The Elko independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 1869-1872, 1869-12-04
Great Salt Lake,

Great Salt Lake.
From a series of articles in the Utah Report
CT. By ]. II. Bendle, We take the following de-
scription of the Great Salt Lake:
Great Salt Lake, the Dead Sea Of America"
lies toward the northwest corner Of Ctnh Ter
ritory, 300 feet above sca-lcvcl, and fifteen
miles, ut the nearest point, from Salt Lake
City. IL IL in the form of an irrCgulAi paral-
telegram, of which the major axis, running y.
w. by n, IL seventy miles in length, and the
minor axis forty miles; the different projcc-
tious, however, greatly increase the area,
which is laid down hy Captain Stansbury at
90 by 40 miles, in round numbers. The first
mention in history Of this wonderful Lake is
by Baron Hontan, French Governor OF New
Foundland, who made voyage west of the
Mississippi, in the year 1890, and sailed for
six weeks up river, probably the Missouri,
according Ia his description. Here he found
nation Of Indians called the "Guacsitares,
probably one of the now extinct Mandan tribes.
These Indians brought him four captives Of "A
nation far to the .s2S;. shom they called Ma
zeeinleks." OF whom the Baron say;
"The MaZccmlek nation is i!T:nCTuus and
puisSant. These. four cnptivcs informed me
that at "A distance of one hundred and fifty
leagues from where then was, their principal
river emphcs itself into n salt lake of three
hundred leagues in circumference, the mouth
Of which is two leagues broad; that there are
u hundred towns great ana small around that
sort of sea- and upon il they navigate with
such boats Rs yOu see drawn on the map, which
map the Mazcrmlck people drew me OH the
bark Of trees; that the people of that country
made StnflS. copper axes and several other
manufactures, which tue OntagamiS and other
interpreters could not give me To understand
as being altogether unacquaintod with such
things, etc, etc
These captives may have been of the Ute
nation, or more probably, the SEM. i.civilizcd
races of Mexico had colonies here at that time
as indicated by the ruins found sOnth of the
Lake. The next mention Of the Lake is in u
work published i'll America i'll l772, entitled
"a description of the Province of COrolana
by the Spaniards called FLORIDA and by the
French called Louisiana, - in which are recitcd
the native accounts Of "a lake many leagues
west Of the mountains, in which there is no
living creature, but around its shore the spirits
inhabit in grcnt vapors, and out of that lake n
great river disembogues into the South Sea. "
The "spirits" will bc readily recognized in the
Hot Springs, but IT ~ singular that both ac-
counts should give the Lake an outlet. Not
long afterwards the Lake became well known
to hunters and trnPpcrs and in 1915 Colonel
Fremont, then on his second expedition. made
sort Of dying survey which was scientifically
completed in lSi9-50. by Captain Howard
Stnnsbury. In geologic ages the Lake was
doubtless IN inland sea, which has declined to
its present limits; but it is singular that since
Stansbury's survey, the lake surface has risen
nt least twelve feet Of which eight feet were
gained in the years lSG5-G6 and 81. The nat
ural result has been Ia greatly weaken the sn-
line character of the water. There is wide
spread misapprchension OH this snhicct il bc-
ing customary for Eastern Lecturers to state
that three gallons Of water will make one of
salt" The highest estimate however. that
10y Fremont, only gave 2iper cent. of salt. and
the water was taken from the north west cor.
ner, the most saline portion Of the lake. DIR.
Gale found one hundred parts of the water IN
contain solid contents q, ,2S2, distributed as
follows: .. ...'. .... ...'
Chloride of sodium Common salt) 20. IgC
cLI L,c v. Soua' .''.''.......... 1881
Lhioride OF magnesium. um.............. O.2j2
Ohiot'ue ot calcium. .................a q trace
~. .2sl
Bnt II is quito evident that an ANALYSIS al
TINS tiine would show much less, probably no
more theh eighteen per cent. of solid matter
perhaps even less in the eastern part of tn,
lake, nnd not over twelve or fourteen por cent
in Bear River Bay, the least saline arm of IN,
lake. . "''' VI WV
Those engaged in making salt on Sprin,
Bny, certainly the most saline, state TINT IN i
year 1t has required six gallons of Tho water I,
mako one Of salt. Even with this reduction
mas no superior bnt the Dead Sea water. o
which one hundred parts give solid content
aibSO, while the Atlantic ocean only ayernoc
three and half per cent. of it's weight. q
about half mn ounce 10 the pound Al IN
spring floods the Lake often rises several fool
and retiring in the Summer leaves vast dcnos
It's OF crystolizcd salt. In places, large bayon
could easily bo filled during the Summer h.
Wlnd mills upon the Lake shore, making mil
lions OF tons Of salt at n triiling outlay. Con
Mumsring tho area Of the Lake, ninety by fort
mites; ana its average depth Of ten feet. mi
~oa,u give little over q thousand billion soil
'cet oi water, or at tho rate above mentioned