I have received many e-mails re this series so while I am doing nothing else, I'm going to type up another section of the article. See part 1 for credits. Tom was unfortunate enough to remark that the cave would have been such an elegant monastery; and said that the lives of those who had buried themselves here were about as useful as the lives of the monks. McCarlin, being an Irishman and a Catholic, was in a state of internal combustion immediately; fire flashed from his eyes; and turning to my friend, he commenced a discourse upon theology, that, although smothered for the moment by a gracious reply, burst forth at times afterward throughout our whole journey. We next beheld the Giant's Coffin, and admired the image upon the ceiling of an Ant-eater, which was denominated by courtesy a panther. Having made our way through the Valley of Humility, a low, narrow passage, that would scarcely admit one of our bloated Wall-street spiders, (it is the fashion to abuse the rich,) we sat down in an ampitheatre [sic] beyond, and refreshed ourselves from a littl runnel that meandered over the solid stone floor. It would be impossible to describe everything in this cabinet of the world's wonders; so I shall beg my readers to consider us as having passed the mouth of Purgatory, which gave rise to another fierce attack upon Protestantism, and as now fairly launched upon Echo River. The silence of eternal solitude reigned over all; the deep waters flowed sluggishly beneath our batteau, and far into the air shot the bold precipitous cliffs of the shore. It reminded one of floating at midnight, through the midst of Indian enemies, down one of the wild rivers of the Far West. Above us hung the pall of darkness, unbroken by a star, made more visible by the faint glimmer of our lamps; beneath lay the water, equally dark, unless when casually a ripple reflected a gleam of light. On each side stood a perpendicular wall of stone, upon the high ledge of which the eye readily imagined the dim outlines of trees and grass and flowers. Black clouds seemed to have wrapped all in their embrace, and nature was hushed as when a storm is brewing. There was a feeling of undefined danger and oppression, and heavy melancholy; until the mind easily converted the fantastic, scarce-seen outlines of jagged rocks into the forms of lurking enemies, or crouching savage animals. No one spoke, until the guide, apparently influenced by the same feelings, poured forth, in his deep rich voice, one of the wild songs of his Indian fathers. The tones rang clear and strong, and were echoed and reechoed back, as if the shades of the mighty dead had taken up the chorus. HIgh would the notes swell, and ring far off into the hidden caverns, and then sink so low as to be scarce heard, while the rushing echo of the first would come rolling back - an answer from another and unseen world. The words spoke of the Indian when he had fallen and wasted before the white man, and struck a melancholy chord in the already excited heart. The final verse was uttered with unusual power, and as the last tones died away, we heard groans and lamentations, as it were wailings from the Spirit Land; sinking feebler and feebler, until the last faint sound had passed away. A pause; and the midnight of silence again settled down. The guide's paddle ceased; the boat rested motionless; quietly I drew a revolver from my pocket and pointing it forward, pulled the trigger. Crash! CRASH! crash! went barrel after barrel, thundering out, and waking a scream from every angle of those vast, awful vaults; every cave sent back the report, scarcely dimished, and the water fairly trembled beneath the stunning sound. A park of artillery in the open air could not have produced half the effect. Forward and back it tore, rolling and thundering, and reverberating from every wall with a terriffic crash! It appeared as though myriads of wild beasts were furiously fighting and yelling, and thousands of savages howling their war-songs. The mad screams of the Roman Amphitheatre, when man and beasts fell slaughtering and slaughtered, were fairly equaled We stood for a few moments awed, until the last rumble had been smothered in the heart of the earth. Then the guide struck up a familiar negro melody of the south, and broke the charm, at once coverting our feelings into those of hysterical mirth. We knew the chorus, and rarely did those subterranean labyrinths ring to a merrier peel poured forth by more powerful voices. The song was just finished as the boat touched the sand of the farther shore, and we had crossed Echo River. As we trudged along, the guide told us many very amusing stories. He was a slave, his mother having been of the African species, and his father an Indian, and was uncommonly smart, having learned to read and write by seeing the gentlemen paint their names with the smoke of the torches on the walls, and then asking how they spelled them. He was conversant with many of the scientific terms for the various formations, and made me rack my brains of their Greek knowledge to answer some of his questions. He asked how the Greek compounds were formed, and readily understood my explanation. He said there had been few accidents in the cave, although the rivers rise suddenly, and frequently shut in travellers, but there is another way of exit through a narrow muddy passage, where one has to crawl in the mire. This pass is properly named Purgatory, as a means of escape from a worse fate. One man had been attacked with fever-and-ague in the cave, but Stephen shouldered and carried him out, a distance of several miles. To be continued - Sandi --- This email is free from viruses and malware because avast! Antivirus protection is active. http://www.avast.com