I must now say a few words about the ruins which are to be found scattered throughout New Mexico, Arizona, and Northern Mexico. There is scarcely a valley in the Rio Grande basin in which the stone or adobe foundations of villages are not to be found; there is scarcely a spring, a laguna, or a marsh upon the plateau which is not overlooked by some ruined fortress. Usually these relics crest a commanding eminence, not always in close proximity either to the fertile land which supported the community, or even to the spring which supplies them with water. If a stream runs near them, the remains of acequias (or irrigating canals) are generally to be found. There are many places, however, where cultivation had been successfully carried on without them, the rainfall alone being relied upon; while some ruins show signs of reservoirs and terraces similar to those still in use amongst the Moquis.
The ruins may be classed under three heads : --
1st. Ruins of many-storied Indian strongholds.
2nd. Euins of buildings evidently constructed under Spanish rule.
3rd. Ruins the foundations of which alone remain.
East of the Rio Grande there are at least four ruined towns of the first order deserving of special notice; these are the ruins of Pecos, Quarra, Gran Quivera, and Abo; all, however, contain ruins of Spanish as well as Indian origin. The early Spaniards tell us that Pecos was a fortified town of several stories. It was built upon the summit of a mesa which juts out into the valley of the stream of the same name, and overlooked the lowlands for many miles in both directions. The only conspicuous buildings amongst the ruins are the Spanish church and the Mexican temple. For probably a century the two religions flourished side by side; the incense ascended from the altar of the one, and the fire of Montezuma burned day and night in the estufa of the other. The church is a cruciform adobe structure, the greater part of the walls of which are still standing. Montezuma's church, the ruins of which are almost continuous with those of its rival, is much more decayed; it shows signs of having been at least three stories in height; and in the centre the large circular estufa is quite perfect.
The pueblo was called by the early Spaniards "Tiguex" and was the chief town of a district called by the same name. According to Indian tradition, it was built by Montezuma himself on his way southward from Toas; he placed his sacred fire in the estufa, and warned his people that death would come upon them if they allowed it to go out. Before leaving them he took a tall tree and planted it in an inverted position, saying that when he should disappear a foreign race would rule over his people, and there would be no rain. " They were not to lose heart, however, under the foreign yoke, nor to let the fire burn out in the estufa; for when the time came in which the tree should fall, men with pale faces would pour into the land from the east and overthrow their oppressors, and he himself would return to build up his kingdom; the earth would again become fertile and the mountains yield abundance of silver and gold. Then Montezuma departed and travelled southward, spreading pueblos far and wide, until he reached the city of Mexico, where he lived until the enemy, in the form of the Spaniards, arrived, when he disappeared."
The Pueblo Indians say that Montezuma's prophecy has been literally fulfilled. Soon after Montezuma returned to the Great Spirit, the enemy, in the form of Spaniards, came, conquered, and enslaved them. Although they could not shake off the oppressors, still they kept the holy fire burning, and tried to dwell in peace with all men. The Spaniards added many buildings to the town, and lived there amongst them until about the middle of the-last century, when the wild Indians of the mountains attacked and desolated Pecos, driving away and murdering its inhabitants. Nevertheless, amidst the havoc and plunder of the place, a faithful few amongst the Indians managed to keep the fire burning in the estufa, until at last the deliverers with " pale faces poured in from the east," and the tree at Pecos fell to the ground as the American army entered Santa Fe.
Then the little remnant of the tribe, which in 1808 only numbered 135 souls, left the ruined fortress and brought the sacred fire with them to the pueblo of Jemez, to which place their companions had migrated years before. Here they were kindly received by the Indians of that pueblo, who helped them to build acequias and houses, and to sow and gather in their crops; droughts no longer desolate the land, but year after year copious showers still bring wealth and happiness to the chosen people of the Great Prince.
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adapted from A. W. Bell
"On the Native Races of New Mexico"
1869 (Journal of the Ethnological Society of London)
