4 81 6. J The unparalleled 



The walls (all of stone) arc arched, and 

 are from forty to eighty feet perpen- 

 dicuhvr height, before the arch com- 

 mences. 



The first wliich I traversed, after cut- 

 ting arrows on tlie stones under our feet, 

 pointing to the mouth of tiie cave (in 

 fact, we did this at tlie entrance of every 

 avenue, that v.e should not be at any 

 loss for the way out on our return), was 

 one tliat led ns in a southerly direction 

 for more than two miles. We t!ien ieit 

 it and took anotlier, that led us cast, 

 tlien north, for more than two miles fur- 

 ther; and at last, in our windings, were 

 brougiit out by anotiier avenue into the 

 cliief city again, after traversing dill'erent 

 avenues for more than five miles. 



We rested oursuK cs for a few minutes 

 on some limestone slabs near tlie centie 

 of this gloomy area, and after having re- 

 freshed us and trimmed our lamps, we 

 took our departiuo a second time, 

 through an avenue almost north, and pa- 

 rallel with the avenue leading from the 

 chief city to the mouth of the cave, 

 ■which we conthiued I'or upwards of two 

 miles, when we entered tlie second city. 

 This is covered witli one arcli, nearly 

 two hundred feet high in the centre, and 

 very similar to the chief city, except in 

 the number of avenues leading from it — 

 this having but two, 



We passed through it over a vei'y 

 considerable rise in l!ie centre, and de- 

 scended through an uvejme which bore 

 to the cast, about three hundred rods, 

 when we came upon a third area, about 

 one hundred feet stjnare, and .fifty in 

 Leight, whicli liad a pure and delightful 

 stream of water issuing from the side of 

 the wall about tliirlj l'i;et high, and v. hicli 

 fell upun some broken stone, and was af- 

 terwards entirely lust to our view. After 

 passing tiiis beautiful sheet of water a 

 few yards, we came to the end, of this 



pasnagc. , ; .wl:'!,i' ,j',,;!;, ' '' , ■ 



Wc then reliirBca ?i»oqt one huti- 



dred yards, anil entcre(l'a siiiall avcnUe 

 (over a considerable mass of stone) to 

 our riglit, wlilch carried us south, 

 through an tmooninionly Idack avenue, 

 somethiug more than a mile, when wc 

 ascended a very stee() hill about sixty 

 yaids, which carried us within the \^alls 

 of the fourth city, vliicli is not inferior 

 to tiieseciiiid, having ;in ;ireli that covers 

 at least six acres. In (Iiis last avenue, 

 the further end of which must be four 

 miles from the chief city, and ten. from 

 tlic mouth of the cave, :'re upwards of 

 twenty large piles of sail pelrc earth oh 

 WoNuiLV Mac. No.2«Jl. 



Cavern of Kentucky. 425 



one side of the avenue, and broken lime- 

 stone heaped up on tiie other, evidently 

 the work of iiuman hands. 



I had expected from the course of 

 my needle, that this avenue would have 

 earned us round to (he chief city; but 

 was sadly disappointed wlieu I found 

 the end a few hundred yards from the 

 fourth city, which caused us to retrace 

 our steps; and, not having been so par- 

 ticular in marking llie entrances of the 

 dillercnt avenues as I ought, we were 

 very much bewildered, and euce com- 

 pletely lost for fifteen or twenty mi- 

 nutes. 



At length we found our way, and, 

 we.iry and faint, enlercd the chief city 

 at ten at night; however, as iiuioh fa- 

 tigued as I was, I determined to ex:- 

 plore the cave as long as my lights held 

 out. 



AVe now entered the fifth and last 

 avenue from the chief city, which car- 

 ried us south-east about "nine hniidied 

 yards, when we ei.tered t!ie fifth cit}-, 

 whose arch covers upwardsof four acres 

 of level ground strewed with broken 

 lime-stone. Fire-beds of uncommon 

 size, with bramls of cane lying around 

 them, are interspersed througluiut this 

 city. We crossed over to the opposite 

 side, and entered an avenue that carried 

 us east about two hundred and fifty 

 rods, when, finding nothing intere.ning in 

 this passage, we turned back, and crosr 

 sed a massy pile of stone in the moullx 

 of a large avenue, which I noticed, but a 

 few yards ftom this last mentioned city, 

 as I came out of it. After some diffi- 

 culty in passing over this mass of lime- 

 stone, we entered a large avenue, whose 

 walls were the most perfect of any that 

 we saw, running almost due south for 

 five hundred rods, and very level and 

 straiglit, with an elegant arch. When 

 at the end of this avenue, and while I 

 was sketching a plan of the cave, one of 

 niy guides, who had been some tima 

 groping among the broken stone, called 

 out, rec^uesting me to follow him. 



I gathered up my pajiers a\id compass, 

 and after giving my guide, who sat with 

 me, orders to remain where he was 

 until we returned, and moreover to keep 

 his lamp in good order. I followed 

 after tlie first, who had entered a \erlical 

 [lassage just large enough to admit his 

 liody. Wc continued to step from ono 

 stone to anoUier, until at last, after much 

 diiliculty from the smallness of the pas- 

 sage, which is about forty feet in height, 

 WC entered ujiwi the side of a chamber, 

 ai at 



