534 



SCIENCE 



[N. S. Vol. XLIV. No. 1137 



ous irrigation systems, and many customs 

 closely resembling those of the ancient Egyp- 

 tians because their culture was really an off- 

 shoot of the Egyptian culture, how can it be 

 explained that in all pre-Columbian America 

 there was no such thing as a wheeled vehicle? 

 Chariots of various sorts were much used in 

 ancient Egypt, as well as in the intervening 

 areas, yet there is not a shred of evidence to 

 prove that the Indians of America ever knew 

 anything even remotely resembling them. Had 

 the founders of American culture come from 

 an area where wheeled vehicles were known, is it 

 not inevitable that they would have made use 

 of such vehicles during their long journey? 

 Does it not seem that wheeled vehicles would 

 be more useful to them than pyramids, and 

 that therefore they would have been remem- 

 bered first on the arrival of the wanderers in 

 their new land? It is difficult to believe that 

 the American aborigines were the cultural 

 descendants of a wheel-using people, for 

 wheels, being essentially useful, would inevi- 

 tably have persisted as a feature of their mate- 

 rial culture, had that been the case. 



2. In a like manner, one is puzzled by a 

 lack of any ships or vessels of advanced type 

 among the American Indians. Even in 

 Mexico, Yucatan and Peru, where civilization 

 was, in other respects, of a well-advanced 

 type, there were no really complicated vessels 

 before the coming of the Spaniards. On the 

 coast of Ecuador there was found the most 

 elaborate type of boat known to the Indian 

 race. It consisted of a raft of light wood with 

 a flimsy platform on which stood a rude 

 shelter. A simple sail, sometimes even two, 

 was used. Large canoes with sails were also 

 used in Yucatan. Not one of these, however, 

 is worthy to be compared with even the earli- 

 est and simplest ships used in Egypt. 1 It is 

 known, of course, that boat-building reached 

 very early a high development in Babylonia, 



iCf. Joyce, S. Am. Arch., 1912, pp. 60, 125, 

 and Plate XIII.; Joyce, "Mex. Arch.," 1914, pp. 

 203 and 300; Beuehat, 1912, p. 651; Pinkerton's 

 "Voyages," 1808-14, Vol. XIV., pp. 407-409; 

 Torr, "Ancient Ships," 1895, pp. 2, 4, 9, etc., 

 and Plate I.; Mookerji, "Indian Snipping," 1912. 



India and China, through all of which the 

 " cultural wave " is said to have passed. 



3. Finally, the date B.C. 900 is altogether 

 too late for the beginning of the alleged migra- 

 tion of cultures. If this migration took place 

 at all, it must have left Egypt much earlier 

 than this, for we have the Tuxtla statuette 

 (dated about B.C. 100) to prove that even be- 

 fore the commencement of our era the Maya 

 calendar had already gone through its long 

 preliminary stages and was already in exist- 

 ence in practically its final form. No doubt 

 every one will admit that the period B.C. 900- 

 100 is entirely too short for a "great cultural 

 wave " to roll from Egypt to America in. 

 The year B.C. 1500 is much more likely to be 

 the date needed. 



In conclusion, the present writer admits 

 that, despite the three objections here noted 

 (and several others), there is a large amount 

 of seemingly corroborative evidence that tends 

 to support the views of Mr. Elliot Smith. It 

 will, however, be a long time before American 

 anthropologists will be forced to accept these 

 views as final, and many tests, based on phys- 

 ical anthropology, history, archeology, etc., 

 will have to be successfully applied before the 

 Egyptian source of American civilization is 

 finally proved. 



Philip Ainsworth Means 



196 Beacon St., 

 Boston, Mass. 



research funds for pharmacy 

 To the Editor of Science : On page 230 of 

 Science the appropriation of $5,000 made by 

 the regents for specific research in engineering 

 is mentioned as the only research appropria- 

 tion at Wisconsin outside of the agricultural 

 grants. Eor the sake of completeness you 

 may care to know that several years ago the 

 state legislature made an appropriation of 

 $2,500 for a pharmaceutical experiment sta- 

 tion, the first one, and, thus far, the only one 

 of its kind in this country. This entire sum, 

 though small as compared with the agricul- 

 tural grants, is devoted to research. The de- 

 partment of pharmacy also enjoys the income 

 of the Hollister Fellowship Fund of $5,000 



