The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1854-02-07

were noticed which had been abandoned for want Of
water 70 nigate the adjacent lands.
Leav g this valley and proceeding west, we have
desert plain of out rec hua0red mi es in extent
OF the most desolate ripton, without wood, wa
ter grass and reach n to The Colora 10 river and
to the Gulf o. Califor,is. Not living stream Is
known to exist here nor is it the home OF human be-
ipgs. or quadrupeis an OCCASIONAL starving wolf
sends up howl, hare fits across the path; but
besides these animal life is chiefly confined to lizards
horned frogs, rattesDakes, centipedes tarantulas
scorpions and other noxous reptiles. The feathersd
! tribe shun it8s much man, the crow and hawk
which feed upon the reptiles, alone being there
| The vegetation Of this desert is confined to the
thorny chappsral, which is but sparsey scattered
over It, and to plants OF the Cactus family, of which
there Is great variety. Isolated hills rise up sud
| denly from tde plain and short mountain ridges in
tersect it at long intervals, both alike destitute OF
| trees.
The river ella is but small stream and can never
| be made nsvigable In times Of great freshets fiat
bottomed boats may pass up about two hundred
miles, but at no other time. Mr.. Rrtett, with his
surveying parties, spent several weeks along the
margin of this river, and in July found it dry at the
/
whole stream to irrigate their lands This people,
and another tribe called the Cocomaricopas occupy
the best lands along the Ga which they have cult
vstei for the last hundred and fifty years, and
perhaps centuries before for it is near this pla y
that those remarkable edices of some ancient ace
are found Of which 30 much has been said Mr.
Bartlett visited these ruins, and has given us full
account of them. There are some other portions Of
the valley Of the ella that might be brought under
cultivation but the larger portion is sand and gravel
al can never be titled.
Along the Colorado are some good bottom lands,
but these subject TO great foundations whene
the annual rise in the river takes place. To what
extent they can be rendered available is not kno xn
as 10 thorough examination has been made of this
part Of the country. Its banks are thickly wooded
with colt onwoods and willows
About the parallel of 81 degrees we strike the
sources Of the streams which flow towards the Gulf
of California but few Of which reach there Exposed
to scorching sun, and led OF to irrigate the ada
cent lands they are much diminished in the quanti
ty Of water they bear, and are finally absorbed In
the deserts Mr.. Bartlett traversed o considerable
portion of Sonora and Chihuahua, aud describes the
few ribsnds of cotton lands at wide intervals apart
as great fertility; but except these there
is no arabic laDd-al the rest is mountain desert
In Chihuahua however, portion of the elevated
plateau is well adapted to grazing; but this is south
of the parallel alluded to. The same appears to be
the case in Sonora its southern portion being better
watered with larger streams, and consequently has
more extensive bottom lands.
We gain little in territory by the curve the line
takes tom Ell Paso westward as it is to run three
&c T.ka Ia q Of
water abou. twenty miles ia length aud about six in
width at lis widest point; but the land around 1t is no
better than that further north. In times of great
floods the waters of the Mimores sometimes reach
this lake, but that is sed ,m Near its southern ex
tremity it receives the San Miguel or Cssas Grandes
river very considerable stream flowing from the
SOUTH and fertilizipg one OF the richest valleys in
Chihuahua; but, unfortunately, we get but two or
three miles of tais valley, and that of value, in
consequence OF the conaguity Of hills there.
Much has been said of the value Of Cookies wagon
road as means of communication with California
an idea which seems to have been formed
in error, for it appears by the narrative Of this
officer, that in his march from New Mexico to Cali
fornia he was compelled to go about hunired
miles out Of his way in order to strike an old travel
led mule path which the Mexicans had followed for
nearly two centuries their only communication be-
tween the States Of Sonora and chihuahua. The
broad open plain which we have been describing
lay before hin, and seemed to present an easy and
direct route 20 the Gia but 1t had never been ira
y.rsed snd his guides-one Of whom was the cele-
brated Leieux-not knowing OF the existence Of
water there, recommended Colonel Cooke to diverge
to the south and strike this path. This gallant o.
cer, unwilling to risk the lives OF his brigade of
nearly five hundred men on painless and unknown
plain very prudently took the longer route, which
wa known and where his guides knew water was
to be found But even here taey suffered much from
thirst a. it was fifty-two miles from Ojo de Vaca
before they reached the Playa, where an abundance
of water was procured. In Mr.. Bartetts narrative
We find The details of three journeys made through
the Guadalupe Pass on Cookies road, which show
that il is ANYTHING bu; practicable for wagons COL
Cooke set his men at work on 1t, and after much
lhor succeeded in opening it. But it seems to be
terrific place to pass and the journeys OF the boun-
dsrv commission across the country to the north
show that there are other routes far more practical
HE stunning the Sierra Madre entirely, and short
eping the distance to the valley O. the CHA full
hundred miles. This road and the Guadalupe fass
over the mountains does not, therefore, appear to
have any value to u.s.
The geography of northern Sonora, from the per-
sonal observations Of Mr. Bartlett who crossed the
State by two different routes, is found TO differ mate
rally from that laid down on the maps we have
seen and is quite at variance with the latest map OF
the Typographical Bureau, published in 1850. Tue
San Ignacio river of that and some other maps runs
westward and empties into lake near the Gulf.
This river, teng referred to in the treaty may lead
TO perplexes If it is not found where 1t is laid down
on the map. According to Mr.. Bartetts map, it
has its rise in another quarter, pursues southerly
course, and is l9st in the sands. As the United
states has already become involved in dispute
with regard TO the boundary growing out OF several
glazing errors on Dsturnels map, which the COM
missioners used when they agreed upon the treaty
of Guadalupe Hdalgo, it should caution our Miais-