Putnam. : 98 [February 7, | 
The following paper was read : — 
Mr. F. W. Putnam gave an account of a recent examination he 
had made of an ancient “fortification ” on the Wabash River. 
After the adjournment of the Indianapolis meeting of the Ameri- 
can Association for the Advancement of Science in August last, it 
was his good fortune to be able to take advantage of the kind offer of - 
Prof. Cox, State Geologist of Indiana, to make an examination of 
an ancient earth work at Merom, Sullivan Co., Ind., which had been 
christened “Fort Azatlan” by Mr. John Collett, Assistant of the Sur- 
vey, and is so designated on the geological map of the County. Ac- 
companied by Messrs. Cox, Collett, Cooke and Emerton, and provided 
with free passes over the Terre Haute and Indianapolis, and the 
Evansville and Crawfordsville Railroads, by the open-handed liberal- 
ity of the officers of the roads, and cordially entertained and greatly 
assisted by T. Kearns, Esq., President Holmes, the Doctors Harper 
and other kind pecans in Merom, he was able to make a partial ex- 
amination of the earth work, of which the following engraving, pre- 
pared from a large plan made by Mr. J. H. Emerton, from plottings 
taken with the assistance of Messrs. Holmes and Collett, gives the 
outline and general character. 
The “fort” is situated on a plateau of loess, about one hundred and 
seventy feet in height above low water, on the east bank of the river. 
On the river side, the bank, which principally consists of an outcrop 
of sandstone, is very steep, and forms the western line of the fortifi- 
cation, while deep ravines add to its strength on the other sides; the 
weak points being strengthened by earth works. The general course 
of the work is from the north, where it is very narrow (not over 50 
feet) owing to the formation of the plateau, south along the river 
bank about 725 ft. to its widest portion (at H) which is here about 
375 ft. east and west. From this point it follows a deep ravine south- 
erly about 460 ft. to the entrance end of the fort. The bank tray- 
ersed by the entrance road is here much wider than at other portions, 
and along its outer wall, running eastward, are the remains of what 
was evidently once a deep ditch. The outer wall (A, B) is about 
30 ft. wide, and is now about 1 1-2 ft. high; a depressed portion of 
the bank, or walk way, then runs parallel with the outer wall, and 
the bank (C, D) is then continued for about 20 ft. further into the 
fort, but of slightly less height than the front. Through the centre 
of these banks there are the remains of a distinct roadway about 10 ft. 
in width. 
