EXTRAORDINARY DISCOVERY.

New Zealand Tablet, Volume IV, Issue 181, 15 September 1876, Page 13

EXTRAORDINARY DISCOVERY.

Intelligence has reached us of an extraordinary discovery in the shape of several large caves containing fossil remains supposed to be those of some extinct animals, having been made in the limestone country between Cowra and Canowindra. We have at present before us a letter written by one of the party of four by whom the discovery was made. From that letter we take the following information : — The entrance to cave No. 1 was accidentally discovered by the party above referred to, when engaged in work in the bush, and, as already stated is in country of limestone formation. The mouth of the cave is very large, but the roof gradually falls, and progress can only be made upon the hands and knees for the space of about twenty feet, when there is another abrupt rise, and a very large cavern is entered. The astonishment of the exploring party on discovering this cave was great, but more astonishing discoveries were before them. Entering the roomy space and searching for further openings they came across a, Large deposit of bones — about five feet in width — embedded in a layer of different colored soil, between two layers of limestone. The writer says : — " This strange deposit is about fifty feet from the surface, but I cannot give you a description of the bones just yet as we did not like to disturb them. There was one bone, however, which we could not help observing above the others, as it was larger than any exposed to view. It is about twelve or thirteen inches in length, and about an inch and a half in diameter. There are thousands of bones in the heap, and lam sure they are not those of a kangaroo. We intend to forward some of them to Sydney by and bye, in order to ascertain what animal they belowed to. Below the spot where there remains were found, the writer says, there is another cavity about twenty feet deep, where other bones are to be seen. He also says that there are many other caves leading from the one described, and he promises to give a full description when he and his party have made further researches.

Cave No. 2 is described as being in the same hill and about 100 yards distant from Cave No. 1. To this cave there is a splendid entrance, which extends some fifty or sixty feet inwards, when it narrows down, as in the first mentioned cave, the explorers being under the necessity of crawling for some distance on their elbows and knees. A roomy cave is then entered, but nothing very striking appears. Satisfied that there were other compartments further on the party made a careful search, but for a long time could find no outlet. At last one of the four discovered a small hole in the back wall of the caye — a hole "just about large enough to put your hand through." Tha.t hole was after some trouble made larger, and cautiously and tremblingly one after another of the party crawled through the newly made aperture, and then found theoiselves in a cave of narrow dimensions. A descent of several feet upon a narrow ledge of rock brought them to an opening "just large enough for a man to get down through" — and down the plucky fellows went, and again crawling for twenty feet with their faces near the ground, they found themselves in a cave of large dimensions and grandeur. The writer says :: — lf This is the principal cave, as far as we have yet discovered. The scenery is truly magnificent : the stalactites, &c, forming a very grand sight. The height from the floor is eighty or ninety feet ; and there are some twelve or fourteen different openings leading into other cavities. Into some of these we ventured, but from others we were driven by the foul air. The sights in some of them are beautiful to behold. Strange to say, in the deepest part of the large cave there is the same sort of strata as we found in the first cave, and, stranger still, there are many bones here also. These bones are lying 300 or 400 feet lower in the earth than were the bones we saw in No. 1 cave."

The writer then proceeds to say that he and his mates intend to explore numerous other underground palaces, the entrances to which they had discovered, mentioning that on their next expedition they will enter a cave " about 100 feet perpendicular before there is any bottom." He also promises to send fuller particulars at a future time.

The names of this venturesome exploring party are T. J. Peters, A. Potts, T. O'Shaughnessy, and J. O'Shaughnessy. It is somewhat remarkable that the discovery of these subterraneous caverns has not been made before this, for we are informed by the recipient of the letter from which we have taken the above extracts that the spot is not isolated, and the cave 9 must have been passed and re-passed by numerous travellers. We shall await with some interest the analysis of the bones discovered in such an unusual place, and will not fail to give our readers the benefit of information relating thereto which may come to us in the future. — ' Bathurst Free Press/