The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1902-07-28
FOUR DAYS UNDER GROUND.
Explorer Lost in a Dead Mans
Cave
0Chicago Inter Ocean.)


(Chicago Inter OCEAN,
After wandering for four days and
four nights underground, half of the
time in the dark, through winding
gorges. crawling on hands and knees
through Shiny passages. between
jagged rocks. hating at times on the
brink of precipices, faint from hunger
and the hardships he was forced to en-
dure, Captain Caleb Johnson, Missis-
sippi river pilot, has come out alive
after an attempt to explore the mys-
teries of Dead Mans cave at Ste. Gene
We've, just across the river from this
point.
But with all of Captain Johnson's eX-
perienceS the cave remains as much of
a mystery as ever. for he was without
light for. most of his journey and had
no idea how far or where he wandered.
he only knows that he entered the cave
in Simms hollow, on the bank OF the
river. on Monday morning, and that on
Thursday afternoon a farmer found
him in a sink hole on his farm, four
miles from the cave entrance.
Nothing was accomplished, therefore.
save 10 take away the superstition that
no one could go far into the cave and
come out alive. That has always been
the reputation of Simm's or Dead
Mans cave. and it has been borne out
by the disappearance of no less than
four venturesome explorers who have
previously gone in to explore and failed
to return.
Ste. Geneyieve is the oldest town in
Missouri. 1t stands on the bank of
the Mississippi river or. rather. back of
big sand bar some eighty miles be-
low st. Louis 1t is an old French set
Element, and century ago was one
of the leading towns OF the west. North
and south OF it, along the river side
are enormous limestone cliffs, cut and
scanned by ravines and hollows, COW
cred with forests or with fine wheat
lands and settled by thriving French
and German population.
In the hills are countless caves
Some are so small as 10 be mere hoI-
lows or sink holes. but. others are of
huge proportions. Dead Mans cave is
one of these.
Simm's hollow is four miles north Of
the town by winding road. II is q
deep ravine running back from the
waters edge a quarter Of a mile into
the hills where il. ends abruptly in
the bed of a steep run. There is the
caves entrance. The hills on either
side OF the hollow are nearly 800 feet
high So effec-ually do they exclude
the sun that the ravine is always
gloomy. adding TO the sinister aspect
OF the cave.
At the end Of the ravine is an abrupt
wall OF rough. stone about fifty feet
high. surrounded by a level plateau
This plateau. itself remarkable. is a
stone floor semi-circuIar in shape. hav-
ing its fat side forward and for its
back having another precipice shaped
Ike the inside of half cylinder. The
walls of this precipice are about 200
feet high.
Well up from the plateau in the cen
ter of the cliff is the cave entrance. It
IS a dark hole in the stone, and is
reached by a series of ladders from be-
low The entrance is about eight feet
high and as wide as a double door
Why anyone would wish TO enter
such a dark. wet place as the cave
proves to be is a question which can
be only answered by a reference TO the
endless curiosity Of the inhabitants of
the world TO know what is happening
below them Mines. wells and caves.
the most disa greeable places man can
get into, prove always fascinating So
the hole in the cliff of Simm's hollow
has since its discovery drawn the in
habitants OF the neighborhood to enter
and explore
4 party of two first went in several
years ago The two men entered the
hole at early morning carrying candles.
They S0on came back for torches or
lanterns, ropes and chalk They had
gone in so. far that they found il dan
gerous TO go further without blazing
their way They went back into the
cave next morning and never since
have they been heard Of
The rescue party which searched for
them were stopped by an underground
river which none could sound and none
could cross Whether the two men feII
into II, whether they crossed il and
died on the other side, were questions
never answered There the trail end
ed and there the search was given M.
Not for two or three years was an
other attempt made to Investigate the
cave Then another two men. more
Senturesome than the toxnspeopIe,