590 WALKER COUNTY. 



western limits of the county ; quantities of lead, particularly 

 near Ringold, and almost every mineral found in limestone for- 

 mations. In the vicinity of Gordon's springs, near the Red 

 Sulphur springs, and on Col. Ramsey's plantation, and indeed 

 in almost every section of this county, the geologist will find 

 much to interest him in the fossil remains which he meets 

 with at almost every step. Very recently a bed of gypsum 

 has been discovered near Ringold. 



Caves. — Walker has many caves. The most remarkable 

 is Wilson's cave, of which the following description is taken 

 from Sears's Wonders of the World : 



" Upon the representation of the citizens of Lafayette, a 

 small but growing village, in the county of Walker, Georgia, 

 my attention was drawn to a subterranean cavern, five or six 

 miles from the above-named village ; and being rather an ad- 

 mirer of the works of nature, curiosity prompted me, accom- 

 panied by five or six others, to visit it. 



" The company being met, with lighted torches we entered 

 the cave, through a small aperture, descending a flight of 

 natural stairs almost perpendicularly, some ten or twelve feet. 

 The company having all got down safe, I could not avoid, in an 

 ecstasy of admiration and wonder, exclaiming, " O Lord God 

 Almighty, how wonderful are all thy works !" for we were 

 then shown the grandest and most magnificent room that I 

 have ever beheld, formed on each side with the utmost regu- 

 larity, and ceiled overhead with a perfectly smooth surface ; 

 and being desirous of viewing as minutely as we could, from 

 the amplitude of this anomaly of nature, its various curiosities, 

 we raised a considerable light, and illuminated the room as 

 far as we could by the means we had, when we discovered 

 that an almost infinite number of stalactites had been formed 

 by the almost continual dripping of the water, resembling in 

 size and appearance various animal bodies. 



" Being somewhat satisfied with our examination of this 

 apartment, with our hearts glowing with wonder, love and 

 praise to the Architect of Nature, we moved slowly and rather 

 pensively along this solitary and hitherto unexplored mansion, 

 through devious wiles of " incognita loca," in quest of new 

 discoveries. 



