226 



HARDWICKE'S SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



convenient for inspection, without, however, detract- 

 ing from its rugged aspect or in any way giving it 

 an artificial appearance. It will be well for me, 

 before entering into a detailed description of the 

 interior of this most interesting grotto, to preface 

 my remarks with a short explanation' as to the 

 origin and formation of those wondrous incrusta- 

 tions known as stalactites and stalagmites, which 

 form the great objects of interest in the cave. 



Stalactites are of frequent occurrence in lime- 

 stone strata ; they are produced by the gradual 

 percolation through the fissures, abundant in these 

 formations, of water saturated with carbonic acid ; 

 the acid, uniting with the limestone of the rock, 

 forms carbonate of lime, which is slowly deposited 

 from the calcareous solution upon the roof and floor 

 of the cave. The long brittle pieces, in appearance 

 like icicles, which depend from the roof are called 

 stalactites, whilst those which incrust the floor are 

 termed stalagmites. The time occupied in the de- 

 position of these objects must in some cases be very 

 considerable, extending even to thousands of years, 

 as in the cavern of which I write there were two 

 stalactites rather less than a quarter of an inch 

 apart, and I was informed that daring the thirty- 

 eight years which have elapsed since the discovery 

 of the cave the distance between them has not per- 

 ceptibly lessened. This marvellous cave has been 

 visited by multitudes, including many persons of 

 note, all of whom have expressed themselves de- 

 lighted with the wonders it unfolds, and tourists in 

 the neighbourhood will be well repaid by paying it 

 a visit, as its beauties cannot be fully described in 

 words, but must be seen to be appreciated. 



It is lighted throughout by small jets of gas, and 

 entrance is obtained by a long passage, which opens 

 up at its furthest extremity into three or four 

 minor recesses ; and all of these are iucrusted with 

 stalactites, some of them heavy and solid, others 

 thin and fragile, whilst others again, like miniature 

 columns, reach from the roof to the floor of the 

 cave. As the visitor passes through the cavern, 

 the attendant raises and lowers the gas, so as to 

 exhibit the most striking effects, which could not be 

 seen to advantage without the aid of a strong light. 

 And, indeed, the effect, when thus regulated by the 

 amount of light, is most marvellous. Some of the 

 stalactites, thrown prominently into view, with 

 their varied shapes and colours, call to mind the 

 joints of meat hanging in a butcher's shop, whilst 

 others, left in the shade afforded by some dark 

 recess, remind one of the weird and fantastic 

 figures of hobgoblins and other preternatural beings, 

 such as are depicted and described in books of fairy 

 tales. The colours, too, of these incrustations are 

 very diversified, some being dark brown, some red, 

 others again of a reddisli yellow tint (probably 

 owing to the abundance of sesquioxide of iron con- 

 tained in them), whilst a fourth kind are of the 



purest white. Again, some are quite opaque, and 

 others semi-transparent, the latter being, in many 

 instances, of a light colour in the centre, with two 

 or three darker stripes at the edge, much resem- 

 bling a blanket. 



Some stalactites, principally those which depend 

 from the roof, bear so striking a resemblance to 

 articles of household use that they have received 

 the names of the objects they represent. 



At different parts of the cave there are pools of 

 beautifully clear water, in which the stalactites are 

 as faithfully reproduced as in a mirror : the water 

 contained in these little hollows is deliciously cool, 

 but has rather an unpleasant mineral taste. The 

 last feature in these beautiful objects to which 

 I will allude is the wonderful power they possess 

 of emitting remarkably clear and distinct musical 

 sounds when struck ; and so varied are these tones, 

 that I believe it would be possible to fiud in the 

 cave stalactites which would produce all the notes 

 of the gamut. 



There are other smaller caverns at Cheddar be- 

 sides the one I have been describing, but as these 

 are very damp, and not lighted with gas, besides 

 being less plentifully iucrusted with stalactites, 

 there is nothing to be gained by paying them a 

 visit. There is also a cave at Bam veil, not very far 

 off, calledlthe "Bone Cave"; so named from the 

 fact of its being completely filled with the bones of 

 various animals (principally quadrupeds), supposed 

 to have lain there for ages, but about which none 

 of the inhabitants seem to kuow much ; the cave 

 being, however, in private grounds, aud the charge 

 for admission high in proportion to the convenience 

 afforded, it is not so much visited as the stalactite 

 cavern at Cheddar. The second great natural curi- 

 osity here is the vast fissure in the Mendip Hills 

 which has received the name of the "Cheddar 

 Cliffs." These cliffs, which at their highest point 

 tower to an altitude of nearly 400 feet, form 

 a tortuous chasm, through which a road winds for 

 about the distance of a mile. At the commence- 

 ment of the rauge stands what is called the " Lion 

 Rock"; a solid block of limestone which bears a 

 striking resemblance to the " king of the forest." 

 After passing this rock the road is so circuitous in 

 its course that a different view is obtained at each 

 of its numerous bends. This adds greatly to the 

 magnificence of the scene, in which bold masses of 

 solid limestone form a good contrast to the darker 

 foliage of small trees and shrubs springing up from 

 the numerous clefts and ridges, and the overhanging 

 ivy which festoons the cliffs. Here, too, rising out 

 of the crevices may be found different species of 

 ferns, but principally the common polypody {Poly- 

 podium vulgare) ; and it is in this particular locality 

 that the rare pink {Dianthns casius) is to be met 

 with ; though it is scarcely prudent for the enter- 

 prising botanist who desires the possession of these 



