Savannah courier. (Savannah, Tenn.) 1885-1979, 1890-05-22

10 observe. We were crounching along
over kneaded human forms
A very strange spectacle, which
seemed to US an embodied nightmare
under the excitement of that awful
journey. think was almost delirious
No scene recurs to my memory now
more fresh and striking than that black
cave, with slender glow Of candle-
light here and there, and the half
naked figures glistening with perspira-
tion stretched out above pavement of
heads and limbs. Many of the faces
had been gilt, and they shone flicker
ing here and there upon the dusky mass.
We could not get any explanation of
the extraordinary mangling. The Arab
said things had been so ever since he
could recollect. 1t must be supposed
that these were mummies of priests and
attendants buried with the sacred rep
tiles in their charge-great personages,
some of them, evidently. Their fami-
lies had been laid with them; for there
were as many women perhaps as men,
and great number of children. Every
one had been stripped and torn to
pieces-all of those on the surface at
least, for hurried examination
failed to show how deep the serried pile
of bodies lay. Mingled with them were
sheets and strips of cloth, fragments Of
sarcophagi and quantities of women's
hair on scalps-wigs possibly. On the
~ bor cida nf fhio Ito hn
most battallions or the crocodile host
innumerable. Standing on the human
pavement there is just space enough
above and in front to observe the man.
ner of their disposal, for the topmost
layer or two has been pulled down. II
it were not certain for other reasons
that the present entrance is not that
formerly used, the arrangement of these
crocodile mummies would prove it.
They filled the space completely from
floor to arch and side to side until the
upper ones were removed neatly
aligned, tail to head, head to tail, with
palm leaves laid between and the inter-
stices filled up with countless multi
tudes of young eggs, these latter tied
up in bundles and wrapped each one in
strip of cloth. Since every layer was
piled to the roof, it is manifest
that those who arranged them
must have worked backwards; and
since it would be as easy to
drag an elephant through those pass
ages as to drag the superb specimens
here-unequalled in my experience-of
alligators and crocodiles-they must
needs have been brought from the other
side. The demonstration is complete,
for we had EXTREMIST difficulty in draw
ing behind us two heads chosen among
the smaller ones. Moreover, it is un-
likely that the bats used that long SUBJ
terranean outlet; they are probably
| acquainted with better and nearer
route. fancy that the enormous blocks
of stone upon the floor of the second
chamber had been put there after ex-
cavation, out Of the way. No one can
form an idea how far the caverns ex-
tend. Removing the top layers as they
went, and crawling beneath the roof,
Arabs, we were told, had explored q
vault beyond this and found more croc-
odiles still on the further side. The
mountain, they said, was stuffed with
them; and it is possible. Assuredly the
pits are mine of nitrate; and this ex-
portation of mummies for manure may
effect one good thing at least by causing
them to be emptied. Treasures may lie
beyond the vaults where those myriads
of crocodiles are stored.-S James Ga
| Zette,