20 THE MAMMOTH CAVE. 



By the aid of this illustration it may also be 

 comprehended why so much travel' is neces- 

 sary, as will be presently stated, to visit the 

 different parts of the Cave. We are obliged to 

 follow each tributary of the chief river to its 

 source, and to return by the same route to its 

 mouth, at the point of our departure; thus 

 duplicating the distances of all the rivers, 

 creeks, etc. 



It is exceedingly difficult to obtain informa- 

 tion regarding the early history of the Cave, 

 simply from the fact that it was not explored to 

 any great extent for several years after its dis- 

 covery, and that the early explorers did not 

 regard it as a curiosity of sufficient importance 

 to call for the publication of any detailed ac- 

 count. It has been stated by Bayard Taylor,* 

 and others, that the discovery of the Cave 

 dated back as far as the year 1802 ; but we are 

 fortunate in possessing a highly interesting and 

 valuable letter from Mr. Frank Gorin, a former- 

 proprietor of the Cave, addressed to the author 

 some months after his visit, and, with permis- 

 sion, hereto appended in full, which fixes the 

 ^date of the discovery in the year 1809. The 



* At Home and Abroad : A Sketch-Book of Life, Sceneiy, and 

 Men. By Bayard Taylor. New York, G. P. Putnam & Son, 1867. 



