St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1890-09-22
GETTING NEAR THE SUN.
A Mound 1,2OO Feet High Built
by Old SoI's Worshipers.

"A Mound 1900 Feet High Built
by Old SOILS Worshipers.
Charles J. Wimple. one of the wealth.
lest miners of Mexico, is a recent ar
rival in San Francisco. To a represen-
tative of the Call of that city, he told
the following wonderful story:
"YOu have asked me to give an ac-
count of the interesting mountain nv
friend, Jesse ID. Grant, and myself saw
during Our trip through Mexico Ell route
to this city. Well, the mountain is at once
one of the most gigantic exhibitions Of
mans handiwOrk, and something al
most beyond credence were we not IA
Just imagine a valley forty or fifty miles
in area, and from its center
rising a mound over 1000 feet in
height. Then you can realize the first
effect created upon our minds when we
came before the hill | am to describe.
My foreman was with us and had partly
prepared us for the surprise, but we
had treated his story with incredulous
remarks and had by no means suspected
he had but given a modest description
OF the mound.
"We gaZed to the top and allowed
our eyes to follow the windings of a
road down to the base. We went around
the base and co%jectured it was about
one and a half miles in circumference.
Then we started for the summit. 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. The outer edge
OF the road was unguarded. The
stones weigh all the way up to a ton
each and are not cemented. The road
way is as level as a floor and is covered
with broken pieces of e~arthenware
water vessels.
Half way up the mountain is an altar
cut in solid rock; in the niche is a
bowlder which must weigh at least six
tons. The bowlder is of different stone
from that used In the walls. The rocks
in the walls are dressed by skilled work
ScrlptionS. In fact, we had no time to
spare in making a searching investiga-
ton. We did not look for arrow heads
or other warlike implements. to satisfy
ourselves that the mound had not been
used for defensive or offensive pur-
poses. Nor was there any evidence to
prove that the roadway had been built
for the purpose of witnessing bull fights
and other sports i'll the valley. | could
only conclude the Aztec sun worship
erS expended years of labor on the hill
in order that they might have an appro-
pirate place to celebrate their imposing
festivals. inasmuch as the roadway was
strewn with broken ~earthenware, and
those sciOns of a bygOne and notable
race were known to carry at sunrise
large quantities of waterin e~arthenware
jars to an eminence and there pour out
the liquid and smash the vessels.
when we descended we brought
with us a number of small sea shells
which had petrified, and if you look at
these on my table you will see how they
have been perforated by the Indians.
We again took a long look at the mount
ain and saw it was OblOng in shape and
that the upward road commenced 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 jewellers have left such remark
able mementoS of their skill and Gus
toms, but | have never witnessed any
thing so wonderful and magnificent as
the mound which | have been telling
you about.
1.-THE valley is about 600 feet above
the sea level, and is about seventy miles
from the coast. 1t is situated in Sonora,
between the cities of Altar and Magda-
lena, and near the Maddalenas river.
We called the curiosity Palisade mount
ain, II it is we'll named"