New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1851-05-01

r,-diry in onr own country similar structures,
/ obviousy built in accordance with genera P'An
/ founded upon certain definite principles, anAlogy
uould iustfv us in the inference that their build
/ ers wee devoted to a similar religion And Wnen
,re INQUIRE further and find that Sun w orthip
/ srestly predominated, IT, indeed, II vas not oil
uuiversal prevalence throughout the Continent
ire inference so well sustained by analogy, rises
into the dignity Of s wellauPPoIted hyPosnesls-
T This Worshio existed from Labrador 70 PATAGONIA
snd vas attended by tie same rtes aud uIus'
/ ,rs.eS bv the same symbOls which were common
J to il in the Old World. There is no reason for
4 supuotipg that this form of worship or this sys
TEN Of Natural Religion, is derlvsIlye Tor as l
have said il seems to have been nearly universal
/ ,ntedstipg all history and tradition, and gong
/ back probably of all monumental records. 90
not. therefore, attach much importance TO the co,
ncidences pointed out by Dr. Zestermsnn ana
! others between this large snd interesting class
of structures in the United States and similar
structures in the North Of Europe as evidences
Of connections, recent or remote, between the
J two continents.
But if convinced that these condolences were
not TO be ACCOUNTED for on the natural principles
which have so briefly indicated, still should
not look 10 Europe for their explanation. The
I monuments Of the United States are Identical
! in their elements Of construction with those oil
Mexico and Central America, and all OF these sus'
tain closer relationship 70 those OF INDIA, tnan
10 those of any other quarter OF the globe. The
| terraced pyramidRl structures Of America, sur
/ mounted by chspes, as ornamented with slgnlh
cant sculptures, were, it is capable OF demonsra-
| tion built not only in conformity with the same
general principles with those Of lndia, out the ue'
! tailed and specific ideas which they illustrate
! were in many instances, the same. The budd'
| hist Temples Of Southern India have Almost
| their exact coubterpRrts in Central America and
| Mexico. have made their relationship asuo-
| iect Of extended remark in the work entitled
nj Gu bol ard e. 10 nf =
Reciprocal Principles in America
am. therefore, of the decided opinion that the
proposition advanced by DR. Zestermann derives
! no support from the monuments OF America. Be
side; the American race, above all others IN the
world seems most averse TO everything Ike as
SINH alton with other races IL IS We may say,
almost entirely unimpresslbe. II the Indians
constructed these monuments this admitted fact
is urima facie evidence sgainst the hypothesis
which sscribes not only the Introduction OF the
practice Of erecting them, but OF the ideas which
they illustrate, to foreign people. Europe mas
poured its populations in an unbroken Hood for
three centuries on America, yet the Indian 10
little changed An emigration sufficiently large
TO have nodded this obstinate race, In the earlier
and ruder sges of Northern Europe, 10 a hypOthe'
sis too startling not 70 say too absurd, to be ad'
mitted but not more so than that which involves
a migration sufficiently great to have dltused II
self over the continent, and TO have erected nthe
Mississippi Valley alone & series Of monuments
quAdruplng in number and magnitude all the
primitive monuments Of Europe. But this latter
hypothesis 10 invaidated by the established fact
that the Indians Of Mexico and Central America,
at the time of the Discovery, built precisely such
structures as under this superstition, must be re-
ferred to utterly extinct, exotic people.
DR.. Zestermann quotes the skull which OBJ
tanned from a mound in Ohio land which IS ig
ured in plates xiii and xiii OF the Ancient Mon
uments OF the Mississippi Valley as possess
ing Caucasian characteristics. lie, hoNever
confounds it with another obtained from the Grave
Creek Mound in Virginia, and figured In DR.. Nor
tons "CTania Americana. DR.. Lestermann IS
mistaken in supposiDg that "rtumPy nose is
a characteristic feature Of the American race
The very reverse is the fact no people have
more salient noses than our Indians. The par
tIculEr skull In question, so lar from oetraylng
Caucasian origin, is regarded by Dr. Morton aud
other genealogical investigators as ne arly per
feet type Of the American head. Upon this point
| cannot do better than quote passage from
letter from DR. Morton, TO whom sent this skull.
Nothing Of the kind" he observes, lean be
more entirely characteristic than this relic. and
you may distribute casts of it as perfect type Of
the race TO which it belongs; that which, in
all its numberless localities, conforms with more
or less precision, and for the most part with
amazing exactness. in its cranal proportions 10
the skull YOU have now discovered What are
the characteristics OF the aboriginal American
skulll Are they not, as have 80 often pointed
out, the vertical OccIput, the prominent vertex,
the great inter parietsl ameter the equiateral
form, the large facial bones, the long and saiient
nose The prominent m0Iifig Look into the
| CrQHid .imeftc0Ad, and observe the Peruvian
heads there figured, and how admirably they cor
respond with this skull, which has, however,
less recediDg fore he ad than usual Every new OBJ
lervalion on this subject goes 10 confirm my pre-
vious conclusions that our Indian population, OF
all eFochs, have belonged TO single hOmOgene.
Gus race. There have no doubt been colonial or
accidental mixtures ia California and else where,
but they have been too uncomfortable to effect
any other than very local variations from the
primitive type. This type, grant, has its yarle-
ties but these may be referred in great meas
are, 10 a plurality OF centers or origins, all Of
| v hcb, however, point 10 that primitive OrganlZa
ton OF which you have now 81 fine an example
In respect to the sculptures OF the human he ad
and the masks Of the human face obtained from
the mounds little need be said, except that the
deductions from them differ as widely as the pre-
conceived notions Of investigators. Some have
! pronounced them thoroughly lndian," others
eminently Caucasian. Upon my own mind they
have produced no decided impression one way or
the other From the circumstance that the scup.
lures Of animals found With them are surprisingly
accurate we are justified IN assuming that the
sculptures Of the human head are equally faithful
! representations Of the predominant features Of
the people " no made them.
The vague traditions Of Ari Marsson, like those
relating 10 the RDclenL Auentls are lar TOO vague
10 enter as elements into any philosophical dis
cussion Of the question Of the Colon alton Of
An erica from the Est
The radiEionAry Quetzslcoatl OF Mexico is re
! ferred 70 by Dr. Zestermsnn, as probably per
. soLsge Of Caucasian stock, " no BY some means
/ penetrated TO Mexico, and subsequently LETT il
for another land He was represented as beard
ed and Of fair complexion, and these are Ehe
only features BY which be is identified az Of an.
other race. Now II should be observed that all
the gods and dem gods OF Mexico were indi-
vcuahzed by certain characteristics Of form and
feature. The god and goddess Of water were Of
light blue the goddess of flowers of fair and
rosy complexion; the supreme god TeZcatipoca
| 80 Id Rnf vi Ii h.,