Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1890-11-20
THE SUN WORSHIPERs.
A Stone Roadway Built by Them 1eO0
Feet Up Mound.

Charles j. Wimple one of the wealth.
lest miners of Mexico. is a recent ar
rival in San Francisco. To represen-
tative of the Gail he told the following
wonderful story.
You have asked me to give an ac-
count OF the interesting mountain my
friend. Jesse ID. Grant and myself saw
during our trip through Mexico en-
route to this city. Well. that noun
tain Is at once one of the most gigantic
exhibitions of mans handiwork, and
something almost beyond credence
were we not already familiar with the
works of the AztecS
just imagine a valley forty by
thirty miles in area. and from its CEN
ter rising mound over 1,200 feet in
height. Then you can realize the first
effect created upon our minds, when
we came before the hill I am to de-
scribe. My foreman was with us, and
had partly prepared us for the sur
prise, but we had treated his story
with IncredulouS remarks. and had by
no means suspected he had but given
modest description of the mound.
I'VE gazed TO the top and allowed
our eyes to follow the windings of
road down to the base. We went
around the base and coniectured it was
about one and half miles in circum-
ference. Then we started for the sum-
nit. The roadway was built of solid
rock clear to the pinnacle, and was
from thirty to forty feet in width A
wall of solid rock formed a foundation
and an inside wall at the same time.
No o,lyrn 3 ~,
guarded. These stones weigh all the
way up to ton each, and are not
cemented. The roadway is as level as
a floor, and is covered with broken
pieces of earthenware water vessels.
half way up the mountain is an
altar cut in solid rock: in the niche is
bowlder which must weigh ut least six
tons. The bowlder is of different stone
from that used in the walls. The rocks
in the walls are dressed bv skilled
workmen, but are not polished. We
saw no inscriptions; in fact, we had no
time to spare in making searching
investigation. We did look for arrow
heads or other warlike implements to
satisfy ourselves that the mounds had
not been used for defensive or offensive
purposes. Nor was there any evidence
to prove that the roadway had been
built for the purpose of Witnessing bull
fights and other sports in the valley. |
could only conclude that the Aztec sun
worshipers expended years of labor on
the hill in order that they might have
an appropriate place to celebrate their
imposing festivals, inasmuch as the
roadway was strewn with broken
fi,,,
bygone and notable race were known
to carry at sunrise large quantities of
water in earthenware jars to an emf
hence and then pour out the liquid and
smash the vessels.
when we descended we brought
with us a number of small sea shells
which had petritied. and if you look at
these on my table you will see how
they have been perforated by the In
dians. We again took long look at
the mountain and saw it was oblong in
shape and that the upward road COM
menced on the eastern side. | have
travelled on both sides of the mountains
from British Columbia to Central
America. and on either side of the
Sierra Madres where the cliff-dwellers
have left such remarkable mementos
OF their skill and customs, but | have
never witnessed anything so wonder
full and magnificent as the mound
which | have been telling YOU about.
The valley is about 600 feet above
the sea level, aud is about SEVENTY miles
from the coast. 1t is situated in Sonora,
between the cities Of Altar and Magda-
lena, and near the Magdalena river.
We called the curiosity Palisade noun
tain and is well named