The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1897-05-07
TENNESSEE MOUNDS.
Contain Evidences Of Giant and
Pygmy Races.
Relics of the Ancients Which Set Scien-
lists to Thinking-The Finds Thought
to BE the Remains of Worship
ers of VIshnu.

was plowed up in Hawkins county a
stone trumpet 1t seems to have been
made of hard soapstone, and when
flown through makes sound when
NAV be heard two or three miles. IL
is very smooth on the outside, but
rough within. This was probably used
bv the giants to convene assemblies,
and to regulate the movements of their
army, on days of rejoicing to make
part of the musical sounds with which
the people were entertained.
The trumpet was not in use till about
4. ID. COO. In the time of the Trojan war
neither Greeks nor Troians had flutes
and pipes, and the Greek stentor, man
of mighty voice, proclaimed orders to
The army In the year 514 b. c., when
Darius, the Mede, crossed the Danube
and invaded the Scythians he mad no
trumpet. When XerXes invaded
Greece, 41S b. c., no trumpet was there
used; the signal for battle was given by
torch-bearers. Soon after the invasion
of Greece by the Persians the trumpet
was used for many purposes. The
Greeks probably learned it from the
Phenicians. The dispersed Israelites of
he Assyrian or Chaldean captivity i'm
larted the knowledge of the trumpet
and it's uses to the people from whom it
came Immediately to the American
giants. From it we make the following
deductions: O There were no
large hollow horns in the country which
could have been used for the same pur-
pose. ca If the makers of the trum-
pet, which no doubt were the giants,
knew the ust Of metals, they did not
have the time or material to form trum-
pets, as they had been engaged in 4
long and protracted war with the ma
tives. (3) The mound builders did
not make this trumpet, or they would
have made it with metal. Hence we ar
rive at a just conception of the martial
music of the north invaders. There was
contemporaneously with the giants of
Tennessee race of people of small
stature. These people were the pygmies
of the giants, and were captured by
them somewhere in the northeastern
part of America and were adopted and
brought as slaves by them in their
southwark wanderings. In 1920 great
number of small graves and skeletons
in them were discovered in White
county.
a Mr. Lane submitted quite num-
Der OF these bones to the medical fra
ternity at Nashville, and it was their
opinion that the skeletons belonged to
adult persons. The height of this peo-
pie was about two and one-half TO three
rect, and they buried after the fashion
Of the giants with rocks set up around
the body and head to the east and face
to the west. That this people were adj
dlcted to strong superstitions is evil
dent. In the graves mentioned were
found cOnch shells--alsO mussel and
taper shells. These people no doubt
we're wOrshipers of Nishnu. In an
cient times the worshipers of the sun
from the confines of China and Thibet
emigrated from Samantha, thence to
Germany and thence to Finland and the
country of the Samoiedes, which so
much resemble the Esquimaux. The
later, with the Greenlanders, were sun
worshlpers and brought to America
with them through many ages end peo-
pie the mostancient religion. of Asia.
In other places in our state and else
where are found the remains of this
dimInutive race of people. That such
people once existed is asserted bv
Homer and Herodotus. They arc men
toned by Pliny, Strabc. and Mela as
eSlshr% in India and Ethiopia. But
Jovius locates them in the extremes of
the northern regions. The hest on;n-
ION advanced upon the subject seems
10 De that these people .came from north
eastern America, and were brought
nilner' either willingly or by force.
by the giants whem they migrated to
this countrr
among the relics of this people was
round IN White county stone. about
a,A .lches long, half an inch thick and
" rec inches wide, and still widening to
The edge and having an edge like an ak.
This AK was found in an old fortifica-
ton near Sparta, and seemed to be
tinged with blood which had been petri-
fed on it. The color of green was in
termixed with few spots of lighter
complexion. 1t is very hard and
smooth. Stone axes of the same de-
scription are brought from the Fiji is
lands in the Pacific by navigators. The
same species of stone is found on the
banks of the Amazon. AS to what be-
came of this mysterious race, we can
but conjecture that, having come so far
south that the climate was so uncon-
genial to them-together with the
labor and fatigue of their long and ag-
gressive warfare in connection with the
giants against the aborigines-thatt the
strain and climate was too great for
their northern constitutions, and thew
all persisted and their dust mingles
with our southern soil unseen by no eye
but Gods, and whose history is onl7
written on the scrolls of eternity.-St.
Louis Republic.
Cost of Cardinals Hat.
The red hat of Il cardinal costs him
more money than kings pay for any ex-
cept their very best crowns. Before
accepting it the grateful prelate must
make offerings to the the propaganda
and to his titular church at Rome, ana
pay fees to 4 long list of officials, ran Q
ing from chamberlains at the vatican
down to the cooks and sweepers and tn
soldiers of the Swiss guards. Indeed
the new cardinal has to pay fees atsver,
step from the moment of his creation
to the occasion of his receiving the re,
hat IN public consistory, and when al
IS over and done finds himself GU. O
pocket 10 the extent of So, 500 at least
. lie the 90 rfli,,nl L. .,.;fho,,f ,,,oo,,.. =. 4