The Lancaster ledger. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1852-1905, 1857-06-03

ana size on ana near the OHIO river than
elsewhere. Indeed, it seems probable
that majority Of them are found within
the limits of what is row the State of
Ohio so that it is fair to infer that,
though these people possessed all or near
~ all the valley of the Mississippi the
centre of population and the chief seats
OF their power were fixed in that State.
1t was for n long time supposed, even
10y military men, that all the ancient EN-.
Oankments were intended for defense -
but the enterprising antiquarian, Squire,
following the suggestion of bishop Madi
son, OF Va, and Mr.. Atwater, OF Ohio,
argues conclusivcly that many of the 50
called notifications were primarily erect
ed, not rs Notifications, but us sacred en-.
closures; and il defenCeS at all, were only
Secondarly so--first, because in many Cf
them the ditch is found inside the para.
pet, like that once celebrated work impu.
ted to Cen. Pillow, Of Mexico and sec.
ond, because mounds Of burial are found
in certain Of these euclosures.
it Is ais" generally considered that the
Classification of mounds by Squire and
Davis is corcct--and that some are
mounds Of burial, others of sacrifice, 9th.
crS mounds ot observation or "I,ukuu,S,"
and that n few are temples
OF each Of these classes will hcreai.
ter briefly speak
"lhc defensive works oF this ancient
people sometimes occupy promontorics Of
the bluffs which come boldly up TO the
1 4
"n three sides, and requiring but one ar
tiiicial line of defense. Others arc s,ua.
ted IN the bottoms, al the forks ahd juno.
tons of rivers. One Of them near Chill
c0thc ncloscS nearly one hundred and for.
" acres. \ fortified hill in Highland
County, Ohio, has mile aud iivo.eigh's
Of heavy cmbaukmcnt, aud incloscs
about forty acres. X is n square inclo.
sure, with nine hauks Of long parapcts
united at o"c end hy an cmbaukmcnt at
right angels with the others, exhibiting
exactly the figure OF a g'idiron. 1t hal
gate ways guarded 10y straight or crcs.
cent formed batteries.
In SCioto county are tie remains or an
emhanLmcut from four TO seven feet hiuh
extending from Great to Little Scioto,
distance of seven miles \ similar wmk
on the Little Miami has upward OF four
miles of cmbankmcnt, and inr,oscs about
Il bundled acres. The works at Ports
mouth, at the mouth Of the Scioto, and
which were probably sacred. .hnve. accord.
ing TO Squire, ut least tw~n:y miles Of
emhankwCa.s, and the amount Of land
incIoscd is about 900 acres.
Near Piqra are many works Of the
origin Of which the Indians found there,
could tell nothing. The, are built il the
form Of perfect gcnmetrical circ'cs--0ne
containing an area Of seventeen acreS, and
the other not more than half IN acre
The excavations are al! from tho inside,
and the entrance into the circle is from
the north. Some Of tie bitches were
excNvatcd in masses 4 gravel and stone,
where il must have been extremely diff
cult 10 work without iron tools. Some
Of the walls were built of stone. and the
trees on ihc emhaukmcnts are as large
aS those in the surrounding forests.
Near DAYTON there is an cmbankment
inc'o>ing 100 acres, having walls twelve
feet high within which is mound ono
hunGred feet high and two hundred and
eighly.siX feet in diameter at the base.
The site Of the town of Crc!cvi!lc was
two earth mounds, one circular. the other
square, containing twenty acres. The
first WAS iuclosed ay two Recommendations.
In :he centre Of the town IS small circle,
and from this focus streets djverye in reg.
ular ralii, intcrscciing the walls a; equal
distances
In CINCINNATI and Marietta were vast
rmOankments and mounds containing
rude stone ccllins, filed with human
bones.
The great circle a. Newark, inclosing
thirty acres, has n wall twelve feet high
and fifty feet base, and an interior ditch
seven feet deep and thirty five feet wide.
Works of u similar. character are found,
though more rarely, in Kentucky, Ten.
nessee, Mississippi, and most Of the South
EN- States, and also in Indiana, Illinois,
and most Of the Western States. Near
ly all the earth works were built in some
regular geometrical form, as provided bv
actual nIeasufeHoai--st such as squares,
circles, parallelograms and pyramids.
The mounds OF burial take the dome.
like form they would naturally assume it
Il mass Of earth were shove!cd into a heap
over any deposit upon ,he carliI's surface.
The forms Of these structures are suppos.
ed to be symbolical. The circle represent.
ing the earth, which was and still is sup.
posed by some Asiatic nations TO be square.
The pyramid, being half square, may
represent some Object or,principle un.
known and it may he that from these
facts, after more thorough investigation
and comparison, We nay hc able to arrive
at surer conclusion concerning the origin
or kindred of this people than is as yet
possible
Probably the largest mound in our
country is the Temple mound in the
American bottom, about seven miles east
from St. Louis. and two miles west Of the
bluffs on the Illinois side Of the river
1t is ninety feet high, seven hundred feet
long, and five hundred feet wide at the
base. II covers eight acres, and its sum
nit has level area of four acres. Its
solid contents are twenty millions Of cubic