Traces of Troglodytes. 295 



started by Indians there could be no doubt. Their 

 pottery, their implements, and bones of wild ani- 

 mals only were found. Deer, wild turkey, mussels 

 from the creek, and nuts from the trees had been 

 their main-stay, and no white man would have 

 hungered with this at hand. Retired and beauti- 

 ful as the place is, I think no one would have pre- 

 ferred it to the shelter of the grand old woods that 

 covered the surrounding hills. Even with a glow- 

 ing bed of coals in front of it, it must always have 

 been damp and depressing except in winter, and 

 the difficulty of access when ice and snow covered 

 the ground also an objection. We agreed in this : 

 that the cave was for ages a place of temporary 

 shelter rather than one of permanent occupation. 



There was one most striking feature of the cave, 

 a " window," as the farmers called it, in the east 

 wall, and yet it was scarcely intended for such a 

 purpose unless the front was veiled. This hole 

 made me more sceptical of its natural origin, and 

 seemed more probably designed as a means of 

 communication with the next cave, for there was 

 once another ; possibly several more. For a long 

 distance along the creek this same shale-like rock 



