Polk County news-gazette. (Benton, Tenn.) 190?-191?, 1914-01-08

Aurignacian age, bears most striking resem-
blance to him of the Magdalenian age supposedly
a much more developed individual
Compare this man of La Colomblere win the
middle one of the three human faces from tne
cave of Marsoulas shown on this page lie mas
the same respectable skull development, much
more like that of the possessor of the Plltdown
sxull than that of the ape-like 'Neanderthal man
and his congerers The nose, it will also be
noted is very similar to that of the Marsoulas
man. likewise the heavy chin.
So much for the contentious OF the Frencnmeh
who have made this remarkable ind. Backed up
though they are by good arguments, 1T is not like
1v that thew will be swallowed without struggle.
On the contrary, they will probably be the cause
of still another controversy to add to the already
stormy annals of anthropoogy. For there Is un-
doubtedly another side to the question
First as to the pictures just found OF La Colon
here In spite of the fact that those similar to
tbem-including the human faces of the cave OF
Marsoulas-are generally ascribed by FrenchmsnN
not to the Aurignacian but TO the later MaguaI9n-
ian age others think them productions or AurAg-
nician artists If this latter theory is accepted,
the man" of La Colombiere is simply one moro
TO add to the scanty gallery of Aurignacian depic
+ions of human beings. Even If he proves to be,
that and nothing more he will be accounted al
precious find but naturally his value will not be
SO enormous as those who have found him ana
those who share their views would nave US pc
lieve.
Second as to whether the man" of La Colon
here proves that we descended from the
NeanderthalSpy-La Chapelle-auX-Saints or
the race represented by him of the PiltdoWn skull
There too, matters are by no means as easy
as they look to the sanguine Frenchmen Plenty
of learned men who have studied the subject OF
the descent of man are of the opinion that man
NAV be descended from neither of these interest
ing groups they contend that both of these races
NAV have become extinct and that mankind
sprang, possibly from some race which appeared
later.
The latest news from abroad shows that the
man of La Colombiere has already set learned
tongues to waggng against each other. Already
Messrs Mayet and Pissot the savants who found
him. have a hornets nest about their ears, In
London Mr. j. Leon Williams, writing in the Illus
trated London News, has placed himself on record
as foe to the belief that he Of La Colomblere IS
the earliest picture of man. Mr. Williams idea
is that we have to do here not with faithful de-
lineaton of the human form but with carica-
ture. He writes:
"As Messrs Mayet and Pissot say the drawing
is very clear, especially the face and upper part
of the head The back of the head and the neck
do not seem to me very we'll defined in the pho-
tograph.
THE discoveries speak of this drawing as hay
ing none of the characteristics represented by the
Neanderthal, Spy, La ChapelleauXoalnIs
skulls In their opinion the head resembles the
fossil skull of Chanceade lhey say
"'rhe head is large, the forehead round and
prominent (bombre), rising slightly obliquely
The face is long, as though pulled out from be-
low upward, and is distinctly projected forward
the chin is prominent, and has short beard In
Dictated by small lines the nose is long and very
thick; the eye is indicated by two curved ilhes'
and has an indefnable expression.
I'm this detailed description it is quite evident
that Dr. Mayet and M Pissot believe that we have
here something in the nature of realistic draw
ing Of Aurignacan man. This is confirmed by
their further statement that have not previous
ly found any engraved figures that teach us any
thing definite about the exact form of contour OF
the human face of the Aurgnacan or Solutrian
periods and that this want has been filled
by their discoveries
with these statements and conclusions ] find
II impossible to agree At least two other en-
cravings OF the human face have been previously
discovered, one in the Grotte des Fees in the
Gironde, and the other in the Fontde-Gaume at
Les Eyzies (Dordogne.)
Il think It will be clearly seen that the great
interest in this discovery lies not in the be-