Crittenden press. [volume] (Marion, Ky.) 1879-1907, 1905-06-15

ulstflct OF EdmOns0n county Tor the
purpose Of taking out the onyx and
alabaster with which the caves are
filled. According to the biologists
all of the subterranean passages have
been made by chemical action. The
soil is underlaid by vast strata Of
limestone, and water charged with
carbon dioxide has the solvent power
to dissolve the stone. The action
has been going on for millions of
years and still continues, In the
Colossal Cavern, one Of the grandest
Of the group and the most recently
discovered, isa hall or corridor called
Snowy Valley" where the floor is
thickly covered with fine fakes Of
pure white gypsum, which is CON
stantly falling from the disintegrat-
ing roof Of the ceiling above aud re-
sembles snow.
This cavern furnishes remarkable
illustrations of the processes by
which the limestone has been eaten
away. The work began in assure,
or joint, in the limestone ledge which
caught waters charged with carbon
dioxide, and time has done the rest
In the Colossal Cavern you can see
how the work was begun, and Illus
trations of every step, but there is no
evidence that the erosion was ever
more rapid than now or that the sub
terranean streams which furnished
the water power were ever larger.
The problem is solution. - a. one Of
the biologists has called IT, the great
work Of excavation, has never been
arrested a moment since il began ages
ago. The irregularity in the cayerns
l. due to the fact that the rock is
harder in some places than in others
and yields less readily to solution.
The stalactitcs and stalagmites.
which are also constantly forming,
are Of the finest quality Of onyx.
What is claimed to be the largest
stalagmte in the world j. found in
The new Colossal Cavern. and j. call
ed Henry Clay's Monument. L.
l. ninety feet high and thirty feet
thick at the base aud has been built
up by single drops of water falling
upon certain point for unnumbered
ages. In the smaller caves are enorm-
Gus blocks of onyx of all colors except
green. which l. accounted for by the
absence of copper. There are blocks
Of pure onyx which may be easily
quarried by machinery. 800 feet long \
aud eighty feet thick to their visible
depth and how much deeper they
may be nobody can tell. One cave
contains slabs aud blocks of beautiful
cream -colorcd alabaster, perfect in
texture, color aud of uniform thick
ness about two inches). One of these
slabs has been found upon measure
mcnt to be over 100 feet long. In
places they overie each other like
sheets of paper. \ drill fifteen feet
long failed To reach the bottom.
Nobody has ever attempted to
quarry this beautiful substance. So
far as known the onyx and alabaster
of the cave district have never been
utilized for practical purposes. But,
az have said. an eastern syndicate
proposes To take advantage of this
new and great source of wealth.
Years ago and for generations the
soil of the caves, which is rich in
inter, was used for the manufacture of
saltpeter. The natives called it
peter dirt they dug it up in the
cayerns, brought it out in sacks.
loaded it into OK carts and carried it
to boilers, where the concentrated
liquor was run through hoppers filled
with wood ashes, boiled a second
time aud then cooled in wooden
troughs. The bottoms of these
troughs would be covered with crvs-
tails of potassium nitrate, and when
the liquor was drawn off they were
scraped out and the crystals were
packed for transportation to powder
in the east. The WELD was
l,,,t f,ur a II