Morning journal and courier., 1890-04-08

who said that such were common In Mexico,
where they were known as sanaoes.
while passing through Yueatan In 1870"
he writes, "I saw . large river running with |
torrential speed within q natural tunnel, not |
far from the seashore, and probably over one |
hundred feet below the surface of the ocean. |
us smart like entrance was adorned by pic. |
t9resqus old Spanish well curb Of stone, fur
nisneo with standards Of fanoifully wrought
ironwork. Nothing on the surface indicated
the existence Of the vast cavern under the
m1notonous and Fat lowlands Of the penin-
soia or xueatan; and though not q breath Of
air stirred, the dsafening roar of the torrent
under our feet could not be perceived until
We were fully inside the cavern. A rapid
descent brought Us to the level of the pumps
used for irrigating very extensive ixtl
plantation, and from here we could see by
the light of our torches the yellow foam Of
the waters upon the underlined background
of the chasm below. Descending still fur-
thsr, the full stresm could be seen through
wide fssure in the limestone of the cave. 1t
had the rounded appearance Of Q stream
flowing horizontally under great pressure,
like gigantic black icicle lying on Its side.
The large volume Of water plunged with
great swiftness into an unexplored and dark
chamber with terrific roar, producing noises
which resembled the hollow echoes of heavy
explosions heard now and then above the
perpetual rumbling of the rushing water.
The mouth or entrance Of the zanate was
only twenty-eight feet above the level Of the
Gulf of Mexico, and a. my barometer indi~
Gated descent Of one hundred and forty
feet, It meant that the river was flowing one
hundred and twelve feet below the level of
the sea. The manager Of the plantation
near which was found the subterransan
stream informed the writer that there were
many other such zanates along tho coast, and
that they were looked upon by the natives
with almost superstitious reverence, and
spoken of as great miracles which have al-
ways been as they are now"
The relationship between subterranean
rivers and lost streams is very close one,
the latter being fuvial aspect with which
we are more familiar.
The phenomenon of stream flowing mer-
rily down from a mountain and then disap.
pearing is, in the west, very common one,
says q writer in an early number of Science.
In following down the Rio Grande on an en-
into it in Its upper courae. In going down
little farther, resching the San Luis valley,
they are found to suddenly give out on the
northern side, and, few miles farther |
down, on the southern side also. The prin- |
efpa1 streams Of the valley, the Rio Grando |
excepted, conie ii full force down the noun.
tain, how freely on, and terminate in a
m6ESQ OF b El1hlt l0ko Ou buo 6Auus \ u0 |
beds of those which should empty into the
Rio Grande are there, but there Is no water
in them. Similar streams are common all
over the southwest, and the various streams
show all the different stages, from those |
which really 90 somewhere all the time, and |
those which, alive and full of water above, |
always fail to reach the stream to which |
they are headed below.
''One time," says the writer, 81 had the |
orrina fo nina the Mt the Y10ink |
where it was lost. It was the Rio Hondo, |
Just south of Santa Fe. We had crossed 1t |
lower down, and though tho ravine was sew
enty-fve or one hundred feet deep, We found |
it perfectly dry. We followed up it's south |
bank for mile or two until we struck the |
and there we found 1t bright,
ripping stream, leaping down from ledge
tered trees along the banks, and 80 broad
that it was not easy to pass over 1t, leaping
from stone to stone, and remain dry shod.
From here my friend drove back to the
crossing, and I walked down to see where
and how stream could lose itself with such
q volume of water and a path we'll marked
out for it. As followed 1t down it ran on
merrily in the midst of a little valley, no
more than six or eight rods wide, along
which were pretty meadows alternating with
clumps of bushes. It passed through the
various incidents of strsam-here a little
fall, there rapid over thickly set stones, q
little further on pool. There eeerned to be
nothing unusual in it, when suddenly I no.
ticed that the little valley widened to double
its previous width, the bed became more
sandy, and the stream was spread over
greater space. It was evidently going under,
and, within twenty rods of where I noticed
the first change, the running water had en-
tirely disappeared. The bed of the stream
was damp for another twenty yards or so
more; then for a considerable distance I
could get water by digging few inches;
then that indication failed, and beyond the
stream the bed Was entirely dry"
All such streams do not thus terminate In
in small, shallow lake, some in marsh.
Other loat streams fill up after rainfall and
complete above the ground their course to
the main current or to the SEQ. After
heavy rain in the mountains they are apt to
change their 'tlost" character with sudden
ness which may prove dangerous, the water
occasionally pouring down with an advancing
wave or head FIVE or six feet high.
There ia one very remarkable case In New
Mexico, where the lost tributaries are plsnti-
full, but the main stream does not exist at
all. This is in valley which lies between
the Rio Grande and the Pscoa rivers. The
valley begins near the Sandia mountains and
is shut in by broken mountain changes. It
is well defined valley, not very broad, but
having length of perhaps three hundred
miles. Flowing into it, especially on the
western side near the upper end, and on the
eastern toward the lower, are numerous lost
tributaries, while the primary stream has 80
completely disappeared shat Its very bed can
only be found at intervals.