The Washington union. [volume] (City of Washington [D.C.]) 1857-1859, 1858-10-15
WESTERN ANTIQUITIES.
To The Editors Of The Union /.

To The Editors Of the Union
In your weekly issue Of October 3D. find int,rest-
ing notice of ancient remains in the vicinity of
Winchester, Randolph county Indiana. These consist
of forts, /" "monnds, 'buryng ground &c. "Sksc
tons of rna ten feet hgh among tho discoveries al
legged t, have been made in the buryng ground Smi.
lar notices Of these discoveries have in
papers based upon statement made by Mr. Frazer to
the Cincinnati Gazette Everything relating western
antiquities is very interesting but this alleged discovery
Of sten-fect human skeletons regard very apoc-
ryphal We have heard much within recent years of dis
coyerics In western and southern tumuli of skeletons
enormously large, and dminuvey small The ordinary
reader must by this time be satisfied that there were g
ants in those days well as pgmics. To tho archm,
oogist however, these statements oil require conrma
ton before he will give them attention. Some years
since we heard much Of supposed nation of pigics in
the South based upon the discovery of ancient burial
ground in Tennessee. The mystery soon explained
by showing that the astrological remains those Of
full sized men and Intcrmcnt had been made
by hexing tho limbs upon the body Statements have
frequently gone abroad Of the discovery Of skeletons Of
an unusual size, but upon careful investigation, it has
been found that the facts did not sustain the opinion
Persons not familiar with the human frame have been
incauously nislcd by imagining the underaw of un,-
sunl size, the os ferncrs unnaturally longshown
from with their limbs, to which they
invariably incorrectly adjusted.
Much ignorance, unfortunately prevails tho subject
of American antiquities. The study of archaeology has
been much neglected by leading institutions, and it
Is not until gentlemen frequently eminent in the profess
sons in politics. and in science go ahead and nngle
with the era and the of Europe that they be-
sensible how little they know Of the archaeology
and ethnology of their country kindred sciences in
which the most distinguished minds of Europe now
engaged investigating.
En- passant. What has become of the committee on
archaeology and ethnology, appointed at the Baltimore
meeting of American Association for the Advancement
Of Sccncof and what also Of tho special committee
exploration Of the American chronological Society These
committees have important work before them, and,
trust for the credit of country they will devise
for the successful prosecution Of general
system Of research in the great mounded Of the West
We it intimated weeks since In one of the
Cincinnati papers that proposition foot for
archaeological convention at Cincinnati We sincerely
trust the will be carried out and the
ton held Much good could be effected by such meet
Ing Let us have light upon the subject Of American
antiquities Let us have research. The pick and the
shovel alone give us information We have had too
much Of idle speculation 1t is discrcditablo to
character intelligent people that these researches
have not been made long since. The government prop
ery should have made them, but in the absence Of help
from that quarter why do not societies unite in the
laudable work If societies not able let united in
dvidual effort accomplish it. AMERICUS.
MARYLAND, Oct. s, 1858.