PAP.^fo.'igf INVESTIGATIONS AT FORT STEVENSON — SMITH 183 



cause of a shortage of lime or the lateness of the season at which the 

 masoniy was constructed, or both. Although the masonry footings 

 were massive, as has been stated, they were also rather shallow, and 

 extended little more than a foot or two below the original ground 

 surface, as was seen at two test excavations, carried below the base 

 of the footings (pis. 37, &; 38, a). These footings had been con- 

 structed in narrow trenches, evidence of which, in disturbed soils, 

 was frequently encountered in the course of excavation. 



The masonry footings of the Hospital had been made of field stone 

 of random size, such as could have been picked up on the prairie in 

 the vicinity, brought to the site by wagon, and worked and placed by 

 individual workmen (pis. 37, 38). Many of the stones had been used 

 in the masonry without trimming or other preparation, but some had 

 been roughly split, probably with a heavy sledge. These broken or 

 roughly "faced" stones had usually been placed with a face toward 

 an exposed or upper surface, the smoother and flatter surfaces vertical 

 or horizontal. After these larger, and sometimes shaped, pieces had 

 been set, smaller stones and spalls had been used to fill the joints of 

 the masonry (pi. 38, h). Although the stones of the footing were 

 ordinarily placed horizontally the masonry was not actually coursed 

 throughout or consistently. Little attempt had, apparently, been 

 made to select material for the footings, other than according to con- 

 venient size for carrying and handling, or to provide more than a 

 sound foundation for the walls and building proper. Cornerstones 

 had not been specially trimmed, so far as could be seen, though it 

 should be noted that some stone had been removed from the footings, 

 and trimmed pieces may thus have been lost, as at exterior corners. 

 (pi. 37, 5). 



There are at least two explanations of the loss of materials such as 

 the stones of these footings, and of the building debris that once 

 covered the site. Other buildings in the vicinity of Fort Stevenson 

 today are said to have been made of materials from the abandoned 

 buildings, including both stone and timbers, and some intentional 

 leveling doubtless occurred during the period of the use of the site 

 of the post as a farm. Secondly, a root cellar, made of earth about 

 1915 by using a horse and scraper, lying between the sites of the Hos- 

 pital and the South Barracks and actually superimposed on parts of 

 both, was in part of earth and debris scraped from these sites 

 (pi. 35,5). 



The deposit covering the remains of the Hospital was composed 

 of various materials derived from the building itself. These included 

 adobe brick with adobe mortar, common fired brick with lime mortar, 

 charred bits of wood and metal hardware from the building, ash lay- 

 ers, derived from the destruction of the building, and large quantities 



