Chapter 7
When, in addition to the sustenance provided by deer and other large game, there is taken into consideration the great numbers of wild fowls which frequented the rugged hills and numerous streams; the multitude of small mammals which found security in the myriad cavities and crevices in the cliffs; the abundant food supply in the river; and the further fact that so many mortars and pestles meant the utilization of nuts and the cultivation of corn and no doubt of other foodstuffs as well; it is apparent that the problem of mere subsistence was one with which the natives had but little need to concern themselves. That full recognition was accorded to these advantages is amply attested by the great quantity of flints found everywhere in the vicinity, the numerous workshops on the hills and in the bottoms where the ground is thickly strewn with débris in every stage from the intact nodule or block to the finished implement, and the amount of refuse not only in this cavern, but in the Saltpeter Cave in the same bluff and in the Freeman or Ramsey Cave 3 miles down the river on the opposite side. Miller's Cave, however, possesses an additional advantage, one probably not to be found elsewhere. This is the absolute security of its inmates from the attack of an enemy. The mouth of the cave is in the face of a perpendicular bluff, the wall on either side so smooth that not even a squirrel can obtain a foothold. The upper stratum of the precipice projects to such an extent that a rope or a ladder let down from above would fall several feet beyond the outer edge of the floor. Below, there is a vertical drop of 30 feet to the top of the rough talus which is as steep as rocks and earth will lie. If an assailant, by approaching from either side, should reach the foot of this bluff he would offer a fair target for stones rolled or hurled down by defenders who are safely out of reach of missiles from any direction.
The only means of entrance is a small opening in the west wall, communicating with another cave. This is so restricted in size as to permit the passage of only one person at a time, and he must assume a crawling or crouching posture. This opening, which for distinction will be called the doorway, has its top, sides, and bottom coated with stalagmite formation; so it may once have been somewhat larger than at present. The limited amount of the deposit over the natural rock at either end of the orifice is evidence, however, that it could never have been high enough for a man to walk through without stooping, or wide enough for two persons to pass each other; consequently one man armed with a club or other weapon could easily guard it against any number who might attempt to enter.
The cavern from which this opening leads, and which will be called the outer cave, is close to and nearly parallel with the face of the bluff, and its course is therefore approximately east and west, forming nearly a right angle with the main cavern. It has a slight curve, so that the doorway is not visible to one who is approaching from the outside until he is within a few yards of it.
The outer cave has its beginning at a point where the bluff bends toward the north; that is, where there is a shallow reentrant curve, formed by the face of the cliff breaking away at this part and rolling down the hill; a considerable portion of this cave itself has been thus destroyed, as shown by another entrance into the bluff beyond. Much talus has accumulated in this cave, over which there is at present a fairly easy though winding and zigzag path to the entrance from the top of the hill, and a rough and difficult way from the bottom. It is a natural presumption that dwellers in the cavern had well-constructed though necessarily devious pathways of easy grade to both the top and the bottom of the hill; but owing to the loose nature of the débris on the outside slopes all trace of these, when abandoned or no longer kept in repair, would soon be obliterated by surface wash, landslides, and the roots of trees.
By the side of the upper trail, at the bottom of the sandstone ledge capping the hill, are many large blocks which have split off from this stratum. On the flat surface of two of these are about 25 figures, pecked into the stone apparently with a pointed flint implement. One of them measuring 6½ by 30 inches, shown in figure 11, bears some resemblance to a flying bird. All the others are of uniform design, an oval or elliptical figure with a straight line or bar passing through an opening in one end. These vary from 4 to 18 inches in length; two of them are shown in figure 12. Owing to the rough weathering of the stones accurate tracings were not possible, but the illustrations give a fairly correct idea of the inscriptions as they originally appeared.
The front part of the outer cave is partially filled with large rocks, gravel, and clay, which have fallen or been washed in. A window-like opening on the right, or south, side admits additional light. Near the inner end the cave divides, one branch going to the southeast and opening in the face of the bluff, the other turning north and terminating abruptly near the doorway, which is worn through its rear wall. A rough diagram (fig. 13) with some measurements is appended to show this cavern's peculiar structure.
Feet. Width at mouth (A) 17 From mouth to "window" (B) 21 Width of window (B), which has a very irregular outline 3 From window to where cave divides (C) 39 From corner of divide (c) to opposite corner (H) 13 From corner (H) to rear wall 11 Greatest width, from (B) to (F) 22 Width from (C) to (G) 10 From north wall near (G) to face of bluff (D) 28 Height at mouth from talus to roof 8 Height from floor to roof between (C) and (G) 13 Lowest point in the cave (near C), below entrance (A) 7 Mouth, at (D), lower than floor at (C) 4
A small amount of refuse on the floor suggested use of the outer cave for residence or shelter; but excavations at several points uncovered bedrock, with very irregular surface, at depths of 6 inches to 2 feet, the earth containing very little refuse and no ashes. On the talus at the entrance, and also at the bottom of the bluff in which the caves open, is much refuse which the inmates threw out as rubbish.
The front chamber of the main cavern is quite regular in form, going straight back like a vault for 80 feet, then turning abruptly westward with a width of 47 feet, the west wall making almost a right angle at the corner. The east wall abuts squarely against the rear; a narrow crevice leads eastward from their junction, but as this was filled with water and mud no exploration in it was attempted.
The floor of the front chamber, from wall to wall, and from near the front to within 27 feet of the rear, was entirely of ashes, no earth being visible until the extremity of these at either end was reached. The floor of the western extension is covered with fine earth, washed in, which gradually increases in volume until it fills the cave to within a foot of the roof. It was not examined beyond this point.
Measurements show these dimensions:
Width of cave at mouth feet 64 Least width of cave, 24 feet from mouth do 45 Greatest width of cave, from doorway to branch in cave in eastern wall feet 74 Shortest distance from line of least width to line of greatest width, as given above feet 18 From mouth of cave to doorway do 51 Height of doorway inches 42 Width of doorway do 33 Length of floor of doorway do 56 § From mouth of cave to top of slope of ashes at rear feet 84 From top to bottom of slope of ashes at rear do 16 From foot of ash slope to rear wall do 27 Extent of ashes in turn of cave along foot of wall beyond corner of west wall feet 22 Width of these ashes, from foot of wall to the pool of water do 22 Width of cave from corner of west wall to east wall do 56 From corner of west wall to rear of cave do 47 Height of extreme front from floor at edge of bluff to most projecting ledge above feet 35 Height from shelf or ledge near front of east wall to general level of roof feet 14 Height from ashes to roof at middle of cave do 10
§ This measure also represents the thinnest portion of the wall separating the main cave from the outer cave.
The walls were, as is usual in caverns, somewhat irregular, there being a narrow bench or shelf along each side near the front, while projections and indentations alternated from front to rear. There were numerous small holes and crevices, enlargements of seams and joints by percolating water at an early stage in the cave's history. These furnish homes for various wild animals, and nearly all of them contain bones, sticks, and trash taken in by ground hogs and wood rats which seem to find much pleasure in carrying such things from place to place.
The work of excavation began at the extreme front of the cave, where the original bottom, a mixture of sand, clay, and chert gravel, had been exposed through removal of the ashes by winds and driving rain. Almost immediately rocks, large and small, fallen from walls and roof, were encountered and interfered greatly with the digging. In the upper foot of the clay were streaks of sand and ashes, among which a mussel shell and a flint chip were found; and the top of the clay was quite uneven, appearing as if carried and thrown here, as perhaps some of it was early in the occupancy of the cave, with the object of making a more even or level floor farther back. But this admixture was only superficial; below it, the material had all the appearance of a running water deposit.
A ledge extended along the east wall for 40 feet, with a width of 12 to 14 feet; at the inner end it was about 4 feet below the general level of the floor. At 8 feet below its top a second ledge projected from it, sloping toward the center, slightly for 8 feet then more rapidly for 10 feet farther, where it merged into the bedrock. Then came level, nearly smooth rock for 18 feet, to the foot of the slope of the west wall, 14 feet out from that side of the cave. This was probably the original drainage channel.
By the gradual erosion of new channels through the limestone and the consequent abandonment of old ones, subterranean drainage is continually altering its direction and force. In this way caverns may be left entirely dry, with bare floors; or may, especially if they receive the drainage of sink holes, be partially or even entirely filled with débris thus carried in. Like others, Miller's Cave has undergone such changes. It was begun by clear water; enlarged by erosion and by breaking down of walls and roof; presently clay, sand, and gravel were carried in; finally the water no longer flowed through the front, but found its way out in some other direction. In time the deposits became sufficiently dry to afford a good site for camps and for permanent occupation. There is no way of ascertaining the rate at which these changes took place; it may have required many centuries to make an appreciable difference in appearance; or, on the other hand, the transition from one stage to the next may have been rapid.
Along the foot of the ledge from the east wall the clay was only a few inches deep; farther out on the ledge, and on the projection extending from it, were layers of red sand. Occasionally a small patch of it appeared along the western side. Probably it was washed in among the last of the natural deposits.
There was considerable chert gravel mixed with the clay, making excavation as difficult and laborious as digging up an old, much-traveled macadamized highway.
The surface of the ashes sloped upward rather rapidly for a distance of 29 feet from the front. Kitchen refuse, found in them from the start, contained many mussel shells; bones, including those of bear, deer, panther, turkey, and other large fowls, tortoise, turtle, fish, and various small mammals and birds; potsherds; broken flints, with the débris of chipping work; mortars, pestles, hammers, and mullers. Near the west wall, 14 feet from the mouth, imbedded in the ashes and a foot below their surface, was a well-preserved cranium, shown in plate 17, e, f. There were no other bones, not even the lower jaw; it seems to have been thrown here and covered with the dumped ashes.
At 18 feet from the mouth the rocks became larger and so numerous as to be almost in contact, projecting above the ashes and imbedded in the clay down to bedrock; they extended for 22 feet farther in and to within 14 feet of the west wall. The clay attained its highest level at the beginning of this pile of rocks, having an elevation of 9 feet above bedrock; it became lower toward the interior, with its surface everywhere rough and irregular.
The rocks were too large to be either moved or broken up, and owing to the condition of the roof an attempt to reduce them by blasting would have been attended with great danger, so they were perforce left in place and as much as possible of the clay between and under them dug away. Beyond those near the front, others, not reaching the top, were found one after another buried in the clay; owing to their constantly increasing number, and to the inward slope of the east wall, the limits of the excavation gradually narrowed, hampering the movements of the workmen, and it was necessary to handle the earth two or even three times to get it out of the way. There was growing risk, too, of the projecting rocks splitting off or breaking out of the clay matrix. As some of them weighed several tons, the danger became too imminent, and efforts to continue along the bedrock had to cease.
Two other attempts were made to get to the bottom; one at 40 feet from the mouth just beyond the large rocks on the surface, and one at 15 feet farther in. The last one started on an area 8 by 15 feet, which would have been ample if the sides could have been carried down even approximately straight. Neither of these efforts met with success, for the same reason that led to the abandonment of the first one.
From here to the end, examinations were confined to the deposit of ashes. The surface, except as it had been disturbed by relic hunters, was practically level from wall to wall, but the depth varied with the undulating top of the clay beneath. Where it was deepest, in the central portion about 50 to 75 feet from the mouth, the deposit had a thickness of 6 feet. From this it diminished to about 3 feet on the sides, with an occasional thinner patch on a narrow shelf formed by a ledge or a crevice. The average thickness was close to 4½ feet, so the amount was not far from 800 cubic yards. This was composed entirely of ashes from small fires for cooking, heating, and lighting purposes, increased to a very limited extent by kitchen waste, and by discarded or mislaid wrought objects. It represented the combustion of many hundreds, perhaps of thousands, of cords of wood, all of which had to be carried in from the hilltop or slopes and passed through the constricted doorway. This labor would be a sufficient guarantee of economical use; we may be sure that no fuel was wasted. If proof were needed of such a self-evident proposition, it would be found in the almost complete absence of charcoal; here and there, but seldom, a small mass of it showed that a burning chunk, covered up, had smoldered until the inflammable portion was consumed. Bunches or handfuls of coarse grass or small weeds had undergone the same process. Perhaps these had been used as kindling.
In all the deeper parts the ashes had been dumped promiscuously, from fires made at other points; no camping fires seem to have been made along the middle of the cave until the depressions in the clay had been at least partially filled. The ashes in the upper 4 feet of the ash beds where these were deepest, and in nearly all the shallower portions, were stratified and usually level, though at the front and rear the strata followed the natural incline of the slopes. The first impression was that the ashes had been carefully spread out, or dragged, to make their surface even; but it was discovered, when shoveling some of them for the second time, that ashes may assume this appearance no matter how carelessly thrown. The ashes at the top, to a depth of 3 or 4 inches, were as fine as flour, and when shoveled back hung in clouds for hours at a time, to the great discomfort of the excavators, whose eyes, throats, and nasal passages were in a state of constant irritation. The stratified or laminated, hard-packed condition below the loose surface means, perhaps, that they were occasionally sprinkled and trampled by the occupants to prevent this trouble. Possibly they were covered with mats, skins, weeds, or leaves, in the parts where the inmates congregated. The loose, incoherent condition of the lower portions, which "shoveled like snow," may denote that only a few persons dwelt here at first, who found ample room on the higher ground near the doorway. However, all such attempts at explanations are not much better than mere guesswork, and we must be content with accepting the facts as we find them.
Where the ashes were white and packed hard, whether on the site of a fire or in thin layers where thrown, they contained very little extraneous material; whereas in the darker, more mixed material broken bones, potsherds, shells, and other refuse were abundant, while there was scarcely a cubic foot anywhere in which was not found a piece of flint or bone, sometimes several such objects, which had been intentionally altered from their natural condition.
Near the center of the cave was a curving pile, 6 by 2 feet, and several inches thick, of mussel shells of every size from less than an inch to above 5 inches in length; more than half of them were over 3 inches. None of them showed any marks of fire; some had both valves in position, as if they had never been opened, and a few of the larger of these had been filled with small shells and closed again. A few were broken, but most of them were entire. About 1,400 valves were in this pile, meaning that at least one-half of that number of mollusks were consumed.
The first interment was found at 46 feet from the front, 14 feet from the east wall. The folded skeleton of a very old person lay on the right side, head east, in loose ashes, on a large flat rock whose top was 30 inches below the surface. This rock had not been placed here, but had fallen from the ceiling; probably its existence was not known until it was uncovered in digging the grave. The skull still retained its shape, in part, being held in place by the ashes, but fell in pieces when this support was removed. A portion of it was gone; two fragments were found, several feet away, not near each other, one of which fits in the skull, and the other probably belongs with it also. The frontal bone is nearly half an inch thick; the sutures partially obliterated; the teeth worn down to the necks, some of them nearly to the bone; the forehead is low and receding. A restoration is seen in plate 20, a, b. In addition to the missing portions of the skull, most of the ribs, half of the lower jaw, and nearly all the dorsal vertebræ were absent, probably having been dragged away by ground hogs. The bones are all light and fragile. Lying above the skull, in contact with it but supported by the ashes on both sides, was half of a large mortar hollowed on both sides. Above the skeleton, and extending for several feet on every side, was an undisturbed stratum of closely packed ashes, 17 inches thick at the middle, which broke off under the pick in large clods; these, of course, had accumulated after the body was interred.
The spongy condition of these bones, in spite of the preservative action of the ashes, is evidence of the fact frequently noted, that with advancing age some change takes place which renders them less resistant to destructive influences. Bones of children only a few weeks old near this skeleton held their structure perfectly and were easily secured.
Ten feet east from the pile of mussel shells, at a slightly lower level, was nearly half a gallon of snail shells which had been boiled, probably in soup. With them were a few pieces of bones.