The citizen. [volume] (Berea, Ky.) 1899-1958, 1910-05-26

appalled, By tho terrifying intensity or
the indescribat lie blackness and he is
left in hopelessness and awe until the
guide makes his welcome reappear-
ance. Brief cave description will have
accomplished it's purpose in the mind
of the reader If 1t persuades him TO
make a personal inspection Of these
ever-recurring wonders. There are
FIVE tiers or stories" TO Mammoth
Cave. and when the lowest is reached
and all is In readiness for an embarka-
ton on the wonderful Echo River. the
visitor is about 270 feet beneath the
surface of the earth.
Rivers Source In Darkness.
This stream. located amid such
weird surroundings, is navigable to
the three rude boats that ply its sur
face during the dry season for a dis
lance of something over half mile.
The river has its source in darkness
and empties into the black unknown.
The well-nigh acoustic properties OF
the walls rising out of and arching
Echo River have been often described.
In places the smooth arch draws down
20 within less than three feet of the
surface OF the water and the mariner
must stoop IN his seat. The river"
has maximum width OF forty or fifty
feet. and its greatest depth is believed
TO be about thirty-ive feet. The nat.
ural sounding-board formed by the
solid rock twisted into hundreds OF
hooks and inlets returns the faintest
noise or note into myriads of echoes
In the cool. dark waters are often found
marvellous witish fish and crawfish
that Nature has kindly deprived OF
eyes because OF their utter uselessness
In such a place.
Mere mention can here be made of
few of the many other wonders shown
by the guide on even the briefest cave
Journey. Mammoth-Dome. about 100
feet from floor to vaulted room. is one
Of the striking glories OF the cavern.
It's almost perpendicular walls are re-
lieved by gigantic columns rich in
sculpture that the hand of man might
initiate but not excel. Often these
walls suggest that they might have
served as models for the sculptors OF
the interiors OF the ancient Egyptian
pyramids.
The Bottomless Pit.
The Bottomless Pit is another glor-
ious cavern which. despite its name.
has been fathomed. This was first
crossed where now there is a tiny
bridge by the elder Bishop, guide and
explorer, on a cedar sapling. The Cat
aracts, the Bacon Chamber, Lovers
Leap, Standing Rocks, the Arm Chair,
the Cork Screw, the Bridal Altar
where half a dozen weddings have oc.
Curred-River Styx. Martha Washing
toms Statue. and a double score Of
other interesting features found In this
land OF darkness get their names from
imaginations keenly descriptive. and
are shown 10 the ordinary cave visitor.
And lastly, attention may be called
to the Water Clock. that tells the time
for the traveller as he is about 10 leave
this region of sublimites. On the out
ward journey. when the Rotunda is not
far ahead. at the guides command
there is a pause. a stiffness follows,
and presently is heard from up in the
depths OF a Stygian recess in the walls
above a monotonous, slow, regular tick
tick-tick. the never changing dropping
of water from an unseen stalactite TO
hidden pool many feet below. pa
tiently telling OF the centuries and sim
ply but forcibly describing how the
glories lately beheld have been created
by the hand" OF water.
Colossal Cavern.
Colossal Cavern was discovered in
1895 by Robert Woodson. who was
searching for a spring. IL was first
partially explored by a young man
named Pike Chapman in the fall and
winter of the same year and In the
spring of 1896, since which time more
of the cavern has been explored and a
great amount of work done at the en-
trance-in the widening OF several
very narrow passages. the lowering of
the floor in certain places where the
space between the floor and the roof
of the cave did not permit Of an easy
travelling, and the construction OF
roads. All of this work has now been