The Forrest City times., 1901-01-18
FOUR HUNDRED SKELETONS.
Grewsons Find of . soIdfsy In the White Mountain cliffs sf
 Arizona.

| ol CHI CWclleTS aDOub 4,o0o years ago is told by Sergt. George E.aPrice, of, the recruiting station, at l Denver, to the Evening Post, of that city.
 In picturesque Arizona, among the l White mountains, not far from Fort Apache, the peculiar race of little climbers once reigned supreme. Among Iithe almost inaccessible cliffs of red sandstone they lived like fugitives, in natural fortresses. The caverns they l once inhabited are to-day as they were centuries ago, and in many cases have apparently never been trodden by hu- man foot since the death of their an- cient inhabitants. The petrifed re- mains of 400 prehistoric little people were found by Sergt. Price in vast cave. The Apache Indians. who now inhabit that district, regard the cav ern with superstitious dread, and can- not be induced to enter it's gloomy por- tals. No white man had ever set foot there before Sergt. Price and he found its contents undisturbed.
 During the spring of 1890, when ho | was with troop G, Seventh cavalry, and stationed at Fort Apache in his | researches about the country the young soldier discovered the great cave village, with it's strange legend. | A few miles east of the fort, On the | White river, rise some immense cliffs of red sandstone. From the glistening stream the cliffs rise almost perpendic- ularly to a sheer height of 300 feet. l Crevices and little edges of rock form | .Ix. H. f IL While fishing for trout one day, Sergt. Price noticed high up on the cliff | black hole.
 l 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 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 en- tered the cave with torches and lan- terms. They explored over four and half miles of passages and corridors. Many people had once inhabited the | winding passages of the cave village. | The soldiers penetrated into the fur | thermost recesses and found big council chamber far back in the in- l terior of the cliff. As the fickering l light of the torches pierced the gloom of the large room the grewsome scene was revealed.
 Haddled together on the cold damp floor of stone as if for mutual sym pathy and protection. lay the ghastly skeletons of over 400 little cliff dwell- CTS. petrified by their exposure during ages past. A short distance apart from the others lay the frame of the chief tain, leaning against the wall opposite the entrance to the room. His skull was resting upon his breastbone, just as he had died. It seemed to the dis coverers that he, perhaps, had died last of them all, and before his spirit fled had taken final look at his peo- pie. Then his chin sank upon his breast, and the people of White River cliff were no more. Scientific observa- tions have shown that these people lived about 4,0OO years ago.
 Sergt. Price began systematic questioning of old Indians. and at length adroitly secured the legend of the cavern. Many, many hundred years ago, he was told by the red- skinned sages-and to express their idea of the number they tossed upS handfuls of sand into the air the small men lived in the cliffs. They were at war with other small men who lived at some distance. Battles were fre- quent. and the tribe which occupied the White River cliffs was.worsted.
 Many of their best warriors were slain by the clubs and arrows of the enemy. Retreat finally became neces- sary and the defeated men hastily scaled the beetling cliff to their home near the summit. Once within the great cave they felt themselves secure from further attacks. They carried with them such scanty supplies as they could quickly gather. and they hoped that in ease of siege their corn would last until the siege was raised. Swarming up over the ledge to the entrance to the cave came their ene- mics. Several they killed, but were soon driven back from the entrance.
 Nonderlngly, they crcuched within it's portals. The assailants brought up quantities of wood and piled it high up abou. the hole in the cliff. Then they 1, kindled a huge fire and never suffered it to abate in fury.
 Days passed on and the flames still
 gleamed brightly on the side of the vast rock. For fortnight the vigi- lance never slackened. At length the
 revengeful army retired, leaving a great pile of ashes on the ledge. No
 one dared to enter the cavern. and. hav- ing accomplished their grim mission. they departed from the section. What
 agonies the cliff dwellers must have
 suffered as the papgs of starvation
 grew keener and keener and always , at the only exit they sav the blaz- | fuor ,,f1af