It is, indeed, marvelous and only needs to be seen to be
appreciated.
CHAPTER XII
THE CLIFF DWELLERS
In the canons of the Colorado river and its tributaries are found
the ruins of an ancient race of cliff dwellers. These ruins are
numerous and are scattered over a wide scope of country, which
includes Arizona and portions of Utah, Colorado and New Mexico.
Many of them are yet in a good state of preservation, but all
show the marks of age and decay. They are not less than four
hundred years old and are, in all probability, much older. Their
preservation is largely due to their sheltered position among the
rocks and an exceptionally dry climate.
The houses are invariably built upon high cliffs on shelving
rocks in places that are almost inaccessible. In some instances
they can only be reached by steps cut into the solid rock, which
are so old and worn that they are almost obliterated. Their
walls so nearly resemble the stratified rocks upon which they
stand, that they are not easily distinguished from their
surroundings.
The cliffs are often sloping, sometimes overhanging, but more
frequently perpendicular. The weather erosion of many centuries
has caused the softer strata of exposed rocks in the cliffs to
disintegrate and fall away, which left numberless caverns wherein
this ancient and mysterious people chose to build their eyrie
homes to live with the eagles.
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