THE DWELLING HOUSE 



tain distinction between those chiefly occupied by men 

 and the mere dens of wild beasts. The latter are 

 generally more difficult of access, and are only to be 

 entered by long, low, narrow, dark passages. Those 

 permanently inhabited by man are wide, not very deep, 

 and they are well lighted. That at Montgaudier, for 

 instance, has an arched entrance some forty-five feet 

 wide by eighteen high. The cave-men had early 

 learned to appreciate the advantages of air and light. 



"The caves are often of considerable height; that 

 at Massat is some 560 feet high, that of Lherm is 655, 

 that of Bouicheta nearly 755, that of Loubens 820, 

 and that of Santhenay is as much as 1,344 feet high. 



"We soon begin to find evidence of the progress 

 made by man, and though in Neolithic times he still 

 continued to occupy caves, he learned to adapt them 

 better to his needs." 



In the Petit Morin Valley, for instance, "the shelters 

 used to live in are divided into two unequal parts by 

 a wall cut in the living rock. To get into the second 

 partition one has to go down steps cut in the limestone, 

 and these steps are worn with long usage. The en- 

 trance was cut out of a massive piece of rock, left thick 

 on purpose, and on either side of the opening the edges 

 will show the rabbet which was to receive the door. 

 Two small holes on the right and left were purposely 

 used to fix a bar across the front to strengthen the 

 entrance. A good many of these caves are provided 

 with an opening for ventilation, and some skilful con- 

 trivances were resorted to for keeping out the water. 

 Inside we find different floors, shelves, and crockets 



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