CHAPTER IX.

ANOMALOUS MOUNDS. Besides the mounds already described, the purposes of which seem pretty clearly indicated, there are many which will admit of no classification. Some of them possess features in common with all classes, and seem to have been appropriated to a double purpose; while others, in our present state of knowledge concerning them, are entirely inexplicable. As these mounds differ individually from each other, it is of course impossible to present anything like a general view of their character. We can therefore only describe a few of the more remarkable, dismissing the remainder with the single observation that their features do not indicate any specific design, and are not sufficiently distinct or uniform to justify or sustain a classification. One of the most singular of these mounds, and one which best illustrates the remark that certain mounds were probably made to subserve a double purpose, is situated within a large enclosure on the east bank of the Scioto river. (Marked «c e», Plate XX.) A plan and section of the mound are herewith presented (Fig. 67). [Illustration: Fig. 67.] It is an irregular oval in form, and is one hundred and sixty feet long, ninety broad at its larger end, and twenty feet in height. Excavations were made at the points indicated in the section. The one towards the right or smaller end of the mound disclosed an enclosure of timber, eight feet square, and similar, in all respects, to those found in the sepulchral mounds, except that, in this instance, posts eight inches in diameter had been planted at the outer corners, as if to sustain the structure. These posts had been inserted eighteen inches in the [p179] original level or floor of the mound. The holes left by their decay were found filled with decomposed material; when this was removed, they exhibited perfect «casts» of the timbers. The casts also of the horizontal timbers were well retained in the compact earth, and one of the workmen, without much difficulty, was enabled to creep more than half the way around the enclosure which they had formed. Within this chamber the earth was as firm as in any portion of the mound. Upon removing a portion, a skeleton partly burned was found, and with it a thin copper plate seven inches long and four broad, perforated with two small holes; also a large pipe of bold outline, carved from a dark compact porphyry (Fig. 68). The bones seemed to have been enveloped in a species of matting, which was too much decayed to be distinctly made out. The floor of the mound, it should be mentioned, so far as explored, was composed of clay, was perfectly level, and had been burned to considerable hardness. [Illustration: Fig. 68.—Half size.] The second excavation (B) was made in the larger end of the mound, somewhat to one side of the centre, at a spot marked by a depression in the surface. At the depth of twenty feet was found an altar of clay of exceeding symmetry. This was sunk, as shown in the section, in the general level or floor of the mound, and had been surrounded by an enclosure in all respects similar to the one above described, except that the timbers had been less in size. A fine carbonaceous deposit, resembling burned leaves, was found within the altar. Amongst the decayed materials of the surrounding enclosure were found several «skewers», if we may so term them, in lack of a better name, made of the bones («ulna») of the deer. They were finely tapered to a point, and had evidently been originally highly polished. Some were not less than nine or ten inches long. Though apparently sound, they were found to be exceedingly brittle, retaining little if any of their animal matter. Drifts were carried in the course shown in the section, and the evidences of another enclosure discovered. The excavation was suspended at this point, in consequence of heavy and continued rains. The holes soon became partly filled by the caving in of the loose earth near the surface; which discouraging circumstance, joined to the extreme difficulty of digging,[121] prevented a resumption of [p180] the investigation. It is very certain that another, perhaps several other chambers are concealed by this mound. The surface of this mound was covered with the layer of pebbles and coarse gravel already mentioned as characterizing the mounds of the first class; but the sand strata were absent. Around the base had been laid, with some degree of regularity, a large quantity of flat stones, constituting a sort of wall for the better support of the earth. These stones must have been brought from the hills, which are here nearly half a mile distant. Why the altar as well as the skeleton had been enclosed, and why the floor of the mound had been so carefully levelled, cast over with clay, and then hardened by fire, are questions which will probably remain unanswered and unexplained unless future investigations serve further to elucidate the mystery of the mounds. At any rate, this singular mound can prove no greater puzzle to the reader than it has to the authors of these inquiries. A detached mound stands on the bank of Walnut creek, about three miles below the one just described, which is entirely anomalous in its character. It is about nine feet in height by forty base. The following section will best explain its construction. [Illustration: Fig. 69.] Fig. 69. The principal portion of the mound, which is darkly shaded in the section, resembles long exposed and highly compacted ashes, and is intermingled with specks of charcoal, small bits of burned bones, and fragments of sandstone much burned. Beneath this, and forming the nucleus as it were of the entire mound, is a mass of very pure white clay, of somewhat regular outline; but whether this regularity was accidental or designed, it is not undertaken to say. The clay rested upon the original soil, and did not appear to have been subjected in any degree to the action of fire. The carbonaceous deposit, if we may so regard it, seems from this circumstance to have been brought here and not to have been produced by burning on the spot. The mound could not possibly have been designed for a «look-out», inasmuch as it stands immediately at the base of the table lands, and commands but a very limited view. Two other mounds, numbered 6 and 7 in the map, Plate II, exhibited some features in common with the one last mentioned, though neither had the clay deposit at the base. After penetrating a foot or twenty inches into these, traces of ashes and other carbonaceous matter, with here and there small quantities of burned bones in fine fragments, became abundant,—indeed the remainder of the mound seemed entirely constituted of such materials. In some instances, if not in all, the fragments of calcined bones were of the human skeleton. It has been suggested that these mounds were composed of the ashes of the dead, burned elsewhere, but finally thus heaped together. It is not impossible that such was the case in a few instances, though mounds possessing these features are too few in number and too small in size to justify the conclusion that such was the general custom. A number of mounds, principally within enclosures, have been examined, which exhibited only a level, hard-packed area at their base, thinly covered with a [p181] fine-grained, carbonaceous material similar to that which is sometimes found on the altars, and which has several times been described as resembling burned leaves or straw. It has been suggested that sacrifices or offerings of vegetables or the “first fruits” of the year were sometimes made, of which these traces alone remain. In one or two small mounds, deposits of arrow or spear points of flint have been found. The little mound No. 8 in the map, Plate II, contained a pile in its centre of twenty or more, each one broken into two or three pieces. They had not been exposed to the action of fire. In shape they are singular, differing materially from those usually found scattered over the fields, and are exceedingly thin and well wrought. It is fruitless to conjecture why they were thus broken up, or why indeed the simple deposit was made at all. A few small mounds have been observed composed entirely of pebbles, of the average size of one’s fist, unmixed with earth, excepting what had gradually accumulated over them. Several of those surrounding the great work on Paint creek (Plate XXI, No. 2) are of this description, and are supposed, by the residents of the vicinity, to be the missiles of the ancient people, thus conveniently deposited for use in case of an attack upon the supposed fortress! Unfortunately for this hypothesis, the magazines are outside of the walls. It would prove an almost endless and perhaps an entirely unprofitable task to describe the peculiarities of individual mounds, not referable to either of the grand classes already noticed. Most of them appear inexplicable; not more so, however, than did the sacrificial or altar mounds when first noticed, and it is likely that more extended investigations may also serve to explain their purposes. The examples above presented are adduced to show that, while the leading purposes of the mounds (of Ohio at least) have been detected and settled, there is yet much left for future explorations to determine. MOUNDS OF OBSERVATION. It has already been several times remarked, that the most commanding positions on the hills bordering the valleys of the West, are often crowned with mounds, generally of intermediate, but sometimes of large size,—suggesting at once the purposes to which some of the «cairns» or hill-mounds of the Celts were applied, namely, that of signal or alarm posts. Ranges of these mounds may be observed extending along the valleys for many miles. Between Chillicothe and Columbus, on the eastern border of the Scioto valley, not far from twenty may be selected, so placed in respect to each other, that it is believed, if the country were cleared of forests, signals of fire might be transmitted in a few minutes along the whole line. On a hill opposite Chillicothe, nearly six hundred feet in height, the loftiest in the entire region, one of [p182] these mounds is placed. After the fall of the leaves in autumn, it is a conspicuous object from every work laid down on the Map of a section of twelve miles of the Scioto valley, to which such frequent reference has been made, as well as from other works not exhibited in the map. It is indicated by the figure 5 in this map. A fire built upon it would be distinctly visible for fifteen or twenty miles up, and an equal distance down the valley, (including in its range the Circleville works, twenty miles distant,) as also for a long way up the broad valleys of the two Paint creeks,—both of which abound in remains, and seem to have been especial favorites with the mound-builders. In the Map of six miles of the Miami valley, (Plate III,) a similar feature will be observed. Upon a hill three hundred feet in height, overlooking the Colerain work, and commanding an extensive view of the valley, are placed two mounds, which exhibit—in connection with other circumstances not entirely consistent with the conclusion that they were simple signal-stations—strong marks of fire on and around them. Similar mounds occur, at intervals, along the Wabash and Illinois rivers, as also on the Upper Mississippi, the Ohio, the Miamis, and the Scioto. On the high hills overlooking the Portsmouth and Marietta works, (Plates XXVI and XXVII,) mounds of stone are situated; those at the former place exhibit evident marks of fire. On the heights around the works at Grave creek in Virginia, similar features have been observed.[122] A trip of exploration, made with special reference to this and kindred points, disclosed the fact that, between the mouths of the Scioto and Guyandotte rivers, the hills upon both sides of the Ohio, for the entire distance, were studded with mounds. Many of them, however, occurred in groups, their bases joining, and were placed so far back from the brow of the hills as to be entirely invisible from the valley,—facts wholly opposed to the hypothesis which ascribes a common purpose to all of the hill-mounds. Indeed, for the distance above specified, these mounds, though less in size, seemed quite as numerous as those in the valley; in which, besides mounds and a few small circles, no works of magnitude were discovered,—another fact which may not be without its importance in this connection. Some of the hill-mounds bordering on the Ohio have been opened by explorers, and found to contain human remains, but whether of an ancient or modern date, it is difficult, from the imperfect nature of the accounts, to determine. The remarkable mound already mentioned, situated on the high hill near Chillicothe, was opened some twelve or fifteen years ago; and, it is said, human remains and a variety of relics were discovered in it. Although the investigation of this class of mounds has, from a variety of causes, been comparatively limited, yet enough has been ascertained concerning them, to justify the belief that a large proportion contain human remains, undoubtedly those of the mound-builders. And, although traces of fire are to be observed around very many, the marks are not sufficiently strong to sustain the inference that all were look-outs, and that fires were kindled upon them as signals. It is not impossible that a portion were devoted to sepulture, another portion to observation, and that some answered a double purpose. [p183] This is a point which remains to be settled by the disclosures of the mattock and spade, and by a close and extended observation of the dependences which exist, not only between the hill-mounds themselves, but between them and the other monuments of the same people. It may perhaps seem, from what has been adduced, that the classification of any portion of the hill-mounds as places of observation, is not sufficiently well authorized. The positions however which many of them occupy, are such as would most naturally be chosen for such purposes, though not necessarily for such only. The apparent dependence which exists between some of them and the larger earthworks would also seem to favor the idea that they were look-outs. But whether signal-stations or otherwise, there can be no doubt that the ancient people selected prominent and elevated positions upon which to build large fires, which were kept burning for long periods, or renewed at frequent intervals. For what purposes they were built, whether to communicate intelligence or to celebrate some religious rite, it is not undertaken to say.[123] The traces of these fires are only observed upon the brows of the hills: they appear to have been built generally upon heaps of stones, which are broken up and sometimes partially vitrified. In all cases they exhibit marks of intense and protracted heat. They are vulgarly supposed to be the remains of “«furnaces»,” from the amount of scoriaceous material accompanying them, which often covers a large area, and is several feet in thickness. This popular error has led to some very extravagant conjectures as to the former mineral wealth of the vicinity in which they occur; an error which has been perpetuated in various works on American antiquities. The dependence which exists between certain mounds, and the defensive structures within or near which they are located, is too evident to admit of doubt. It has already been made a subject of remark, (page 43,) and need only be referred to here. In the case of the fortified hill, Plate VI, we find a large mound commanding the only avenue leading to it, and so placed that no approach could be made unobserved from its summit. Similar dependences, perhaps still more marked, are perceived in other works, where mounds are placed on the approaches, or at such points within or without the walls as are best adapted for observation. (See Plate XI, Nos. 1 and 2.) [p184] STONE HEAPS. Rude heaps of stone, occasionally displaying some degree of regularity, are not uncommon at the West, though by no means peculiar to that section of country. It is exceedingly questionable whether any of them belong to the same era with the other works here treated of, although they are usually ascribed to the mound-builders. The stone mounds, of which mention has already been made, are very different structures, and should not be confounded with these rude accumulations. One of the most remarkable stone-heaps observed in the course of these investigations, is situated upon the dividing ridge between Indian and Crooked creeks, about ten miles south-west of Chillicothe, Ohio. It is immediately by the side of the old Indian trail which led from the Shawanoe towns, in the vicinity of Chillicothe, to the mouth of the Scioto river; and consists of a simple heap of stones, rectangular in form, and measuring one hundred and six feet in length by sixty in width, and between three and four in height. The stones are of all sizes, from those not larger than a man’s head, to those which can hardly be lifted. They are such as are found in great abundance on the hill slopes,—the fragments or «debris» of the outcropping sandstone layers. Some are water-worn, showing that they were brought up from the creek, nearly half a mile distant; and although they were disposed with no regularity in respect to each other, the heap was originally quite symmetrical in outline. The stones have been thrown out from the centre, and an excavation of considerable depth made in the earth beneath, but without results. The heap is situated upon the highest point of land traversed by the Indian trail; upon the water-shed, or dividing ridge, between the streams which flow into Brush creek on the one side, and the Scioto river on the other. Another heap of stones of like character, but somewhat less in size, is situated upon the top of a high, narrow hill, overlooking the small valley of Salt creek, near Tarlton, Pickaway county, Ohio. It is remarkable as having large numbers of crumbling human bones—to say nothing of living black snakes—intermingled, apparently without order, with the stones. A very extensive prospect is had from this point. Upon the slope of a lower hill near by, appears to have been formerly an Indian village. Many rude relics are uncovered on the spot, by the plough. Smaller and very irregular heaps are frequent amongst the hills. They do not generally embrace more than a couple of cartloads of stone, and almost invariably cover a skeleton. Occasionally the amount of stones is much greater. Rude implements are sometimes found with the skeletons. A number of such graves have been observed near Sinking Springs, Highland county, Ohio; also in Adams county in the same State, and in Greenup county, Kentucky, at a point nearly opposite the town of Portsmouth on the Ohio. Heaps of similar character are found in the Atlantic States, where they were [p185] raised by the Indians over the bodies of those who met their death by accident, or in the manner of whose death there was something unusual. Dwight, in his Travels, mentions a heap of stones of this description which was raised over the body of a warrior killed by accident, on the old Indian trail between Hartford and Farmington, the seat of the Tunxis Indians, in Connecticut. Traces of a similar heap still exist on the old trail between Schenectady and Cherry Valley in New York, with which a like tradition is connected. They were not raised at once, but were the accumulations of a long period, it being the custom for each warrior as he passed the spot to add a stone to the pile. Hence the general occurrence of these rude monuments near some frequented trail or path. [Illustration: Fig. 70.—CONICAL MOUND.] FOOTNOTES: [121] The difficulty of carrying on investigations in the large mounds cannot be readily appreciated. The earth is always so compact as to require, literally, to be «cut out». It has then to be raised to the surface,—a task of great labor, and only accomplished by leaving stages in the descent and throwing the earth from one to the other, and finally to the surface. Four industrious men were employed not less than ten or twelve days in making the excavations in this mound alone. [122] Transactions of the American Ethnological Society, vol. i. p. 409. [123] When Lieut. Fremont penetrated into the fastnesses of Upper California, where his appearance created great alarm among the Indians, he observed this primitive telegraphic system in operation. “Columns of smoke rose over the country at scattered intervals,—signals by which the Indians, here as elsewhere, communicate to each other that enemies are in the country. It is a signal of ancient and very universal application among barbarians.”—«Fremont’s Second Expedition», p. 220. [p186]