Evening star., 1932-11-24
'DR. HRDL|CKA TELLS
| OF VANISHED RACE
OF CH|LD-EATERS
Former Occupants of Kodiak
Island May Have Been First
People in America.
STRANGE CANNIBALS
HAD HIGH CULTURE
Ivory Portrait Carvings, Hot Baths
and Other Items Discovered
in Village Sites.

The story of a long vanished race
Of child-eaters who were at the same
time accomplished artists and possibly
among the earliest Inhabitants of North
America, lies hidden under thick tangles
of nettles and wild parsnips on desc
late Kodiak Island in the Gulf of Alas
ka. DR.. Ales Hrdlicka, curator of ply
sical anthropology of the Smithsonian
Institution, said in q lecture at the
National Museum last night.
DR.. Hrdlicka described his work OF
the past Summer, when excavations
were made through Is feet OF closely
packed soil and debris on old vliiage
sites. down to the underlying glacial
gravel before the accumulation OF which
In the ice ages human occupation was
impossible. He found specimens buried
in depressions of this gravel, obviously
those of the earliest settlers on the
site.
Other Food Abundant.
The Summers work reveals, without
doubt. DR., Hrdlicka said, that this mys-
terious ancient people were cannlbais
of a sort hitherto unknown in North
America. The skeletal remains indicate
strongly that they ate children. There
are occasional records OF cannibalsm
among Indian tribes, but always for
magical purposes. Thus boys formerly
were made to eat the heart OF slain
enemy distinguished for his courage:
This courage was supposed to be stored
in the heart and to pass to the eater.
But this ancient people, DR.. Hrdlicka
SAYS. apparently ate all sorts Of human
beings for food. This is all the more
remarkable, it was pointed out, be-
cause there apparently was abundant
food supply in the way of fish, whale
and porpoise.
otherwise, DR.. Hrdlicka said, this
ancient people-whoSe skulls have fea-
lures which relate them both to the
Indians and the Eskimos-had attained
a rather advanced state of culture. He
recovered ivory representations Of the
human face which, he said, obviously
were not merely set patterns, such as
would be expected from a primitive
people, but represented the features Of
actual individuals. 1t was more like
a photograph gallery than a collection
Of magical objects.
Had Paved Sidewalks"
They also had attained a great facil-
ity in splitting the hard slate abundant
in the neighborhood into large slabs
with which they walled the sides OF
their partly subterranean houses, built
paved sidewalks" between houses, and
in one case covered considerable area
on the beach which presumably was
intended as a dance floor. Ceremonial
dances probably played a considerable
part in their religion. Among the
curiosities found was slate coffin such
as appeared much later among the In
dians of Tennessee and also, in modi-
fed form, among the Pueblos.
Although now almost depopulated,
DR.. Hrdlicka said, Kodiak Island was
natural stopping place for the early
Asiastic migrants on their way from
Alaska south to the Pacific Coast. Even
at the time of the Russian discovery,
he said, the population Of Aleuts was
estimated at about $4,000 They were
rapidly diminished by epidemics intro
duced by the white men.
The fate Of the earlier people Is a
dark mystery, DR.. Hrdlicka said. In
the top levels of the village sites was
found cultural and skeletal material
showing close kinship to the present.
day Aleuts. The earlier skeletons are
all on lower levels and there Is a sharp
differentiation between the two. This,
he believes, indicates that the ancient
people were wiped out suddenly and
almost completely by some great catas-
trophe-perhaps devastating epidemic
or by war which ended in a complete
massacre. If there had been a gradual
conquest there would have been some
intermingling between the two peoples.
Hot Baths Discovered.
DR.. Hrdlicka found last Summer fire.
places and sweat baths" of the ancient
oil iYofoRf Q1th0IUh hurled
under many tons of accumulated
debris. The sweat baths were stones
arranged so that they could be heated
red hot. Water was poured on them
to produce steam in which the men
bathed. The custom was common
among the North American Indians and
presumably was brought from Asia.
Near the fi.'eplaces were slate slabs and
whale scapulas used as seats for the
family circle gathered about the fire
Other slate slabs were found close to
the fire which evidently were used as
beds
DR.. Hrdlicka made an airplane sur
vey of the island in search for ancient
village sites and also circumnavigated
| it in a boat. He found great many
| of these sites, 50 that he Is convinced
! the surface barely has been scratched.
| The work of excavating, which he has
carried on almost single handed, is
growing more and more laborious each
year, he said, and appealed for the gift
Of small tractor which could be trans
ported to Kodiak Island next Summer
At present, he said, the dirt must be
moved by wheelbarrows several hun
dred feet, Job which requires more
! time than the actual excavating. He
placed on exhibit a large number OF
artifacts of the ancient people recov-