Frostburg mining journal. [volume] (Frostburg, Md.) 1871-1913, 1892-10-22
PREHISTORIC ARIZONA.


Evidences Of aCivi,igi.rIon Older Than That
OF Egypt
That Arizona was inhabited before
the dawn of history, and by II people,
perhaps two races OF people, well adj
yanccd in the arts Of civilization. is be.
yond question. The traces of their oc.
cupaucy are of the clcarest and most
unmistakable character, and while the
period in which they possessed it and
the cause and manner of their expulsion
are shrouded in impenetrablc mystery,
proofs of their presence for perhaps
thousands of years are to he found in
the caves, mounds, ruined cities. and
canals which abound along the Salt and
CHA rivers from the point of their in
ception to their confluence with tho
Colorado. The Little Colorado, the
Verde. and the San Pedro also show
many traces of a people we'll informed
IN certain civilization and who have
for at least a thousand years been OK
Inrt
The peculiar drvness of the atmos-
phcre has had n wonderful effect in pro.
tccIing the ancient relics from the raw
scattered through the country. and
which represent ruined houses. NAV bo
found olias filled with parched corn a4d
beans in as good state of preservation rs
they were the day they were hidden
from the elements by the fearful sand
storm that must have prevailed when
they were buried
The loaves in the ash covered ovens
OF Pompen were preserved on the same
principle. The iine sand of the desert
must have drlfted over everything, and
they were thus preserved as the mute
historians of a vanished race Their
erection of concrete buildings through
out the country shows these lost people
to have been we'll versed in the construc-
ton OF edices adapted to the region
and its climatic changes.
by far the most interesting remains
OF tins people are their network Of ca
nails which prevail through all tho val
lryS of the Territory. The longest is
the one tapping the ella river, and
which supplied with water the ancient
city, now only marked by one standing
building This is the Casa Grandc,
about which so much has been write.
and which has excited so much interest
among arrh~ologists during the last
ten years This canal was hftv-fivc
miles in length and for most of the dis
tance twcnty-eisht feet in width, with a
depth of sixteen feet The volume Of
water taken ont of the river must have
been immense, for it supported both
the animal and vegetable life of val
ley containing millions of acres. In
places this canal has become filled with
drifting sand, but for the most part its
course is easily traced,
One of the most notable specimens of
these canals is in the Salt River Valley,
and only three miles from the present
city of Phoenix. 1t taps the Salt River
opposite Tempe, and for two miles runs
almost parallel with that stream. The
oId hcadgate is partly standing, and for
this distance the ditch is perfectly open,
and all that would be necessary for it to
supply the country with water again
would be to open the headgate by re.
moving the stones and concrete with
which it is filled Two miles from it's
l''t'l 'IlSlhtflS no lptttlN'tl inc 4NItfl-
r"pa Canal, made use of the old Aztec
ditch, and to-day the water runs over
It's pehbly bottom just as il did two or
three thousand years ago; but how diff
ierent is the condition of the people it
supplies.
The ditch was only nine miles in length
and not so large as the one on the desert
of the Casa Grande, but it ran through
the heart of city with population of
no less than 500, 900
For miles and miles the mounds. in
perfectly regular order tell the tale of
houses destroyed by the ravages of timo
and of magnihccnce not excclled to-
day. Mr., Cushing directed his atten-
ton principally to excavating in this
section during his researches for the
New England Historical Society, and he
was rewarded by unearthing many stone
axes, vessels, and even Skeletons His
conclusion was "that the people must
have lived in the stone age, long before
the infancy even of Egyptian ciyiIiZa-
ton.
Phoenix was built on the ruins of this
ancient city, hence its name, and not "A
month passes but some one picks MP II
stone knife, axe, or some other relic but
they are dumb as to the history Of their
owners. The only hicrogIyphics the
lost race have left are those on tho
painted rocks across the Salt River from
Phoenix. They cover the mountain sido
for acres, and they have always puzzled
the student and scientist The nearest
apparent conclusion that has been ar
rived at is that they tell of the martial
exploits of their painters and are u his
tory of their tribal wars
One thing is apparent to the student
of things ancient when he looks ON
these canals and ruined cities pcrmcat-
ing both this country and Mexico, and
that is that the civilization of Egypt
was yet in its infancy when this peopIe
had been cxtcrminated San Francisco
Chronicle
The Queen of Denmark is pariiru-
larly clever in millinery, II talent which
has been inherited by her three dauph-