rotesque to think that an indentation in sand could have tons of other
sand piled upon it and hardening into stone, without being pressed
out--but the famous Nicaraguan footprints were found in a quarry under
eleven strata of solid rock. There was no discussion of this datum. We
only take it out for an airing.

As to lettered stones that may once upon a time have been showered upon
Europe, if we cannot accept that the stones were inscribed by indigenous
inhabitants of Europe, many have been found in caves--whence they were
carried as curiosities by prehistoric men, or as ornaments, I suppose.
About the size and shape of the Grave Creek stone, or disk: "flat and
oval and about two inches wide." (Sollas.) Characters painted upon them:
found first by M. Piette, in the cave of Mas d'Azil, Ariege. According
to Sollas, they are marked in various directions with red and black
lines. "But on not a few of them, more complex characters occur, which
in a few instances simulate some of the capital letters of the Roman
alphabet." In one instance the letters "F E I" accompanied by no other
markings to modify them, are as plain as they could be. According to
Sollas (_Ancient Hunters_, p. 95) M. Cartailhac has confirmed the
observations of Piette, and M. Boule has found additional examples.
"They offer one of the darkest problems of prehistoric times." (Sollas.)

As to caches in general, I should say that they are made with two
purposes: to proclaim and to conceal; or that caches documents are
hidden, or covered over, in conspicuous structures; at least, so are
designed the cairns in the Arctic.

_Trans. N.Y. Acad. of Sciences_, 11-27:

That Mr. J.H. Hooper, Bradley Co., Tenn., having come upon a curious
stone, in some woods upon his farm, investigated. He dug. He unearthed a
long wall. Upon this wall were inscribed many alphabetic characters.
"872 characters have been examined, many of them duplicates, and a few
imitations of animal forms, the moon, and other objects. Accidental
imitations of oriental alphabets are numerous."

The part that seems significant:

That these letters had been hidden under a layer of cement.

And still, in our own heterogeneity, or unwillingness, or inability, to
concentrate upon single concepts, we shall--or we sha'n't--accept that,
though there may have been a Lost Colony or Lost Expedition from
Somewhere, upon this earth, and extra-mundane visitors who could never
get back, there have been other e