THE MAMMOTH CAVE. ro | 
supposed to pass directly over a considerable 
portion of the Cave. At the date of our journey 
—the latter part of May—this road was in a 
comparatively good condition ; but in the winter 
and early part of the spring it is said to be al- 
_ most impassable to travelers. The greater part 
of the soil is a light-colored, sticky clay, with 
a little sand at intervals. The rocks are com- 
posed chiefly of soft white limestone, easily 
acted upon by chemical and mechanical agen- 
cies; hence we find them excavated and jag- 
ged, presenting rough, irregular outlines; their 
outside color is of a dirty, grayish character, 
owing to exposure to the elements, but the inte- 
rior 1s white. | 
There are small cultivated patches of ground 
here and there, scarcely deserving the name of 
farms. The country generally is covered with 
straggling forests, consisting chiefly of “ black- 
jack,’ white oak, chestnut, etc. Frequently 
along the road may be seen small circular de- 
pressions in the ground, called “sinks,” the 
surface having fallen in in consequence of sub- 
terraneous excavation. The whole of the sur- 
rounding country appears to be of a cavernous 
nature; and, if the traveler should be so unfor- 
tunate as to possess a timid disposition or large 
