clay in several places and forms a pool
from which it is drawn to irrigate a small garden and a grove of peach
trees. It is said that when Sikyatki was in its prime this spring was
larger than at present, and I am sure that a little labor spent in
digging out the accumulation of sand would make the water more
wholesome and probably sufficiently abundant for the needs of a
considerable population.

The nearest spring of potable water available for our excavation camp
at Sikyatki was Kanelba, or Sheep spring, one of the best sources of
water supply in Tusayan. The word Kanelba, containing a Spanish
element, must have replaced a Hopi name, for it is hardly to be
supposed that this spring was not known before sheep were brought into
the country. There is a legend that formerly the site of this spring
was dry, when an ancient priest, who had deposited his _tiponi_, or
chieftain's badge, at the place, caused the water to flow from the
ground; at present however the water rushes from a hole as large as
the arm in the face of the rock, as well as from several minor
openings. It is situated on the opposite side of the mesa from
Sikyatki, a couple of miles northeastward from the ruin.

[Illustration: BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY

SEVENTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. CXVI

GROUND PLAN OF SIKYATKI]

Half-way up the side of the mesa, about opposite Sikyatki, there is a
large reservoir, used as a watering place for sheep. The splash of the
water, as it falls into this reservoir, is an unusual sound in this
arid region, and is worth a tramp of many miles. There are many
evidences that this spring was a popular one in former times. As it is
approached from the top of the mesa, a brief inspection of the
surroundings shows that for about a quarter of a mile, on either side,
there are signs of ancient terraced gardens, walled in with rows of
stones. These gardens have today greatly diminished in size, as
compared with the ancient outlines, and only that portion which is
occupied by a grove of peach trees is now under cultivation, although
there is plenty of water for the successful irrigation of a much
larger tract of land than the gardens now cover.[103] Judging from
their size, many of the peach trees are very old, although they still
bear their annual crop of fruit. Everything indicates, as the legends
relate, that these Kanelba gardens, the walls of which now form sheep
corrals, were long ago abandoned.

The terraces south of the Kan