Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1893-04-07
SINKING LAKES
a Curious Legend OF One In
Tennessee.
Anything Thrown Into tho Waters OF
Stone Lake Becomes Pctrlued-A
Negro Fishermun's Romarkn-
bio Ente.

Inc nhuD1tantS OF Cl1nC part OF WCSb
Tennessee known as tho Earthquake
belt" nrc considerably exercised over
the gradual sinking of the lakes formed
by the earthquake of 1911. Tho water
level is descending without any appar-
cnt cause, although the Ctrcar1s that
empty into some OF the lakes arc not
affected. This is taken by the Pitts
burgh Dispatch to be evidence that tho
soil ut tho bottom OF these Shcct3 of
water is becoming scanly from Seismic
action beneath, thus allowing the
water to escape into unknown basins
below. The effects OF the unexplained
phenomenon are most apparent in
Stone lake, beautiful body of water
situated in LaudcrGGlc county. The lake
is about I; mile long and q half . mile
wide anil has an average depth of wen
ty feet, but SO clear is it that tho small
est objects can be seen on the bottom.
A moro inviting place for the angler
could not DO found anywhere, but,
strange to say, while the other waters
in that regions arc Glivc with fish, no
living thing has ever been seen in
Stone lake, and the people of tho vicin-
ity contend that the water is certain
death to any creature that drinks it.
The wild fowls avoid it, though they
swarm in the adjoining ponds and bay
Gus. Another popularity of tho I'M
canny water Is that anything cast into
it quickly pctritics: hence the name it
bears. And thereby hangs tale, which.
incredible as it may cound, is nevcrthc-
less dcvoutly believed by the simple in
fabitants of the locality. 1t goes back
to seventy years ago, when the country
| was first settled by emigrants from
North Carolina.
Tradition goes that on a hot summer
| day, after his tnLS.5 was finished, an old
| and trusted slave Of one OF TIC pioneers;
| got leave to 80 fishing, and taking his
| tackle and U;:it set ont for the lake,
| which he had remarked IS q likely
| place for bass. Arriving there he
| walked out Gil u log that p"Hj@ctcdf from
| the bank and cast hi, bait. When night
| came on lie had not returned home,
| and his absence ut roll call was noted.
| Tho master, however, paid bab little
| attention to the circumstance, thinking
that old Isom had probably gone on Il
lark to some ncighboTing farm. But
| when Isor1 failed To show up next
morning old Capt. Bullard became I'M
easy and went out in GcarCh Of him.
lie could learn nothing OF the missing
slave fror~ the rciShEora. Then he
organized; party and beat tho woods
to find him. Strange to say, hc had not
| remembered giving Isom leave to 60
fishing. Toward sundown n fox hound
with the party struck IL trail and fol-
| lowed it to the bank of the lake. Tho
| hunters went after, and arriving 1T tho
lake saw Isom sitting on the log with
| pole extended and apparently fishing;
in deep meditation. II" proved deaf TO
the vocifcrous calls of his master. The
hound spr;lng on the log and ran up to
tho motionlcss form, snitfcd ut it and
flew back to the bank, bowling with
| fright. Their the old captain dismount-
cd and charged on the log, whip in
hand, to chaStisc the truant. He
brought his whip down on the notion
less figure with n resoundiug whacls.
Still ISom sat still. The old captain
caught him by the shoulder. lie
| graspcd not flesh and blood, but stone.
The fisherman, his line and pole wcrc
pctrificdl The log on which hc sat was
also solid, When the captain and his
followers had recovered from their
fright they made their way homo and
told their story. Next day large party
Of the reighbors went out and found 1t
to be true. They discovered by dropping
things into tho lake the marvellous CT.
feet of tho watCr. Pho stone log was
once o giant hickory. Nuts that had
fallen from 1t were pctrified on the bot
tom. FL was thought that Psom must
have slipped and fallen into the lake
with bis pole, and the water on his
clothes and tackles took effect when he
regain edhis perch and began fishing.
Tho extraordinary figure liz still intact
and there is n movement on foot t
transport it, with n section of the log
to the worlds fair.
, ----S---------
Mn. HENRY MosLER, the aFtist, for
merly of Cincinnati, o., and now per