The Yellowstone journal. [volume] (Miles City, Mont.) 1893-1901, 1893-05-17
DWARF AMERICANS.
THE REMAINS or A RACE or Lilut.
PUT.ANS UNEARTHED.

In Eastern Tennessee Have Been Foun
Graves arai skeletons of an Almost Fol
gotten Pcople-A Legend That Dea
With the Mexican Aztecs.
The Smithsonian institution has II,
dertaken q peculiar work III this locality
Those people of the world who have pai
lengthy visits to that hilly eountr
Known as east Tennessee have alway
been impressed with the sublinity an
beauty of the mountains, the simplicit
and superstition of the inhabitants an,
the general air of sleepy mysteriorsnes
surrounding everything. Ask one o
these people where they would most ex
pect to find a race of dwarfs or giant
and the reply will be, In east Tennes
see.' And recent developments seem t,
bear them ont. for in the last few year
the remains Of people less than thre,
feet in height have been discovered il
this country.
On the eastern slope Of one of tn,
peaks of the Great Smoky mountains
where the first rays of the morning sur
strike, is an ancient burying ground, and
such another burying place could not bt
found, though the world be searched. 70,
not one grave is more than three feet long
The tombs are two feet beneath the sur.
face and are formed of cement and fiat
stones, and have detied the ravages of
time to cause them To be DESTROYED,
Most of those examined contained "a vase,
Il lew beads and a human skeleton, which
was never more than 3G inches long and
was that of Il full grown person.
The natives have a beautiful legend of
the place and say none were inferred
here except Indian children. while natu-
ralists claim the skulls to have reached
their full growth.
But the most interesting account is
that Of the red men who held that conn
Try wl2n nrst settled by whites. They
claim that when they came to that sec
teii OF country II WIS p"opled by IA race
OF small fierce men. with red hair: that
these awlrIs wa-ed II long and bloody
wal with the Indians. but were finally
all killed: that this hurying ground was
used long before they came into the com
try, and that those killed in the war
We're never buried.
In some parts Of the adjacent noun
talns. high up on the cliffs. are to be seen
rude drawings of combats between fully
CROWN men and number of dwarfs. On
account of the superstitions of the east
Iennesseeans, it Is difficult to reach this
plgmy cemetery. and almost as much as
life Is worth to attempt to dig into the
af Tho ..1aatI. p.,,1,.
In the mountainous district of one of
the southern states. i'll a bend of one OF
the great rivers. is situated a natural
fort, known to the surrounding inhalit
ants as ''lndian Fort" Surrounded on
three sides by perpendicular cliffs. at
the bottom of which flows the river.
and deep. the only way of approach
Is by ascending a stiff declivity from the
open side, near the summit of which are
still to be seen traces of an ancient EN-
almost obliterated by time,
WITHIN the space inc.osed by the river
md embarrassment have been found a
great many stone and flint implements
u indian warfare and a few bronze
'Xe.. There are also II number of tomtS.
oIlned of large flat stones, containing
Nothing but dust and dirt at til. presfslt,
IN the time Of the early settlers the
iat1ve Indians had Il tradition Of n r3.t5t
having been .1agnt at this pl..ea
ears previous 10 their time, !.
'iiich an entir" race was eNterlninated.
ne legend Is: The ey~ter1ninated re,
Who were called '.Worshi'ers If the
'un,' hal beer gradually driven u
iroH the Tar norm by the la7iae.s.
'"t"f@ reacning the Great river" !.
'h!9t ftey separated into two divisions.
fe GONG the southwest. the otiler 90
* directly south. What became of lie
rai part Is not told in the legend.
After innumerable battles the fleeing :
ace made a final stand at Indian Fort
after a siege of many months. DIR
iS which time the besieged subsisred on
previously gathered, they
ere conquered, and every man. woman
nd child was killed. The legend saws
iese people calne from the vicinity of
le great lakes. and the few bronze i'm
discovered seem to give some
nth 70 that part of the story.
1t Is supposed that these people were
le ancestors of the Mexican Aztecs. and
lat that portion which escaped when the !
ibe divided wandered toward the south !
and entered Mexico from the north !
t the time of the conquest of Mexico by :
ortez n Aztecs claimed that they !
me from the north, and sun Worship !
as the national religion. :
To investigate these relics of a deuar,- =
race the Smithsonian officials sent /
rofessor Snow and a corps of assistants I
the scene.-T.anessee Cor, -. Louis
be-Democrat.
-dfIuneiatiOn of Words Ending In AA,.r.