Arizona weekly journal-miner., 1891-07-15
THE sALroS LAKE.

The Salton lake continues to be the subject of discussion by the Cali fornia papers. Captain Polhamus, who has nsvigated the Colorado river for over quarter of century, says that the channel of the Colorado river has not been changed, and there is no present danger of such q thing. When the overflow is properly understood it is simple as can he. Every time tho Colorado river over flows the water is thrown into the new river and the desert lake formed. At present there are two fakes, oi. at Indian Wells and the other al Sal ton which is nothing more or less than the overflow from the Indian Wells lake. The valleys. heretofore sand hills. caused by the sand blow against the mesquite bushes that grow between the Indian Wells and Salton kept the water out of Salton sink. February floods were the greatest ever known on the Colorado river. Water reached point five feet above the high water mark at New River and the Indian Wells lake was higher than ever befene.
 The Yuma Times says that the river has cut an entirely new chan mel about l50 yards wide, and has cut other smaller channels thirty to sixty feet wide and two to six feet deep. Two or thn,e of these smalleI channels flow out on the main land west, which is covered with water and that water is divided in direc' tions. some working west by Mar. tinez' old ranch. lr,eently washed ] awayl and some going down by Dig enos ranchcria. The rancheria is now deserted by the Digenos on ae- count of the high water They have moved to the Yuma camps, eight miles from here, and have come [, stay too much water.
 sThe water working west by. tinez' ranch courses along the sand hills. over the stage road and into the creek up0n which are situated all the stations of the desert except ! New River station. Cooks Wells + twenty y-six miles from Yuma; Sever
 Wells, nine miles beyond; next Gard
 iner's, ar Burkes, nine miles, thenc' to Alamo MOcAu. eight miles Bs
 the way of the sand hills and mesa' is fully sixty miles fl not more t' Alamo Mocho.
 At present you cannot find ten miles of the old stage road dry to tho | Alamo Mocho from Hanlon's. In, distance in direct line from th' I Alamo Moeho, about thirty-iivs miles, the water from the large new channel of the Colorado flows pasI the Digenos to Willow creek or New River. and that also contributes ts | he rise of water tn the desert. The nearest point to New River iron 1 Alamo Mocho would be sixteen miles
 "There have been no sand hill. washed away. The river oyerfowec its banks and cut the channels. Il has been oyerilowing at the breal during high water for two years, bui | the iAnd was covered with denss brush and timber and it took long time for the water to cut the chan nels.
 As nature has demonstrated th' possibility oE inundsting this sectior of country from the Colorado riveI it would seem to be a good proposi ton for the government to take holc of the matter and by small outlay make the inflow perpetual and there by establish permanent lake on tn. desert If tue natural flow of tn, river will cause such lake as ha, been found il will certainly not re quire a large outlay of money to en large the outlet from the river te such an extent that permanency may be given to the lake. Such a body of water would have a beneficial effect on the climate while it would also be the means of eventually re claiming large portion of the desert The proposition certainly looks feas ible aud Is worthy of investigation.