Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1893-04-05
RELICS OF THE CLIFF Dwell
LERS.


A few miles above Montezuma's cas-.
| tie on the opposite bank of the creek,
| a conspicuous cone-like mountain rises
"A few hundred feet above the surround
| ing country. On making the ascent,
the summit was found to be a narrow
rim enclosing a crater some three hun
dred feet in diameter and with nearly
perpendicular walls. Standing on the
rim, one can look down hundred feet
upon the dark blue water of small
lake III the bosom of the mountain.
| The lake, a hundred yards in diameter
and of unknown depth, is known as
| Montezuma's we'll. In the steep sides
of the crater are a number of caves,
which at one time we're the abode of
nan. A few are natural, but the
| greater number are the result of human
yffOrt
The rim is crowned with the fallen
| walls of an ancient ruin more than
hundred feet long. Far down the
| mountain-side, below the level of the
water In the crater, the outlet of the
we'll flows from between an opening in
the rocks. This stream is large and
constant, and at present is used to ir-
rigste ranch in the valley below.
Ages ago the builders of caves and
castles utilized this same stream to
irrigate portions of the neighboring
rich valley.
A short distance down the valley
stone and cement ditch of pre- historic
make can be easily traced for many
Dis. Ranchmen in building bitches
equentlv follow the courses of ancient
ones. lu July, last year, iii construct
ing an irrigatiDg ditch near old Fort
Verde, on the~west side of the river,
the workmen found evidences of an
ancient ditch buried some twelve feet be-
low the surface. Many of the Old bitches
have been found upon mesas where
under present conditions 1t would be
impossible to get water to FL them.
Frequently they lead from what are
now dry washes which only carry water
a few days at time and then only
after heavy rains This seems to indI-
cate that there was a time when the
now dry washes carried water much
more constantly than at present.
Many of the jars found were appar
entity moulded inside Of wicker baskets
of fine, close workmanship, and then
in the bakirg this wicker work was
burned off leaving its impress in the
hardened clay, and forming a really
rich decoration. Other Jars and dishes
are ornamated with pattern very sim
liar to the designs known as early
Greek, where wheels seem to interlace
and follow each other. Other designs
seem to bear rude resemblance to
the waves OF the sea: hence 1t has been
cODjectured that the Cliff Dwellers
may have strsyed so far inland from
the sea, or, at least, that they held
some sort of commercial relations With
the inhabitants of the ocean shores.
All the objects IN pottery are un-
glazed, although some fragments have
been found which show an apparent
attempt at glazing.
The weapons and implements remain
ing are said to be all of stone and
wood. A writer in a late number OF
the New York EUe1linq Post, in speak
ing of these relics. says that "there is
no evidence Of knowledge OF working
any metal, even copper, on the part ol
the Cliff Dwellers." Hence we cannot
connect them with the race which once
worked the Lake Superior copper
mines.
In spite of this ignorance of metals,
the Cliff Dwellers were evidently far in
advance of the useful arts of any tribes
which have existed month of Mexico
within the knowledge of Europeans.
In the Montezuma Valley have been
found terra Gotta heads of human be-
ings, strongly resembling similar OBJ
iects discovered in the curious ruins Of
Yucatan. Whether Aztec, IoItec, and
Cliff Dweller we're of the same original
race is yet uncertain. The human re-
mains of the Cliff Dwellers arc very
scanty. Only a few disjointed fraR-
ments of skeletons and the sku:ls
shown in our picture. The latter dis
play a grand development of the intel.
lectual organs, but-as might be ex-
pectod from the timidity exhibited in
their choice of dwellings-do not mani
fest any very great amount of the
fOrceful propensities. Such a race
must have inevitably disappeared be.
fore the energetic. relentless persecu-
tiODs of tribes like our North Ameri.
can Indians
Who were these industrious, peace.
full timorous dwellers in rocks? Whence
came they? Where went they?
Should we ever learn to decipher tn.
strange characters they so long ago
cut upon the rocks of Arizona, we may
hope to have our questions answered.
They must have been gentle race, and
pathetic is the thought Of their hunted
lives, and final fading from an ungentle
world.