James Mitzelfelt, age 12, of Fast Peoria, Illinois, for his question:

How did the Indians get here before Columbus?

The story of Columbus is very impressive. How those little sailing ships got over the Atlantic is one of the most breathtaking fonts in history. So it comes as a let‑down to learn that tribes of backward Indians were already here. Were they smarter than the great Columbus? Did they cross the stormy Atlantic before him?

No, they did not. The Indians, we arc told, came to America from Asia. Study your atlas and find the spot where Alaska and Siberia reach across and almost join hands. In the dim past the two land masses did join hands to form a land bridge from the Old World to the New. It is believed the Indians came over this land bridge, perhaps a few at a time, over countless ages.