The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1879-10-02
FOOTPRINTS OF VANISHED RACES.

- Footprints of Vanished Races in the
Mississippi Valley"
Let us turn, now, from the traditions
and explorations bearing on the general
subject of the prehistoric jewellers in the
I Mississippi Valley, whose walled towns
and massive rectilinear entertainments
have frequently been described, to the
field of Mr.. Commits particular inqui-
Ies. We are reminded that the name
of st. Louis was once Mound City, so
called on account of the number and
size of the ancient works which stood
upon her present site. The larger of
them are all demolished, and the same
fate has overtaken most of those which
+ crowned the terraces OF the Missouri
River and her tributaries. 1t was
deemed worthy of observation by H.
NJ. Breckenridge 70 years ago that the
vestiges of the mound builders invaria-
bly, occupied the most eligible situations
( for towns or settlements. 81 have
heard he wrote, ga public surveyor of
the public lands remark that wherever
any of these remains were met with he
was sure to come upon a body of fertile
land" Notwithstanding the widespread
demolition and obliteration there is no
richer area for archaeological research
in the great basin of the Mississippi than
is to be found in the State of Missouri.
Here Mr.. COnant encountered vestiges
of the ancient race not only upon the
alluvial plains of the lower rivers, but
also in the interior valleys watered by
the smaller streams and rivulets, and
= 10 Il
mits of the OZarks. The remains eX-
amined by the author are classified I'M
der several specific groups, among which
we must confine ourselves to those COM
mended by peculiar novelty or interest.
The evidences of a dense prehistoric
population in Missouri are nowhere so
abundant as in the southeastern counties
of the State. Here are numberless
mounds of various dimensions and forms,
sometimes isolated, but oftener in clus-
tiers of peculiar arrangement, together
with embankments and walls of earth
incloSing large and small areas in which
may be traced, apparently, the lines of
streets. The aboriginal remains IN
crease in size and number as Won APP
proach the town of New Madrid, where
they appear in structures of exceptional
magnitude, single mound, for instance,
being when first discovered POO feet in
circuit, 40 feet high. and girdled by Il
ditch ; feet deep and 10 feet wide. The
impressive character of the earthwOrks
ut this place seems to indicate that here
was the seat of Government, and the
trading capital of a considerable nation
which occupied a wide eXpanSe of terri
tory, scanned by the numerous bayous
which abound in this corner of the State.
That the prehistoric inhabitants had
commercial dealing with the Gulf of
Mexico is demonstrated by the ocean
shells and pearls deposited in their tombS
along with the wares of their own handi
craft. Mr.. COnant has discovered
ground for the opinion that facilities of
water communication were multiplied
by canals and 4 veritable wharf system.
Onthe BAYOU ST. John. forinstance, much
of which is skirted by earthworks, the
author observes that along the shores, in
front of the Enclosures, small tongues of
land have been carried out into the
water from - to 80 feet in length by 10
to 10 in width, with open spaces be-
tween, which forcibly recalled the
wharves Of a seaport town. A careful
study of their contiguration and of the
cypress forest which now chokes the lit
tie bays, went far to remove all doubt of
their artificial origin. Besides turning
to account the bayous and natural water
courses, there is proof, as we have said,
that the mound-builders constructed
genuine canals. One of these connected
the waters of BIG Lake with the Mis-
sisSippi River. Another, now known as
the Cypress Bend Bayou, but which Col.
Walker contended was artificial, linked
BIC Lake to Cushion Lake in the north
ern part of FemiScot County. Col.
Walker pointed out that this channel
was fenced on the side toward the Mis-
sissippi by a huge bank of earth such as
would be made by an excavation, so
that in case of overflow the water from
the river would not wash the dirt back
into the canal. The length of this water
course is about 20 miles, and there are
others in this region whose artificial
character is even more indisputable.
From these facts, Mr. Conant thinksthe
inference is justified that the ancient in
habitants of southeast Missouri had con-
Structed a network of canals which i'm
piled the existence of an extensive trade
between the river bottom, and the in
terror districts, and whichrequired boats
of respectable dimensions.
We need not dwell on the sO-called
/" temple'' and " sacrifcial'' mounds
which have been described elsewhere
OF course the stupendous specimen at
Cahokia, in Illinois, with its graded
way, its terrace, and level summit, is the
best northern representative of the class
that eliminated in the Teocallis of Mex
leo. We NAV note, however, that there
is at New Madrid a similar work of very
considerable though inferior size. As
to the cremation mounds observed by
Mr.. Pidgeon in Wisconsin and Iowa,
none have vet been discovered in Mis-
sonri, where the mode of interment
seems to have always been by burial.
Should future investigations confirm the
view based on tradition that cremation
originally prevailed, but was at some pc
Rod abruptly displaced by mound bu-
rial, then it would seem probable that
southeast Missouri was peopled ut some
time subsequent to that event, and there
fore that the works there eXtant are of
more recent date than those of the Ohio
Valley.
One of Mr.. Conant's important dis
coveries was the novel method of tilling
the ground practised by the prehistoric
race in the billy regions of Missouri.
Here they seem to have evinced the
same admirable economy of feTtilizing
elements which Squier and other inves-
tigators have discerned in the agricul-
ture of the ancient Peruvians. Among