The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1881-05-05
The Mound. Builders.

The Mound. Builders.
The mound builder was an aericul.
turist, as we find by the ancient garden.
beds and by his implements. He had
tool which, if it were not hoe, wa,
simply made In vain.
He made and wore garments of cloth,
for we have seen fragments of the
shroud that enveloped his form and the
stone shuttle that was used in weaving
the material. The fact of his having
and using these articles necessitated
the cultivation of fields, and the people
who wore cloth garments would live in
comfortable houses that were probably
made of wood in this region and adobe
in the Southwest. He was not q roam
ing or restless being. tor he had
venerated sacred places and favorite
localities for residences, which vert
generally near some river or lake. Hit
bill of fare varied. no doubt, but he was
fond of fish, for his fishing-spears arc
found in great quantities near the site.
of his villages and in the beds of the
streams he frequented. He not only
used spears, hut also had seines, for the
sinkers are often found on the shores.
He was not low or groveling in hi
tastes, for AMONG the thousands of Oh
jects recovered from the mounds but
one single specimen borders on the OBJ
scene. He was industrious, for his
works indicate many weary days o
labor, not only on the mounds but or
objects that were evidently designed tt
embellish his temples, decorate his per
son, or adorn his home.
He loved his children, and in one re.
spect at least they were like our own
for they had their toys--tiny stone
hatchets, no larger than a big mans
thumb-nail, fashioned with the same
skill that characterized those made fol-
hard service.
picture writing by which he commune
Gated thought or kept record o.
events, as evidenced by the stone slabs
of Davenport, the tablet from Grave
Greek and the inscribed stone of Gin
cinnati.
He had knowledge of practical sur.
veying, for his elaborate works at New.
ark and Marietta are laid out with pre-.
cision; the squares and circles, EN-.
bracing acres in extent, are accurately
described and his places for defense
admirably constructed.
He was trader. and held communi.
cation with those who were at long
distance from him, for we find in Iowa,
Wisconsin, Illinois and Ohio mounds
obsidian from Mexico, in the form Of
implements and also in its rough state,
and sheets of mica which he could only
have obtained by peaceful purchase OF
q system of barter.
His religion was superior to that Of
most idolators, for his divinity was an
exalted one--the most powerful mani
festation Of benignity that was present.
ed to his mind, for it was the sun.
He did not depend on the slow method
of conveying news by carriers, but
flashed his signals from mound to mound,
miles apart.
He made his own pottery out of q
substance formed by the union of clay
and powdered shells, and the articles
produced were good; he had taste for
ornamentation, and sketched fanciful
designs on the vases that held his food
and the pipes in which he smoked his
tobacco. He cultivated corn and left
that as legacy to the Indians, who in
turn transmitted it to us; he was not,
however, so far advanced in civilization
as to make whisky out of it. and right
here we file our claim of superiority
over the mound-builder. He loved dis
play, for we have his baton of office, q
highly ornamented ak of green stone,
made entirely too frail and too beautiful
to have been employed in crushing
skulls. He was mechanic; nomodern
stone cutter could shape flint arrow
head OF such exquisite beauty and in
such true proportions. He was wood
chopper, for we have his great stone ak
weighing twelve pounds, and which to-
day, If properly adjusted to handle,
would do good execution.
He was miner, for we find his de-
serted mines on Lake Superior and his
stone tools just as he left them in the
shaft. He was social being, for he
lived in villages; religious. for he Of
fered up sacrifices to the sun; affec-
tionate, for he was sometimes buried
in the same mound with his children,
and a believer in immortality, for his
choicest property was often placed be-
side him in the grave that he might en-
Joy it in the land that was as mysteri-
Gus to him as it is to us.
Before closing this branch of the
subject another paragraph might be
added which will throw some light on
points that are Important: In con-
structing works, such as we have de-
scribed, there is implied system OF
labor and the employment of such q
large number of persons as to pre-
clude the idea that they could have
been fed on the spoils of the chase
alone. Barbarians construct no per-
manent defenses. build no temples, pay
but little attention to the disposal oil
their dead. and change their habita-
tions as the game they subsist upon mi
CRATES. Such a magnificent system Of
public works as was carried forward at
Newark, and in buii ling such mounds
as are at Cahokia, involved the neces-
sity of a government that was strong
enough to protect the weak and feed
the laborers, and subsistence could
only be gathered by a resort to agri.
tulture.-S. B. Evaas, in the Chicago
Tribune.