THE MENHIRS OF MEUDON.

TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH BY R. G. ABBOTT.

N. Berthelot, the erudite chemist and perpetual secretary of the Academy of Sciences, has brought to notice the existence of two Menhirs near Paris, in the forest of Meudon.

Menhirs are especially numerous in the north and west of France, in the departments of LaManche l'Orne, Calvados, Morbihan, etc. Skeletons are found near the stones, from which fact certain archeologists conclude that the menhirs were funeral monuments. Others surmise the menhirs to have been an emblem of the force and the fecundity of nature.

The disposal of the menhirs in a single straight line or in several parallel lines is termed alignments, The best known are those of Carnac in Morbihan, where the lines extend for three kilometres and the menhirs exceed the number of 1900.

Sometimes the menhirs are arranged in a circle, semi-circle or oval, with closed curves, or polygonal contours. In this case the enclosures receive the name of Cromlech: from the Celtic terms Crom, curve; and lech, stone. The finest cromlech of Morbihan is that of the isle of Monks: but the most celebrated is that of Avebury, which has been reconstructed by Britton, and which we present in perspective view to our readers. The cromlechs were probably the temples, or places of reunion for military assemblies or the courts of justice.

Dolmens are altars formed of enormous flat stones, from 30 centimetres to I metre 25 centimetres in thickness, placed horizontally upon other stones of 1 me re in height, which are driven into the earth.

The two menhirs to which M. Berthelot directs attention have been recently brought to light by the felling of the surrounding forest timber. One of them was still standing, the other had fallen over. The upright menhir is a table of trapezoidal sandstone 60 centimetres thick, and 50 centimetres high. The base measures 2 metres 50 centimetres, and the summit 65 centimetres. It weighs about 10,000 kilogrammes. The two blocks are of sandstone, and appear to have been excavated from an abandoned quarry situated from 1,500 to 2,000 metres distant. M. Berthelot thinks their object was to designate the region of streams which feed the lakes of Chalais and Villebon, and recalls the discovery forty years ago of a dolmen in the avenue of the Chateau of Meudon.

These monuments have no inscriptions, signs or figures. In other localities remains bearing inscriptions have been unearthed, but such inscriptions or signs are undoubtedly the production of a subsequent epoch, instead of being a direct message from the Celts, our remote ancestors.

THE DISCOVERY OF THE PUEBLOS.

BY STEPHEN D. PEET, PH. D.

In writing the history of the explorations which led to the discovery of the pueblos and cliff-dwellings, we shall have to go back to the time when Narvaez was wrecked upon the Florida coast. This occurred in the year 1528, near Tampa Bay. Those of the party who were not drowned remained on an island or on the mainland for six years, and endured from the Indians the greatest indignities. At length, four of them-three Spaniards and a negro-under the lead of Cabeca de Vaca, escaped, and took their flight towards the mountains of Northern Alabama.* Thence their course was westerly across the Mississippi, "the great river coming from the north," across the Arkansas River to the headwaters of the Canadian, and thence southwesterly through New Mexico and Arizona to Culiacan, or Sonora, which they reached in the spring of 1536. Culiacan was a province which had been visited by the Spaniards under Nuno de Guzman, and a colony settled there. When these fugitives arrived at Culiacan they told marvelous stories concerning the things which they had seen and heard; and, among other things, they mentioned the great and powerful cities, which contained houses of four and five stories, thus confirming the report of the Indian slave. When these tales were communicated to the new governor, Francisco Vasquez de Coronado, in his home in Mexico, he set out with haste to the province of Culiacan, taking with him three Franciscan friars, whom he dispatched with the negro Estevanico on a journey of discovery, with orders to return and report to him all they could ascertain about the "seven celebrated cities." The monks, when they came near the province, sent the negro in advance. The negro, however, as soon as he reached the country of the "seven cities of Cibola," demanded not only their wealth, but their women. The inhabitants, not relishing this, killed him and sent back all those who had accompanied him.§ This disheartened the monks, and they returned

The names of the Spaniards were Alvar Nunez, Cabeca de Vaca, Andres Dorantes and Alonzo del Castillo Maldonado, and that of the negro was Estevanico (Stephen).

The occasion of visiting this province was the report which was brought by an Indian, a slave, that there were somewhere north of Mexico, cities, seven in number, as large as the City of Mexico itself, whose streets were exclusively occupied by workers in gold and silver; and to reach them a journey of forty days through a desert was required." The towns of Compostella, Culiacan, Cinaloa, and Sonora are laid down on the military map of the United States and as given in the map by General Simpson, are placed along the east coast of the Gulf of California.

The name of one of the priests was Marcos de Nica, commonly called Friar Marcos. Castaneda's Relations are the sources of information about the journey.

The place which the monks visited and where the negro was killed has been identified

by F. W. Hodge. See American Anthropologist.

to Culiacan; but in their report to Coronado they gave a glowing description of all that had been discovered of the seven cities, as well as of the "islands filled with treasure, which they were assured existed in the Southern Sea."

Arriving at Mexico, the friars proclaimed, through their pulpits, the marvelous discoveries, and Coronado busied himself with preparing an expedition to the region. Many gentlemen. of good family were enlisted, and probably there had not been an expedition in which there was such a large proportion of persons of noble birth. It was also arranged that two vessels should take supplies and follow the army along the coast of the "Southern Sea." The army reached Culiacan, which was the last town inhabited by the Spaniards, and was two hundred and ten leagues from the City of Mexico. After resting a couple of weeks, Coronado led the advance of his army, consisting of fifty cavaliers, a few infantry, his particular friends and the monks, leaving the rest of the army to follow two weeks after. Passing out of the inhabited region, he came at the edge of a great desert, to a place called Chichilticale, and could not suppress his sadness at what he saw. The place of which so much had been boasted was only a ruined, and roofless house, which at one time seemed to have been fortified and was built of red earth.*

On quitting the place they entered the desert and at the end of fifteen days came within eight leagues of Cibola. There the first Indians of the country were discovered. On the following day they entered the inhabited country, but as the army came in sight of the village they broke forth into maledictions. The following is Castaneda's description of the place:

Cibola is built on a rock and this village is so small that in truth there are many farms in New Spain that make a better appearance. It may contain two hundred warriors. The houses are built in three or four stories; they are small, not spacious and have no courts, as a single court serves for a whole quarter. The inhabitants of the province were united there. It is composed of seven towns, some of which are larger and better fortified than Cibola. These Indians, ranged in good order, awaited us at some distance from the village. They were very loth to accept peace; when they were required to do so by our interpreters, they menaced us by their gestures. Shouting our war cry of Sant Iago, we charged upon and quickly caused them to fly. Nevertheless, it was necessary to get possession of Cibola, which was no easy achievement, for the road leading to it was both narrow and winding. The general was knocked down by the blow of a stone as he mounted in the assault, and he would have been slain had it not been for

*This was the work of civilized people who had "come from afar." It has been thought by some to be Casa Grande on the Gila-a building which is far famed because it represents one class of structures which was common in this region and was supposed to have belonged to the ancient Pima Indians, who formerly built pueblos, but of a different type from those which were inhabited by the Moquis and Zunis. Mr. A. F. Bandelier thinks that the red house may possibly have been Casa Grande, though the ruin is perfectly white at present. He says that this kind of village includes a much larger and more substantial structure. It grows more conspicuous as we ascend the course of the Otonto Creek. It consists of a central building, into which, in some cases, all the buildings are merged; sometimes en closed by broad quadrangular walls, while transverse walls connect the enclosure with a central hill. In some cases there are indications that the house was erected on an artificial platform. He says that the Pimas claim all the ruins north of the Gila to the "Superstition Range" as those of their own people.

Garci Lopez de Cardenas and Hernando d'Alvarado, who threw themselves before him and received the blows of the stones which were designed for him and fell in large numbers; nevertheless, as it was impossible to resist the first impetuous charge of Spaniards, the village was gained in less than an hour. It was found filled with provisions, which were much needed, and, in a short time, the whole province was forced to accept peace."

In this connection it may be interesting to give an account of the discovery of the Rio Colorado. It will be remembered that the vessels were ordered to follow the march of the army along the coast of the Southern Sea. The vessels put to sea from La Nativitad on May 9, 1540. They put into the ports of Xalisco and Culiacan, but finding Coronado and his army gone, they sailed northwardly until they entered the Gulf of California, which they experienced great difficulty in navigating. After incredible hardships they managed to get the vessels to the end of the gulf, where they found "a very great river, and the current of which was so rapid that they could scarcely stem it." Taking two shallops with some guns they commenced the ascent of the iver by hauling the boats with ropes.*

The general, Fernando Alarcon, reached a point on the river as far north as about the 34°, where he planted a cross and deposited letters at the foot of a tree, which were afterwards found by Melchior Diaz.† This discovery of the Gulf of California and the Colorado River is important, for it is connected closely with the discovery of "the seven cities." The same river was reached by a party consisting of twelve men, under Don Garci Lopez, who were sent out by Coronado after his return to Cibola. After a journey of twenty days through the desert they reached the river, whose banks were so high "they thought themselves elevated three or four leagues in the air." "Their efforts to descend were all made in vain."

From Cibola the general sent out Alvarado with twenty men, who, "five days after, arrived at a village named Acuco."

"This village was strongly posted, inasmuch as it was reached by only one path, and was built upon a rock precipitous on all its other sides, and at such a height that the ball from an arquebuse could scarcely reach its summit. It was entered by a stairway cut by the hand of man, which began at the bottom of the declivitous rock and led up to the village. This stairway was of suitable width for the first two hundred steps, but after these there were a hundred more much narrower, and when the top was finally to

*The region at the mouth of the Colorado is a flat expanse of mud, and the channels at the entrance from the gulf are shifting and changeable. The navigation is rendered periodically dangerous by the strength of the spring tides. Fort Yuma is 150 miles from the mouth, and to this point the principle obstructions are sand bars. Above Fort Yuma for 180 miles the river passes through a chain of hills and mountains, forming gorges and canons. There are many swift rapids and dangerous sunken rocks. The Black Canon is twenty-five miles long.

Melchior Diaz, who had been left at Sonora, placed himself at the head of twenty-five men, under the lead of guides, and followed up the coast one hundred and fifty leagues, until he arrived at the river called Rio del Tizon, whose mouth was two leagues wide. He reached the spot fifteen leagues from its mouth and found the tree marked by Alarcon, dug and found the letters. The party crossed the Rio del Tizon on rafts and turned toward the southeast, thus going around the Gulf of California. No ruins were discovered by this party. The spot which this party reached was much nearer its source than where Melchior Diaz had crossed, though the Indians were the same which Diaz had seen.

be reached it was necessary to scramble up the three last steps by placing the feet in holes scraped in the rock, and as the ascender could scarcely make the point of his toe enter them he was forced to cling to the precipice with his hands. On the summit there was a great arsenal of huge stones, which the defenders, without exposing themselves, could roll down on the assailants, so that no army, no matter what its strength might be, could force this passage. There was on the top a sufficient space of ground to cultivate and store a large supply of corn, as well as cisterns to contain water and snow."

Three days' journey thence Alvarado reached a province called Tiguex, where he was received very kindly, and was so well pleased that he sent a messenger to Coronado inviting him to winter there. Five days' journey thence Alvarado reached Cicuye (Pecos), a village very strongly fortified, whose houses had four stories. "Here he fell in with an Indian slave, who was a native of the country adjacent to Florida, the interior of which Ferdinan de Soto had lately explored." The Indian, whom they called the Turk, spoke of certain large towns and of large stores of gold and silver in his country and also the country of the bisons. Alvarado took him as a guide to the bison country, and after he had seen a few of them he returned to Tiguex, the Rio Grande, to give an account of the news to Coronado.

While the discoveries above mentioned were being made, some Indians, living seventy leagues toward the east arrived at Cibola. They offered gifts of tanned skins, shields and helmets, and spoke of the cows whose skins were covered with a frizzled hair resembling wool, showing they were buffaloes.

Coronado, who had remained at Cibola, hearing of a province composed of eight towns, took with him thirty of the most hardy of his men and set out to visit it on his way to Tiguex or Rio Grande. In eight or eleven days he reached the province called Tutahaco, which appears to have been situated below the city of Tiguex. The eight villages comprising this province were not like those of Cibola, built of stone, but of earth. He learned of other villages still further down the river. In the meantime the army moved from Cibola toward Tiguex. The first day they reached the handsomest and largest village in the province, where they lodged. "There they found houses of seven stories, which were seen nowhere else. These belonged to private individuals and served as fortresses. They rise so far above the others that they have the appearance of towers. There are embrasures and loop-holes from which lances may be thrown and the place defended. As all these villages have no streets, all the roofs are flat and common for all the inhabitants; it is therefore necessary first of all to take possession of those houses which serve as defenses."

The army passed near the Great Rock of Acuco (Acoma), already described, where they were well received by the inhabit ants of the city perched on its summit. Finally it reached