To: "Ishgooda" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
Subject: Back to Nature
Date: Thu, 29 Jul 1999 13:46:58 -0400
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The Dawning of Horses
written by Karen Mitchell
As I watched two wrens make a nest under the eave of the tar-shingled roof,
I noticed a stranger walking down the path toward the cabin. Visitors rarely
ventured into these parts. I wondered as I swatted at the hungry mosquitoes,
Should I be putting myself on alarm. These backwoods of old Florida were the
same as they had been a hundred years ago. Most people knew one another by
name and if not, at least recognized the familiar faces of one another. This
stranger, dressed in city street clothes, although determined in his gait
had a somewhat carefree, easygoing air about him.
I waited. Ruby, my companion black-standard poodle, raised her head,
wrinkled her nose and perked her ears. Seeing the dog, the man called out,
"You be the nature writer?" I nodded coolly and kept my gaze upon his
approach. I patted the shackled backbone of Ruby as she stood up and glared.
"Don't mean to be disturbing you but I think I might of come upon something
that'll be of interest to you," he caught his breath and took his hat off
placing it across his chest. "Oh by the way I'm your new neighbor down at
the lake bend. I just moved into the old white farm." I cautiously smiled
and greeted him. He sensed my hesitancy and must have second-guessed what I
was thinking, Who are you and how do you know who I am?
"Oh I'm sorry, I guess you're wondering who the heck I am and why I'm here,"
he smiled. Even though his wearing neatly creased tan Dockers and crisp
white, button-down collar shirt belied his coming from these parts where
most folks dressed casually in jeans and an old T-shirt, his callused hands
and stained nails, hardened tan, and mud clumped shoes told me a different
story. I smiled.
"My name is Jesse Alder. I was born and raised in these parts. Moved away
when I got married but never got this part of the country out of my system.
My aunt used to own the old farm and would from time to time send me your
nature columns in her letters. When she recently passed away I decided to
move back and take care of the farm. I wasn't sure which cabin was yours. I
saw Betty down at the Three-Forks store and told her what I'd found on my
property and that I thought you'd be interested. She told me you lived down
here. I hope that was all right. I mean me coming unannounced."
Ruby felt me relax and laid back down on the cool sandy soil, with the
occasional snap at the bothersome mosquitoes and flies. I extended my hand
and offered him a cold soda. We sat and talked as the morning sun rose high
and the heat grew oppressive. He told me tales of the old farm, the people
from his family that had lived there over the years and the land around the
lakes. His knowledge about the history of these parts, the midens, the
artifacts and the prehistoric environment filled me with interest and
curiosity that I almost forgot that he'd said he had something to show me.
"I don't mean to be rude but my curiosity is killing me. What did you come
to tell me you found?" "Oh, yes, I did have a purpose in my visit. I
understand that you have an interest in the paleontology of Florida,
especially horses?" He grinned. Oh, my heart jumped. The ancient horse is
one subject I can't get enough of. He pulled out a small bundle from his
pocket wrapped in a starched, white, linen handkerchief. Laying it down on
the table he carefully unfolded it to reveal the damp jawbone set with
teeth, of a three-toed horse. The teeth, although fossilized a deep amber
brown, were shiny and completely intact. I'd only seen one such example
before at a friend's shop in town. My mind raced forward. Was there the
whole skull? Was it at the river's edge, where did he find it? So many
questions flew out of my mouth that he couldn't keep up with me for the
answers. "I found the little jaw in river sediment. It'd most probably
become dislodged from one of our latest summer storms and drifted down the
current to that resting-place. " This is where Jesse had taken the cattle
down for a cool drink. There beneath the surface the sun briefly glinted
upon the hardened teeth, catching Jesse's curiosity and eye. He picked it
right up from the cold water. In his hand was in tact, a treasure from times
long since gone by. from a land of vast transformations inspiring the minds
of those of us that imagine life in a linear scale of brief moments of
movement to and fro, glimpses into past and future. "The stuff that dreams
are made of." and dreams shared.
Many people think that the Spanish originally brought horses to North
America. What they don't know is that evidence of the first known horse on
earth, the Hyracotherium, or eohippus "Dawn Horse" survived to the end of
the Eocene epoch right here in North America. The Three-toed Horse,
Mesohippus of the Oligocene varied in size but was typically about 20 inches
high and 40 inches long, about the size of our typical family dog, just like
Ruby. The skull was slender and deep, with a horselike muzzle but with
shallow jaws. The middle toe of each foot was the largest, but all three had
usable hoofs. (The Fossil Book, Fenton, pg. 419) The Miohippus whose
descendants, including the Progressive Merychippus, split into four groups
that crossed a land bridge to Asia and finally wandered to Europe followed
these little horses. The Progressive Merychippus led to modern day horses,
as we know them, Equus. Though Equus arose in North America they ranged from
Alaska to the Strait of Magellan while enormous herds roamed in Europe, Asia
and Africa during the Pleistocene epoch. For reasons that aren't clear they
died out in North and South America, then in Europe remaining only in Africa
and Asia. The domestic breeds we are familiar with descended from those now
extinct Asiatic horses and the ass of Africa. Domestic horses from the Old
World ran wild and became plentiful after being reintroduced by man in North
and South America.
If you can let yourself dream a moment, think that maybe it'll be you that
saunters by the river's edge next time and maybe it'll be you that
discovers, as Jesse did, that horses were here a long time before man, wild
and free in their natural habitat as always back to nature.
Ralph's Raptors and Relics (John's Pass) will honor a 5% discount if you
bring in this column.
Reprinted under the Fair Use
http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.html
doctrine of international copyright law.
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Tsonkwadiyonrat (We are ONE Spirit)
Unenh onhwa' Awayaton
UPDATES: CAMP JUSTICE http://shell.webbernet.net/~ishgooda/oglala/
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