The Washington herald., 1913-10-19
Discovery Strengthens The
ory that Welshmen Visited
the Southwest zoo Years
Before Columbus Reached
America.

A rusty. roughly made old knife
blade, bearing the date "l257" and dug
from an Indian mound near Sulphur
Springs Ark, by Charles II. HELLER.
a druggist of that city, has given
Thomas w. Barton, an archaeologist OF
Stanton, Nebr. the last link in chain
OF proof showing that shipIoad Of
welshnen visited. the Southwest 200
years before the discovery of America
by Columbus and were assimilated by
the Indian tribes of New Mexico and
Arizona
Mr.. Barton, who has the old Welsh
knife at his home in Stanton, has spent
more than a dozen years among the
Zuni. Moqui, and other Indians of the
Southwest studying their traditions,
habits, language, &C. He is now at
Stanton resting and working up the
field notes he made while among the
Indians. The old knife blade, which
came into his possession some time
ago, was so heavily incrusted with
sulphur that 1t was almost an inch in
thickness. When this was removed
the iron of the blade remained and the
date '1257" Is easily discernible- To
this incrustation Mr.. Barton credits
the state of preservation In which the
old blade was found when II was re-
moved from the Indian mound The
water around the town of sulphur
Springs is heavily impregnated with
sulphur, and the incrustation was due
to the settling of sulphur crystals from
the water upon the knife blade.
One Link Tn Chain.
"From investigations 1 have made"
SAYS Mr.. Barton. IT find that in the
century the Welsh were the
only people in the world who made iron
articles and put the date on them. But
this is only one link in the chain or
proof"
The Welsh, according to the archaeolo-
gist, not only antedated the sailor from
Palos, but they preceded La Sale and
Marquette to the Mississippi. entered the
mouth of that river 100 years before
D'Iberville heard of II. rowed or sailed
against the swift current and through
It's shaggy bends several hundred miles,
turned their way into the then dark re-
cesses of the Arkansas and up that
stream journeyed to the Rocky Noun
tains centuries before the gold seekers
footed a train to Santa Fe. These white
men were adopted into the Indian tribes
and gradually the white strain disap-
peared. but today these same Indians
cling to many traditions and words left
behind by the Welshmen.
"Thirty years ago." says Mr.. Barton.
''while in Arizona among the Indians I
nicked I'D the tradition that in an earlier
iay a party of men with white skins
had come among them, were adopted
INTO the tribe, and died. They came
froII the eastward. up the River Arkan-
sas. The white men had weapons and
of a strange metal, but these
were broken and thrown away.
It was many generations before that the
whites had come. and gained scarcely
more than the mere tradition. But I
Kept this tradition in mind.
Indian Understood Welsh.
'aren years after that I was visiting in
, Creek village. There were many
Welshmen in the Western States, and
lad two of them in my party on that
rip. shortly after our arrival was
greetings with the head men
If the tribe, and my two welshmen be-
gan making comment on the camp,
speaking to each other in the Welsh
.ongue. One of the head Indians stop
,ed and listened to my men. Then he
an over to them and embraced them
10Th, at the same time speaking rapidly
n Creek which they did not under
,tand. Then he pronounced his words
more slowly and with more thought. Ny
men looked at him in amazement
Here's something new" one Of them
aid to me. Here's Creek Indian do
ng his best to speak Welsh, and he's
Ioing pretty weIl at Il. too"
'1 myself knew no Welsh. yet those
Telshmen and that Indian managed to
AIRY on a sort OF conversation. Their
differed widely and the red
nan knew comparatively few words of
he Welsh language. but he knew those
ew well and thoroughly. Afterward, ne
old me about ii. First was the tradition.
nd Il was the same that ] had heard