impressioffderived from local tradition. Some
years ago, a skeleton was exhumed from one of
thesé caches;
I A N T IQ U IT IE S O F POM E EY . j
No part of western New York hasfurnished a
larger number of antiquarian remains, or been
more often referred to, than the geographical
area which constituted the original town t óf
Pompeyv- Therfeis3 eonseqnently, the less need
of devoting elaborate attention to the details 6f
this particular locality. ' It was first Visited: and
described by De Witt Clinton, in 1810-1,1,* and
the plough has sincérendëred" ithftask le'sseasÿ
than-it then was,f Vo examiné thé linéa its
ancient' works and its archse'ölógical remains.
It is quite evid'ent, from- the '©bjoéts' of art disclosed
at and about these antique sites of'security
and defence, that civilized man dwelt here in
remotè' finies, ànd there must-be assigned to this
part of the state a pèriod óf European occüpancy
prior to the commonly received historical era of
discover)' and settlement, Or, at'leasts if fMing
Within it, as there" Is now reason to bëliev’é, yet
almost wholly unknown,' hr fotgotfen in its an-
riàlè. Sisnïondi has we|f|remarked, that only
the most important events come down to posterity,
and that fame, for a long flight,' préparés
tó 'fdrget evefy thing which she possibly can.
That no accounts should remain óf obscure
events; in a remote part of the é0unfry,-àt. an
* T rans, of Plxilo. land L i t .’Society o f N ew York.
early date, is not surprising. As it is, we must
infer both the dates and the people,’ from such
antiquarian remains of works of art, and historical
comparisons as can be obtained..
I There appear to have -beep two or three nations
who' supplied very early visitors or residents to
aucient’ Onondaga, namely, the Dutch, French
and Spanish, the' latter hs merely temporary
visitors or' explorers. ’ Both tpe Dutch and the
French carried on an early trade here with the
Troquoisi It is most probable that there are no
remains of European art,-or Irave ever been any
disclosed, in this- part of the country, one only
excepted,* which are not' due to the early at-
■tpmpts'of the Dutch and French, toestablish the
fun trade among these- populous arid powerful
tribes? To some extent,’ missionary operations
were conheeted with the efforts of both nations.
But whatever was this stress laid on this subject,
by prOtestants or catholics,- neither object Could
be secured without the exhibition of fire-arms
and Certain military defences* such as stockades
.and picketted works;with, gates, afforded. No
trader could, in the Idth and 17th centuries, -securely
trust his stock of goods? domestic animals,
(rif he had anyd.br his. own life, in the midst of
fierce and powerful tribes; who acknowledged
no superior, and Who were, besides, subject-to
the temporary excitement created by the limited
pse of alcohol. For we can assign absolutely no
date to the early European intercourse with these
,* AntiqtiejstQjde witb an inscription', Albany Institute.