The San Francisco call., 1898-03-18

} be fouDd all along a rocky wall tbo resenting long parallel lines alternating with short, straight, parallel bars of even size, running in slanting posi- ton against the longer lines. The time at our disposal for exploration was too short to allow of excavations for more perfectly preserved pottery; the indica- tions are that such pottery will be found only when the caves are ex- plored.
 The Hieroglyphics.
 The most interesting feature in con- nection with the turquoise mines is that they are always accompanied by pie ture writing or hieroglyphics. Wher- ever one of these turquoise mines is found we can be sure to find hierogly- phics in the rocks surrounding them. The Indians who worked the mines must have been the same ones who cut the glyphs in the rocks.
 The hieroglyphics are found only on the bluffs of basalt rock which abound in the vicinity of the mines. This rock is the hardest one to be found in that country. but it's smooth surface offers unusual advantage for the cutting of glyphs and pictures. The glyphs oc- cur from ten to fifteen together on the same stone, but generally only two or three are found together and frequently only one on each basalt block. Most of the glyphS are cut on isolated blocks, which have fallen from the cliff above; sometimes they are found on the flat wall of the cliff. They are found along stretch of country fifteen or twenty miles long and must be counted by the tens of thousands. In some places al- most every block in the debris below the cliff carries a glyph- On some blocks which stand upright we found a glyph on each face. showing that the
 
 they were cut. The glyphs are cut or picked in the rock by some hard in- strument, most likely stone hammers. AS regards the nature of the glyphs in general, they are much more compli cated than any so far found in Cali fornia or in any other State north of Mexico. They show a mixture of dis tinct types. One, the rareSt type, rep resentS figures composed of simple lines, curves and dots; figures resem- bling suns, stars, crosses, anchors, bars, etc. To this group must be counted rough representations of anil mals and men, but of the former very few were found, such as snake, owl, turtle, rabbit, lizard and man. One pie ture represents a warrior with a large feathered cap standing on another warrior who has fallen, a figure re- minding one greatly of Aztec picture writing A wavy line stood for water,
  posite sides of a bend in the cliff signs indicating the direction in which water was to be found some miles away. But by far the most interesting form of hieroglyph was the shield type Some of these were three to four feet high and of most complicated de- sign. The illustration represents three of these. This type is composed of shield-like outline, inside of which we find lines and circles and cross hatch ing, in such a way as to leave no doubt in my mind that every line was intend ed to be of importance. In the Aztec picture writing there is nothing of a similar character, except coat of arms shields, which stood for and indicated certain villages, cities or chiefs. But closer resemblance Is, strange to say, found in the hieroglyphics of the some of the glyphs in the form of shields, to which often is attached a wing very strikingly similar to the one seen in one of the glyphs found by us. This similarity in some of the glyphs is so marvellous that it entirely baf- f1es us to explain it, except as coinci- dence. At least 1t cannot now be dem- onstrated that these glyphs had an ac- tual relationship with those of the Maya giyphs. If they had we would ex- pect to find among them the simpler numerals of the Mayas, which were composed of dots and bars. the dot standing for one, the bar for two etc. But so interesting are these our new found glyphs, that they should be re- corded at once, and decidedly recorded in the way they follow each other on the rocks, and not noted down hap hazard as it is more than probable that if they could be read successively and deciphered they would tell an in teresting tale of the prehistoric race who worked the mines and who sculp l tured the glyphs on the rocks and blocks in the vicinity.
 The Legend of the Turquoise Mines
 and Their Prehistoric Workers. If would be strange indeed if no le- eend should exist among the Indians now and then roaming over the desert, legends connecting these turquoise mines with the ancient inhabitants who worked them. One such legend really does exist and, strange to say. it does not in the least conflict with anything we found in connection with the turquoise mines and the hiero- glyphics on the rocks, but rather con- firms the story told by them. The le- gend moreover helps to explain how these numerous workers of the mines could live in this inhospitable region of blizzards, sand and scorching sun, where water is the greatest luxury and 1 where even no edible root or vegetable does grow at the present time. It is almost absolutely certain that even in ancient times, when these mines were worked and when the hieroglyphics l were cut, the climate was the same as