THE MO UND B UILDERS OF ILLINOIS. 535 



South of Charleston was a large grave in a sandy loam. Here were four 

 small mounds, quite near together, about 4 feet high, and all burial mounds 

 except one. 



Twelve miles further south, on James bayou, are two mounds, quite near 

 the bayou, about 8 feet high and 40 feet in diameter. Neither seemed to be 

 burial mounds; but near by in the same field was found a large grave in a 

 slight elevation. It extended into the street, and was so slight that one in 

 passing would hardly notice it above the usual level. Here were several 

 hundred good vessels found in a space not larger than 30 by 60 feet. These 

 finds constitute the greater j)art of all I have examined in Missouri. I very 

 much regret that these works could not have been more carefully and in- 

 telligently ojDened ; but since it has been done by private enterprise alone, 

 and no one having entire control of the premises, we could do no better. 



Much of value and interest has been forever lost. My endeavor has been 

 to preserve all the facts which came to my knowledge, and I only regret 

 that I could not have done the work more perfectly. 



Examination of Indian Mounds on Eock River, at Sterlincj, Illinois. 

 — I recently made an examination of a few of the many Indian mounds 

 found on Rock River, about two miles above Sterling, Illinois. The first 

 one opened was an oval mound about twenty feet long, twelve feet wide, 

 and seven feet high. In the interior of this I found a dolmen or quadrila- 

 teral wall about ten feet long, four feet high, and four and a half feet wide. 

 It had been built of lime-rock from a quarry near by, and was covered with 

 large flat stones. No mortar or cement had been used. The whole struc- 

 ture rested on the surface of the natural soil, the interior of which had 

 been scooped out to enlarge the chamber. Inside of the dolmen I found the 

 partly decayed remains of eight human skeletons, two very large teeth of 

 an unknown animal, two fossils, one of which is not found in this place, and 

 a plummet. One of the long bones had been splintered; the fragments 

 had united, but there remained large morbid growths of bone (exostosis) in 

 several places. One of the skulls presented a circular opening about the 

 size of a silver dime. This perforation had been made daring life, for the 

 edges had commenced to cicatrize. 



I later examined three circular mounds, but in them I found no dolmens. 

 The first mound contained three adult human skeletons, a few fragments of 

 the skeleton of a child, the lower maxillary of which indicated it to be 

 about six years old. I also found claws of some carnivorous animal. The 

 surface of the soil had been scooped out, and the bodies laid in the excava- 

 tion and covered with about one foot of earth ; fires had then been made 

 upon the grave, and the mound afterwards completed. The bones had not 

 been charred. No charcoal was found among the bones, but occurred in 

 abundance in a stratum about one foot above them. Two other mounds 

 examined at the same time contained no remains. 



Of two other mounds opened later, the first was circular, about four feet 



