“All sounds underground are magnified,” Captain Hager explained. “Even the dripping of water can be very loud. Off to the right there is a Talking Grotto. But we will not explore that passage, for Bart would not waste time there.”
To proceed, it was necessary to creep across a slippery formation which resembled a frozen waterfall. They passed through a room which was cluttered with grotesque toadstool types of stalagmites, and then came to formations so delicate that they appeared as a lacy cobweb.
As they sat down to rest their legs for a moment, Captain Hager told the girls that the beautiful pillars they had seen farther back were made by the joining of stalactites and stalagmites.
The growth of formations, he added, was much faster than generally believed. Varying rainfall, the thickness of the rock penetrated by water, and the rate of drip, all affected the deposits, he explained.
“All water that goes into a cave, must come out somewhere,” the captain continued. “During a hard rain storm, this cave could be dangerous at the lower levels.”
“You mean we’d get the rain down here?” Kathleen questioned in amazement.
“Belatedly, yes. Shortly now, you’ll see the underground river. During the dry months it shrivels, but in the rainy season, it thunders through the chasms like a mad demon.”
“I hope it doesn’t storm today,” Kathleen said nervously.
“The day was clear,” Captain Hager reassured her. “And there has been no recent rain to flood the underground stream.”
Farther on, the girls came to a series of small pools in which there were blind fish. They did not tarry long, but continued through another long, narrow passage.