Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1873-12-03
The Legend of q Missouri Cave.

On the dividing ridge separating the
waters of the Meramee from the Mis-
souri,, in Franklin county, is q cave,
mainly remarkable from a tragic event
which occurred there in the early part
of the century. The mouth of the cave
is funnei-shaped, and about eighteen
feet deep. A horizontal passage leads
off in a southwest direction to dis
tance of two hundred and sixty feet,
when an enlarged chamber suddenly
terminates in an abrupt chasm of un-
known depth. Judge Foster, of Wash
ington, with party from st. Louis,
explored the cave in 1856, and when the
abyss was reached they dropped down
stones, which were from three to four
seconds in falling before reaching the
bottom, as was indicated by the rever-
berations. The tragic event connected
with the cave exists only in tradition
among the old settlers, and few persons
of the present day are probably aware
OF what we are about to relate. Early
in the present century, a hunter from
st. Louis, named Labadie, connected
with the families of that name identi-
fed with the history of this city, went
out to Franklin county, then mostly
wilderness, in pursuit of game. He
had his son, small lad with him. They
got on the trail of bear, which they
followed until the animal took refuge
in the cafe. Nothing daunted, Mr..
Labadie followed the bear into its hid
ing place, and never came out alive.
The boy heard the report of gun and
then all was silent. He watched and
waited at the mouth of the cave for his
fathers return. but he came not back.
The boy remained near the cave all day
and night, and then gave up his father
for lost. With his hatchet he "blazed"
the trees around the spot, in order to
identify the place, and then returned
home. Whether search was made or
not is not known, but the hunter, it Is
certain, was given up for lost, and his
remains were allowed to rest in their
rock-bound tomb. Time rolled on, and
about twenty years ago, when the en-
gineers were laying out the track of the
Aacific railroad, which passed by the
cave, they had the curiosity to enter
and explore its secrets. They there
found the bones of a bear and the skel-
eton OF human being lying close to-
BClAO4. -'OS thtN dt5O
found an old musket barrel, half elten
by the rust, and small quantity of old
French and Spanish coin. All these
circumstances pointed to the old hunter
Labadie as the person whose skeleton
was thus revealed to the gaze of the ex-
plorers, and whose tragic history was
preserved by tradition. The trees were
also examined, and the old scars caused
by the hatchet of young Labadie were
distinctly traced. Judge Foster has
seen the coin. The relics and bones
were distributed among various per-
sons. Judge Primm, whose familiarity
with the history OF Missouri is perhaps
not exceeded by any other person, re-
collects hearing the story of Labadie
and the bear over fifty years ago. The
impression on his mind was that the
hunter entered the cave during the
alternating season of the bear, and
that, having fred his musket, the in
furiated beast rushed toward a narrow
passage of the cavern where Mr.. Laba-
die was standing, closed in with him and
killed him. ''Labadie creek" and
'Labadie station" preserve the name
OF the daring hunter who lost his life
in the vicinity.-S. Louis Republican.