2 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 8l 



these peoples was so great that they formed an alHance and inter- 

 married. Without doubt there is a strong strain of Jicarilla blood in 

 the present population of Taos. 



The Taos Valley is bordered on the east by one of the most pic- 

 turesque parts of the Santa Fe range, by lofty timber-covered hills at 

 whose feet nestles a plain of surpassing beauty. Criss-crossed by 

 many creeks and streams, some of which attain almost the dignity 

 of small rivers, this well-watered country must have presented to 

 the prehistoric dwellers an environment which could not be duplicated 

 in most of the region with which they were familiar. The climate now 

 is most equable, and there is no reason to suppose that at the coming 

 of the first Indians it was very different. The summers are hot 

 enough to ripen corn and other grains, and the winters are only 

 occasionally extremely cold, despite the statements of the early Span- 

 iards to the contrary.^ 



On the west the valley is bounded by the deep canyon of the Rio 

 Grande, and the stream itself is practically impassable for many 

 miles along its course. This no doubt presented a barrier to a large 

 part of the country from, the west, although access to the valley is 

 easy from the northwest and the southeast. 



The inhabitants of this region were fortunate in that the mountains 

 furnished an abundance of timber for all purposes. The raw material 

 was in close proximity to the villages so that it was not necessary for 

 the people to carry their house beams and heavy logs for other pur- 

 poses great distances. This was an item of considerable ilnportance 

 when it is remembered that the only means of transportation was 

 man power. 



The staple article of the people's food supply was corn, supple- 

 mented to some extent by wild seeds, roots, and fruit. Excellent 

 wheat is now raised in the valley, but as it was unknown prior to the 

 coming of the Spaniards it played no part in the life of the early 

 Pueblos. They were not restricted to a vegetal diet, however, as 

 game must have been quite abundant during the early occupation. 

 Even at the present time deer and wild turkeys are fairly numerous 

 in the Santa Fe range, and grouse, rabbits, and squirrels are plentiful. 

 Many investigators have held that the turkey was not eaten by the 

 Pueblo peoples, but kept for its feathers alone. Information given 

 the writer suggests that some of the Rio Grande people used the bird 

 for food as well as a source of feathers. During late prehistoric 

 times the Indians even made forays into the plains area for buffalo 



^Winship, G. P., he. cit., p. 511. 



