Some people are of the assumption that the superstitious nature of the Indians kept them out of the cave. True, man has always been somewhat afraid of the dark and will probably always be so. That the Indians were superstitious of the bats, which fly out the entrance each summer evening in search of night-flying insects, is very questionable. First of all, if the people were afraid of the bats they would not have lived under the entrance overhang. This writer could find only one instance where bats were regarded other than “little brothers,” and this was a myth among the Guiana Indians of South America that concerned “big bats that suck humans dry of blood,” and also a “large bat that would carry people off.” The bats and night owls raided together, but the people overcame their fear and killed them. Animals did not, as a rule, inhabit the cavern, so the Indians would not be down there hunting. Animals did from time to time stumble in; and, in 1946, there was found the skeletal remains of an extinct ground sloth. Beneath the entrance have been found skeletons of many small animals that died either from the fall or starvation. Thus, we cannot say that the Indians went into the cave any distance, nor can we say that they did not, simply because we do not know. To fully understand and appreciate the story of any group or groups of people, one must be acquainted somewhat with the country in which they lived. The country inhabited by the Indians of Carlsbad Caverns National Park has a wide temperature and altitude range, and four life zones (Upper and Lower Sonoran, Canadian, and Transition). The Guadalupe Mountains developed from a limestone reef laid down in a shallow sea during the Permian period of the earth’s history, over 200 million years ago. They are cut with many deep canyons containing numerous caves, but have little permanent water. Plant and animal life are abundant and varied. Due mainly to the lack of water, agriculture was not practiced in this particular area. The economy was one known as “hunting and gathering.” Perhaps a brief description of each group that lived, hunted, and visited in this area will best picture how and why they did. EARLY MAN About all we can say for Early Man and the Park is that he was here. The only material remains found was a Folsom-like projectile point. This point was discovered in Burnet Cave in the Guadalupe Mountains in direct association with extinct animal bones.