'96 Wisconsin Acadermj of Sciences, Arts and Letters. 



Father Mathew visited his brother a few days after this find. 

 On his return he brought the entire lot of implements with 

 him. 



George A West, an intelligent and thoroughly reliable 

 gentleman, wrote me an accurate description of a mound 

 opened, and of the interesting relics obtained. His letter is 

 as follows: 



Racine, Wisconsin, Jan. 15, 1881. 

 Dr . Hoy, Sr. : 



Dear Sir — Knowing that for years, the works of the moun'i-buiHers 

 have been closely studied by you, aUow me the pleasure of describing to 

 you a few particulars in regard to a mound opeaed by me in the j- ear 1870. 



When an uncle of mine by tlie name of Davis, was trapping on Root river, 

 in the town of Raymond, Racine Co., he discovered two small mounds on 

 the northwest quarter of section 15. The mounds were situated on the 

 east bank of the river, above high water mark, ye . very near to the stream, 

 on a sand bank. One was partly eaten away by the stream and the other, 

 situated a few rods away, was covered with hazrl b ush, with a few large 

 trees standing near by. The mounds were each about ten feet across and 

 two and a half feet above the level of the surrounding ground. 



We concluded to open the remaining mound; so after removing the hazel 

 brush and digging about three feet through sand and roots, we came to a 

 bed of hard blue clay, which we threw out in chunks; beneath the clay we 

 came to a sort of a cavity containing fragments of bone an A dark stretks 

 of earth, which marked the location of what was at one time a human 

 form. 



From the appearance of what remained we concluded that the person 

 must have been buried in a silting posture; for we found a tooth or two 

 where apparently the pelvis was located, which must have dropped from 

 the jaw above. By exercising care we might have preserved a complete 

 cast of the interred, in the hard clay surrounding him. 



Near the center of the mound we found a copper kettle, with a hole in 

 its bottom; within the kettle there was a quantity of dark earth, which 

 was composed mostly of vegetable matter; being such a &hapeless mass 

 we were U'lable t J determine just what it might Lave been. The kettle 

 was about six inches across, with straight s des; it had ears and no bale, 

 and in one plac:) oiits side where th-re had been a hole, there was a rivet 

 inserted, made of copper. The kettle was badly rust-eaten, and when new 

 must have been very thin; Mr. Davis either disposed of it or 

 took it away with him, and where it is remains a mystery. We also found 

 a copper spear h^ad ^nd two irregular p eces of copper. Tlie spear head 

 was about three inches long, with a rivet hola ia the shank. The pieces 

 ©f copper show marks o? pounding; they contain particles of silver and 

 quartz, which show that they were Udver smelted. I am in possession of 



