The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1876-04-14


Discovery of a Human skeleton with p3sn-
f Bone.
From the charlottetown prince Edwards Island)
Examner.l-
am a farmer, residing on the Nesbit
road, East Point, and engaged, as most
of my neighbors, in procuring mussel
or marsh mud during the winter months.
At the southern end of my land is a
creek, about which lies q considerable
tract of marshy land. For the last two
or three years myself and sons have used
the deposit in this marsh as q manure,
have made pits of very considerable
depth. Being convinced that the lower
mud was the best, and our anticipations
of being troubled by the rise of water
in the hole proving unfounded, we have
used the same pit for the past two win
ters. Bearing this in mind, il must not
be matter OF surprise that the pit is
now excessively deep. The substance
is kind of heavy black peat. One day,
in the latter part of last month, myself,
my son William, and O man in my en-
ploy, one Alfred McAlduff, were engaged
in procuring manure from the pit. The
two latter were in the hole, digging and
loading the sleigh, while / remained
above. was about to light my pipe,
when suddenly heard loud exclama-
tons from my son, followed by a similar
demonstration from his companion.
/ approached, and, to my infinite sur
prise, beheld, projecting from the mud,
the cerebellum of human skull. Grad
ually, and with the greatest care, we
proceeded to free the remains from the
superintendent earth, and at length
had the satisfaction to disclose an entire
skeleton of full-grown human being.
The skeleton, speaking generally, was
much the same as that of large male
specimen of the present Indian race.
The skull, however, was very much flat
tened on the top, and the jaw bones
very large and thick. The lower arm
bones were much longer than the usual
standard. The legs, on the contrary,
were short in very noticeable degree.
The discovery in itself is sufficiently
strange; but the strangest part of the
story is yet to tell Behind the figure,
and in q position directly continuous
from the back of the spine, were nine
teen small articulated bones. There
cannot be the slightest room for doubt
that these members represent the osse-
Gus framework of q tail. Startling as
this fact may seem, it is beyond dispute.
OF the great number of persons who
have been to my house to view this
most interesting specimen of departed
race, not one has, in the most explicit
words, failed to indorse my own first
formed opinion. 1t was, indeed, argued
by our minister that il was quite posi-
BILE that the bones, though undoubtedly
the bones of a tail, might be merely
those of one taken from some animal,
and used by the man as weapon, Of
fensive or defensive. But the position
clearly invalidates this argument. The
hands were folded in front of the body,
and, therefore, could not have been
holding the tail, which, as it appeared
to make direct junction with the back
bone, could not have maintained that
situation without some support. Add
to this the undoubted similarity of the
bones, and the plainly apparent articu-
lations from the end of the tail to the
neck is conclusive. 1 content myself at
present with this brief narration of this
most interesting discovery, leaving it for
some future time to comment on its
immense importance as link in the
chain of history of prehistoric man.
SILAs Wilcox.