The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-04-05
PORTO RLCO'S ROWLING CAVE
CAUSE or THE SOUNDS THAT CAFE IT
Tine Name El Diablo-An Interesting Cavern im Our Four-Cornerod Island That May Re yaiuabie.

Cavern fh Our Four-CorneFeu Asiah'
 Of the West Imdios--A Vast Deposi
 That May Re Valuable.
 Since the acquisition of Poto Rict
 by the United States" said a govern
 ment official who has recently returned from the island, "a great deal has beer
 written about the numerous mammoth
 caverns which the huge limestone dadt
 surrounding the nsular parallelogran
 contains and the magnificenee of thf
 mineral crystallizations which in many & instances abound therein.
 During a sojourn of many months 1T
 Porto Rico since the American occupa-
 ton of the island my attention was
 called to the fact that there was huge
 cave located only few miles from the { city of Ponce which was filed with
 some substance resembling phosphate or guano, and that far down in its
 depths flowed a subterranean river, the
 rush and roar of whose waters could be
 plainly heard by any one standing Ill the mouth of the cavern.
 Tn order to satisfy my curiosity con-
 corning this cave I secured the services
 of a native guide one day and set out
 to investigate the truth of the reports
 in regard to the mysterious deposits it
 was said to contain, as well as to dis
 cover the nature of the peculiar noises
 which were said to emanate from its
 depths.
 After a toilsome journey on horse \. back for a distance of ten miles or Z more along the line of the narrow gauge
 railroad extending westward rom
 Ponce to Yauco as far as the mouth Of Y Fl Rio Cana we turned up that stream, < whose tortuous course we followed
 northward a distance of fully two and a half miles, when farther progress was fmpeded by af formidable barricade in
 the form of an immense day consisting of huge, irregular blocks of limestone
 which had evidently at no distant day z fallen from the overhanging cliff at that point, thus partially clogging the stream. Interlaced and criss- crossed among this mass of broken rock were 4 logs and smaller driftwood in the great Art confusion.
 .'The water in the stream however all ran through numerous openings near the base of this debris. We tethered our animals and proceeded to chamber up and over this obstruction. When we had reached the top of this barricade l discovered that it had been formed in the narrowest part of the ravine and that immediately above the towering Limestone walls receded on either side, forming vast natural amphitheatre several acres in extent. About thirty rods above the oval space included be- tween the walls of the ravine or am plpitheatre the ravine again narrowed to a channel some twenty-five feet wide, in which was located a perpendicular wall of rock, reaching from side to side of the navine about fifteen feet high, but what seemed strange to me was the entire absence of water flowing over and town the channel. l could see plainly a large stream flowing at my feet and losing itself in the intricacies of the mass of driftwood which l had just ascended I could also hear the loud roar of water above me, as though it were rushing along at great speed,
 Tracing the course of the water for a distance of some twenty rods further up, I was startled by the discovery of the stream rushing and foaming from the very base of the overhanging line rock wall on the left. Here certainly was the outlet or mouth of a big sub terranean stream. and probably the same one referred to as running be- meath the floor of the cave we were in search Of
 My guide beckoned me to follow bm up the dry channel short distance, | where, he said, we would find the mouth of the cavern. The narrow path [ over which we travelled was dangerous in the extreme, as it wound in and out | among huge clefts in the side of the | rocky wall.
 My guide, who was several rods in | advance and twenty or more feet above i me, suddenly shouted to attract my att tention. and pointing toward the north wall of the ravine, cried out: ''Mucha erande!" He had reached the entrance to the cave, and within few moments l was standing beside him The open ing was some twelve feet wide and four and a half to five feet in height and was located directly beneath stratum of limestone two feet or more in thick ness, and slightly tilted to the west. Upon entering the opening a distance of a few feet I found that the roof grad ually receded and that the floor also descended. Lighting the candles we had brought with us. we proceeded to carefully explore the interior. We had several rods within, when a sudden current air rushing inward ex- tinguished our lights and we were left In total darkness.
 'I turned and looked toward the mouth of the cave and could plainly dis ,ern the light. While standing for a half minute in the darkness, endeav- 1ring to light match there suddenly burst forth upon the the awesome si- ence of the cavern the most frightful ;hriek I have ever heard, and which echoed and reechoed through the cav rnous depths. My guide suddenly bolt d for the entrance. The unearthly wall vas too much for him. Again there anne another sound more resembling
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