The Glenwood post., 1910-04-16

camp and hunting equipment.
started into the almost un-
known country of the headwa-
ters of the Yaqui river. The first lap
of the Journey lay over the Rio
Grande. Sierra Madre Pacifco rail-
road to Casas Grandes.
Arriving at Casas Grandes we were
met by Pink" Robinson, about the
only American living there. He es-
corted US to his saloon, from where
we were to make the start. After Sc
1ecting eight riding horses and six
pack animals from the corral, we be-
gan laying in our supplies from the
one store in the town. Pink" helped
us ind two mozos who agreed to go
with us as guides and cooks and gen.
eral help. They were called Luis and
Felipe. 1t took our combined English.
Spanish and deaf-and-dumb vocabu-
larry to make ourselves understood,
but We managed fairly well after a
little practice. We learned that one
of them had been down on the Gavi-
IAN river some years before and
thought he could take us through all
right, though the river was high at
this season. All being in readiness,
the word was given and we were of
into the hostile and fascinating land
of the YaQuis.
Between Casas Grandes and Coro-
mel Garcia we passed acres of roofs
of prehistoric dwellings The rains
have washed the earth down from the
surrounding hills until they are all
covered except the gables, and It is
known as "The Gable City" Out from
Casas Grandes some 25 miles are the
ruins of ancient dwellings whose his
tory is sealed book. The white walls
OF these ruins can be seen for miles,
occupying as they do a site on the
mountains. No legend of their build
ers exists. The Indians simply know
the place as Casas Grandes (BiR
Houses) and will not go to them, be-
lieving them to be the dwelling place
of evil spirits.
After two days travelling, we en-
tered the valley Of the Gavilan river.
On every hand as we passed through
this almost unexplored country we
found traces Of its ancient peoples. 1t
is apparent that two distinct races
nave Inhabited the valley. The one
was people who were given to agri-
culture, and who must have been a
large and powerful tribe, as the valley
for hundreds Of miles bears evidence
OF their thrift. On the mountain slopes
walls OF stone follow the canyons in
every direction, making terraces. In
one canyon there are 70 terraces one
above another, and in another there
are over 100. Some of the walls are
ten feet high, while others Just pro-
trude from the ground. These range
IN length from so to 100 yards. The
walls are built of loose rocks, not
round boulders. but fiat rocks, laid
without mortar. and built on an in
cline to prevent their falling out
ward. The rains washing the loose
soil down the mountainsides made
level terraces where were planted tho
cotton and corn for food and clothing,
These terraces are now largely over
grown with trees and vegetation.
On all the high hills there are piles
OF rocks in the form of pyramids and
half moons. Some of these pyramids
are 80 feet high and 200 feet around.
What was their purpose is not known.
Penetrating farther into the valley, in
the most sequestered parts of the
mountains. we came upon cliff dwell.
dngs. Some Of these dwellings we're
1000 feet up the sides Of an almost
perpendicular wall. and in every mar
row canyon we found the terraces for
raising corn and cotton as in the
wider portions of the valley. Some of
these cliff dwellings are three stories
high. made Of white cement so
strong it is almost impossible to
break 1t with a pick.
That these people were gradually
driven back by hostile tribes is evi-
dent from the fact that the farther
one penetrates into the interior the
more dihicult Of access become the
dwellings. and at last they become
mere caves in the mountainside. show.
ing that from strong and prosperous
people they were driven into poverty
by q stronger enemy who lived upon
the labor Of their predecessors. ono
curious feature Of this valley il that
for miles at . stretch in different Sec
tions Of the valley. bits Of broken
glass and pottery are scattered over
the ground. Where all this pottery
came from and how II came TO IS
scattered over such territory u 4
mystsry.