246 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [bull. 52 



through the primeval hosqvc, or forest. The surface is level nearly 

 to the valley of the river; here two large swells in the ground, run- 

 ning apparently about parallel with the river, are crossed, beyond 

 which is a gentle slope toward the river with here and there a sandy 

 surface. Within about a mile or loss of the stream the declivity 

 becomes more apparent and in places is traversed by branching 

 ravines or washes which descend toward the river. These have, for 

 the most part, irregular, vertical walls, exposing pinkish homoge- 

 neous loess. 



The small and scattered Indian settlement of Sotelo is located to 

 one side of one of these branching washes. On the arrival of the 

 party at the place the writer undertook at once an examination of 

 the w^alls exposed in the different parts of the wash, and in less than 

 half an hour discovered in one of these barrancas, 2 meters from 

 the surface, the partially exposed and very imperfect remains of a 

 human skeleton (pi. 22). 



In the same and in other barrancas at similar as well as at con- 

 siderably lower levels, down to perhaps 4 m. below the surface, were 

 found Ampullaria and other shells, all of which, as will be seen from 

 Doctor Dall's report (see p. 247) are of hving species. Finally, near 

 the base of one of the barrancas, on the side of the wasli opposite 

 the place where the human skeleton lay, w^as found firmly embedded 

 in the loess, with only a small part protruding, half of the mandible 

 of a common horse (pi. 23). 



After the deposits and remains had been exammed by Mr. Willis, 

 the human bones were extracted from the ground. They proved to 

 be without doubt the remams of one masculine skeleton and still 

 showed to some extent their natural relations ; but for the most part 

 they had been moved by the settling of the ground, so that the orig- 

 inal position in which the skeleton lay was no longer determinable; 

 numerous parts of the skeleton, including fragments of the bones 

 that remained, had been lost through exposure. Nothing was found 

 with the bones or in the excavation of about 2 cubic yards of earth 

 from below, on the sides, and above them. 



The work of examining the barrancas and of removing the bones 

 consumed a large part of one day and, ownng to untoward circum- 

 stances, the stay of the party could not be prolonged, so that no other 

 washes were examined. 



The information was elicited from the Indians of the village that 

 the settlement is a very old one and that before the present ceme- 

 tery was established, about 100 years ago, the dead were buried in 

 various places in the neighborhood. 



The human bones recovered will be described later in this report; 

 at this point it may be stated merely that they are partially mineral- 

 ized, and agree well in physical characteristics with the Indian. 



