Arizona republican., 1908-04-08
PREHISTORIC MAN
 AND HOW HE LIVED
Something of the Story Told at the Meeting of the Woman's Club Yes terday.

The open session of the Woman's
 club yesterday afternoon in the Pres
 byterian church, was another of those
 delightful events in which the general
 public was privileged to enjoy a prof
 itable hour or two as the result of the activity of the women in d matter of general interest Dr. J. Walter Fewkes
 oi the Smithsonian Institution was the
 feature of the program and for over an
 hour he entertained a large assemblage
 that included d great many gentlemen
 as well as a large proportion of the club women of the city. in lecture on
 the Prehistoric People of the Salt and Gila River valleys.
 The meeting was called to order as
 usual by the president. Mrs. B. A. Fowler and after the routine business it was turned over to Mrs. Dwight B. Heard, chairman of the history depart
 ment under which this particular ses- sion was conducted There was some
 particularly good music and most of 1t
 was Indian music, most appropriate Of
 any for the occasion. the discussion of 1 the prehistoric, which is connected
 with the historic by the aborigines of today, chronologically. if in no other
 way. And it is well to add here that
 according to men who make that a study. that is about the only way, for
 it is about as hard to logically connect i the abOrigines with the former civil
 ization as with the present.
 The first number was piano solo
 by Mrs Deity whose selection was Prom an Indian Lodge" by Edward Mcdowell.
 Then came a series of numbers by
 Bernard Jackson. a student of the In- dian school. native of the Yuma tribe. who sang. chanted, and danced
 in the manner of his tribe while Mrs. Heard explained to the audience the meaning of the various songs and dances. The first number was a deer" chant. which is supposed to be given by the natives on the occasion of an
 eclipse of the moon. A fish" song is supposed to portray the fears of the
 fish at a time when according to the story a great fire approached their watery home and they feared extermi- nation. There were other numbers , including a dance that was very en- tertaining.
 The lecture of pr. Fewkes as may be supposed covered a wide range for the subject is a comprehensive one. No effort will be made to give even sym
 opsis of the lecture though one or two
 things will be referred to. The doctor told mainly of the things he had seen
 rather than of theories of what might
 have been. He said the cliff dwellings
 in the vicinity of Roosevelt are valu- able exhibits and almost all this valley
 region is rich in archaeological inter est. He believes however that the ruins of the Salt River valley are per
 haps the most important as they seem 1 to him to be older than those in the vicinity of Casa Grande and there are still many here which no effort has | been made to explore. that may some day give up their secrets. In this con
 nection Dr Fewkes spoke especially of
 the massive ruin between here and
 Tempe. which he believes should in ] some way be taken charge of by the
 government. and after a custodian has 1 been appointed be eXcavated carefully and provision be made against it's fur | ther decay. This he believes would in ! that way become a valuable asset to [ Phoenix and point of educationakin- | terest as a national monument. IL is
 likely that something of this kind will be undertaken later under plans all
 ready being studied out.
 l At the conclusion of the lecture Mrs 1 Fowlc- .ha anked him in the name of the club and its guests after which some
 time was devoted to q social hour wher
 many present had the pleasure of in- troductions to both Doctor and Mrs i Fewkes.