t they knew already. Boas knewthat the popularity of the single-line evolutionary processwas high, but he recognized it as not being a fairrepresentation of the way cultures developed. Boas also deserves credit for attacking the poormethodology of the studies that were being done around him.He felt that scientists at the time were simply being lazyif they did not get involved in the study from a grassrootsbeginning. He wanted anthropologists to make decisions basedon a series of information that came directly from the sceneof action, not from information that had been handed down orhanded across numbers of lines. Perhaps a criticism of Boas could be that his methodsseemed to be stagnant at times, and they did not attempt toencompass a wider range of time, which often was helpful toscientists who were trying to get the larger picture. Boaswas interested in studying a very small and specific windowof time, which came from the data that he collected whileperforming the field work he deemed necessary to analyze aculture. There is no question that anthropology as a disciplineand as a science took on a new life after the arrival ofFrank Boas. Not only did anthropology gain respect in thescientific and the civilian world, but also it gainedrespect in the anthropological field as well. The work thatBoas performed, both in studies and in organization skills,were testaments to a man who has given so much to thediscipline. He was able to profoundly influence a number ofthinkers and scientists in his own field the validity of hismethods of work and get them to institute them across theboard for use by all anthropologists. Boas was able to do this not only for himself, but moreimportantly, for the generations of American anthropologistsafter him. The influence that he had on Mead, Radin, et. al.is quite remarkable and needs to be noted. Boas role andhonor as the head of American anthropology is welldocumented and most deserved....
