Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1903-05-30
THEY EXPLORED BIG CAVE
Party Of Young Men Pay Visit to
Underground Chambers.
is A DANGEROUS UNDERTAKING
Many Vast Subteranean Chambers Explored
and Numerous Objects Of Interest Seen
Details Of the Trip.
Details Of the Trip.

Is in Berkeley county q cave. which
while not as large perhaps as the
Mammoth cave OF Kentucky or the Lu
raw caverns, yet in point of size anC
grandeur can only be appreciated anc
understood through the dangerous un.
de-taking of an exploration. 1t has
been entered and explored in tho past,
but no ore has ventured in for more
than year until yesterday, when q
party composed of w. G.. Austin. Cliff
ford Tabler. W. A. Helferich, Robert
Clohan, and August Zimmerman, Of
this citv, under the guidance of Mail
Carrier M. II. Harmon, undertook to
explore it. MIR. Harmon has on sever.
al occasions conducted parties through
parts of the cave, but yesterday was
the first time for several years He
first undertook to explore it as far
back as 1875. Names and nscriptions
on the walls of the cave prove that it
was entered as far back as 1857. and
there is one name almost impossible to
descipher. but which looks like w. r.
Kromen, with the year 1910 after it.
Whether such person entered the cave
at that time is only conjecture, hut
inscriptions of names and later dates
prove that it has been entered at other
periods.
The cave is located on the farms of
Messrs. J. I. McQuilkin and Adrian
Miller and is about nine miles from
Martinsburg. There are three en-
frances, one overlooking the Potomac
river opposite Potomac Isle, and the
other two IN field about half mile
apart. The first is the larger and a
four-horse team could enter the OPEN
ing. The other two are small assures
in the earth and barely admit the en-
trance of a full-grown person. The
exploration of the cave is a dangerous
undertaking. but when once the task
is over. one feels well repaid for the
bruises, cuts, and soiled garments re-
ceived. The atmosphere is healthy,
there being no impure air currents to
make it unpleasant. the party enter
ed at . a. m. and emerged at D. m.
but in the four hours did not succeed
in exploring it fully, becoming ia
tigued and abandoning the attempt un-
til future occasion. In the four hours
they covered distance of one and one-
half miles. as nearly as could be es-
timated.
| The cave contains MANY chambers,
some of them 30 to 100 feet in height.
/ while some of the passages necessitated
crawling. In some places the party
had to be let down with ropes a dis
lance of rs feet. This is the dangerous
part of the undertaking. In many places
there is barely room for ones feet on
the lodges of rock over which thew
have to pass. The walls are solid
rock. and the floors mostly of rock,
but in some chambers earth forms
the floors. The cave inclines down.
ward in many places and reaches to
an enormous depth, and passes ont
undtr the river. In places little
streams of water trickle through the
roof. coming presumably from the
river above.
Some of the chambers are beautiful
in the extreme, the stalaetites and
stalagmites having been wrought by
nature into the most wonderful and
fantastic shapes. In one chamber is
a formation of water and carbonate
of lime. which presents the picture of
n sheet of falling water. and which is
of great beauty. 1t has been termed
the miniature Niagara. In another is
a baptismal font. while in another
was discovered stone of four sides.
like box. Upon entering another.
one would momentarily believe from
the formation and color of the rock
that he was gazing upon wall OF pure
silver, so white and dazzling is the
color Here and there were pyramids
and columns rising from the floor to
the roof here and there formation
having the appearance of crystal cling
ing to the roof or the side of the wall
aud projecting IN every direction.
Many basins, having the appearance
of being formed ont of the solid rocl-
by countless ages of continuous drip
ping of water. were discovered, and
many other things of rare beauty were
found during the visit of .he partv.
The following are few of the
names and dates presumably of enter
ing) found on the walls. Most OF
them are well-known residents of
Martinsburg, and show the cave was
exploed years ago Nathan j. Colbert.
1857; j. II. Starbuck, 1850; w. Kro-
seur, 1861; M. h. Harm on and Will
liam Ettinger, 1875; George HALEY,
1887; A. StaUbly, 1898; Mrs. George
" Evans and dauphter Nav | 1 1898