The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-11-14
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. DEPHRTMENT
THE srREvELL COLLECTION.
Ogden, Nov. Il.

foreigner in commenting on the
characteristics of American life once
said that a notable thing about it
was the number of men who took
keen interest in something outside OF
their regular business. He went on with
an article of some length showing that
magnificent collection OF rose bushes
was owned by a man whose everyday
occupation was that of lawyer;
certain railroad official owned one OF
the finest stock farms in the country
and an ordinary farmer had splen-
did collection of historical autographs
This feature is brought to mind on
looking at the collection of specimens
and curios recently put in the lobby
of the Reed hotel. The cabinets are
owned by C. N. Strevell, who has Tor
many years been assiduously spending
his spare time in collecting rare geo
logical, meteorological and archaeolog-
lcal specimens. There is one case III
the collection of special interest TO
Utah people and especially to those
of Ogden. This is the case of archaic
illogical relics collected for the most
part in or near Weber county. In
this case most of the famous Cubic
relics are placed. Cubic, it may be
remembered was the name given py
Willard. In eXcavating them Mr..
Strevell found number of interesting
relics Among them are number of
fine stone war clubs and a number Of
stones called sings These latter
have fine grooves chiseled round them
indicating that thongs or handles
have once been attached to them.
!. There is also in the case a fat stone
proba bly, used as a hearthstone. 1t
Il IL ~
human bones and some bits of char
coal. Several stones used for grind
ing grain into meal are among the
relics of this mound They are par
ticularly fine specimens, showing by
their forms that they were used just
as the metatha and pardita stones of
the Mexicans are used today.
There are in this collection also
some specimens of what by some are
thought to be bits of ancient tile pip
ing but by others different theory
of their use is advanced. They appear
as chunks of clay hardened by arti-
ilcial heat and showing hardened
grooves much as piping would show.
The other theory connected with these
is that the ancient jewellers of Cub
lic' built houses by preparing a frame
work of branches and poles and
spreading clay over it. In some way
before the jewellers left the city their
houses were burned and the heat
was further perfected by centuries of
natural drying.
All indications point to the probab bill
ity of the prehistoric race having been
a peaceful, Industrious people. The
warlike implements found are few,
while the fact that they were over
come an1 that they perished points
also to this fact.
However, number of warlike relics
are among the collection, though most
of them camo from out near Plain
City, where is located another rich
storehouse of prehistoric remains
Among them are some arrow and
spear heads about as nearly perfect as
are ever found among such collections
Here, too. were also found some war
clubs, and two human skulls very well
preserved and differing entirely in
shape from those of the modern In
dams The best preserved of these
skulls was found by William Mather
an archaeologtst of considerable skill.
This gentleman also found the turtle
emblem" which is carved from flint
and which is. placed among the COL
lection of arrow heads. This turtle
emblem is rarely met with in such col
lections and was probably of some
sacred significance to the ancient
tribe. From the Plain City mounds
also come numerous f1eshers-articles
for scraping hides free of feshy por-
tons. These collections from Plain
City and from the Cubic mounds were
important as refuting the claim here
totore set up that prehistoric tribes
never lived so far north as this Ioca -
fty Mr. Don Mcguire was associated
with Mr.. Strevell in making the ex-
caVations and hes a similar fine col
lection
Mr. Strevelrs collection not ONLY of
archaeological remains, but also his
cabinets of geological specimens at
tract much attention IN the lobby of
the Reed hotel, where they have re-
Gently been placed.