The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1893-03-15
A CAVE oE HuMAN BONES.
The Curious Natural Sarcophag1s Found
in California.


Joseph Chettle, who has arrived here
from Columbia, Tuolumne county, re-
ports the finding of a curious cave
full of human bones about two and
half miles from that place. The cave
is in solid marble and is 286 feet in ex-
tent, in offshoots apparently bottom
less and with the roof in places fifty
feet high.
The cleaning of the vari-colored
marble from the lights of the candles
in the caves, combined with the ghast-
ly bones, gives one queer feeling,
something like, Mr.. Chettle says, walk
ing among tombs, only worse. He
went down in the cave and looked it
over pretty carefully. He brought
skull and lot of other bones with him
to the city, says the San francisco
Chronicle
Everything points to the bones being
the remains of race that fourished
in old Tuolumne @ons ago. They are
larger than the average of human
bones, and the race to whom they be-
longed was evidently very powerful.
There is about a ton of them altogether,
he says.
81 concluded to go down into it. "
said be. "The entrance was so narrow
that man could scarcely squeeze him
self in. 1t pitched down abruptly and
/ had hard work. to keep on my feet, as
bad the one man who accompanied
me. At thirty feet it was pitch dark,
and we could see nothing except by
the aid of our dim lights.
@There were no weapons, either. and
/ this is one of the strangest things OF
the place. In all Indian burial places
| hitherto, so far as known, weapons OF
some sort, and often times some kinds
of pottery have been found. There was
nothing of this sort there. Only the
clean bones were to be seen. How
| long they had lain there no one can
| tell, but as the cave was dry as any
carefully prepared sarcophagus they
may have been there for many CEN
turies. l have no doubt that they
have nor have any of the people who
| saw them. In all, Judge there was
over ton of the bones, indicating that
many score of persons have been IN
tered there.
an a niche / found part of skull
and other bones. A queer odor per
vaded the place. Above and all around
us cleaned the white marble. A little
farther on was marble f1ecked with
blue and dark colors, making scene,
while awful, yet beautiful.
@We clambered down the steep fool
of the marble chamber. In some places
it widened out into broad Railways
and corridors, with floors many fee
wide.
"The strange odor grew stronger al
we advanced. 1t did not exactly OF
fend, but it gave queer, uncanny ef
feet, and made one advance, If no
reverentially, at last with feeling
that there was no knowing what nigh
be revealed next. We continued, ant
little ahead of US and to one side WI
came to an oblong chamber seventy
five to eighty feet in extent. Here {
sight met our view that l shall neve
forget.
"A myriad of grizzly skeletons loome'
up to our. view. The skulls were ex
tremely CHASTITY and had been tosse,
about and changed somewhat from
their original position by the miner
or Tie Gnarrymen who had precede
me, for the cave is on the 140-acre trac
owned by the Columbia Marble com
pany. Skulls, arm-bones, thigh-bone
and all other kinds of human bones la
about there. There were no othe
relics. Whatever there had original
been in the way of clothing had rotte
entirely away.
.The cave is attracting good des
of attention about Columbia. The SUI
roundings are very rugged and wile
/ know of scarcely any other region
California so picturesque. The mine
who first got down into the narro'
/ opening leading into the cave did so
: the aid of rope which he fastened b'
hind him. He was not "a little astol
ished, you may believe, when he cam
, upon the CHASTITY bones, and when b
got to the surface. as he speedily did
the cold sweat stood out upon him in
way that it never did before.
Nobody believed him when he frs
told his story, but he speedily cor
yinced them by daring them to follo1
him, which some of them at lengt
did. 1t is sight I shall never fol
: get"
Mr.. Chettle is keeping the bone
which he brought back as mementoe
. of his adventurous trip.