GROTTO. 
hills, is in the fall of those hills, which is 
beset all about with rocks, and has near it 
a precipitate descent of near twelve fa- 
thoms deep, at the bottom of which there 
continually issues from the rocks a con- 
siderable current of water. The naked 
rocks above the entrance show themselves 
about thirty fathoms high, and the whole 
ascent of the hill above is about a mile, 
and is very steep. As you pass into this 
vault, you go at first upon a level, but ad- 
vancing farther, the way is found to be 
rocky, and uneven, sometimes ascending, 
and sometimes descending. The roof of 
this cavern, in the highest part, is about 
eight fathoms from the ground, but in 
many particular places it is so low, that a 
man must stoop to get along. The breadth 
is not less various than the height, for in 
some places it is five or six fathoms wide, 
and in others not more than one or two. 
It extends itself in length about two hun- 
dred yards. People talk much of certain 
stones in it, resembling men and women, 
and other things ; but there is little matter 
of curiosity in these, being only shapeless 
lumps of a common spar. At the farthest 
part of the cavern there is a good stream 
of water, large enough to drive a mill, 
which passes all along one side of the 
cavern, and at length slides down about 
six or eight fathoms among the rocks, and 
then passing through the clefts of them, 
discharges itself into the valley. The river 
within the cavern is well stored with eels, 
and has some trout in it; arid these can- 
not have come from without, there being 
so great a fall near the entrance. In dry 
summers, a great number of frogs are seen 
along this cavern, even to the farthest 
part of it; and on the roof of it, at certain 
places, hang vast numbers of bats, as they 
do in almost all caverns, the entrance of 
which is either level, or but slightly ascend- 
ing or descending ; and even in the more 
perpendicular ones they are sometimes 
found, provided they are not tod narrow, 
and are sufficiently high. The cattle that 
feed in the pastures through which this 
river runs have been known to die sudden- 
ly sometimes after a flood; this is pro- 
bably owing to the waters having been im- 
pregnated, either naturally or accidentally, 
with lead ore. 
Elden-hole is a huge profound perpen- 
dicular chasm, three miles from Buxton, 
ranked among the natural wonders of the 
Peak. Its depth is unknown, as it is pre- 
tended to be unfathomable. 
Peak’s-hole, and Pool’s-hole, are two re- 
markable horizontal cavities under moun- 
tains ; the one near Castle ton, the other 
just by Buxton. They seem to have owed 
their origin to the springs, which have their 
current through them ; when the water had 
forced its way through the horizontal fissures 
of the strata, and had carried the loose 
earth away with it, the loose stones must 
fall down of course : and where the strata 
had few or no fissures, they remained in- 
tire ; and so formed these very irregular 
arches, which are now so much wondered 
at. The water which passes through Pool’s- 
hole is impregnated with particles of lime- 
stone, and has incrusted the whole cavern 
in such a manner that it appears as one 
solid rock. 
Grotto del Cani, is a little cavern near 
Pozzuoli, four leagues from Naples, the air 
contained in it, is of a mephitical or nbxi- 
ous quality ; it is in truth carbonic acid gas, 
whence also it is called Bocca Venenosa, 
the poisonous mouth. ‘‘ Two miles from 
Naples (says Dr. Mead,) just by the Lago 
de Agnano, is a celebrated mofeta, com- 
monly called la Grotta del Cani, and equal- 
ly destructive to all within the reach of its 
vapours. It is a small grotto about eight 
feet high, twelve long, and six broad ; from 
the ground arises a thin, subtile, warm 
fume, visible enough to a discerning eye, 
which does not spring up in little parcels 
here and there, but in one continued 
stream, covering the whole surface of the 
bottom of the cave; having this remark- 
able difference from common vapours, that 
it does not, 'ike smoke, disperse itself into 
the air, but quickly after its rise faffs back 
again, and returns to the earth ; the colour 
of the sides of the grotto being the measure 
of its ascent: for so far it is of a darkish- 
green, but higher, only common earth. And 
as I myself found no inconvenience by 
standing in it, so no animal, if its head is 
above this mark, is the least injured. But 
when, as the manner is, a dog, or any other 
creature, is forcibly kept below it ; or, by 
reason of its smallness, cannot hold its head 
above it, it presently loses all motion, falls 
down as dead, or in a .swoon ; the limbs 
convulsed and trembling, till at last no 
more signs of life appear than a very weak 
and almost insensible beating of the heart 
and arteries ; which, if the animal is left 
a little longer, quickly ceases too, and then 
the case is irrevocable ; but if it is snatched 
out and laid in the open air, it soon comes 
to life again, and sooner if thrown into the 
adjacent lake.” 
Grotto is also used for a small artificial 
