Daily camera. [volume] (Boulder, Colo.) 1891-1928, 1901-02-11
BY UNKNOWN HANDS.
Mississippi's Great Stone Wall a
Puzzle to Archaeo logists.
Wonderful and Massive Structure
That Has Withstood the Ravages
of Many Thousands of Years
in Claiborne County.

One OF the scientific puzzles of the
state of Missouri is the "Brandywine
Stone WALL" 1t has long been a prob
lem that is yet unsolved. Some time
ago, says the New Orleans Picayune,
Thomas Watson, OF Hazelhurst. sent
Gov. Longino pencil drawing OF an
immense pile of stora in the south
eastern portion of Claiborne countM
suggesting that the stone might be
utilized in building the new capitol.
In letter which accompanied the
drawing Mr.. Watson stated Ast these
stones, piled high on each ther, cover
an area four miles square. Each stone
is six feet long, three feat wide and
two feet thick, and they are joined to-
gether with an excellent quality of ce-
ment No man knows how they came
there. They may have eeen there for
thousands of years. Tse builders, the
Jackson News thinks, were some pre-
historic race-it could not be Other
wise. This structure is supposed to We
continuation of the great "Chin' Sc
wall" which seems to begin below Rs Y
mond, in the southern part of Hin IS
county, and which is traceable throuf h
Copiah. 1t is broad enough to acco' l.
MEDIATE two or three wagons abreast,
and is one of the won'srs of the wor' 4.
Mention of this ymarkable erh b.
it," says the Hazel:~n Courier. = as
elected no little com "ent-in fact. las
brought letter to Mr.. Watson from
the warden of The United States pert m
tiary at Leavenworih. Kan. and also a
letter to DR.. T. h. Rrdsong from an
other distinguished source. il being
known that the latter some vearE ago
investigated the matter. Mr.. Wa son,
however" says the Courier. "has given
the subject more patient thought than
anyone else, and TO him the Cortier is
indebted for the following interesting
facts:
''He calls it the 'Brandywine Stone
WALL and says this wonderful and
massive structure or parts Of structure
of masonry done in stone. which has
withstood the ravagss of time for per-
haps many thousands OF years. still!
stands an enduring relic OF pre-
historic civilization and knowledge
OF the art of building not inferior in
manyrespects'o the present day. These
stone buildings lie. for the most pa
buried in the earth in the southeast
ern part of Claiborne county, and
lying against the Copiah county line,
on the slopes overlooking the valley of
the Brandywine creek from the west
side.
These walls run from northeast to
southwest. They are built of white
or grayish white stone of immense size,
weighing from two to three tons.
measuring from six to eight feet in
length and three feet wide by two feet
thick. These blocks. or slabs, are laid
in very fine quality of cement, and as
perfectly as brick work. The joints
are perfect and very close.
AT one pace the top of the wall is
exposed by the earth being washed
away to a width of 60 feet and length
of 90 feet; this exposure has the ap-
pearance of brick hearth. AT an
other place the stone has been quarried
for domestic use to depth of three
layers of slabs. which is six feet,
width of "a. or eight blocks. and a
length of 25 blocks. or $50 feet. The
length Of this wall as indicated by the
groupings is about LOCO feet. At an
other place about 500 yards away from
the place just mentioned is wall jut-
Ting from under slope for distance
i of nearly 2.cO0 feet. This stone work
is exposed in a great many places over
an area of four square miles.
THE sides and angles of the blocks
of stones are so perfect that they re-
'semble pressed brick. The tops of these
walls are perfectly horizontal and with
out regard to the uneveness OF the
earth's surface. The seams across the
Tiers are perfectly horizontal in posi-
tion, and these blocks are smoothly
dressed on the edges and ends, while the
broad surfaces are brought down to
level plane. but not dressed. They are
held so firmly together by the cement
That it is with great difficulty that they
Rre broken up.
"a personal inspection of these great
structures as they lie partly buried in
the earth would relieve the minds Of
the most skeptical of all doubt of it
not being the work Of the hands of
man.
"In all that is above mentioned in
!nonnection with numerous cayinQs-in
of the earth's surface, which repre-
sent the existence of underground cav
,erns, abundant evidence is found to
bear out the theory Of the existence
LOT great buried city in that locality.
1.-THE information above given is
vouched for by other parties who have
visited the scene in recent years, and
bears out the theory advanced by Mr..
Watson. Truly, there is work for the
scientist here"
Photographing Distant Objects.