The San Juan County index. (Aztec, N.M.) 1890-19??, 1906-07-13

A. D., so, and perhaps many years
prior to this date King Erpbinillopo-
strtl with his lovely wife, the Queen,
held undisputed dominion over all the
Aztecs, the county of San Juan and
Northern New Mexico,
In the upper valleys and canons in
northern New Mexico and southwest
Colorado the cliff dwellers made their
happy homes by carving out COM
modious apartments in the bluffs Of
stone that abound in that locality.
They may or may not have been of
the tribes that till the soil lower down
the valleys of the San Juan and Rio
de Las Animas. The Simon pure
Aztec must have been a farmer of
considerable Importance, as attested
to-day by numerous outlines of the
extinct irrigation systems throughout
the country. Strong evidences exist
that many years before the advent of
the present inhabitants vast quanti-
ties of this land was kept under high
state of cultivation by prosperous and
happy people. The many magnii-
cent ruins of ancient castles and
places yet standing, some of which
are several stories in height, contain
ing or having contained more than
one thousand rooms each, built Of
solid masonry, with walls in some in
stances many feet in thickness, long,
straight cedar logs having been used
as joists, the ends still showing the
imprint of the sto2o hammer and ak
.- ~ ~ vDoso pApic. rrA.,- ~.
laid with small poles and cedar bark
covered with adobe plaster and sand
make up the system of flooring used
throughout these buildings. Volumes
have been written by these people as
we know of them and yet no data
more authentic than that given in
the first few lines of this narrative,
which the writer freely admits is of
doubtful authority has yet been found
upon which to base a conclusion as
to the who, which or when of these
interesting people. One fact remains
bundisputed is, the King with his un-
speakable name, knew a good thing
when he saw it else he would not
have located in the valley of the Sar
Juan, and the supposition is that his
going from this land was not of his
own volition. On the contrary many
products of the soil and a great many
pieces of handmade pottery have
been gathered up in and around these
ruins, indicating the hurried manner
in which these habitations were
vacated But this is history base(
upon tradition and supposition
Subsequent events will be dealt Will
in regard to this country, its inhabi
tants and products with more accur
acy, but all information as ye
given out by explorers of thes'
regions as to the identity of thes,
people has been based on mere con
lecture. No stone has been left un
turned to discover some written o
printed record whereby we might b
able to classify those people but il
vain. The early Spanish explorer
give no record of them except as W
find in their ruins of today.
Just how many years elapsed be
tween the going of the Aztec and tn
J coming of the white man is onl
guess. Nearly two thousand year.
however, subsequent to the date r(
corded in the opening of this chapter
or, to be more concise, about 80 to 4
years ago the white man with h
! hocks, guided by the Western star {
prosperity, wandered into the valley
OF the San Juan and Las Animas an
found the land of promise as con
Portable as that ancient land e,
\ plored by Joshua. Not alone did /
find the valleys and mesas covere
with grass for his focks but vii