The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1920-08-25

when It was excavated it cort,in.1
no signs Of fire.
The next is = sepulchro. TIM.
stories high, where the anciers.
buried their dead, lying the hoSiss i
on their right side. When the thi,5
floor, which was used first. wa an.
ed with dead and their per,os.,
property, the aperture was sea,ed
and the second door opened az
receiving morgue. The dry clim,s.
and the air-tight room are supno.
ed to have had 3 mummifyinr -
feet upon the dead. for many q n.
cliff dwellers have been excayafrS
In mummy form.
Next we come to the balloon,
house, which is larger than mo.t
Of the dwellings. When this houss
was excavated in the Mesa verds
ii contained a rough mattress ana
e. crude form Of bedstead. The Gin
jewellers were Just beginnins. !,
make furniture when they becans
extinct"
The round watch tower OF thu
Mesa Verde is also a part of tina
Phantom cliff ruins, and the spest.
er's house has likewise been crowd.
ed under the rocky ledge, porch
and all. There is also q mode. Of
one of the prehistoric storehouses
where the ancients stored their
grain.
The Bones Of the Apcienta \,
IN connection with the ruins ia \
a small museum containing speci-
mems Of the cliff dwellers' handi.
Nork-their baskets, water pitch.
ers, sandals, turkey-bone needles.
toys and bone buttons much like
ours. There is also a mattress
made OF rushes Of the kind that
was found in various excavated
houses, and a couple Of prehistoric
skeletons. The latter show the cli,f
dwellers to have been flat-headed.
a state which they achieved BY at
taching a heavy weight to the back
Of the head Of each infant cliff
cweller and keeping it there until
the head attained the proper form.
They also had fiat noses and pro-
;ecting teeth.
The skeletons in this museum,
moreover, are not small. but Of
goodly size. AS a matter of fact.
the cliff jewellers we're probably
about the size as the modern Pu-
eblos. who are supposed to be their
direct descendants. 1t is true thai
the two differ in many particulars.
one of the most obvious being the
| fact that most of the present-day
Pueblos build their hauses Of sun
baked bricks, or adobe, whereas The
ancients used cut stone. But both
are agricultural peoples, both build
the same sort Of doors and wiz
dows-small for defensive pur-
poses-and both use the same gen
eral form of architecture.
| There are, however, Is different
tribes of modern Pueblos, each Of
which speaks a different Language.
On their great feast day. which &C.
ours once a year and which is at.
tended by all the tribes, the Ian
guage spoken is Spanish. The Hopi
tribe is believed to have more in
common with the cliff jewellers
than any of the others.
Moses, the Red Man.
The Indians at Phantom cliff are
from the Santa Clara Pueblo. What
they think of their ancient ances-
tors they refuse to say, but they
add politely that they like the tour
lists. The family consists Of man
and his squaw and five children.
including young papoose. 6
months old, who in popularity re-
ally outshines the cliff jewellers.
All the tourists want to shake his
tiny, brown hand, and to photo
graph him. Moses" said his moth
er proudly 1.-THE young chiefs name
| is Moses). have his picture taken
one hundred times a day"
After each sightseeing party
has been through the cliff dwell.
iugs it is led to the curio shop and
shown various strange curios fol
sale. including some deadly Indian
clubs with which the squaws o.
early days were wont to visit ta'
local battle fields and kill tn'
wounded. There is also an lndial
maiden's wedding dress, made o.
leather, in which an Indian maiden
is occasionally married near va
cliff dwelling ruins as special a.
traction to visiting tourists.
In the midst of examining thess
relics. the sight-seers were SAT-,
led by a sudden war whoop, ana
!. there on the front walk, just out
side the curio shop are gatherea
the smaller members of the Indian
family, clad in red and green sp,
parel, Gathered lead-dresses ane
, moccasins, brandishing tomahawK'
and capering about in a feFocloa'
fashion. Seated on the doorstep u
their father, also much-painted ane
befeathered, beating a tom-tom =
their antics. At last. after seFera
J rounds OF dancing and yelping l'S'
coyotes. the children pause, an'
, entering the curio shop, sedateil
|, pass their feathered hats to the ae
iH.htoJ tr.,ricfo