The Jennings daily record. [volume] (Jennings, La.) 1900-1903, 1902-05-08
condition which was aggravated By

COnOltlOn W0lcn was dggTAVdCeO "
the religious superstitions which they
retained. involving human sacrifice.
self torture, immolation of war pris.
oners. and sundry barbarous ceremo'
MES which date back to earliest times.
and obtain even now in isolated parts
of North America. The sun dance of
the plains Indians is a relic of the sun
worship of Chichen-Itza and Peru.
with it's attendant crueiteS. All the
Indian tribes burned their captiveS on
occasional survival of ancient rites.
"Untold and uncalculated years it
took for the Central American migra-
ton to reach the western verge of the
Great Plains. which had emerged and
grows to grass during the interval
since it was the quarternary floor or
the sea. For nearly four centuries
their polyglot descendants, who were
dubbed aborigines by European exp1or-
ers have been an chronological puzzle
to the world. but time seems to have
solved the problem. The hypothesis
of the revs.sion is easy. Their pro-
genitors. like all pioneers. unquestion-
ably took with them all necessary
store clothes. tools. seeds. mechanical
appliances and domestic utensils. but
after they We're isolated from the par
ent stock and base of supplies. they
learned to substitute makeShffts for
whatever was worn out or lost. Dresses
of skins. furS and pleated grasses re-
placed their home garments. and i'm
PIGMENTS of stone. horn, bone. shell and
ivory took the place of their original
tools of iron. bronze and copper Some
of the more intelligent and energetic
discovered mines of various ores. and
worked them in n rude aShion for Il
while. like those at Lake Superior
but the industry was finally abandoned
because it was easier and cheaper to
use what was handiest. Metal orna-
ments, pottery. baskets. footgear and
woven fabrics We're retai'.ed the long
est. because they We're indispensab BILE.
The manufa cture of these was an art
that could not be lost. Reversion is
not necessarily slow process 1t de-
ponds largely upon the environment.
Intercourse brings intellect. Isolation
clogs it. and will sometimes Danish it,
According to Mr.. Hallock the Indians
may be divided into two great classes.
the forest tribes and the hunting or
horse tribes. Between these there
speedily grew up enmity. The Chip
pewaS may he taken as Il typical eX-
ample OF the first class and the Sioux
of the second. and the last great battle
between these two was fought as re-
Gently as 1897. Mr.. Hallock believes
that the great series of Western
mounds had their origin in these in
terminable wars between the sedentary
woodSmen and the fierce plainsmen.
Some are entertainments. displaying
much military engineering Skill
while others are great tumufi, where
hosts of the slain are buried" Others
still were used for 'Sacriticial pur-
poses. for dykes, as sites for temples
and dwellings. as refugees from inun-
dationS, as amphitheatreS tor ball
games and for ornamental purposes.
as in public parks and gardens of the
present day. Many in the Semblance
of elephants. leopards. turtles, rats.
snakes. deer and the like We're copied
from the Aztec and Toltec gardens.
and from others eXtant in the Zuni
and Mohave country. They were re-
produced just as we copy patterns
from the Old World" Mr.. Hallock
thus agrees with the best modern au-
thortieS that there was no race of
vanished mound builders but that
the mounds We're the work of the i'm
mediate ancestors of the Indians of
to-day. In conclusion. the writer as
Serts again that every new archeolog-
zeal discovery adds TO the analogy
which go to make up testimony to es-
la bfiSh the more than hypothetical or
iGin of our American aboriGineS. and
the close relations between their an
cestors of Central America and the
peoples of Egypt and Asia
Ii it be true that a race far enough
advanced in civilization to construct
the cities whose ruins are the wonder
of Central American travellers has de-
generated into the wild Indian tribes
of to-day, that fact is certainly provo
cative of thought We are accus-
toned to assume that our descendants
must advance i'll civilization no matter
What their environment may be. After
all. We can reaSSure ourselves by re-
mem bering that, according to this the
Dry the "aboriginal' races Of this con-
tinent We're AsaticS. Perhaps Cauca-
slams would not have deteriorated un-
der the same conditionS.-Literary Di.
geSt.