The San Saba news. [volume] (San Saba, Tex.) 1873-1966, 1890-04-25
HIDDEN STREAMS.
WONDERS OF UNDERGROUND
AND SEATED RIVERS.
Great subterranean Courses, Mexi
can Zanates and Lost Tor
rents A Remarkable Case
in New Mexico.

ihpruoW DtCuulc y AlAI 1u NAtNANS0 DiN'
Il Is only few days ago that the dis
S gave an account of the discovery
of one Of these streams in one of the East
ern States, and its exploration for miles
in a canoe by the two adventurous dis
covers. According to the published &C
counts, this stream is even more remarka-
bic than that found in the Mammoth Cave
in Kentucky. This latter flows a distance
of 300 feet beneath the earth's surface,
between banks about thirty feet apart,
and is a volume of water forty feet deep.
Rolling on for about a quarter Of mile, it
disappears in a bank of fine sand, yelled
In both its coming and its going as the
mystery of life itself Less known, OF
rather less written Of, Is the river Lys,
which, on its entrance into Belgium,
dashes abruptly over precipice and IS
lost to sight for nearly half a mile The
Meuse also has a subteranean course ex-
tending TO a distance of six miles, while
the river Dromme, in Normandy, on near
ing the sea, plunges into hole thirty
nine feet wide, known as the Pit
of Soucy, from which it never reappears,
except IN the form of new springs, which
are supposed to arise from the lost waters.
In Derbyshire, England, there are two
small streams called the Hamp and the
Manifold. Formed by the union of sew
eral small springs, they flow in the open
for a short distance and then turn in close
together under the face of a hill range.
Here they have made for themselves a
passage through the solid earth, and for
miles they flow Underground, each main
tanning It's own complete individuality,
until at length they re-emerge TO the light
by apertures only fifteen yards apart.
That their waters never intermingle is
proved by this experimenting any
floating body thrown in where the rivers
enter the underground passage again re
appears in the separats river into which
It has been thrown, when the strange
streams Of water issue into the light of
day.
A somewhat similar condition Of affairs
Is said to exist about a little Cornish lake
called Doz-mere, or Dosmary pool, sup
posed to be that mere into which the good
sword Excalibar was thrown. 1t has
neither visible outlet nor inlet, but it is
said that articles thrown into the lake will
reappear in Falmouth harbor, which IS at
least sixty miles away.
Sometimes the conditions are reversed
and the river instead of disappearing be-
fore it reaches the sea, comes from thesea
and disappears in the land. In the article
IN Nature OF January, 1886, entitled
"Curious Phenomenon in Cephalonia,
the writer says; ssThe sea runs into the
land in a strong stream, turning a water
wheel on the way, and disappears in the
earth about 100 yards from the entrance.
I imagine. says the contributor, "that
the water sAlst be converted into steam,
which cons out either atNaples or Ceph-
alonia.
This is by no means the only seated
river, it appears, for very soon after the
publication Of the above statement it
was followed By another from a New
York gentleman, who said that such
were common IN Mexico, where they
were known as s'zanates.7 .sWhile |
passing through Tucatan in 1870" he I
writes, ~ saw large river running /
with torrential speed within natural
tunnel, not far from the seashore, and
probably not over one hundred feet below
the surface Of the ocean. It's shaft-like
entrance was adorned by a picturesque
old Spanish well-curb of stone, fur
nished with standards of fancifully
wrought ironwork. Nothing on the
surface indicated the existence of the
vast cavern uEder the monotonous and /
fat lowlands of the peninsula of 1
Yucatan; and though not a breath |
Of air stirred, the deafening roar
Of the torrent under our feet /
could not be perceived until we were [
fully inside the cavern. A rapid de-
scent brought US to the level of the I
pumps used for irrigating very ex-
tensive ixtl plantation, and from here /
we could see by the light OF our torches
the yellow foam Of the waters upon /
the underlined background Of the chasm
below. Descending still further, the
full stream could be seen through a
wide fssure in the limestone of the |
cave. It had the rounded appearance
of stream flowing horizontally under
great pressure. ten or twelve feet in d. j
smeter. and looking like a gigantic black
lcicle living on its side. The large vol I
une of water plunged with great swift
ness into an unexpIored and dark cham
Der with a terrific roar, producing noises
which resembled the hollow echoes
of heavy explosions heard now
and then above the perpetual rumblinr
of the rushing water. The mouth or
entrance Of the zanate was only twenty
eight feet above the level of the Gulf of
Mexico. and as nv barometer indicated
a descent Of 40 feet II meant that the
river was flowing 112 feet below fbe
level Of the sea Tho MANAGER of fbe
near which vas found the snh-
terrauean stream informed the ,rritc-
that there we're nam otl,er s,,cb zansfes
along the coast and that they were
looked upon bv the NATIVES with almost
superstitious reverence, and spoken Of as
great miracles which have always been as
Ehev are now"
The phenomenon Of a stream flowing
nerrilv down from a mountain and then
Is. in the West. a very com
mon ono ssrs . ,rrits- II, an esrlv r,,r,