24 



willow friuged tbe meauderiug stream in pleasant groves, while tlie 

 dead level of the valley was heavily carpeted with a dense growth of 

 artemisia and cacti. Everything was dry, dusty, and barren ; the stream 

 itself losing in volume, and becoming more turbid. Fig. 13 of Plate III 

 rerjresents in outline the characteristics of the canon, or valley rather, 

 at this point. 



In the high bluff, ou the right hand in the sketch, were some of the 

 most curious and unique little habitations yet seen. While jogging 

 along under this blulf, fully 1,000 feet in height, and admiring its bold 

 outlines and brilliant coloring, one of our party, sharper-eyed than the 

 rest, descried, away up near the top, perfect little houses, sandwiched 

 in among the crevices of the horizontal strata of the rock of which the 

 bluff was composed. While busy with my photographs, two of the party 

 started up to scale the height, and inspect this lofty abode. By pene- 

 trating a side-canon some little ways, a more gTadaal slope was found, 

 that carried them to tbe summit of the bluff. JSTow, the trouble was to 

 get doivn to the house, and this was accomplished only by crawling 

 along a ledge of about 20 inches in width, and not tall enough for more 

 than a creeping position. In momentary peril of life, for the least mis- 

 take would precipitate him down the whole of this dizzy height, our 

 adventurous seeker after knowledge crept along the ledge until the 

 broader platform was reached, upon which the most perfect of the houses 

 alluded to stood. The ledge ended with the house, which was built out 

 flush with its outer edge. This structure resembled in general features 

 the cliff-houses already spoken of. The masonry was as firm and solid 

 as when first constructed ; the inside was finished with exceptional care. 

 In width, ic was about 5 feet in front, the side- wall running back in 

 a semicircular sweep, in length 15, and in height 7 feet. The only 

 aperture was both door and windows, and about 20 by 30 inches in 

 diameter. In Fig. 7 of Plate II, I have traced a design of this aerial 

 habitation as it appeared from below ; its uniqueness consisting in 

 position on the face of the bluff. To the casual observer, it w^ould not 

 be noticed once in fifty times in passing, so similar to the rocks between 

 which it was plastered did it appear from our position on the trail. A 

 short distance to the right, and one ledge above, was another building 

 of somewhat ruder construction, but with corner square, and walls 

 truncated. 



Eeferring again to Plate III and Fig. 13, the position of these houses, 

 and also of the one in Fig. 12, can be seen in the dark heavy lines near 

 the summit, just above the most precipitous portion of the bluff, gener- 

 ally at a height of from 600 to 800 feet above the level of the canon. 

 The talus sometimes runs up to within 200 feet of them, very seldom 

 nearer and most frequently lower. 



This was the last cliff-house we noticed in this caiion. From the first 

 to the last, all that were upon an elevation, however light, -were on the 

 western side of the canon, with either doors or windows facing east, 

 overlooking the opposite bluff's. We could not find even the faintest 

 vestige of ruins or houses upon the eastern side. Those built low down 

 on the level land did not hold to the same rule, being scattered indis- 

 criminately upon either baiik of the stream. 



Proceeding down the broad open caOon over the now very easy trail, 

 we espied upon the opposite side of the stream a tower of apparently 

 greater dimensions than the ones noticed above. The crossing was 

 execrable; but, forcing a way through the tangled undergrowth to the 

 stream, a way was found out of it to the ruin some forty rods back ; 

 (see Figs. 2 and 3.) The tower only remained ; this was circular, 12 



