Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1885-04-25
L'REHIST0BEChL RELICS.
Discovery oe :. Cre1aatory furnace Of an
Ancient People.

4 short time ago Judge h etc4lf, living az
SI5 Champa street. II Denver, was hunting
deer with a son u MaECoB or Santa Lucia
valley, New Mexico, 4bCCt twenty-five
miles east g: silver City. While tracking J.
deec over an old Indian trail through &
canyon, they Observed, 80 feet above .ho
creek bottom where they rcre. an opening
or cave, apparently cut INTO the steep side
Of the cliff. Climbing 10 j; with some diff
Guilty, they found c2"e evidently the
work Of man, 100 feet deep, . feet wide,
and about 70 feet high. The door Of this
cave was covered with tie CxcremenL of
bats While resting after the hard climb,
Young Metcatf thrust the ramro1 ut hi, gun
INTO the floor ana felt something rattle
against the end. A small portion Of t3e
covering was then turned up. They ascer-
tanned that the cEC:cMe.t deposit was
from one - three tre. n thick
ness Beneath this WAS s deposit Of
what was atteTwarl found to be animal
charcoal from ten 10 fourteen inches deep,
and under this 4 layer Of ashes packed
lightly down from six t. ten inches deep.
Il was after penetrating the latter that ,hey
made th<iT most Important discovery. This
was large Dulnoel OF relies Ds various
kinds, consisting Cf figures o.. men TUlaiy
carved IN wood, evidently with stone tools,
numerous representations O the rising SIN
made Of ,5l,uts Of wood seWcd together
with thread mace gl the a1er Of aMo!e, or
soapwc.i. with the al OF avis made OF
bone, some OF which were found a repro
scnla,ion VI serpen- Wigh birds bead
cut on Cs wood; arrows With li:n- heads
some Of them very ANAL, l0|s oi various
sizes, stone axes and hammers, large
bHucbe@ Of thread made from the soap
weed fiber, also cotton threads ana
cotton batting IN masses, basket work
OF every descr plion, Including hamp-
ers, breastpiates adorned with shells
and beads. and III other forms whose
use is unknown, long strings Of bends,
and Ions, slender painted sticks tied IL
bundles, and LAT pajn-ad sPlints O: Tcoa,
the latter having characters upon hem, but
whose purpose IS mystery, together Wl,iI
Z large number OF similar articles winch
Judge Metcalf has preserved notwithstand-
ing some fiattering offers which have been
made BY the Smithsonian and other inst
tutionS. The Judge thinks the cave was q
burial place, and that the deposit Of animal
charcoal IS the remains IF wholesale Gre
nation Of the dead who were probably
killed in some great battle. This belief IS
strengthened nos only by the opinion Of
several learned professors, who have visited
the spot in has company, but by the sections
of small band of Indians whose medicine
or wise mea he invited to bis house to see
his relies. These Indians were encamped
q short distance from his house, and he
sent an invitation for the medicine men 10
come over, out the whole band, tot he num-
Der Of forty. responded and came trooping
over in q manner that at first alarmed
him. making peculiar cries. Upon bringing
the various articles out in front Of the
house they formed u ring around them
and joined in a solemn dance, uttering a
sort of chant Upon asking an e%plana-
tion rom tho interpreter be said they re-