Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1910-09-01
SEEING COLORADO: "cl,ff Dwellings,
By REV. w. H. SCHROCK.

was to declare that there Is no such
thing as collie, which, after thu
"spell' had passed, was not hard e
believe.
Breakfast over with eager step
we fastened to the eastern spur Of
Cliff Canyon two miles distant to
visit Cliff palace, the largest Of these
quaint dwellings, which is built I'M
der the roof of an enormous
which arches from fifty to one hun
bred feet above 1t. Access Is gained
with comparative ease, the only real
Iy difficult place being a very mar
row passage between two immense
rocks, called "fat mans misery"
The floor OF the cavern in which the
palace is built is several hundred
feet above the bottom Of the canyon.
The entrance faces the west, and,
looking across the opposite side,
there may be seen on the top OF q
great promontory the ruin Of an an
Client pueblo, now pile OF stones.
Cliff palace practically covers the en-
tire floor of this recess and is about
3G6 feet long, two thirds Of which is
under the shelterng of the cave roof,
and Is thus protected from rain or
the dripping of water from the rim
of the canyon above.
The houses are arranged in form
of crescent, the curve of the VII
lage following that of the rear Of
the cave in which it Is built. There
is not much regularity in the ar
Of the rooms, and gen.
orally they are not crowded together.
There Is one passageway on the
ground floor that may be called a
street, which is Ibordered by a high
wall over which the passer-by could
not look. 1t is difficult to say Just
how many rooms there were orig
inally, but there must have been no
less than two hundred.
The rooms seem to have been ar
ranged with consideration for the
social divisions of the Inhabitants.
The population must have been com
posed Of a number of units or clans,
each with its own social organiza-
ton more or less distinctive from
Others as indicated by the arrange
ment of the rooms. The rooms be-
longing to the clan seem to have
conferred in "kiva," circular, un-
foreground room, where the men
spent their time in religious cere-
councils, and other gather
ngs, a knowledge of which is largely
derived from the use of the kiva by
he modern Hopi Indians. There be-
ng twenty-three Of these kivas In
Tiff palace. 1t is supposed that 1t
that many social units.
with the kivas are living
ooms, rooms to store grain, mill
'ooms, where corn was ground with
apparatus still intact, dark rooms OF
unknown use, towers round and
uuare, and round rooms not towers,
learly all of which have a fireplace
n which are ashes.
The masonry shows a variation IN
he character Of the workmanship,
nd also furnished proof that the VII
age was built in successive periods.
me highest houses are four stories,
nut many are only one story.
Having made q careful inspection
t this ruin and taken several pic
ures, we went to the Peabody
louise, four or five miles away. Few
eople have seen this house by rea-
on of the difficult approach. A cliff, !
lmost perpendicular extending to
he bottom OF the canyon, with snail
cot rests and nothing but the rorga
dge Of the rock to cling to with
be hands, and around which one
aust climb fifteen feet or more gave
most of us cold feet. Clark intimi-
ted that, since good judgment had
marked his past life, he would not
lay fool now; Rem was scared
tiff; Murphy had family to think
I; Dlrkes said: mot for mint OF
money!" and l had promised my wife
o take no chances. Stauffer didn't
hlnk at all, so he went; and OFT de.
Jared 1t was nothing for one who
ad scaled the Matterhorn, and he
Ollowed. But the timid missed moth
ng, for this house is much smaller
han the others. Many Of these
ouses are scattered throughout the
umerous canyons, and 1t is hoped
hat discoveries will be made that
III uncover many things as yet mys-
cries. +
These ruins were discovered in
SIS by Richard and Alfred Water