xt7dfn10ph38 https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7dfn10ph38/data/mets.xml Wright, Charles W. 1858  books b92-75-29578903 English Harvey, Mason & Co., : Vincennes, Ind. : Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. Mammoth Cave (Ky.) Caves Kentucky. Mammoth Cave, Kentucky  / by Charles W. Wright. text Mammoth Cave, Kentucky  / by Charles W. Wright. 1858 2002 true xt7dfn10ph38 section xt7dfn10ph38 
CTS I1'm



MAMMOTH



CAVE



           KENTUCKY.



                BY
  CHARLES W. WRIGHT, M. D.,
PROFESSOR QO Q!B'MfI,9lRX: IN TUE ' YELNTUCKY SCHOOL OF
   MEDICINE; FuRMERLY PIWOFISEOR Of CLE3ISTRY
       IN THE MEDICAL COLLEGE OF OHIO.











         VINCENNES, IND.:
     HARVEY, MASON  CO., PRINTERS.
                1858.

 This page in the original text is blank.

                    PREFACE.





  The object of the author of this little work is to place
before the public, in a pop ular style, the Chemistry, Ge-
ology, and Zoology of the Mammoth Cave, together with
a brief description of all of the rooms, avenues, domes,
rivers, c,, that are worth the trouble of exploring.
  Anything like an accurate description of the Cave has
not been attempted. In fact, such an effort, from the
very nature of the subject, would be attended with fail-
ure. The beauty, sublimity, and grandeur of the Mamn-
moth Cave to be appreciated must be seen. The awful,
overpowering silence, the deep darkness, together with a
knowledge of the fact that the time which nature required
to build this subterranean region is lost in the mists of
infinity, produce a combination of emotions which are
never experienced in the upper world.
  The sole object aimed at has been to furnish to those
who have never visited the Cave, some idea as to its size
and formation, and to those who wish to explore it a
guide-manual, which will do away with the necessity of
faking notes, and from which they can select those points,
which, should their time be limited, they are most desi-
rous of visiting. It must be distinctly borne in mind
that all of the points of interest herein detailed cannot
be seen in a day. In fact no one can form a correct idea
of the beautv and immensity of the Mammoth Cave, who
does not spend a week in exploring it, and all of the more
striking objects should be visited at least twice,
  LoUIsvILLE, KY., July 1858.

 This page in the original text is blank.


 





TNTRODUCTION.



           THE PROPRIETOR.
  MR. L. J. PROCTOR is the proprietor of
the Mammoth Cave. He is a hightoned
gentleman and a scholar, and his courteous
and polite demeanor to visitors render the
Cave a popular place of summer resort.
  His gentlemanly Assistant, Mr. H. C.
GRAY, leaves nothing undone that can con-
tribute to the comfort and pleasure of
those who visit the Cave Hotel.

             THE GUIDES.
  There are four guides at the Cave, viz.:
Mat and Nicholas Bransford, (colored,)
and Messrs. L. W. Davis and F. M. De-
Monbrun.
  Mat is thirty-seven years old, and has
acted in the capacity of guide for nineteen
years. He is polite and affable, and is
particular in calling attention to everything

 6



worthy of observation. The aggregate di-
tance he has traveled, in the Cave is not
less than fifty thousand miles. lie, as well
as Nicholas, saved a party from drowning
on Echo River, by his courage and self-
possession.
  Nicholas is thirty-five years of -age, and
has been a guide for seventeen years, and
the distance which he has traveled in the
Cave, from the fact that he has enjoyed
uninterrupted good health, is not less than
that accomplished by Mat. He is active
and polite, and takes great interest in ex-
hibiting the Cave to the best advantage.
  The other guides have been in the Cave
a sufficient number of times to render
themselves familiar with the avenues com-
monly visited, and are perfectly trustwor-
thy for the Long and Short Routes.
  The abrupt manner in which it is neces-
sary for the guides to address visitors in
dangerous places must not be confounded
with insolence, as it is absolutely essential
at many points.
  Stephen, who had been a guide two
years longer than Mat, died in July, 1857.
Although a great deal has been said and
written about him, from the fact that he
was the favorite of the original proprietor,

 7



he was in no respect superior to either
Mat or Nicholas, nor was his acquaintance
with the Cave more thorough or extensive.

            THE CAVE BAND.
  The Cave Band consists of Messrs. E.
Borneshine, A. Zoller, F. Dolfinger, W.
Scheweneck, and J. Berold. These gen-
tlemen are educated and accomplished mu-
sicians, who, by study and long practice,
have adapted their music to the different
avenues of the Cave, the effect of which,
particularly on Echo River, is peculiarly
enchanting.
  During the winter season the members
of the Cave Band constitute the principal
part of the orchestra of the Louisville
Theatre.

            CAVE COSTUME.
  The proper costume for a gentleman con.
sists of a jacket, heavy boots, and cloth cap.
  The Bloomer or Turkish dress is the
proper costume for a lady. It may be
plain, or fancifully trimmed, to suit the
wearer. When trimmed in lively colors,
which is always advisable, the effect is
beautiful, particularly if the party be large.

 


Flannel or cloth is the proper material.
It must be borne in mind that the tem-
perature of the Cave is 59 degrees.
  Eyery lady carries a lamp, and in no
case, except that of illness, should she take
a gentleman's arm. It is fatiguing to both
parties, and exceedingly awkward in ap-
pearance.
               LOCATION.
  The Mammoth Cave, is situated in Ed-
monson county, Kentucky, ninety-five miles
south of Louisville, or half way between
Louisville and Nashville; and is accessa-
ble by a good turnpike road, or by the
Louisville and Nashville Railroad, which
passes within seven miles of the Cave;
where, at Bell's Station, at which there is
a fine hotel, kept by Mr. G. M. Proctor,
there is a line of stages running to the Cave.
  The Cave Hotel is capable of accomnio-
dating between four and five hundred vis-
itors. The rooms are furnished in the best
style, and the table is not surpassed by that
of any hotel in the Union. Attached to
the hotel is a magnificent ball room, which
is fitted up in the most approved manner.
  The scenery in the vicinity of the Mam-
moth Cave is almost without a rival. Green


 9



river, with its towering cliffs, is but a few
hundred yards from the hotel, and affords
good fishing, and pleasant boat excursions,
which, together with the magnificent
grounds, promenades swings, e., attached
to the hotel, conspire to render a visit pe-
culiarly attractive.








            CHA PTER I



                SECTION I.
        ENTRANCE TO THE CAVE.
  The entrance to the Cave is one hundred
and ninety-four feet above Green river, and
is about twenty-five feet in height, by about
thirty in width, over which may be seen at
almost all seasons a mist or fog; which
when the external air is warmer than that
of the Cave, is produced by the condensa-

 
10



tion of the moisture of the former by the
reduced temperature of the latter. On the
contrary, when the temperature of the ex-
ternal atmosphere is less than that of the
Cave, the moisture of the' air of the latter
is condensed in a similar manner. When
the temperature of the outer air is the
same as that of the Cave, no fog or cloud is
observeable at its mouth.
  The entrance to the Mammoth Cave, at
an early period of its historv was situated
about a half mile from its present location,
constituting what is now called the mouth
of Dickson s Cave. This cave terminates
within a few feet of the mouth of the Mam-
moth Cave, but there is at present no direct
communication between the two.    The
voice of a person at the end of Dickson's
Cave can be distinctly heard at the en-
trance of Mammoth Cave.
  The present entrance to Mammoth Cave
was formed, and its communication with
Dickson's Cave cut off, by the disintegrat-
ing action of the water of the spring which
discharges its contents from the ceiling at
the mouth of the former; and which caus-
ed the Cave at this point to fall in-thus
establishing a new entrance, and shorten-
ing the length of the Cave by about a half

 
.11



mile. Dickson's Cave differs little in size
and appearance from Proctor's Arcade, in
the Mammoth Cave.
               SECTION IX.
       RESPIRATION OF THE CAVE.
  The Mammoth Cave breathes once a
year. That is to say, in summer, or when
the temperature of the external air is above
that of the Cave, theocurrent sets from the
latter to the former. In other words, the
Cave is the entire summer in making an
expiration. On the other hand, when the
order is reversed, or the temperature of the
outer atmosphere is below 59 degrees, the
Cave makes an inspiration, or draws in its
breath, which it accomplishes during the
winter. The respiratory mechanism of the
Cave ceases to operate, or, to carry out the
metaphor, it holds its breath, when the
mercury in the thermometer stands at 59
degrees in the outer air, which is the aver-
age temperature of all parts of the Cave.
winter and summer. Hence it is frequent-
ly observed in the spring and fall, that
there is no motion of air in either direction
at the mouth of the Cave.
  On entering the Cave for a few hundred
vards in summer, when the temperature

 
12



is at, or near 100 degrees, the air rushes
out with such force as frequently to extin
guish the lamps. Passing into the Cave
for about a half mile, however, the motion
of air is barely perceptible at any time,
from the fact that the Main Avenue en-
larges so rapidly that it plays the part of
an immense reservoir, where a current of
air from any direction is speedily neutral-
ized. If a current of air blows from with-
out inwards, and is below 59 degrees, it
does not pass more than a quarter of a mile
before it is brought up to that point. 'Air
above the average temperature of the Cave
never blows into it.
  Thus it will be observed that a change
of seasons is unknown in the Mammoth
Cave; and day and night, morning and
evening, have no existence in this subter-
ranean world. In fact, there is an eternal
sameness here, the like of which has no
parallel.
  In many parts of the Cave time itself is
not an element of change, for where there
is no variation of temperature, no water,
and no light, the three great forces of geo-
logical transformations cease to operate.


 






CHAPTER IL.



   HOW MAMMOTH CAVE WAS FORMED.
   The agencies concerned in the formation
of the Mammoth Cave may be divided into
Chemical and Mechanical.

               SECTION I.
          CHEMICAL AGENCIES.
  There can be no doubt but that the sol-
vent action of water holding carbonic acid
in solution was the primary agency con-
cerned in the formation of the Cave. Thus
the limestone or carbonate of lime, which
constitutes the strata of rock through which
the Cave runs, is not soluble in water until
it combines with an additional proportion
of carbonic acid, by which it is transformrr-
ed into the bicarbonate of lime. In this
way the process of excavation was conduct-
ed, until communications were established
with running water, by which the mechan.

 
14



ical agency of that fluid was made to as-
sist the chemical. The little niches and
recesses which are observed in various
parts of the Cave, and which seem to have
been chiseled out and polished by artificial
means, were formed in this manner, for
when these points are closely examined a
crevice will be observed at the top or back
of them, through which water issued at
the time of their formation, but which has
been partially closed by crystals of carbo-
nate of lime, or gypsum. At the time
these niches were forming, water flowed
through the avenues in which they are
found. Examples of the action we have
been describing may be seen in Sparks's
Avenue, leading to Mammoth Dome.
  The grooves which are observed in rock
over which water is, or has been flowing
are also formed by the solvent action of
water containing carbonic acid, for in all
such instances the water has no solid mat-
ter in suspension. Examples of this kind
of action may be seen in operation in Mam-
moth and Goran's Domes, and evidences
of its former action may be observed in
Lucy's Dome. What are termed the
"pigeon holes," in the Main Cave, are cut
out of the solid rock in the same manner.

 
15



   WWhen water, holding the bicarbonate of
lime in solution, drops slowly from the ceil-
ing by which it is exposed to the air suf-
ficiently long to allow of the escape of one
equivalent of carbonic acid gas, the lime
is deposited in the form of the proto-car-
bonate of lime. If the deposit takes place
in such a manner that the accumulation
takes place from above downwards, in the
form of an icicle, it constitutes what is
termed a stalactite, but if it accumulate from
below upwards it is called a stalagmite.
Stalactites and stalagmites frequently meet
in the center, and become cemented, by
which a column of support is formed.
Many instances of this kind are to be found
in Gothic Arcade and Fairy Grotto.
  If the limestone which forms the stal-
actite is perfectly pure, it will be white or
semi-transparent; if it contains oxide of
iron it will be of a red or yellowish color.
When a stalactite is black it contains the
black oxide of iron. The stalagmitic cin-
ders in Vulcan's Smithy, and the grapes
in Martha's Vineyard, are colored with
black oxide of iron.
  Another agency which contributes in
part to change the appearance of the Cave,
is the efflorescence of the sulphate of so-

 16



da or Glauber's salts, and the crystilization
of sulphate of lime or plaster of Paris.
  The sulphate of lime, which is known
under the names of gypsum, plaster of
Paris, selenite, alabaster, c., exerts a
much greater influence in disintegrating
the rock than the sulphate of soda. The
avenues in which gypsum occurs are per-
fectly dry; differing in that respect from
those which contain stalactites. When
rosettes of alabaster are formed in the
same avenue with stalactites, the water
which formed the latter has for ages ceased
to flow, or they are situated far apart, as the
former cannot form in a damp atmosphere.
The force exerted by gypsum in the act of
crystalizing is about equal to that of water
when freezing, for when it crystalizes be-
tween ledges, or strata of rock, they are
fractured in every direction, as instanced
in Pensacola Avenue and Rhoda's Arcade.
  The formation of nitre is due in part to
the decomposition of the remains of bats and
other animals, but it must not be forgotten
that limestone rocks are never entirely des-
titute of nitrifiable matter. The nitric acid
which enters into its composition may in
some measure be derived from the atmos-
phere. The kind of nitre that is found in

                    17

the Cave is the nitrate of lime, which, when
re-acted upon by the carbonate of potash,
is transformed into nitrate of potash or
(!ommon saltpetre. This was the course
pursued by the saltpetre miners when that
substance was manufactured in the Cave in
1812-14. The nitrate of lime is found in
the dryer parts of the Cave, but is not dis-
coverable till the earth which contains it
is lixiviated.

                SECTION II.
        MECHANICAL AGENCIES.
  The mechanical agencies concerned in
the excavation of the Mammoth Cave are
trifling when compared to the chemical.
  They are instanced in the transportation
of gravel, sand, and clay from one part of
the Cave to another, and in the abraded
appearance presented by the rock com-
posing certain avenues. Thus, it is possi-
ble to tell the direction which the water
ran in most of the avenues, and the rapid-
ity of its motion, by observing the points
at which gravel, sand and clay are depos-
ited, and the order in which they come.
For example, the points at which gravel
is deposited indicate a rapid current;
where sand is found the movement was

 

slower, and where clay oCcurs the water
was almost or quite stationary.
   At one time water rushed with great
force through Fat Man's Misery, for in
Great Relief, which is just beyond, washed
gravel occurs, still farther sand is found,
which is succeeded by clay; showing that
the current was in the directien of Echo
River.   Before the mechanical agency
could have exerted any appreciable influ-
ence, the chemical must have been in ope-
ration thousands of ages.
  The loose rocks that are scattered on the
floor of many of the avenues have fallen
from the walls and ceiling, but in many
instances the points from which they were
detached are indistinct, from the fact that
the rugged surface from which they have
fallen is either smoothed by the action of
water, or covered by crystals of the carbo-
nate or sulphate of lime. In those parts
of the Cave where no rocks have fallen, the
floor presents the appearance of the bed of
a river, and is covered with gravel, sand
or clay, according to the rapidity of the
flow of water at the time of the deposit.
No rocks have fallen since the discovery
of the Cave.

 19



                SECTION IIl.
 CONNECTION BETWEEN THE CAVE AND
              GREEN RIVER.
  There is an interesting relation subsist-
ing between Mammoth Cave and Green
river.
  Thus, there can be no doubt but that
Green river has cut out the bed or chan-
nel through which it runs, for on ascending
its banks on either side for a distance of
not less than three hundred feet a plain is
reached, which is not succeeded by a val-
ley; establishing conclusively that it has
worn its bed to its present level by the
mechanical and chemical agency of water,
and that the avenues of the Cave were cut
through with nearly equal pace; those near
the surface of the earth being formed first,
and the others in regular order from above
downwards; the avenues through which
Echo and Roaring rivers run being the
lowest and last formed. Both of these
rivers are on a level with Green river, with
which there is a subterranean communica-
tion. As Green river continues to deepen
the valley through which it runs, the ave-
nues of the Cave will continue to descend,
until the springs which supply Echo and
Roaring rivers cease to flow, when the av-


 
2':



enues through which they run wvill become
as dry as Marion's Avenue, which, at an
early period in the history of the Cave, con-
tained the most beautiful subterranean
river in the world.








            CHAPTER III.



            THE MAIN CAVE.
  After leaving a small archway near the
mouth of the Cave, the sides of which are
walled with rock, which the saltpetre man-
ufactuwers obtained from the floor at this
point, and which is called the Narrows;
the visitor enters the Main Cave, which is
six miles in length, and which varies from
forty to one hundred feet in height, and
from sixty to three hundred feet in width.

 21



                 SECTION I.
              THE ROTUNDA.
   The Rotunda is entered on leaving the
Narrows. The ceiling is about one hun-
dred feet high, and its greatest diame-
ter one hundred -and seventy-five feet.
   The floor is strewn with the remains of
vats, water-pipes, and other materials used
by the saltpetre miners, in 1812. The
wood of which they are made shows no in-
dications of decay.
  To the right of the Rotunda, Audubon's
Avenue leads off for about a half mile, to
a collection of stalactites. During the
winter millions of bats hybernate in this
avTenue.
  At the entrance of Audubon's Avenue
small cottages were built fifteen years ago,
for the residence of persons afflicted with
consumption, under the impression that
they would be benefited by a uniform tem.
perature. The idea that consumptive pa-
tients could be cured by a residence in the
Cave, must have resulted from a total mis-
conception as to the nature of plithisis, as
it is well known that the absence of light
will develop the scrofulous diathesis, and
cause a deposit of tubercles in the lungs.
The truth of this position was established

 


in the cases of those who resorted to the
Cave for relief; inasmuch as three of them
died there, and the majority of those who
remained any considerable length of time,
died within periods varying from three
days to three weeks after leaving it. Those
patients who remained in the Cave three
or four months presented a frightful ap-
pearance. The face was entirely blood-
less, eyes sunken, and pupils dilated to
such a degree that the iris ceased to be vis-
ible, so that no matter what the original
color of the eye might have been, it soon
appeared black.
  Although persons who are affected with
consumption are rendered much worse by
a residence in the Cave, they need not be
deterred from making short excursions in
it, for when not carried to such a degree as
to occasion fatigue, they are always attend-
ed with advantage. On the other hand,
patients affected with inflammatory affec-
tions of the bowels, such, for example, as
chronic dysentery and diarrhea, are al-
ways benefited and sometimes cured by
trips in the Cave. Over excitement of the
brain and incipient insanity would un-
doubtedly be benefited by a Cave residence.
Here absolute silence can be obtained which

 

cannot be had anywhere else, and which
is the great desideratum in brain affec-
tions. It is surprising how rapidly the
night influence is felt in the Cave, and
which is indicated by pallor of the checks,
yawning, and an irresistable tendency to
sleep. Persons who first visit the Cave are
not, as a general thing, thus affected, be-
cause of the novelty of their situation, and
the many objects which attract their at-
tention. This tendency to sleep is not due
to any impurity of the atmosphere, for the
proportion. of carbonic acid is even less
than it is in the outer air, but is referable
solely to the complete silence and total ab-
sence of light. It is perhaps the only
place where a person can count the pulsa-
tions of his own heart by listening to its
beat; in fact, the pulsations of the heart
of another person can be counted at a dis-
tance of several feet.
  Thunder is never heard in the Mam-
moth Cave, and a gentleman who was in
it at the time a shock of an earthquake
was experienced on the surface of the earth
did not perceive it.
  The Rotunda is situated under the tin-
ing room of the Cave Hotel,

 

                SECTION II.
           METHODIST CHURCH.
  After leavingo the rotunda, and passing
huge overhanging cliffs to the left, which
closely resemble the cliffs of the Kentucky
river, after which they are named, the
Methodist Church is entered. It is eighty
feet in diameter, by about forty in height.
Here, from the gallery or pulpit, which
consists of a ledoe of rocks twenty-five feet
in height, the gospel was expounded more
than fifty years ago. The benches, or logs
occupy the same position which they did
when first placed in- the Church.

                SECTION III.
    GIANT'S COFFIN-ANT-EATER, C.
  After leaving the Gothic Galleries, which
lead to the Gothic Avenue, of which we
will have occasion to speak further on, the
Grand Arch is entered, which leads to the
Giant's Coffin. This arch is about fifty
feet high and sixty wide.
  To the left of the path leading to the
Giant's Coffin, are found two immense
rocks manv tons in weight, which have
fallen from above, and are standing in an
upright position.

 
                   25

  The Giant's Coffin is a huge rock, forty
feet long, twenty wide, and eight in depth,
and at the point from which it is viewed,
presents a striking resemblance to a coffin.
It has been detached from the side of the
avenue against which it rests. The avenue
at the foot of the Giant's Coffin leads into
the Deserted Chamber.
  On the ceiling, a little to the left of the
Giant's Coffin, and looking into the Desert-
ed Chamber, is the figure of an ant-eater.
It is composed of the efflorescence of
black gypsum, and rests upon a back
ground of white limestone. The resem-
blance of the figure to the animal after
which it is named is complete.
  A short distance beyond the Giant's Cof-
fin, in the Main Cave, after parsing what
is called the Acute Angle, a group of fig-
ures is observed on the ceiling, which is
termed the Giant, Wife and Child. These
figures are in a sitting posture, and the
Giant appears to be in the act of passing
the child to the Giantess. They are also
composed of black gypsum, which rests on
a white back-ground.
  Still further on, the figure of a cokosal
mammoth may be observedon thb C eiling.
  From the Giant's fonmn to the mouth of

 26



the Cave wheel tracks, and the impression
of the feet of oxen may be seen, which were
made nearly fifty years ago. The earth
at the time these impressions were left, was
moist, as most of it had been lixiviated in
the manufacture of saltpetre, but at the
present time it is perfectly dry, and almost
of the consistency of stone.
  From the Acute Angle to the Star Cham-
ber, several stone cottages, which were for-
merly inhabited by consumptives, are still
standing.

                SECTION IV.
           THE STAR CHAMBER.
  The Star Chamber is situated in the
Main Cave. It is sixty feet in height, sev-
enty in width, and about five hundred in
length. The ceiling is composed of black
gypsum, and is studded with innumerable
white points, which, by a dim light, pre-
sent a most striking resemblance to stars.
These points, or stars, are produced, in
part, by an efflorescence of Glauber's salts
beneath the black gypsum, which causes
it to scale off; and in part by throwing
stonem against it, by which it is detached
from the whi!t limestone. In the far ex-

 

tremitv of the chamber a large mass has
been separated, by which a white surface
is exposed, termed the Comet.
  When the guide takes the lamps and
descends behind a ledge of rocks, by which
a cloud is made to pass slowly over the
ceiling, it is difficult to divest oneself of
the idea that a storm is not approaching. It
needs but the flash of lightning and the
roar of thunder to make the illusion com-
plete.
  After producing the storm illusion, the
guide disappears with the lamps, through
a lower archway, several hundred yards
in length, leaving the visitor in total dark-
ness, and re-appears at the eastern extrem-
ity of the Star Chamber, holding the lights
in advance, which as he slowly elevates
them from the cavern from which he rises,
produces the illusion of the rising sun.
  With the exception of Echo River, the
Star Chamber is, perhaps, the most at-
tractive object in the Cave.

 

              SECTION V.
         FLOATING CLOUD ROOM.
  The Floating Cloud Room connects the
Star Chamber with Proctor's Arcade.
  The clouds are produced by the scaling
off of black gypsum from the ceiling
by an efflorescence of sulphate of soda
beneath it, by which a white surface is ex-
posed. They appear to be drifting from
the Star Chamber over the Chief City.
The Cloud Room is a quarter of a mile in
length, and in height and width corres-
ponds with the Star Chamber.

                SECTION VI.
           PROCTER'S ARCADE.
  This is the most magnificent natural tun-
nel in the- world. It is a hundred feet
in width, forty-five in height, and three-
quarters of a mile in length. The ceiling
is smooth, and the walls vertical, and look
as though they had been chiseled out of
the solid rock. When this tunnel is illu-
minated with a Bengal light at Kinney's
Arena, which is its western terminus, the
view is magnificent beyond conception.
  This arcade is named in honor of Mr.
L. J. Procter, the proprietor of the Cave.

 
   Kinney's Arena is a hundred feet in
diameter and fifty feet in height. Fromn
the ceiling, in the center of the Arena,
there projects a stick, three feet in length
and two inches in diameter. It rests
parallel with the ceiling, and is inserted
into a crevice in the rock. How it was
placed in its present position is a difficult
question to settle, inasmuch as it could not
have been placed in the position it occu-
pies by artificial means.
                 SECTION VII.
           WRIGHT'S ROTUNDA.
  After passing the S Bend, which has no
particular points of attraction, Wright's
Rotunda is entered.
  This rotunda is four hundred feet in its
shortest diameter. The ceiling is from ten
to forty-five feet in height, and is perfectly
level, the apparent difference in height
being produced by the irregularity of the
floor. It is astonishing that the ceiling has
strength to sustain itself, for it is not more
than fifty feet from the surface of the earth.
Fortunately the Cave at this point is per-
fectly dry, and no change of any kind is
transpiring in it, otherwise there might ,be
some risk of its falling in, as evidences of

 130



such occurrences are to be found in the sur-
rounding country.
  When this immense area is illuminated
at the two extremes, simultaneously, it
presents a most magnificent appearance.
  At the eastern extremity of the Rotun-
da, is a column, four feet in diameter, ex-
tending from the floor to the ceiling, termed
Nicholas' Monument, after one of the old
guides.
  The Fox Avenue communicates with the
Rotunda, and S Bend. It is about five
hundred yards in length, and is worth ex-
ploring.
  A short distance beyond Wright's Ro-
tunda the _Main Cave sends off several
avenues or branches.  That to the left
leads to the Black Chamber, which is one
hundred and fifty feet wide, and twenty in
height, the walls and ceiling of which are
encrusted with black gypsum. It is the
most gloomy room in the Cave.
  There are two avenues leading off to the
right. The far one communicates with
Fairy Grotto, which contains a most mag-
nificent collection of stalagmites. It is a
mile in length. The other avenue com-
municates with Solitary Cave, at the
entrance of which there is a small cascade.

 31



               SECrION VIII.
            THE CHIEF CITY.
  The Chief City is situated in the Main
Cave beyond the Rocky Pass.
  It is about two hundred feet in diameter
and forty in height. The floor is covered
at different points with piles of rock, which
present the appearance of the ruins of an
ancient city.
  From the Chief City to the end of the
Main Cave, a distance of three miles, there
are several points at which the appearance
which this avenue presented when filled
with running water, may be observed,
where the overhanging cliffs closely resem-
ble those in the Pass of El Ghor, which is,
as compared to the Main Cave, of recent
formation.
  The Main Cave is terminated abruptly
by rocks that have fallen from above. It
must not, however, be supposed that this
is the end of it, for there can be no doubt
that it was closed at this point in the same
manner as Dickson's Cave was termina-
ted, and that the removal of the obstruct-
ing rock would open a communication with
a cave of the same size as the one we have
been attempting to describe.


 





CHAPTER IV.



           THE LONG ROUTE.
  On entering upon the Long Route, the
visitor leaves the Main Cave at the foot of
the Giant's Coffin, and passes into the De-
serted Chamber. The distance from the
mouth of the Cave to the Maelstrom, which
is situated at the end of the Long Route,
is nine miles. The trip is generally ac-
complished in about twelve hours.


                SECTION I.
        THE DESERTED CHAMBER.
  The Deserted Chamber is the point at
which the water left the Main Cave to
reach Echo river, after it had ceased to
flow out of the mouth of the former into
Green river. In other respects it is not of
particular interest.

 4:3



                SECTION It
          WOODEN-BOWL CAVE.
  The Wooden-Bowl Cave is next in or-
dcr. It receives its name fromt the fact
that a wooden bowl, such as was used by
the Indians in early times, was found in
it when it was first discovered. The Cave
itself is the shape of an inverted wooden
bowl.
  Black-Snake Avenue. which enters the
Main Cave near the stone cottages, com-
municates with Wooden Bowl Cave. It
receives its name from its serpentine course,
and black walls.

               SECTION Ill.
           MARTHA'S PALACE.
  Martha's Palace is entered by passing a
steep declivity and pair of steps, called the
Steeps of Time. The Palace is about forty
feet in height and sixty in diameter. It
is not particularly attractive.
  A short distance beyond MNKZ1alrha's Pal-
ace is a spring of clear, peadable water.

 34



                SECTION IV.
 SIDE-SADDLE PIT AND MINERVA'S DOME.
 The Side- Saddle Pit is reached by pass-
 ingr through what is called the Arched
 WTay, the walls, floor, and ceiling of which
 bear evidence that it was once the channel
 of running water. This pit is sixty-six
 feet deep, and at its widest part about six
 feet across.
 Mine