The Arkansaw traveler., 1885-02-07
THE DFrHRoNED GODS.


 of Mexico to the New Orleans Zimss- Demeeyat, says:
 Until a few months past, the patio of the National Museum presented SO many oh;ects of iztszesa that the visitor was ,emuted to spend his time in that pleas- ant spot instead sof puEsuiHg his invest- cations still further in the room above. Besides the Sacri6cial stone and its guardian genius, there was a host of other antiquities of all sorts and sizes, some mineiiAg their grotesque outlines v;th the luxnriant foliage of tropical shrubbery, and others heaped together in 2 confused mass beneath the gray stone arches of the corridor, all alike exposed to the destroying action of the clements, which in their remorseless course are never deterred by respect for hoary age or the sacred associations of history. A due regard for the preservation of these precious memorials of early Mexican civilization led the directors of the mu- scum to consider the expediency of add ing a large hall in which they might be placed, and the idea is now being carried into effect. Part of the palace building to the rear of the court is te be con verted into an elegant abode for these dethroned gods of a mythology long since passed away. At present, howev,r, the prospect is not very inviting, as the room is in the hands :. the work people, and confusion and disorder reign on all sides. Out of this chaos rise certain forms which at once attract our attention and excite our curiosity.
 The most prominent of these, on ac- count of its large size and the clear-cut outlines of its form, is the figure of a man, in life proportions, half reclining and with it's hands clasping a circular vessel, which is hollowed out of the body. The features are remarkably distinct and natural, and the type of the face as well as the head ornaments strike one as being decidedly Egyptian. ca its breast is suspended a decoration like those worn in ancient times only by nobles of the highest rank t; around it's arms are bracelets, and the sandals on its feet dis play great beauty of execution. Both the statue and the pedestal upon which it rests are cut out of one piece, and the artistic talent manifested in the whole work indicates clearly that it must have been produced by a nation possessing a high degree of civifz ation.
 This figure is no other than the cele- brated chaacmol, or leopard king, dis covered and thus named by Dr. Le Plongson during one of his exploring visits to Yucatan. The circumstances under which this venerable efigy was brought to the light of our modem world are thus described by ST. Vicente Riva PAlacio in his report to congress in 1877 {: There exists in the deserts of Yucatan, thirty-six leagues distant from Merida, its capital some remarkable monumental ruins, to which the name Chicken-ltza has been given, and whose origin is lost in the obscurity of the ages. Their situa- ton in the hostile camp of Indians con- tinually in a state of revolution is the cause of their being scarcely, if at all, known, until the end of the year 1874 when, to the general amaz sment, an American traveller and learned archeolo- gist Or. Augustus Le Plongeon) took up his abode among them, in company with his young and intelligent wife. They both devoted themselves with much as- siduity to taking photographic views of whatever they found worthy of note. But they did not limit their work to this. The distinguished doctor and his lady, sup. porting with patient heroism the trials and perils of that dreary solitude, passed their days in drawing up plans and trans ferring to paper the mural paintings which are still preserved on some edi- fees. At one time privileged persons who visited them feared for the reason of the arch cheologist so entirely absorbed was he in his meditations, until finally they came to an end when he ran hastily and directly to certain spot and proudly planting his foot upon the ground, said {: Here it isp And there indeed it was"
 The expressive "it :" referred to was the statue of Chaacmol, which pr. Le Plongeon had been led to believe, from his close study of the mural paintings, could be found in that exact place. It seems hard that after all the time, thought and labor expended in the dis covery of this prehistoric relic, the learned explorer should not have reaped the fruit of his pains, but that the govern ment should have asserted its right and carried of the prize in triumph. It was transported to the museum of Yucatan before being brought to Mexico, and the obstacles of the road, together with the immense size of the statue, rendered the transit an extremely difficult one. Quite little army of Indians was employed in dragging this colossal monument to its destination, and they were beset with all manner of superstitious fears, declaring, among other things, that in the small houre If fhe uiUhf fhA ennsrd kin0 would rouse them from repose by hts re- peated calls of " Conexl Conex r {" Move on Move on rC
 Dr. Le Piongeon declared that this statute was not an idol, as has since been affirmed by some arche alogist, but the representation ot a king who once lived in that region, and to whom . grand mausoleum was erected by his wife, the queen of Iza. The latter edifce was dis;nterred by the indefatigable explorer, and from the descriptions given of it's beautiful carving and mural paintings, the monument must have been one