Meigs County telegraph. [volume] (Pomeroy [Ohio]) 1848-1859, 1851-07-03
TaE VALLEY rnEGEYsERs.

THE VALLEY OF THE GEYSERS.
Professor Forrest Sheppard. in leiler 10
The Evening Picayuha Sof San Francisco,
giyesslhe following graphic description ol
remarkable yalles.. discovered by him in.
The Napa valley. Ana;her account snys
thai Professor Sheppard inlonjs 10 Claim part
oi The valley. and plant nupicaltrees in Ihs
hoi soil :s.s.alg - s....l... sss ...s
MEssRs. ED1roRs:--ln answer 10 your in.
quiry res ecling the Geyser fountains on
Plutod nyer, permit me- TO say thar my al.
leDtion was firs, arrested al The remarkably
peaceful and quies thermal sprngs'in Napa
valley, by the wonderful me,amorpism Of
the rocks. Il occurred 10 me that the
springs, or the chemical actor causing
them, might have been inslrumen,al in pro.
ducing this change. On diigen. inquiry,
learned that The Indians knew Of planH
where the heat was much greater formelN
than now. had led 10 believe this from
the fact iha, the springs Of Messrs. Richie
q Tucker varied their temperature four or
five degrees in the space Of three or fout
weeks. ! next visited The place indicated
by the Indians, and found il perfectly iran.
quill externally, and nothing en- the surface
TO attract special attention. But, on digging
down about TWO feet, found that the heat
increased SO rapidly ,ha, could not bear
my hand in ,he earth. | inserted the bulb
of my thermometer, and the mercury in.
stanily roseio one hundred aud twenly-aes'
grees Of Fahrenheit.
From observations already made in com.
pany with Professor James MONEY! was
led 10 belieTelhere exis,ed'aiine of,hormaI
action under the neighboring mountain
chains, and accordingly, in company with
Mr.. P. Cyrus, J. Cyrus, and B. F. Briggs,
most excellen, companions and exper, hun.
lers, j travelled no.hwes,erly in The line of
lhermeral action; and, after wandering ,hro'
almost innumerable dense thickels, on the
fourth day after leaving the head of Napa
valley, we arrived u, an immense chasm
full one thousand fee. in depth, where the.
rocks had evidently been rent assunder by
great violence. Here, in the bottom of the
valley, we iound cl eur and beautiful river,
and its terraced banks covered with most
luxuriant vegetation and spring flowers on
the 9th of February, Tie extraordinary
appearance was soon explained; for, on
proceeding up The river, The earth grew warm
under our feet, as we emerged from thick
Ell of evergreen bordering a. deep assure in
The mountain side, the secret workings Of the
inner world suddenly burst upon our aston.
shed senses. You may judge Of surprise
when | found myself not on the brink Of a
volcanic crater or sala,ar,, nor amid the
salses Of Humboldt, and yel the earth was 50
no, as 10 burn my feet through The soes of
Of my boots.
Asno place was llt re any appearance Of
lava, but a powerful catalytic action going
on efiecling ,he dissolution of every kind Of
rock, the evolution Of steam through innum.
eruble orfces, and sometimes in columns
rising like thai from an ocean steamer, one
or TWO hundred feet in height; also the de-.
composition Of suphuret,cd hydrogen gus,
the sudden formation oi boiling hot water,
the deposition Of beautiful crystals Of sui
! phuric acid, and an astonishing amount OF
metallic oxides. m ineral salts, and The Co.
menlaiion Of bfecaled and congomerale
rock. The scene leads lhc mind almost 10
bewil dernent, aid you tren BILE as you op-
prouch The Geysers, lest, like the Iamen.ed
PIiny, you become victim 10 your curos.
iIy, especially when you find yourself sink.
ing, as did the writer, into the abyss below,
by breaking ,he Thin crust under your fee.
The spou,ing Geysers, the no, maIslrooms
springs Of hot water, Steam pipes, &C.,
probably two hundred, on half mile square.
The writer has commenced Il series Of cx.
perimen,s and improvements at the place,
and has made arrangements TO cut "A road
and cree, u house on the premises, and in
c due time hopes 10 communicate W the pub
lie the results of his observations.