Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1893-05-18

itself. They show the remnants Of their
teeth, tho black strings OF matted or
braided hair, the shriveled limbs often
without feet or hands, their eyeless eye
sockets in u manner calculated to make
the blood run cold. The best specimen Of
the collection, already spoken OF, was OBJ
viously a man of considerable Importance
when he walked The earth something like
a thousand or twelve hundred years ago.
Professor Dorsey told me how Che" as
the mummy is generally called by the
men who work about the bailding, was
found:
He had evidently seen better days.
said the professor, "for he was not pitched
headlong into a hole and covered over with
sand, as most of his companions in the
burial place OF the Ancon plains had been.
1t was In a rather odd way that we came
upon him. used rods to penetrate the
soil. and when unusual resistance to its
progress was encountered we generally
dug down and found a mummy. Or this
occasion the native who was manipulating
the rod for me found himself unable to
push the instrument farther within the
sand. As this was an every day occurrence
l thought nothing Of it and would have
passed on had not the native called me
back n insisted there was something ex-
traordinary buried underneath. We re-
moved the surface sand and came upon a
bed OF hard clay; then we knew we had
found something worth our attention, for
there is clay within 200 miles Of the
Ancon. Under the bed of clay we found a
roof hat had been made of bamboo splints
dashed together with willow withes. I'm
der this was the grave proper. 1t was a
circular hole ten feet deep and in the GEN.
ter of it, sitting on his launches, was sHe.'
From two stakes, one on his right and the
other on his left, hung two gonfalons, the
one at his right being q red flag and hav-
ing embroidered upon it perfect Greek
sigma.
"All around" continued Professor Dor.
sey, were scattered articles of the finest
pottery. Examine them carefully and you
will see that they arc OF superior design
and workmanship. As we found them
they contained grain and vegetables, some.
what shriyelled, of course, but in n re
markable state of preservation. 1t was
easy to determine the contents of the jars
to be corn, beans, potatoes, dried shell
fish and other articles of food. One jaI
had evidently contained . fluid, put there
to quench the thirst of the mummy. II
seemed almost a pity to disturb such an
august parsonage after a thousand years
of rest, but we wanted him at the Worlds
fair and here he Is"
1t would take pages instead of columns
even to mention the interesting exhibits
in this building which reach out into the
dark past and throw light upon the con
dition and the development of mankind
through b ages. In fact, one may trace
the growth of his race from the rudes,
savagery to it's present high state of civil
Zation. 1t Is q wonderful object lesson In
b history of mankind. Here the eye oi
the visitor Is carried back to the days OF
b Assyrians, the Greeks, the Romans
the Egyptians. Their tombs, their ruins
have been ransacked that we may have
the object lessons of what they were and
of how they lived, their religion, thei,
sports, their battles, their agriculture
their domestic establishments, their arts
and their industries. 1t would be difficult
to imagine anything more interesting, and
/ predict that this building, small beside
its mammoth neighbors but mighty in
the ages of time and periods of human
changeand progress which it covers, will
soon be.crowded from early morning till
late at might.
The outdoor exhibit is quite rs fascinat-
ing rs that within the building. 1t is Q
sort of supplement TO the interior display.
Here are not only the tents, boats,
weapons, clothing and utensils of primi
tive peoples, but the people themselves.
On the shores of the pond near the Anthro-
biological building are grouped representa-.
tives of various tribes of Indians from
North America. They live in their primi
tive habitations, row their rude boats OF
canoes, and engage in their customary oc.
equations, such as weaving, pottery, chip
ping flint, building canoes, dressing skins
and grinding corr. If one is interested in
the American Indian-and who is not?-
he may pass many an interested and well.
spent hour IN the Indian school which will
be in operation near by.
New York contributes to this ethno-
graphical display a council house and long
bark lodge OF the famous Iroquois, and a
number OF typical houses used by the va
rious tribes which formed the powerful
Iroquois confederation. The Indians are
here, too, living in the houses, reproducing
their ceremonies end padding about in
their canoes. Never before was such a
good opportunity afforded for the study OF
the habits of the aboriginal dweIlers in
OUT Own lana. III one WISHES TO see the
more modern Indian in his war paint, rid
ing his pony in battle or chase, he has but
to visit Buffalo Biu'sshow without the ex-
position grounds.
One OF b most picturesque displays
here is that OF the ruins of Yucatan. The
structure which seems to show the queer
architecture and decorations Of these an
cient people Was ski,ifully built, and is
facades and carvings are made
from plaster casts taken By Consul
Thompson AMID the ruins of Labna
and UxmaL. The structures rep
resented are the Serpent house, the House
of Nuns, and the so4called Governors
house. There are also moulds, coiumn:
and monoliths from the prehistoric city Of
'Capan. Tropical plants from Centra,
America have been brought here and eley.
erly arranged over and aboutthe ruins. All
tha6 is needed to- complete the illusion is
the presence of a fesv snakes basking in
the sun or running 10 hide themselves in
the grass.
"A few rods from the Yncatan ruins e.,
0be picturesque homeso OF thecliff-dwellers.
With consummate art the builders imi
taSed rocks with n framework covered DER
with sheet iron, tin and psper-mache, With
just enough natural rock scattered about