Echevarria y Veitia treats the subject fully, tracing it through the traditions of the people. He cites their creation and flood myths, their account of the building of the Tower of Babel and the confusion of tongues, their dispersion upon the face of the earth, and the passage of seven families to the new world (to _Hue hue Tlappalan_) by means of balsas, with which they crossed rivers and arms of the sea which they encountered in their journey. Though minute in his details, he does nothing more in this respect than other important writers to whom we shall refer in a further chapter, except that his computations by means of the Mexican calendar have enabled him to assign dates to some of these occurrences, which, though they probably are not accurate, are at least interesting. His study of the Mexican paintings convinces him that the natives had a foreign origin.[173] The same author in a part of his work refers to the giants as the first inhabitants of the country, but fails to state whether they came from the old world or not.[174] Ulloa thinks Noah’s long and aimless voyage in the ark was not without fruit to the science of navigation. It gave confidence to his immediate descendants, who no doubt were enterprising enough to construct similar vessels and undertake voyages in them. These, falling in with adverse winds and treacherous currents, were driven to strange islands and even to the new world, and being unable to return, became the first colonists in these remote regions. He thinks the custom of eating raw fish, common to the American tribes, was acquired during long sea voyages.[175] The Abbé Domenech’s opinion has been cited by Mr. Bancroft in his summary of the views of this class of writers; we presume, however, only for the amusement of the reader.[176] The Abbé, less than a score of years ago, committed himself to the ludicrous and antiquated theory that Ophir had colonized Peru.[177] Clavigero considers the creation, flood, and Babel myths of the natives sufficient evidence of unity of origin. He, however, believes that the migration to this continent began at a very early period.[178]