504 SOME ABORIGINAL SITES ON RED RIVER. 
Eight trial-holes showed the mound to be a mixture of sand and clay. There 
seemed to ђе no definite base-line marking the original surface of the ground, 
undisturbed clay lying beneath the material of which the mound was composed, 
though this material extended down considerably deeper than was indicated by the 
exterior measurements of the height of the mound. 
No pits of any kind were noted, nor was any trace of human bones found, 
though one hole at a depth of 38 inches came upon fragments of an undecorated 
vessel, and a boat-stone, rudely made from a pebble, having a concavity at the 
base but no perforations. 
About half a foot below these objects was a broken vessel of very soft, porous, 
yellow ware, with a design (Fig. 9) twice shown, somewhat resembling one described 
as coming from the upper mound on Saline Point (page 498). Presumably а ser- 
pent is represented. 
In another hole, about 3.5 feet from the surface, were two undecorated vessels, 
badly crushed. 
Presumably burials formerly present in this mound had disappeared through 
decay. 
Моско ат MoNcLA, AvovELLES PARISH, La. 
Moncla is a settlement on the bank of Red river. 
In view from the water, in a cultivated field, on prairie land said to be above 
the reach of high water, is a mound with sides too steep to permit the use of the 
plow. A hole in the summit, dug previous to our visit, showed the upper part of 
the mound, at least, to be composed of raw, yellow clay. 
The mound, circular in outline of base, slightly more than 10 feet in height, 
has a diameter of 80 feet. The summit-plateau, at the time of our visit, was 
17 feet in diameter, but deep furrows in the slope of the mound, caused by 
wash of rain, indicated that the plateau had been of greater extent in the past. 
There is no history of any discoveries in connection with this mound, nor is 
any debris visible on the fields which surround it. 
The owner of the mound, who was written to, and later visited, by us, 
required more time to reach a conclusion as to our investigation than the expedition 
could accord, considering the unpromising appearance of the mound and the char- 
acter of the region in which it is situated. 
The ridiculous idea that treasure has been buried in these mounds is wide- 
spread and sometimes acts as a deterrent to the ignorant when permission to dig 
is requested. 
MOUND on THE LABORDE PLACE, AVOYELLES PARISH, La. 
About five miles in an easterly direction from the town of Echo is the plan- 
tation of Mr. Adolphe Laborde, who resides on it. This place is some distance in 
from the river, but is near a former course of the stream. On the property is a 
mound well known along the river for a considerable distance, and sometimes 
