Sharp County record., 1880-09-09
Interesting Relies of the Mound Builders.

Yesterday | examined a collection of
relics-not exquisitely beautiful, but
exquisitely old-from various points
a2ong the valleys of the San
Pedro, the Gila and the Rio Grande.
They were mainly broken potteries, a
few sacred whisperingstoneS from old
essagas, rude arms of aztL, and the IA
miliar flint arrows, such as have been
discovered in every portion Of the globe
where there are graves of men. Among
many trinkets offered, | chose a little
looking-glass of It'll and an amulet of
chalcbuitS from the ruins Of prehistoric
city near FL Paso. 1t was close to the
Texas line and within the limit Of the
mound-builders' region. selected
these tribes because they were feminine
belongings, and brought me nearer than
the pipes and hatchetS could bring me
to my dead and gone sisters. The
mirror, about half the size ofyour hand
is made of it'll, or obsidian, an exceed
ingly hard, vitreous substance, plentiful
in volcanic countries, of smoky tint and
capable of high polish. The art of
working this intractable material is
practically lost in our times, but when
wrought by the Indigene was useful as
iron or tempered steel.
The amulet and twenty heads of cbal-
chuits were hidden in black glazed
jar, of the shape made by natives to-
day, buried in a cave many feet below
the surface of the ground. 1t was acci-
dentally opened in 1873 by party of
miners digging for silver. Probably a
treasure-house abandoned at the last
moment, when the besieged inhabitants
fled before a victorious army. Stone
hammers were found near the cave, ar
row-heads, hatchets, Serrated swords
of tztH, like the Aztecan and half hu-
man skull, evidently broken by blow
of the hatchet or tomahaWk.
The amulet is perhaps half an inch
long, one-eighth of an inch thick-an
irregular square, rudely carved and
smoothed, probably by rubbing with
another stone. The veining on one
side gives the semblance of star. A
hard tool and patient hand must have
been required to drill hole through
this stubborn stone. The string which
threaded it has gone to dust, the hand
which carved it and the race of which it
is q faint trace are vanished into the
voiceless past. Long lines of PROSTATE
walls, miles of aceQaiaS. or ilrigating
bitches, broken potteries, profusely
scattered, indicate dense popula-
ton once held the valley near Ell
Paso and lived in cities containing
twenty thousand or thirty thousand
souls. There is no reason to believe the
modern inhabitants of this country be-
long to a proud line, Shorn of its ancient
splendors. They have no sort of his
tory and among the people without
written language, poetry, or music ira
dition soon becomes confused. All their
remains and three hundred years of con.
tinuous history show they have steadily
declined in power and numbers; but
they are and have always been misera-
bly, poor. Their fabrics, arms, archi-
lecture are of the coarsest, most primi-
tive description
The vessels of silver and of gold de-
scribed by early explorers to a waiting
and expectant world have not been
found in this or any other spot in New
Mexico They existed only in the
fevered fancies of adventurers blinded
by their own imaginings, drunk with
their own conceits. If metals we count
valuable were concealed in the ancient
treasure-house, they are lost in the
deep grave with the dead centuries.
Only these trilling memorials have es-
capped the common doom. Mrs. G0U-
ernOr Wallace, in the Christian Union.
The census shows thirty-four sets
of twins in Union Comfy. N e..