THE EARTH. 33 



turnai solitary creatures are usually the only inhabitants ; and taese 

 only in such whose descent is sloping, or, at least, not directly per- 

 pendicular. 



There is scarcely a country in the world without its natural caverns ; 

 and many new ones are discovered every day. Of those in England, 

 Oakey-hole, the Devil's-hole, and Penpark-hole, have been often de- 

 scribed. The former, which lies on the south side of Mendip-hills,* 

 within a mile of the town of Wells, is much resorted to by travellers. 

 To conceive a just idea of this, we must imagine a precipice of more 

 than a hundred yards high, on the side of a mountain which shelves 

 away a mile above it. In this is an opening not very large, into which 

 you enter, going along upon a rocky uneven pavement, sometimes as- 

 cending, and sometimes descending. The roof of it, as you advance, 

 grows higher : and, in some places, is fifty feet from the floor. In 

 some places, however, it is so low that a man must stoop to pass. It 

 extends itself, in length, about two hundred yards ; and from every 

 part of the roof, and the floor, there are formed sparry concretions 

 of various figures, that by strong imaginations have been likened to 

 men, lions, and organs. At the farthest part of this cavern rises a 

 stream of water, well stored with fish, large enough to turn a mill, and 

 which discharges itself near the entrance. 



Penpark-hole, in Gloucestershire, is almost as remarkable as the 

 former. Captain Sturmey descended into this by a rope, twenty-five 

 fathoms perpendicular, and at the bottom found a very large vault in 

 the shape of a horseshoe. The floors consisted of a kind of white 

 stone enamelled with lead ore, and the pendent rocks were glazed 

 with spar. Walking forward on this stony pavement, for some time, 

 he came to a great river, twenty fathoms broad, and eight fathoms 

 deep ; and having been informed that it ebbed and flowed with the 

 sea, he remained in this gloomy abode for five hours, to make an ex- 

 act observation. He did not find, however, any alteration whatsoever 

 in its appearance. But his curiosity was ill requited ; for it cost this 

 unfortunate gentleman his life : immediately after his return he was 

 seized with an unusual and violent headach, which threw him into a 

 fever, of which he died soon after. 



But of all the subterranean caverns now known, the grotto of Anti- 

 paros is the most remarkable, as well for its extent, as for the beauty 

 of its sparry incrustations. This celebrated cavern was first discover- 

 ed by one Magni, an Italian traveller, about a hundred years ago, at 

 Anliparos, an inconsiderable island of the Archipelago.t The account 

 he gives of it is long and inflated, but upon the whole amusing. 

 l( Having been informed," says he, " by the natives of Paros, that in 

 the little island of Antiparos, which lies about two miles from the 

 former, of a gigantic statue that was to be seen at the mouth of a cavern 

 in that place, it was resolved that we (the French consul and himself ) 

 should pay it a visit. In pursuance of this resolution, after \ve had 

 landed on the island, and walked about four miles through the midst 



Phil. Trans, vol. ii. p. 368. 



f Kiroher Mund. sub. 112. I have translated a part of Kircher's description, rather th 

 Touniefort's, as the latter was written to support a Hypothesis. 



voi i. C 



