Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-09-14

early nations Of the Western heni-
sphere. An example of this sort OF dill
fusion Is found in the presence Of stone
monkey heads among aboriginal re-
mains discovered on the Columbia River,
sub-Arctic area far from the tropics.
Either 1, cse stone monkey heads
J reached the Column: River Valley in
trade with people living in the tropics,
or they were carved by Northern sculp-
tors who had never seen q monkey but
who had heard Of them from far-trav-
eled traders.
Another example that the blow
gun, which we think Of as essentially
an arm of tropical man, was used by
the Iroqnois Indians OF New YORK state.
What journey 1t made IL 1t came here
from the forests Of South America, Is
logic suggests
But the best example Of what traders
did in disseminating type OF tmple-
ment Is the case of the shafted stone
Ak. In stone Age Europe axes were
perforated and the handle inserted In
the hole, as Is the case with our steel
axes today, but that method was never
used In America until 1t was brought
here by the white man. Incidentally,
this is another i..dication that II this
continent was originally peopled by I'M
migrants from Asia that immigration
| was made by men who were living on
| q very primitive scale, q very long time
ago. All over our Western continents
stone axes were set into hole IN
wooden handle, in itself o very striking
bit of proof of the cultural unity Of
America brought about by the early
contacts Of primitive business men.
Guess Course Of Trade Stream.
Today hoes and plows and other agri-
cultural implements made IN the United
States are shipped in large numbers 70
South America. We do not know
whether the trade stream flowed this
cient times, but we do know that much
the same type of farming tools were
used In the two continents.
| Mexico and Peru were outstanding
centers of the copper trade and for the
production Of gold and stlyer-as they
| are toGay. These two regions also were
noted for the stone produced by their
quarries. This rock and the other min
erals were often shipped long distances
The huge monoliths Of Quirigua, Qua.
temala-from IL TO 90 feet high and
weighing several tons eaeh-are BE-
lieved to have been conveyed there by
| water, because Of the canal-like eKcaya-
tions which have been found. The cop
per knives found In the famous pool ct
Chichen Itza, Yucatan, likely were i'm
ported from the highlands Of Mexico
600 miles distant.
The Mayas of Yucatan were expert
goldsmiths and silversmiths, despite the
| fact that no ores are found In Yucatan
which is geologically very young. Long
| Journeys were made by the raw material
between mine and factory. Since nc
deposit OF turquoise Is known TO be
nearer Yucatan than New Mexico, 1t Is
believed that the worked turquoise found
in the tonhs Of Maya rulers was brought
from that section by the traders, This
meant q trip of / 400 miles by sea and
land, or 1900 miles II the coveted blue
stone was carried al the way by land
Not so bad for people whom the be-
nighted Spaniards called "barbarianS.'
Origin Of Turquoise Suggested.
Moreover, unless there are undiscov-
cred turquoise mines In South Americs
we have to assume that the artists who
made the lovely turquoise inlayS Of Peru
got their azure mineral from the nearest
outcropping at present known, at Santa
Fe, N. Mex, implying that the whole
sale gem vendors Of those days covered
q distance of more than 1880 miles.
Similarly, some of the pearls and EN-
eralds used to decorate the persons au6
the houses Of Aztec chieftains are be-
lieved by Psychologists to have beer
brought from Colombia, 1900 miles sway
by sailing canoe. OF course, there are
rumors OF lost emerald mines in South
ern Mexico, and some pearls may have
reached the Aztec capital on the site Of
modern Mexico City from the Gulf OF
California. But, even 30, here are trad
ing trips Of quite respectable distances
So far as the less cultured groups o.
North Americans are concerned, theil
copper came mostly from the region Of
Lake Superior, where today we have ex-
tensive copper workings of our own
This was free copper; ell the indiana
had to do to make IL serviceable was tC
beat it into the desired shape. Traders
hRwked copper replicas Of the funda-
mental stone tools Of those times from
Lake Superior over all of the continent
east Of the Mississippi. Lake Superior
Copper" must have been quoted high or
the stock exchange Of those times.
There were other deposits OF free
copper" in the country west OF Hudson
Bay and In Alaska, but the Lake Supe-
rior region contains far more vestiges
OF ancient mining operations. DR.. CLARK
WiSSler, curator of anthropology of the
American Museum of Natural History
whose researches have thrown much
light on the activities Of the FIRST bust
ness men of America, reports Of the
Lake Superior workings that stone
hammers to the weight of IS pounds
have been collected In the ancient pits
The aboriginal method of taking out
the copper seems to have been cracking
by heat, breaking and wedging. In one
pit as feet deep q 6-ton piece of copper
had been worked out and raised feet
on an incline of logs by wedging; most
of the supporting timbers and wedges
were still in place"
Northern exporters did not make any