GREAT RUSHED CITY.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LXI, Issue 144198, 15 September 1913, Page 3

GREAT RUSHED CITY.

VISIT TO THE CAROLINES.

The Caroline Islands have been described as an “enchanted region of archaelogy.” A more romantic chapter of tlje past is to bo found there than it is possible to meet with in any other group in the wide Pacific, save only Easter Islands, with its colossal stono images, tho secret of which remains still unread.

Memorials of a forgotten race lie scattered on every hand t-liroughout tho Carolines, notably at Ponape ajrtl Kusaio. There aro maesivo ruins at the former place of a strange water town, an ancient island Venice. Hundreds of acres are covered with the remains of walls, canals, and earthworks of tho most stupendous character, built upon a general plan such as could only have been conceived by men of power and intelligence. By whom and for what purpose they were built aro questions that have given to various speculations. The inhabitants of the present day can tell us nothing. “Tho ruins have been there since the beginning of things.” That is all thoy know. It’ was with a view to investigating tho subject and endeavouring to.find somo solution of the problem that Professor Macmillan Brown, of Christchurch, visited the Carolines, and ho has come back with an entirely new theory as to the origin of tho ruins (says tho Dominion). THE SITE OF THE RUINS.

“Tho Governor of .the Carolines (Dr. Kcrsting), who is ono of Nature’s gentlemen, put every raciiity in my way,” ho said, in conversation with a Sydney pressman. “He provided me with canvas and an escort of police, and I loft Santiago, in the hortu of Ponape, for Motalanin, tho site of one lot of these extraordinary structures. On tho way wo got stranded ( on a reef, and X got dreadfully sunburnt on the knees, tho skin peeling off both legs. We reached the ruins at 5 o’clock one morning, and X explored them till noon. They form a sort of Venice, built on not on tho land, and on tho edge of tho reef, so that behind tho great temple of NautaucH there is deep water oven at low tide. The significance of this I shall explain later. Enclosing tho ruins, which cover a vast area, is a great breakwater .of enormous stones, > with ono ?exit behind the tcmplo. so that tho ruler of this city could escape even when 4bo tide was at its lowest. ‘Clio entrance is now blocked up with great 'heaps of immense stones,. and my theory is that this was done by the last ruler, fearing an attack from somo enemy from tho sea. “You can sail for miles along the •canals of this great ruined city, and on either side nso tho most stupendous breastworks, stones from oft. in diameter and 10ft. to 20ft. in length being piled one on top of.- the other. These breastworks enclose artificial islands formed on tho roof, and qu these is* lands stand great megalithis buildings. A WONDERFUL SPECTACLE. “Tbo sight was ono of the most impressive I have over scon. I have visited Stonehenge and. Abebury, in England, Tiahuanaco in the Andes, Cuzo in. Peru, and all the ruins of Central America and Mexico; yet I can safely say that these are tho most stupendous ruins of all. Some of them aro hidden by luxuriant vegetation, but they aro all in a fairly good state of preservation, and - will stand for thousands *of years yet. They must nave involved hundreds of years of labour by thousands of men working in concert and under command. It is perfectly true that tho blocks of which the walls are lormed are basaltio crystals, pentagons, hexagons, and heptagons, bub there must have been as much labour again in rafting them down to this immense city, and still greater labour in getting them from the rafts on to those great walls. 1 calculate that no island like Ponape, winch is only about 12 miles long and 12 miles broad; could over hay© supported tho population from which was drawn, the muscle to build tbis titanic city. Pouapo at its utmost could not support more than 20,000 people. If you allow 20 por cent, as able-bodied men you got 4000. “Now, no community can afford to allow more than 20 per cent.’ of its able-bodied men to be drawn off on works of what might bo called luxury. Tho rest must bo.producing food and other necessaries. We, therefore, have only 800 of these able-bodied men capable of being used at any ono time on the building of these stupendous structures. I calculate that not less than 10,000 men would bo needed to do the work of quarrying, rafting, and building. ANOTHER ATLANTIS.

4 ‘lt therefore fallows that the dynasty that built this city must have had command of ten times as many big islands as Ponape. In other words, that empire must have sunk, for there are no such islands there now. There must have been a great area over which those Emperors ruled. Whore is it now? I say that it is under tho sea.”