Ex. Doc. No. 41. - 83 



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Her virtue, and her determination to remain unmarried were equal- 

 ly firm. There came a drought which threatened the world with 

 famine. In their distress, people applied to her, and she gave corn 

 from her stock, and the supply seemed to be endless. Her good- 

 ness was unbounded. One day, as she was lying asleep "with her 

 body exposed, a drop of rain fell on her stomach, which produced 

 conception, A son was the issue, who was the founder of a new 

 race which built all these houses. 



I;told the interpreter repeatedly, he must go and report to the 

 eneral, but his answer was, ^4et me wait till I blow a little. ^^ 

 he attraction was the aquardente. At length he ^As prevailed on 

 to go to head-quarters, leaving at our camp his bows and arrows 



and other matters, saying he would return and pass the. night 

 with us. 



Jfovemher 11.— Leaving the column, a few of us struck to the 

 north side of the river, guided by my loqacious friend, the inter-- 

 preter, to visit the ruins of another Casa Montezuma. In the 

 course of the ride, I asked him if he believed the fable he had re- 

 lated to me last night, which assigned an origin to these buildings. 

 "No,^' said he, ^'but most of the Pimos do. We know, in truth, 

 nothing of their origin. It is all enveloped in mystery." ■ 



The casa was in complete ruins, one pile of broken pottery and 

 foundation stone of the black basalt, making a mound about'ten 

 feet above the ground. The outline of the ground plan was dis- 

 tinct enough. 



We found the description of pottery the same , as everj and, 

 among the ruins, the same sea shell; one w^orked into ornaments; 

 also a large bead, an inch and a quarter in length, of bluish marble, 

 exquisitely turned. 



We secured to-day our long sought bird, the inhabitant of the 



mezquite, indigo blue'plumage, with top knot and long tail. Its 

 ^'ings, when spread, showing a white ellipse. 



Turning from the ruins towards the Pimos village, we urged our 



guide to go fast, as we wished to see as much of his people a? the day 



would permit. He was on foot, but led at a pace which kept our 

 mules in a trot. 



e came in at the back of the settlement of Pimos Indians^ 

 and found our troops encamped in a corn field, from which the 

 gram had been gathered. We were at once impressed with the 



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Deauty, order, and disposition of the arrangements for irrigating 

 and draining the land. Corn, wheat, and cotton are the crops of 

 this peaceful and intelligent race of people. All the crops have 

 been gathered in, and the stubbles show they have been luxuriant. 

 J-he cotton has been picked, and stacked for dryin.g on the tops 

 ot sheds. The fields are sub-divided, by ridges of earthj into rec- 

 ^ngles of about 200 X 100 feet for the convenir.nce of irrigating. 

 Ihe fences are of sticks, wattled with willow and mezquite, and, 

 in this particular, set an example of econorrjy in agriculture worthy 

 to be followed by the Mexicans, who nev'^r use fences at all. The 

 liouses of the people are mere sheds, ♦^hatched with willow and 

 corn stalks. 



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