Page 10 THE BATTALION
MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 1981
Features
‘Cave man’ searches for unexplored beauty
:
United Press International
For the last 30 years, Joe Hoff
man has crawled into just about
every hole in the ground he could
find.
“It’s an exhilarating feeling,”
Hoffman said. “The inside of a
cave is different from anything
else on earth. It’s like departing
from reality.”
When one listens to Hoffman’s
tales of exploration, the fantasy
like, underground world of caves
becomes illuminated — much like
the rainbows of color reflected
from draperies of calcium carbon
ate or the white light that glim
mers off walls made of rock-hard
“snow” and “ice.”
“You’re not looking at anything
man-made/’ said Hoffman, a 51-
year-old spelunker from Wichita
Falls. “It’s really something to find
beauty inside a cave, especially if
you are the very first person to see
it.”
Hoffman’s love affair with cave
exploration began in 1951 when
he was a member of a touring
group traveling through Okla
homa.
When he wasn’t performing,
the bored actor longed for adven
ture and when a local land agent
told him about an unexplored
cave, Hoffman began a week-long
search to find it.
“Finally, I met some Apache In
dian kids and they showed me the
cave’s opening,” he said.
Later, Hoffman talked about
the cave with a local police chief,
who told him of a newspaper arti
cle he had read about a gigantic
cave near Ruidoso, N.M.
“I went there (Ruidoso) and
found the entrance and explored
the cave for six weeks,” he said.
“That’s what hooked me. It (the
Fort Stanton cave) is one of the
most beautiful in the world. I’ve
gone back every year since 1959.”
Hoffman says the Fort Stanton
cave contains formations with ev
ery color in the rainbow and has
crystal balls made of calcium car
bonate that has precipitated from
the ceilings for millions of years.
Hoffman says he enjoys going
into unexplored caves — laying
the groundwork for others and
seeing the beauty before anyone
else.
“I remember this one small
cave about 20 feet long,” he said.
“I looked at it but passed year after
year. Then I found a hole with a
slant opening and crawled in.
Some of the rooms were full of
popcorn’ — small blobs of calcite
formation which were sticking out
from everywhere.”
Hoffman has been digging to
ward another unnamed cave near
Hunt for nine years.
“When the first, small hole was
drilled, the air just shot out be
cause of the pressure inside,” he
said. “We’ve dynamited down to
37 feet and we’re still going. The
air is coming up more and more. I
know there’s a cave there.”
Next year, Hoffman plans to
make his first attempt at a cave in
Acquismon, Mexico. The cave,
with sheer walls plunging 1,092
feet, is thought to be the second
deepest in the world.
“We will have to rappel all the
way down,” he said. “Once you
start, there’s nothing to hang on to
at all.”
But Hoffman is not afraid of the
dangers spelunking can offer and
he has found himself in some tight
spots. At Fort Stanton, he once
became wedged between a rock
and the cave wall and could not be
pulled out by a fellow explorer.
Finally, Hoffman loosened his
belt, slipped out of his pants and
was pulled to safety.
“My behind was sore and red
but that was the only way out, ” he
said.
Hoffman founded and is cur
rently president of the North
Texas Spelogogical Society, which
tries to explore at least one cave
per month. In 1971, the group
formed a film company and made
“Cavern Fantasy,” which took
eighth-place honors last year at a
French film festival.
“Cavern Fantasy” was filmed in
the Guadalupe Mountains of
Texas in a cave full of dramatic
features.
The Guadalupe film will be
edited to depict what the cavern
, , i
i I i'
In the oilfields
worldwide,
NATIONAL
is the leader.
We’ll challenge you to become a leader, too.
9
National Supply Company offers opportunities
for professional and personal growth for majors
in Mechanical Engineering, Systems, and Busi
ness Administration.
YOU’RE INVITED TO ARRANGE FOR AN
INTERVIEW WITH US ON OCTOBER 9 AND 30,1981.
Worldwide headquarters, Houston, Texas.
t >
ARMCO
V
NATIONAL
SUPPLY
COMPANY
An equal opportunity employer M/F
might have looked liked
thousands of years ago and how it
evolved through time.
Hoffman also has some dramatic
footage of bats, swirling clockwise
from the mouth of the Devil’s
Sinkhole, a cave near Rock-
springs.
“The bat flight started at about
7:50 in the morning and at 12:30
that afternoon they were still
going,” he said. “We were filming
from the inside of the cave and the
bats were so thick, we couldn’t see
the entrance. We estimated there
were about 8 million of them.’
In November, the film crew will
begin a tenth film at Fort Stanton,
one of Hoffman’s favorite caves.
“You just can’t believe Fort
Stanton,” he said. “As far as beau
ty, its the best. The stalagmites
are 30 to 40 feet high and there is a
wall of color, about six feet high,
that has every color of the
rainbow.”
Twice each year, Hoffman
opens the exploration club to new
members, who must first ex
an “easy” cave to see if any oneli
claustrophobia. The cave,
Quanah, has small ledges toi
and water holes to cross. Fortl
who want more, a second,
difficult gypsum cave, also m
Quanah, provides the realteslH
prospective members.
“The gypsum cave is hardetj
get into, ’ he said. “There’s ak 1
over the ceiling that mustbei
sed. After that, if they (trial mei|
bers) say it’s great, they canjoij
While not exploring cave I
Hoffman is director of staffi
velopment at the Wichita F<|
State School — specializing i|
emergency care and aid train
and working with photo;
and audio-visual aids.
His experience with photo
phy has led to the development!
much of the compact, batte
powered equipment now usedj
film the fantasy world of caves-
world he says he will continuej
explore.
BA,
Doctors overlook
depression cases
United Press International
WASHINGTON — Of all the
potentially critical illnesses that
require early diagnosis, a
psychiatrist says none is more
often overlooked than depression,
the major factor behind suicides.
“The record suggests that grea
ter alertness to this problem on
the part of the medical profession
could make a difference, ” said Dr.
Samuel B. Guze, head of psychiat
ry at the Washington University
School of Medicine in St. Louis.
He said that most forms of de
pression can be effectively treated
and many suicides prevented if
doctors detected clues to potential
suicide cases in time to take
aggressive preventive measures.
Guze, discussing the problem
in the doctors’ magazine Hospital
Practice, said the onset of depress
ion is a relatively gradual process,
covering weeks or months. He
said the patient usually sees a doc
tor complaining of a variety of
complaints such as constipation,
weight loss, insomnia and con
stant fatigue accompanied by feel
ings of sadness, hopelessness and
apathy.
“Given this clinical pictuR.1
physicians often fail to recogniiB
the depression, assuming thattklBy
psychologic symptoms are simpsB
a reaction to the patient’s phyaatTh
complaints," Guze said. In
He said most general practife-liree
ers and even some psy< liiiitiiitliv
are not aware that half of depreslall
ed patients will complain aboi^eek
physical rather than psycholoptTh
symptoms. He said some patie Cbrii
seem unaware of the possibilit iqtia<
depression. In
Guze said the doctor shouiBon
take the time to become fami Arkai
with the patient’s history, peraulnfi
ality and life situation to looknjse
clues to a possible case of <fcft-l
pression. Id
“Without a high index of suspt Afi
cion, even the most well-infon: conk
physician can overlook or misdiajl-O, i
nose depression, he said. piiv
The central feature of most dtclub
pression, the psychiatrist said, n Co
marked by inability to enjoy anttio
activities and relationships thadicati
were a source of pleasure.’ leH
Ky’s
Bin’
TC
fth,
ilinu
score:
Unexpected
pregnancy?
A to Z
Women’s Health Services
Abortion to 20 weeks • Awake or Asleep
• Prompt confidential appointments • Low fees
Houston: 1-800-392-8676
Dallas: 1-800-442-4076
San Antonio: 1-800-392-8676
Aggieland
reminder
GET SHOT!
Sophomores A-M — TODAY thru Oct. 9
Sophomores N-Z — Oct. 12 — Oct. 23
As a special makeup, ALL FRESHMEN
also may have their pictures taken
during the sophomore schedule.
m
about
W,;
'tying
; ttaini
^ore
teaitu
down
TCU
Foi
k,
Seem'
settle
ka
about
: Tl
win/’
tbep
tb*
ku
terty
Th,
vide
pile
Jr
day s
O
CO
>•
<
£
X
o
X
Yearbook Associates Studio
Suite 140, Culpepper Office Park off Puryear
Phone 693-6756