Loyola College - Review Yearbook (Montreal, Quebec Canada)

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HOYOLA COLLEGE REVIEW —+ to the West, and Uaxactum, Tikal and Naranjo to the East, I will briefly summarize the opinion of the British Museum Guide of the Alfred Percival Maudslay collection. “Maya archi- tecture and art are characterized by a remarkable sense of line and a quality of stately massiveness which invest the monuments with serene dignity. Their defect was over-elaboration and complexity. In general, there is that marked symbolic tendency, found in all American tribes. Their realistic sense, however, was portrayed in profiles which were the stumbling block of the Egyptians and Assyrians. Unexpected limitations are encountered in their ornamental motives, which virtually were restricted to the serpent and feathers, though we also find motives taken from the vegetable Ше.” In conclusion, within the triangle mentioned above, and on its borders, the explorer anxiously seeking the trea- sures of Izamal and Kukulcán needs — must force his way through the dense and variegated vegetation of the tropics, clearing a passage amid the intertwining branches of creeping trees and the over- hanging palm bowers. The useful hat- chet of the guide cuts down these unfriendly yet agreeable obstacles; agreeable because they fill the air with fragrance, unfriendly because they hide from our view pyramids, temples and alaces of colossal dimensions and mass- ive beauty. These portentous construc- tions stand as silent and gigantic senti- nels over the uncultivated plains of Yucatán. I can well picture the day when Kukulcán from the loftiest temple in Mayapán, viewed with a happy and contented eye his numerous and thrifty subjects, busy in the occupations of an active people; and as the earth hid in her bosom the dying sun, he saw them retiring to their picturesque abodes by the shadow of the palace of their king. Рерко R. SUINAGA, 26. И — ví cicer Жар

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LOYOLA ICOILLÆEGE REVIEW = — common land and paid taxes in produce and by military service. It 1s inspiring to remark that the Mayas held the family as a sacred in- stitution. Though polygamy was for- bidden, it must be admitted that the observance of such a prohibition was not as rigid as might have been ex- pected of an otherwise highly civilized race. The children of the poor were educated in the occupations of their parents, who, in general, were either agriculturists or hunters. The average Maya even to this day cultivates his small plot of land, where he raises henequén' (hemp), a most valuable fibre, ‘‘chicle,’’ or other products proper to that climate. The children of the rich were skilled in art and music, and were taught his- tory, mathematics and religion. It is a deplorable fact that the average man in America is not more acquainted with the aboriginal civilizations of this continent. Unreliable and prejudiced novels give us a distorted idea of their history as well as their institutions and habits. They depict these early peoples as savage hordes ever massacring cach other, with no idea either of morality or of intellectual development. Quite to the contrary, we know that the astronomical system of this race, considering their lack of modern instru- ments is such as perplexes the mind, while their chronological system, as far as accuracy is concerned, equals, if not surpasses our present one. At first they had an arbitrary count of two hundred and sixty days, resulting from a count of twenty days (Imik, Ik... . Ahau) joined with the numerals one to thirteen, so that 1 Imik returns in the series in the 26oth place. This unit is called ‘“Tonalamatl.”’ The Haab is the Maya year, composed of eighteen months of twenty days each (Bop, Шо, “Zip... . Cumbu). The Џауеђ, ' or five unlucky days, is added to form the total of three hundred and sixty-five days, —a solar year. The “Calendar Round” is a combina- tion of the Tonalamatl and the Haab, resulting in 18,980 days, or 52 years; constituting a circle which finds a parallel both in Aztec and in ancient Japanese and Chinese chronologies. It is curious to remark that the Maya numeral system was vigesimal, and not decimal as our own. The basis of twenty was probably suggested by the addition of the ten fingers of the hand to the ten toes. Let us take 125 as an example: In our system 125 =5+(2x10) +(ахтохто) = 125. If the digits repre- senting 125 were placed in this identical order and reckoned according to the Maya vigesimal system the result would be as follows: 12525--(2x20)--(1xzox 20)=445. The Mayas had three dif- ferent ways of expressing theirnumerals: First, the Normal way; secondly, by means of “Ғасев”; thirdly, by means of ‘‘Numerals.’’ It would be too lengthy and tedious to enter into a discussion concerning these three modes; however, here is an example of the Normal way, 19 = =:: Since their system is vigesi- mal, it follows that there are 19 digits. The Mayas were polytheists and honoured their gods in temples con- structed on artificial mounds. The Maya pyramid, therefore, served a different purpose from the Egyptian; the former was intended as a foundation and sup- port, the latter as a tomb. One Gol, however, they dared not represent in stone or painting; this God, the Father of all gods, was invisible and im- material. It is extraordinary that the unaided reason of these aboriginal tribes should have arrived in some respect at that knowledge which the philosophers of ancient Greece attained only after years of incredible wandering and labour. In matters of art it is easy to err. In giving, therefore, an appreciation of the colossal remains of human skill found within a triangle formed by Mayapán, Chichén-Itzá and Uxmal, to the North; Palenque, Piedras-Negras and Menché {7}

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ШОУ ОЉА COLLEGE REVIEW 4 Business Is Business FEY d 5 ox: ЧЕ were seated together, SG Bob Wilkins and I, in the FAY smoker of the Old-Tim- РУ) ers’ Club, and had been RN casually discussing men МА and things in general. 227) There came a pause in the conversation, and inquired: By the way, Jim, where's old Cor- nelius Baxter now? He hasn't turned up at the club here for ages. What sort of an odd duck is he anyway? I don't know where he is, I re- plied, ‘‘his comings and goings are not to be reckoned by mortal man. How- ever, if you feel inclined to listen, I'll tell you of my last encounter with that famous old fortune-hunter. ' Fire away,” answered Bob, settling himself comfortably. ж k k k ж Well, close on to four months ago, I happened to encounter Baxter on Broad- way, and after the usual greetings we moved along to the Biltmore to refresh the inner man. Towards the end of the meal the discussion assumed a more philosophical tone and I could see that something was coming. Business, my dear Jim, remarked J. Cornelius thoughtfully, while a mod- ern young bandit in the person of a waiter presented me with the bill, “5 what you make it. Now I remember when Floated the Equatorial Ice Со? I suggested, attempting to be an icono- clast and pay the waiter at the same time. Ah, that unfortunate affair would have gone over like the abolition of the Eighteenth Amendment, but the natives down there had no use for the ice. They said it made everything too cold and so went back to tabasco sauce and I to New York. Nevertheless, what I say goes with both feet right side up on the mat. No matter what a man takes up, there is a fortune in it for him. Latent, maybe, but there is just the same. Yes sir, latent fortune!” Among the palms and music, J. Cornelius Baxter, Esq., presented a Grass figure. His huge frame and genial countenance ner to expand to suit his environment. Careless in speech and gesture, there lodged in that breast a heart as true as ever man ossessed. He was indeed a world- aa Ireflected. One month he would be down and out, another would find him pursuing a new Eldorado until Dame Fortune quite as invariably and ruthlessly forsook him. I had become intensely interested in the man, for he was a natural-born story-teller and his vivid accounts of various escapades in almost every corner of the globe would have made Baron Munchausen yearn to revise his experiences. His resources, moreover, were proportional to his enthusiasm when it came to the launch- ing of a new project. “Easy Street, he would remark in his laconic way, ‘‘is the easiest place on earth to land so long as you turn no corners.” Strangely enough Nemesis provided too many corners for his own walk of life. Possibly it may have been the vigor- ously optimistic character of the man which made me wish to direct his activities locally, or perhaps it was my own egoistic pessimism asserting itself which led me to remark: ‘‘Your meth- ods may prove effective if you always intend to sell pickled pig's feet at Baden- Baden or tooth brushes in Timbuctoo, 49}