The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1899-10-28
NUTMEG INDIAN RELICS.
LEA PES From LESSON hook or
BR.tVES and TRIBES GONE.
Research and u word About Mound
Builders and Aboriginal Manufac-


buiiders ana Aboriginal Mannfat
Curing,
Ye say they all have passed away,
That noble race and brave,
That their light canoes have vanished
from off the crested wave;
But their memory liveth on your hills
Their baptism on your shore,
4 Your everlasting rivers speak
1 Their dialect of yo1e
These familiar lines Quoted from
memory of one of the most loved pc
cts, ran through my mind the other da!
as | stood by the Connecticut river,
| short distance above the Lyme ferry
/ and surveyed the fragment of what wa
! Enthusiastically an old Indian clay pipe
and which had been washed ashore
! there from the banks up stream, by
former freshets in that body of more OF
less turbulent water.
The pipe was of that sreenish clay
left us by the Indians quite commonly
in the southern and western United
States, and very seldom found here
abouts. In fact Indian relics in the
south and west are much pentier than
in our own state Of Connecticut Silver
and gold and coins are found in the
tombs of the tribes in the vicinity of the
Mississippi and beyond, treasures
which they traded for with the early
corners from Europe beyond doubt
and I am told that in certain local Pa
cifc Islands wealth of memorabilia
from the later-day Indians may be
gathered quite readily, But it is not so
in cid Connecticut. Here, If you get a
first class specimen of the stone age di-
rect from the spott where some aborig-
inal hand palsed by death, dropped 1t,
ii is rarity and as such is highly APP
preciated by people who make a study
of our interesting predecessors in this
fair land
Collectors of Indian relics not only in
Connecticut, but all over this country,
are continually at work, as Is well
known. Volumes of information upon
this point may be gained by studying
the exhibits from their garnerings
which have been placed in the Smithso-
MAN institute in Washington, or in the
Peabody museum at our own Yale col
lege. And even the veriest novice in
the art of collecting Indian relics is Ii
able to stumble upon something SO
choice and so exceedingly rare, that
the cookies of blase, old curator's
heart will be warmed by it, and he will
be prompted in sheer self-defence to
open sundry side drawers In his cabi-
nets and pull out exhibits to offset the
new find Exhibits perhaps that do
not ordinarily meet the public eye.
Nothing is more interesting to me-"
said o. b. Lathrop Plainfield resi-
dent whom / met at Crescent Beach, the
other day, than a study of Indian rel
les. One of the first collections ! re-
collect of seeing was in the old Histori-
cal society in Hartford, when a boy
and | presume it is there now. 1t was
composed of fragments. as one might
say of the Turks and Stockbridge
tribes, and it was gathered UP near the
old Pennington river. Deacon Simeon
Hart, Pennington school teacher of
fame, who helped me through the three
RS. got these relics together and took
them to Hartford. They included, as
gashed skull tomahawks,
a copper pail, green with age, which
had been buried with chief to carry
food to last him to the happy hunting
grounds, arrows, lances, and I know
not what The Indians made much
trouble for the Pennington settlers,
you know. Years after the battle there
between the two tribes mentioned, pub
lie spirited Farmingtonites gathered up
the bones of the red victims of the
and buried them in common
tomb, which is suitably marked"
SEARCHING FOR THE OLD.
A searcher for the relics of former
people is sure to be interesting, pro-
viding he will talk, and one of the
most entertaining men of this stamp in
to-day is John b. Palmer,
4 native of the town of Stonngton. who
las devoted his spare moments for
many years to gathering Indian and
,ther relics in all parts OF the United
States, who has made a superb collec-
ion of valuable mineral specimens as
WE'LL and who has studied so deeply into
he old furniture dust of the Nutmeg
tate that he is perfect encyclopaedia |
n matters pertaining to dle-backed |
hairs and other Revolutionary
urniture, When / say that Mr.. Palmer
ecently unearthed nineteen secret COM |
,artments In an old Ltchfield county |
esk, which was evidently the pride
nd joy of a cabinet maker of former |
entury, and in which other investiga |
ors had found comparatively little to
marvel at it will illustrate the unusual
and thoroughness with
which this student of the old goes into
is work
Mr.. Palmer has extensive collections,
f everything that pertains to ancient
avs in this state and elsewhere And
e is delightful conversat ionalist upon
matters regarding these objects as well.
n his harVests of this sort from the
hound builders of Kentucky, Tennes-
ee and Mississippi he has secured
pectmens of pottery, pipes, copper
hisels, beads, silver chains and buckles
nd all sorts Of trinkets, including arti-
les from the aboriginal Potter in fac
mile of portions of the human anato-
~ Many of these articles were bur-
ID in the first instance with the read
the mound builders, and the later
mes with the tribes of the Cherokee In
ans and the like that were finally
riven from that part of the country by
ne relentless invasions of the white
eople.
The Secret of the Mound.
One of the singularly interesting