374 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 118 



Analysis of Provisional Cherokee Traits 



The total number of traits is 62. The number of traits reported by 

 each observer may be tabulated as follows : 



Harrington reports 55, or 88 percent. 

 Thomas reports 44, or 71 percent. 

 Nacoochee reports 48, or 77 percent. 

 Dandridge reports 42, or 67 percent. 

 Site No. 19 reports 41, or 66 percent. 

 Site No. 10, reports 31, or 50 percent. 



Since Harrington reports the largest number of traits, that list may 

 be made the basis of comparison. 



Harrington and Thomas report a total of 59 different traits, of which 40 are 

 held in common, or 68 percent. 



Harrington and Nacoochee report a total of 59 different traits, of which 44 are 

 held in common, or 74 percent. 



Harrington and Dandridge report a total of 60 different traits, of which 38 are 

 held in common, or 63 percent. 



Harrington and Site No. 19 report a total of 62 different traits, of which 35 

 are held in common, or 56 percent. 



Harrington and Site No. 10 report a total of 59 different traits, of which 27 

 are held in common, or 46 percent. 



If it may be assumed that the first four columns of this tabulation 

 contain only Cherokee traits, and are sufficient to designate the Chero- 

 kee complex, then Site Nos. 19 and 10 only correlate with this com- 

 posite culture group by percentages of 66 and 50 percent, respectively,. 

 This is about the degree of correlation with Harrington of Thomas, 

 Nacoochee, and Dandridge, i. e., 68, 74, and 63 percent. 



These results as demonstrating any certain cultural connection of 

 Sites Nos. 19 and 10 with the Cherokee seem quite unsatisfactory. 

 In particular, although Site No. 19 appears to have a 66 percent corre- 

 spondence of its traits with the provisional Cherokee total complex, 

 and a 56 percent correspondence with the Harrington list of traits, 

 it would nevertheless appear the part of wisdom to regard the possible 

 connections with the historic Cherokee, while not positively denied, 

 still not definitely established. In taking this view, which may be 

 regarded by some as unjustifiably conservative, the author is im- 

 pressed with other evidence not possible to present in such a tabulation 

 which appears to be important. Such evidence and its possible bear- 

 ing on this problem may be presented under several separate topics, 

 as follows : 



(1) Many of the most important and definitely observable traits in 

 this provisional list of Cherokee traits are known to be very widely 

 distributed in the southeastern area, in regions which the Cherokee, 

 so far as is known, never occupied. Such traits as triangular arrow 

 points, mask gorgets, and textile-marked salt-pan pottery, to mention 



