Evening Republican, Volume 16, Number 67, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 18 March 1912 — Discover an Old Race [ARTICLE]

Discover an Old Race

Find Traces of Highly Civilized People Ten Thousand Years Ago—Magallthic City Is Unearthed. New Haven, Conn.-—There was submitted at the meeting of the Yale corporation a report of the Yale expedition to Peru, headed by Professor Hiram Bingham, in which were made known for the first time some remarkable discoveries. It is said no scientific expedition in recent years has garnered so much that is of Interest in the scientific world. Chief among the results was the finding for the first time of bones of the prehistoric man, of the age before the glacial period. An estimate of the age of the bones is not less than 10,000 years. Several archaeological discoveries made by Professor Bingham Included ruins of several Inca or pre-Inca cities, -and traces of a highly civilized people earlier than the Incas. Another discovery was that of the bones of the American bison, which scientists never before had known to exist in South America. The present level of perpetual snow in the Andes was determined. Clear geological evidence of past climatic changes was found, especially in deep valleys of the Cordillera and in the deserts of the coast reginnz Devonian, carboniferous, cretaceous and tertiary fossils were collected. Evidence was found tending to show that the great coast terraces have had not a single geologic history as had been supposed, but a complex History, inciuamg a bud-

mergence in the tertiary period and a stripping which is still in progress. A survey was made of Lake Parlnacochas, 11,500 feet above the sea, which is 17 miles long and 6 miles wide and its greatest depth less than 6 feet Ruins of primitive civilization were found on its banks. Mount Coropuna was climbed by Professor Bingham and H. L. Tucker, and later triangulated by Mr. Hendriksen and found to be 22,799 feet, and not 21,703, as on recent maps. The report read by President Hadley to the corporation on the two most important discoveries, those of the finding of human bones and new ruins of Incan cities, follows: Macchu Pichu, a city probably built by the ‘megalithic raiie,’ who preceded the Incas. The ruins are on an almost Inaccessible ridge 2,000 feet above the Urubamba river. They are of great beauty and magnificence, and Include palaces, baths, temples and 150 houses. Carefully cut blocks of white granite, some of them 12 feet long, were used in construction of the walls.” Other discoveries were: The temple of Yuracrumlu, the center of the Inca religious cWt after the fall of Cuzco, containing a carved monolith 185 feet in circumference. Vltcos, the pawe and capital of Masco Capao, the last Inca, probably built after his retreat before Pizarro’s conquering army. Vllcapampa, a purely Inca town, now completely buried in the dense jungle Of the Rio Pampaconas but containing characteristic Inca pottery and bronze Implements. ; 7 ~

A number of other primitive towns in the coastal desert provinces, two of which were marked by volcanic bowlders covered with pictograph, including drawings of jaguars, llamas and dancing men. Human bones were found by Professor Bingham near Cuzco, embedded under 75 feet of gravel, interstratifled with the gravel beds, and with bones of several lower animals.