Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1889-11-23
REMARKABLE SINKHOLE.
ONE IN CALIFORNIA OF ESPECIAL
INTEREST, ANOTHER IN NEVADA

INTEREST, ANOTHER IN NEVADA.
People Livin. in the Fed Of .. Old Laks
in the ConcilIa Valley, CaA-Their CHIEF
Industry Is Gathering Solicitations Hab-
Its and Customs Of the Indians.
Few divers cUe to descend more than
eighty feet beloE ths surface Of ths ocean,
yet thsre ere EAny persons On tie Pacific
coast who think ns1hiag Of descending from
200 to 800 fist below the surface lsrel Of tbs
Pacific, and not only that, but 1.-Two there
Tis statement one often hears u CaHfor-
MIA, especially il the southern portion, and
It is somewhat pUzziiRg to the --tenderfoos.
It coutxins, howozer, the elements of truth,
as almost every enc who comes into southern
California through San Diego county passes
below the ocean level
The Southern Pacific railroad engineers
found, when building the road, that In East
San Diego county there was a remarkable
depression, evidenfly the dry bed of an an
cient lake This fs Known rs tho San Feline
sink, and presents singular appearance,
calling to mind the famous Humboldt sink
further north. The San Felipe sink has an
other nane-ths Concilla valley-so calleS
from the fact that its surface is covered with
shells, showing conclusively that it has been
the bed Of a lake that at least had dense
moiiuscan population some time in the past,
bu. how long ago it would be difficult to say
THE CALIFORNIA CURIOSITY.
The spot was first noticed by Surgeon Wild
ney, OF the United States army, many years
ago. He observed the shore line and came to
the conclusion that in the distant past largo
body Of Water stood there. When the sur
veyors ran their lines across the depression
they found that it was one of the most re-
markable places on the continents cavity
near what is now the town of Salton 26S feet
below the surface of the Pacific.
This sink, or old lade bed, is $50 miles long
by 80 miles wide, and the point of greatest
depth is $50 feet below the ocean level. The
region is one Of great interest. In the sum-
mer it is SO hot that the thermometers. ac-
cording to a native, are made ON telescope
plan, and los degs. is normal in the shade.
Still, sunstroke is never known in the sink,
owing, probably, to the low relative hui
Nudity.
In wandering through this remarkable place
there are many things to attract the attention
On its northern side ara some fine date palms
that have been growing herefor ages, at least
beyond the memory of the oldest inhabitant
They range from sixty to eighty feet in
height, and present grand and picturesque
appearance against the mountains. The trees
bear dates of commercial value, the punches
weighing from Is to 125 pounds The trees
can be seen by the passengers on the train as
it passes the town of Inoio, and one wonders
how long they have watched over the dismal
shores, and if the lake was lake in reality in
their day.
That the lake was salt is shown by the
enormous deposits of this mineral. 1t is es-
pecially noticeable at the town of Salton,
where for many miles the pedestrian travels
on perfect crust OF salt, ranging from few
inches to several feet in thickness
The principal business followed here is the
collection of salt. A number of large mills
collect and grind it, and several tons are
shipped every week to various parts Of the
country. In some parts of the sink artesian
wells have been developed, and what was
once desert is now rich in greens, and vari-
Gus tropical and semi-tropical fruits and
flowers are raised. The tourist should stop
at the town Of Indio and make this the central
point from which investigations can be made,
and he will be well repaid
THE INDIAN INHABITANTS.
The native inhabitants of this curious re-
gion are a tribe of about 400 Cohuilla Indians,
who have apparently strayed out here from
the Cohuilla valley. Those examined by the
writer near the valley were as a rule a worth
less set, with little or no ambition beyond OBJ
tanning their living from the government,
and no little sympathy has been wasted upon
than fhOn OH hat hoy boa
cheated and had lands stolen from them. DR..
Stephen Bowers, in an interesting paper read
before the Ventura County Natural Histori-
cal society, gives some new ideas regarding
them. He considers them lineal descendants
of the old AZtecs. Their religion includes
sun and fire worship at the present day, and
they believe in the transmigrat.on of souls
Many Of their ideas resemble those of the
Buddhists. Thus, while the latter believe
that the soul of a friend enters into the ele-
plant perhaps the Cohuilla believes that the
coyote that prowls around may perhaps be
all that is left of some of his people The
dead are cremated This band makes and
uses the stone mortars so common through
out the country for grinding the mesquite
bean and coffee, when they happen TO have it.
The great Humboldt sink. in Nevada, is a
good example Of these depressions, and a
more desolate, dreary region it is difficult to
imagine Semmes must have obtained his
original idea Of the hole here, as from dis
lance one appears approaching vast hole in
the earth The country has a weird appear
ance and one can well imagine almost any
thing. There is something uncanny about the
place. as a river runs into IL and disappears,
so the Indians think-in short, sinks and
that is the end of it. Where It goes they do
not care or think. but it flows into this region
and stops, and Of course there is something
very mysterious about it.
The Indians Will tell you that the sink has
no bottom, and it is true enough taat the
actual bottom has not been discovered.
vest deposit of mud, the accumulation Of
centuries, lies here, and will probably in time
fill up the sink, so that water will no. stand
there. In riding along the foothill country
Of the Sierra Madres, about twenty miles
west Of San Bernardino county, one sees
curious sink or depression jus. below and to
the west Of Riverside. The Southsrn Pacific
railroad runs along its bed. and from far
away looks like some uncanny monster,
breathing fire and smoke from its noStrils,
creeping along in Slough Of Despond--Cor.
New York Times