96 



THE CANADIAN SPORTSMAN AND NATURALIST. 



as we have before suggested, that China has 

 remained above the surface through fill the 

 wrecks of comparatively modern continents; 

 that formerly the western boundary of a coast 

 line,by submergence on the one hand, and up- 

 heaval on the other, its condition has been 

 changed to an eastern one. This idea is 

 strengthened by ihe evidences of antiquit}^ 

 which mark that people; by their numerous 

 population, being nearly equal to all other 

 portions of the globe; to their traditions ex- 

 tending far back into the past; their historical 

 accounts, and the general opinions prevailing 

 in all countries that the world was peopled 

 from the East. And as almost conclusive 

 evidence in support of this proposition is the 

 identity of religious belief, universally prevail- 

 ing, when stripped of additions made to earlier 

 teachings by advancing civilization. 



Perchance, were we able to follow these re- 

 flections to a natural conclusion and had the 

 desirable knowledge which present explora- 

 tions are developing, we could show that the 

 wonderful records left by a long extinct race 

 in Peru and Central America, of pyramids, 

 and walled cities, and gigantic statuary, and 

 -mummies, instead of being the reflex of Asiatic 

 civilization are the parents of these compara- 

 tively modern nations. 



The preceding pages, relative to a so called 

 general deluge, are only suggestive, but suffi- 

 cient to awaken thought in the direction we 

 have indicated. We offer, in corroboration of 

 this theory, what to us is conclusive— that in 

 the remote past a continent densely populated 

 occupied at least a portion of what is now the 

 Pacific ocean ; that the islands vfsible in that 

 ocean were but elevated lands and plateaus of 

 ancient mountains; that the now eastern and 

 western continents were then but beds of 

 mighty oceans ; that by slow processes, extend- 

 ing through countless ages, they slowly 

 emerged from the sea ; that the present order of 

 things is comparatively modern dating bach 

 but a few hundred thousand years ; although 

 there are evidences of a still remoter past, 

 when animal life, man included, inhabited the 

 present continents, antedating the glacial 

 period, and probably before its last submer- 

 gence, to which condition it is again inclining. 

 For proof we may slate that the city of Quito, 

 since 1745, in 1870 had sunk 246 feet, by care- 

 ful observations made at different periods by 

 the ablest scientists. Pinchinea went down 

 218 feet during the same period, and its crater 

 has sunk 425 feet during the last twenty six 

 years. 



When Columbus landed in America, in 1492, 

 he found a people so closely resembling those 

 of the extreme east of Asia, he supposed he had 

 reached the Indies in his journey around the 

 world, and, hence, gave them the name of 

 Indians. A more intimate acquaintance with 

 these people revealed the additional fact that 

 their religious notions and many of their traidi- 

 tions, particularly those pertaining to a general 

 deluge, were identical with those prevailing 

 throughout Asia. Travellers amoung them 

 found that'many words used by these nomadic 

 tribes were the same as those employed by 

 Orien'tals. These travellers, accepting the 

 Mosaic account of creation, with its very brief 

 period of human existence, believing the 

 Creator fashioned the earth substantially as 

 we see it now, and not questioning the scrip- 

 tural account in regard to the dispersion of 

 races, concluded the"'* ten tribes of Israel" 

 wandered toward Behring straits, crossed over, 

 thence down the coast to Mexico, and from, 

 there gradually spread over the entire Ameri- 

 can continent. 



With us, a common use of primitive terms 

 amoung widely separated nations, is positive 

 proof of a common origin of these peoples ; but 

 in no way does it corroborate the idea of those 

 who are ever drawing upon foreign and irrele- 

 vant facts to sustain an inconsistent theory, 

 that the Indians are decendants of Abraham. 



Islands in the Pacific ocean, hundreds of'! 

 miles apart, and thousands of miles from the 

 main land, either Asiatic or American, were 

 found by the first explorers to be inhabited by 

 the same race, marked with the same peculirl 

 arities of complexion, general features, color! 

 of hair, etc., and each had customs in common,1 

 with gestures and expressions so similar that 

 theyconld make themselves intelligible to each 

 other when they first met ; and yet, the inhabit- 

 ants of one island had no idea of the existencdl 

 of others outside of their own islands. It has 

 been suggested that the ancestors of these peo- ] 

 pie formerly held intercourse by means of! 

 canoes. This hypothesis is simply preposterous,! 

 as a canoe could not live for weeks on this 

 boisterous ocean, without chart or compass, J 

 and pass from one island to another. This 

 would and did take place with islands near 

 to and in sight of each other; but such ex-| 

 plorations would never be undertaken by 

 savage tribes, as they were wholly destitute of 

 that species of adventure. 



(To be continued.) 



