Then, approximately 2,000 years ago, or at about the beginning of the Christian era, the Basket Maker Indians began to roam this southwest area of the continent. They may have been the physical descendants of the early hunters, but from a standpoint of culture they are credited with having brought agriculture from some focal point in Mexico much further south. The Basket Maker Indians lived in this area for some eight centuries, and archæologists mark three distinct periods of their civilization. The Basket Maker I people did much hunting and probably roamed the hills and valleys while the maize was growing, moving on to new areas after each harvest. The Basket Maker II group built simple dwellings, lived in caves, and grew numerous vegetables, including squash and beans. The Basket Maker III group established permanent villages, fired pottery, and elaborated on weavings established by both of the earlier groups. The Basket Maker Indians are definitely known to have visited the cave, for their pictographs have been found on the entrance walls. What is more, skeletons have been found in the cave, some buried in baskets! These were found on shelves in the walls. Other skeletons were found buried beneath piles of guano far back in the cave, together with bits of pottery and broken arrow points. As to how much the Indians used the cave remains speculative. Some archæologists believe the cave was used mostly as a tomb, while others think the Indians may have lived in the cave for a certain length, basing this observation on the bits of pottery and other remains found along ledges within the walls. These, they point out, definitely were not buried with a body. Most likely the cave was used for both purposes, for it served the Indian well as a place of refuge and defense, and it appears that the living quarters were located within a close radius of the entrance. Any more extensive use of the rest of the cave would have left more evidence, archæologists say. But that was well over a thousand years ago. How about recent times? Several authorities mention the fact that the existence of some form of bat cave or hibernation den was known to ranchers in the Carlsbad area as early as 1880-90. Great swarms of bats would rise out of a mound in the earth at dusk and go winging their way into the horizon. At sunrise they would return. Was this the present Big Cave? Southern New Mexico contains numerous bat caves and many were known at this time. The existence of a new one didn't seem to overly excite the ranch hands, for exhaustive research has failed to reveal any positive knowledge of the existence of this particular cave as such prior to the time my father noticed the bats.