The skeletal remains described in this report were found by Pius Fischer on November 14, 1936, as gravel was being dug from a pit near the town of Bradwell, Saskatchewan, for highway purposes. The find was reported to the R. C. M. Police, and Detective Sergeant F. W. Davis kindly mentioned the matter to Dr. Vigfusson, who proceeded a week later to the site of the find with Professors Jackson, Edmunds and Spinks. Unfortunately, by that time the gravel had been excavated to a distance of about four feet beyond the original position of the bones, and thus all evidence of the condition of the burial had been obliterated.

Excavations made in 1928 at the north wall of the large pueblo of Chetro Ketl in Chaco Canyon, New Mexico, indicated that there had been fourteen feet of sandy fill in the canyon at that point since the foundations of the pueblo were laid. Sherds in the walls of the Chaco arroyo likewise pointed to considerable fill since the occupation of the large Chaco pueblos in the late 9th to early 12th centuries. This has raised the question of rate of deposition on the valley floor and of land surface levels during and since the time of prehistoric occupation. Linked with the problem of old land surfaces was that of burials, which have been notable for their scarcity in this canyon, and it seemed that an investigation of these old surfaces might yield some information on the possibility of burial grounds deep below the present surface.

The writer is indebted to Mr. Verne E. Chatelain, Assistant Director of the National Park Service, Branch of Historic Sites and Buildings, and to Mr. Alonzo W. Pond, Archaeologist, for the invitation to make this study. Particular thanks are due to Mr. Pond for his generous permission to use the four photographs that deal with the find of the prehistoric miner, and for much of the archaeological information related to this discovery.

When Mr. McKern wrote to suggest that I might wish to add a word to the discussion of those cultures which may show some indications of Old World contacts, my first impulse was to burst out with a long list of analogies in support of such an hypothesis. After thinking it over, however, I realized that this had often been done in the past without success, and it occurred to me that it might be more pertinent to try to explain how one diffusionist has reached his present estate, and what symptoms to look for in a person who has been subjected to this form of contagion.

Southwestern Pueblo pottery of the prehistoric periods has been studied, named with dozens of geographic appellations, and traced back from period to period with genealogic thoroughness. “And La Plata Black-on-White begat Red Mesa Black-on-White, and Red Mesa Black-on-White begat Escavada Black-on-White, and Escavada Black-on-White begat Gallup Black-on-White.” But the family tree of prehistoric Southwestern walls has not been cultivated with the ardor of the potsherd horticulturist; the relation of roots to branches has been largely conjectural.

Previously I have attempted to show that we lack, almost completely, archaeological data from large and apparently significant areas in New England. It is true also that the excavation and research which has been done to date is very incomplete. I regret to say, in addition, that a number of inaccuracies and important omissions have produced results, particularly in the development of theories, which are extremely untrustworthy. A reworking of the available data and an investigation of the foundations of the various theories have brought to light a number of important facts and have made necessary several radical changes in the theoretical history of the region.

Several articles have come to my attention which should have been included in the summary of recent archaeological work in South America. A brief notation of these articles and a bibliography will remedy in part their omission from the original text.

Wassén (1936) has published a report of his excavations at the Hacienda of El Dorado between the villages of Yotoco and Restrepo in the Cauca Valley region of the western cordillera of Colombia. He describes the excavating of deep tombs, some from four to six meters in depth, and illustrates their contents.

Two small collections of shells obtained from Maya ruins in British Honduras have recently come to hand, and it has been thought worth while to record the species found, both from a conchological and archaeological viewpoint. When shells are found in archaeological sites, their classification and correlation of original habitats often permit interesting deductions to be made concerning trade routes or relations.

The first set was collected by Dr. Thomas Gann from a crystal burial mound near Rio Hok Skum. The locality is near Corozal in the northern part of British Honduras and about thirty miles from the boundary of Quintana Roo, Mexico.

Celebrating its one hundred and twenty-fifth birthday, the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia assembled a remarkable scientific congress in that city, from Wednesday, March 17, until late Saturday, March 20, 1937. Rarely, if ever, in the history of American natural science has there been such a happy combination of scientific discussion, presentation of new evidence, and the gathering of exhibits, all bearing on the worldwide problem of man's origin and early development. Even more appreciated was the unlimited hospitality of the Academy which transmuted what might have been merely a stimulating scientific symposium into a gracious international social event.