Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1877-08-03
THE RUINS or NEW MEXICO.
Descriptions OF Some OF the Character.
istic Architecture Of the First settlers
by u Member Of IIaydcns Exploring
Iarty.

FNarty.
The following notes by William II. jack
son, of Professor HayGen's survey, on the
ancient ruins of littie-known country,
and concerning people about whom moth
ing is known, will'be of interest:
SANTA FE, N. NJ, May 80.
Having completed the work assigned me
among the pueblos and ancient ruins of
New Mexico, l will attempt briefly to give
you a synopsis Of the results. / have al
ready detailed 10 some extent my operations
up TO the lst Of May. l had visited Taos
and the puebos between il and Santa Fe,
and then preceded direct to Fort Wingatc,
where also visited aud thoroughly work
ed up Zuni and its surroundings. Canon
dc Chelly was next visited, aud its impor-
tant features photographed, and then
Moqui My visit 10 this last prov nce was
to supplement the very hasly investiga-
tions made there by myselfin 1876, by more
thorough work, but which must at least be
superficial, as felt that could allow my
self but three days among the Seone viii
lagos and do justice to the rest of my route.
Besides securing a large number of mega
tives of all the villages, also secured COM
plete Typographical notes upon which to
project models of the whole province, or OF
any one of the various pueblos comprising
it. Upon the elevated table lands of North
ern New Mexico, and about midway be-
tween the Tunecha and the Jenarz noun
tains, are the famous ruins of the Chaco
canon, first brought before the world by
the report of Lieutenant Simpson in 1919.
As they are far off from all the common
routes, in the midst OF an arid and forbid
ding country, they have been but seldom
visited by any white people, and, if mis-
take not, no critical examination has ever
been made OF them since 1919. II was my
desire to have visited them from the Canon
de Chelly, or from Fort Defiance, but at
neither place could / employ any one TO
accompany me there. DIR. Jackson, my on
ly companion thus far, had TO return East
50 soon that he could not think of it. Re-
turning eastward, therefore, as far as the
pueblos of Junez, / found there one of the
Indian guides who had accompanied the
exT edition of Colonel Washington in 1919,
above referred TO, and who was known TO
them as Haste the Lightning" lie looks
all of the eighty-iive years be claims, but
his small wiry figure is yet full of vigor,
and he is still able to punch an obstinate
mule along at a lively pace. His memory
is still active, and many were the tales
with which he RECALLED us Of his various ad-
ventures amoog the ancient enemies of his
people, the Naragos. As he could talk no
English nor enough Spanish, / also Sc
cured the services of white man, familiar
with the country and its languages, TO ac-
company me as an assistant and interpre-
ter. With party thus made up started
from Junez the 7th of May with one poor
animal 10 carry all our supplies. Taking a
general northwestern course over the coun-
try, at the close of the third day We arrived
at the first Of the ruined puebos, plainly
seen while yet five or six miles distant. a
close inspection did NOT lessen our first ilH-
preston Of lis noble proportions. 1t is not
large building 10y any means, the reclan-
gular portion measuring but 2l7 by Ia feet,
but the solidly- bnilt walls in places are still
thrly-iive To forty feet in height, and its is
olated prominence upon slight eminence
overlooking the low rolling country around,
give il a prominence denied other larger
mines uuder the walls of the canon farther
down. Before going any farther l must say
l cannot gi\ any detailed description with
in the limits of this brief letter of the very
many interesting features notable among
these very remarkable ruins, but must con-
tent myself with a brief mention. COM
mencing with the first ruin, or The Puebla
Cunlado, as il is called there are ten others
along the canon of the Chaos, two of them
upon the bluffs oullooking the canon and
the others in the valley, all of similar work
manship aud manifestly the work Of one
people. They ave remarkable in being dis
similar and immeasurobly superior to any
Of the ruins yet discovered in America or
10 any Of The habiiatiou of the present build
ings. The large ruin in the Canon de Chel.
ly is of the same class, and is probably con-
temporaneous with them. The largest of
the ten is The sixth as we 90 down the can.
OH, called the Pueblo Bonts by Simpson,
which is $40 10y 80 feet. The smallest is
the ninth, which is regular parallelogram.
seyenty-eght by sixiy-two feet. With but
sides Of rectangle, with open court facing
south, and enclosed by semi-circular wall.
One of the exceptions to this regular rect
angular plan was the last one down the
canon, the Peublo Peuasco Blanca, of per-
feet eliptical shape, 406 by 1863 feet in its di-
ameter, and the other, Pueblo Boniis, al
ready mentioned, was a perfect hslf-oval,
or of an egg-shape, divided along its great
est diameter. In all the ground plan of
each could he make out with perfect dis
tinctness and in nearly all an elevation
through three or four of their stories. A
marked feature was the large size Of the
rooms. On the second flooring, the Pueblo
Pentado, the rooms averaged II by 20 feet,
some being as large as II by 25 feet square
and II feet in height. In the Pueblo Penas-
co Blanca, the average length of the rooms
on the second floor was 20 feet, some being
as large as 2S feet. In the other pueblos
the average height between floors was 10
feet. This does not apply TO the first or
ground floor, which had height and was
subdivided into much smaller apartments.
These were evidently for storage purposes,
as is the practice with the Pueblos at the
present time. In five of the ruins we found
entire and perfect rooms, preserved from
the destruction by the strength of the regas
or rafters, supporting the floor above them.
These we examined with much care aud
interest, and regretted that we had not the
means of digging into others which were
intact beneath the debris Of fallen walls.
In all the rooms there was notable neat
ness of finish, particularly of the ceiling
which, in the case of Penasco Blanca, was
covered with thin boards of pine, somewhat
larger but of the thickness of an ordinary
shingle. All the larger beams, ten to four