12 SANTA BARBARA SOCIETY OF NATURAL HISTORY. 



dominate in the deposit, yet the Tapes staminea, Pachydesma 

 crassatelloides, Pomaulax undosus, Trochiscus Norrissii, 

 Donax California us, Lunatia Lewisii, Luponia spadicea, Sole- 

 curtus Californianus, Haliotis Cracherodii, and most of the 

 living species now found in the neighboring waters, are 

 abundant. Fragments and chippings of chert, obsidian, 

 jasper, quartzite, etc., are scattered over the surface of the 

 entire neighborhood, and occasionally arrow points of the. 

 same material are picked up. The sites of thesej rancherias 

 was admirably selected to meet the requirements of their den- 

 izens, being contiguous to an abundance of fresh water in the 

 Carpinteria creek on one side, and some springs of large 

 volume on the other. Much of their food could be obtained 

 from the outlying rocks, which at low tide extend far out 

 from the shore; and the soil in the vicinity is well adapted to 

 the raising of corn. Perhaps these people also had some 

 appreciation of the beautiful, as, from the summit of the hill 

 may be obtained a grand view of the mountains, and the 

 valley of the Carpinteria, together with the distant Islands of 

 Anacapa and Santa Cruz. In the rear of the most recent 

 rancheria, near the sea, and in front of the higher elevation, 

 occupied by an older population, in our opinion, was found 

 the burial place of the later inhabitants. The usual indica- 

 tions of sepulture, viz., bones of the whale set perpendicularly 

 in the soil, were formerly found by Mr. Olmstead, and the 

 locality remembered by him after the bones had been scattered 

 by the plow. The first excavations were recently made by 

 Dr. Stephen Bowers and others, and many objects of interest 

 were obtained. Having received the consent of Mr. Olmstead 

 to continue the researches in the name of the Santa Earbara 

 Society of Natural History, we spent several days in pros- 

 ecuting the work. Human bones were found at from two to 

 five feet below the surface, showing widely different periods of 

 burial. Those buried in the upper strata were lying in various 

 positions, no system having been observed in the disposition 

 of the body; but most of those of lower and apparently ante- 

 cedent inhumation were found lying upon the left side, with 



