USA > Massachusetts > Worcester County > Worcester > Proceedings of the Worcester Society of Antiquity, 1877, Volume I-5 > Part 2
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The recent circular from the commissioners of the proposed cen- tennial celebration, recommending that an historical address, hav- ing special reference to local history, be delivered in every town or county throughout the land on the coming anniversary of Ameri- can Independence, and that such productions be preserved and bound together by States, forming a grand history of our country, is a judicious and wise suggestion, and should have the hearty support of every patriot and every historical society throughout our vast domain.
Since the institution of THE WORCESTER SOCIETY OF ANTI- QUITY, Jan. 24th, 1875, twelve meetings have been held, includ- ing three preliminary meetings. These have been occasions of con- siderable interest to those who have been present, and not without beneficial results. Matters relating to the association have been discussed, new members have been admitted from time to time, and reports of the acquisitions have been made, showing in the aggregate not less than 1000 volumes and 1500 pamphlets, fbesides numerous portraits, autographs and coins.
One pleasant feature of our association has been in holding the meetings of the Society at the dwellings of the members, thus affording an opportunity for a better acquaintanceship of the mem- bers and the examination of their libraries, by which we have been
* Vide Proceedings American Antiquarian Society, Oct. 21, 1874.
tSo far as reporte 1, 1812 volumes and 1586 pamphlets
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instructed and entertained, and some exchanges have been effected to mutual advantage.
It would doubtless have been an easy matter to greatly increase our membership, but our purpose has been to admit only those who are especially interested in the objects of the association, and who will add to its interests by hearty cooperation in our endeav- ors to promote its usefulness. Numbers do not constitute truc strength ; this only results from earnest, active effort on the part of those who are associated together for a common purpose.
Having thus far reviewed the brief history of our Society, let us now inquire what it shall be in the future. Shall it go on increasing in usefulness and multiplying its numbers, or shall it be suffered to languish and die, failing to meet the demands of the place and the times ? I think you will agree with me in saying it ought to and must be sustained.
I venture to affirm that not one who has helped the Society through its first year of existence would be willing to see it fall to the ground as unripe fruit, unfit for a place among the honored societies of the land, having a kindred purpose in their life and continuance with our own.
This Society is not alone in laboring under embarrassments in the early stages of its existence; and we should not therefore be discouraged, for a brighter day is sure to dawn if we prove faith- ful to the trust now imposed upon us.
We should receive a new impetus from the inspiration of this centennial year, and strive with renewed diligence and energy to do our part in treasuring up the records of the past and being pre- pared to transmit to posterity that which we have obtained.
In the language of another, "our first and great object is to res- que from the past all that is valuable in regard to New England (and I will add our whole country), and to preserve all that may in any way contribute to the history and renown of her people."
To rescue from the past-that is one of the fundamental princi- ples of this Society. O that we knew more of the past-more concerning those noble men, the fathers of our republic, who a hundred years ago were striving and toiling here to establish a government that should bless and elevate mankind and make them free.
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While we cannot know all we desire, yet history reveals unto us enough to kindle anew our patriotism and lead us to a greater, a deeper and truer devotion to the interests of our common coun- try. To rescue from the past-that shall be our motto. Let nothing worthy of preservation be lost, but gather up the threads of history, weave them together, and let them be preserved through all coming time.
But why so anxious about the past ? Is it not the future that most concerns us ? Most truly it is ; but only as we rightly know and estimate the past shall we learn wisdom for the future. The noble, patriotic and Christian example of our worthy sires shall be a pattern for us, in so far as they were exemplars of all that is good and true in man, and we will strive to imitate their virtues and avoid their errors.
Having thus briefly considered the interests, purposes and design of this association, let us as we now start anew in life's pilgrimage, ever strive faithfully to perform our part of its duties, so that the world around us may be better for the work we may have done.
At this meeting the matter of printing the pro- ceedings of the Society was referred to a committee consisting of Daniel Seagrave, Richard O'Flynn and Franklin P. Rice, who reported at the next meeting in favor of printing the proceedings, but final action was deferred till March 7th, 1876, when the subject was indefinitely postponed, and a committee consist- ing of Daniel Seagrave, Henry D. Barber and James A. Smith was appointed to take into consideration the expediency of printing the Constitution and By-Laws. After investigating the matter, it was thought expe- dient to revise the Constitution, and at the regular meeting held October 3d, 1876, a committee con- sisting of Samuel E. Staples, Daniel Seagrave and Ellery B. Crane was appointed to make such revision ;
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and at the meeting held November 11th the commit- tee was enlarged by adding to its number Clark Jill- son and James A. Smith.
This committee held several meetings, and at the last meeting of the year, held December 5th, 1876, at the residence of John G. Smith, 58 Lincoln street, the committee reported a revised Constitution, which was considered, approved and laid over till the next meeting for final adoption.
At the meeting held May 2d, 1876, a committee consisting of Franklin P. Rice, Richard O'Flynn and Augustus Stone was appointed to draw up and for- ward resolutions to Henry B. Anthony, Senator in Congress from Rhode Island, thanking him, in the name of the Society, for securing the passage of a bill in Congress having for its object the placing of the public documents within the reach of the people ; and at the meeting of June 6th the committee reported the following resolution :
Resolved, That the thanks of this Society be tendered to the IIon. IIenry B. Anthony for the introduction of the bill providing for the sale and better distribution of the Public Documents.
Resolved, That this resolution be entered upon the records of the Society, and that a copy be forwarded to Senator Anthony.
The Secretary was instructed to forward the above, and received the following reply :
PROVIDENCE, May 17, 1876.
DEAR SIR-Your note of the 12th was forwarded to me from Washington. Please express to the Society my thanks for the complimentary resolution of which you apprise me.
Yours, very respectfully,
II. B. ANTHONY.
DANIEL SEAGRAVE, Esq., Secretary.
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At the same meeting, Charles R. Johnson read an interesting paper on the " Vestiges of Ancient Amer- ican Civilization," as follows :
Gentlemen of The Worcester Society of Antiquity-I would invite your attention a short time this evening to the subject of American archæology. The study of the antiquities of any nation, to what- ever period of time or to whatever part of the world that nation belongs, is always an entertaining one; but the investigation becomes doubly interesting when it relates to our own ancestors, or to the remains of other races which once flourished where we now dwell. Hence we should all have a special concern in the topic before us.
In considering the ancient civilization of America, I shall con- fine myself to the localities where the remains are most extensive, viz .: Mexico, including Yucatan, Central America and Peru; and I shall devote my time to the discussion of three questions : First, How high a degree of civilization is indicated? Secondly, How far back does that civilization date? and, thirdly, Who were its authors ?
Beginning, then, with the first question, it should be said at the outset that very different grades of skill are to be noticed in differ- ent places. The best specimens of workmanship are seen in Yuca- tan and Central America. Proceeding northward, the ruins decrease in importance. Travelling to the south, one has to go as far as Ecuador before making valuable discoveries, but neither there nor in Peru are the remains equal to those of Guatemala or Yucatan. You have all heard of the ruined cities of America ; most of you have probably read the graphic accounts of them given by Stephens and Squier, hence it would be very much out of place for me here to rehearse what those eminent authors have said; but I will briefly describe a few of the important works of the ancient people, in order that we may get some idea of their skill and draw an inference as to their condition.
At Palenque, in the Mexican State of Chiapa, there are some remarkable ruins. The most noticeable of these is a build- ing called the " Palace." It is situated on a terraced pyramid, forty feet high. This building is 228 feet. long, 180 feet wide,
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and 25 feet high. It has 14 doorways on each side and 11 at each end. It was built of hewn stone, carefully laid in mortar. Around the edifice was a corridor 9 feet wide, roofed by a pointed arch. There are four interior courts, one of which measures 70 by 80 feet. These courts are surrounded by corridors, the architectural work of which is richly decorated. The piers around the courts are "covered with figures in stucco, or plaster, which, when broken, reveals six or more coats or layers, each revealing traces of paint- ing." The sculptures are very finely executed. Another edifice at Palenque, called La Cruz, is so wonderfully ornamented that Captain Dupaix declares : " It is impossible to describe adequately the interior decorations of this sumptuous temple;" and speaking of its broken statues, Stephens says: "In justness of proportion and symmetry they must have approached the Greek models." Captain Richard Stewart, a recent traveller in Mexico, describes some wonderful ruins which he saw near Multipec, in the State of Guadalajara. These ruins are situated on a high plateau, and extend over a space of more than twenty-five acres. The most prominent among the remains is a quadrilateral pyramid 500 feet square and 100 feet in height. On the side of the pyramid facing the east is an arched doorway 39 feet high and 27 feet in width, flanked by immense sphinxes standing on marble pedestals. There are two marble pillars 45 feet high in front of each sphinx. These pillars are ornamented with finely-carved figures and are covered with hieroglyphics. Passing the grand entrance, one comes upon a stately hall, 53 by 90 feet, the walls of which are adorned with sculptured figures and hieroglyphics. The ceiling is supported by twelve marble pillars, six on each side, which are also covered with carvings. Four doors lead from this hall into smaller rooms, which it is supposed, from the character of the interior, were used as resting places of the dead. There are also doorways which lead from the main hall to flights of stone steps descending to sub- terranean chambers.
In the State of Oaxaca a monument has been found which undoubtedly was once used as an astronomical observatory. This is a granite roek hewed into the shape of a pyramid, at the top of which is a level space, whence a fine view of the heavens can be had. On one side of the rock are carved astronomical figures, and
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among these is the form of a man gazing at the sky throngh a telescope. There is strong evidence among the ruins that the ancient people did not neglect athletic exercises. A good example of this is shown in the Gymnasium or Tennis Court at Chicken Itza, in Yucatan, a structure formed by two parallel walls 274 feet long, 30 feet thick and 120 feet apart. In the middle of these walls, and opposite each other, are two stone rings 4 feet in diam- eter, and having at the centre an aperture 19 inches in diameter. These rings are 20 feet from the ground. The space between these walls was beyond question used for games, but what kind of games we cannot tell.
Thus far I have spoken only of the remains in North America, but those in South America are also very important. The city of Cuzco was defended by immense stone fortresses, the walls of which were so massive as to make it appear incredible to the con- querors that they could have been raised by human hands. The Temple of the Sun at Cuzco was a structure of extraordinary size and magnificence, having "a circuit of more than four hundred paces." A section of its walls still exist, forming a part of the Convent of St. Domingo. At Tiahuanaco there evidently once existed a great city. Cieça de Leon, describing this place, says : "There are stones so large and so overgrown that our wonder is incited, it being incomprehensible how the power of man could have placed them where we see them. They are variously wrought, and some having the form of men must have been idols. Near the walls are many eaves and excavations under the earth, but in another place further west are other and greater monu- ments, such as large gateways with hinges, platforms and porches, each made of a single stone. It surprised me to see these enor- mous gateways, made of great masses of stone, some of which were thirty feet long, fifteen feet high and six thick." The great roads of Peru may, however, be regarded as the greatest monuments of the old race. One of them extended from Quito to Chili ; another led from Cuzco to the coast. They were from twenty to twenty- five feet wide, and were built on a foundation of masonry. In some places they were paved, in others macadamized. Mr. Bald- win, in speaking of these roads, observes that "the builders of our Pacific Railroad, with their superior engineering skill and mechan-
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ical appliances, might reasonably shrink from the cost and the difficulties of such a work as this. Extending from one degree north of Quito to Cuzco, and from Cuzco to Chili, it was quite as long as the two Pacific railroads, and its wild route among the mountains was far more difficult." Is any further proof needed that a people who could undertake and complete works like this, and the others I have alluded to, were in a very advanced state of civilization ?
I now come to the second question, How far back does this civi- lization date? Those who follow the generally received chronol- ogy are inclined to speak of the American ruins as of no very great age. They would make it appear that this continent, nay, that the world itself, has been peopled but a few thousand years, and that all civilization must have grown up in that time. The researches of scholars among the antiquities of Egypt. Assyria and India, as well as the discoveries of science, have established the falsity of this notion as to the Eastern Hemisphere, and I think that it may be shown to be equally untrue in regard to the West- ern Hemisphere. Great cities are not built in a day. Progress in science and art is of slow growth, and it is only by gradual stages that a people is raised from savagery to a state of refinc- ment. Yucatan, Chiapa and Guatemala were covered by a dense forest when Cortez conquered Mexico, and this forest then had every appearance of having stood there for centuries. It is here that are found the most striking remains of the lost race. Here are Copan, Mitla and Palenque, or rather here are the shattered remnants of their former grandeur. If the rise of civilization is gradual, so also is its decay. How many centuries, then, must have elapsed since these cities were in their prime! How many more since the date of their foundation ! Nay, further, to what remote time shall we assign the foundation of the cities which pre- ceded these, and of whose existence there is the strongest evidence ? For, as Brasseur de Bourbourg says, "among the edifices forgot- ten by time in the forests of Mexico and Central America, we find architectural characteristics so different from each other that it is as impossible to attribute them all to the same people as to believe they were all built at the same epoch." The condition of the remains themselves bears positive testimony to their great age.
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Nothing is left but what is least destructible. Even the massive stone buildings themselves have mostly crumbled away, and only a few remain to attest the glory of their founders. Every wooden structure, every tool, every' article of furniture, every household utensil, except something earthen or stone, has disappeared. The period of time required for such a process of obliteration must be very extended indeed. All eivilized peoples have a literature which, while it exists, gives a full account of their history. The ancient Americans had a literature, but unhappily it was almost entirely destroyed by monkish bigotry. From the little that re- mains we are enabled to gain a few faets regarding the history of its authors. It appears that here, as in the Old World, one nation succeeded another in influence and power, only to be in its turn supplanted by a third, and thus in regular order. The prominent people mentioned in this succession are the Chichemees, the Col- huas, the Toltecs and the Aztees. Under the head of Chichemees seem to be included all the original barbarous inhabitants of the country. They were followed by the Colhnas, who were the founders of the original civilization. The Toltecs came into the country about ten centuries before the Christian era, and estab- lished themselves in the place of the Colhuas. The oldest certain date in the Toltec history is 955 B. C. This was when the con- querors made a division of the land; whence the inference that they began to arrive about 1000 B. C. The Toltees had a long lease of power, but eventually, weakened by misgovernment and broken up by dissensions, they were forced to give place to the Aztecs, who appeared on the scene about two hundred and fifty years before the Spanish invasion, and continued to rule the coun- try till they were subdued by Cortez. Thus much for the history, as recorded in the American annals. It is but just to say that this account seems to be in some respects corroborated by the Phoenician and Tyrian writers, especially in regard to the antiquity and civilization of the American races ; for they record instances of ships being driven across the Atlantic and finding a land " wat- ered by several navigable streams and beautified with many gar- dens of pleasure, planted with divers sorts of trees and an abun- dance of orchards. The towns are adorned with stately buildings and banquetting houses, pleasantly situated in their gardens and orchards." The time when these ships were driven across could
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hardly have been later than 700 B. C., and was probably consider- ably earlier. I think I have shown that the civilization in North America is of a very ancient date. By a parity of reasoning, this may be proved in regard to South America. There, too, the okl structures have nearly all perished, time having brought every- thing possible to ruin. There, again, may be collected fragments of early history, which, when put together, go to show that the country was inhabited by an intelligent race as early as 2500 B. C.
Science also lends its aid to assist in solving the question of antiquity ; but as usual, when science interferes in such matters, we are carried baek an almost indefinite distance. Professor Orton, in his work on " The Andes and the Amazon," makes the following remarkable declaration : " Geology and archeology are combining to prove that Sorato and Chimborazo have looked down upon a civilization far more ancient than that of the Incas, and perhaps coeval with the flint flakes of Cornwall and the shell- mounds of Denmark. On the shores of Lake Titicaca are exten- sive ruins which antedate the advent of Manco-Capac, and may be as venerable as the lake dwellings of Geneva. Wilson has traced six terraces in going up from the sea through the province of Esmeraldas toward Quito, and underneath the living forest, which is older than the Spanish invasion, many gold, copper and stone vestiges of a lost population were found. In all cases these relics are found below high tide mark, in a bed of marine sediment, from which he infers that this part of the country formerly stood higher above the sea. If this be true, vast must be the antiquity of these remains, for the upheaval and subsidence of the coast is exceed- ingly slow." I can but think that this estimation puts the origin of civilization far enough back to satisfy the most enthusiastic stu- dnent of American archeology.
The third and last question, Who were the authors of this civili- zation? next demands our attention. This is a subject about which there has long been much dispute. Able scholars have discussed the matter with a great display of learning, and self- supposed scholars have often made it the occasion of a great dis- play of ignorance. All sorts of theories have been advanced. Tall folios have been written to show that the American races are descended from the " lost tribes of Israel," as witness Lord Kings- borough's works. Other volumes have been prepared with a view
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to establish the fact that the Phoenicians settled this continent. Still other books attribute this work to the Malays. Mr. C. G. Leland, an Englishman, recently made a very labored effort to prove that ancient America was indebted to the Chinese for its civilization, and, in strange contrast to this, Mr. Charles W. Brooks, an American, last year read a paper before the San Francisco Academy of Sciences, in which he attempted to show that the Chinese race derived its origin from the Peruvians. These theo- ries are all built upon very slender foundations, if foundation they may be said to have at all. A stray word here, an obscure custom there, and an odd instrument somewhere else are, in most cases, all they have to depend upon. What if the Phoenicians and Ma- lays did have communication with this continent in prehistoric times ? Does it necessarily follow from that that they peopled it or gave it its civilization ? England and France, separated only by a narrow channel, have had constant communication with each other for a thousand years, the respective races of each remaining the same, and yet the English have not anglicized France, nor have the French gallicized England. How small, then, must have been the effect upon the character and condition of the people of two continents, thousands of miles apart, of the scanty intercourse brought about by the occasional visits of trading ships! As to the " lost tribes of Israel," there is not the slightest historical evidence that they ever left Asia, nor has anything worthy the name of proof been discovered in this country to indicate that they were ever here. Besides, as Mr. Baldwin justly remarks, " such a jour- ney " as that required to bring them here, " had it been possible, would have resulted in utter barbarism rather than any notable phase of civilized life." If we thus reject all the old theories, it may well be asked how we account for the presence of man on this continent, and to whom we ascribe the construction of the . great works before mentioned. To this I answer that, for myself, I am inclined to adopt the "Atlantic Theory," which is based on the supposition that there formerly existed an extension of the American continent reaching out toward the east from what is now the Gulf of Mexico, and almost meeting Europe; that upon this peninsula or continent there existed in prehistorie times a very cultured people ; that it was, in fact, the cradle of the civilization of the world ; that thence men went out to subdue and civilize the
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rest of the earth ; that by a tremendous cataclysm this land was engulfed, disappearing beneath the sea; that a few of the people escaped. and were the originators of the civilization of Mexico, Central America and Peru ; that portions of the submerged terri- tory afterward rose, forming the islands known as the Antilles. Brasseur de Bourbourg is the great exponent of this theory. This learned Frenchman spent many years in Mexico and Central America, studying among the ruins. He became master of the Maya language, and succeeded in translating the old books and in deciphering some of the inscriptions. He found abundant refer- ences to the cataclysm in the ancient manuscripts which he discov- ered and in the sculptures everywhere visible in the deserted cities. What is stranger still, he asserts that many of the rites practiced by the natives to-day, and which he personally observed, have spe- cial reference to the great convulsion. The common people do not know the meaning of these rites, but the priests keep the secret. Brasseur also cites several of the old Greek authors to show that the nations of the Eastern continent in ancient times had dealings with Atlantis.
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