390 ANCIENT ABORIGINAL TRADE IN NORTH AMERICA. 



Four miles north of Chillicotbe, Ohio, there lies, close to the Scioto 

 river, au embankment of earth somewhat in the shape of a square 

 with strongly rounded angles, and enclosing an area of thirteen acres, 

 over which twenty-three mounds are scattered without much regularity. 

 This work has been called " Mound City," from the great number of 

 mounds within its walls. In digging into the mounds, Squier and 

 Davis discovered hearths in many of them, which furnished a great 

 nuuiber of aboriginal relics. From one of the hearths nearly two hun- 

 dred of those peculiar stone pipes were taken, many of them, unfortu- 

 nately, cracked by the action of the fire, and otherwise damaged. The 

 occurrence of these " mound-pipes," howev'er. was not confined to the 

 mound in question, similar ones having occasionally been found else- 

 where. In the more elaborate pipes from iMound City, the bowl is some- 

 times formed in imitation of the human head, but generally of the body 

 of an animal, and in the latter cases the peculiar characteristics of the 

 species which have served as models are frequently expressed with sur- 

 imsing fidelity. The following mammals have been recognized : the 

 beaver, otter, elk, bear, wolf, dog, panther, wild cat, raccoon, opossum, 

 squirrel, and sea-cow (Manati, Lamantin, Trichecus manatus, Lin.). 

 Of the last-named animal, no less than seven representations were 

 found, a circumstance deserving particular notice, because this inhabit- 

 ant of tropical waters is not met in the higher latitudes of North Amer- 

 ica, but only on the coast of Florida, which is many hundred miles dis- 

 tant from Ohio. The Florida Indians called this animal the "big 

 beaver," and hunted it on account of its flesh and bones.* Most fre- 

 quent are carvings of birds, among which the eagle, hawk, falcon, tur- 

 key-buzzard, heron, several species of owls, the raven, swallow, paro- 

 quet, duck, and other land and water-birds, have been recognized. One 

 of the specimens is supposed to represent the toucan, a tropical bird 

 not inhabiting the United States. Worthy of particular mention as a 

 well-executed sculpture is a species of eagle or hawk in the attitude of 

 tearing a smaller bird held in its claws ; and so is that of the tufted 

 heron feeding on a fish. The amphibious animals, likewise, have their 

 representatives in the snake, toad, frog, turtle, and alligator. One spe- 

 cimen shows a snake that winds itself around the bowl of the pipe. 

 The toads, in particular, are very faithful imitations of nature. Indeed, 

 it is said in the "Ancient Monuments" that, if placed in the grass be- 

 fore an unsuspecting observer, they would probably be mistaken for 

 the natural objects ; and this statement is in no way exaggerated, as 

 every one will admit who has seen the specimens in question. The bird- 

 figure supposed to represent the toucan, I think, is not of sufficient dis- 

 tinctness to identify the original that was before the artist's mind ; it 

 would not be safe, therefore, to make this specimen the subject of far- 

 reaching speculations. For the rest, the imitated animals belong, with- 



Bartraru, Travels, Dubliu, 1793, p. 229. 



