154 



MEMOIRS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES. 



stones of brilliant color. The inlaying was accomplished by coating the shell with some black 

 vegetable gum (supposed to be that of greasewood) which hardened on di-ying ; the gems were 

 stuck into this coating and, when the latter became hard, the whole was rubbed down to a smooth 

 surface. An accurate chromo-lithographic illustration of one of these artistic objects has appeared 

 in Gems and Precious Stones of North America, by George Frederick Kunz, New York, 1890. 



Bverjrthing .susceptible of decay in these ruins had disappeared ; hence, with two or three 

 trifling exceptions of charred and defaced articles, nothing was left of their woven stuffs, their 

 basketry, their woodwork, or the featherwork. But that they wove cloth, wrought baskets and 

 made useful and ornamental objects in various perishable materials, we have abundance of col- 

 lateral evidence. 



During the first fifteen months of the work of the expedition from 17,000 to 20,000 specimens 

 of various kinds were collected, and many fragments rejected. But the collection would have been 

 far richer were it not for the wanton destruction of much material by visitors. Sometimes when 



a pyral cemetery or the floor of a large dwelling had been unearthed, and all the articles discovered 

 laid in their original positions to be photographed, a party of sightseers would appear and, either 

 in the absence of the workmen or in spite of their remonstrauces when present, trample the objects 

 under foot or deliberately kick the pottery to pieces to " see what was inside. " In the earlier 

 days of the work many fine skeletons were lost in this way. Some persons even appropriated 

 handsome objects and carried them away, maintaining that, as these things were found on public 

 land, all had an equal right to them. 



POPULATION. 



What was the population which in ancient days subsisted on the crops watered by the Salado 

 or Salt Eiver and the stored rains of the neighboring mountains! What was the population of 

 the old Salado settlement? Opinion is divided on this subject, and will probably long continue to 

 be divided. Some whro have had the best opportunities of observing the ancient works and 

 studying the problem estimate the population at from 80,000 to 100,000 souls. Los Muertos, it is 

 calculated, covered an area of over 2 square miles and contained about 13,000 inhabitants. There 

 were six other groui)s of buildings in the region as large or larger than this, and there are indica- 

 tions that they were simultaneously occupied. If it could be shown that they were not occupied 

 at the same time, a much lower estimate of the population would have to be made. As the land is 



