Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1878-11-16
The Western CIiTDwelIers.

l y IL
Oflste, blown over the plains, come stories
of strange newly discovered cities OF the lar
southwest; picturesque piles of masonry. OF an
| age unknown to tradition. These lulns marx
an era among antiquarians. The mysterious
| mound builders fade into comparative IN
| significance before the grauder aud more
| ancient cliff dwolleIs, whose castles lit their
towers amid the sands of Arizona aud crown
the terracad slopes Of the Rio Mancos and the
Hoyeuweep pronounced Ho7-en.weep.
A ruin, accidentally discovered by A. u.
Wilson Of tho Hayden Survey several years
AGO. while he was pursuing his labors as ohlet
Of the topographicaI corps in Southern Colors-
do. is described to me by MIR. Wilson as stone
buildinr. about the size Of the Patent OIic,.
It stood upon the bank Of the Animas, in the
San Juan country, and contained perhaps tive
hundred rooms. The roof and portions OF the
walls had fallen, but the part standing indloat-
ed height Of four stories. A number OF the
rooms were fairly preserved, had small loop
holo windows, bu: no outer doors. The building
had doubtless been entered originally by. means
of ladders resting on inches, and drawn III after
the occupants. The floors were OF cedar, eaoh
og as large around as mans head, the spaces
filled neatly by smaller poles and tWlgs, cover
ed by q carpet OF cedar bark. The ends OF the
timber were bruised and trayed, as II severed
by dull Instrument in the vicinity we're stono
hatohets, and saws made OF sand stone slIvels
about two feet long, worn to smooth edge.
a few hundred yards from the mammoth puild'
pg was second largo house in ruins, and be-
tween the two strougholls rows Of small dwell.
iugs. built oil cobblc stones laid IN adj obe, and
arranged along streets, after the style OF the
village of to day. The smaller houses were i'll
a more advanced state of ruin, on account oil
the round stones being more readily dlslnta'
grated by the elements than the heavy mason.
ry. The streets and houses Of this deserted
town arc overgrown by juniper and rluon,--
the latter dWayf wide spreading pine which
bears beneath tho scales Of its cones delicious
nutritious nuts From the size OF the dead, as
we'll as the living, trees, and from their position
on the heaps Of crumbling stone, MT. Wllsou
concludes that great period OF tmo has elaps
cd since the buildings fell. How many hue
dred years they stood after ,desertion before
Welding to the inroadj OF time cannot be Ger
tainly known.
The presence Of sound wood in the houses
does not set aside their antiquity. In the dry,
pure air of Southern Colorado, wood ialrly pro.
tected will last for centuries. In Asia cedar
wood has been kept a thousand years and IN
Egypt cedar is known to have been 10 perlect
preservation two thousand years after 1t eit
the forest. The cedars throughout the terrific
ries OF the southwest do lot rot, even ia the
groves. :, They die, and stand erect, solid and
s,pless. The winds and whirling sands carva
the dead trees into forms of fantastic beauty,
drill! holes through the trunks, and play at hdo
and 20 seek in the perforated limbs until, after
ages of resistance. they literally blow away in
atoms of fine, clean dust.
On the Rio San Juan. about twenty five
miles distant from the city Of the Auimas, Mr.
Wilson discovered the following evening SIM
liar pile, looming solomnly iii tho twilight near
tLeir ca amping place. The scene as described
was weird 10 tho extreme. As the moon arose
the shadows of the phantom buildings were
thrown darkly across the slIvery PLATO. Tho
blsz, of camp fires, the tiny tcpts the negro
cook, the men in buckskin hunting garb, and
the picketcd mules. made strange picture OF
the summer night, with background OF moon
lit desert and crumbling ruins, on whose ram
parts lowered dead, gaunt oedarj, lifting their
bleachcd skeletons like sheeted ghosts within
the silent watch towers of the nlurkg past
From an Illustrated ortn'e IN Scr'6nef J0r