The interior journal. [volume] (Stanford, Ky.) 1872-1881, 1878-08-02

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fra turn in the road after we had he.
gun the descent Of Rock Creek bluffs.
our attention was directed toa per-
pcndicular clifl about eighty rods
away, across a chasm Of immense
depth. Outlined upon the face Of
that sandstone cliff are an Amazon in
bloomer costume. and man seated
before her-too distinct to demand the
slightest aid from ones imagination to
determine the likeness at a glance. The
female appears standing in an angry,
defiant attitude, whilst her adorer
looks imploringly into the face of his
mistress. With all due regard for the
feelings Of that illustrious couple, we
confess that Madame Caudle in the
midst Of one Of her most acetic lect.
ures, and her enrapturcd % audience
Of one, before The curtain, were imme-
diately suggested as the subjects of
Dame Natures magnificent drawing.
The anomaly is too far below the
brink of that dizzy precipice to admit
of a suspicion that human agency had
any thing to do with the work, and
the theory that trickling water execu-
ted the wonder, is set aside by cur.
sorry glance, which shows that the pic
ture is as free from the creative or de.
structive influences of water as if
framed and hung against the wall of
an Art Gallery. The source of its
existence will remain conjecture.
THE AIR CAVE.
Thirty or forty miles above the
mouth Of the river is the Air Cave
which we were told that we'd readily
recognize by smoke upon the water,
in which we'd see rainbow if the
sun was shining. Sure enough, in
rounding bend of the river we saw
what appeared slender cone of smoke
resting upon the surface of the water,
half mile ahead, and extending half
across the channel, where it is unusu-
ally wide, being at the foot of the
Shadows, which are a mile of the riv.
or bed where the water flows over n
pebbly bottom apparently but three or
four inches deep, when in reality,
foot. On the bank, and not more
than twenty or thirty feet from the
margin of the river, is a large sand
stone, imbedded in the soil, and COW
cred by vegetation, with n small cav
ern beneath, from which is driven a
constant current of icy-cold air that
condenses cone of vapor upon the
water, which the residents call smoke.
The cavern is scarcely three feet above
low water mark. We felt the cold
current far out on the river under n
broiling sun, the length of canoe
from the vapor. The Prof. declares,
that TO stand ten minutes before the
mouth of that cave would kill a man,
if it didn't freeze him solid. Our wa
ter jug was placed in the mouth Of the
cave when we set about dinner, and
when taken up half an hour after was
found beaded with water and as I'M
comfortably cold to the touch as a
cake of ice. We suggest to any other
party expecting to visit that cave to
60 provided with thermometer, that
the exact temperature may be ascer-
tanned.
THE DEVILS JUMPS.
The Devils Jumps are misnomer,
being about a half mile of the river
studded with huge sandstone mount
aims, rising from ten to forty feet
above the surface of the stream, which
according to tradition o. infantile
Nature in one of her convulsive cap
rices tumbled into confused mass
rom the opposing hills. The ordina-
rily wide current of the river is reduc-
ed 10 deep, narrow channel, insinu-
ating itself about the bases of those
rocks at the time we were there with
noiseless flow which added nothing to
the hazards of canoeing, except at one
abrupt turn Of the current where pole
and paddle could not avert the dash of
a boat against the highest peak of
that range of sandstone mountains.
DRIES AND SINKS.
Monday morning we started from
Rock creek for run TO Point Isabel,
at the mouth of Big South Fork. BY
10 o'clock, We reached the Dries, where
we spent two hours awaiting a supply
of minnows that han been promised
US. They were not forthcoming and
we pushed on with the confident assn
rance of portage within an hour.
The Dries or Sinks are where, during
the greater part Of the Summer, the
river flows in a subterranean channel
for nearly two miles before it reap
pears at the Boils. Fortunately for
Us the late rains had filled the ordina-
rily dry ponds and we were compelled
to portage our baggage and haul our
canoes by ropes over but two dry pla-
ces of about 100 yards in all. With
IN Al milo of tho Rnils MA nassal the