Mr. Gerard Fowke was engaged during November in examining the ancient quarries of Flint Ridge, Ohio, and in making a collection to illustrate the various stages in the aboriginal manufacture of flint implements. His collection is, perhaps, the most complete in this particular line of any so far made in this country. In the winter he was employed about two months in special investigations of some ancient works in Pontotoc and Union Counties, Miss., a locality supposed to have been visited by De Soto during his unfortunate expedition. In some of the mounds of this section, which was formerly the home of the Chikasa, he found some articles of European manufacture, among them a small silver plate bearing the royal arms of Castile and Leon in an old heraldic form.
Although the number of specimens obtained does not exceed that of the collection of the preceding year, the general result shows a decided advance in the accuracy of the work done. The measurements and plats have been made with more care and exactness, the descriptions are more complete, and the details more fully set forth. As an illustration one case is presented. A large mound was opened which was found to contain over ninety skeletons, irregularly placed and at different depths. At the outset a plat of the mound was made; each skeleton was located on it as discovered, and notes were taken of the depth, position, articles found with it, etc. Thus the exact position of each skeleton in the mound is recorded, as well as that of any article accompanying it. The collections made are more varied in character than those of any previous year, including several new types of pottery, some unusually fine stone implements, and from several mounds articles showing contact with Europeans. The pottery obtained by Messrs. Middleton and Thing in Arkansas is of more than ordinary interest, containing a number of specimens of the rarer forms, also several colored specimens.
The same care has been taken as heretofore in labeling and numbering the specimens, so that each can be traced by the record to the exact place where it was found. The illustrations showing the construction, character, and form of the various works explored exceed in number, accuracy, and importance those of any previous year.
EXPLORATIONS IN THE SOUTHWEST.
WORK OF MR. JAMES STEVENSON.
Mr. James Stevenson was placed in charge of a party, with instructions to proceed to Arizona and New Mexico to make researches and collections among the Pueblo Indians and the ancient ruins in that region.
Mr. Stevenson's party was divided into three sections. The section in charge of Mr. F. T. Bickford visited the remarkable series of ruins in Chaco cañon, in northwestern New Mexico; Cañon de Chelly and its branch cañons; the cliff dwellings in Walnut cañon, in Arizona, and a group of interesting cave dwellings, different in structure from any heretofore found, near Flagstaff, in the same Territory. All these were carefully examined. Full and extensive notes, as well as sketches and photographic illustrations, were made of these ruins.
Another section, in charge of Mr. C. A. Garlick, was stationed at the pueblo of Acoma, in New Mexico. The work at this village resulted in a collection of about thirty-five hundred specimens, consisting of pottery and a variety of utensils of other material, such as stone, bone, wood, and woven fabrics, illustrating the arts of the people of Acoma. The collections from this pueblo, though not embracing a great variety of objects, will illustrate nearly all the phases of the arts and industrial pursuits of these Indians.
Another section of Mr. Stevenson's party, under his own supervision and with the important assistance of Mrs. Stevenson, was employed in making collections and studies at Zuñi. The collection from there is much larger than any heretofore obtained and includes many objects relating to the outdoor ceremonies of the Zuñi. Specimens of these were secured from their sacred springs, caves, and shrines. All details relating to their ceremonials were attentively studied, and a series of water color sketches was made of altars used and of masks worn on these important occasions. A large number of fetiches was also obtained, representing many of the animals held in religious esteem by the Zuñi. A series of photographs was made of the sacred springs, wells, monuments, picture writings, and shrines of the Zuñi located at different points over an area of about seventy-five miles from Zuñi, and a collection was secured of representative specimens of their fetiches, plume sticks, and other objects connected with their mythology and religious practices. The collection made during the year was unusually large and important. It comprises about eighty-five hundred specimens from the Indian tribes of the Southwest embraced in the research; these consist of woven fabrics and pottery, bone, and stone implements, both ancient and modern, and represent nearly all phases of the life, art, and industries of these tribes. These collections have been deposited in the U. S. National Museum for arrangement, classification, and description.