The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1900-07-29
Denver Republican,


Captain Cecil Deane, who accompan-
led the Cobern exploring party into
New Mexico in search of sandstone
house which would authenticate human
habitation at a much earlier period
than ever before discovered, has re-
turned to Denver. Mr. Deane did not
find the sandstone house in its bed of
lava. but returned with much less
faith in the truthfulness of his fellow
man than he had before.
MIR. Deane remained in New Mexico
after DR.. CObern and Professor Cutler
returned, for the purpose of running
down the men and the stories that
were afioat. 1t was an exciting chase,
because if the house was found it
meant a great deal 10 the party as dis
coverers and also glory for the state
of Colorado.
Urged on by Smithsonians.
With this to spur him on, Captain
Deane undertook the task most cheer
fully. added to which was the rumor
that Smithsonian party was also on
the track, and the race was between
him and several men backed by the
money or that great institution.
First of all. an old Mexican had to
be hunted out who was tending his
flock of sheep on one of the attitudes
down there. and he refused to come to
a lower one to give the information.
He was said TO have seen the very
house they were in search of. having
been shown it by Frank Crane, one of
the members of the Norman survey
ing party, several years ago. After a
delay of two or three days, Captain
Deane went up on the green hill tops
thirty miles away and saw the dreamy
gentleman of the south among his
herds. only to find out that it was a
mistake: he hadn't seen the house,
only someone else who had Then
came another chase, and still another,
with the supposed Smithsonians in the
same hot path of discovery. But all
was naught- Each time that the loca-
ton seemed about TO be revealed it
was some other man who knew it. I'M
til II fell back on Norman himself
and Mr.. Norman is dead.
But CAPTAIN Deane's expedition did
not begin and end in will-o' -the-wisp
stories. He discovered some evidences
which show that men lived in the re-
gion before the flow of lava and he
turned in to DR.. Cobern the following
interesting report of it, which will also
be of value to the scientific world:
Lake Wiped Out by Lava.
Together with an assistant 1 have
carefully examined about five square
miles of the lava field in which the ruin
is reported TO be located, but without
success. The evidence is conclusive
that where hearsay locates the ruin a
large lake existed, and its bed is now
almost wholly covered with a lava
overflow to a depth of over 100 feet.
From data procured at the surveyor
generals Office at Santa Fe l retraced
a portion of the surveys made by
Pradt and Norman in 1882, and found
the ruin they officially note and plat
to consist of four small rooms, but it
is a few hundred feet east of the Dor
der of the lava deposit. and its walls
are partially made of lava blocks,
hence built subsequent to the overflow.
/ have traced to their source the re-
ports we heard while there relating to
the existence to the ruin in the lava
beds. and find they are not authentic.
l have, however, found evidence which
apparently establishes the fact that
man lived in that region prior to the
eruptiOE~CS lava. At a point about one
mile northeast of the extensive ruins
on MOntezuma, which you examined,
l found a group of small cliff houses
built under a high and overhanging
rOck-lne exposed base or winch is
about $50 feet in vertical elevations
above the level of the old and now mar
row belt of lake bed which extends for
several miles north and south of this
point.
Calcined by Intense Heat.
I'm order to fully understand what
follows, it will be necessary to keep in
view this elevation. This cliff en-
braces seven attached rooms, three of
which l examined. The remaining
rooms are filled with great masses OF
rock. which have fallen from the nat
ural roof. and which have crushed
their sandstone walls. Two of the
rooms from which 1 removed the de-
bris are similar to those usually found,
having a floor of plastered clay, and
evidence of human occupation The
remaining room is the central one of
the group, is of irregular size, but hav-
ing an average width and length of
seven and eight feet, as shown by the
attached plan of the several rooms. In
making my excavations of this room I
first removed two feet of sand and ma
teriaI gathered by mountain rats. At
that depth. instead of finding a clay
floor, similar to those in the adjoining
rooms. 1 encountered a deposit of
small flake of sandstone, six inches in
thickness. burned to a bright red color,