6 Tbax'^actioxs of the 



About half a mile from the crossing of the old Sauta Fe trail at Cow 

 creek, in Rice county, are seen the remains of pottery, etc., showing that at 

 least a temporary village formerly existed at that spot. The area covered 

 is small, and the pottery very fragmentary. 



In the extreme northeastern corner of Riley county, on a farm, we found 

 fragments of pottery, arrow heads and other stone implements, and also the 

 clippings of stone left where the implements were made. The area covered 

 over twenty acres, and is a very pleasant locality for a small village. There 

 is a fine spring near, and 2:)lenty of running water at all seasons in the creek. 

 This locality was drawn to my notice by J. M. Morris, Esq., county treasurer, 

 who presented me with fragments of various utensils collected from the spot. 



But the most important locality seen by us in Kansas lies not far from 

 Asher creek, on the southwesterly side of the Solomon river, in Cloud 

 county. The locality is on a rolling prairie, just above the river bottom, 

 which is here quite narrow. The most marked feature of this village is the 

 pottery, where their domestic articles were manufactured. It (the pottery) 

 covers an area from one-fourth to half an acre, rising irregularly at the high- 

 est point about two feet above the level of the adjoining prairie, and is com- 

 posed to a great extent of the materials and debris from the old workshops. 

 In it we found a considerable quantity of the clay dug from the banks of an 

 adjoining ravine, which had never been moulded ; some partly moulded, and 

 sometimes mixed with straw, probably to be used in the coarsest articles. 

 Also, fragments from what appeared to be the ovens in which the pottery 

 had been baked. These fragments showed marks of fire, and were too clumsy 

 :ind coarse to have been part of any household utensil, and were mostly in 

 ii heap in the highest and centra} part of the pottery. 



The extent of the village was obscure, as the rank grass covered the ground 

 for long ages, and nearly obliterated all traces of what once existed. That 

 these villages were made by mound builders, appears evident from the 

 appearance of the pottery. Not only is the texture similar, but the orna- 

 mental markings are like those described by Foster and others. The pecu- 

 liar figures seen on the vessel figure 43, page 244, of Foster, are frequently 

 seen. Also, the clearly defined marks as made by moulding the vessel on 

 the inside of baskets. There were "ears" on fragments of the larger vessels, 

 as if designed for bails. 



These few traces of the ancient race which preceded our Indians show that 

 the mound builders never visited this region in large numbers, or made very 

 permanent towns. They were probably some of the remote settlements on 

 the outskirts of their civilization, represented by our pioneers, provided our 

 ]x)pulation should cease to extend its advance — a few of their tribes who 

 chose to live where free range of territory was more congenial to their habits 

 than the more densely settled portions of the Mississippi and Ohio valleys, 

 where so many of their large mounds are seen. 



