Wonders of the great Mammoth Cave of Kentucky, containing thorough and accurate historical and descriptive sketches of this marvelous underground world . alls converge and the ceiling descends until the 12 WONDERS OF T H EJ passage is rather small. At this place is swung-a massive iron gate, always secured by lock andkey, to protect the beauties and wonders of theinterior from the depredations of vandals. Inwaid to this gate anyone may go at anytime without paying a fee, but beyond this noone is allowed to pass except those who havepurchased cave tickets and are accompanied bya guide. ANIMAL L
Wonders of the great Mammoth Cave of Kentucky, containing thorough and accurate historical and descriptive sketches of this marvelous underground world . alls converge and the ceiling descends until the 12 WONDERS OF T H EJ passage is rather small. At this place is swung-a massive iron gate, always secured by lock andkey, to protect the beauties and wonders of theinterior from the depredations of vandals. Inwaid to this gate anyone may go at anytime without paying a fee, but beyond this noone is allowed to pass except those who havepurchased cave tickets and are accompanied bya guide. ANIMAL LIFE Animal life is not very abundant in thegreat cavern, and vegetable life is almost entire-ly wanting. Near the entrance to the cave, andamong the remains of the old saltpeter works,are a few cave rats, which were well known bythe early miners. During the winter m3Tiadsof bats may be found clinging to the ceiling andwalls of some of the chambers and avenues notfar from the mouth of the cave, but these cavebats are only the ordinary little brown bats ofthis latitude, and other kindred varieties, whichenter the cavern merely to pass the long, cold. GREAT MAMMOTH CAVE 13 months of winter. At a few places along theRiver Route are found specimens of a small,light-brown beetle; and in other places along thesame route, where old timbers from bridges havebeen thrown, are seen a few white some of the chambers of the cave are innu-merable cave crickets. These bear but littleresemblance to the ordinary cricket, being almostperfectly white, and having very long, slenderlegs and small bodies. BLIND FISH By far the most interesting animal of thevast cavern is the wonderful blind fish—Ambly-opsis spelaeus—of Echo river and adjoiningwaters. This little fish, only three or four inchesin length at maturity, is almost perfectly white,has not the least vestige of eyes, and is withoutscales. It has dorsal, ventral and pectoral finswell developed, and the tail is a single
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, bookpublishercarri, bookyear1912
