Evening Star Newspaper, July 15, 1923, Page 75

_—— Scientists Searching the Americas for BY JAMES A. BUCHANAN. R QR a great number of years sclentists have been of the| opinfon that the place that| has long been called the New World was indeed the newer section of the world. They were wont to #ccept as a fact that Europe and other lands across the sea were the | oldest in the matter of human life, butain the last two or three years | discoveries have been made in the | Americas that have led many savants to shake their heads as If in doubt | 43 to whether or mnot the place we ! have wo long called the Old World ! mighg not after all be the younger of the two hemispheres. , The discovery of the tomb of King | Tutankhamen has renewed the in- | terest In the matter as far as the laymen and others are concerned. | Of course, the simon-pure scientist is always trying to prove or dis- Prove something, s6 he has been dig- | EIng along the lines of new obser- | vations; he has been quietly going | here and there in search of the truth, and while it is true that the | prehistoric man so eagerly searched | for by many has not as yet been discovered, explorers have unearthed the ruins of cities that bear out, in part at least, the theory that the Americas are really older than the countries which have so long been awarded the palm for antiquity. At the present writing there is an ex- vedition being fitted out that Is golng 1o try and uncover some ruins in a country to the south of us that may | mean greatly advanced steps In the matter of discoveries as relating to | the age of this hemisphere. The | writer {s not at liberty to disclose the name nor the destination of the party of explorers, but he can say without violating a confidence that the men who are connected with the éxpedition are savants whose names beur an honored position in the world of science. * % * BEFORE attempting to describe any of the great ruins that give us a key to an earlier thari that of today, let us for the moment recount some of the discov- erfes that have been made the Americas, discoveries that bear out the theorles being pursued by men of sclence In order that they may ascertain just how old the so-called New World is. Indisputable evidence shows that the early camel was a creature that roamed the deserts of the western hemisphere long before it did the land of the sheiks. Also, we find that the llama was recognized ages and ages ago, for upon the etones which the ancients recorded events we find drawings of the animals on great slabs. The horse, called by many a one-toed animal, did not always have a hoof or one toe extremity. There have been found drawings of a two-toed equine—yes, a three-toed one, and then a four- toed steed, and lately a discovery was made of a five-toed horse, and the place of discovery was In the Americas. - So one can without trouble trace the line of progression from the early horse down to the -present one-toed beast of burden. In pur- suing the subject of some of these discoveries, one is amazed to learn that the great national sport of base ball was played thousands of Yvears ago, played in vast courts or stadiums, played for great prizes and played by professionals. So those who have long cherished the idea that Spaulding, Dan Brouthers, Pop Anson and others were the originators of this §ame must realize that centurles and centurles ago base ball was played on the western hemisphere. It may be of Interest to describe, in briefly, some of these courts. They were arranged In a manner similaf to our present day base ball dia- monds, although there is nothing of & positive nature found to show that there were four bases, a home plate and the other three used In the modern day game. The players took their places and a ball, which was fashioned from the gum taken from & rubber tree, was thrown into the field. In some of the games the players hit the ball with the should- €rs, somewhat in the manner em- vloyed by the English who play that kind of football, and the players would run, according to the draw- ings, . in a cwouched position and would by means of a twist of the shoulder as it came In contact with the ball give it a curving motion that had the same effect as the vitched ball of today in the hands of a man who curves the ball. Others of the anclent game used their heads, ayd it is sald that they became very vroficlent in giving the ball an un- usual twist or curve. According to the drawings these players were fine physical specimens. The members of the ball teams went from town to town and played in the same manner as do the players of the present time, and according 10 the writings the games were hot- Jy contested and brought forth im- mense audiences. Other large courts uncovered by elvillzation | THE SUNDAY STAR, WASHINGTON, D. O, JULY 15, 1923—PART 5. explofers show that the peoples of early days had other sports, som: of which are depicted by means ot carvings on tablets that are still in- tact, but of the nature of the games there is nothing of record to show how these games were played. It | may be possible that when the| “glyphers,” meaning the men who | make a study of reading hieroglyph- les, solve the problem of r(-ndlngi some of thesn inscriptions that we| | shall have a more extensive knowl- edge of the sports of the ‘real an- clents than we have today. In the matter of translating these hieroglyphlcs it may be stated that for years scientists have been study- | ing ‘the inscriptions that have been found on ‘the walls of the temples ana other edifices found in the ruins |of the Americas, but despite their best efforts there are many that, up | to the present, have bafiled them. Once they manage to sceure a key that wiil aid them in unraveling the mystery the world will be richly en- hanced for there is no doubt that many of these so far meoaningless marks, will tell of things of which have never dreamed. * % 1 ] does not reaulre a gre the imagination to picture the dis- covery of other day telephones, ra- dio scts and other things' that wel consider great modern day discov | eries, for with the uncovering of| rulns in this part of the world are being found evidences that the men | and women who lived here centurles ago enjoyed many advantages that| we now enjoy but that were denled to our immediate ancestors. Some of the ruins are but a few | we t fiight of hundred miles from where we are sitting. These deal with the relics of the Maya civilization, which had | reached a state of culture not equaled | { by any .other people of the western | hemisphere previous to the coming of | | tha white men from over the seas.| Note the crumbling foundations of | the awe-inspiring structures at Palenque. These ruins antedate by many generations the period of verbal or written records. As to their age, one {s still in the dark nd it so far is a matter of spectlation as to the period in which they were construct- ed. Before attempting to describe | these ruins let us pause for a mo- ment and return to the study of the wonderful places at Chichen Itza and Uxmal or the great stones of Qui- rigua, all of which have a distinc- tive form of architecture and all of which have beauty of form that has IENT MO never been excelled. It is enough to cause one to dream of the magnifi- cent cities, each teeming with busy cltizens, and attached to all of them | are traditions thag far excel anything | connected with the great places that| were in the ecarlier days of the ex- bave been uncovered in Egypt, for|plorers covered with a great growth there we find but the tombs of rulers, | of vegetatlon, as are most of the while in the other places near at!ruins that have been uncovered in hand we find evidences of a great|late years. There are six In the and an artistic people. group of ruins commonly known as The Maya cities are so far a‘sealed | the palace group, Temple of Inscrip- ings were erected at different pe- riods. The early chroniclers of May: history made no mention of these rulns. The chances are that they ence will.find a way to tell us all | Sun and Temple of the Cross No. about these wonder spots of the| The palace group occupies the cen- world, and the chances-are that when | tral position among the ruins, and is the story has been told we will find |a composite structure, and is one of did really big things. Maya ruins north of Guatemala. The The ruins of Palenque are about masonry consists of great slabs that ten miles from Santo Domingo del|form part of the palace, and on the Palenque, state of Chiapas, Mexico. sides of these one finds Inscriptions The palace Eroup consists of about|carrying a message to the rest of the ten units and the style of architec-|world, but a message that still re- ture would indicate that the build-|mains unread. In one of the buildings A \ LY REPRESENT MANY mxAN DATES, AR ONE ARE COVERED ‘WITH “WORDS ' AND - FIGUHES, - WHICH PROB- . T that the Mayans were a race that| the most lmteresting of any group of | . |stance, beautiful collars, a cape draped .|the Americas, the Mayan artists did l1s a muval tablet seventy-five feet long and twenty-two feet wide. The outer piers of the houses are deco- rated with figures of humans, molded |in a hard substance and surrounded with an ornamental border. * K ¥ % ‘Fno.\l the manner of construction some of the parts of the ruins glve one the Impression that they ! were designed for the protection o STONE TIGER-FOUND IN EXCAVATING A STREET IN MEXICO CITY. | the surrounding country. One visit- | ing the ruins will note that many of | | the sculptures contain figures, and, in | the main, these represent persons | seated, and the general position of the | subject is that of being seated, and practically all of them are sitting | | cross-legged, after the fashion of the | Turlk of other days. There is.no facial resemblance to the Turk, however. The lines of the face and figure are quite different. Nearly all of the fig- ures have some form of adornment fashioned fn the carving. For in- over the shoulders, to say nothing of beads and bracelets, while atop the heads one sees a design of glowing plumage of feathers. The panels are | surrounded by numerous lines of hjeroglyphics, which doubtless tell who the figures represent. They may be chiefs who won renown on the field of battle or they may be. priests, and the lines of writings may tell of the sacred deeds these men of the church performed. Like others of the earlier days.of not content themselves with_meraly glving an expression to their talents in somber hues; they employed bril- 1iant shades and colors, so that their handiwork would stand forth. That there is some connection be- tween these people and the sun wor- shipers 1§ borne out by the fact that in one of the bulldings Is a work that shows two figures making offerings, one supporting himself by his hands and knees and the other seems crushed to the ground by the weight. : Between them; at the foot of the tablet, .are two figures sitting cro legged, one braéing himself -with his right 'hand ‘upon the ground and with the left. supporting a square table. The' attitudes and..action .of the'others are the same, except that they are-in reverse order. : The table résts upon . their’ Bended n and Heir " ‘dlstorted “'counterindes’ ‘ may porhaps bs conaidered expressions of REMARKABLY CARVED STONE FOUND OUTSIDE A TEMPLE. patn and suffering. | are two bantons crossed and supporing | 4 hideous mask, the eyes widely | panded ana mask the Mayan it is to this element th | pal figure seems to be « fices. This n the main re two statues I BOUT T Tpon the table the tongue hanging out. o is believed sy of represent wun, and princi- h May Show That the New World Is Really the Old W orld—Records Kept in the Pan-Ameri- can Union Building of Washington—Scientific Finds That May Antedate Excavations in Other Lands—First Base Ball Was Played Thousands of Years Ago sn Vast Stadiums, Which Have Been Uncovered—Professional Base Ball Players—Facts About the Maya Civilization, Which Reached a Hfg’l State of Culture. ering sacri- Temple of the Cross! of stone. The one urroupds the story of the ruins of Palenque, we shall know just what it really does mean. A step southward and we come to the ruins of Mitlat:The name Is a corruption of Mictlan, meaning, ‘The place of death.” One s . therefor, prepared to see a burlal city. Some authoritles also call this place Lyobaa, meaning “The center of rest.” The ruins, in marked contrast to the rest found in Central and South America, are not in a forest of dense vegetation but are situated in the center of an arid plain or | valley, and on every side are equally | aria nills, while on the summit one | sees the remains of a stone fortress | of considerable size. , | 1In one of the bulldings, the Palace of Pillars, one sees monoliths that stand like great sentinels. They have withstood the rigors of tlme and | are viewed with great interest by || scientists who visit the ruins. A | model of the mtructure at Mitla, the Palace of Pillars, may be seen in | the National Museum. This model | glves one an idea of the beauty of | the bullding, although it has none of |the fine decorations that are pos- | sessed by many of the ruins In otner | parts of the Americas. | The quarries from which these | great slabs of stone were obtained | are but a few miles away. Some | explorers have expressed the opinion {that the builders did not face the | building with some of the great slabs |on account of the labor that would | be entailed, but it they. stop to con- | sider that the walls are covered with | a million or more small stones, each | of ahich had to be cut to fit, the | theory that labor was to be saved is not tenable. There is but lttle, if any, doubt that the rujns at Mitla | were designed to give the fullest possible weight to the bellefs of the | people who had charge of the con- | struction Pursuing the journey, one comes to “han-Chan, the ruined Chimu capital | gotng from the town ‘of Trujillo. one finds ruins that have alternately been | the hope and despair of men of sci- ence. We have read of the Incas, and we at once recall the fight for supremacy between the Incas and the Chimu. | In these ruins are examples of irri- | gation works—aqueducts, reservoirs and canals—of such a gigantic scale and completeness to make for a cer- tainty the engineering ability of these ppeoples. As one looks down on the ruined. city he is impressed with the magnificent bas-relief deco- rations, many of which are brilliant- 1y colpred. In many of the ruins are burial mounds containing examples of marvelous pottery. Peru heas been noted for its splendid examples of early pottery, and perhaps the finest examples. are those that have been | taken from these ruins. The records the significance of the Pa- in charge of the alcalde or mayor at there have been |Trujillo disclose the fact that years plaina and | and years ago many fine examples of 1T\ N FEET HIGH the breast is a pecularily . rument that apparently | 50 deslgned as to convey the {mpression that it was equipped with teeth at its lower end. The left hand rests on a hleroglyphic, from which descends some symbolic ornament. * % x % a S to lenquean any attempted ex cros; some valuable earring. and spreading. earller RESTORED FRONT OF A PALACE AT MITLA. of the figure is both ears should be are holes. period some Around In the place to religion, yet it is just as plausible " THIS CALENDAR STONE WAS USED BY:THE AZTECS: book to the student of history and| tions, Temple of the. Beau Rellef,|those who dwelt within. Others ap: |that is the bettter preserved of the while archeologists, theologians and|the goldsmith's art were removed | Peoples, but ere long the men of sci- | Temple of the Cross, Temple of the |pear to have been designed merely | two stands ten feet six inches high. | for the purpose of giving a view of | The headdres lofty where the This may be due to the fact that in | tree of life and vandals | is a monument commemorative of a tore from the figure, gold or other | propitiatory sacrifice to the rain god the neck | Some dav, is a carved necklace, while pressed raveled the tangled skein which still that the cross bears some relation | Spaniards. * ok % % that it it a symbolic of the that the bas-relief to. say antithises of the worshiped the sun. were worshipers of the moon. The dead city of Cajamarquilla is another interesting place to visit. mystery. It has neither history nor tradition. There are no legends con- nected with it. It is truly a dead city, but who knows but that some Incas, who when scientists have un- | with a great force of men and un- cover the secrets that have been so | Jealously guarded by the spirits of | those who llved within its walle so many years ago that all trace of time has been lost. ‘When one visits the ancient ruins of Tiahuanaco he enters the confines | of what once must have been a won- derful municipality. It is a city that not even the legendary lore of the Incas covers. History is mute con- cerning it. There is nothing to tell of how old it might be, measured by the early century construction ex- amples. In the earller perfod those who ‘lived” near this old clty used to appropriate for their own use some of the stones and other materials from the ruins, but the Bolivian gov- ernment a few years ago passed a law forbidding the remoyal of any of the parts of the ruins. Some of the stones still intact are beautiful examples of the artisans' skill. They are accurately squared and cut and fitted into walls of fine workman- ship. One will notice great blocks of stone with moldings, cornices and niches gut with geometric precision great monolithic doorways orna mented. with, symbolical figures cut in high-relie There are numerous of the carver's art. “the temple" forms a rectangle 388 by 445 feet. All men whe must" ha artistio-s entists have endeavored to show from the country by the conquering™ THE Chimus were the complete! The Chimus It is a day a brave archeologist may come monolithic {dols and other specimens An area called thyough' the ruins one can see wnnder{ll ‘work‘done by spent .years of their_livep.in.doing .it, and from an |gitogether'a product of modern In- 3 Signs of First Human Life Amazing Discoveries That Have Been Made During the Past Few Years of the ruins is well worth a trip to | Tiahuanaco. i There are any number of statues, or { figures, and all of fhem are done with | the same skill that is shown in the tearvings on the walls. The very | manner in which these ruins are ar- ranged would indicate that there | extated « population of no mean pro | portions at that time, ana as geolo- ®ists, or at least some of them, say |that the Andes are comparatively modern, what is the answer to the fact that the bones of a mastodon have been discovered in Bolivia? | There have also been found the bodies of giant anteaters. When mastodous lived at Ulloma and ant | eaters in Tarapaca, tha Andes. slowls | rising, were some few tnousand feet lower than they are today. If theme- gallthic builders were living under these conditions, thes problem fs solved. If this is geologically im- possible, the mystery remains unex platned. It is not beyond the realm of possibility that when our brothers of Britain of ever so long ago were ving in caves and fighting for | their lives with wild these peoples building temples and beautiful palaces, erecting monu- ments upon which was carved the story of a civilization that antedates by many centurles that of Egypt In the mind of the reader may have come the idea that the ruins four ] in the Americas cénstitute the entrre work of these early people and thar it was impossible for any of these early people to have migrated t other shores and so started the popt lating of lands beyond our shores, bu it will be recalled that, not so many vears ago, a fishing craft was blown into the harbor at San Diego, Calif and when the men of the ship W, asked for thelr papers they replied that they did not have any. When threatened with arrest for attemptec entry without the proper credentlals they explained that they had not in tended to make the voyage but that they could not help themselves why i it not possible for some of these early people to have been blown to other shores, even if they did not voluntarily seek other places in which to live. How can one explain the mystery of Easter Island, the most easterly of the Polynesian group of islands. There we find hundreds of statues and some buildings. The statues are of different size, ranging from three feet tg eighty feet length, and all of them of the same type and general characteristics What kind and manner of people were the ones that hewed and fask foned these mdssive replicas of gods or men? While we have learned of the won- ders of Central and South America and have puzzled our brains as to whether or not the earliest civiliza- tion began in the countries to the south of us, we must not overlook the fact that only the other day the bones of a mastodon were unearthed near London, Ontario, Canada. Noted archeologists and other men of sclence have, for some time past, been leaning to the side of those who contend that the Americas were the primary home of mankind. A number of colleges and societies have joined hands and will devote the next few years in an endeavor to uncover data that will fix the habitat of the pre historic man When one studes these ruins to the south and soy:e of the finds that have been made \n in this part of America he will, haps, agree in part, if not entirel with those who hold to the belief that perhaps the new world is really the old world. Formosa’s Camphor. HE camphor output of Formosa, combined with that of Japan. constitutes the bulk of the world's supply of this valuable gum. The most valuable of the camphor for- ests, it appears, territory. cer, who has visited Formosa, made an subject. After climbing a steep and slippery hillside he came upon a large cam- phor tree lying felled across his path. It was about four feet in diameter and had been sawed longitudinally in two portions. Two men were en- gaged In paring off with a kind of gouge-shaped adz chips measuring some six inches in length and about the thickness of one's little finger. The whole air was pervgded by a strong odor of camphor. A Iittle farther up the hill he found the stills themseives, fuated by the side of a mountain stream, amid the most lux- are within savage An American cofisular offi- has the interesting report on TLriant vegetation The process by which the camphor |is extracted from the wood is simple and inexpensive. The chips are placed in an iron retort and heated by @ slow fire. The camphor vapor given off from the chips passes along a bamboo tube into a cooling box. where it condenses in the form of snowlike crystals. The cooling box is partially immersed in a stream of running water. The chips are re- newed every twenty-four hours and every eighth day or so the fire is ex- tinguished and the crystals scraped off from the sides and bottom of the crystallization box. A Boiler of Pompeii. OME time ago an interesting dis- covery was made in the museum at Naples, where the works of art and utensils found in the buried ity of Pompeii are preserved. Careful inspection of one of the ancient cop- per vase-shaped vessels there has shown that it is in reality a tubular bofler. That this form of boiler should have been known to the Romaus 2,000 years ago 1s somewhat remarkable For just what purpose it was used is not known, but the boiler is well constructed and contains five tubes running scross & central firebox, and so arranged as to permit the water surrounding the fire-box to circulate through them In & continuous cur- rent. The soldering of thie tubes was so skillfully done that it remains in- tact today and the cover of the boller closes hermetically. The entire helght of the machine, which, as remarked above, is shaped like a vas. with two side handles and three ot, is only about seven- teen.inches It has been suggested that it may have been employed for distilling purposes. However that may be, its preservation for so mans centuries under the ashes of Vesuvius proves thatstubular boilers are mot tlony