The Indiana State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis) 1868-1895, 1877-05-02

'e"'eh. After some Is or 20 minutes travelling
ne reached place which seemed familiar 10
ninli out he was uncertain whether it was
the mouth of the cave or Fat Mans Misery.
he peereo down into the opening and dis
covered that it was indeed the place from
which he had recoiled and drawn back some
time before. He had travelled in a straight
line for 20 minutes and had reached the
place from whence he started He con-
Guided that lines underground must run
differently from those upon terra frma, for he
I naa carefully pursued a direction
which he was familiar, should have
taken him away from the Misery
he was seeking to avoid, whereas it had
brought him back to it. He placed his
mouth in the opening and Justify hallooed
for time, but his voice did not bring back
even its own echo. 1t lost itself in the vast
ness OF the cavern, which did not give back
res0unding note. 1t was but whisper In
chaos. Nature in her vastness, her solitude
and her grandeur, refused to be disturbed in
her repose, and the cry was unanswered.
He knew that by remaining where he was
Tor about two hours he would meet his
friends from below and concluded to do this
rather than make another effort to leave the
cave by himself. Seating himself on a
rock near by, he commenced considering
the situation. Darkness TO the right
of him, darkness to the left of him, and
darkness all about him, the feeble rays of
his candle made but a small impression up
on the great darkness of the cave 1t was as
the light of the FREELY on night of Piuton-
ian darkness. The solitude and the darkness
were so oppressive that he resolved to make
another effort to escape from the gloomy
abode. Again leaving Fat Mans Misery, he
threaded his way carefully in the direction
which he thought led to the opening of the
cave, but after proceeding some distance he
stumbled and fell. The light of his candle
went out as he touched the floor of the
cave, leaving him In total darkness. The
darkness of the damned can not be
greater than the darkness of Wyandotte
cave. II is murky. pitchy, absolute and to-
tai. No ray of light reaches the eyeballs
and to one who has experienced it it will
never be forgotten. Mr.. Woollen retained
the extinguished candle in his hand and in
his vest pocket were five matches He had
been more prudent in preparing himself for
contingencies than had some of the scientific
members Of the party, but of this more
anon. Striking match against a rock, the
end flew off without igniting. Never had
he valued matches so highly before, and
taking another from his pocket he felt care
fully for dry place upon the rock before
attempting to light it. He struck it lightly
upon the rock and it gave forth
flame. Blessed flannel The light which
broke out in Judea testifying that Savior
men of the east than was the ligh. of that
lucifer match to the eyes of the one who be-
held its rays. He reighted his candle, and
proceeding upon his way, soon beheld that
which appeared to be large hall lit up by
moonlight. 1t proved to be the first cham
Der in the Wyandotte, lighted from without
through the mouth OF the cave, and through
this mouth the pilgrim from Fat Mans
Misery again entered the outside world
Some two hours after Mr.. Woollen reached
daylight, Professor Cox and his party came
out of the cave. 1t was observed that Pro-
lessor Jordan was not with them. Professor
Cox declared his belief that the
young naturalist from Butler uni
versity had not mistaken his way. but was
out of the cave and pursuing his researches
in natural history. Mr.. Woollen was uneasy.
He hunted guide and endeavored TO have
him 60 into the cave in quest of Professor
Jordan, but Professor Cox declared this to
be unnecessary, as the absent one, being a
scientific man, was in no danger OF being
lost. The party had dinner, and still Pro-
lessor Jordan did not appear. The guide de-
cided that he was lost in the cave, and de-
clared that his candle was burned out, and
he in total darkness. The party-with the
exception of Messrs. Langsdale and Woollen,
who had resolved TO tickle the APP
petites of the bass in Blue river
with dainty minnows that after
uOOu-SldrJeQ again IOT Tue cave
under the direction of two guides and with
a good lunch for the lost naturalist, they
proceeded to the place where they supposed
Professor Jordan would be found and the
guide hallooed. There came back response,
but the party concluded it was the echo of
the guides voice. Proceeding farther along
the guide hallooed again, and again came
back feeble answer. 1t seemed as though
the voice of the guide having struck the
walls of the cave, was dashed to pieces and
that its shattered parts formed the noise
which was heard. Still farther on, and in
answer to the guides call, the voice of a
man was heard. 1t was not John crying in
the wilderness, but Jordan making known
his distress in Wyandotte cave. The
him in woeful plight. One of his eyes was
bruised, his forehead was bleeding, cash
was cut in one of his temples and his whole
appearance denoted that science is some
times wooed in dangerous paths. The
lost professor had kept in advance of the
guides during the morning trip and being
faugued, had sat down by the wayside to
rest and refresh himself" He fell asleep;
the candle dropped from his hand, and its
light went out He awoke to consciousness
Just as the last candle of the returning party
disappeared in the distance, and having no
matches with him, at once realized the dis
agreeablenesS of the situation. With hal
loo. he started on run in the direction
of the receding light He soon ran
against rock, which brought him to a
standstill, with somewhat the sensation expe-
rienced by man when a musket ball strikes
him in the forehead; but recovering him
self, he started again toward the spot where
the lights had disappeared. Again he came
in contact with substance which was harder
than his head, and suffered by the collision; !
but, nothing daunted, he kept on his way
until he stumbled and fell sprawling in the
mud. This had rather depressing effect
upon the professor, and served to cool his
ardor as traveller. He concluded that he
could not make Roadway against the solid
walls of the cave, nor keep in
IL lod 70 fhl ont