In evaluating boundaries I have relied most heavily on the information
of Merriam (map 3) and Kroeber (map 1). Merriam's data are contained in
a 1:500,000 map of California, together with a descriptive text. The
map and the description were made up by Dr. Merriam's daughter, Mrs.
Zenaida Merriam Talbot, during the years 1939 to 1946, from information
in Merriam's notes and journals, the latter of which are not accessible
to this writer. Often, where Merriam's boundaries disagree with those of
Kroeber or other authors, Merriam's line will follow a stream, whereas
the alternative follows a ridge or drainage diversion. When the evidence
is inconclusive, I have usually followed Kroeber's method and chosen the
ridge rather than the stream as the boundary. In this area the streams
are small and easily crossed during most of the year and therefore would
not constitute a barrier sufficient for the divergence of dialects. On
the other hand, the hills were visited only briefly for hunting and
gathering; the population depended to a great extent on the products of
streams for its subsistence, and consequently all the permanent villages
were in the lowlands and canyons. For this reason, the ridges rather
than the streams would tend to be boundaries. Kroeber has discussed this
point more generally (1939, p. 216) and also in greater detail (1925_a_,
p. 160).