The Saline County journal. [volume] (Salina, Kan.) 1871-1893, 1877-09-06
Some Magnificent Scenery...The Famous
Gave or s.HOIe i'm the WALL"


beautiful; but generally throughout the State
there is too little of the rugged. wild. and sub
lime scenery out Of which poets make tAGV
poems. and over which men and women o
culture love TO grow enthusiastic. But such
scenery is not far from our homes, and within
a days easy drive. Less than thirty miles
from Salina. over quite q large extent of terri
tory, Nature has piled up everlasting hills
with rugged and rocky sides. 50 arranged and
ordered that the lover OF the Wild and sub
lime may have his wishes nearly surfeited.
Those ''templed hills flor such they appear TO
be- would furnish 10 the artist food for a
thousand subjects, and We hope to see some OF
the scenes there presented sketched In the
near future. All this variety OF wild scenery
to be inspected and conned by those who have
taste therefor, is found but few short miles
west of Brookyille.
Last Friday Judge Cunningham and our
self took I'D the line of march for this locality.
We went more especially to look upon the
wonders of wonderful cave-known In SAUNA
variance as: Paimer's Cave" and IN the Brooh-
Vile tongue as ''Hole in the Wall" After
dinner at Brookyille, we commenced moving
10 the west. Ii was not long before the afore-
said rugged country was reached. Ii was up
hill and down hill all the way. We have never
seen the blue Scottish hills" but all we have
read and heard or them would incline us TO
the belief that the first halt Of the route was
Scottish Highland scenery-true to life. There
were crannied hills and craggy cliffs. enclosed
with beautifully outlined emerald sheets. And
as we climbed one high point we saw before us
another, while at our feet we obtained 1.-THE
shimmering glimpses OF stream" Then
came sort of q plateau, called "Pswnee bot
TOM" On this fat. in 1867, fight with the
Indians occurred. Some soldiers from Fl.
Harker had been to Mulberry creek putting
up hay. Returning with their loads across
this fiat they were attacked by the Pswnee
Indians. Quite brisk combat took place.
Several were killed on both sides. before the
Indians we're repulsed and beaten into re-
treat. Beyond this plateau another scene pre-
sented itself. Each towering hill was capped
with something. That something strikingly
resembled castles and towers. At distance
those castles and towers seemed almost perfect,
and then we began TO look for the "donjon
keep" the ''drawbridge," the "pOrtcullis,'
and wondered if the keepers knew that two
distinguished knights like Cunningham and
ourself were on the point of clamoring for adj
and il that admittance was not grant
ed, we would haughtlly cast our gauntlets on
the ground and challenge the lord or baron of
said castle to deadly combat. On hillsides, now
and then, appeared rocks cut by the elements
into columns, with shapely capitals and pedes-
tails. They were Of Natures architecture. and
some distance away were as beautiful in out
line AS if they had been Ionic, Doric or Egyp-
tan. On high point OF rocks, near the
road, Is what is called ''the Indian head" IL
is perfect face which looks grimly down up
on the traveller. Sphynx-like il tells Us not
what king or chief if re presents
We are now approaching The avenue"
which leads unto the famous cave. The hills
are higher still. Great huge cliffs rise on each
side Of 4 narrow vale, and the face thereof
Scared and battle-w0rn by time and the elr-
with mos aud eyerlastingly
tears into the DEPTHS below, sends
ont shrubs ahd stuntei brush 10 catch the
sunlight. and mngle their foliage with the
forest trees. towering from the vale below.
And right near one OF these, ia fact ih the
very center OF similar elf, is presented the
cave before referred to- The exact situation
of the cave is in Section 20, township IL, Range
1 west The land itself j. owned by Col. >.
VI. Palmer, Of this city. The path up the hill
side to the cave is comparatively an easy one
To travel. 1t is only few steps before you
are ushered through the door into this rocky
house" The cave in shape is ike an are. lt
has two entrances some twenty feet apart.
Ii is perhaps ten or twelve feet high and six
feet wide. lt was for a long time the home OF
an old trapper, whose name has escaped IA.
By adding little mortar aud stone. aud put
ting in door frames, Col. Palmer has made Of
il a very passable h.bitation. Ii is a cool re-
sort In summer and warm one In winler. How
long IL has been known /, Is not possible TO tell.
Every inch OF its sides, ceiling and passage
WAYS is covered with what the visitors call
''hieroglyphics picture writing OF some
tribe or tribes OF Indians. A man can spend
hours in tracing out these characters In stone. |
which are so inrermingled as. N first sight 10 |
resemble somewhat the Harper Bazaar pattern
sheet. In one of the galleries, near the |
spring, is cut life-size picture OF some chief,
no doubt. who won renown and immortality in /
his tribe. We can easily trace representations 1
Of men, arrow heads. horses and other animals. 4
There are some characters which are above !
the reach and ken OF mortal (whltej apprehen-
sion" II needs some better antiquary than is .
found around these dig2n's' TO interpret all
hese signs and wonders" Peradventure
hey may be the mournfui history of some /
great battle fought therezbout. They may /
AXE upon themselves the dignity OF book OF
history, and tell Of the glorious achievements /
'f the past and OF the BUNDLED position at
present of one OF the Indian tribes nov
canning the plains. The cave may have been a
summer resort where the arNtocratic bucks
md squavs Of all nations assembled 10 pass
he hours pleasantly away and before the
eason was passed registered their names in
characters Of living light. 10 tell future gen
.rations that they could afford such Injuries
We might mention that 10 was possibly here
III the high-toned warriors passed pleasant
after having wooef and won
heir dusky mates. We would suggest 10 Mr..
J. g. Adams. Secretary ot the State Hist0ri-
Al society. that he set the ball rolling. and
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