Catoctin clarion., 1888-05-03
FICrIONIN zUNI LAND. :
Cosmos Mendeisn: OF the Bureau Of Eth
tsnoiogv Holds' Their, Inhabited Viii
lngeslto Be Modern.

FAnoiogy. Holds Their, Inhabited vii
lngesto Be Modern.
Cosmos Mendelef has returned from
Arizona to Washington. Mendeletf,
as his name indicates, is Russian,
and he is an intelligent and expert ex-
plorer on the staff of Major John W.
Powell. Chief of the Bureau of Ethnol.
ogy. For six years he and his older
brother, Victor, have been engaged in
tho survey of the antique ruins OF
Chaco and the inhabited pueblos OF
Zuni and the seven villages of Tusa-
van, and together they have mapped
the queer habitations of these myster-
ious people. and have made for the
National Museum models of the larg-
est and most interesting pueblos.
Cosmos has made some 800 photo
graphs and large number of free
hand sketches of the strange residences
of this remnant of race.
II don't know that there is much
that is really new," said Mendeleff.
..It was formerly, indeed recently.
thought that the pueblos were very an
cientIthe same in which this half-civ-
ilized race lived ut the time of the
Spanish conquest but we now know
better. The inhabited villages which
exist to-day are all modern.
1t was formerly supposed that the
Tusayan Indians never changed their
places of abode, but held to the same
site from generation to generation.
1t is now known that they have been
in the habit of abandoning their old
houses and building new. In early
days the villages were mostly in the
lowlands, and they were gradually
crowded up or climbed up to the prac-
tically inaccessible mesas-sharp cliffs
easily defensible. The reasons for an
abandonment of villages and the build
ing of others are many, sometimes mill
itary, but often rooted in some super
stition."
l inquired if it was true, as claimed
bv HAYDEN and others, that these an
cieLt people were possessed of myster-
ious geometrical skill, shown in the
LAYING out of their towns and the con-
struction of their homes.
"That's another error exploded" "
said Mr.. Mendeleff "The builders of
these pueblos had very meager archi-
tectural attainments. Their houses
are poor piles of stone and mud.
Their ingenuity was puerile. The ele-
ment of skill is wholly lacking. These
curious ruins are simply an evidence
of the existence of race with unlm-
tied material at hand. Everywhere 10
shown a lamentable act of construct
i've ability. They did not know how
to make square room, or how to rear
one wall at right angles, or how to
build wall plumb to another. or how
to make a circle or even straight
line. Though they had plenty of ma
tcrial for ropes, and probably had
ropes, it seems never to have occurred
to them that by fastening one end OF a
rope to u stake they could describe a
circle with the other. Even their sa-
cred chamber, the estufa. over which
writers have fingered SD fondly, is a
haphazard circle, never round by n
good deal. TIE first break in the
walls of these ruins is where beam
was misplaced. They used stone axes
to cut their t:mbers.
Mr.. Mnndelctf has some very com.
prohcusvc photographs of the seven
Tusavnn villages. Each village con-
sists of Is o. 20 houses and each house
of several residences. The house is
series of terraces, reccding rs they
rise. The first story ia about seven
feet high. and is approached from
without only by a ladder which leads
to q hote in the roof. in war tunes
/ ladder is always pulled up. From
the rear of ths story rls"s the second
story seven feet higher, mounted also
bv ladder. and other ladders lead to
a third and perhaps fourth story OF
course the first story under this Ar.
ranye,icnt is nf much the largest, and
the upper story of much the smallest,
area. and as the latter is the lightest,
the best ventilated aud the safest, be-
Ing defens Bile from ali the roofs be-
low. il is the favorte habtation, and
usually occupied by the officials and
the aristocracy. 1t is estimated that
in all the seven Tnsayan villages there
are 1000 people. They live mainly
on Indian corn. sguashes and beans.
They are under Mormon iniiusnce and
will not permit a census or hold much
intercourse wit, Americans. Colonel