The Elk advocate. [volume] (Ridgway, Elk Co., Pa.) 186?-1868, 1868-09-30
A MUSHROOM CAVE AT PARIS.


der Paris and its environs, but it is
somewhat difficult to gain excess to
these carrieres, and therefore a few
words descriptive of one of them may
not be unacceptable. The locality is
that of Montrogue, just outside of Paris.
The surface of the ground is cropped
with wheat; here and there are heaps of
white, large, cut stones, ready to be
transported to the buildings of Paris,
and which have recently been brought
to the surface, through the coalpitlike
openings. There is nothing like a
quarry" as we understand it, to be
eat about, but the stone is extracted as
we extract coal, and with no interference
whatever with the surface of the ground.
We find champignoniste after some
trouble, and he accompanies us across
some ields to the mouth of this subter-
renean garden, if we may so call it. 1t
is circular opening, half of it being
covered with planks, and the head of
pole with sticks thrust through it, ap-
pearing a couple of feet above the sur
face, its base resting in the darkness
seventy feet below. We descended by
this shaky pole with the sticks thrust
through it, and soon reach the bottom
of the shaft, from which little passages
radiate. A few small lamps fixed at
the ends Of pointed sticks are placed be-
low, and with one of these we follow
Our passage way is narrow, but roomy
enough to stand erect, and Immediately
on entering it mushroom culture be-
gins. On each side of .he pathway
there is small bed of moist, half de-
composed stable manure, not covered
with earth-they are beds which have
been made quito recently, and have not
yet been spawned. Presently arrive we
at beds in which the spawn have been
placed, and is " taking" freely
The spawn in this cave is introduced to
the little beds by means of fakes taken
from an old bed, or, still better. fr ,m a
heap of stable manure in which it oc.
ours nu.urally." Such spawn our
guide preferred, and called it virgin
spawn, and considered it many times
more valuable than that taken from old
beds. Of spawn in bricks, as in En-
gland there is none. Our champignOn-
iste pointed out with pride to the way in
which the flakes of spawn had begun to
spread their influence through the little
beds, and passed on, sometimes STOPPING
very low, and cautioning us against the
pointed stones in the roof, to where the
beds were a more advanced state. Here
we saw and with much pleasure, little,
smooth, pretty colored ridges running
against all the sides of the passage, and
Wherever the rocky subway became as
wide as small bedroom, two or three
little beds were placed parallel to each
other. These beds were young and
dotted over on their sides with mush-
rooms no bigger than sweet-pea seeds,
but regularly dotted thus and ahording
an excellent prospect of crop. Be it
observed that the little beds contain a
much smaller body of stuff than is ever
the case in our gardeus-20 inches
high and about the same width at base
being about the maximum, and of course
these against the sides of the passage
have not 50 much matter as those
shaped like little potato pits, and placed
in the more open spaces. The soil with
which they are covered to the depth Of
about an inch is nearly white-it is sim.
ply sifted from the rubbish of the stone
cutting above, and the use of this gives
to the recently made bed the appear
ance of being covered with whitish put.
ty. Although we are from seventy to
eighty feet below the surface of the
ground, everything looks very neat, in
fact much more so than cold have been
expected, mot particle of litter or mat
ter out or place being met with the
whole time. Some length of bed is
made every day in the year, and, az
they naturally finish one gallery or series
of galleries at time, the beds in each
have like cha ra1ter. AS we proceed t
these in full bearing, creeping up anC
NN"h AoiAOV PoDoSSsj "AHH0 oA"NJ
between the two narrow beds that lint
the passages, and seeing now and ther
wider hooks at the side filed with two
or three little beds, even if the space be
but but few feet long, daylight Is
again seen, this time coming through
and other we'll like shaft, formerly used
for getting up the stcne, but now fo
throwing down the requisite material il
the cave. At the bottom hes a large
heap of the white earth before alludet
to, and barrel of water-for gentl
waterings are required in the quiet, ,cool
mighty stiffness of these coves, as wei
as in mushroom houses on the uppe
crust. Again we plunge into pvssag'
dark as ink, and are between two line
of little beds in full bearing, the beauti
full white buttonlike mushrooms appear
ing everywhere in profusion along tn