The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1879-07-05
JOBS HOLE.
BY MARS.

The Susquehanna river is remarkable for its
numerous deeps. One of the most noted is Jobs
Hole This remarkable natural curiosity COM
mences at the foot of Grey Rock Falls short dis
tance above ConOwingo Bridge, and ends at the
suce rock below the bridge, where the stream
merges into Amos Falls, and goes madly pitching
over the rocks towards the head of McDowel's
Island. This strange submerged chasm is stua-
ted the Hartford side of the river the deeps hug
the shore on the west side, and on the east side
they run parallel with the shore. The hole is
about mile long and ranges from IS to 100 yards
in width. When the river is high the water dashes
through this channel with wild fury and the swirs
Ito use river phrase,) draw large logs under the
water to reappear below. But when the water is
low the deeps may be viewed in all their dismal
gloom. The water looks black hundreds of small
whrlpoos are always in motion over the entire
deeps and the water is in a constant state of ebuli
tion the black surface is dotted with hecks of
white foam and the place looks like a vast boiling
eauldron. The depth of this strange submerged
ehasm is very great, and many parts of it has
never been sounded. Not long ago a gentleman
succeeded in finding bottom at one point. He had
heavy sounding lead and found bottom at the
depth of six hundred feet Other parts of the hole
are deeper. The walls of the cauldron appear to
be perpendicular rock, the surface cf -yhieh ap-
pears to be smooth. The walls on both the east
and west side appear similar. At the head Of the
deeps there is cove called "Bettys Cove" The
Delaware Indians were terribly afraid of this place.
and would not approach it. They called the place
the Wigwam of Evil Spirits and fully believed that
the place was bad one.
When the river is low the greater part of the
stream is drawn through this strange channel.-
Jobs Hole is certainly a natural curiosity of no
mean pretensions.
THE WAY THE HOLE RECEIVED ITS NAME-A TRADI-
TIoNARY LEGEND.
About 100 years ago a man lived at Jobs Hole.
He was from Massachusetts and his name was Job
Jenkins. He was a large and powerful man and
was intensely wicked. He had woman to keep
house for him whose name was Betty Mulligan.-
Betty of higher class, as she measured feet
in height. She was Jobs counterpart for wicked
ness and was we'll fitted for his companion in guilt.
Job had committed fearful crime in his native
State and had to run to save his worthless life
He made his way to the head waters of the Sus-
quehanna where he bought canoe with some
stores, and being an excellent waterman, he de-
scended the river to Jobs Hole without accident.
When he arrived at the deeps the place pleased
him, and he soon built himself a cabin. In short
time after he met with Betty and they agreed to
stay together and help each other to do what might
come in their way. Job said that the place pleased
him, as the deeps were handy to hide things in
He had plenty of money, the fruits of his crime
Game and fish were plentiful, and he was an ex-
pert in cunning and fishing. His cabin soon be-
came known, and the wild, reckless fellows of the
neighborhood made the cabin their head quarters.
Job opened grOggery; he obtained his whisky
from distilery the east side of the river; he
called his tavern the college" and gave the name
of the evil one as teacher. The place a hard
one the reckless fellows that visited there would
often spend whole nights in their drunken revels
luckless peddler was seen to enter the College
one night but was never seen afterwards. Job in
N,I ia L l..
neither believed in God nor devil. One night in
June there wild frolic at the College, Job
and his drunken companions cursing, swearing
drinking whisky and singing immoral songs; the
full moon was shining brightly on the wicked
scene. When at midnight, hideous being, which
none of the drunken jewellers could describe, en-
tered the College and with a terrific yell he seized
Job and carried him to the bank of the river and
threw him half way over the deeps as if he had
been play ball, and then with a wild laugh he
shouted, "Job's Hole" and "JOb's Hole was
echoed back from the deeps by thousand voices.
Bright lambent flames flashed over the hole and
then all was still. Job gone, but the hole had
received name which will last for ages.
Betty being frightened out of her senses, and
crazed with whisky, ran to the cove and jumped
in the deeps and went away with Job to place
where they will never want fire. Neither Job nor
Betty were ever found; but the cove is known to
this day by the name of "Betty's Cove"
At the commencement of the tragic scene Jim
Foard one of the jewellers, crawed into the river
hill and watched the proceedings. He said that
after Job and Betty had been disposed of, the ter
rible monster again approached the College and
entered and brought ten gallon keg of whisky
into the yard. He gave wild demonaic yell, and
raising the keg to his head he drank the whole
ten gallons; then finging the empty keg away,
he raised the wand and struck the cabin, when it
was instantly in sheet of flames; then he appear
ed to fly away through the air, uttering peals o'l