The Country round Lyell North-East 



find some natural shelter, but without success, until one 

 of the party came upon an opening less than 2 feet in 

 height near the foot of the cliff. This did not appear 

 promising, but he said it would serve him for a bed- 

 chamber in case of emergency as it extended some 10 

 feet into the rock and then terminated abruptly. There 

 would be just room for one man to lie, and though it 

 might turn out to be rather stuffy it would at all events 

 be dry. 



Leaving the " Troglodyte," as we at once christened 

 him, to prepare his chamber, we were just returning from 

 a fruitless search on the opposite side of the valley, 

 having made up our minds to face the worst, when we 

 heard him calling and saw him standing outside his 

 cave beckoning to us excitedly. 



On reaching him he told us that he had found a 

 small opening or chimney in the roof of his bed-chamber 

 and that with assistance he thought that he would be 

 able to climb it. It was on striking a match to light his 

 pipe that he had noticed the opening. 



With some assistance the Troglodyte managed to 

 scramble up the chimney, and called down to us that he 

 was in a large dry chamber, but could not say how 

 large. With one man at the top to assist, it was an 

 easy matter for the rest to join him, and there, sure 

 enough, was a large cavern, so far as we could judge 

 about 30 feet high and of about the same width, leading 

 off in both directions from the hole up which we had 

 climbed and running parallel to the face of the cliff 

 outside. 



To our left that is towards the dry valley the 

 floor of the cave fell away rather steeply, but to the right 



147 



