Coronado now thought the time had come for decisive action. Accordingly, with the viceroy’s permission, he organized his forces, and in 1540 set out on his memorable march in search of the Seven Cities of Cibola. We do not propose to give in detail the series of conquests beginning with this expedition and finally ending with the subjection of New Mexico in 1598. It is needless to say that the Spanish forces found no cities teeming with wealth. What they did find was a country much the same as at present. The cities were the communal houses, or combination of houses, known as pueblos. The pueblo of Zuñi is the remaining one of the mystical seven. The ruins of at least six other pueblos are known to be in the immediate vicinity.2
This historical account, short and imperfect as it is, introduces us to a most interesting people. If we would know more of them we can not do better than to adopt the advice of Hosta, ex governor of Jemez, to Dr. Loew: “If you wish to see what a great people we once were you must go upon the mesas and into the cañons of the vicinity, where ruins of our forefathers are numerous.”
One of the most important pueblos yet remaining inhabited, and one of the first that Coronado encountered in his expedition, is Zuñi. The present pueblo is considered as the remaining one of the Seven Cities—at least, by the majority of Americanists. Whipple describes Zuñi as follows: “Treading an opening between rocky bluffs, . . . we entered the valley, several miles in width, which leads to Zuñi. The soil seemed light, but where cultivated it produced fine crops without the aid of irrigation. . . . Within the valley appeared occasional towers, where herders and, laborers watch to prevent a surprise from Apaches. Near the center of this apparent plain stood, upon an eminence, the compact city of Zuñi.3 By its side flowed the river which bears the same name. It is now but a rivulet of humble dimensions, though sometimes said to be a large stream. . . . Passing beneath an arch, we entered a court, . . . entirely surrounded by houses of several receding stories, which were attained by means of ladders loading from one to another. . . . From the top the pueblo reminds one of an immense ant-hill, from its similar form and dense population. . . . Going down from its outer side into the street, we encounter five stories of descent.”4
In order to prevent confusion, we will state that a pueblo, which is the Spanish name for these old Indian towns, may be one of several different types. A common form of village consists of but one or two, seldom three, large buildings, so arranged as to surround an interior court. Sometimes there is but one large building, which is nearly in the shape of a half circle; instead of being really circular, it has a number of different sides. In some cases a village consists of a number of these large houses irregularly arranged. But the tendency is always to inclose a square.5
In the modern villages the buildings forming the square do not meet, but in some cases are connected by bridges or covered gangways, and in some instances the houses project over the streets below, which, being narrow, are thus given an underground appearance.6
The buildings, or communal houses, for one house contained sometimes five hundred rooms, are generally from three to four hundred feet long and about one hundred and fifty feet in width at the base. The lower story is divided by cross-walls into a mass of cell-like rooms, as shown in the illustrations which represents the ground plan of a pueblo having four ranges of rooms. Each story in height has one less range of rooms, so that, looking directly at the end of this building, it would present the appearance shown by this cut: The only means of getting from one terrace to the other is by the aid of ladders. In some cases these terraces run from both sides of the building; in others they face the inclosed space; and in others still they face outside. Most of the inhabited pueblos are built of adobe—that is, sun-dried bricks. The majority of the ancient ruins were built of stone set in adobe mortar. With this digression, we will now return to Zuñi.