"What do you make of this?" I asked as they both gave the hole an appraising glance. The three of us were puzzled because it wasn't just a hole in the earth, but rather seemed to be the opening to a large cavity underneath.
"What do you suppose this is?" I asked again.
"Any large animals around here that might have dug it?" queried Brown.
"Possible," I reflected. "Let's have a look."
I was eager to go below and learn more about this mysterious opening in the earth, but it didn't seem to me that Evans or Brown shared my curiosity. We looked for animal tracks in the vicinity, but couldn't find any.
"Who'll go in with me?" I received no response. It didn't matter. By now I was so curious that I decided I would go in alone, if necessary.
I went to my wagon and got a lantern and a ball of large fishing line. Then I picked up all the rope I had, including the rope I used with my mules, and hurriedly went back to the mysterious hole.
I'll admit I was quite excited, and by now Evans and Brown were, too, although it seemed to me they tried to hide their enthusiasm. Perhaps they were just a bit afraid of what might be down there in that strange cavity, yet didn't want to let on that that was so.
I, too, decided to play it safe, so I took the lantern and tied it on to the end of the rope and lowered it into the hole. All three of us bent over the opening and looked in to see what we could see.
As the light of the lantern showed on the sides and bottom of the hole I could see that it was a large one. I particularly wanted to see if there was any damp in the cavity, but the light didn't reveal any.