west side of Silver Lake, in the town of Salem (section eight, township one, range twenty), where there are some burial mounds; and a little north of the road (southwest quarter of southeast quarter of section five, township one, range twenty) are two oblong mounds, which, from their position, are supposed to be [page 24:] look-out stations. They are situated near some quite remarkable bluffs of limestone gravel, and command an extensive view of the valley towards the south, with its beautiful lake and ancient remains.
Mound Prairie, in the western part of Wheatland (township one, range nineteen), is a small and beautiful prairie lying between two line groups of lakes; and is so named from some artificial works near the centre of the prairie. We found six or eight circular mounds, and one that appeared to have been a turtle. They were nearly destroyed by the plough.
Near the village of Geneva (section thirty-five, township one, range seventeen), there were two turtle mounds, and several of the ordinary circular or conical form. They are situated near the lake with their heads towards the water. A road passes directly over them, and they are now (1850) nearly destroyed. Further search would probably reveal the localities of other works about these lakes.
Five miles south of Burlington (on the northwest quarter of section twenty-six, township two, range nineteen), is a solitary animal mound, with curved tail, and enlarged at the extremity, as shown in the figure. (Plate XIII. No. 1.) It is situated on a gently sloping hill side, and the road passes directly over it. It is a very unusual circumstance to find such a mound disconnected from other works; but we could not learn that any others existed in the vicinity.
On the east bank of the river, opposite the village of Burlington, is a series of mounds arranged in an irregular row along the margin of the stream. (See Plate XIII. No. 2.) The largest of the series, near the middle, is ten feet high, and fifty feet in diameter at the base. It is connected with the next by an embankment, a circumstance observed in several other cases. At the north or upper end of the series, are four oblong mounds; one with a divided extremity, or horns, as shown in the drawing. Eleven conical tumuli may yet be traced; and some others, it is said, have been removed. Persons of lively imagination might suppose this series to represent a serpent, with mouth open, in the act of swallowing its prey; the series forming a sort of serpentine row.
A little west of the village is a small inclosure of oval form, the embankment having but a slight elevation. It may have been the place of a mud-house, or some structure the decay of which has left only this evidence of its former existence. There are said to be others similar to it in the vicinity. A stone axe and a flint arrow-point were obtained here.
On the west side of Wind Lake (northeast quarter of section eight, township four, range twenty), we discovered five conical mounds, but no other works in their vicinity. Also on the west side of Muskego Lake (east half of northeast quarter of section sixteen, township five, range twenty), is a group of works represented in Plate XIV. No. 1. They consist of two parallel ridges at the extremity of a small promontory nearly surrounded by marshy grounds, and a ridge and some circular mounds on another point of land opposite. There is a remarkable excavation in the bank here, which is doubtless the work of art; but its origin and the purpose for which it was made can now only be a subject of conjecture.
These parallel ridges have been represented as the remains of a fort or fortified promontory; but a glance at the plate will show that no such object could have [page 25:] been the motive of their construction. Instead of extending across the neck of the peninsula, as in the fortified hills, and thus defending the approach to the position, they occupy a place near the extremity of the high land.
Proceeding up the valley of the river from Burlington, there are no remains for a distance of twelve miles. We then find 