Daily Los Angeles herald. [microfilm reel] (Los Angeles [Calif.]) 1876-1884, 1881-02-13

In their excess, are a. deadly t
vegetable life as Is the upas polle'
10 to. animal life. The stream be-
the poisonous appearance OF tn
blood .colored flushings ofa Florid'
swamp. The salts from tina
stream, now laterally creeping init
the earth with percolating water
will rise with capillary water. ant
hatefuliy effioresce after the pillow
for years to come. And salt Il
about all that will effioresce afte
the pillow. That noxiOus, lazy
stream is regularly an annual salt,
soaker and spoiler of valuable lane
throughout the rainy season. Tst
dollars would turn it into the Sal
| Gabriel river, and few dollar
more would turn the San Gabrie
river into the poisoned channel tx
flush it pure. And this is the way
Tor salt that comes by water togo
by water. The legislator may fine
other instances no less instructive
HISTORICAL SKETCH OF AN ATOM
The atom Of salt ships in the rair
drop that falls on the higher land
It sails down to the lower lands
Finer than the point of cambria
needle, the pores Of the earth are
to 1t the capacious tunnels through
which 1t sails aud finally anchors
in q capillary channel. Here il
rests uutil y capillary draft carries
it, wrApt In an infnltessimal gfob
uls Of water. to the surface, where
the sun evaporates the water and
leaves behind the microscopic atom
of salt. BY the same and number.
less other capillary channels to the
square inch countless other atoms
OF salt are necessarily brought to
the surface, to become in the ag.
gregate counterfeit frost or ice.
TEACHING WATER AND THE TIME
TO USE 1T.
Salty soil would not hinder pro.
duction beyond few years OF the
annual rainfall of Panama, navig-
able by ships, If 1t would stand az
1t falls; or of Hilo's n feet, or of
Nicaragua 100 inches, or of Guate.
mala's So to 100 inches, or Of CAL
cutta's four feet, or even the rain
fall Of the Southern Alleghanies.
The rainfall here is not only limit.
ed In volume, but Is confined to
the season Of minimum capillary
ascension. Capillary ascension is
greatest at the time of winds and
intensest heat. This, of course, is
also the time for the NEST rapid
teaching. Within the period most
favorable to teaching comes the
season of irrigation. There is no
surplus water to leach with during
the time Of irrigation. A few
weeks before and a few weeks after
the season of irrigation an abund.
ance of surplus water concurs with
rapid capillary ascension. Make
Hiio washing out of our idle riv-
ers.
WHAT IS THE SIZE OF THE JOB OF
LEACHING?
I saw q belt of sweet grasses
spring up in q dismal salt grass
swale after o dozen days flow of an
artesian stream. It Is quite Ger.
tain that capillary ascension would
soon re-salt the tail of the divert.
ed artesian stream; destroy the
clover aud alfileriilo and restore the
undisputed possession of salt grass.
But In this event, or better still,
without awaiting 1t, wash again
with pure water. And thus wash
at intervals not too long.
IS THERE AN END OF WASHING
OUT SALT?
Probably not, in certain locali.
ties. Probably nowhere, unless the
red and salty streams are turned
away from creeping about to local.
tiles where teaching is going on.
The question could be satisfactorily
for any locality, given
tue depth of salty earth, the aver.
age charge of salt, the rate of capii.
larry ascension or its equivalent
factor, the rate OF inf orescence, and
the deepest reach Of capillary salt
pumping.
The depth Of perniciously salty
earth Ia less than is generally sup
posed. Under manly salt desOlated
surfaces sweet earth Rnd'eweet wa
ter sre found within ten feet of the
surface. A few days ago a new
settler drove q pipe through salty
soil, pumping and testing as deep.
sning, and found salty earth
and water down to the Is
loot level, and sweet earth and
water at the 20.foot level. Numer-
ous other similar experiences
might be reoited, Here, then, is
one factor, easily ascertained, and
never an influite factor. The aver
age charge Of salt, down any par
boring, is also readily ascer-
tained. The rate Of capillary salt
must be ascertained by
al imply ascertaining the rate of In.
which Is readily done.
The deepest reach of capillary salt
pumping Is perhaps au unascer.
tainable factor. 1t Is perhaps not
Important to know the deepest
movem ant, since the per-
salty earth is usually 80
that it Is safe, and not dis
to assume, as u business
proposition, that the reach of
salt pumping is down as
deep as the perniciOusly salty
earth. There are Instances of the
formation of inforescence one
fourth of an inch deep in a week.
This, possibly, was equivalent to
the pernicious excess Of salt in an
inch thick stratum of earth. II so,
and If the rate of infloresoence is
constant for, say, ten feet Of depth,
that depth might be deprived OF