New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1903-10-28
ABOUT MOUND BUILDERS.
Infinite Patience Required to Work
the Flint They Used.

aLe liAalASNelaDe questions about he
Is. Why did they make so many implements a..
stone2 And after they had made then at sue, a
great EXPENSE q time and labor why were they
80 careless with them? The great abundance q
these relcs Is TO many archRoloeists the greatest
mystery about them Fields which have been care
fuIly CLEANED year after wear x-fu f,-n On f-esb
specimens after every pIoughing while every
meadow pur into cultivation opens I'D a fresh
source o. supply.
Gerard Fowke one q the best authorities to-
dav. considers this abundance % aboriginal stone
implements a most perplexing puzzle Die the
aoo-igines have such disregard o. work and time
that they preferred 70 make q new ir1rle-nent
rather than hunt Tor a lost one? or did they have
superstitous fear q using what mad belonged
previous generation? Does this abundance
imply a population so numerous that the loss OF
even this great number OF specimens was cen
sldereG Z trivial natter Does X mean that the
users were forced 70 migrate 50 Unexpectedly that
they were unable 10 take their possessions along
with ther did they gradually become extinct
in the reighborhood where these remains are
counc2 And. in either event what led to this re
sllt2 Was II famine2 Was Il the plague? Was
it The sudden enc-oa chuaeut OF an overwhelulinE
f--ce of tr,placable enemies7
These are questions which il is thought may
never Dc answered with any certainty. and they
certainty cannot be the present state OF knovyl-
ecge regarding the sborlgfres. Certain questions
concerning them can. however be answered L
can be told whore they received their material and
most Interesting Of an-how they fashioned Il
into the shape they desired
This ps-tIon O. the Scioro Valley was parricu-
larly rich in the stones most coveted When a
hard tough, heavy stone was needed. the nearest
gravel III on The shores Ct the nearest stream
would yield a piece OF granite OF dante The
searcher had only 20 select a piece which ap
preached ia shape the article he wished to make
State tor ornaments and pipes could be found IN
the glacial drifts. bur for the great bulk Of his
Implements. especially for his cutting ones the
early resident OF this region required what is
ronlv known as ''1iiut.' and which. as thus used.
embraces a wide range OF allied rock agate. chal-
cedory. browns-one and chalk. The chalcedony
var1s from almost crystal -learness 10 mottled
black. through al the shades of RED. blue. green,
yellow and brown.
The prirnevaI man here soon learned that Il was
difficult work sCch flint found on the
surface, because when dry j. would slatJer into
fragments az blow. Hence he Quarried down
after IT, and the great excavations he left behind
HIN show what q tremendous amount OF stone he
used. The Quar-yi1g was accomplished by the aid
OF Ere. which caused the rock 70 shetter. water
probably being thrown or 10 hasten the wo-k
From the appearance OF the trenches IL Is evident
thar this work was sometimes carried along con
rinuously for several hundred yards and the vast
quantities O chips. broken arrow points. knives,
etc found in the vicinity OF the flint beds indicate
that most % the material was worked I'D On me
spot
The amount OF labor involved in this dressing
down process Is staggering. Day after cay Ihe
workman must have sat chipping Of fakes q
stone with his hammer until the implement ap-
prcaches the desired shape. Let one try To-Day
with the best tools al command 70 get Of even one
fake u-c one VIII appreciate what task IL was.
And ver thousands and thousands o. such pieces
were MADE and scattered carelessy over the coun-
e-yside.
Indeed so difficult seems this WORK that many
persons have fixed belief that the dner relics, al
least could have been made only with metal tools.
and thei- abundance is held 70 prove that prime
val u-z- knew Cf some metal much harder and OF
better temper than anything known to-day II Is
argued that not q lie. the harcesl OF uloOeIA
tools win make any impression OF some OF these
eirts. therefore they must have been made with
e,--e-1+-r much harder than the best steel Some
persons ever assert that prlmeval man had oiscoT-
cred s way OF hardening copper 10 the necessary
degree and say that they have seen pieces o. cop
per treated
As matter q fact as NJ. Fowke himself
points our this is direct opposition 70 the eFl-
dezce for TIRE great abundance q stone implements
Is p-ooc that the makers CT them knew nothing
whatever of the economic use o. metals II they
COLD have made che such tool. they would have
made more. and. having them. they Wou-o ho'
waste tine il making articles much less ser
vceab than the tools themselves 80 II Is eTloent
that fl working stone pri-neval nan must nave
used tools CT the same material
Esoz did he 90 IL Doubtless his methods were
much the sane as those % TIE modern indian II
making erge o. hesy a I 5 S-S5 As 10 knox
81 crlps Grtil lie had brought the implement 2s
49, md sTay tie marks Of the hammer WIKI
3 niece Of gritty sandstone OrIaE1ellls 40 ~ i
we're Usually fashioned entirely ny r-Lo-l.s 90 Z.
ss easv 10 imagine what tedious TASK ll--s Hl-s'
- v-5e- 81 wanted 10 d-iu hole as IN pipe OF
ornament he used smooth stralgfl- sllA OF ! -
q bone aul revolyee q =. 80. 49, "a f0-+E
-ueer his HANDS and rubbing ttn go ~ - 49,
Z slight depression beng peche1 W. = -5-,H =
riacc Dr RaU determined 70 Ino OF Us 20 I5e
fo1g IL would take z Grill such ncie. ~, Ils
worked II hole Tor Two keaIs' a. . ve-e
Il iroCuplere- OF course ne eJl 49, - ~
r~-r-Iess more skIeuI a. such work tlan II
Rau and could complete noe ln .r Il-S |si1s
VI ne process must have beel s-lL--- -
F~eoueutly opening Inot-no gI-1 e- 80
cf lrtle beads are lo.--- -i-s - ,S-o-z for the
zach 81 them represents YES .. 49, - r-sss
rerf0rsricns were mace y Iol----s - to75i-r
along the thigh WITH ne - 49, 5eS 49, tre lee
- F---se shows thar This infinite patience So
exists among savages clii- ,e--7ey rIbes II rock
- - 5-~h ~ diameter aid sometimes elei,t
inches long. By ruoolTg co., co., -le,-7 from end 10
- vf-F The flexible shoot ~ ne VIC -
20 finish the larger onez -, &c lie al III and
two men thai is. mar y o.hs g - ,-o---- vb0
Iesves rhe unfinished ornazreIl- 70 q = -,
sornet.uses dies q old age Se-14e nc 60
So ,---ea~vsng patience THIS seems e-nlosS
Incredible yet the inlpereIts q - e-srS numbers
-hs region. scattered 2S go a-e ~ ,-oerr0d sril
were fasaionec IN ttts very wy Lis u, ce--air
e-rvtves. a1d III, Is +,15,5esr5s Of years ago.
--zt--e - nTfric1. Peru and CaLlIorIa 49,
or fakes with stone hammers o. W 'esaS - fv
,---.-~c. - II every instance me Ia itIlie-7
were shaped bit ~ hit ailo w. I--ie1,e-fs thus
-~--s.-.--- AZ TCvke points olt no" e-L>-.
n Isl 10 convince people thai - --sctfosi use
- - ~--5e tools MADE % stone ~ So --s-.
processes. Yet ne 49, gl-,71sf r1arveIlous-
= s,-e--~e The man who fumes ana -
nowadays when be razor y = l1--.,ls save with
vlrh lncreduAtv that any &c 80. sLexsng was
erelr on sharuened stone Noi - -. - ,ee
Common. for the preFai.-IE - ferg each hair
90 -, - -oot-s lasting process. hoVeEe, 80 ~