The Greenville times. [volume] (Greenville, Miss.) 1868-1917, 1901-02-16
CLIFF JEWELERS. SKELETONS
Four Hundred of Them Found in One
Apartment in Arizona
Mountains.

| A strange story of the suffocation of
an entire village of cliff dweLers about
1900 years ago is told by Sergt. George
e. Price, of the local recruiting station,
says the Denver Evening Post.
! In picturesque Arizona. among the
White mountains, not far from Fort
Apache, the peculiar race. of little
climbers once reigned supreme. Among
the most inaccessible cliffs of red sand
stone they lived like fugitives, in nat
ural fortresses. The caverns they once
inhabited are to-day as they were CEN
turtles ago, and in many cases have APP
parent-y never been trodden by human
foot since the death of their ancient in
habitants. The petrified remains of 400
prehistoric little people were found by
Sergt. Price in a vast cave. The Apache
Indians who now inhabit that district
regard the cavern with superstitious
dread, and cannot be induced to enter
its gloomy portals. No white man had
ever set foot there before Sergt. Price,
and he found its contents undisturbed.
During the spring of 1899, when he
was with troop G, Seventh cavalry, and
stationed at Fort Apache, in his re-
searches about the country the young
soldier discovered the great cave vii
lage, with its strange legend A few
miles east of the fort, on the White
river, rise some immense cliffs of red
sandstone. From the giistening stream
the cliffs rise almost perpendicularly to
sheer height of 800 feet. Crevices and
little edges of rock form the only foot
holds for daring climbers. While fish
ing for trout one day Sergt. Price no
ticed high up on the cliff black hole.
Believing it to be cave, he at once
determined to scale the cliff, and sew
eral soldiers volunteered to accompany
him. The ascent was exceedingly haz-
ardous and difficult, but after a long
climb they reached the hole. Jutting
out from the face of the cliff was nat
ural shelf about eight feet wide and
twice as long.
just back of the ledge was the en-
trance TO the ancient cave. Under the
sergeant's leadership the party entered
the cave with torches and lanterns.
They explored over Az miles of pas
sages and corridors. Many people had
once inhabited the winding passages of
the cave village. The soldiers pene-
trated into the furthermost recesses
and found a big council chamber far
back in the interior of the cliff As
the Pickering light of the torches
pierced the gloom of the large room
the grewsome scene was revealed.
Huddled together on the cold, damp
floor of stone, as if for mutual SYM pa
thy and protection, lay the CHASTITY skel-
etons of over 400 little cliff dwelle1s,
petrified by their exposure during ages
past. A short distance apart from the
others lay the frame of the chieftain,
leaning against the wall opposite the
entrance to the room. His skull was
resting upon his breastbone, just as he
had died. II seemed TO the discoveries
that he, perhaps, had died last of them
all, and before his spirit fed had taken
a final look at his people. Then his
chin sank upon his breast, and the peo-
pie of White River cliff were no more.
Scientific observations have shown that
these people lived about 1000 years ago.
Sergt. Price began systematic ques-
tioning of old Indians, and at length
adroitly secured the legend of the cav
ern. Many, many hundred years ago,
he was told by the red-skinned sages-
and to express their idea of the num-
Der they tossed up handfuls of sand into
cliffs. They were at war with other
small men who lived at some distance.
Battles were frequent and the tribe
which occupied tie White river cliffs
was worsted.
Many of their best warriors we're
STA By the cubs and arrows of the
enemy. Retreat finally became neces-
sary, and the defeated men hastily
sc. ID the Getting cliff to their home
n the 81 mint. Once within the great
e., taej cit themselves secure from
fl ,aer ii aeks. They carried with
t sucI. sesnty supplies as they could
q " asr. and they hoped that in
c. ge their corn would last un-
ii kire was raised.
:nlLg up over the ledge to the
&c the cave came their enc
So RAJ they killed. but were
back from the entrance.
they crouched within it's
ne assailants brought up
OF wood and piled II high up
hole in the cliff. Then they
uge FIRE and never suffered
fury.
ed ana the flames still
4htlx on the side of the