﻿#»# 
  "S 
  

  

  TH 
  E 
  

  

  AMERICAN 
  JOURNAL 
  OF 
  SCIENCE 
  

  

  [FOURTH 
  SERIES. 
  ] 
  

  

  Art. 
  I. 
  — 
  -The 
  Worship 
  of 
  Meteorites 
  ; 
  by 
  Hubert 
  A. 
  

  

  Newton. 
  

  

  [A 
  lecture 
  delivered* 
  in 
  New 
  Haven. 
  Conn., 
  March 
  29, 
  1889.] 
  

  

  Here 
  is 
  a 
  small 
  fragment 
  of 
  iron 
  that 
  has 
  a 
  curious 
  history. 
  

   It 
  is 
  a 
  portion 
  of 
  a 
  mass 
  of 
  meteoric 
  iron 
  found 
  upon 
  a 
  brick 
  

   altar 
  in 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  Ohio 
  mounds. 
  Along 
  with 
  it 
  were 
  various 
  

   objects 
  — 
  a 
  serpent 
  cut 
  out 
  of 
  mica 
  — 
  several 
  terracotta 
  figu- 
  

   rines 
  — 
  two 
  remarkable 
  dishes 
  carved 
  from 
  stone 
  into 
  the 
  form 
  

   of 
  animals 
  ; 
  pearls, 
  shells, 
  copper 
  ornaments, 
  and 
  nearly 
  three 
  

   hundred 
  ankle 
  bones 
  of 
  deer 
  and 
  elk. 
  There 
  were 
  but 
  one 
  or 
  

   two 
  fragments 
  of 
  other 
  bones, 
  and 
  one 
  animal 
  furnished 
  but 
  

   two 
  of 
  these 
  ankle 
  bones 
  ; 
  hence 
  they 
  must 
  have 
  been 
  

   selected 
  for 
  some 
  special, 
  important 
  reason. 
  The 
  figurines 
  had 
  

   been 
  apparently 
  broken 
  for 
  some 
  purpose, 
  and 
  the 
  whole 
  col- 
  

   lection 
  had 
  suffered 
  in 
  the 
  lire 
  not 
  a 
  little. 
  In 
  a 
  like 
  altar 
  of 
  

   another 
  mound 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  group 
  were 
  found 
  nearly 
  two 
  bushels 
  

   of 
  like 
  objects. 
  

  

  It 
  must 
  have 
  been 
  in 
  some 
  ceremony 
  of 
  a 
  religious, 
  possibly 
  

   one 
  of 
  a 
  funereal, 
  character 
  that 
  the 
  mound 
  builders 
  collected 
  

   here 
  on 
  the 
  altar 
  their 
  ornaments 
  and 
  other 
  valuables, 
  and 
  

   after 
  burning 
  them 
  buried 
  the 
  charred 
  debris 
  in 
  the 
  huge 
  

   earthern 
  mound 
  that 
  was 
  built 
  over 
  them 
  and 
  the 
  altar. 
  

  

  * 
  This 
  lecture 
  has 
  not 
  hitherto 
  been 
  published 
  ; 
  perhaps 
  the 
  author 
  regarded 
  it 
  

   as 
  hardly 
  falling 
  within 
  the 
  sphere 
  of 
  a 
  scientific 
  journal. 
  Even 
  if 
  this 
  be 
  the 
  

   case, 
  however, 
  the 
  general 
  interest 
  of 
  the 
  subject 
  is 
  such 
  as 
  to 
  justify 
  its 
  being 
  

   printed 
  now. 
  Further, 
  it 
  seems 
  due 
  to 
  the 
  author 
  that 
  the 
  scientific 
  public 
  should 
  

   have 
  the 
  benefit 
  of 
  all 
  his 
  contributions 
  to 
  the 
  subject 
  to 
  wnich 
  he 
  gave 
  so 
  much 
  

   study. 
  It 
  may 
  be 
  added 
  that 
  the 
  biographical 
  notice 
  of 
  Professor 
  Newton, 
  it 
  is 
  

   expected, 
  will 
  appear 
  in 
  the 
  May 
  number. 
  — 
  Editors. 
  

  

  Am. 
  Jour. 
  Sci. 
  — 
  Fourth 
  Series, 
  Vol. 
  Ill, 
  No. 
  13. 
  — 
  January, 
  1897. 
  

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