I4O SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION 



Side trips from the Knight ranch to various other points in Pre- 

 sidio, Brewster, and Jeff Davis counties revealed caves and shelters 

 which we hope to examine in the near future. Some of these have 

 been pretty thoroughly dug over by collectors of curios and by seek- 

 ers after buried treasure. Legends and tales are common everywhere 

 describing the vast quantities of gold the early Spanish explorers are 

 supposed to have cached in the mountains. This has prompted many 

 men to spend weeks cleaning out the accumulated dirt, destroying 

 whatever archeological material may have been present. Fragments of 

 baskets, mats, cordage and the like having no commercial value are 

 discarded with the rest of the dirt. Such vandalism destroys the evi- 

 dence with which the archeologist is trying to piece together the un- 

 written history of prehistoric America. 



The results of this excavation cannot be correlated with any of 

 the known cultures in the State or in the neighboring culture areas. 

 Further information must be secured, similar sites studied, and the 

 marginal cultures found before conclusions can be drawn concerning 

 the status of this culture. 



