Rosebud County news. [volume] (Forsyth, Mont.) 1901-1906, 1902-06-19
OLDER THAN INDIANS
Bones of Prehistoric Men Unearthed
by Tennessee Floods.
Claimed by EthnolOgists to Have
Been a Race of IdOl-WOrship-
ing Mound Builders, SUI
periOr to Red Men.

After noticing the more material de-
struction wrought by the recent food
there is interest and fascination in
studying some of it's freaks which APP
peal more to sentiment and the stu
dent. Ancient graves were washed up
Pulaski Citizen lately visited one of
these. On Dave Wade's farm. between
his residence and Richland Mills, the
flood washed up what is called an "old
Indian graveyard" The burying place
was located on a knoll rising gently
from the creek and evidently supposed
to be above high water by the prehis-
toric people who buried their dead
there with such care. But all trace Of
a graveyard had long since disappeared
and not even tradition remained
among the old negroes in the neighbour
hood.
The field was worth $50 an acre be-
for the flood, and last year 16 acres.
including the old graveyard. produced
IA bales of cotton. The land had been
in cultivation long before it came into
possession of Mr.. Wade. and as ted.
there was neither trace nor tradition
of a graveyard.
But when the creek sperad over the
bottoms as never before, this knoll
extending down into the bend of the
creek suffered great destruction by the.
swift current flowing across it. The
soil was swept away and when the
food receded the graves were exposed
We cannot tell how deep the bodies
were originally buried. nor how many
graves are yet uncovered. nor how
many were swept away. leaving no
trace. About dozen graves were left
exposed Some of these were evidently
graves OF adults and some are graves of
small children.
The vaults were formed somewhat
similar to vaults in graves of to-day.
Thin sla bS Of limestone. evidently
brought from some distance. perhaps
across the creek are placed eGgeways
along the sides and ends. The graves
are about two feet to six feet wide.
| indicating that the bodies were buried
on the side. as they are too narrow to
permit a body to lie fat on the ba ok,
as we bury; and persons who first
looked into the graves say the skele-
tons were lying on the side. The body
had been placed in the vault, which was
| covered by other fiat rocks, and thus
it was expected by the mourners and
loved ones who placed it there that the
body would rest undisturbed o he end
OF time. But when the food exposed
these carefully prepared vaults, they
! were soon opened, and, in the absence
! of other souvenirs. the bones of these
ancient people were carried away. A
seashell was found in one grave, but
| the others contained nothing but de-
cayed bones.
The Indians who occupied this cOun-
try no to about 100 years ago did not
usually bury their dead with such care.
They simply opened a grave, wrapped
a blanket about the dead body, laid it
in the shallow grave and filled in the
earth. Students Of ethnology claim
this county was inha bited by race
of Misunderstanding people. commonly
called the mound Builders.' who
were driven out by the Indians. Thes e
mound builders are believed to have
been superior to the Indian in many re-
spects, but they worshiped Idols. VIII lie
the Indian worshiped the Great
Spirit"
The graves recently washed up on the
Wade farm may have some correction
with a discovery made about so wears
ago in the bluff on tire opposite Size cf
the creek. Dave Imam. who then
lived at the Mrs. Hays place, went Il
some dogs that had chased a rahhi'
into the rocks on the bluff. Among + he
rubbish he found two small clay Gg-
ures, one the form Ct man tie other
a woman. They were in sittir" ros-
ture, perhaps four or five inches high
CANNED GOODS IN SOUTHWEST