ADMIMSTRATIVE REPORT XXVII 



their discovery. Infonnatiou regarding their culture 

 derived from the ethnological method of observation is 

 fragmentary or vague, consisting mainly of folklore sur- 

 viving among the country people. Historical accounts of 

 the early islanders are likewise scanty, their ciilture hav- 

 ing attracted less attention than that of the aborigines of 

 Haiti, where most of the historians have collected their 

 information. Archeological objects are the main sources 

 from which we may now hope to interpret aboriginal 

 Porto Rican life in prehistoric and early historic times. 

 Doctor Fewkes gives due prominence to this source in 

 his report, bringing, when possible, pertinent ethnolog- 

 ical and historical evidences to the support of the archeo- 

 logical data. By the use of these three methods before 

 mentioned he is able to present a picture of the charac- 

 teristic culture of the aborigines of one of the most 

 important of our insular possessions. It appears that the 

 peculiar culture of the Antilles was indigenous as well as 

 typical. While it may have originated on the neighljor- 

 ing continent under local influences acting on isolated 

 communities, it has assumed a characteristic type. Porto 

 Rico and Haiti are particularly favorable places to study 

 this type, being situated at the geographical center or 

 focus of that culture, the influence of which can be 

 traced to neighboring islands and recognized in artifacts 

 as far north as Florida. In his report Doctor Fewkes 

 defines the salient features of a typical Antillean culture. 

 He gives abundant figures and descriptions of enigmat- 

 ical objects, such as stone collars and three -pointed stone 

 idols, peculiar to this culture area, and points out the 

 characteristics of bone, shell, and wooden artifacts from 

 this region, adding new figures and descriptions of pot- 

 tery likewise peculiar to the region. 



The original people of Porto Rico and the other West 

 Indies are supposed to have come from Venezuela and to 

 have been originally a branch of the great Arawakan 

 stock of South America. The typical culture of the 

 Antilles, originated and developed among these peoi)le, 



