Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1890-05-02

will be just the way 1t viii strike you whei
you visit them.
stopped several times on the walk owe
to the cave-it is such pretty walk. L
goes through park in which are planted
thousands of trees, and which is lighted witt
electric lamps. Across the rushing littlerivel
is a wire suspension bridge. Everything
has been changed since went in the cave
before. Now they have nice walk to the
entrance, a pretty and neatly finished re
ception room, and the entrance itself, that
used to be wooden cover, is now of lattice
work. When stepped in, there were about
$50 electric lights burning This power is
given by dynamo, worked by waterfall
at the mill above here. One thing about
this electric lighting is very fascinating
AS the guide comes to some particular
point that he wants to flash on you, he turns
a little handle in the rocky wall and instant
ly what was dark cavern flashes OIL you
with dazzling brilliancy, the glittering rock
intensifying the blaze. The thing in the
OAOUOOOO 1SctlJ sloiluS 10, W. lllAAua Nl1ess
is called the Cathedral Hall. 1t is arched
with glittering rock, lighted with scores OF
electric lights it's whole length, and appears
to be a half-mile long-which, of course, is
an optical illusion. AS you stand at the
entrance to the hall and look down it, you
see standing in its centre white.
silent statue of crystal. 1t is a
picture you are not likely ever to forget.
There are hundreds Of curiosities in the
Grottoes which require no imagination to
wonder at. One is a giant oyster shell
opened, another is a gallery springing out
OF the walls on which hundred people may
stand, another is the drum, and another is
the grand cataract. There are others, but
[ cannot think of them and would not tire
you with them, if could. The general i'm
preston you will get is, that there are daz-
zling and gorgeous scenes in this under
ground theatre, which far exceed any you
ever saw in theatres ON top of the earth,
and even to me who had seen it all before,
the effect was as fresh as to a novice. The
whole thing is so altogether out of the line
line OF all earthly art and experience! Some
how, would not like to have died without
seeing the wonderful sight, though proba-
bly, if I had, might have fallen upon
scenes vet more startling, though possibly
less agreeable. For the temperature in the
cave is only 534c.
The proprietors here have made every az
to encourage excursions to the
Grottoes. That is to say, picnic and basket
parties are as welcome to the hotel park and
it's verandahs and general conveniences, as
if they were patrons Of the hotel. This
makes it all very agreeable. And what
makes it still more agreeable on an excur-
cursion is, that you can drive here by a fine
road if you desire to, OIL come by the cars
which take you on at Staunton at o'clock
andl and you here at II. He. Z.
A War Relic
An interesting reminder of the civil war
has been shown to us. 1t will be remem-
bered that, by way of retaliation, the Fed
erals in 1864 sent over 900 Confederate Off
oSAo w o1O1A1fo AoietHei' HuOiO UuCI WCiO hOPV
in a stockade under the fire of the Confed-
crate guns. MI. S. T. Carson of this coun-
ty, who was among them, made list at the
time of every man, where and when captur-
ed, and with his place of residence Of that
day. We find the following names of ALL
gusta county men among them: Lewis Har-
man, 18th Va. cavalry. captured at Wider
vile, May 9Th, '64, Staunton; S. F. Carson,
9Th Va, Morton's Ford, February 9Th, '64,
county; 7. S. Doyle, 33d Va,
Spottsylvania, 18th Of May, '64, Staunton;
H. L. Hoover, 25th Va. Spottsylvania,
18th Of May, "a, Staunton; J. W. Gillzeson,
25th Va, Spottsylvania, Mint Spring; W.
L. Hunter, 43d Va. Battalion, Aide, April
23d, '64, Waynesboro; G. H. Killian, 9Th
Va, Spottsylvania, May 18th, "a, Waynes-
boro; d. M. Layton, 25th Va, Spottsylva-
mia. May 18th, ga, Mt. Meridian; J. F.
Lytton, 9Th Va, same place, Long Glade;
A. Danaugh, 10th Va, Spottsylvania,
Parnassus; G.. F. Keiser, 5th Va, Spott-
sylvania, Greenville, and J. M. Lambert,
SD Va, Cold Harbor, May 80, '64, Green
vile. In the little book is the name of HI.
Halves of Pages Battery, Richmond, cap
tured at Spottsylvania, who was, we believe,
a brother of Rev. DR.. Halves.