of many of those vast monuments, which for
ages will continue to challenge the wonder of men. There may have been
certain superstitious ceremonies, having no connection with the
purpose of the mound, carried on in inclosures especially dedicated to
them."<64> Another late writer to whom we have several times referred,
tells us there is no doubt but what a "religious view" was the
controlling influence in the erection of these works, and that they
express a "complicated system of symbolism," that we see in them
evidence, of a most powerful and wonderful religious system.<65> Still
such assertions are easier made than proven, and until we know somewhat
the purpose for which they were used, how are we to know whether they
were sacred or not?

Casting conjectures, for the moment, aside, let us learn what we can
from the works themselves. From their large extent they could only be
reared by the expenditure of great labor. This implies some form of
government sufficiently centralized and powerful to control the labors
of large bodies of men. Moreover, they were sufficiently advanced to
have some standard of measurement and some way of measuring angles.
The circle, it will be remembered, is a true circle, and of a dimension
requiring considerable skill to lay out. The sides of the octagon are
equal, and the alternate angles coincident.

Every year the plow sinks deeper into these crumbling embankments, and
the leveling forces of cultivation are continually at work, and the time
is not far distant when the curious traveler will with difficulty trace
the ruins of what was once, to the Mound Builders, a place of great
importance.

Illustration of Square and Circle Embankment.-----------

The more usual combination was that of a square and a circle. An example
is given in this cut, which is a plan on a very small scale, of works
which formerly existed in Circleville. One peculiar feature about this
work was that a double wall formed the circle, with a ditch between the
two walls. In the next cut we notice a peculiar combination of these
two figures. The square is inclosed within the circle. Whatever we may
ultimately decide as to the larger works, it would seem as if this could
only be explained as in the nature of a religious work. We can see no
reason for constructing a defensive work, or inclosing a village, or
erecting foundations for houses of such a shape as this. They must have
been in some way connected with the su