precipice, the bottom of which is strongly illuminated through a hole
in the surface rock more than 200 feet above. Standing on the verge of
this awful pit in the dim light, the rocks and crags seem to take on
most weird shapes. We go down into the great hole by a ladder eighty
feet high and twelve wide, and, reaching the bottom, are as yet but at
the mouth of the cave, which, by the bye, is called _Xtacunbi Xunan_
(the hidden lady), because, say the Indians, a lady was stolen from
her mother and hidden there by her lover. Now, to our right, we find a
narrow passage, and soon another ladder; the darkness is intense and
the descent continuous, though irregular, like a series of hills and
dales, ladders being placed against the steepest places.

After an exhausting journey we reach a vast chamber, from which
crooked passages lead in various directions to wells, seven in all,
each named according to the peculiar kind of water. One, always warm,
is called _Chocohá_ (hot water); another, _O[c]ihá_* (milky water), and
_Akabhá_ (dark water). About 400 paces away from the chamber, passing
through a very narrow, close passage, there is a basin of red water
that ebbs and flows like the sea, receding with the south wind,
increasing with the northwest.

*Transcriber's note: [c] denotes upside-down 'c' in original.

To reach the most distant well, we go down yet one more ladder, the
seventh. On one side of it there is a perpendicular wall, on the other
a yawning gulf, so when one of the steps, merely round sticks tied
with withes, gave way beneath our feet, we tightly grasped the stick
above. Having reached the bottom of the ladder, we crawl on our hands
and feet through a broken, winding passage about 800 feet long, then
see before us a basin of crystalline water, and how thirsty we are!