THOMAS! THE OHIO DISTRIQT. ' 567 



from them. Many are isolated, with no othcu monuments near them; hut they fre- 

 quently oecnr in gTon])S, sometimes in close connection with each other audexhih- 



. iting ii dependence which was uot-withont its meaning. They aredestitjute of altars, 

 nor do they possess the regiilarity which characterizes the " temple mounds." Their 

 usual form is -that of a simple cone; sometimes they are elliptical or pear-shaped. 

 These mounds invariahly cover a slceleton (in very rare instances more than one, 



•as in the case of the 'Grave creek mound), which at the time of interment was envel- 

 oped iu hark or coarse matting, or inclosed in a rude sarcophagus of timher, the 

 traces and, in some instances, the very casts of which rcffiaiil. O.ccasionally 



• the chamherof the dead is built of stone, rudely laid up without cement of any 

 kind. Burial- by fire seems to have been frequently practiced by tlie mound-build- 

 ers. Urn burial also appears to have prevailed to a considerable extent in the South- 

 ern .States. With the skeletons in these mounds are found various remains of art, 

 comprising ornaments, utensils, and ^'capons.' 



Tliese conclu.sion.s can not Iw, acce])ted as generally applicable even 

 in the region now being con.sitlerecl. Instead of the average altitude 

 being from 15 to 25 feet, it is less tlian 10 feet. Nor is the statement 

 that they very rarely cover more than one skel(jton to be taken as a 

 general rule, but as ai)plica}ile only to those examined by these authors. 



The mounds of this class in this district (which, as before state3,_ 

 includes West Virginia) present the following types: 



• (1) Those containing a vault or sarcophagus constructed of timber, 

 in wiiich the body or bodies were interred. This is in most casei^" at the 

 bottom of the mound, resting on the original .sTirtace of the ground, though 

 it is occasionally at some distance up in the mound, and a few instances 

 occur where it is sunk in the original soil. The bodies interred in 

 the.se w.ei;e usually wrapped in bark. These vaults are either round or • 

 quadrangnlar, the latter .sometimes built up of logs laid lengthwise, 

 but iu other cases, as are the former, of posts i)l'aced perijendicuhwly 

 side by side. In a few instances tho.se in which the logs are laid hori- 

 zontally are sfrengthened by upright posts at the corners, and in one 

 or two instances one cii'cular vault stood, immediately above another. 



.Some of these differences are slight, but^mportaut from the fact that 



they are not common and, so far as known, found in no other district, 



. being limited to a comparatively few mounds; but most of these are 



important ones. They also form connecting links which Indicate .some 



relation between the builders of the works (rf Ohio and West Virginia. 



In some cases tire beds occur within the larger vaults, while in 

 cases of some smaller ones there are indications that tire was -kindled 

 on top of the vault after being completed. Prof. E. B. Audi-ews 

 describes one of the latter, which he opened- in Athens county, as fol- 

 lows: 



This is a low mound, abont feet high, with a bn^ad base, perh.aps 40 feet. iu 

 diameter. It ha.s for yearS been plowed over and its original heighf has been con- 

 siderably reduced. " My atti'btion was drawn to this mound by the burnt clay on 

 its top. A trencli 5 feet wide was dug through the center. On the 'east side much 

 burnt yellow clay was tfliind, while on the west end of the treucli cijnsiderable 

 black earth apjieareil, which I took to be kitchen refuse. About 5 feet below the 



I P. 161. 



