84 WILD SPORTS IN THE FAR WEST. 



his arrival, and, as I did not wish to diminish un- 

 necessarily my small stock of money, I assisted to 

 gather in the Indian corn, so as to earn my food. As 

 my host arrived in the evening, I had not long to 

 wait. He informed me that there were a number of 

 sepulchral monuments on the banks of the Spring 

 river, or in its neighborhood, and spoke of gigantic 

 bones and skeletons wliich had been found there. 

 When in Ilhnois, I had heard of such remains of a 

 colossal race of men, and among others of a human 

 lower jaw, whose owner must have been about nine 

 feet high. He also said that he had found urns and 

 weajDons in the graves ; but he had none to show me, 

 for these people have no regard for any thing that does 

 not offer some immediate prospect of gain. 



On the banks of the neighboring White river, they 

 had found bricks some feet under the surface in several 

 places, laid as if they had formed a street or road, and 

 my host, as well as several others, maintained that 

 there must have been a town there. 



There is a strong probability that, before the modern 

 race of Indians, a stronger and more civilized people 

 must have inhabited North America, as several ancient 

 and magnificent buildings in Mexico also tend to 

 prove. If my host had had time to show me any of the 

 mounds, I would have devoted a day or two to their 

 examination, but he was obliged to take another 

 journey on the following day, and I could not well 

 await his return. Perhaps some one else may find 

 time to make excavations. 



On the following morning I set off again on my 

 travels, and turned a httle out of my way to climb a 



