The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1884-08-23
PREHISTORIC PEOPLE,
RILlcs Of THE uNcAaoNlcLEo PAST
uasat:hsi 90 Hh..linz l,iaad IN Exei,stisE fot
i tbs Foundation Of . NV. HeaH-An lhsitnt
si = .Ctsstery lavIdtd AID htntniots OF 4
sV Al ysaIiLtd RIcs Recovered.

Last week tho 1sTELLiozSczR contained an
account OF Tie n1ding Of q human skeleton
or tue Island, which from other objects ur.
covered ut the same time was evidently all
Tint MAS loft Of one Of the "Mound Build.
ersu or q! least Of one Of tho Aborlsines who
hava now disappeared from this part OF the
continent, The publication Ltlsautsd good
deal Of interest, and several irquiritu or
statements Of other eimilar dltolysries were
called out by the Item. Among othor com.
muuioations received ,wss oaa from Prof.
Wills DeHGsi Of the Smithsonian Institute,
WEbhlngton, D. O., Gnthor oil history OF
We, Virginia. He writer from Forest View,
In the Allegheny mountain: 5ssI.7ss'
Returning " Whss'ing on the 18Th inst,
from the Mouadsyillu Camp Meeting,
10Y attention was called 10 al item
In the 1Kr,LLegsCKR announcing Ger.
tain discoveries IN tIcavating for 8 building
on the Island. wont directly over and found
the pLAce, 90 tho southwes! corner Of Indiana
and North Broadway st;eeis. az n ~
This men doing the work coon returned,
and gathered foil particulars Of their dis.
coysry. They had found % the day was
there two additional human Skeletons, with
pottury, beats. Btone implements, go. The
depo,itl ore about thirty inches below the
surface. Iexamincd where one had been fe-
Gently removed. II WIS reported e. lying
face tuvnwsr. The frame he'd been taken
up and destroyed before my arrival. With
Ihi8 was FUND numerous shell besds and
many fresA.Tster shells. These psouliarities
oharaoterzs most Of The discoveries made.
Tie skeleton lay East and West, but this is
not distinctive feature OF some discoveries
in ths Ohio Valley. III tho case under con:
s!defat!0n tho remains appear TO have been
mainly sgclosea with cobbls stones. 4
Upon the same lsstl with the ,oaseous re-
Mains strong evidences OF FIRE were sssu-
charcoal, ashes and considerable quantities
Of pottery. i col!ecssd some OF tue latter.
which Is composed Of clay and shel!s Sand
stone axes, chisels etc, have also been found,
tho locality, embracing an area etesvs,sl lots
and par.s Of streets, maniftstly constituting
part Of an ancient burial place. 6ome years
since In excava.iug o cellar for the house OF
Mr.. Luksns On the disgonel corner, numsr.
Gus stone implements and personal ornk.
ments were d!tcays,ed. Similar dlscoyerlci
have 0iien been made on ncighboring lois or
in grading streets. 1t 10 10 b regretted that
tho discoveries hRve no: been rendered val.
liable 10 science. With few exceptions the
skeletons and art reinaius havo been de-
at.oyed or lost. Sums boys IN the neigh
borhood have saved few unimpo,tant
relits. :. III b, A : =
The discoveries are not aucmolous. eim:-
lar depositorics fcr the dead have besn I'M
e,rtnsd at different places along the Ohio.
Tho writsr has examined and discovered
many from the M0nongahels to the Illinois.
immediately above tho mouth OF Short
Creek, below Welltbu.g, Is an extensive
csmetery OF this description from which
many valuable relics hAvs bsan iakeo. ~
Above the mouth Of Big Craze Greek, az
oths! occurp, from which, o few months since,
he Hotkmtn on The 0Eio River railroad took
sons haespscimeIs CT archaic art.
| Perheps the most remarkable discoveries OF
THE ulass Is tliatst Mcdisonvllle above Ciucin.
natl, which the writer visited and brought to
hs notice Of tho division OF Anthrcpology, o.
the American Scientific Association, during
Us MEETING at Cincinnati In August, 1881,
More recent explorations have covered mauy
ESTes and hays afforded valuable results to
| American Archaeology. X
regret that my time YVES limited, but l
| cocld net remain, ard possibly supsrintend
explorations, bat hopa at a later day
[, to reyioit your city.
4 friend at Wheeling having req 1csted my
visTa rs to the plscs in Archologi, to which
these remains are 10 be Unsigned, might ssy,
they ssa pudeniably prehistoric, but less
sncient than the mounds. Tho remains OF
srs thus fsr- described chow this to be thu
csss. The pottery is rude snd sur-dried,
the beads wrouxht from shells found
along tho river. Q lanti.ies Of such shells are
found in their origiusl slate. Il Is to DO re-
eret!ed tina. careful and Systematic research
csnrot be prosecuted upon this
ground. Some Of the facet monuments Of
prehistoric America are rapidly disappear.
ing before the advance OF practicsl industry
aud civilization. l IVES in sId upon Grave
Creek mound the other day, and the evil
concs Of destruction wss everywhere mani.
fest. This 10 simply vandalism.