Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1925-10-28
iFrepared by the National Geographic So
ciety, Washington D. c.

ciety Washington. D. c.
| NHE Macmillan Arctic expedi-
uon, which comes home with a
u wealth of specimens and data
valuable to half dozen sciences
and an unrivaled collection of photo
graphs, some in color and some taken
from airplanes, Is the most recent of a
remarkable series Of expeditions sent
out by the National Geographic so
ciety to wrest interesting and signifi-
cant facts from the earth and the
forces which play about it.
America has been an important field
Tor these explorations, but they have
not been confined either to the West
ern or Northern hemisphere. The scope
or the work In the American field is
indicated by the fact that at the pres
ent time explorations are under way
IN New Mexico at the largest and best
built of the ancient pueblo dwellings;
and In the valley Of Mexico at what is
believed to be the remains of the old
est civilization on either of the Amer
icas. Previously an expedition of the
society brought to light, at the old Inca
city Of Machu Picchu, the most i'm
portant of South American ruins vet
discovered.
While it has been seeking knowledge
Of the Americans of the dim past and
collecting information at the top of
the world the society has sent other
| parties of explorers to learn of strange
tribes in unknown parts of Asia.
Sometimes amazing ingenuity, tire
less patience and striking contrasts
mark the search for new geographic
facts At Chaco Canyon, New Mexico,
where one of the society's expeditions
Is working, new wonders are constantly
coming to light. This canyon in a
sparsely settled land, now almost
desert, was anciently one of the most
densely populated areas in what is
now the United States.
In delving back into the centuries
to reconstruct the life Of a people
who knew nothing of mechanical trans
! portation, the explorers built a little
railroad and set tiny engine to work
hauling away debris from the fine old
structure, Pueblo Bonito-the Beauti-
full Village-that occupies the canyon.
Before 1t is dumped the debris is ex-
amined and even sifted. In such
way they are finding in this haystack
Of the centuries needles of evidence
| that tell of life In the pueblo many
centuries ago.
The structure that is emerging as the
| 80 &c
is really great communal apartment
house. It housed 1900 people and was
probably the largest domicile on the
continent until within recent years
when the first Of the huge modern
apartments was built In New York
city.
Wonderful Necklace Found.
The outstanding find that has re-
warded the tedious, ingenious work OF
DR.. Neil M. Judd, the leader of the
exposition, Is beautiful turquoise
necklace of $500 graduated beads and
four superb pendants-the only COM
plete specimen Of such a necklace
known. The cunning skill Of the pueb-
10 dwellers in grinding down each tiny
piece and piercing it for stringing,
| challenges the admiration of modern
| jewelers..
From the data gathered so far by the
work at Pueblo Bonito, Doctor Judd
feels that 1t has been demonstrated
that the culture of the ancient Amer
leans had been wholly developed in
America-that these were In truth "1OO
per cent Americans"
"There absolutely is no chance OF
tracing any Relationship between our
country's prehistoric tribes and those
Of the Old World" he says. "Tutankh-
amen and his fellow Egyptians rep
resent high stage Of cultural develop
ment along the desert borders OF the
Nile The ancient Bonitians surpassed
all their contemporaries In the desert
regions of our southwest America, but
he prehistoric peoples of America and
Egypt had nothing in common.
The expedition at work in the valley
Of Mexico has peculiarly interesting
aspects. Some of the ruins were COW
cred by an ancient flow OF volcanic
lava which has helped to preserve the
wort Of the old builders. The scene
of enc work is Cuicuilco. south OF
Mexico City, at a mighty mound some
400 feet thick and more than 90 feet
HIGH which some ancient monarch
orolsbIy forced his subjects to erect