The Greeley tribune., 1905-07-06
Good RatStOry !

The following good rat s.
comes Us q special to the E..-f
Mountain News from Laramie, ~.
Paul Pascoe, q ranchman OF .-e
. Laramie plains, made the disc . )
Friday Of what could almost .r
called d mountain rat fortress. II.
| Pascoe was hunting wolves, w".
have been harassing his sheep, d" .
/ had penetrated into a deep can .H
/ the Laramie foothills, which ...d
apparently seldom or never ...n
visited by man. The whole bo,' u
of the canon, which was perhal~ d
mile long, ending i'm a cul-de-~u..
hut only averaging sixty feer DO
| breadth, was covered with a tl.S
growth of low shrubs, through WI ID
were noticeable numerous ma ."
tracks. or paths, beaten hard, w...e
in several places were small pat rs
|of marshy ground. The ". e
| length and breadth Of the canon Na>
preyaded by what Mr.. Pa~,ge
thought at first was the smell -t
beans. and he brought his rife lara
readiness for instant use, but fUaud
out the cause when he saw mountain
rats scampering before him in great
numbers as he advanced through the
brush.
Half way down the canon Mr.
Pascoe noticed that the tracks in the
brush all converged to one side, and
following them, he presently dis
covered the entrance to a cave con-
Cealed by the shrubs. Entering the
cave. he heard a rush of apparently
thousands of feet, an upon striking "a
match saw rats disappear into side
passages in all directions. Mr.
Pascoe made a torch from a pitch
pine root on the canon side, and
started to explore the cave, which
he found extended under the lime
stone ledge for great distance, with
numbers Of side galleries. The
floor Of the cave was literally covered
with articles of all descriptions
the inhabitants of the cave being
evidently well worthy Of the name,
given to the species by mOUutaineers,
OF pack" rats. Tin cans were
there by the hundred, there were
quantities OF bones, a number of old
shoes lamong them those of a small
baby, several articles of wearing ap-
parel, several knives, spoons and
forks, several books, and among
other things Mr.. PascOe picked up a
blacksmith's hammer and about two
inches Of a gold watch chain. The
ranchman penetrated into the cave
for 200 feet, and everywhere and as
far as he could see beyond, the floor
was Uttered with articles that the
rats had packed there, although
there is no human habitatiOn, except
sheep camps, within sixteen miles.
The side galleries, Of which there
were many, some of them too small
for man to enter, were all rendered
. impossible for anv animal, and even
for a man, unless he wore very thick
boots, by the floors being covered
with q carpet Of spines from the
. prickly pear. every spine having
been carried there by the rats. In
several of the galleries which he ex-
. pI0rcd. Mr. PuscOe found numerous
nests of rats, all made warm and
comfortable with sleeps wool, and
containing young rats of all ages.
| Mr.. PascOe did not examine the
place as much as he wished a, he
found that the rats were returning,
evidently embOldened by the vast
ness of their numbers, and he feared
an attack. As a matter of fact, the
rats were so close to him before he
reached the mouth of the cave again
that he could only keep them of by
vigorous waving of his torci. An
examination Of the canon disclosed
the fact that there were two other
caves in it, equal in extent to the
first, and each crowded with rats.
In one of the caves Mr. Pa~cOe
noticed a streak four feet thick and
apparently of great extent of what
he took to be some black mineral.
but an examination Of d specimen
which he brought away with him
disclosed the fact that it was COM
posed Of the eXcrement Of rats.
changed by pressure and time into
almost the hardness of rock and hay
| ing the appearance Of ore. The de-
pOsit shows that the cave must have
been inhabited by rats in great num-
ber for ages, and that earthquakes
must have changed the conformation
Of the rocks in that time.
N4FTra