Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1893-03-14


/ Upon draccnding. one finds the caves
/ literally filled with building, Of various
sizes. IN cavcrus having q dit floor.
there are seldom stone buildings, but
instead, a most singular and unusual
! t}pc ui dwelling Upon inspecting some
OF the caves, stone slabs four or five
feet across were seen upon tho surface.
| Perhaps the sands and dust which dc
winds had swept within half covered
these stones. Upon rem wing tlOm.
openings Two or more feet boz diameter
were disclosed, leldlng into dome
| shaped cavity II Is not without dIli.
Guilty that person is able 90 lower Obs
body into the dark uniuvning ltu,la u'
| the cave. The chamber had iac an.
] pearancc OF bell. small at the top and
/ large at the bottom. The rooms aver.
aged six feet in depth and seven in width
/ at tuc bottom. There are U.s. many Js
| twenty of these rooms in one cavern.
| Many OF them penetrated through ihc
/ clay and were cNCavItcd into tuc soft
sandstone beneath Small door 90 the
! sides frequently led from one % auuihet,
| so that whole series OF ten or fifteen
rooms would be connected. Some OF the
smaller Underground rooms were used
| aasriuaries, and several were discovered
| hll-d with seeds and corn. Skeletons
were frequently found In the rooms ac.
compinicd by textile fabrics, dgerskIu
| garments. flint implements, etc. To- no
instance was pottery found In the under
| ground rooms. The Canous arc 500 dry
that everything used by the inhabi,luts
| Of both cave and cliff buildings was
| preserved almost as perfectly as the day
| it was buried. For instance the follow.
ing were obtained. Beautiful feather
| cloth robes and head dresses OF the
smallest feathers, rendered mouse.color-
ed by age, pieces OF spindlcs and cotton
! fab IT, in various processes OF weaving
cotton seeds and cotton cloth garments,
many Of which were painted in ianC.iul
| designs, huckskin robes, on the inner
side Of which were picture writings
! similar IN character to the winter counts
Of the Sioux, bone, obsidian. aud flint
/ cutting implements, mounted 10 original
| handles, stone spears, with the shafts
! six OF eight feet Ia length, basket work,
/ blankets. pottery, and hosts of other
| objects and implements such as were
used IN the every day life Of the savage
The most interesting aud valuable part
/ OF the collection was the muumics.
They comprised some twenty men,
women, and children. wrapped In
feather cloth, buokskiu garments. and
linen cloths, many OF them with sandals
still upon their feet
The atmospheric conditions Tor the
| preservation OF these mummhcd bodies
were exceedingly favorable. The skin
remained dry upon the face and other
parts oil the body The eyebrows re-
manned intact, the lips seemed rather
| full the hair was still attached to the
| scalp, the larger muscles OF the body
are Ill preserved. the nails remain upon
the fingers and toes, and the weight Of
the entire body is about twenty pounds.
The mummic, rs found IN the wrappiugs
were three and a half feet In length.
| The limbs were doubled aud the knees
| drawn nearly TO the chest The friends
Of the deceased removed the heart,
lungs, bowels, and other internal organs
before burial. This is plainly shown by
an inclsion In the abdomen Of each sub.
ject. Children have been occasionally
found In the arms OF adults, presumably
their mothers. Small squashes, gourds,
beans, corn, and cotton seed occasionally
accompanied the inteTment. Numbers
OF singular objects have also been found.
For instance, bundles OF feathers, small
strands OF linen rope, raw-hlde thongs.
cuiches, medicine wands or sticks two
or three feet IN length, with the claws
and teeth OF animals, bclks OF birds.
pieces Of obsidIan, etc, tied TO one end.
Baskets usually covered the head OF the
mummy. Frequently the door OF the
room Ia which the mummy was buried
had been walled up. Occasionally q
burial occurred IN an ash heap In the
rear Of dwelling,
During our journey We covered some
sixteen hundred miles Of territory, and
IN order to be more expeditions, split
the party into two sections. Consider
able eNcavatlng was done in the GENE.
teries In the valley and mesa ruins.
The graves presented q uniform appear.
ancc. They could be divided into Two
classes--those skeletons found five or
six feet deep occupying hollow stone
vaults, those hut two feet from the sur
face buried IN the sand. Beautiful
pottery, bone implements. minute arrow
heads, bone spoons, beads, and shells
accompanied the grave burials.
We found every river and creek liter
ally lined with boulder ruins and small
pueblos. The ruins did not exist, M m
the Ohio Valley, every few miles, they
opinion no section Of the country can be
found where an institution could make
larger collections In short time than in
southern Utah. For instance, M
Cottonwood Creek fifty miles north
from the Mormon settlement, there is
section about twenty miles square. con-
tanning a great many caves and vale,
ruins. which were practically unknown
lt the time Of the government surveys
from 1876 TO 1880. The larger Of these
caves contain good springs. Several
large cemeteries and pueblos occupy the
surrounding plain. Some very interest
ing conclusions are deduced from an
inspection OF the ruins. No copper or
metal OF any kind has been found in the
cliff houses or Ia the caves. An cliff
houses and dwellings upon the edge OF
the cliffs we're built manifcstly for de.
Tense. The clil houses themselves.
whether large or small, have but one
main entrance. That entrance faces the
canon. Each room contains q number
OF portfolios, pointing in every di.
reciion. The larger rooms frequently
contain rs many as twenty or thirty OF
these PORTFOLIOS, all Of which are neatly
and smoothly plastered, so that an arrow
may be conveniently discharged.
In some Of the stone buildings and in
the caves, turkey dung covers the floor
to a depth Of two or three feet. Upon
the walls IN the rear Of houses are usually
hundreds OF sculptures and rude paint.
ings Many, many times the turkey and
the goat are shown in series OF picto-