194. 
cave on Six Mile Creek, in Bibb County, and, in response to a request 
for a sample of the deposit, sent it with the following communication : 
In reply to your favor of September 9, I would say I have visited the cave in ques- 
tion, and forward by to-day’s mailsamples of excrement of bats and dirt from the floor 
of the cave. This material was used by the confederate government during the war, 
for manufacture of saltpeter. Both the dirt and the excrement are found in large 
quantities. 
The entrance to the cave is 104 feet high and 20 feet wide. Thirty feet from the en- 
trance the interior is about 15 feet high, and here commences a series of rooms con- 
taining the dirt and manure. A tram-road, used by the confederate government, runs 
a quarter of a mile into the cave, but beyond this it has never been explored. Its ex- 
tent is, therefore, unknown. It is in a limestone formation, and situate seven miles 
from the Selma, Rome-and Dalton Railroad, and half a mile from Six Mile Creek. 
Mr. J. A. V. Pue writes from Bandera, Tex.: 
In reply to circular of May 27, 1875, I have the honor to state that there is a bat cave 
situated on West Verde Creek, about 8 miles southwest from Bandera, on a survey 
belonging to Joseph Ney. During the war large quantities of saltpeter were manufac- 
tured from it for a time, when it was fired accidentally or designedly. It is now a 
mass of ashes, from 3 to 5 feet in depth, as far as it has been exploured—a distance of 
about 400 yards. The width of the cave is from seven to thirty feet. The deposit has 
never been used for agriculttfral purposes. 
Subsequent to the time of writing the above, Mr. Pue forwarded, by 
request, to the Department a sample of bat excrement of fair quality, 
as is evident from the statement of analysis given below. 
Besides the sources ‘already mentioned, we have received specimens 
from Mr. L. A. Downs, Cave City, Ky., and from Benton County, Arkan- 
sas. We have made analyses of seven of the specimens received, and 
their composition is detailed in the following table : 
Sand, clay, insoluble silicate .........--.. 
UV Ei yee Pe One ¢ es ee 
Organic volatile matter......-.-..--..--- | 
Alumina and sesquioxide of iron...-.---.. 
Soluble phosphoric acid........-..--.-..- 
Insoluble phosphoric acid ........-----..| 
PAM er sa l256 tb -- - fs - OE & eo- 
LT AGT Ae ee ee ee 
puMmnuricacid(i:. LIL J FOI Ss 
Chlorine As «os cos em- oe oF 5 
Nitric acid. 
Organic nitropentecats-- 272+ s-3 
Amonia (N. H.) corresponding to organic 
mtragentss2 22282 23st Pe et INS. 
PACGN ANAM MONI oon acca sece= Season om: 
mdetermined. << 2.5225 sect Csaee Se 5525 
The Roman numerals, at the top of the tables, represent different 
samples as follows: 
I. Sample from Brierfield, Ala. Part of the deposit from which it was 
taken was burned during the war, but this sample represents that por- 
tion which remains uninjured. 
II. Sample from same deposit representing the remains of the burned 
portion. It has the appearance of dry, sandy soil. 
Ill. Sample from Bandera, Tex. 
IV. Sample from San Antonio, Tex. 
V. Sample from Benton County, Arkansas. 
VI. Sample from Georgetown, Williamson County, Tex. 
VII. Sample from Cave City, Ky. 
These are all very similar in appearance, with the exception of those 
