The Vancouver independent. (Vancouver, W.T. [Wash.]) 1875-1910, 1881-02-03
A Prehistoric City.

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to this city after very eyentful trip in
the light Of its results, which were moth
ing less than the discovery OF the re-
mains of great city OF the cave or cliff
dwellers.
The section of the United States Geo
logical Survey, of which Colonel James
Stephenson was in charge, left this city
last August for explorations in Northern
Mem Mexico. They went by rail to
Santa Fe, and there procured mules and
wagons for continuing the journey to
their field of labor. They made some
examinations at Taos, and proceeded
thence to the Indian town of Santa
Clara, on the west bank of the Rio
Grande. While Mt Santa Clara Colonel
Stephenson first heard of some ancient
and abandoned cliff caves situated about
twelve miles westward from Santa Fe.
Procuring Indian guides the explorers
started for the described locality. The
ruins were found situated in the face of
a series of cliffs between the Rio Grande
river and the Jemez Mountains. The
formation consists of q sort of volcanic
mud of pumice stone, which
appears to have been thrown
out from the mountains, flowing down
to be deposited IN the form of wide
mesas or table lands, extending out some
eight miles from the foot of the noun
tains and about thirty miles long, so far
as seen by the biologists; though the
Indians said the cliffs and caves reached
almost to the head of Jamez river, forty
five miles. After the deposit had formed
and became solicited it appears to have
been disturbed by subterranean convul-
sions, which broke the surface frequent
ly and tilted the edges upwards, thus
forming cliffs from the edge of which the
surface descended back toward the
mountain to the next cliff or bluff, and
SO on, presenting the appearance of a
continuous series of lodges back to the
mountain These cliffs or bluffs rise TO
a height of from fifty to five hundred
feet. In the face of the cliffs the habita
tions of numerous people were made
perhaps many centuries ago, and aban-
doned hundreds of years since. Some of
the cliffs contain 2, some B. and others rs
many us five lines of Anticipated dwell
ings rising line above line; and back
toward the mountain tier beyond tier.
Yet, above each cliff and upper line,
there are ruins of rectangular houses
built of blocks of stone of the form of
bricks and adobes, but larger in size.
All of those old dwellings were inhab-
tied probably by the forefathers OF the
present race of Indians, who now occupy
the plains aud valleys with adobe houses,
piled upon each other. and only accessi-
bic by means of ladders or ropes from
above.
The houses on the top of the cliff in
the abandoned city, between the Jemez
mountains and the Rio Grande river, are
rectangular in form, but the caves in
the cliffs are circular, being ten to fifteen
feet in diameter, with arched roofs.
These dwellings were not caves, in
the ordinary sense of the word, as the
entrance to them is narrow, so as to adj
nit of no more than one person ut u
time. The doors look, Mt II distance,
like narrow Sits in the face of the rock.
Within the excavation is commodious,
and around the circumference are many
smaller apartments apparently used as
store-rooms. At opposite sides OF the
inner circle holes were drilled into the
walls, poles having been inserted and
supported ut each end, as though for the
purpose of being used to hold up any
article to be dried, or put beyond the
attack of small predatory animals, If
there were any such in the Indian cities
long ago. At this time, i'll some of those
holes in the walls there are still to be
seen the ends of the poles which We're Mt
one time extended across the apartment;
and in many of the smaller inches are to
be found remains of some sort of charred
small grain, and in other places corncobs
were discovered.
Another interesting and significant fact
discovered in connection with the lodges
in the ledge was that before each line of
dwellings there appears to have been
pavements, sometimes four to five feet in
width, on the broadcast of which were
trails Or foot-paths. In some places
there was only room for one path. Into
the rock OF these paths trails were worn
to depth of five to twenty inches. In
some OF them the imprints of feet may
be seen to this day. On the face of the
rock in places may be found pictures and
hieroglyphics. All the indications point
to the theory that a numerous popula.
ton occupied tho dwellings, IN the cliffs for
ages, and that they had defined ideas of
living comfortably and in safety, far re-
moved above the reach of wild animals
or human enemies. The most inteili-
gent Indian who accompanied Colonel
Stephenson and his party, gave as his
opinion that the cliff houses were once
inhabited by the ancestors of the Pueblo
tribes, and that they were induced to
abandon this style of abode by the mis-
sionaries after the Spanish conquest Of
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