The Canton mail. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 18??-1882, 1876-05-13
THE DESERT TALLEYS.

The Project of Reclninin0 the Land Of H
| Great american Desert By Irrigation.
| A correspondent of the Chicago Tribun,
says: There is a wonderful chain of low
valleys lying somewhat parallel with the
| great Colorado river of the west, extend
ing from near the gulfof California, west
of north through California and into Ne
vada, distance of nearly 700 miles. The
| first of these valleys is adjacent to the
gulf and the mouth of the Colorado river
and is known as the great Colorado desert,
| embracing the immense area of $780,
600 acres of agricultural land. 1t is well
adapted to cultivation, and for producing
the grape, lime, lemon, orange, and other
tropical fruits. The climate in the larger
part of the valley is very uniform, the
thermometer ranging from eighty to los
degrees, which would be slightly modi-
fed by the introduction of water into a
valley which has not sprinkle of rain,
and possibly had none since its creation.
In the greatest of the overfows of the
Colorado river the water has set back
into the center of this great desert, dis
lance of $50 miles, but it has received
moisture from no other source.
The Eden which could be made eff this
valley can scarcely be imagined. On the
fifth day of January, 1S73-the coolest
month of the season. found myself
near spring called the Thousand Palms,
from the fact that great number of
palm trees cluster about it. I there found
cotton tree which, from its immense
size, evidently had had a long period of
growth, though its nature is most ten
derby sensitive. 1t was laden with hang
ing lint and beautiful white and crimson
blossoms dotted its huge surface. There
can be no question as to the yield of most
profitable products in this valley. The
larger part of it has been enriched by the
sailing of the ocean, which once over
flowed it, and the decay of sea fossils, of
which the number is immense. From
the mountain tops these sea shells have
the appearance of light snow fall.
Lower Hot valley, Soda lake or val
ley, and Death valley, show no particu-
lar variance except in temperature and
altitude. The Colorado desert is three
hundred feet below the sea level; Hot
valley, a few degrees warmer, is $50 feet
below; the Death valley has depth of
500 feet below the Pacific ocean, and a
temperature of from ninety to $50 de-
grees. That horrible name, Death val
ley, is appropriate. 1t is derived from
the dismal, deathly appearance of the
valley from the peak of its mineral
mountain border, and from the fact that
a large number of men, women, children
and cattle have persisted within its roast
ing confines, They were of the early
immigrants to southern California. The
number of victims and their suffering
were far greater than those in tie tortur-
ing Mountain Meadow. massacre In
the summer of 1865 was with a party
(of fifty-two, of whom forty-seven per-
ished) which crossed Death valley from
the northwest to the southeast. 1t was
hot ana indescribably dry.
There was not the slightest indication
that it ever rained there. The meander-
ing of the crazy immigrants previous to
their death, their trails, the wagon
tracks, which had been made fourteen
to sixteen years before, were plainly
there having been no rain to
obliterate them. found metallic imple-
ments which the party had left, such as
monkey wrenches, axes, wagon tires,
ETC., with charred attachments of what
mad been wood, which bore that same
bright polish as when dropped. There
had not been sufficient moisture to cor
rode or rust them.