FOWKE] ARCHEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATIONS 141 



feet back, and the change of direction, even at that distance, is very 

 slight. The saltpeter miners started at the entrance and removed all 

 the earth lying from 3 to 6 feet higher than the present floor, which 

 is nearly level. They carried their work along the surface of a 

 stratum of gravel, sand, and clay, which is so compact as to be diffi- 

 cult to remove with a pick, and seems to belong to the stream which 

 carved out the caveni. The " face " where they quit work is 5 feet 

 high, and the earth is quite dry, breaking down in angular frag- 

 ments and separating from the walls so freely as to leave no residue 

 on them. Its original depth at any point, however, may be very 

 easily ascertained by noting the different tints or shading of the 

 wall rock, the lower part, which was protected by earth, being dis- 

 tinctly lighter in color than that above, which was exposed to atmos- 

 pheric weathering and, for a time, to the smoky torches and candles 

 of the workmen. 



The distinct lamination of the saltpeter earth, as shown in the 

 " face," proves it to have been laid down slowly and intermittently 

 in still water. It could not be determined whether tliis was due to 

 the river in flood periods, or to a gentle stream from the interior 

 whose volume varied in accordance with weather conditions. There 

 is also a small channel along the top of the earth, filled with gravel 

 and sand, as if the overflow of a stream far back in the mountain had 

 been diverted in this direction after the laminated deposits had be- 

 come dry and settled. 



The walls are 10 feet apart near the entrance, but are not more 

 than 8 feet elsewhere and in some places the width narrows to less 

 than 3 feet. They also have an inward slope at the bottom, so the 

 cave is either shallow or else so narrow at no great depth as to be 

 uninhabitable. This fact, and the character of the material de- 

 posited by the ancient drainage stream, make it hopeless to expe(!t 

 result from exploration. 



McDerment's Ca^^s. — There are two caves 100 yards apart, in 

 Brown's Valley, 11 miles southwest from Guntersville. The larger 

 has a descent of 21 feet from the front to the general level of the 

 first floor. All this part is well lighted. The drainage from several 

 acres of the mountain side above pours over the roof at the entrance 

 and runs down the inner slope. It has worn a gully, and the first 

 level it reaches is quite muddy. Leaves and trash 3 or 4 inches deep 

 are piled on and against the loose stones toward the side where the 

 water seeks an outlet. It has worn a crooked channel along this 

 side of the chamber, and falls into a hole which at a depth of 10 or 

 11 feet below the floor makes a turn and passes from sight. So it 

 is certain that soft wet clay extends more than 30 feet below the level 

 of the entrance. The drier deposits of this room have been exten- 

 sively worked for saltpeter, and a much greater quantity of earth 



