Page:The American Indian.djvu/23

 INTRODUCTION

term anthropology now stands for the specific science of man. Ethnology, archæology, and somatology are merely divisions, or convenient groups of problems within the scope of this science. The ideal of anthropology is to coordinate all the data concerning man's culture, language and anatomy, past and present, with a view to solving the problems of his origin and the interpretation of his culture. To this end, it must employ the methods of history, zoology, psychology, geology, and the exact sciences, as the case may require. Its pursuit will prove no light task, but to him who has a grasp of some of these subjects and a working insight into the others, anthropology offers problems of the most enticing sort. Naturally, but few of us can hope to grapple first-hand with these great inquiries, but the anthropology of today has moved forward so far that no man who wishes to be considered well educated can afford to ignore its fundamentals any more than he can those of zoology or sociology.

This book, however, is not designed to serve as an introduction to anthropology in general. On the other hand, it deals with one of the two grand world divisions under which the subject matter of anthropology is comprehended, for as we shall see in the course of this discussion, the native culture of the American Indian stands out in sharp contrast to the culture of the Old World. This contrast is due to fundamental differences in the specific cultures of the two hemispheres, which differences naturally tend to form two groups of problems. Yet, the problems that arise in the anthropology of the New World have a great deal in common with those pertaining to the Old. The functions of culture seem to be the same in each; hence, a review of the New World, such as we are now to take up, will at the same time introduce us to the methods and viewpoints of anthropology in general.

Yet, aside from these academic considerations, the American Indian makes an appeal to popular interest. The name