Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1885-10-19
KNOCKING A HOLE IN CHEAT
RIVER.
A 3OO-tOn Rock Rolled Down the Noun.
tain Goes Through the Rivers Bottom.

The following queer stery is told in a special
dispatch to the New York Sun from Kingwood,
w. Va, dated the 18th instant: About fifteen
miles north Of this place. along the Cheat river,
can be seen some OF the most rugged and in
| spring scenery to be found anywhere in West
Virginia. If not North America, east Of the
Rocky mountains. On either side OF the river,
for probably half a mile, there is a perpendicu-
lar wall of solid limestone about $50 feet I'm
height. From the top of these walls, or cliffs,
| on the east side of the river, the craggy and
timbered mountain, with a slope OF about sixty
degrees, looms up more than 1000 feet Near
the top of this mountain has stood for unknown
ages great rock, measuring twenty feet from
the top to bottom, and averaging about eigh-
$3.50 cubic feet of hard, fiintlike limestone,
and allowing 100 pounds TO each cubic foot, the
weight of the monster was 64S, 900 pounds or
] 324 tons. Just below and against the lower
side OF this rock was large oak tree, which
! seemed 10 be the only support the rock had To
| Keep it from dashing down into the river.
first heard of the rock a few weeks ago from n
party of kingwood young men who had been
down in that region examining an extensive
| cave. which they explored from an entrance
near the bank OF the river 10 "A considerable dis
| lance in the mountain without finding either
beginning or end, for in some places il went far
down into the earth, and in other places tar
| back and up into the mountain. They said
that it was the intention OF several persons who
| lived in that peighborhood to cut away the
| large oak tree which stood below the rock and
| give the rock a start down the mountain. on
| ceived letter informing him that a crowd had
been organized and that the work would begin
on saturday, the 10th. went down on Friday
morning. and on Saturday went to the scene.
There were about twenty-five persons present
| from the neighborhood. The work was done
| by company of six men organized for
| and fell crashing over "A considerable preci-
pice and lodged, but the great rock stood
| how much of the rock was imhedded I'm the
! earth. Digging and shovelng continued for
! nearly two hours. and owing to the steep slope
| on which the men had to stand ID was no easy
| work. Great care had to be exercised also, for
| it was impos sible to tell at what moment the
rock would start laundering down the noun
tain. 1t was decided To be too dangerous to dig
any longer, for the rock was then apparently in
a position to lose its equilibrium from the
slightest touch One of the men pushed against IL
with MS hands, but its weight defied his strength.
A lever was cut, and fulcrum was erected. The
| lever was soon bending beneath the united
weight and efforts OF several men of no ordi-
nary size. l was up the mountain probably
twenty yards from the rock to get a good view
of its course TO the river, and was watching
| closely for the start.
"Now she goesr' came TO my ears and could
see the top of the great rock going out from the
| mountain-now slow, now faster now a crash,
and then crashes upon crashes. The scene pre-
! senied by that rock tearing and laundering
| down the mountain can be imagined, but IL
! cannot be described. IL had a tendency to con-
! found the sense and bewiider the reason Great
! trees We're torn from the earth and hurled into
! the air like twigs in a whirlwind, and the
| trunks of mammoth oaks were torn and slv-
| cred in quick succession. On and on il went,
| making a clean cut road from the start. The
mountain trembled and the spectators stood
! spell-bound. The rock gained in speed AZ il
neared the river, which was in view at the
/ lower end of the great limestone walls. Ii now
struck the last precipice, and, after going out
ward and downward for more than two hun
| dred feet, it fell into the river with a roaring
| sound.
After the dust and leaves aud flying pieces of
limbs had settled We could see peculiar action
of the water, but we were too far OF to discover
the cause. \ walk OF more than a mile around,
as it was next To impossible to go straight down
the mountain from where we were. brought us
| to the river but instead of seeing the rock we
| saw the water rushing from every direction
down into huge hole probably thirty feet
square. During the half hour we were there not
! less than ten logs were drawn into the
! whirl and disappeared.
! 1t il supposed that the cave extends under
| the river, and that the weight of the immense
rock coming down with such force and rapidity
| caused the roof 10 give way. Whether or not
the water will soon fill the hole up and the river
flow on as before will depend upon the extent
OF the cavern and the existence of an outlet TO
! carry the water from the cavern TO some other
| stream, or to some other part OF the country.
| lett that district on Sunday afternoon, and
| the water was then still rushing down the hole,
carrying saw-logs and every other floating SUBJ
stance with il.