324 MOSTLY MAMMALS 



existence before the later Pliocene or early Pleistocene 

 period. 



Caves of sufficient dimensions to have developed a special 

 fauna of their own are met with in so many parts of the 

 world, that it would be tedious to give a list even of those 

 which are most generally known. Among those that have 

 attained the widest degree of celebrity is the Mammoth 

 Cave, situated in a hill of limestone in Edmonston County, 

 a little to the south-west of the centre of Kentucky. This 

 enormous cave is adorned with the most beautiful stalactitic 

 and other deposits, which, when lit by the magnesium or 

 the electric light, form an enchanting sight. Messrs. 

 Packard and Putman write that "in the drier localities, 

 where the floors are dusty and everything indicates the 

 prolonged absence of moisture, the ceiling is covered with 

 a white efflorescence, that displays itself in all manner of 

 beautiful shapes. It requires no stretch of the imagination 

 to discover among these the perfect form of many flowers. 

 The lily-form prevails, and the ceilings of many of the 

 chambers are covered with this beautiful stucco-work, 

 surpassing in delicacy and purity the most beautiful work- 

 manship of man. These are not produced by the dripping 

 of water, and the gradual deposit of sulphate of lime upon 

 the outer portions. The stalactite is formed in this manner ; 

 but these are neither stalactitiform nor are they produced 

 in a similar way. The efflorescence in the drier portions of 

 the cave cannot take place where there is much moisture. 

 The growth of these beautiful forms is from within, and the 

 outer extremities are produced first. They are the result 

 of a sweating process in the limestone, that forces the 

 delicate filaments of which they are composed through 

 the pores upon the surface of the rock, their beautiful 

 curved forms resulting from unequal pressure at the base, 



