The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1897-09-02
QUEER HOLE IN THE GROUND.
1t Swallows Tons Of Water Every
Day, But Never Fills Up.

On the coast OF the Greek Island or
Cephalonia, near the town of Argostoli,
there are two little fumes or canals
leading inland from the sea to the dis
tance of about 100 feet and then dis
charging their contents into rudeiy ex-
cavated pits, through whose badly-fis-
sured, rocky bottoms the water imme-
diately loses itself. At least as long
ago as 1885 a mill was run by power
from one of these fumes, and second
mill was built beside and operated by
the other little while afterward. The
mills themselves are now in ruins, but
the flow continues. This remarkable
state of things has existed oyer 60 years,
and very likely for century.
One cannot help asking in amaze
ment where all the water goes to-.
Messrs. Crosby estimate that the flow
in each channel amounts to 1000 cubic
feet per minute, or 100000 cubic feet
per day in both. Two smaller passages
of similar character have been OBJ
served in the same neighborhood; and it
is added that along the shore, Eat all
points between the two mills and for
an unknown distance beyond each,
the water is everywhere percolating
through cracks and assures of the lime
stone and sinking into the earth. The
openings on the>sea bottom are, no
doubt, mainly closed by weeds and
gravel, yet no inconsiderable amount
of water must find it's way to these mys-
FERROUS depths through such an extent
of beach,, lying on a rock that is prac-
tically as porous as sieve. =
It is difficult to decide which is the
greater marvel, the sea mills them
selves or the fact that they have re-
manned practically unknown to the
scientific world up to the present day,
although described by several authors,
mentioned in the guide books and
visited by 'admirals, generals, bishops
ard distinguished civilians"
Almost the only explanation hitherto
offered assumes that evaporation goes
On rapidly in some subterranean cav
ern, and thus disposes of the water.
But as it is admitted that the remain
ing salt from the two mill streams alone
would amount to 46,6OO cubic feet 8
year it is hard to understand why the
subterranean cavern (if there be one)
does not fill up. Messrs. Crosby offer a
different hypothesis. They ask the
reader to imagine two great assures
descending into the earth and meeting
below, like the sides of the letter V or
U. Then they suggest that perhaps
one arm is shorter than the other, and
that there is long, very gently rising
passage leading from the bottom of one
to the bottom of the other, so that the
subterranean heat can get good
chance to act on any stream passing
through it. It then becomes easy to
suppose that cold current of sea water
comes down through one branch of the
system and is forced upward through
the other by thermal influences.
The rocky island of Cephalonia, like
some Of it's neighbors, betrays the eff
fects of earthquakes innumerable in
times past, Astounding in fractures and
faults, caverns and subterranean rivers.
None of the springs on Cephalonia con-
tains any large quantity of salt, how
ever, and it is difficult to regard any
of them as the outflow of the flood
which disappears at Argostol. But it is
possible that, as Alpheus is said to have
done, it takes a dive beneath the sea
and comes up on some far-of island
Casters MagaZine.