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60 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 
ond bar. The circles vary from one to three, never exceeding . 
the latter number. Many are unstamped. They occur in large 
numbers in some parts of Canada and New York. Hundreds | 
have been found on Cazenovia creek in Erie county. Large num-— 
bers on Cattaraugus creek, near the lake, kept the early black- | 
smiths supplied with good material, and Mr Obed Edson re- | 
corded large finds in Erie and Chautauqua counties. Several | 
ee 
hundred pounds of these were found on M. B. Crooks’s farm, 2 
miles from East Aurora. Miles Bristol paid for two years 
tillage of his orchard lot with the axes he found at the village 
of Lima. In another place enough of these were obtained to 
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equip an early sawmill, and Cayuga, Madison, Onondaga and 
Ontario counties have been equally prolific. After a century’s 
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gathering the crop is not exhausted. Squier said of these: 
“Thousands are found in the western counties of the state.” 
ee taal 
Their early introduction has been already noted, Champlain | 
seeing them here in 1609. One or two have been found near 
the prehistoric fort in the town of Minden, but not of late | 
years at least within the wall. Squier said that brass kettles — 
and European articles were found inside the bank, but this is 
usually thought an error. in another place the evidence is’ } 
clearer, and fig. 87 is probably one of the oldest to which a | 
date can be given. It is 7 inches long and is stamped with two 
circles of unusual character. The cross is not of the common 
type, and there are very small circles in three angles of the limbs. 
This is in a collection at Cazenovia N. Y. with another much 
larger, and regarding both Mr J. I. E. Burr writes: “The irom 
axes are from the fort on the Nichols farm, on the Mile Strip in 
Fenner. I know when they were found, and assure you they 
are genuine and properly located.” The larger one is 8 inches 
long, with a cutting edge of 4} inches. It has three circles) } 
close together but each cross has a double bar. The socket is 
bent and broken. 4 
It is probable these were used in the siege of the Oneida 
fort in 1615 but whether they were brought by Champlain’s 
Indians or already owned by the Oneidas is conjectural. The 
