36 NEW YORK STATE ISIUSEUM 



subsequent enlargement being principally due to the falling of slabs 

 from the ceiling and their removal by the water. 



The structure of the Onondaga limestone caverns can not be 

 determined from the single cave visited at Clarksville and the short 

 sections of passages accessible in the neighborhood of Thompsons 

 Lake. The character of the arch in the heavier beds is quite dis- 

 tmctive but where thinner beds have been undermined the floor is 

 littered with fragments of limestone much as in the larger Manlius 

 caves. 



Section I 



Caverns of the Schoharie valley 

 Becker's cave is located under Lasell park in the village of 

 Schoharie. The entrance at the bottom of the low cliff behind the 

 Lutheran cemetery opens near the base of the Manlius and clearly 

 does not represent a mouth of the cavern. For 115 feet the pas- 

 sage is just high enough to enable one to creep, is between 2 and 

 5 feet wide and slopes noticeably downward. This part is nearly 

 straight, the general direction being s. 15° e. (magnetic). It 

 broadens gradually to 10 feet toward the further end where the 

 floor drops sufficiently to permit of standing erect. Here a drain 

 has been developed in the west wall. This is fairly commodious 

 for 38 feet but drops abruptly to harder beds upon which the water 

 has acted more slowly and the remainder of the passage which 

 extends due west for 68 feet as a widened joint can be traversed 

 only by lying flat. At the further end a crevice in the floor too small 

 to penetrate serves to carry ofif the water to still lower beds, probably 

 the Rondout dolomite. 



The main passage was followed for 230 feet beyond the drain 

 [see accompanying map] to where a small side passage enters from 

 the north. Further exploration was prevented by ponded water and 

 a low roof. This part of the cave is half full of clay and one must 

 progress on hands and knees for almost the entire distance. No 

 stream was flowing through it at the time of this visit and the pools 

 contained no life. Neither stalagmites nor stalactites were found. 

 Clark's cave is on the opposite side of Schoharie creek about 

 a quarter of a mile north of the Gebhard bridge. It opens in the 

 lower Rondout beds and its explorable extent is less than 50 feet. 

 To clear away the clay and rubbish which has accumulated about 

 the mouth and thus drain oflf the water which fills it, would involve 

 the expenditure of an amount of time and labor deemed unjustified 

 in this preliminary survey. 



