3. Southwestern races of maize. In the southwestern United States our collection of varieties is complete enough and the situation is so comparatively simple that we can generalize more completely than in Central America. Southwestern maize goes in two races plus a few obvious recent admixtures and an extensive series of intermediates between the two extremes. One race (the Pima-Papago) has been in the country a much longer time and is not now commonly grown by the Pueblo-dwelling Indians.
The Pueblo race is the big-shanked, long-eared, usually bright colored maize which is commonly sold to tourists. While it may be either flour or flint it has a strong tendency to be at least slightly dented. Characteristically it has short internodes immediately above the node of the upper ear and its tillers are morphologically unlike stalk in height, tassel, and ear. It is grown by all the Pueblo-dwelling Indians as well as by the Navahos and Apaches.
The Pima-Papago corn, though extensively grown, is from districts so remote that it is seldom seen in collections. It is small-grained and small-cobbed and either white or bright light yellow. It is small-shanked and ears often taper as much to the butt as to the tip. While the kernels are in rows, the sulci between them are scarcely apparent and the kernels have somewhat the appearance of tiles in a mosaic. Characteristically the internodes of the main stem do not shorten above the ear and the tillers, in height, ear, and tassel are similar to the main stalk. It is grown by the Pima and the closely allied Papago and to a lesser extent by neighboring tribes. It is of peculiar interest because its ears are almost identical with those of the prehistoric Basketmaker Corn which according to dendrochronological reckoning appeared in the southwest about A.D. 300.
Since everyone to whom we have shown the collection has asked whether our work gives evidence for or against Mangelsdorf and Reeve's theory, it may be well to add that while in general it supports them, we have as yet no conclusive evidence for or against. It is already abundantly clear, however, that maize has had a complicated career in Central America.
We will be grateful for viable seed of old or unusual varieties.
Edgar Anderson