beautiful upper grotto, whose natural entrance is situated 150 yards
above the present one. This latter was blasted out about thirty years
ago.

Upon following the direction of the great crevices, we reach a small
chamber, wherein are found the Oubliettes of Gargas--a vertical well
65 feet feet in depth. The aperture that gives access to this strange
well (rendered important through the paleontological remains collected
in it) is no more than two feet in diameter. Such is the general
configuration of the grotto.

In 1865 Dr. Garrigou and Mr. De Chastaignier visited the grotto, and
were the first to make excavations therein. These latter allowed these
scientists to ascertain that the great chamber contained the remains
of a quaternary fauna, and, near the declivity, a deposit of the
reindeer age.

As soon as it was possible to obtain a permit from the Municipal
Council of Aventignan to do so, I began the work of excavation, and
the persistence with which I continued my explorations led me to
discover one of the most important deposits that we possess in the
chain of the Pyrenees. My first excavations in Bear Hall were made in
1873, and were particularly fruitful in an opening 29 feet long by 10
wide that terminates the hall, to the left. I have remarked that these
sorts of retreats in grottoes are generally rich in bones. Currents of
water rushing through the entrance to the grotto carry along the
bones--entire, broken, or gnawed--that lie upon the ground. These
remains are transported to the depths of the cave, and are often
stopped along the walls, and lie buried in the chambers in
argillaceous mud. Rounded flint stones are constantly associated with