The republic. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1849-1853, 1850-08-22
Territory OF Utah.

AZ 'iAo oo""sc, Vi WI oMiTH, vi connecticut,
which related to New Mexico The following
extracts embrace SO much of it as has reference
to Utah, and will be found both interesting and
instructive:
now come to Deseret, or, as il Is called IN this
bill, Utah. and here the obstacles in the wav of
slavery are even more serious BY the constitution
un.ga 20 us oy the people of that country, there
Is included within her limits all that part Of Upner
California which is situated east of the proposed
STATE OF that name, and even the southern norton
Oh me state itself But the committee have re-
stflced Dcseret or Utah to call that part of the
territory OF the United States included within the
following limits, TO wit: bounded on the west by
enc State OF California, the north by the Terri
tory OF Oregon, on the east and south by the d.
vIdlng ridge which separates the waters flowing
into the Great Basin from those flowing into the
Colorado river and the Gulf of California" throw
ing into New Mexico, as think very unadvisedlv.
the residue OF the territory lying east of the State
Of California.
With respect to such residue, would observe
that the remarks which have already made in re
gard to New Mexico proper, are, in the general, ap-
plicablc shall, therefore, on the present OCCASION
bill. ~ INC
The interior Of the Great Basin Is wholly inca
Pabe OF being inhabited, unless few GASES be a n
exception; has tree or shrub larger than tho
wild sage, and no animal more considerable tba n
the rabbit; Colonel Fremont, speaking of this
basin and its wretched inhabitants, says.
1.-The rabbit ia the largest animal known in this
aeseri; IT'S nesh affords little meat, and their
Dag IKE covering is made Of its skins The wild
sage 10 their only wood, and here it is of extraor
binary size, sometimes foot in diameter. and
SIX or eight feet high 1t serves for fuel for build
9 ing material, for shelter to the rabbits a nj fr
some sort of covering for the feet and legs in cold
weather" % - oo''
The only portion of the basin known to be of
nuch value are the valleys and the recesses in the
surrounding mountains; as to which observe that
ARM nft 10
arc above the parallel of AZ deg, and consequently
arc In Oregon. The valleys within the western
rim are included in the new State of California
and properly so, as their most feasible colnmunica
lions are with the country on the Pacific. Nothing
ID known OF valleys in the southern part of the RIM
the country is understood to be high and broken
out not mountainous, and is quite destitute of wa
ter, and consequently in great degree uninbabit-
able. The valleys within and without the eastern
rim OF this basin, usually called Deseret constitute
the only portion of these desoae regions that can
be made the abode ofcivilized man.
And here wish to call the particular attention
OF the Senate to the Objectionable character of the
limits proposed by this bill for Descret or Utah
why sweep round the rim of the Great Basin, and
separate the valleys within the rim from those
without? The bill will in part mutilate the Nor
mon settlements, and expose the people there to
great Inconvenience. Ii eastern California must
be divided, it should be by parallel of latitude,
and not by such an uncertain and difficult bound
airy as "the dividing ridge separating the waters
flowing into the Great Basin from the waters flow
ing into the Colorado river and the Gulf of Califor
mia"
With view to bring before the Senate such facts
as arc essential to just opinion on the question
under consideration, here submit to the Senate A
statement I'm the form of letter addressed to nv
sclf) by John NJ. Bernhisel, NJ d. CONTAINING
many interesting and important details DR.
bernhsel Is the agent of the people of Deseret and
has been in attendance during the whole of the
present session He is native of the city of New
York, gentleman of responsibility and iptpIU
RenCe, and worthy of all capGdenra H;.l o,,o l..
rs follows:
"WAsHrSeToN CRY, June IS, 1850
"SIR: have received the interrogatories in rela
non TO Deseret, contained in your Communication
them, "
In regard to the country on the ella and Colo-
RADIO rivers, have no knowledge, except from in
formation which is general and accessible to every
one. -
The Great Basin, of which Won inn,ire II IL
believed is about five hundred miles long east and
west, by two hundred and seventy five In breadth
north and south. Its boundaries are laid down IN
ffehonts map. Ii has never been fully explored;
out 80 lar as 1t has been, portion of il il found
10 consist OF arid and sterile plains another of un
uu'ating table lands, and a third of elevated noun
Ains, a lew OF whose submits are capped with per
petuai snow Some portions Of the Basin abound
in rich and nutritious grasses There are within
aus hmits many streams and lakcs and of the lat
yer, the most remarkable is the Great Salt Lake
~n,eh ~ about seventy miles in length and thirty
70 Wifty-hve In breadth. Its waters are satu
rated solution of muriate of soda or common salt
indeed, they contain more salt than they are capa-
pie OF hoiclDg In solution and, when low consid-
ao'e laAnutes OF II are Precipitated to the bot
toHl OF Inc lake, or rather there crvstalized
NO hving Creature can exist in this lake A strik.
lhg icature IN the topography Of this region IT, that
none OF the streams OF lakes have any visible out
let either TO the Atlantic or Pacific ocean The
sous1es OF tho Colorado arc in the Rocky Noun.
tains, lying In Oregon and New Mexico and the
country IN their vicinity is unfit for cultivation.
ron desire my opinion to whether the whole
vi ohniornla belonging 10 the United States out
noe OF the limits Of the proposed State of that name
ought TO be united under the same Government or
~hether II would be convenient 10 separate the
stuated on The tributaries Of the Colorado
from that OF the Great Basin. In my humble opin.
ion the country exclusive Of the State of California
should be united under one government and tbink
u WOULD be extremely injudcious TO separate the
country watcred by the tributaries of the Colorado
from tsat OF the Great Basin since the two no 81
Jaent and The access il easy from ono 10 the other
Inc people tnhabting the former can never have
oonvenlent access to Santa Re, for lofty ranges Of
n'ounHlns intervene between them and the Santa
re country. The distance from the Green rive,
country TO Santa Re IL about eleven hundred miles
and the route 10 be pursued IL by the wav Of The
s s rass and Fort Laramie whereas the route
from The same country 10 Great Salt Lake citv Ia
and thirty miles W
You inquire what portions Of these countries
are inbs btsbe, and ask mo 10 specify the vallcvs
distinguishing thoso within the rim of the Great
basin and those on the rivers, which, united con.
sutute The Colorado. am clearly Of the opinion
,hat no portion OF that vsst extent of coun.
Try between the Great Basin and the Rocky Noun
mins IL inhsbitsble, excepting the valley of the
olntah, and perhap, that Of Green river The
valleys known in the Great Basin arc Great Salt
Lake valley, Bear River valley, Utah valley. Yo,b
valley, South valley, SEWER valley. and sand
fitch valley. The Great Salt Lake valley. which
~ much the largest, is about one hundred and
hiteen TO one hundred and twenty miles long and
from twenty to forty broad; but the Salt Lake
occupies The greater part Of the northern portion
OF IL The surface Of the centre Of the valley is
,evei, out asconds gently on either side towards
ino mountains There is in the immediate vi |
uni'y OF the city, bearing the name Of this lake
warm saline mineral spring, issuing from the |
Ease OF mountain, the temperature Of which is los
degrees OF Fahrenheit Two miles north Of this il |
similar spring, whose temperature IL l25 degrees
Of Fahrenheit. The character Of the best seil in
the valleys that are inhabtable is as follows. /
Ono portion Of IL is a vegetable loam another = |
marty loan, and third a gravoly stratum. /
containing some silica. The latitude OF treat Salt
Lake city Ia 40 deg 45 min. a. sec north lite alt-
tnde u four thousand three hundred feet The /
climate is milder and drier in general than ii is in
the same parallel on the Atlantic coast The tenn
IN he Sail - H.. = ~