lEWKBs] CULTURE AREAS IX THE WEST INDIES 81 



The lee coast of Barbados is a flat plain extending from highlands 

 in which arise small streams of water which flow westward to the 

 sea, the mouths being generally closed by extensive sand barriers and 

 beaches. Ordinarily the water of these streams is held back in shal- 

 low pools by these bars, but when abundant water fills the river it 

 flows over these barriers. In places, as at Freshwater Bay, the fresh 

 water having percolated through the porous soil, finds its way below 

 these bars and bubbles up in the sea along the shore, making the 

 water fresh. 



The plains on the west side of the hills, especially near the shore, 

 are ideal places for Indian camps. Many pottery fragments and 

 other evidences of Indian occupation are seen, but well-defined shell 

 heaps of great height can rarely be traced at the present day. 



Near St. Lucy's Parish, in the central part of the island, there are 

 steep, well-marked cliff's in which are instructive caves or cave shel- 

 ters, common elsewhere on the island, and remarkable fissures called 

 clefts show overhanging cliffs. The aboriginal implements found 

 here indicate that they may have sheltered early man. 



Middens 



Middens, or sites of aboriginal settlements, are found at various 

 locations on Barbados, occurring inland as well as on the coast. We 

 have records of archeo logical material from every parish in Bar- 

 bados, but the following localities are the best known: 



1. Small gully near St. Luke's Chapel. 



2. Indian River. 



3. Freshwater Bay on the border of St. Michaels and St. 

 • James Parishes. 



4. Codrington Estate Springs. 



5. Three Houses. 



6. Marl Hill. 



7. Speightstown. 



8. Holetown. 



9. Maxwells. 



10. South Point Lighthouse. 

 The most productive midden for collectors of " Carib antiquities " 

 in Barbados is situated on Indian River, a few miles north of 

 Bridgetown. This midden is rather a series of village sites than a 

 single mound. It can be readily visited from Bridgetown by using 

 the tramway to Fontabel, the terminus of which is a short distance 

 from the locality where the majority of objects were found. The 

 mound at Indian River has yielded many aboriginal specimens, the 

 most complete collection of which is that gathered by Mr. Taylor, 

 of Port of Spain, Trinidad. 

 160658°— 34 ETH— 22 6 



