Clearwater Republican. [volume] (Orofino, Idaho) 1912-1922, 1912-06-20

rs AT Mr RHKHlz,p3
which has Sir CASTOR Maspero as its
director general of antiques. no man
is allowed to touch a single pebble.
much less explore. But Mr. Covington
did such good work at the beginning
that he has been authorized to clear
away the sixty-nine feet Of debris
which obstructs the upper and outer
end Of the channel which leads to the
great chamber of the king-the great
Cheops, or Khufu. himself. Then for
the first time in history the interior
Of this wonder Of the world will b
free from all distractions.
Beneath the great Kings chamber.
In the heart Of the pyramid. Is the
queens chamber. Mr.. Covington IL
now ct work trying to find the interior
ends of the S00-foot air channels. The
inner extremities Of these were dis
covered by an Englishman. WeymaA
Dixon. in 1872.
Masons today build no more beau
ifully than did those ancient men
who toiled $500 years ago. They
have left their own monument in tho
queens chamber, which. apparently.
was never used. 1t Is superbly I'm
ished and jointed; yet, oddly enough.
the entrance to this superb tomb was
was intended for Martitefe. Khufu's
queen. but she survived him and mar
ried his brother Chephren, who built
the second pyramid in the great group
which stands today as a perpetual
monument Just outside Cairo.
The great kings chamber, IS feet BY
II by 10. is wrought in polished gran
ite. Just one hundred perfect blocks
in I'VE courses compose its walls. Nine
granite slabs form its ceiling and tho
door Of the low granite chamber
above. The second chambers ceiling
forms the floor Of a third chamber.
and % on up to the nth. which 10 the
topmost. each one rising over the
great one intended for the dead
king. Like the queens chamber, this
top one IL rooted with an arch OF
heavy limestone slabs. On one OF
those slabs there still stays in living
paint Khufu's quarry mark, or ofacial
ssaNtwo birds and q snake. SUR
mounted BY . round dot.
OF The mysteries he has found Mr..
Covingston has Just spoken. and espe--
daily above the grand gallery. 15s feet
long and 30 feet high. BY which the
kings chamber was reached.
Il consider this the most mysterious.
part Of this mighty miracle in stone.~
said he, because II tho pyramid were
intended only as q tomb there was
practically no use for this elaborate
grand gallery. with its strange and re-
markable features, except perhaps to.
temporarily accommodate the granite
plugs which still close the lower end
Of the ascending passage, but which
ind fit too tightly to have been slid
into position. At an angle of about
twenty-six degrees eight minutes It
hopes up for 155 feet, its height %
feet. and its width above the ramps
nearly seven feet. Its great sides are
clearly marked by seven overlapping
layers Of stone. while 1t Is rooted by
thirty-six slabs. Bordering the third
overlapping layer is a finely finished
narrow groove extending right round
the gallery; it is but one of several
remarkable and inexplicable features
which distinguish this part of the
structure.
"A twenty-inch ramp borders each
side OF the gallery. extending right up
to the great step, which is just one
yard high. Each ramp contains twen-
ty-etght rampholes, over nearly all OF
which, for some strange and as yet
unknown reason, shallow holes have
been chiseled out. and a neat close
fitting stone let in.
"As most pyramidists are much per-
picked by this feature and have ad-
yanced theories ! must venture mine.
1t is just possible that the places CHS
eled out originally contained inscrip-
lions. which the king for some reason
desired to obliterate II became nec-
essary then to remove-to chisel out
the disfigured parts caused by the OBJ
liberation and replace them by a close
fitting let-in stone.
I'm 1905 discovered on the twenty
sixth course Of the south flank a simi-
lar let-in stone, to the reverse side of
which still adhered buff-colored CO.
ment. 1t had doubtless become de-
tached from the face of n falling cas-
Ing stone. Clearly incised in tho
dressed surface was the full tenth
part Of an 1S-inch diameter circle. II
was the only known inscribed stone
ever found on the great pyramid. l
would Judge 1t had been let into a
south flank casing stone at a place
from which another inscription had
been for some reason chiseled out"