Alta California. 1840-1842: the Journal and Observations of William Dane Phelps, Master of the Ship Alert. Edited and with an introduction by Briton Cooper Busch. Glendale: Arthur H. Clark, 1983, 364 pp., 7 plates, 3 maps, $29.50.

An Early Human Fossil from the Yuha Desert of Southern California: Physical Characteristics.Spencer L. Rogers. San Diego: San Diego Museum of Man Papers, No. 12. 1977. 27 pp., map, figures, bibliography. $3.00 (paper).

The antiquity of acorn processing has been a major concern of archaeologists because of its paramount importance in the historic subsistence economy of native Central California. In the lower Central Valley acorn use is amply documented for Middle period (post-500 B.C.) and succeeding cultures, but whether the Early period peoples of the region shared this well known pattern has been a focus for debate. This paper presents the first direct evidence for acorn use during that period.