A Book of the United States: Exhibiting its geography, divisions, constitution, and government ... and presenting a view of the republic generally, and of the individual states; together with a condensed history of the land, from its first discovery to the present time. The biography of about two hundred of the leading men: a description of the principal cities and towns; with statistical tables
History
A Book of the United States: Exhibiting its geography, divisions, constitution, and government ... and presenting a view of the republic generally, and of the individual states; together with a condensed history of the land, from its first discovery to the present time. The biography of about two hundred of the leading men: a description of the principal cities and towns; with statistical tables
United States -- Biography; United States -- Description and travel; United States -- History
‘It is supposed that Green river, a stream navigable several hundred
miles, passes over three branches of this cave. It was nearly one
o’clock in the morning, when we descended the passage of the chimney,
as it is called, to the guide who sat on the rocks. He was quite
alarmed at our long absence, and was heard by us a long time before we
reached the passage to descend to him, hallooing with all his might,
fearing we had lost our track in the ruins above. Very near the
vertical passage, and not far from where I had left my guide sitting,
I found some very beautiful specimens of soda, which I brought out with
me. We returned over piles of saltpetre earth and fire beds, out of one
avenue into another, until at last, with great fatigue and a dim light,
we entered the walls of the chief city; where, for the last time, we
trimmed our lamps, and entered the spacious avenue that lends to the
second hopper. I found, when in the last-mentioned large avenue, or
upper chamber, many curiosities; such as Glauber salts, Epsom salts,
flint, yellow ochre, spar of different kinds, and some petrifactions,
which I brought out together with the mummy, which was found at the
second hopper. We happily arrived at the mouth of the cave at five
in the morning, nearly exhausted and worn down with nineteen hours’
continued fatigue. I have described to you hardly one half of the cave,
as the avenues between the mouth of the cave and the second hopper
have not been named. There is a passage in the main avenue, about sixty
rods from the entrance, like that of a trap-door. By sliding aside a
large flat stone, you can descend sixteen or eighteen feet into a very
narrow defile, where the passage comes upon a level, and winds about
in such a manner us to pass under the main passage, without having
any communication with it; and at last opens into the large passages,
just beyond the second hopper. It is called the Glauber salt room, from
salts of that kind being found there. There is also the sick room, the
bat room, and the flint room, all of which are large, and some of them
quite long. The last that I shall mention is a very winding avenue,
which branches off at the second hopper, running west, and south-west,
for more than two miles. This is called the haunted chamber, from
the echo of the sound made in it. The arch of this avenue is very
beautifully incrusted with limestone spar; and in many places the
columns of spar are truly elegant, extending from the ceiling to the
floor. I discovered in this avenue a very high dome, in or near the
centre of the arch, apparently fifty feet high, hung in rich drapery,
festooned in the most fanciful manner for six or eight feet above the
hangings, and in colors the most rich and brilliant. The columns of
spar, and the stalactites in this chamber, are extremely romantic in
their appearance, with the reflection of one or two lights. There is a
cellar formed of this spar, called Wilkins’s armed chair, which is very
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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