Sharp County record., 1890-09-11

BallZe Indian hunter who knew some
thing Of the interior country. We tray-
eled ten days through the widest coun.
try that any one ever heard of. Noun.
tains whose snowy tops were thousands
OF feet above the clouds and whose sides
were covered with jungles so thick that
for days together we simply had to hew
our way through it. At last we reached
valley, the other side of which was
bounded by separate chain Of noun
tains. These, from where we stood,
seemed perfectly unassailable, but my
companion said he had been on top Of
them.
From the summit, he said you
can see the Chihuandassi.'
81 had heard of the Chihuandassi.
The name means Table of Dead Men,
and the Indians say it is covered with
plants that have the power of motion.
Have you ever been on the Chi
huandassi?' ! asked
" No man has ever gone there and
returned to tell of it, he answered.
1--WE crossed the valley, passing
through the ruins of great city built
of almost transparent quartz, and final
ly struck the trail he spoke of and two
days later stood on the top. On the
other side was a narrow gulch and be-
yond it a sheer wall many hundreds of
feet high Still the top of this was
lower than we were and we could look
down upon the Table of Dead Men,
The mesa on the other side of the gulch
seemed perfectly level, and as far as we
could Judge was surrounded on all sides
by just such precipice as we saw The
country is all sandstone, and the swift
little rivers have nearly all worn deep
channels for themselves. In many To-
calities you can walk one hundred
miles, be able to throw stone into the
river, and yet you may die Of thirst, so
high and erect are those fearful walls.
The Chihuandassi was covered with
some low vegetation, and there were
few trees in The distance.
"'That is the flower that travels, said
my companion.
'He noticed my look of amused in
credulity and resumed rather angrily:
"'You don't believe 1t? have seen
it move. Look therep
81 looked. The table was agitated
and looked like the waves of the sea.
The whole green surface seemed to APP
proach the edge nearest us. My hair
rose for moment, then | burst out
laughing. 1T is only the wind tossing
the snakeweed, | said.
"'But there is no wind here
"He spoke truly. The air where we
stood was perfectly still. Yet, | ex-
planned, it might be breeze engen-
dered by the nature of the country that
did not extend to our side.
"'No, no, he insisted. The Indians
who have lived here for years know
better Those flowers are devils. No
one who goes ever comes back from
there
1.-TWO Indians who loved one woman
wentup on the Chihuandassi to battle.
Human eyes never again saw them
alive. We are told that they fell vic
tins to the flower that creeps.
81 had first.class pair of glasses
with me and / directed them to the
plateau. Half covered with the vines
and creepers could see something
white. There were two spots that might
be skulls, and l thought could trace
the outlines of two human forms. They
might have been rocks, and were doubt
less what originated the Indian legend.
San idea suddenly occurred to me
that this story Of certain death to who
ever won't up to that mountain-top was
a story of the Indians to prevent any one
from going th9re.
"T'll bet a horse said l. that the
mine is there, and I'm going to see.'
"Well, to cut it short, | left him
there, and, with one mule, started for
the Chihuandassi. calculated that !
could get around in three days, and told
him to camp there and wait for me. 1t
was nasty work getting down into the
river-hed, but did it before night, and
had the satisfaction of camping on an
old trail that night Early tho next
morning entered n hssure at the base
of the lone mountain, 1t was u dry
water course, not more than dozen
feet wide, and wound around between
high sandstone walls, ltwas, however
comparatively free from brush, and !
got along famously for time. There
were many rNttlosnakes and centipedcs
along the old water course, but nothing
moro.
81 had boon going up the old channel
for probably four hours, getting higher
oyory step, Tho walls OF tho water
course were getting lower and at this
point was not moro than forty foot
below tho surface AS turned u sharp
bond, however, came right up against
u bowldcr that completely filled the
creek bed, The trail ended right thore.
IL appeared MS II the rock had recently
rolled down to whore itlay, thought
that II | could climb over II could
continue on up tho @Otor course. So |
started to climb Tho bowlder was
rough enough to enable mo to gain
holds for my hands and rcot, and though
twas slow, hard work and often slipped
back, at last managed to surmount IL
and stood ON top TO my intense sur