The Lake County star. [volume] (Chase, Mich.) 1873-current, 1875-01-07
A Monster Cavern in the Humboldt
Range.

A correspondent of the Winnemucca
jSilUer State writes to that journal de-
scription of mammoth cave which has
recently been discovered in the Hum
boldt range of mountains:
The entrance to the cavern is located
about three miles northwest from Star
City, and about 1000 feet higher than
the town, in the Humboldt range, eight
miles from the Central Pacific railroad.
1t has been known to the Indians per-
haps for ages, and they say that many
years ago it afforded a passage through
the mountain to point opposite
where the Humboldt House now
stands A Piute legend says that it has
been the home of the evil spirit for many
generations, and the bravest warrior of
the tribe will not venture near its mouth
for any purpose whatever. They say that
before the whites came among them they
put bad Indians in the cave to appease
the wrath and hunger of the spirit that
inhabited it. The last Indian put in
there was not as bad as represented, and
guided to the opening on the othe. side
by the spirit. The cave was partially
explored in 1868 by Captain Prescott,
James A. Banks, who was since killed by
the Indians near Camp Scott, and A.
Simmons, now an Indian agent in Mon
tana Territory. Some time ago party
of four, of which your correspondent was
one, proceeded to explore the cave.
We had heard great deal about it,
and were anxious to see little of it our
selves. On arriving at the place we dis
covered, to our surprise, that the en-
- L. No. h. II
rock on which we stood. The rock rises
almost perpendicularly $50 feet above
the mouth, and for several hundred feet
on each side. Having been provided
with ropes, one was thrown over point
of rock which projects over the mouth of
the cavern, by means of which the en-
trance was gained. Lighting our pitch
pine torches, we proceeded in single file
about 100 feet, in what appeared like a
large mining tunnel. The ceiling was
from ten to fifteen feet high in this dis
lance, after which it narrowed down to
crack just large enough to get through.
Suddenly we came to square jump-of
or perpendicular drop of thirty feet.
Again the rope was brought into requisi-
ton, and by means of it the bottom was
reached. Immediately under the road
we had traversed we found large cham
bers, the largest of which should Judge
to be forty feet square and sixty feet
high, the entrance to which was scarcely
large enough TO crawl through. Here in
this chamber we noticed verifcation of
the adage that constant dropping will
wear away a stone." In several places
drops of water from the ceiling, which
continually fell in one place, there being
no air current to change their course,
had worn holes in the solid finty floor
from five to seven inches deep. We ex-
plored the cave to distance Of mile
from the entrance, and our lights burning
well, showed that the cavern is well ven-
tilated. We did not find passage
through, though we travelled three hours
and half by the watch, and arrived at
the entrance very much fatigued. We
started two bats at about ttree-fourths
Of n mile from the entrance, and they
screamed like wild cats when they saw
ourlights.