CREATURES OF DARKNESS 225 



snowballs. To the touch they were as cold as marble and as 

 stiff as though rigor mortis had set in. There were times when 

 I was certain they were dead; but deep inside their bodies, 

 that wonderful gift called life still persisted, and in the spring 

 on the first warm day they relaxed and began squirming and 

 chattering. The total number of days they had hung suspended 

 was one hundred and twenty-seven; in all those hours the feet 

 never relaxed, nor did they change their position. That is a 

 long time to hang in one place. An equivalent action would be 

 for a man to pass the winter asleep on his feet, though, no 

 doubt, many business men would be willing to swear they 

 have witnessed a comparable display among their employees. 

 How very tenacious this suspension is, however, I did not 

 realize until I found the second cave. 



This cave turned out to be a magnificent place of dome-like 

 arches and fretted ceiling. In places the roof had fallen in, 

 leaving jagged holes through which the sunlight streamed in 

 long fingers. The light gave the cave a soft unearthly glow 

 which faded in the distance to utter blackness. I had difficulty 

 finding the cave and only vague direction to guide me. If it had 

 not been for the bats I probably would not have found it at 

 all. With Timonias tied safely to a tree, I was making camp, 

 chopping some wood for a fire and preparing a scanty supper. 

 The sun had gone down and the sky was becoming tinged 

 with deep purple. To my surprise I saw what I thought was 

 smoke issuing from a distant hillside. I knew there was no one 

 within miles and the geology of Inagua was not volcanic. The 

 wisplike smoke grew thicker and I dropped what I was doing 

 and dashed over. When I came closer I saw it was not smoke 

 but a horde of bats coming out of one of the holes in the roof. 

 The twilight had deceived me. Hundreds were pouring out 

 of the cavern; in a steady stream they rose out of the ground 

 and disappeared in the velvety dusk. 



