MOUNDS IN WINNEBAGO COUNTS, WISCONSIN. 337 



That these were not the remains of warriors slain in battle is evident 

 from the number of bones of children found in the mounds, and also 

 from the very great number of bones to be found in those and neighbor- 

 ing mounds. 



Uo other bones than those of human beings were found, nor did any 

 of theai bear marks of fire, though ashes and charcoal occurred iu a 

 layer about inches above the remains. 



A skull obtained from this mound, the pieces of which we have been 

 able to put together so as to get some idea of its original shape, is of fair 

 size, with low forehead and very narrow across the eyes; the great bulk 

 of the head, and by far its highest part, being back of the coronal suture. 

 From the forehead the skull slopes rapidly up to this highest portion, 

 and on its summit, an inch from the coronal suture, and J of an inch to the 

 left of the sagittal suture, is a remarkable circular depression, an inch in 

 diameter. It shows no signs of fracture or violence, and the inside of 

 the skull shows no corresponding elevation. What could have occa- 

 sioned this thinning of the bone we cannot tell; we only know that it 

 must have been done long before the death of its owner, for the wound, 

 or whatever it is, is perfectly healed, and the bone in the depression as 

 smooth and of the same sort as the remainder of the skull. Viewed as 

 a whole the cranium appears very one-sided. 



Several lower jaws with teeth still in them were also obtained from 

 this mound, but not much could be learned from them except that the 

 jaw was massive, and the teeth large, strong, and well preserved. In 

 fact, in many cases, the enamel was completely worn through on the 

 crown of the teeth, and yet they showed no signs of decay ; we found 

 no defective teeth whatever. In the case of one individual the teeth on 

 one side of the jaw were very badly worn off, while on the other no wear- 

 ing at all was visible- 

 All the bones we obtained were of ordinary size, and could be matched 

 in any collection of modern bones. A general characteristic of the skulls 

 was the very low and narrow forehead. 



The gentlemen who accompanied me on this expedition, and to whom 

 much of its success is owing, were Prof. A. II. Sabin and Mr. Everett 

 Martin, both of Ripon, Wis. 



The following are extracts from my paper on the Cleason mounds, as 

 read before the Lapham Archaeological Society last year: 



"These mounds are situated on the southern shore of Rush Lake, on 

 land belonging to Mr. Gleason, in the southeast quarter of the southeast 

 quarter of section 27, and the southwest quarter of the southwest quar- 

 ter of section 26, township of Nepeuskun, Winnebago County, Wiscon- 

 sin, and were visited by a party of students from Ripon College, May 

 12, 1877. 



"The mounds, sixteen in number, are ranged in an irregular line run- 

 ning essentially east and west, about 20 rods from the shore of the lake, 

 which is here high and steep, though all the adjacent shores are low and 

 S. Mis. 51 22 



