On one condition: Inasmuch as ye shall keep my commandments. Special favors from God produce a special obligation to keep his laws.
Recent researches furnish evidence of the prosperity that once was enjoyed at least by some of the former inhabitants of America.
Excavations in burial grounds in Panama under the direction of H. B. Roberts and S. K. Lathrop, Peabody archeologists, during the years 1930, 1931 and 1933, have revealed that, in the province of Cocle, there once lived a people which in wealth rivaled the Incas of Peru. Numerous objects of gold in the form of rich adornments were found. Also pottery and implements of copper, stone and bone.
The wealth of the Incas was fabulous. Atahualpa, when a prisoner of the Spaniards, piled up gold to the value of more than fifteen million dollars as ransom, although to no avail. According to Prescott, after Sarmiento, the interior of the temple at Cuzco was, literally, a mine of gold. On the western wall was a representation of the Deity, consisting of a human countenance looking forth from amidst innumerable rays of light, in the same manner as the sun is often personified. The figure was engraved on a massive plate of gold of enormous dimensions, thickly powdered with emeralds and precious stones. It was so situated that the rays of the morning sun fell upon it, lighting up the apartment with an effulgence that seemed more than natural, and which was reflected back from the golden ornaments on the walls and ceiling. The cornices which surrounded the walls were of gold, and a broad frieze of the same costly material, let into the stone work, encompassed the whole exterior of the edifice. (Prescott, Peru, Vol. I, p.89)
In Yucatan, where the Maya civilization at one time rivaled the culture of Egypt in the days of King Tut, priceless relics of jade and gold have been recovered in recent years.
In Panama, Mr. John Q. Critchlow, of Salt Lake City, for many years a resident of the South American republic, ascended the mountain El Volcan, a short distance from the settlement Divala in the province of Chiriqui. The mountain rises to an elevation of about 11,000 feet above the sea level, and from the top an observer can see the Pacific on one hand and the Atlantic on the other. It was in May, 1922, that Mr. Critchlow made the ascent. According to the published reports, it was his good fortune to discover, on this excursion, in the ruins of an ancient pueblo, " wonders of ancient art, enormous workings in solid gold, examples of excellence attained in pottery, and the strange carvings of hieroglyphics." The report accepts this as evidence that, a nation of Maya people lived and flourished in Panama long before Caesar made his journey to the British Isles, and that their civilization was topped only by that of ancient Rome.
Julius Caesar invaded Britain in the year 54 B.C.
The tombs at Monte Alban, in the state of Oaxaca, Mexico, where rich archeological finds have been made, have also furnished evidence that the ancient Zapotecs were experts in relief painting. In November, 1932, Dr. Alfonso Caso, government archaeologist, announced that remarkable works of ancient art had been found on the floor and door jamb of a tomb. The paintings were done in brilliant greens, reds, and yellows, and the colors were well preserved. Among objects unearthed were incense burners, two translucent green axes, ear ornaments, bits of jade and hollow engraved bones.