The Hope pioneer. [volume] (Hope, N.D.) 1882-1964, 1907-12-26
GREATEST BAT CAVE
BIG HOLE IN TEXAS HOUSES MIL.
LIONS OF THE ANIMAL s.
Dense Cloud of Flying Tenants
Emerges from Mouth of Cavern
Near Uvalde for Two Hours
Every Evening.

Uvalde, Tex.-Near here is a freak
of nature which in many ways rivals
the Mammoth cave of Kentucky. The
Texas marvel is not only a large cave,
but it is inhabited by countless thou
sands of bats. Located on the Frio
river, about rs miles from the town of
Uvalde, it has the reputation of being
the largest bat cave in a country
which is infested with scores Of the
subterranean bat roosts.
Each evening a stream of the flying
rodents, several feet in thickness,
pours from the mouth of the cave for
about two hours. Millions Of the
creatures pour forth until the flying
stream has the appearance of smoke.
The column of bats retains a SYM
metrical shape until it rises to a
height of from 800 to 400 feet above
the earth. 1t can easily be seen at a
distance of five miles and is one of
the wonders of Texas.
The only known attempt made to
survey the ave was made by DR.. Will
liam B. Phillips, formerly director of
the. Texas state mineral survey.
DR.. Phillips descended by a rope to
a depth of nearly 200 feet when he ar
rived at the first large chamber of the
cave. There was nor of the flying
animals in this great underground
room.
Descending yet farther, he reached
the second room Of the cave. Here,
clinging in millions to the roof and
the walls, were the bats. DR.. Phil
lips made a thorough exploration of
this lower cave, but says it would be
impossible to make any estimate of
the number of bats which inhabit it.
The room was filled with many thou
sands of tons of guano, but no at
tempt has been made to utilize the
stock of this valuable material found
by DR.. Phillips, owing to the remote
ness of the cave from any railroad.
The doctor says the species Of bats
in the cave feed only on insects and
fare forth each evening for the pur.
pose Of hunting their food.
DR.. Phillips exploration was more
or less superficial, owing to the dan
ger of exploring these bat caves If
the bats become aroused they are
liable to mass around an intruder, sui.
locating him by shutting off from him
what little pure air there Is in the
cavern.
Henry Cograd and Tom Fetch, sons
of ranchmen in the Frio river locality,
haro1v ccoornd NTH +ha;r live, oeIo.
a thrilling experience in this particu-
lar bat cave.
They went to the cavern one after
noon for the purpose of exploring it.
Finding the entrance pretty small
they thought to enlarge 1t by blasting
away some of the rock about the
aperture. The first charge of dyna-
mite loosened much of the rock, but
failed to make the entrance larger.
The two young explorers were about
to fire a second charge when the
millions of bats, aroused by the
noise and jar Of the first explosion,
swarmed forth. They came out in a
%forceful, flying stream, and both
young men were knocked down by the
living column.
The mouth of the cave is on the
face Of a cliff, $50 feet above the FRO
river. The only surface upon which
to stand is a narrow ledge just below
the entrance.
In falling, both boys went off this
ledge and were only saved from drop
ping to their death by grabbing some
small shrubs which grow on the cliff.
To this meager support the young
men had to cling for nearly two
hours. while the bats poured in an
endless stream out of the cave. When
the last of the creatures had passed,
the frightened youths climbed back
upon the ledge and made their way
down the cliff and homeward as quick
II % posstble.