New-York tribune., 1894-04-12
SELECTIONS FROM THE MAIL.
TWO QUESTIONS IN ETHNOLOGY.

TWO QUESTIONS IN ETHNOLOGY.
THE IRooUoIs LEAGUE AND THE CLIMATE OF
THE LEvANT.
To the Editor OF The Tribune.
Sir: In your excellent review OF "A History OF
the Mental Growth of Mankind In Ancient Times
In Sundays Tribune l noticed one or two state
ments that puzzle me. The first Is the question:
why did It happen that the first efficient con-
federacy OF Northern redmen was not organized
until shortly before the coming OF the Europeans"
Now what puzzles is how you know that the
Iroauols confederacy was the first efficient In
asmuch as the extinct tribes and stocks left no
records. where do you get this information? IL the
Five Nation League OF the Iroquos had expired
before receiving the benefit OF European records
would their works have given us any lntlmaton OF
their remarkable organization? Their arts we're
less perfected than many extinct stocks-they were
crile-why then should It be assumed that they
had arrived at greater political perfection than
any other Indians. especially when others who
passed away before the lroquos communities m ,'
they accomplished? But il 1t Is accurately deter
mined that the lroquos had the first efficient con-
federacy. | should be glad TO have the facts def
Again: How DO you know that the valleys OF the
Nile Euphrates etc. unhealthful when the
great human developments took place there? How
do you know that the climate is the same as II was
FREDERICK s. DELLENBArGH.
Brooklyn. March r. 1894.
(There are two methods Of keeping up memory
of the past-by written tradition and by oral
tradition. To say that Rome was the first GEN.
tralized power in Europe Is correct 50 far as
written testimony goes. But there Is also the
Homeric statement. which may have been orally
transmitted for ages or may be pure fiction that
there was a united Argive kingdom, reigned over
by Agamemnon. AS long as doubt IS cast on the
Homeric narrative We warranted in asserting
do aachin X
tending from a permanent centre. In the case Of
the American tribes, there Is nothing but oral
tradition set down at a very recent date in writ
ing This oral tradition. however. covers very
wide range. and II there was ever on the Conti-
nent north Of Mexico a political system more
significant than that Of the Iroquos. some remi-
niscence of il should be in evidence. Until the
evidence is produced are right In laying EN-
phasis on the Iroquois League as the best effort
Of Indian political evolution. Our esteemed cor
respondent in raising the question Of art has
given occasion for controversy but II may be
said that originality in art and skill In practical
politics do not go together. Turning To the
other point. the climate Of the Nile. Euphrates'
ETC. II IL TO be remarked first that the Durdei'
Of proof IS on him who alleges change at any
time But granting all that can be said about
glacial epochs and the Ike. nobody so far mas
put any Of these occurrences after the neohtmc
age The character OF the deposits In the Nile
Delta and at the mouth OF the Euphrates Is too
uniform To allow any great change OF climate
and we believe the same is the case with the
Yang-tse- Kiang and the Ganges. In Mesopotamia
the number Of cuneiform fragments which. as
translated. refer to plaques. pestences. and to
individual cases or disease. is significant. and the
| series OF these records reaches high antiquity
The meagre flora Of Egypt. unchanged for Sc
many centuries Is proof OF steady climate
Chinese literature Is a standard OF stability and
II could not have become so under marked varia
tons Of climate. Argument on Sanscrit literature
| as translated Is more difficult; but we think It's
general uniformity can be made clear. These are
| the outlines of a thesis by which the statements
| Of The Tribune alluded t. can be sustained-Ed