Preparation of Hydrosulphurate of Iron. 231 
the extremity of this room the cave forks, the right soon termi- 
nates, the left rises by a flight of rocky stairs, nearly ten feet high, 
into another story, and has a S.E. direction. In this room the 
roof has a regular arch from 5 to 8 feet high, and from 7 to 12 
feet wide, which continues to what is called the Creeping Place, 
‘where it becomes necessary to crawl 10 or 12 feet to get into 
the next room, from which to the distance of one mile anda 
quarter, there are many large and small rooms, variously situ- 
‘ated, At the end of this journey, a stately white pillar presents 
itself, which is about 15 feet in diameter, and from 20 to 30 in 
height, regularly reeded from top to bottom. In the vicinity are 
several other smaller pillars of the same description. Mr.Adams 
‘was not certain what were the constituents of their columns, but 
lime appeared to be the base. Major Warren states that they 
are the satin spar. 
The cave abounds in sulphate of magnesia or Epsom salts, 
which is found in a great variety of forms, and different stages 
of formation—sometimes in lumps from 1 to 10 pounds, from 
‘the surface to three feet» below it,—the walls are: covered with 
“the same article. Mr. Adams removed from a spot in the cave 
every vestige of salt, and in four or five weeks the place was co- 
vered with small needle-shaped crystals resembling frost. 
The quality of salts is very superior—the worst earth yielding 
four pounds to the bushel, and the best from 20 to 25 pounds. 
The cave also contains great quantities of nitrate of lime or salt 
‘petre earth; nitrate of alumina, or nitrate of argil, each yielding 
‘an equal quantity of saltpetre. The sulphate of lime is seen va- 
riously formed, ponderous crystallized, soft, or light and spongy; 
there are also vestiges of the sulphate of iron, and small speci- 
‘mens of the carbonate and nitrate of magnesia. The rocks in 
the cave are principally of carbonate of lime or common lime- 
stone. 
Mr. Adams closes his letter by stating, that near the forks of 
~ the cave are two specimens of painting, probably of Indian origin. 
One appears to be a Savage with something like a bow in his 
hand, and furnishes the hint, that it was done when that instru- 
ment of death was in use. The other isso much defaced that it 
is impossible to say what it was intended to represent. 
PREPARATION OF HYDROSULPHURATE OF IRON. BY PRO= 
FESSOR TURTE OF BERLIN*. 
ie Wishing in one of my lessons to demonstrate the decompo- 
sition of water by sulphur and iron, I had in due proportions 
(25 and 15) mixed the filings of very fine wrought iron with 
* Kastner’s Pharmacie, p. 201. 
P4 pulveredzi 
