Arizona republican., 1902-01-02

of Unique Interest to Biologists. ! One or the wonders of Indiana is 1 Lost river. The region through which ] this river runs is the most rugged in the state. The whole country through ! the western parts Of Orange and Craw- ! fc-d counties is an almost uabroker chain O. forest-clad hills and ridges 1 There were several Indian villages on 1 the banEf e Lost river. The principal i one was Shawnee. which was not far 1 from where the stream sinks in the l northwestern part Of the county. The cni1e Of this village t.as known as
 King Billy" and he is said to have l he'd a. Ted-Leadcd- white woman for a wife
 This mysterious stream rises at Car ! t-r's creek. in Northeast township. and sinks in Orleans township. It begins [ to sink et the old Maxwell mill and gradually grovs smaller and smaller ] fer aco9ple Of miles. and disappears apparently through Assures iu the i ro,!s. Lost river after disappearing near the Maxwell mill pcrcClates through the ground for about seven miles and rises again in a large spring at tEe f-ot Cf a high bluT in the town [ Cf OranEeville.
 For at least ten moaths in the year the bed Of the river for the scvcn miles between the places where the river disappear. and rises agaiu is dry But when the rain falls and the fresh els appear. the rock Assures are not able t1 take the water and the dr-y bed is flied with torrent that would float q large steamboat. Lost river aite. it's last appearance. flows through acJthera Indiana, eupues into White river anu finally finds an outlet in the Chi-
 All along the course ce Lost rive- there are wonderful natural curicsi- ties. On tho old ItndIey farm. one half mile west Of the wagon bridge on the PaoH and Orleans road. there is t cavity in the ground. Tn the wet seq
 son the water runs into this cavity. but in the dry season it can be ex-
 plorad. About one hundred and fifty yards inside this cavity al stream Of
 Water is found running at right angles
 With the opening. 1t the end of this
 cavity is large rooT1, perhaps twenty
 five feet high. and great mound of
 earth that has been washed in by the
 "ater- In this cavern are pools ia
 which are found eycless fish. Bats
 cave is two miles distant The ground
 in ilat locality is comparatively level
 UGtil it begins to sink down and tba
 cave i= found Tn this cavern the bats
 conErlgate in winter. and Major John
 R. Sampson of Paoli says he has ire
 quzntly seen bats enough hanging on
 the roof and sides Of this cave to fill q
 large wagon.
 The most wonderful of all the caves is called The Gull" which is located
 two miles from Bats cave. on the Hud-
 dieson farm. The land is level. except
 about fifteen acres. which is gradually
 depressed until il becomes twenty-five
 feet deep. At the foot of this depres-
 sion. in the dry season. there gusnes
 forth a spring Of pure water. The stream from the spring runs abcut
 twenty feet and then disappears again. a1d it is generally thought that this is
 one branch of Lost river. On the east side Of The Cuff is a perpendicular
 wall thirty feet high. cn which grows a great number of larEa forest trees. On the depressed fifteen acres the own CT of the farm raises grain when the water is low. On the west side or the depression there are a number of caves. many of them having been explored for some distance. Tn several of these caves are fC;lnd stalactites and stal- aEmites of great purity and beauty, and in the subterra mean streams are found several varieties of blind fish, blind craws. etc. Another point of in terest on Lost river is Pitchers cave. At Pitchers cave the earth has given away for a distance of about eight hundred feet and left an opening. into which could be driven a load of hay and a four-hC-se team. From one side of this cave bubbles up stream Of clear, cold water that runs across the cove and then disa ppears as suddenly as it appeared.
 Biologists have net yet fully eX- Dlaiued the mystery of Lost river. but they believe that the foundation of O~- sDco county is honey-conbed and that the future generations will make sur prisiGE discoveries. Indianapolis News.