Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-05-25
COLUMBUS FOUND
INTELLIGENT RACE
IN SANT0 DOMINGO
Discovered Country Popu-
lated With Artists and Farm
ers, Curator Asserts.
HERBERT w. KREIGER
BACK WITH ANTIQUES
Dark Caves Proved to Be Literal
Picture Galleries. Elk
plorer Reports.
BY THOMAS r. HENRY.

"IleH SOluIlUuS o1SCOVeteQ LIE new
World he did not encounter ignorant
savages, but race of peaceful artists
farmers and fishermen on the shores OF
Santo Domingo.
Such is the conclusion of Herbert w
Kreiger, curator of ethnology of the
United States National Museum, who
has just returned to Washington with
a large collection of Indian antiquities
after Winter spent in exploring the
sites of the Indian towns which existed
when the white men came. These abo-
riginals, he found, knew how to spin
and weave cotton, build aqueductS to
irrigate' desert tracts, raise simple crops
sidered dangerous for small vessels.
They had evolved a complicated reli-
gious symbolism which indicated high
intellectual powers.
Their most notable accomplishments
we're in art. Kricser entered dark caves
which, when illuminated with flares,
proved to be literal picture galleries,
covered with realistic hunting and fish,
ing scenes hardly excelled by modern
artists and comparing favorably with
tfe celebrated painted caves Of South
ern France. He recovered articles
carved of bone showing fine artistic
touch, together with beautiful frag-
ments of the aboriginal sold work which
so attracted the covetous SpaniardS
He also found many fragments Of their
cooking utensils and agricultural and
milling tools.
Finds Sewing Needles.
Long before the day of Elias Howe
these Indians had evolved the princi-
pie of the sewing machine. Krieger
found several fine bone needles pierced
for threading through the point, the
artiflce which so long bafied inventors.
Just what use they made of these nee
dies is unknown, but apparently they
were evolved for some definite purpose
in sewing clothing or bags.
The most priced object in Krieger's
collection is finely carved bone trim
ket which evidently served some reli-
gious purpose. 1t was made from the
thigh bone of a manatee, or West In
dian sea COW, which was abundant in
those days. Looked at in one way it is
a perfect representation of a frog.
Turned around, it represents human
figure, probably god. The same head
serves for both, and is fine study in
proportion.
The first white men, Krieger points
out, came upon these Indians at a psy-
Geological moment when they were be-
ing invaded by the cannibal CARDS. who
were swarming upon them by canoes
from other West Indian islands farther
toward the mouth of the Orinoco. They
we're not race of fighters and we're in
deadly fear Of the fierce headhunters
who raided their villages, carrying away
relatives for food. So at first they were
inclined to welcome the white men as
allies
1t was not until one Of Columbus
lieutenants, presumably unknown to the
admiral himself, seized four young men
and two girls and carried them back
to Spain as exhibits that part of the
people turned on the newcomers. At
that time Columbus did his best to
however, remained friendly. It was
the villages of these people that Krieger
explored this Winter Later he in.
tends to study the site of the unfriendly
Indians.
Villages in Desert.
Krieger was mystified at finding sites
of what appeared to have been large
villages in a stretch of desert near the
Haitian border. Some of these sites
were about 40 miles from the nearest
water. Practically the only vegetation
was the thorn bush and cactus. The
mystery was solved when he found
damned up reservoirs in dry creek beds
constructed by the Indians to preserve
rain water to irrigate the desert soil
for agriculture. Within the past few
years some settlers have come into the
region and are using the same reser-
voirs to supply the water for bee-keep-
ing. Bees feeding on the thorn flowers
produce high quality Of honey.
The Indians, he found, had some
knowledge Of topography and had
opened trails across the island which
enabled them to move rapidly from
village to village. These trails were
used with little improvement until
recently and have been followed in
laying out the good roads system. IN
Willingly the natives opened the way
to their enemies by enabling the Span
iards to penetrate the country very
quickly.
Although the Indians did not have
an alphabet, curious painted mazes, like
picture puzzles are found on the walls
of the painted caves. The meaning OF
these is unknown, but Kreiger is con-
WINGED that they had some significance
as symbols in the aboriginal religion. The
realistic pictures, presumably stories OF
famous exploits, were traced with a
black stain, probably from some fruit,
which has remained distinct throughout
the centuries. Smooth salmon -colored
walls were used. Krieger was able to
make many photographs by use of flares,
and these viii be interpreted at leisure.
Although the natives could spin and
weave cotton, Krieger says, they made
garments mostly for ceremonial occa-
sions. Due to the warm climate, the
custom of wearing clothes had made
little progress. The fact of their
nakedneSs was largely responsible
for the opinion of the Spaniards that
they were a low type of savages. Some
of the ceremonial cloth was richly
made. %,
Ornaments Of Gold.
They appreciated gold and their
chiefs actually wore golden crowns, but
they had not learned to smelt the metal
from the ore. Their fine gold work
was hammered from nuggets. Some
of it was covered with ornate designs.
Krieger recovered a few fragments from
the village sites
The only domestic animal was the
dog. He was the only animal on the
island larger than rat. The Smith
lie Causes Mothers
wv -