ABSTRACT
The derivation of the word archaeology gives little idea of its present use. Actually, time has nothing whatever to do with the limitations of archaeology; to think of it as leaving off where history begins, is to misconceive them both. The only proper limitation upon archaeology lies in its subject matter. In American history, such material deals chiefly with the Indian civilizations, and its collection is carried on chiefly by the anthropologists. The work of neither archaeology nor history can proceed without popular support, and the local appeal is one of the strongest that can be made. A careful study of its architecture will nearly always reveal the approximate date of foundation, the periods of prosperity and depression, the origin of the inhabitants, and many other facts of real importance. Thus to project into the future the work of a science whose name suggests antiquity, may seem fantastic, but even the future will ultimately become antiquity.
