Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1912-07-11
MAMMOTH GAVE. Ky.
Interesting Description OF the Cave
as Seen by. Paul Crandell.

OF the world, the Mammoth Cave,
Kentucky, was written by our towns
man, Paul Crandell, and will prove of
interest TO our readers:
Mammoth Cave, Kentucky,
June %, 1912.
| found out last week that they
were going TO run an excursion down
here, and thought it was such a good
chance to see the Mammoth Cave,
that ! would take advantage of it. |
got in with a party that was going
from here and had a fine time. We
left Cincinnati about 11:00 a. m, Sat
urday. One certainly sees some fine
scenery on the way. The best is after
we passed Louisville when we came
to the real Blue Grass country. The
hills are beautiful, and every now and
then there is fine mansion on some
old estate.
After we got to Glasgow Junction
we took what they call the "Dinkey."
1t certainly deserves the name. 1t
is an old fashioned engine and little
old cars but it can get around among
the hills all right. When we got ia
the hotel there were about 600 people
here and they were so crowded that
they had just enough rooms to &C
commodate the ladies in our party,
and when it came time to retire cots
were put up for men in the dancing
pavilion. After we got our supper,
which was at about seven o'clock we
we got on our cave shirts and took
our first trip into the cave We went
TO the gate from the hotel in couples.
Upon arriving we were given torch
something like a lantern without any
globe. Then we went through a long
path through the woods, down hill
all the way, until we came to flight
of stairs which lead to the mouth of
the cave.
Before going into the cave the
guide always counts the whole party
and then they are counted again as
they come out to see that no one is
lost, for there is lots of chance to
get lost among all the different ave-
nues. Our tramp last evening was
about four miles long, and the main
points of interest were the "Star
Chamber" Martha Washington's
Statue" and the stalactites and stall
agmites In the Star Chamber, the
ceiling is about twenty feet high and
the effect of stars is produced by the
throwing of light in certain way.
The guide took all the lanterns and
left us sitting on the bench in the
dark. When he got away from us,
around corner, he lighted magne-
sium ribbon the light Of which thrown
on the ceiling causes the apparatron
of stars. When we got on little
farther, he again left us and went
into another place. Another magne-
sium ribbon was lighted and the light
thrown on the irregular walls OF
either side caused them to look like
the statues one sees of Martha Wash
ington.
The stalactites and stalagmites are
in a good many different chambers
and the former are formations from
the ceilings down, while the latter
rise from the floors by the constant
drippings. Both have been in the
process of formation thousands of
years and are still in that process.
We got back to the hotel about
midnight and were ready to go to
bed We arose the next morning at
six and walked to Green river, where
we were favored with short lecture
on the formation of rocks, by nat
uralist. After breakfast at the hotel,
we started on our second trip into
the cave.
This time we went down narrow
passages and along lodges of rocks.
One place in particular, which is
very rightly called, "Fat Mans Mis-
cry" caused us many tight squeeze,
and another, called "Tall Mans Mis-
cry" brought us fiat upon the ground.
After this we came to large cham
Der, called "Hall of Relief" Then
we went down more steep rocks until
we came to the bottom strata of the
cave where flows the Echo river,
which is three hundred and sixty
feet below the hotel We rode a
little way in boats. Our party sang
many songs which sounded especially
pretty
Upon leaving the boats, we began
our ascent by another way. There
certainly was some climbing TO this.
In one place, which they called the
"Corkscrew," we went through a
kind of rocky tunnel whose shape
resembles that of corkscrew, and
really | don't see for the life Of me
how some of the fat ones did get
through for there wasn't any too
much room for me. They would
come up painting hard which, of
course, caused a good bit of laughter.
When we passed from this tunnel
we came to the main body of the
cave and were soon at the mouth.
You can bet we we're ready for our
I,anor u,b,~b mae cn,,1axrbot ho1afad