by Dr. J. Mason
Spainhour, of Lenoir, N.C., of an excavation made by him March 11,
1871, on the farm of R. V. Michaux, esq., near John's River, in Burke
County, N.C., is given. The author bears the reputation of an observer
of undoubted integrity, whose facts as given may not be doubted:

EXCAVATION OF AN INDIAN MOUND.

In a conversation with Mr. Michaux on Indian curiosities, he
informed me that there was an Indian mound on his farm which was
formerly of considerable height, but had gradually been plowed down;
that several mounds in the neighborhood had been excavated, and
nothing of interest found in them. I asked permission to examine
this mound, which was granted, and upon investigation the following
facts were revealed:

Upon reaching the place, I sharpened a stick 4 or 5 feet in length
and ran it down in the earth at several places, and finally struck a
rock about 18 inches below the surface, which, on digging down, was
found to be smooth on top, lying horizontally upon solid earth,
about 18 inches above the bottom of the grave, 18 inches in length,
and 16 inches in width, and from 2 to 3 inches in thickness, with
the corners rounded.

Not finding anything under this rock, I then made an excavation in
the south of the grave, and soon struck another rock, which, upon
examination, proved to be in front of the remains of a human
skeleton in a sitting posture. The bones of the fingers of the right
hand were resting on this rock, and on the rock near the hand was a
small stone about 5 inches long, resembling a tomahawk or Indian
hatchet. Upon a further examination many of the bones were found,
though in a very decomposed condition, and upon exposure to the air
soon crumbled to pieces. The heads of the bones, a considerable
portion of the skull, maxillary bones, teeth, neck bones, and the
vertebra, were in their proper places, though the weight of the
earth above them had driven them down, yet the entire frame was so
perfect that it was an easy matter to trace all the bones; the bones
of the cranium were slightly inclined toward the east. Around the
neck were found coarse beads that seemed to be of some hard
substance and resembled chalk. A small lump of red paint about the
size of an egg was found near the right side of this skeleton. The
sutures of the cranium indicated the subject to have been 25 or 28
years of age, and its top rested about 12 in