38 ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE UNITED STATES. 



justify deserve to be carefully stated. They doubtless exerted an important influ- 

 ence upon subsequent speculations, but cannot be held answerable for the vagaries 

 of enthusiastic and visionary writers. The points in whose favor the " Archseologia 

 Americana" gives the weight of its opinion, are 1st. That the vestiges of antiquity 

 in the United States are indicative of the former occupation of the country by a 

 people having a regular government and laws, and possessing many of the customs, 

 arts, and institutions of civilized communities. 2d. That they were not the an- 

 cestors of the modern tribes of Indians; but probably retired to Mexico and Peru, 

 and founded the semi-civilized empires that were encountered and overcome by 

 Cortes and Pizarro. 3d. That, with some exceptions of insufficient magnitude and 

 permanency to affect the general characteristics of the people, the American races, 

 ancient and modern, were derived from different portions of Asia. 4th. That the 

 early inhabitants were very numerous, and occupied fixed abodes for long periods 

 of time. 



These are a sufficient foundation for the support of many visionary hypotheses, 

 and were susceptible of indefinite enlargement and extension from the same ma- 

 terials, and such others as might from time to time be added to them. 



It may be well to leave, for a moment, the chronological order of narration, for 

 the purpose of introducing together the most remarkable instances of fanciful de- 

 duction, resulting from this stage of discovery, and the prevailing tendency of public 

 sentiment. 



In 1823, Mr. John Haywood published an 8vo. volume of 450 pages, entitled " The 

 Natural and Aboriginal History of Tennessee, up to the first settlements therein 

 by the White People." A small portion of the work only is devoted to the natural 

 or plrysical history of the State. The aboriginal history commences with a com- 

 parison of the Mexicans and Peruvians with the Hindoos and Persians, the Natchez 

 Indians with the Mexicans, and the ancient inhabitants of Tennessee with both 

 the latter. Not only are all admitted discoveries of an archteological nature, pressed 

 into the service of this examination, but many of doubtful authenticity, and cir- 

 cumstances irrelevant as well as unverified, are made to swell the mass of analogies 

 which the writer has accumulated. With the aid of these he undertakes to compile 

 a history of the ancient Tennesseeans, applicable also to other Western States, 

 describing the ceremonies and superstitions of their religious faith, their civil polity, 

 their sciences and arts, their games and pastimes, &c. &c, with a particularity that 

 could hardly be surpassed in a history of a living and familiar people. We are 

 told, among other things, that they burnt incense on their high places, to the sun, 

 moon, and planets, and to the host of heaven ; that they placed altars on their 

 mounds, and sacrificed human beings ; that in worshipping, they stood towards the 

 east, and lifted up their hands towards heaven, and towards their idols ; that they 

 venerated the number three, and worshipped triune idols ; that they deemed the 

 cross a sacred symbol ; that they used the conch-shell as emblematic of the properties 

 of their god of the ocean ; that they made wells, walled up with stone from the 

 bottom ; that they had swords of iron and steel, and steel bows, and mirrors with 

 iron backs; knives of iron, with ferules of silver, and iron chisels and spades; that 

 they buried their sacred animals; that they made bricks and burnt them, and used 



