Idaho news. (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1887-1891, 1889-07-20
death CULM"
A DEADLY GAS SPRING IT'S T&EE
YELLOWSTONE PARK

YELLOWSTONE Pack
Remains of Animals FouTso xssx
Had Been Asphyaiated by the ls-
respirable Gas Given Or En azss
Fatal Ravine.
The familiar fable Of the upzs tres
living in valley of death Wherein nj
life was killed by its deadly exhala,
tions and the ground was strsHn sith
the bones of its victims, has been Fxx-
ven, ike many a trayelers' Isle, 10 hs
q highly colored and exaggerated 10
count OF natural pheDomenoA Ths
upas tree is now wen known 10 have
poisonous sap, but not poisonous "a.
pors But the story survives IN tfss &c
counts given of the DeIth Valley Il
Java, which it was long believed 10
traveller could cross, wherein every
living being which penetrated tia val
ley falls down dead, and the soil Is Gov
cred with the careasses os tigers, 6ecr.
birds and even the bones al Haea SIl
killed by the abundant e1halations 1f
carbOnic acid gas. with which the bot
tom of the valley is filed Such 10 ahe
description given by Lyeli Of tins Ism
Gus valley; while another locality Is, de-
scTfbcd as a place where the suaphuE,-
GUS exhalations have killed tigers birds
and in2umerable insects. and the seff
parts OF these animals arc perfectly
preserved, while the bones are eEudasa
and entirely destroyed The se-,
searches of Junghunn have shown n.aa
these accounts are much exaggsrzteS.
the Valley of Death being 4 FIInEel
shaped depression but 100 Feet In
diameter, instead of valley hall q,
mile across. In the bottom OF thi5-de-
preston there is a hole Is lest in Ola
meter, from which gaseous emanasiOls
are given out, which at times aecamn-
late TO 4 depth sufficient 20 envelope
and suffocate animals ON the bottom Of
the hollow. Repeated visits by jung
hum, extending over a period Of
twelve years, showed that the amount
of gas varied greatly from time As
time, but rarely ever rose ever sxo
feet six inches above the hostoHE AT
the time of his earliest visit he EoGrnd
the body of a Javanese nxaiYe- In she
depression, but experienced nc. diff
Guilty or oppression while a1ere HIM
self. This same body was still decuul-
posed, owing to the preserTakiye effect
of the layer of gas, when he repeated
his visit eighteen months later. The
only other remains seen AurinE- his
subsequent visit were the earsassess nF
six swine, which were decunposaa and
putrid. At this time the. absence gE
the gas was shown by the presence Of
a crow feeding upon the dead bodies
Though thus shorn of mueh al lis
former glory, the PakaramaF. or poi
son hole, is the largest and nost dan
gerOuS Of the gas springs or no4et4f.s
OF Java, and indeed of the woFl&, ana
really deserves the title Of HasxzaI
death trap. Though such emaEaiinzs
are common in all volcanic rsnifmA.
this has been the only place kzozEs
where the gases have accumulated aDIa
caused the death of the larger anirzzsIS.
In the Yellowstone National paris,
now so well known as the wondezaaad
OF America, there is a place sqnzIiIssy
this famous death valley, and where
the gaseous exhalations have proved
fatal to numerous bear, elk and znasy
smaller animals.
Ihls place, to which the appropriate
name of Death Gulch' is girar. Ma
discovered by the writer during The
past summer (19SS) while making a
geological examination Of the regisn
for MIR. Arnold Hague, the geoloolst IN
charge OF the survey of the park. Hfs
situated in the extreme northeastern
portion of this reservation. q short
distance south of the mail route. wfjc+
leaving Lamar river, follows Up Soda |
Butte creek to the mining car.D M
Cooke City. In this region the laxas
which fill the ancient basis Of the rstsgr |
rest upon the TANKS of mountains ferns- /
ed OF fragmentary volcanic ejeetA and /
tertiary andesitic breccias, which rFss |
IN turn upon nearly horizonAai /
paleozoic strata; while the hydruthnr-
mai forces, which are represented BIZ /
the geysers and hot springs a Ebs 1
central portion of the park, where lhs
lava sheet Is thicker, show but fssebss. (
manifestations Of their energy In tie |
almost extinct hot-spring areas of gQy1z /
Butte, Lamar river, Cache creek ma
Miller creek. Although hot water rot
longer flows from the vents OF 1bfsa
areas, the deposits OF travertine. sintsr
and decomposed rock attest the oFruer
presence Of thermal springs. Gaseous
asmanatiOns are not given off, however.
IN considerable volume, producing ex-
tensive alteration in the adfac.eE,r
rocks, and giving rise to sulphuruais
deposits.
II is at one these places that the
fatal ravfne is found. Situated on
Cache creek, but two miles above It's
with Lamar river, it isasrsi-
ty reached by a horseback ride Of sx1uBeI
miles from the mail station of Soda
Butter. The region is. however. rare
~ visited, for hunting is forbidden in
the park, while the place has roa been
known to present any attraction Tor abe
Few visitors who pass near on tAeir
way to the well known Fossil forests
and the weird scenery Of TIM Hindee
basin.
an old elk trail, which runs zsowgi
the north bank Of the Cache creek. nj
lords travelling, and leads 10 n Iisssa
opening in the pine forest bordering on
the stream. In the center OE die
meadow is shallow depression, once
the bed OF hot spring pool, now dry /
and covered with an effiorzscenEa nd ;
Salf makinn 10 n44~.n4=.w ;, 1