The Athena press. [volume] (Athena, Umatilla County, Or.) 18??-1942, 1895-08-30
DOWN In A CRATER.
Wonders Witnessed by a Noun
tain Explorer.
Indian Legends Of q Famous Extinct Vol
cano In the West = Strange AMI
mails Found In the Subter-
ranean Caverns.

mails Found In the subtsr-
ranean Caverns.
Crater mountain is one of the Una
tilla Indians great spoolx depots from
ancient tune, says the Baker City DEM
ocrat. Bucks that are now white with
the hoary frosts of many winters rec
ollect hanging in the trees tightly
strapped to their nursing boards, while
their mothers roamed the forests in
search of game for the lords of crea-
tion or wood for the tepee, and from
infancy love to relate how the great
spirit spoke to them with the awful
voice of terrific thunder in the bowels
of the earth. Many are the stories and
legends of Indian lore told Of Crater
mountala>. One Of the favorite ones is
told of a great war between the
Shoshones and Umatillas. When the
Umatillas had conquered their foes
they proceeded to slaughter old and
young, regardless Of sex. One beauti-
full Shoshone maiden, seeing that
death was inevitable from her pursu-
ing foes. plunged headlong into the
burning srater, and instantly the vol
canic eruption ceased, much to the
CONSERVATION of her pursuers, who on
the following day found, on looking
down the chasm of inky darkness, a
resplendent light with the form OF the
Shosbone maiden in the midst of the
apparition. They told it to their duslxy
warriors-and to this day Crater noun
tain is looked upon with reverence
| from an Indian point of view.
The following is 'front.' diary Of j.
A. Wright: "Crater mountain is located
some eleven miles from the Camp OF
| Cornucopia, on the south side Of the
range whose caps are tipped with
eternal snow. Many chasms and fis-
sures have in the misty past cleft the
mountains and left them in the most
fantastic shapes Vegetation ceases tc
grow after a certain height is reached,
| and close under the base of one of the
| great peaks is the famous extinct vol
cano. Ashes and lava are found In
great profusion and in such indescrib-
| able masses that II makes the ascent
one Of peril and great difficulty. How
ever, once at the top, peek down into
the blank, fathomless abysssupplies the
| most morbid minds with all the sensa-
tionalism necessary for lifetime. A
| favorite amusement was to throw rocks
| down and listen to the sounds as they
struck on the projecting sides OF the
dark chimney until the sounds died
away, leaving nothing but for the
mystifed explorer 10 guess II had
reached the bottom"
Many have been the stories circu
lated OF the wonderful cavern that ex
tended from the sides of the great
chimney A stout cable was provided
and basket swung from q pulley
Hon. Joseph, with camera and note
hook, was carefully lowered som'
three hundred and seventy-eight feet
when he noticed an aperture in th'
side Of the chimney. and. by signal
agreed upon, a halt was called IN hi
downward career, and he crawle'
through cleft in the great chimney
and the work of exploration began
The first sight that met his astonishe
gaze was most stupendous chamber
from whose mighty dome hung stalac
tites of great beauty, which were en-
lanced by the light Of the candle, an
fairly struck terror to his heart, as tn
fiicksring candle seemed to possess tn
power of some unseen hand that mad
millions of the brilliant stalactite
dance in resplendent beauty. "A grea
snowy owl blinked at the astonishe
Joseph.
The explorer groped his way to til
far end of the chamber, where b
thought he heard the sounds Of fallin
water--nor was he mistaken, fc
squeezing himself through an openin
he found himself in another chambt
OF great beauty, with a stream OF ht
sulphur water running into the eartl
The incrustation from the sulphr
, water had transformed the cavern int
u coral-like substance and left IT
such fantastic shapes. He found in I'll
water some lively little lizards an
some frogs that change color ON u
slightest provocation and two lare
, rats, who eyed the explorer with c.
riosity that seemed to bode no goo
. and he longed for his little gun.
j THE SPARROW AND THE CLocF
A Strange story Told at the PaFIs Rci'
t teclniC gcho0l.
! A French paper tells the follOwin
strange story Of sparrow and II
clock at the Polytechnic school
Paris:
/. In 1910 the Swedish scientist, BE
zelius, during his stay in Paris, wei
to the school to make some expel
ments in physics and chemistry befo
the pupils To show the necessity
air In the respiration of animals
8 placed sparrow under the receiver
y the air pump and created vacuum.
e At the moment when the bird W
9 about to die for want Of oxygen, I
: cry Of mercy. Mercyp' echoed from |
: sides of the sfaphitheater. BeEseli
. ae4uesead in 4hk decision Of his ]
\ name sudienr reIeaaed the bi'
= which new ont Of the hall
e Axh ~ strange thlI
Y penes n happening
+ Vel undaNs # the
hnd ~ the
NJ sen; a1