New-York tribune., 1878-07-19
The BALDMOUNTAINMYSTERY
81 YOLCANO ONLY IN IMAGINATION

|
| famous Bald Mountain. whose recent runfblinus
/ have attracted so mneh attention On the I1th
inst., five Of as started eat in o mountain wagon.
| bound for the scene OF aetfOn Our road Law first
through several valleys ana over some low inter-
venlnS ridges for about fifteen miles 10 the summit
/ Of Hickory Nut Gap, Wild pass across tbe Blue
Ridge. This Gap, about eight miles in length, is
well worth seeing; the lower portion especially.
Here the road runs by the side Of Broad River not
! the French Broad, between walls Of rock fglly
thousand feet high. On the north side Of the road
/ is Bald Mountain. the south side ID Chimney
Rock. Near Chimney Rock stream falls over
precipice 500 feet hgh and is nearly lost before
it finds the bottom Above the fall am told there
is mill; although the ribbon of water looks hardly
large enough to run a churn. great difference in
the rocks is here noticeable. Bad Mountain ON the
one side is sphntered and fssared 20 a remarkable
extent; while Chimney Rock on the other, with its
adjacent cliffs is made up Of smooth sheets Of what
is apparently gness. Just below the lower end Of
| the Gap there is a small country hotel, where we
| spent the night.
All along the road we made inquiries rs TO
| the alleged disturbances. Everybody knew
about them. and was interested. All accounts
| agreed rs to their character. From time to time
rumbling noises have been heard in the mountain
somewhat resembling distant thunder. These were
| did not seem to affect any other mountain than
50 Old Badly" itself As for volcanic action, there
was not the slightest trace. Early the morning
of the 12th we sailed out to the mountain. An
easy walk Of q mile brought US 70 the foot Of
the spur upon which the disturbances have
occurred: aud here. at the farm of Mr.. Foster.
secured guide. Here, too, for the first time, we
saw clearly the character of the ground. Bald
Mountain is a large mountain mass on the eastern
side of the Blue Ridge, with numerous outlying
spurs. ALI the mountain the rocks are cracked
and fssured these cracks having in some points
formed large caves. The recent disturbances have
chiefly affected low spur of the range, which rises
perhaps thousand feet above the valley From
below, the whole side of the spur to be sliding
away into the valley; and it is TO this sliding that
all the excitement has been due.
From Fosters a sharp climb of half mile brought
US to cave, which was discovered less than three
weeks ago. Here we found ourselves below pre-
eipltous mass Of rock two OF three hundred feet
high at the foot of which immense numbers Of
fallen bouIders had formed creviees and innu-
merable. But the cave was larger than any Of
these Crawling upon our hands and knees Though
narrow opening found chamber OF rock
which L should roughly estimate at twelve feet
wide. eighty long, and perhaps fifty high.
Af the end of this a window" opened
out upon the face Of the cliff, from which magnf-
cent view Of the chief rock-masses could be OBJ
tanned. At right angles to this rocky chamber was
another even larger tnan the first and at the end
OF this further progress barred by wall about
twelve feet high. Beyond this are other spaces,
perhaps large, perhaps small, which are yet to be
reached There were also several lateral passages,
all SMALL and all soon coming TO an end The floor
of each chamber was covered with fallen rocks
Outside the cave the temperature was 71c; inside
so; so that the stories about currents of iee-eod
air issuing from these caverns have their rise in
imagination. There is a eOnstaL draft Of ar
through them, but no great lowering of temperature
II shoud be added, for sake Of completeness, that
these caverns contain no water. They are quite
dry, and their walls are covered with fine dust
formed by the grinding and crushing Of the rocks
Clouds Of this dust might easily be mistaken foF
smoke.
Above the cave an exceedingly steep climb Of
half mile brought us to "the Crack" a crevice
only recently discovered and which is very Droba-
bly, Of quite recent origin. This crack has several
openings. When il was first found a man was
lowered by long ropes into one Of these openings;
but as be failed TO reach bottom extravagant stories
were circulated about the hollow mountain" IL
was only few days, however, before other access
to the creviee was discovered, and it explored
from end to end. 1t is merely a rent in the
ave in depth, and of varying width At tho
top it is very narrow, aud nowhere is more than
ten feet wide, If it is as much The average width
may possibly be three feet. The explanation Of
these cracks and of the noises IS 10 my mind very
simple The mountain is built mp Of sheets Of
6as-,raiHed easily dee0mposable gneiss. These are
Inclined at a slight angle, and are evidently Sliding
downward They ar, full OF cracks Of variOas sizes,
which all run at approximately ngat angles to the
pseudo-strstifcatlon. The caves which have de
scrbed merely spaces which have been left when
an upper sheet of rock has sdden on and become in
eIned against the lower. Thus. between the fallen
mass and the bed rock large chambers formed
in the simplest possible way. Probably there ar'
many more of these yet to be discovered. No
where is any sign Of volcanic action 10 be found
1 did not even see 50 much as a trap-dike any
where in the heighborhoOd. As for earthquakes
the surrounding country is wholly unaffected, en-
cept indeed, by such occasional shocks are fen
anywhere. Bald Mountain is more an Garth
quake centre than is Central Park. IL is mereys
locality in which some large Eoek-sIides Of sx-
eee,lingly gradual character are gsiBg
The Tumbhng noises l account for ss follows;
The rocks, have already stated cracked aeros'
their qualification. When large sheet Of gneiss
is gradually sliding downward, there comes eventa'
ally upon part oft strain sufficient to pro-
duee a fracture. This breaking is. of course st,
tended by noise, to which the numerous caves ana
ereviees naturally serYe as resOunding ehambcfs
Thus the rHmblings produced and no tHftna
hypothesis is necessary. STILL although the vhoS
series Of occurrences at Bald Mountain have oeea
vastly exaggerated. the locality is highly interest,"
ing. and we'll worth visit The Hickory Nut Gap
is very tine, the surrounding mountains are eoa
and picturesque, and Badly itself will well r.
pay examination. General I. l.. Chngmau tes
me that there is another mountain in HayveO"
Connty C afout fiftv miles froua Bald, wbieh