The Lambertville Record

Port Jervis, Dec. 14.—A strange phenomenon occurred at Walker Valley, a village on the eastern slope of the Shawangunk Mountains, on the night of December 10th, which has caused much local excitement. At about 7 o'clock a muffled, far-off sound, as of thunder, followed by a jarring sensation, was experienced by the people of that place. The following morning an excavation was discovered in a field on the farm of Silas Kline, which had the appearance of having been made recently, and which measured 20 feet in length, 12 feet across, and 10 feet in depth. The earth and stones from the excavation were over a space 25 yards in width and 100 yards in length. The opinion prevails that the noise heard the previous night was made by the explosion that produced the upheaval. There is a difference of opinion as to the cause of the explosion, but it is generally believed to have been occasioned by subterranean gases.