NORTH AMERICAN ARCIIJEOLOGY. 
17 
pass down the Mississippi, and especially on approaching the Gulf, 
where they constitute the most numerous and important portion of 
the ancient remains. Some of the largest, however, are situated in 
the North. One of the most remarkable is at Cahokia, in Illinois. 
This gigantic mound is stated to be seven hundred feet long, five 
hundred feet wide at the base, and ninety feet in height. Its solid 
contents have been roughly estimated at twenty millions of cubic feet. 
Probably, however, these mounds were not used as temples only, 
but also as sites for dwellings, especially for those of the chiefs. We 
are told that among the Natchez Indians “ the temples and the dwel- 
“ lings of the chiefs were raised upon mounds, and for every new 
“ chief a new mound and dwelling were constructed.” Again, Garci- 
lego de la Vega, in his History of Florida, quoted by Mr. Haven, # 
says—“ The town and house of the Cacique of Osachile are similar to 
“ those of all other caciques in Florida, and, therefore, it seems best 
“ to give one description that will apply generally to all the capitals, 
“ and all the houses of the chiefs in Florida. I say, then, that the 
“ Indians endeavour to place their towns upon elevated places ; but 
“ because such situations are rare in Florida, or that they find a dif- 
“ ficulty in procuring suitable materials for building, they raise emi- 
“ nences in this manner. They choose a place to which they bring a 
“ quantity of earth, which they elevate into a kind of platform two or 
“ three pikes in height (from eighteen to twenty-five feet), of which 
“ the flat top is capable of holding ten or twelve, fifteen or twenty 
“ houses, to lodge the cacique, his family, and suite.” 
Animal Mounds. 
Not the least remarkable of the American Antiquities are the 
Animal Mounds , which are principally, though not exclusively, found 
in Wisconsin. In this district “thousands of examples occur of 
“ gigantic basso relievos of men, beasts, birds, and reptiles, all wrought 
“ with persevering labour on the surface of the soil,” while enclosures 
and works of defence are almost entirely wanting, the “ ancient City 
of Aztalan” being, as is supposed, the only example of the former 
class. 
The “ Animal Mounds ” were first observed by Mr. Lapham in 
1836, and described in the newspapers of the day, but the first ac¬ 
count of them in any scientific journal was that by Mr. H. C. Taylor, 
in the American Journal of Science and Art, for April, 1838. In 
1843 a longer memoir, by Mr. S. Taylor, appeared in the same jour¬ 
nal. Professor J. Locke gave some account of them in a “ Feport on 
the Mineral Lands of the United States,” presented to Congress in 
1840. Messrs. Squier and Davis devoted to the same subject a part of 
their work on the “ Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley 
and finally, the seventh volume of the Smithsonian Contributions con- 
N. II. R.—1863. 
* L. c. p. 57. 
C 
