
  

   tribal 
  boundary 
  lines 
  correspondingly 
  greater 
  than 
  in 
  the 
  country 
  

   east 
  of 
  that 
  river. 
  Under 
  the 
  above 
  circumstances, 
  it 
  will 
  be 
  readily 
  

   understood 
  that 
  to 
  determine 
  tribal 
  boundaries 
  within 
  accurately 
  

   drawn 
  lines 
  is 
  in 
  the 
  vast 
  majority 
  of 
  cases 
  quite 
  impossible. 
  

  

  Imperfect 
  and 
  defective 
  as 
  the 
  terms 
  of 
  the 
  treaties 
  frequently 
  are 
  

   as 
  regards 
  the 
  definition 
  of 
  tribal 
  boundaries, 
  they 
  are 
  by 
  far 
  the 
  

   most 
  accurate 
  and 
  important 
  of 
  the 
  means 
  at 
  our 
  command 
  for 
  fixing 
  

   boundary 
  lines 
  upon 
  the 
  present 
  map. 
  By 
  their 
  aid 
  the 
  territorial 
  

   possessions 
  of 
  a 
  considerable 
  number 
  of 
  tribes 
  have 
  been 
  determined 
  

   witli 
  desirable 
  precision, 
  and 
  such 
  areas 
  definitely 
  established 
  have 
  

   served 
  as 
  checks 
  upon 
  the 
  boundaries 
  of 
  other 
  tribes, 
  concerning 
  the 
  

   location 
  and 
  extent 
  of 
  whose 
  possessions 
  little 
  is 
  known. 
  

  

  For 
  establishing 
  the 
  boundaries 
  of 
  such 
  tribes 
  as 
  are 
  not 
  men- 
  

   tioned 
  in 
  treaties, 
  and 
  of 
  those 
  whose 
  territorial 
  possessions 
  are 
  not 
  

   given 
  with 
  sufficient 
  minuteness, 
  early 
  historical 
  accounts 
  are 
  all 
  

   important. 
  Such 
  accounts, 
  of 
  course, 
  rarely 
  indicate 
  the 
  territorial 
  

   possessions 
  of 
  the 
  tribes 
  with 
  great 
  precision. 
  In 
  many 
  cases, 
  how- 
  

   ever, 
  the 
  sites 
  of 
  villages 
  are 
  accurately 
  given. 
  In 
  others 
  the 
  source 
  

   of 
  information 
  concerning 
  a 
  tribe 
  is 
  contained 
  in 
  a 
  general 
  statement 
  

   of 
  the 
  occupancy 
  of 
  certain 
  valleys 
  or 
  mountain 
  ranges 
  or 
  areas 
  at 
  

   the 
  heads 
  of 
  certain 
  rivers, 
  no 
  limiting 
  lines 
  whatever 
  being 
  assigned. 
  

   In 
  others, 
  still, 
  the 
  notice 
  of 
  a 
  tribe 
  is 
  limited 
  to 
  a 
  brief 
  mention 
  of 
  

   the 
  presence 
  in 
  a 
  certain 
  locality 
  of 
  hunting 
  or 
  war 
  parties. 
  

  

  Data 
  of 
  this 
  loose 
  character 
  would 
  of 
  course 
  be 
  worthless 
  in 
  an 
  

   attempt 
  to 
  fix 
  boundary 
  lines 
  in 
  accordance 
  with 
  the 
  ideas 
  of 
  the 
  

   modern 
  surveyor. 
  The 
  relative 
  positions 
  of 
  the 
  families 
  and 
  the 
  

   relative 
  size 
  of 
  the 
  areas 
  occupied 
  by 
  them, 
  however, 
  and 
  not 
  their 
  

   exact 
  boundaries, 
  are 
  the 
  chief 
  concern 
  in 
  a 
  linguistic 
  map, 
  and 
  for 
  

   the 
  purpose 
  of 
  establishing 
  these, 
  and, 
  in 
  a 
  rough 
  way, 
  the 
  bounda- 
  

   ries 
  of 
  the 
  territory 
  held 
  by 
  the 
  tribes 
  composing 
  them, 
  these 
  data 
  

   are 
  very 
  important, 
  and 
  when 
  compared 
  with 
  one 
  another 
  and 
  cor- 
  

   rected 
  by 
  more 
  definite 
  data, 
  when 
  such 
  are 
  at 
  hand, 
  they 
  have 
  usually 
  

   been 
  found 
  to 
  be 
  sufficient 
  for 
  the 
  purpose. 
  

  

  SUMMARY 
  OF 
  DEDUCTIONS. 
  

  

  In 
  conclusion, 
  the 
  more 
  important 
  deductions 
  derivable 
  from 
  the 
  

   data 
  upon 
  which 
  the 
  linguistic 
  map 
  is 
  based, 
  or 
  that 
  are 
  suggested 
  

   by 
  it, 
  may 
  be 
  summarized 
  as 
  follows: 
  

  

  First, 
  the 
  North 
  American 
  Indian 
  tribes, 
  instead 
  of 
  speaking 
  

   related 
  dialects, 
  originating 
  in 
  a 
  single 
  parent 
  language, 
  in 
  reality 
  

   speak 
  inany 
  languages 
  belonging 
  to 
  distinct 
  families, 
  which 
  have 
  no 
  

   apparent 
  unity 
  of 
  origin. 
  

  

  Second, 
  the 
  Indian 
  population 
  of 
  North 
  America 
  was 
  greatly 
  

   exaggerated 
  by 
  early 
  writers, 
  and 
  instead 
  of 
  being 
  large 
  was 
  in 
  

   reality 
  small 
  as 
  compared 
  with 
  the 
  vast 
  territory 
  occupied 
  and 
  the 
  

  

  