4 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY 
SYSTEMATIC RESEARCHES 
In addition to purely official duties, the chief has devoted 
considerable time to field work and the preparation of 
reports on archeological researches. In the course of the 
year two visits were made to the Mesa Verde National 
Park, Colorado—one in August and September, 1919; 
the other in June, 1920. These researches, in accordance 
with the above-mentioned act of Congress for the excava- 
tion and repair of archeological remains, were in continuation 
of the cooperative work of the Smithsonian Institution 
and the National Park Service of the Department of the 
Interior, and were made with an allotment from the latter 
for the excavation and repair of cliff houses and other ruins 
on the Mesa Verde. 
In the summer and autumn of 1919 the chief excavated 
and repaired Square Tower House, formerly known as 
Peabody House, one of the most picturesque cliff dwellings 
of the park. The excavation of small house sites situated 
among the cedars on top of the mesa near the trail to Square 
Tower House was carried on simultaneously by Mr. Ralph 
Linton, under the direction of the chief. 
The work of Square Tower House has enlarged our knowl- 
edge of the structure of cliff dwellings; that on small house 
sites contributes to theoretical discussions of their genesis 
and evolution. The small house sites on top of the mesa 
were interpreted as prototypes of kivas in the large cliff 
buildings and are thought to be the ancient stages in their 
development. The whole history of the evolution of hori- 
zontal masonry can be followed by studies of various types 
of buildings on the Mesa Verde. 
The two unique characteristics of Square Tower House 
are a square tower situated in the middle of the ruin and 
the well-preserved roofs with beams intact on two of the 
ceremonial rooms, or kivas. The repair of the tower was 
timely, as it had been feared for many years that it would 
fall, since it has long been tottering. As all friends of our 
antiquities would regard the destruction of this as a calamity, 
it was strengthened and put in a condition for permanent 
preservation. 
