198 MOUND EXPLORATIONS. 



ARKANSAS. 



Although exploratiou.s were made in other parts of this state, much 

 the hirger portion of the aiit-ieut works referred to are iii the uorth- 

 eastern part, or, in other words, the hinds bordering the Mississipi>i and 

 lower Arkansas and the area drained by the White and 8t. Francis 

 rivers. This area, if extended southward so as to include Desha and 

 Chicot counties, is known as the Mississippi alluvial region of Arkansas. 

 With the exception of Crowley's ridge, which breaks its monotonous 

 uniformity, it consists chiefly of broad bottom lands interrupted in 

 places by swamps, sloughs and wet prairies, through which, or separat- 

 ing which, are generally low, broad swells or ridges (as they are called, 

 though of but few feet in height) of rich sandy loam heavily timbered. 



Crowley's ridge, which runs through Green, Craighead, Poinsett, and 

 St. Francis counties, forming the divide between the waters of White 

 and St. Francis rivers, terminates in Phillips c(mnty just below the city 

 of Helena. The top, throughout its entire extent in Arkansas, is com- 

 posed for the most i)art of siliceous clay and marl of quaternary date, 

 usually resting on a bed of waterworn gravel. Numerous springs of 

 good cool water flow from beneath this gravel bed along the eastern foot 

 of the ridge near Helena. Most of the bottom lands are overflowed 

 during high water. 



CLAY COUNTY. 



This, the extreme northeastern county of the state, is comparatively 

 level and is drained by the St. Francis river on the east. Cache river 

 in the center, and Black river on the west. These rivers are bordered 

 by low, flat, bottom lands heavily timbered and subject to overflow. 

 Between Black and Cache rivers is a low ridge, which extends south- 

 westward through several counties. Between the Cache and St. Fran- 

 cis rivers is a still more prominent and wider elevation, which is the 

 Ijeginning of Crowley's ridge. 



The only group of mounds examined in this county is situated in the 

 immediate vicinity of Corning, the county seat, (m a sandy ridge that 

 rises some 20 feet above the cypress swamp flanking it on the east. 



A few of these were measured and opened with the following results: 



No. 1, oblong, measured 90 feet in length by 05 in width at the base 

 and 9 feet high. About 20 feet of the north end had been removed by 

 the townspeople. The only things of interest observed were fire beds 

 of swamp nuick, charcoal, ashes, stone chips, and a few charred bones. 

 An examination of the renmining portion revealed nothing additional 

 exoept the indications of long-continued occupancy and the fact that it 

 had been built up by successive layers. 



No. 2, oblong, 40 by 35 feet at base and 5 feet high, was explored 

 with similar results. 



No. 3 measured 100 by 80 feet at base, but the height could not be 

 determined, as it had been partially removed for grading the railroad 



