Northern tribune. [volume] (Cheboygan, Mich.) 1875-1885, 1880-12-11
AN AMERICAN HERCULANEUM AND
= POMPEIl. F

Wonderful Discoveries in New Mexico
New and Remarkable Traces
of "A Persisted Race.
America, as well as Italy, has its Her
culaneum and POmpeii, if we may be-
lieye the report of Messrs. Patterson and
Mackley, two gentlemen engaged in
mining in New Mexico, who have just
arrived i'm ST. Louis, with remarkable
specimens and more remarkable state
ments. Some stupend0us ruins have
been discovered at AbO City, in the Man
zana or Apple Mountains, in Valencia
county, about twenty miles west of the
Rio Grande river, and nearly the same
distance from the AtchisOn, Topeka and
Santa Fe railroad. The district was
once very pOpulous, but has now no in
habitants. We learn from long report
in the Republican that there is evidence
of vast volcanic eruptiOns in the vicin-
ity, which overwhelmed large cities and
buried them and their Inhabitants, in
hot ashes. There are lava beds fifty
miles in extent, and at one time the era
ter of emo of the mountains must have
been 60 miles across. The remains of
temple with walls sixty feet high and
ten feet thick, and covering an acre of
ground were fonnd.. The timber, which
is pinOn wood, was as sound as when
first cut.
There are on one side of the piece of
timber some rude figures, one of the ALI
Seeing Eye, representing probably the
sun. Other figures are deeply indented
in the wood, as if made by anything but
a sharp-edged tool. Mr.. Patterson says
that he found some hammers, but moth
ing in the shape of sharp-edged or steel
tools. There are small burrows seen in
the wood, as if plOwed out with stone
gOuge. The building evidently belong
ed to style of architecture anterior to
the adobe and dried brick period. Mr..
Patterson inclines to the opinion that
the locality was the site of one of the
seven cities mentioned by the Spanish
Chronicles. the author of which travers-
ed the country after the conquest of
Mexico, among which were the cities of
CamelOne, Grand Cavrs, Santa Cruz,
Puerto de AbO, the AbO, and the old PecOs,
and another situated few miles west of
AbO, in the lava beds.
Another specimen is human skull,
evidently that of a young female, as
shown by the teeth, which was exhumed
about half a mile from the church.
Skulls are quite plentiful among the old
ruin in the vicinity.
About five miles from the AbO Springs
they have discovered some ancient silver
diggingS. The smelters were built of
adobe of sun-dried bricks, and were ele-
waited some twenty or thirty feet above
thu cnrfoaa of ha Tn,
down they found the remains of char
coal, which was used for fuel by the old
smelters. There were also seen remains
of an aqueduct i'm which water was con-
veyed from a spring three-fOurths of
mile distant to q dam which diverted
the water into the smelling works.
About five acres was found covered with
Stag, which Mr.. Patterson has taken I'D
for mill-site. From the old furnaces
trail was found, after considerable ex-
plOrati0n, leading directly from the
smelling works to the mine in the
mountains, which here rise in peaks to
a height of 10000 feet. The ancient
trail pursues zigzag course, having a
length of some five miles, while, in an
air line, the distance is not much ex-
ceeding one mile. Everything was trans
ported in those old mining days on mems
shoulders to and from the mountains.
There arenOw trees of the "pinOn" grow
ing on the trail larger than mans
body, showing the antiquity of the path.
Mr.. Patterson said he was two weeks in
discovering the mines after finding the
smelling works. T
The mines from which the silver was
taken was concealed by fallen timber,
some of which had taken root. 1t took
nearly fortnight to clear it away. 1t
was found to be seventy feet deep with
several horizontal shafts. A lot of pot
terry was also discovered. and also rich
Turquoise mine which bore evidence of
former working. The pottery consists
of drinking vessels used by these old in
habitants of the country. The vessels
are of various designs, representing sew
eral species of birds and antelope. Some
of the specimens are striped and spotted
with black colOring. An old miner
named Baxter found, in digging down,
chamber about ten feet square, having
on one side fireplace, across which
hung crane having clay hook, and at
the end of the hook was bone. On the
opposite side of the fireplace was found
the skeleton of man in sitting posi-
ton, who was evidently watching the
bone roasting for his meal, when he and
his habitatiOn were overwhelmed lin
ruin by a sudden discharge of lava from
the mountain.