New-York daily tribune., 1854-09-09

inhabitants of Gran Quivira knew the use OF corn
article Of food. There no sign that the ground
in the vicinity has ever been cultivated and no mark
whatever Of irrigatng bitches Indeed, an scequia,
or open aqueduct could not. it Is believed have
brought water 10 the Gran Quivirs; for the point oc-
cuped BY the town appears to be considerably higher
than the surrounding country.
There indie alton that the escutcheon of Spain
was ever scuptured or painted on any facade soout
the ruins and the facts regards the style of archi
lecture and the remains Of an aqueduct, do not rs
shown by this journa agree with his statement. Mr..
Gregg must have described the appearance Of this
paCe from what he heard about it, for on all those
subjects Of which he wrote from personal observation,
he is most excellent authority. Pedro de Castanada
accompanied Francisco Nasquez dc Coronado IN ms
GREAT expeC itiOn to the North in search of gold He
wrote a history of the campaign. General Nasquez
de Coronado arrived in country which was called
Ou.rtrd in the month of June, l5i2 III the present
ruins of Gran Quivira arc in region Identical with
the Ouyra then vsited il may be OF Interest TO state
what Castanads says of IL and OF IFS inhabitants:
I'm 10 that point the whole country only psn at
Quyirs mountains begin to be perceived From WHAT ~s
ats .resfly resemble those of Spsin: Puns ssP-s nuts
uuberes, rye EAss' oats PennerosA o1sshs, sua Ss
ssud the use OF Their and customs are the .me
th,se OF Tess, and the villages resemble ino,s Q,
Spain The houses round and have no ws. IRE stories
are Ike lofts the roois Of straw The inhabitants sleep
under he roofs. aud there they keep all they posses
The present ruins not the remains Oh the round
houses with roofs of straw which Castanada describes
az the dwellings Of the inhabitants OF Quvira 3l2
yeaIs ago and if they had had in those days instru.
ments 10 shape and carve those beautiful beams and
pillars and entablaures they would hardly have used
pebbles as the ends of sticks In cutting up the buaoes
which they had killed. Besides, the mataes we have
found are almost positive proof that the people who
once resided here ate as food ortlas made OF cora
while from CastaDadas account, one Is obliged 10 be-
leye that the inhabitants of the country which he
calls Quivirs lived entirely upon the flesh of the
buffalo as the Camanches do az the present day.
Castanada says likewise that the Indians OF the
country had neither gold silver, and were not &C.
qusinted with the precious metals. The Cacique wore
his breast plate of copper, which he heldin the
greatest esteem
MANY have supposed that the ancient AZtecs
built the edifices Gran Quivira, AbO and Quarra
during their migration from AZtlan toward Anahuac;
that the ruins now found in the Navajo, and the
Cases GraRde, which are still 90 be seen along the
ella River, were built by the same people, and at
about the same period of time. Capt. Johnston OF
the lat Dragons, visited the ruins of the CHA River
in November, 1896 From his description Of one ofthe
Casas Gfande-tbe largest ana best Oi any ne saw
We can discover no point Of resemblance between 1t
and these now before us. Clavigero, the historian,
believes that this great movement of the Aztecs from
the north toward the south commenced about
tie year of our Lord ll60, and that the Casas
Grande were built by them at various hats which
they made in their circui,ous journey togard the
Valley of Mexico. II has been shown that IN
Is. there no buildings of the size aud charae-
ter Of the Casas Grande ar such a. are found here
now, in all the country called Quivlra. which Cas-
tanad visited and described. SO one must conclude
that so lar as the Aztecs concerned, whatover
they may have had TO do with the building of the
edifces either in the Navajo country or on tie CHA,
or those fOuId $50 miles northward OF Chihuahua,
they never planned or constructed those at Gran
Quivna.
- History represents that Vss4uez de C"onada,
finding no gold during his great expedition returned
to Mexico where he fell into disgrace and died in OBJ
scuri;y. The SpaDiards did not return TO colonize
the province of New heXico until the year i5Sl and
the country could not be considered as conquered
until 5gJ. For eighty five years after this the colony
seems 10 have prospersd and to have gro"nn po VET
Towns and villages were built and valuable mines OF
gold aBd silver found and worked w'th success
The Catholic clergy aided in their efforts to con-
vert the Indians TO Christianity by tue Government,
at whose expense large churches were erected In DIT
feren perts of the province OF New Mexico cores
bonding with the LaiSStO4s which were Ouit Tor tue
W noe purpOse aud at about the PERIOD IN the
oiher provinces Of Texas and California. " wac
during this time doubtless that the large edihces d
AbO. QuaTTa and Graz Quyird were erected IL u
more than probable that valuable mines OF the pre-
cous metals were found IN their vicinity, and worked
under the dire 6con of the S9aniarts, by the indians
who bed oeen subjugated; fOr there is every reason
10 believe that the mountains of the Rio Grande
ere al this day rich IN gold and silver II appears
that dGriDy these eghty.hve years the Spamards
treated tie Indians with the cruel oppression,
unil finally, the latter revolted against them. The
night OF the 18Th OF August. [6sO ~as the time set,
throughout all New Mexico, when tue Indians should
rise and make az indscrimnate massacre o' all the
Spaniardsi in the country. This plOtwas made Known
tn Don Antonio de OerThiD, then the Governor aud
military cummGndant OF tue province, by two Indian
Chiefs. Every effort made for defense ard 20
avert tho coming storm. but without success. The
Indians rose n agreed upon and aiter various con
ticts they destroyed great numbers OF tue inhaOt-
arts; and, finally, by the latter end o' September OF
that year, su ,ceeded ia driving all the rest, with
Governor Otermin included, 10 III PhsO del Norte,
entntly beyond the confines OF The Territory we
have been informed that there is nov tradition
among the indians that soon ~ tneir foretatners
had become successful IN expellIng the Spanitrds,
they illed up and concealed all traces of the mines
where they had toled and suffered for many years.
declaring the penalty 70 oe torture and deah 10 any
one who should again make known their locality.
"Old Mr.. Chavis, who overlook us soon after our
arrival at Gran QuiS ira, informed Major Careton that
be had been told when in his youth By very old poo
Ie that tribe OF Indians once lived here called 'he
PueJios Of Quiyira, that the Spanish priests came and
liz ed among them IN peace and sscurty Tor twenty
wears: that during this period these large churches
were erected and that a. the time OF ths great nassa
Gre there were seventy priests and monks reshlng
here, all Of whom wee butchereG excepting two who
contriyed 10 make their escape. That preyiou. 10
their massacre the priests had had ntmition Of the
approaching danger and bad no; only buried the i'm
mel 90 treasures which had been collected but con-
ceeed likewise the bells OF the churches Thar many
years after the people Of Qnivlra had died of until
but few remained that Of these, desc lndln; Of
the chief, knew where the treasures were buried
that the remnant of the .ribe af;erward euugrated
ana Joined other Puebios below FL Paso; and that
many years ago al Old man, one OF The last OF the
tr b. had told in wha, direction from the church these
sreat treasures bad been concealed. so lac ~ the
builcipg of the churches snG the massacre Of the
monks snd priests are 'erned in this account, az
well az the fLa decrease and removal OF the people
who once lived here there il no doubt but that the
story told by Mr. Chayis ia in the main, correct. The
account of the repositories Of the bells ami the treas
ure is said to have been written down as gwen from
tie lips Of the last CaeiGue Of the Qu.yira, Who at
the time he made the disclosure living away be-
ow Nessla on the Mexican sido of the river. There
can b. po doub, hut the belief that q large amo1nt