OCR Text |
Show ALASKANS BELIEVED TO BE ORIGINAL FOREFATHERS .Seattle Wash.', Aug. 24 The Rev. Charles E.vBettlcher. Jr., graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, who has spent five years In the Tanana, vaJley, Alaska, as a, missionary. Is in Seattle, en route to New York Before Be-fore returning to Alaska he will attend at-tend the general convention of the Episcopal choroh In Cincinnati In October. Oc-tober. Rev. Mr. Betticber declares that the Alaska native is the original forefathers forefath-ers of the American Indian. Through careful study of dialect prevailing ln his valley he has found that the words for "water," "people" and raajiy other terms are similar lo those used by Arizona and New Mexico Indians. "Whether the natives of tbe Tana-na Tana-na valley are destined to live or become be-come extinct." said he yesterday, "rests on the work we can do during dur-ing the next ten years. We must battle bat-tle for the preservation of the race. "The influx of the whites has brought so-called 'civilization' alome with It, and the natives havo grown less rugged and less able to cope with nature. It has also driven animals upon whom they depend further away, entailing hardships upon the Indians." |