onderful growth of snow-white cave vegetation, before
ascending into Santa Claus' Pass, the longest passage in the cave. It is
a rough crevice named from the fact of being discovered on Christmas
Eve, and ends at the Government Room on the main tourist route where a
U.S. pack saddle and apparently portable bath tub are conspicuous.

Next beyond is a very large room named New Zealand, on account or its
icy appearance and the undisputed possession of a seal. This room in
turn opens into Mold Chamber, where an old board platform, formerly used
for the display of specimens, has fostered the most marvelously
beautiful growth of mold: it hangs in ropes five and six feet long, with
tasseled ends, and in broad, looped draperies; but is most beautiful
where it has taken possession of the rocks and spreads out on the flat
surface like large open fans, with deep, soft feather borders.

Having been in the cave eight hours, we now followed the outward passage
from Mold Chamber and soon reached an open trap door where the guide
suggested to Herbert that he would be afraid to go down alone and allow
him to close the door; but the child surprised him by quietly stepping
down and then asking why he wished it, only to be told "because we are
coming too." Which we did and found ourselves in the main entrance
passage, and in due time returned to the outer world where a terrific
wind was roaring through the tall pines and the early winter evening had
already closed in dark.

The guide locked the cave, walked with us to the house where he lighted
a lamp and left us to prepare for the return to town; but the lamp,
belonging to a bachelor, was empty, so we made our preparations in
imitation of the blind. On the guide's return he lighted a candle, but
suggested that twenty minutes were generally allowed for reaching the
station.

The house was accordingly closed and as we walked down the long, curving
slope to the stairway, he told of a new and unknown bob-tailed wolf that
has recently made its first appearance among the hills in considerable
numbers and to the terror of stock. It attacks and bites horses or
cattle, and after waiting for the fatal poison inflicted to take effect,
falls to and eats the victim.

The uncovered platform which serves as a station being reached a few
minutes before the train arrived, I expressed an unwillingness to detain
our guide longer on account of his having a walk of four and a half
miles to his home; but