Tombstone epitaph., 1890-05-03
STRANGE PAINTINGS.
A Great Indian Battle Scene Depicted on
 Rocks in New Mexico.

A Great Indian Battle scene DeplcIeu On
 Rocks in New Mexico.
 There has recently been discovered, according to the Philadelphia Times, neau Dona Ana, N. M., on the banks of the Rio Grande, stone bearing the rec ord in series of pictures of an Indian fight between two tribes. The pictures, which arc painted ia bright rcd on the faco of tho rock, which is nearly fat, show them to be the work of a more skillful hand than was common among the Indians, and betrays even slight perception Of perspective which is en- tirely unique. The lasting qualities of tho paint manufactured by the Indians, the secret of which has never been dis covered, are well known, weather and time producing no porcoptible effect upon it, but actually seeming to deepen and intensity it.
 The exact date of the inscription i4, of course, not to be arrived at, but from the half-buried condition of the stone and other marks it is safe to suppose that it is at least three hundred years old, if not of much more remote antiquity. It's great age is proved further by there be- ing no knowledge of such tremendous fight as is here represented since the coming of the white man to this r2Glon.
 On being questioned on tie sU! .cct, however, an old Indian ca.cd Bobby One-Eye, who is well known Tn thrse parts, and who claims to be 1l0 years old, declared that he had heard of a great battle that occurred 'lonEa, tonga ago." far to the west. So vague was he, though, that it was easy to soc that he merely repeated an old tradition. The pictures are eight in number and di- vided from each other by lines into chapters of the history of the event. Bobby Onc-Eye seemed perfectly fa-Iil- jar with this style of writing and read fly translated the inscription
 The first picture represents the figure of an Indian brave, decorated with feathers and armed with tomahawk, bow and culver. Beneath the warrior are five hundred minute strokes which tell the number of fighting men in the tribe. Tie second picture is that of 9 bird flying toward the setting sun. This, Bobby said, shows that their jour ney was to the westward. In smaller figures are the new moon and a buck, which gives the time as being in the first quarter of the buck moon, an swering to July. The third picture con sists of seven suns and as many stars, which indicates that they were seven days and nights on the way.
 The next picture is that of the sun rising over number of wigwarls and a hand pointing with three fingers to a crouching panther. According to the interpretation of the Indian this signi- fies that they arrived at the habi- tation of their enemies at sunrise and then lay in wait three days. The fifth picture shows where their enemies, numbering 800, were surprised while asleep. This is told by the wigwams, near which lies man sleeping and be- meath him that number of strokes. They killed with the tomahawk 200 of the foe and took fifty prisoners. The sixth picture shows this by head eleven with tomahawk with 200 lines be- meath, and man with his hands and feet bound and fifty lines. That their own loss was 178 is represented il the seventh picture by head So nun bered, and inclosed in bow, which was the emblem of honor. The cighth picture shows their triuEphal march back toward the rising sun, their cne- mics in full flight, which is represented by flight of broken arrows in the op- posito direction and the huts of tho van quiahod in flames. Tie stone is q large, upright one, worn smooth by the action of water in some past arc, and IS fully twenty-five feet in be- Eht by sixteen wide. The pictures begin near the top, extending to within four feet of the base. It is a subject for speculation how the artist suspended or elevated himself 50 as to be able to paint the first four or five of his sketches. Tie stone was nearly buried under the saad and earth, and its inscription was oniy acci- dentally discovered by Mexican ranch man of the neighbOrhood, who, catch ing glimpse of the rcd paint, scraped away enough of the soil to see that it was the work of man.