216 THE ABORIGINES OF PORTO RICO [etii. ann. 25 



to .show tliat the characteristic culture of prehistoric Porto Rico 

 re.seini)led more closely that of South America than it did that of the 

 southeastern United States, Central America, or Yucatan. In forming 

 a conclusion we take into consideration the physiography not onlj' of 

 the fringing coast of the adjacent portions of the continents, but also 

 that of the inland regions, which could be visited by chance visitors 

 belonging to the Antillean race. That the littoral tracts of Florida 

 and Cuba were inhabited by people with a culture like that of the 

 prehistoric islanders" is a legitimate inference from the maritime hab- 

 its of both, which imply frequent visits to these shores. If the cul- 

 ture of all the West Indian islanders were related to that of dwellers 

 on neighboring continents, we should expect that the similarity would 

 extend beyond fringing coast populations far inland, where relation- 

 ships have not been detected. 



It can hardl}^ be said that a likeness to the Antilleans reaches far 

 into the interior of Yucatan or Florida, for there was little m common 

 between the Maj'a race as a whole and the people of prehistoric Porto 

 Rico, nor have the last mentioned any kinship with the Indians of 

 Georgia or central Florida. Art designs are apparently more widely 

 distributed than blood relationship. * 



If now we turn to the gateway at the south, to Venezuela and the 

 north coast of South America, we find cultural similarities reaching 

 far inland, almost to the middle of the continent. Reseml)lances here 

 are not confined to coast peoples but extend to the uplands. 



The linguistic relationship, perhaps the strongest, allies the speech 

 of the Antilleans with that of the widespread Guarano and Arawak 

 races of the interior of Venezuela and Brazil. It would seem improb- 

 able that this extensive stock developed its language on islands and 

 spread to the heart of South America; it is much more natural to 

 believe that the language of the island population originated on the 

 continent and spread to the islands. 



When we examine the ancient stone implements we find another sim- 

 ilarity between those of the prehistoric people of Venezuela and of the 

 Antilles. Textile fabrics were alike in the two regions for the simple 

 reason that the tlora was similar. The discovery of a method of 

 e-xtracting food from a poisonous plant was not simple, but among 

 both prehistoric Antilleans and Venezuelans it was known, and cas- 

 sava was one of the main foods. It is improbable that this method 

 could have developed independently; more likely it was derivative. 



The Porto Ricans made wooden seats in the form of animals and 

 inlaid the eyeballs and shoulders with shell. So do the tribes of the 



" F. H. Cushing, Preliminary Report on the Exploration of Ancient Key Dweller Remains on 

 the Gulf Coast of Florida. Proceedings qfthe American Philosnj)hical Sncicfy, xxxv. no, 1.53. i^hiladel- 

 phia. 1897. 



''W. H. Holmes. Caribbean Influences on the Prehistoric Ceramic Art uf the Southern States. 

 American Anthropologist, VIl, 71, 1894. 



