Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1880-09-24
A BURIED SHIP.
Marvellous Discovery Made by the
Miners in Colorado Cnve---A
Full Rugged ship Underground.

shaft near Red cliff, made discovery
so marvellous and astounding us to seen
more like IL tale from the Arabian
Nights" than sober nineteenth cen
fury reality Imagination never pic
tured wilder or more desoatc spot
, than the western slope Of Red cliff
The ragged rocks and Eine-clad gorges
are in as native solitude as if the eyes
Of man had never looked on them, and
the tortuous streams, the steep descent
torn by some fierce uphcayal Of nature
and the granite hills combine TO form a
scene behind which the wierdcst mag
cry Of DOrc would fall far short II
was in this place that two miners, grub
staked by II Denver Spectator, found
THAR way. The names Of these men
were Jacob Cahec and Louis Adams,
the latter resident Of Leadvile, and
the former from some locality in south
ern Colorado, we believe near AlamOsa.
Both were mining experts, and finding
favorable indications on u wide plain,
ut the foot Of quite II steep hill, began
to sink shaft, first passing through
thirty feet Of wash and then striking II
lime formation stained with iron and
evidently not in place. They were on
the point Of stopping work in despair,
but thlw encouraged pushed on their
digging with renewed activity, until ut
II depth of fifteen feet hollow sound
responding TO the blows Of their picks
gave warning that they were nearing
some subtcrranean passage or gallery.
Unwilling to give up what Appealed to
be 50 fine Il prospect, they secured
| themselves from the top by ropes, and
proceeded very cautiously with their
work After days digging the bot
tom, which has been constantly grow
ing thinner, gave way with crash, and
the two adventurous miners found
themselves suspended midway in what
appeared to be II large, irregular cave,
some 30 feet long and about $50 feet
wide ut the broadcast point. They had
pierced the cavern in its extremity, and
had no difficulty in swinging themselves
against II sort OF II natural stairway of
granite houldcrs hcaped against the
sides,
Down this they scrambled, mpelled
by curiosity and n spirit Of adventure,
! holding their miners lamps above their
! llttlllS, anu SUM FlNill WI IL lbltIaIllN
level sandod floor, with here and there
II huge crystal of quartz, while from
the roof, which archcd overhead ut Il
distance Of about fifty feet, enormous
stalactitcs depended like icicles, and
catching the feeble rays of light, threw
them back in II myriad of rainbow
hues. The cave seemed mt first empty,
but MS their eyes gradually became nc
customcd to the deep gloom, the men
saw in the further extremity II huge
black object, which, not without some
trepidation, they approached.
As they ncarcd it, to their unbound
ed amnzcmcnt they made out the out
lines of some sort of sailing craft, but
the idea of ship fifty feet under
ground was 50 prepustcruuS that they
| thought il some fantastic MASS Of rocks,
and not until they fairly touched the
timbers would they believe the evil
denGe of their own senses \ ship it
plainly was or had been, but II ship 'lif-
ferent from amy that the eyes of the
astonishcd miners had ever looked
upon. IL was, ~ nearly Us they could
Judge about sixty feet long by some
thirty feet wide, and lay tilted forward
at an angle of about fifteen degrees
over a rough pile of stone The body
of the craft was built of short lengths Of
some dark and very porous wood, re-
sembling our black walnut, if it could
be imagined with the grain pulled
apart like sponge or i piece Of bread
and made perfectly square, Both ends
&c wus evidently intended for sailing
either Way, were turned abruptly up
like the toe ola peaked Moorish slipper.
The rlnnking was apparently double
riyitod ON with mails Of extremely hard
copper only slightly rust-cntcn and
with the heads cut OF filed III an octag-
onal shape, while along the upper edge
of tie ship eleven large rings of the
same metal, and evidently for the se-
curing of rigging, were counted. At
the bottom edges of the craft, and rum
nlng ia entire length, We're two kecls
some four and half feet deep and six
inches thick, hung OH metallic hinges,
and nj the end were fastened rough
copper rods, extending upward and
bent over so aS to- attach to- two
masts rising from the utter edges. If
the cross of an inverted letter \ he
conceived to represent the deck lines.
the two stems are II about the angle
and position Of the masts. These We're
upward of twenty feet long, and, M
evidence that sail was nj one time
stretched across. some ragged remnants
of what appeared 10 cocording were
found clinging 10 the inner edges, The
ends 1T the masts We're secured III piy-
cts, and il was evident that III lacking
one could he moved forward and the
other back, thus bring the sail 1T I'm
angle with the body of the Ship-an
idea which il might not he bad for our
, medennavIgators formulate. This, il
is believed, also explains the copper
rods which moved the koclsso is 70
reeiprocatc the position Of the masts.
While the whole ship was intact the
wood crumblcd like dust beneath the
finger touch, and fearful of trap-falls
the two prospeetors did not venture to
explore the interior. Lying on the
ground near w, however, WAS discov-
rrrd Il good instrument bearing Il rude