Marcu 26, 1914| 
NATURE oo 
animal bones, a large number of potsherds and a few 
stone, silver, and bronze implements. Nothing of 
gold was found, and only half a dozen small silver 
pins and pendant discs. 
The city itself contains about two hundred edifices. 
Most of the walls are standing and many of the 
terraces are in good repair. The roofs of the houses 
disappeared long since, and a large part of the city 
was completely overgrown with a_ tropical forest. 
Trees 2 ft. in diameter were found growing on top 
of the walls of the houses, and in some cases on the 
very peaks of the gables.. A majority of the houses 
are of a storey and a half in height with gable ends. 
é ; Notice the lock 
hole containing granite cylinder on left and projecting ring 
Fic. 5.—Machu Picchu. City gate, interior. 
stone over the ‘lintel of the doorway.. The gate, probably of 
wood, was either swung from the ring stone oy fastened to it and 
balanced by a log fastened to the stone cylinders in the lock 
hole on either side of the gateway. A similar device was used 
also in the entrance doors to each isolated group of houses. 
Copyright by the National Geographic Society. 
Perhaps the most conspicuous features of Machu 
Picchu are the number of stairways and the large 
number of windows in the houses. There are more 
than a hundred stairways, large and small, within the 
city. Some of them have more than 150 steps. In 
some cases the entire stairway of from six to ten 
steps was cut out of a single granite boulder. The 
water supply must always have been very scarce. 
We were there during the dry season, and with forty 
workmen found the available springs only barely 
sufficient for cooking and drinking purposes. The 
town may have had a population of two thousand 
people on occasion, 
In the four months of field season, the ruins were 
NOe 2317, VOL. 93] 
practically cleared of all forest growth, and a large 
part of the débris was burned and removed. From 
twenty to forty workmen were kept continuously at 
work under the direction of Mr. Erdis. 
One of the most interesting facts brought out as a 
result of the clearing was that the city was at one 
time divided into wards, or clan groups, each of which 
had but one entrance, a gateway furnished with the 
means of being solidly fastened on the inside. Each 
one of the clan groups has certain distinctive features, 
one having its own private gardens, another being 
distinguished by the ingenuity of the stone work, while 
still another is marked by having monolithic lintels 
over the doorways, and. unusually» steep gables. 
Machu Picchu contains examples of nearly every 
variety of architecture known to the Incas and their 
predecessors on the Peruvian highlands, including fine 
specimens of the most exquisite stone cutting that can 
be found anywhere in the New World. One of the 
most interesting structures is a temple containing 
three conspicuously large windows. Another is com- 
posed of several large blocks of granite, three of them 
being more than 12 ft. in length. These are shown 
in the accompanying photographs. 
Machu Picchu is in a remarkably good state of 
preservation, and its architecture has not become 
confused by Spanish efforts to build» churches and 
villas. The people who lived here were masters of 
the art of stone cutting. They know how to make 
bronzes, and they had considerable» artistic . sense. 
Their pottery is characteristically Inca in form and 
ornamentation, but some of the patterns and shapes 
are practically unknown in European museums. 
Just where Machu Picchu comes in the history of 
the Incas is still a puzzle. It is too early to speak 
definitely. In many ways it appears to be closely 
related to Cuzco. One of the buildings bears a strong 
resemblance to the famous Temple of the Sun, now 
the Dominican Monastery. It is safe to say that 
Machu Picchu was essentially a city of refuge. There 
is no part of the Andes better defended by nature than 
this Grand Cafion of the Urubamba. Granite preci- 
pices, frequently more than tooo ft. sheer, present 
difficulties of attack and facilities for defence which 
cannot be excelled. Furthermore, the natural defences 
were strengthened by the construction of high walls 
and a dry moat. 
A careful survey of the ruins and the neighbouring 
cafion was made by Mr. Stephenson. More than 
seven. hundred photographs of the ruins were taken 
by the writer, who has in hand the preparation of a 
complete report on the ruins and the material collected 
at Machu Picchu. Hiram Bincuam. 
CIVIL: SERVICE ESTIMATES” FOR 
SCIENCE AND EDUCATION. 
‘1’ HE Estimates for Civil Services for the year end- 
ing March 31, 1915, are being issued as a series 
of Parliamentary Papers. The following particulars 
referring. to. the money under this heading to be 
devoted to scientific work and to higher education are 
taken-from the paper entitled, ‘‘Class [V.—Education, 
Science, and Art.”’ 
Under the heading, ‘‘ Scientific Investigation, etc.,” 
we find that the grants in aid for 1914-15 amount to 
100,6971., which represents a net decrease of 11]. on 
the amount voted in 1913-14. 
The grants enumerated under the heading of 
the Royal Society amount for 1914-15 to 25,550l., as 
compared with 27,1501. in 1913-14. This grant in- 
cludes the usual 4oool. in aid of scientific investigation 
and r1oool. for scientific publications; the remainder of 
the amount is for the expenses of the Magnetic Ob- 
