Wilmington daily gazette., 1873-04-11
Rains OF a Great civ an Arizona

AfOiO0cl 1toOtflS leu q party OF a0Heutufefb,
mlaers and explorers last season into th9 desert
and uneKplorcd regions Of northeastern Arizona, |
southeastern Y tRlf and southwestern Colorado. |
For miles on miles, further than the eye can |
reach barren wastes stretch away in q continuous
succession Of desert tAble- lands and yawning |
chasms 1t d Wild, dreary, inhospitable, bound
less waste a very embodiment Of dssolation., For
fourteen days tho party lost their trail in the
desert, and nearly aperished with thirst and
hunger, at one time going thlrty-six hoars with
One day, while travelling In one eof the impassa-
bic gotge1, seeking a place where they could
scale rs seEnggy sides, Roberts discovered the
rains OF what was once a large and populous
city. Suddenly emerging on the top Of a mesa,
he was lmazea AZ flndmg himself among the ex-
tended ruins Of o great city untTodden by foot of
man for Ecntureas aud spreading out miles be
fore him, Uncovered an area Of three square
m'les, and was inclosed BY avail OF sandstone
neatly qQarried and dressed, ten or twelve feet
thick, aud which, judging BY the debris, vas ht-
teen 70 twenty feet high before Its fall IN most
places y had erumbled away and fallen, and was
covered with houses built Of solid sandstone,
which showed excellent masonry in their con-
structlon. s.3nuI is3Es' amN
The ancient city Is situated in Arizona, about
ninety miles from the boundary line between
Utah ana Arizona, and the same distance from
the western Colorado line. It has the,appear-
ance Of beiag an old Aztec city that had been de-
serted Tor hundreds Of years and fallen into ruins.
A. 1s entirely of stone, and not q stick Of worked
s'A--eSA - " " bSCu NlAloDB inc runs NOtuAuH
nut the walls ere standing and none Of them are
now LEFT more than ten OF twelve feet high. Col
ohel kohortsis eonadsnt from Appearancq q tha
walls that many of the houses were two'ot three
sSrlss hgh but there E9 Pot enough Of them
the style of architecture adopted BY the ancient
builders OF thiA city. Colonel Roberts estimates
tnat there was at least 20 900 houses In the4clty
u vas lald out In plazas, With paths or small
streets rom one to another There was evidently
one main highway extending through the centre
OF the city. This has been cut down by the win
ter torrental yeNnlng elfasnl, 600 to 800 feel
deep, aud 800 feet wide
lt is evident that this chasm has been washed
out since the city WIS buIlt becahse the walls Of
many houses are RON OveEhanging the brink, and
1t 10 not reasonable TO suppose that city woula
have been bsllt on each sido Of such q ehasm :
The wails still bear the traces OF many hieroalV
phica, cut deep into them, showing various Indiar
5custume9 and Enporsntiuns. There are also The
ruins Of stately monuments, built Of SQUARE bleeh
sandstone, well qaaFxied, and showing good TAa,
sonrY, which ara Wcrkad with nstohes and cross
es cut them % regular intervals The ruins ara
covered with aaads Whiell Colonel Roberts says hs
is confident has blown there from the desert,
short diatqnqs to1he soAth, slnce tha city ss De
try When the city was built, and that the inhabl
eans were forced 20 desortif on account Of th,
high winds which blew the sand in there after tn
waters, with which Il Is believed the desert va
encs covered, receded.
@A'A4 ~~AAA tAA3 DISVtAu NAlAta anu eoAAuluoQ ~
the rainss and Is almost as hard ns the sandstone
Thare is large ditch, now partly alitd ap, run
ming from the city away hack IA tha hills, ten h
fourteen miles from the city. "a i i hadevo
tina was made Tor the puFpoe1 of eouveying Wats
to the city for irrignting the aronnd and for pthe
purposes. Tho walls Of She houses are rongh an
worn by the storms of celtuEiaA which have Won
into the SOFT places ID the sandstone, even in th
walls oyathangihg the precipiee The Sandsten
does not bear any marks offrs, and Colonel Rob
aits y eonAhsnt that the sand storms which hav
nearly buried tlae eltg 1endared Il uninhabitabl,
and epnppllsa - ancient inhahitants 70 dessl
No bonea Implements, Or relies Of any Nm
were found, with the exception Of some pieooa Z
pottery ct q dark color. 1hase were embelllsho
With paan3lnW Qf AoWaN anA 'ePuamantaa 6Qur,
~ blue eoiolA The ooloEing mattsr IL Of blu
mineral anhslanou Of aonio Kind, which the chen
q e hanlA He, % Wk0m aonle q TIE pottery ~
shown, could not clearly define. Il IS pofiealI
sndatole, and piqcaa Of tie pottery which hay
peen exposed y oat0Ema which have WO1n away u
solid masonry 81 the walls of tie city, show q
eclsn fresh and b eht, % all Appearances
when new. The pottery if1elf he's bean found
ns perfectly htepfoot, upon trial IA orucihIea e.
tarnecea, and 4 the necrat 81 ita nannnsacta
eou.q y discovered, Il would be worth milliel
q aallam = the poaga1aoE. and ne nanfarial Woa
De invaluable fofths lining e lAiss spd hml
FNsfs-re at1 k. lt.eesH af a4iaM /