Omaha daily bee., 1916-04-30
Stories of Nebraska History
By A. Il. SHELDON.

10 gct living OF the very simplest kind.
They lived 80 much In fear Of enemies
that every family made a hiding place
for IFS food and tools IN the earth floor
Of its house. These hiding places were
six or eight feet long. with narrow
neck coming up 10 tho dirt floor. They
covered this narrow neck with sticks and
with clay and sometimes built fires on
top OF Il so that strangers would never
suspect that II was there,
Their Graves These people buried trelr
dead in mounds. They sometimes Cow
cred the bodies with piles OF rock, placing
alongside the bodies stone axes, arrows,
spears and many other useful things
which the living would gladly have kept
but which they laid IN tho grave because
they believed the spirit Of the dead
would some day need these things and
be able to use them,
How Wo Know About Them-All that
We know Of these early people we have
learned from their graves and from the
floors aud fireplaoes Of their houses
deeply covered now with several feet OF
Nebraska soil, and from tho curious bot
tle-shaped holes beneath their houses in
which they hid their food and TOOLS Yet
from these we know what thoy ate, what
kinds OF animals they killed. how they
aewcd their clothing together and how
they cut down large trees and used them
Tor posts In building their house. We
also know some things which they be-
lleved about a spirit world and about the
life beyond the grave
They made pottery. moulding the clay,
when they found some that was plastic
and strong, into cups. jugs, pitchers and
wide.mouthed vessels which they could
use IN cooking their food There we're
several kinds Vt pottery made by these
people, some Xellows. some red. some
black. some with poAnded clam shells
mixed with the clay 10 make u tough
aud strong, some with sand ana pounded
rocks Tor the same purpose.
Their liames Meat 0f the homes of
those people weFe Ia the eastern part af
Nebraska aleue the bluffs u ihe Mla.
souri river and on the halls near tha
small streams flowing Into tho Missouri
fheir hunad flfeplaaes have aisa been
fonnd Ia me Had Lambs of northwestern
Nebraska and south paHpta. Ibey never
llteA fac from WoaA and sntff thea
had ne hnfsas and toaid unt rasl'v elpsa
tne NJeal rlaGns rhes weFe aiifefeni
fram ans af tha iadlsu ltbea found ln
Nfemssa bV tHs Hfat ehWs peaple eha
eauls Kaesa gaUuA aran stone AMI elAt
hnHssa II thsif bease faesmt.e sume ~
thaas faHnj m Mssiaa anA Central AmsH
laa tat ne da uat knae who're ihsss
earliest pgaQ'e "a Nebraska taMa lfem
81 shat tassma 81 ihta
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