Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 01.djvu/856

mont ; in the prehistoric Ca»a Grande of Arizona, as well as in neighboring pueblos of prehistoric origin, upper floors and roofs were supported on joists and rafters consisting of round cedar or j)ine poles, which must in some instances have been transported over many miles of desert from the wooded moiuitains; in even the most impos- ing and massive temples of Yucatan and Peru, wooden lintels were introduced — and the decay of these was one of the factors in hastening the downfall of these noble structures. These in- stances of the use of wood are quite in accord with the large employment of this material among the tribesmen found by the first invaders; and the two records — unwritten and written — coincide not only as to the use of the material, but as to the jjrimitive modes through which it was reduced to serviceable condition by aid of crude stone tools and fire. Closely connected in aboriginal thought with the fixed home was the floating habitation, also commonly of wood or bark: the greater water-craft, capable of navi- gating all parts of the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico, are known through the descriptions of Columbus and his companions, as well as from models found by Cushing in the peat-beds of western Florida ; while fragments of birch bark from the mounds of Wisconsin, and bits of cane from the great shell-mound of Seriland, are among the indications that the pre-Columbian warrior ]iaddlcd the liglit canoe or propelled the graceful balsa just as do his descendants of the fifteenth generation.

Stoxe Structures. More or less extensive ruins of stone structures, the work of aborigines during prehistoric times, occur in many districts through- out the Western Hemisphere ; they range from simple cairns of loose pebbles to imposing tem- ples of wrought stone. The types are too numer- ous for easy listing; but several examples throw light on the technic of the ancient artisans. Thus most of the puel)los and clitT-dwcllers of the south- western United States and northern Mexico are of coarse rubble — i.e., of natural slabs laid with slight regard to the prodviction of even surfaces. Some of the ancient walls are of slabs finished oft" on one or both edges by smooth jointage planes so selected and laid as to form surfaces hardly less regular than cut stone; while Hodge, in 1890, found in New JMexico certain stone ruins in which the walls were evidently smoothed by rub- . bing or grinding after the structure was other- wise complete — the corners in one case being neatly squared and in another beautifully rounded to a radius of several inches. Yet even these fine structures showed that the primitive mason did not grasp the principle of breaking joints or that of the niortar-bond. In Central Mexico and Y'ucatan massive stones were laid in substantial walls : but even here, as shown by Holmes, the quarrying and dressing were effected wholl.v with stone tools and by painfully clumsy methods, while none of the builders grasped the principle of the arch. Much the .same may be said of the remarkable stonework of Peru. The architectural features of -American stone struc- tures (so far as architecture was developed in the Western Hemisphere) are described else- where; but it is worthy of special note that the many-storied pueblo grades into the clitT-house, and this again into the cavate lodge dug into the softer stratum of the cliff, and this in turn into the simple rock shelter, the open cavern used for temporary lodgment by primitixe folk every- where. It may be noted also that the early Americans used stone structures chiefly for habi- tations and places of worship, and seldom, if ever, for fortresses. True, rude fortifications of loose rubble crown hilltops adjacent to villages in Wisconsin and northern Mexico, as noted by Bandelier and described by McGee luider the local designation trincheras, while similar forti- fications have been observed in other districts; yet even these are places of ceremonial observ- ance as well as of defense — and true fortifications of stone are conspicuouslj' absent from the greater part of America.

Stone Implements. The diversity between the archa?ology of America and that of Europe cul- minates in the classification of stone implements and the definition of culture-stages based on this classification. This diversity arises naturally in the modes of approach, that of America being through observation of primitive customs, and that of Europe through the logic of the civilized

FLINT AKHOW-POINTS, FROM TEXXESSEE. mind. On both hemispheres stone implements are numerous — commonly the most abundant relics of the prehistoric period; on the Ameri- AHROW-POINT AND PERFORATOR.

can hemisphere they are still in use. in aboriginal fashion, by a considerable class of the population. Throughout the eastern United States aboriginal ariow-points of stone may be foiuid on nearly every hillside, while larger implements, which may have been used as spear-heads or knives, can be picked up in every township. Usually