Cave of Machpelah

“ For some distance beyond the entrance there is not much to attract attention; but as we proceed, at the far extremity the chambers are quite as picturesque as the most noted of the well-known Mammoth Cave. The ceilings, sides and floor are adorned with a multitude of stalactites and stalagmites arranged in fanciful combinations, and assuming a variety of fantastic and beautiful forms. ”

“ The tendency which some calcareous rocks have to produce nitrate of lime is, probably, one of the greatest causes of disintegration.'"
"Most extensive subterranean areas thus have been excavated or undermined in Edmonson, Hart, Grayson, Butler, Logan, Todd, Christian and Trig. In the vicinity of Green River, in the first of these counties, the known avenues of the Mammoth Cave amount to two hundred and twenty-three, the united length of the whole being estimated, by those best acquainted with the Cave, at one hundred and fifty miles ”

“ Even if we could blast our way into the place it came from I wouldn't dare open a path which would allow Lord only knows what terrible monsters to invade the earth. When the soldiers have finished stopping that crack with ten feet of solid masonry, I think the barrier will hold, even against that critter's papa and mamma and all its relatives. Then Mammoth Cave will be safe for visitors again. That latter fact is the only report which I will make."
"It is a dandy story to go to waste," said Carnes soberly. ”

“ It proved to be a flat, uneven plateau of small dimensions, with precipitous walls on every side, except where the trail led downward. Much loose rock was scattered on its surface. Three-quarters of its boundary rose perpendicularly out of the sea. The remainder plunged down into jungle greenery, and the natural clearing that lay between two dense, rank growths on either side. Not far from the center of the table-rock a fair-sized cave, that bore unmistakable signs of former occupancy and fires once ignited on its floor, afforded a highly acceptable shelter, both from the sun and the elements. ”

“ All sense of time and direction are lost in the myriad of decoration, light and shadow, gigantic, often grotesque formations, and the serenity of this underground heaven.
Passing quietly ahead the traveler pauses at the largest "living" stalagmite within the known part of the Caverns, the Crystal Spring Dome. Generally dry, this part of the Big Cave is moist, and water, dripping slowly from the ceiling above, is still depositing its minute quantities of calcium on the mighty Crystal Spring Dome as it has been doing for countless centuries. ”

“ Machocha-El was set by the sun to watch the caves, and many inhabitants of the caves were killed by the sun, if they came out in the day time; they could only come out at night to seek for food. (Dangleria)
This either alludes to the great heat of the sun in Africa and the tropics, or to a dependance of the Lunar or Cave men upon the Solar men. Machocha has some affinities in the South American tribes; Machicuys of Tucumen, Machacalis of Brazil, Chaehas of Perou, Chanchones of Quixos &c.
24th Event. Some men having dared to come in the day time, were changed into stones by the sun ”

“ I have referred only to the surface, the skin formation of this honeycombed labyrinth, the entrance to the future wonderland of the world. Portions of such a superficial cavern maze have been traversed by man in the ramifications known as the Mammoth Cave, but deeper than man has yet explored, the subcutaneous structure of that series of caverns is yet to be investigated. The Mammoth Cave as now traversed is simply a superficial series of grottoes and passages overlying the deeper cavern field that I have described. ”

“ The stalactite formations in this arbor are remarkably beautiful.
One hundred and sixty-five avenues have been discovered in Mammoth Cave, the walk through which is estimated at about three hundred miles. In some places, you descend more than a mile into the bowels of the earth. The poetic-minded traveller, after he has traced all the labyrinths, departs with lingering reluctance. As he approaches the entrance, daylight greets him with new and startling beauty. If the sun shines on the verdant sloping hill, and the waving trees, seen through the arch, they seem like fluid gold ”

“ By kindling a fire in this apartment, or putting all the lamps together so as to create a tolerable heat, the salt 11 comes down in flakes like a fall of fleecy snow. As we trudge along the Main Cave (so called because all the other avenues branch off from it) , the mind cannot but be filled with awe while contemplating the wonders of this immense tunnel. It is as if we were walking through the bed of a river, and the ceiling, generally about sixty feet high, looks something like a cloudy sky ”

“ At the mouth of Spring Creek, on land of John Pillman, near the top of the bluff, is a cave with an entrance 30 feet wide and 30 feet high. A steep rock ledge at the front offers an impassable obstacle to any stock except goats. The front chamber is well lighted for a distance of 80 feet, where it makes a turn. Bedrock is exposed near the entrance and rises toward the rear, showing here and there through the covering of earth, which is not more than 2 feet deep anywhere. Water cracks appear even in the highest spots, proving the floor to be saturated at times. ”

“ A hundred feet beneath it is a larger opening, which is said to give entrance into several good-sized chambers; but that also has been carefully built up with fragments of Limestone by the quarrymen. We were driven accordingly to seek the outlet of the cave, and this we found by following the smooth, straight escarpment, produced by the fault, in a wood close to the mainroad. A large stream once issued from the cave mouth, but has since become engulfed in some internal swallet, and emerges a few yards lower down, welling out from a funnel of crystal water some 15 feet deep. ”

“ Ted clapped him on the shoulder.
“Huh!—These rivers wear away the soft limestone layer,—if it is this kind of a cave,—’till they come to the harder sandstone. Then the first chance they find to get through the sandstone,—perhaps through a crack made by 147an earthquake or something,—they go down and wear away a deeper level. Mammoth Cave is on five levels. That leaves the upper galleries dry. Now the one we were on was dry except for the moisture that is always seeping into a cave, but I suspect now we’re on a level with the river, it’s so muddy, and we’ll find it somewhere.” ”

“ Thousands of inverted spires rain down from above, and on the ground the crinkly rock formations resemble pop-corn in color and appearance although not hardly in flavor! This same pop-corn formation is seen in other parts of the Caverns and geologists say this condition resulted after stalagmites had grown to a considerable height, following which the cave was flooded for thousands of years with water, the excess lime from which accumulated in the tiny globules which give the bubbly appearance. ”

“ Many are small and of inconsiderable depth—mere holes worn in the rock; while others are of a truly astonishing size, and fatigue the wondering spectator as he wanders through their lofty halls or endless galleries. The famous Cave of Adelsberg in Carniola has been explored to a distance of 1,243 fathoms from the chief entrance; and in the Mammoth Cave in Kentucky no less than 226 avenues branch out to the right and left from the main gallery, so as to form a network of subterranean passages and halls of various dimensions, whose total length has been computed at about 160 miles! ”

“ The fauna appears to be nearly identical with that of Kent's Cavern, though the Machairodus is absent. We have, therefore, here another instance of the association of these works of man with the remains of the extinct mammals, in a cave-deposit beneath a thick layer of stalagmite, which, in this case, had been for the most part deposited before the reindeer had quitted the south of England, and while a large bear, probably Ursus spelæus, was still living in Britain. ”

“ It is possible that the pebble-bed in the Pont-newydd cave may have been deposited as the land was rising out of the interglacial or Middle-Sand-and-gravel sea, and that pebbles and loam may then have been introduced into the Cefn cave; but as the neighbourhood could not have been inhabited by land animals until after the emergence of the land, the bones, teeth, and fragments of wood which were found associated with the lowest deposit in the Cefn cave may have been washed in by rain through fissures in the roof. ”

“ No monument marks the grave of these nameless aborigines. Considering the fact that the Cave was resorted to by many generations of red men, it is remarkable that so few human remains have rewarded diligent search.
What are these wooden pipes along the floor? They were laid there by the saltpeter miners to convey the water from the cascade at the entrance down to the leaching vats that are now pointed out to us in the Rotunda. The ruts of old ox-carts are visible in which the “peter-dirt” was carried to the vats from the open avenues, while sacks were used for those more remote. ”

“ Returning to the main passage, the tourist descends 41 steps, and enters the Shawl Cave, a magnificent chamber, the roof of which slopes at an angle of about 43 degrees. Into one side the "formation" of carbonate of lime has floated like lava in volumes, and presents the appearance of a suddenly congealed cascade. All the adjacent rocks are covered with fine sheets of formation, white and coloured, and hanging in graceful folds. On a far-off wall is more formation of a similar kind, projecting from a perpendicular rock, and variegated with superb tracery and colouring. ”

“ Some approximate idea of the extreme age of these caves may be gained from the fact that bones of a three-toed horse have been discovered in a chamber of Crystal Cave that must be practically unchanged since the remains were carried in from the outside, as otherwise they would have been buried beneath the fallen masses of crystal covered rock with which the entire floor is cumbered. ”

“ The blue-gray29 limestone walls have a greater charm than those of an open cañon, owing to the fact that they sweep away from any given point in long, true curves to form an elliptical chamber three hundred and fifty feet long by one hundred and twenty-five feet wide, with the vault above showing absolute perfection of arch, and measuring, by the survey, from its lowest to its highest point, one hundred and ninety-five feet. These measurements are said to be indisputably correct, and if so, the Auditorium of Marble Cave is the largest unsupported, perfect arch in the world ”

“ In this same cave, some seventy years ago, were found huge fossil bones, of the megalonyx, or giant sloth, bear, bison, and stag, and scattered among these animal remains were a few human bones.
But while the adjacent caves each possess an interest peculiar to themselves, Mammoth Cave must continue to remain the most remarkable cavern in our country, not only for its size, but likewise for the marvels which exploration of its labyrinthine avenues has revealed. ”

“ In the next epoch fresh water work began and extensive marshes were formed, with an abundant growth of vegetation and reptiles. There was also much volcanic violence which resulted in the fine scenery in the north end of the Black Hills, and probably opened the fissures to form Wind Cave, the Onyx Caves in the southern hills and Crystal Cave near the eastern edge toward the north. ”

“ Many hurry to and through and away from Mammoth Cave; but let us go in a more leisurely manner. Suppose we begin by a stroll amid the rounded hills that environ Cincinnati. We find their flanks full of corals, shells, crinoids, and other marine objects by myriads. These are fossils, yet perfect as if freshly cast up from the sea. But we observe that the limestone lies in thin, level layers, with no signs of volcanic or earthquake action. They were gently cut down by an undermining process that left no caverns, because the strata are so thin that they can not hold together. ”

“ They are full of artistic feeling and are evidently drawn from life. The mammoth is engraved in its own ivory, and the reindeer and the stag on their respective antlers. Further researches have revealed the fact that in Auvergne and in the Pyrenees the cave-men ornamented some of their caves with incised figures and polychrome frescoes of the wild animals. ”

“ The fourth, which seems to run southward, is also unexplored. Some time ago the curator was lowered into it, a depth of 80 feet, but he has not been able to make any examination of its interior. Next is the Mammoth Cave, so called because of its vast chambers. One of these is estimated to be upwards of 300 feet high, 100 feet long, and 100 feet wide. It contains a large amount of [Pg 187] formation, the prettiest portions of which are about 200 feet from the floor. The roof is so high that the magnesium lamp is hardly strong enough to bring it into view. ”

“ Life Enters the Caverns
At the time the limestone beds were beginning to crack, which we noted was some 60,000,000 million years ago, the huge reptiles and other prehistoric animals were playing hide and seek on the surface above the site of the developing Caverns. At that time the cave hadn't yet been formed—the underground seepage of water was just beginning to find the crevices below the gypsum and rock salt and begin its erosion which was to continue slowly for so many centuries. ”