cules, it will take up a strong man in its 

 viewless arms, and hurl him out of the 

 entrance as if he were an intruder." 



"When I get to be a man," cried John, 

 with an eager look in his eyes, "I'll find 

 out where that ruffianly wind comes 

 from." 



"I do hope you may," the guest re- 

 sponded, "for as yet no satisfactory 

 theory as to its origin has been ad- 

 vanced." 



"Have you ever examined other 

 caves?" Howard asked in a tone of in- 

 terest. 



"Yes, several, and all of them were 

 curious for one thing or another. I need 

 not speak of the Great Mammoth which 

 stands at the head of all caves, so far as 

 size is concerned, for you are all, doubt- 

 less, quite familiar with it ; but there is a 

 cave near Staunton, Virginia, which I 

 admire quite as much as the Mammoth, 

 on account of the variety of interesting 

 objects it contains, and it is of no mean 

 dimensions either. There is one room in 

 it called 'Gnome King's Palace,' which is 

 two hundred and fifty feet long, and 

 ninety feet high. By the way, do you 

 little people know what a Gnome King- 

 is?" 



"I do," Howard responded promptly, 

 "I've read many fairy tales. Gnome is 

 an ugly little dwarf, who lives under the 

 ground to guard mines, quarries and 

 caves." 



"Right. I see you read to remember. 

 Well, the 'Gnome' in Weyer's cave has a 

 magnificent palace for a little dwarf. It 

 has a grand, vaulted roof, and a per- 

 spective four times the length of an ordi- 

 nary church. I do not know how much 

 hidden treasure he guards in his subter- 

 ranean abode, but he certainly must have 

 an eye to art, as he has ornamented the 

 room with a gigantic statue which bears 

 the name of 'Washington.' 



"But, besides this palace, 'Gnome' has 

 a 'Cathedral' and a 'Senate Chamber.' 

 The 'Senate Chamber' is really quite su- 

 perior to the one we have in Washington. 

 Its silence was profound. I noticed that 

 the 'Speaker's chair' was empty, but the 

 gallery was filled with visitors, who have 

 waited there, who can say how long? 

 There arc two towering columns on a 

 base of cornelian-colored stalagmite, a 

 'Jacob's Ladder,' a 'Bottomless Pit,' and 



a 'Tower of Babel,' which is some thirty 

 feet high and surrounded by pillars as of 

 ice. 



"There are also beds, curtained in deli- 

 cate frettings of lace, pulpits with ivory 

 tracings, besides common objects, such as 

 vegetables and fruits in abundance. John, 

 there is one thing which I am sure you 

 would like to see. It is an 'Opossum up 

 a gum tree,' as lifelike as possible. 



"I shall see it some day," said John. 

 "I'm going to be an explorer." 



"I was much interested in a spring of 

 sweet water, quaintly surrounded by 

 stalactites and stalagmites," added the 

 guest. 



"If you please, sir, what is the differ- 

 ence between the two?" queried Edith. 



"Stalactites grow down, stalagmites 

 grow up; sometimes the two meet in 

 mid-air and form a pillar. The growth 

 of stalagmites varies according to the 

 frequency of the fall of the drops of 

 water which form them ; these sometimes 

 fall every moment ; sometimes, three or 

 four moments. There are some mam- 

 moth stalagmites, whose formation 

 doubtless consumed hundreds of years 

 for every single foot ; but ordinarily 

 stalactites are thought to grow at the rate 

 of one inch in twenty-five years, while 

 stalagmites grow only a quarter of an 

 inch in the same period. Some caves have 

 stalagmites twenty feet high. Think how 

 long these must have been in forming." 



John was not very apt in mental arith- 

 metic and did not wish to stop to count 

 up the age of an ordinary stalagmite 

 twenty feet high, so he asked — "What 

 is the very oldest stalagmite you ever 

 saw?" 



"There is a fallen column in Luray 

 cavern, which is said to weigh one hun- 

 dred and seventy tons. Scientists declare 

 that at least seven millions of years were 

 consumed in its formation." 



"Seven million !" exclaimed the aston- 

 ished children. "How did they ever find 

 it out?" 



"By computing the time it took to form 

 the vertical stalactites which have formed 

 upon it as it lies," was the reply. 



"You saw that old ancient with your 

 own eyes," said John in an awed tone of 

 voice, as if the stone must have com- 

 municated something of its venerableness 

 to the beholder. 



in 



