The morning call., 1891-07-07
ANOTHER THEORY.
Speculation as to the Formation
OF the Inland Sea.
D. K allen of the Arizona Sentinel Denies
That the Colorado Has Changed Its
Course at Pilot Knob.

No reports were received at Fourth and
Townsend streets yesterday concerning the
expedition sent out last week for the pun
pose of discovering the Colorado River
channel, which is supposed TO be located in
sand ridge which separates the two great
depressions near Salton.
d. X. Allen of the Arizona Sentinel has
written letter to General Superintendent
Fillmore in which he gives clear review
of the situation, and advances theory as
to the formation of the inland lake, based
upon good knowledge of the country and
careful observations concerning the present
phenomenon. The communication is as
follows:
THE sALToS FLOOD.
For years, whenever the Colorado River has
reached the twenty two foot gauge al the Yuma
Bridge, II would overflow at point twenty
- seven miles below Yuma and the wafer would
- set back 10 the west and northwest for from
twenty 10 thrty miles. In tile great foods of
HE region m Indian Wells 100 miles west OF
Yuma and covered that section with water
though lie volume WAS less than One-half OF
what IS a the present time.
All luat Time The AlgOd0nes saud-hills, which
las ON tie west bank OF the river, ten miles be-
Low Hall Hanlon's your station e Rio) threw
tie wafer of 10 the eastward AMI prevented it
rom overlooking the west banks, until II reached
rOInl thirty miles below Yuma, where il did
overflow The banks and set back toward New
River ana The CocUpah range Of mountains.
Tie water IN the hood Of 1884 stood at 2S.6.
Last year II stood al 25.G. and II cut away the
Ellis Al AlgOuOnes, changed The river TO The
west so As TO throw the great overflow to the
westward twenty miles this Side, or north OF the
old overflow, ana gives the surplus water, vol
uh!e len miles wide aud from three 10 eight feet
ueep which enters The great natural canal sys-
ten OF New River. Tree, direct course TO Indian
Wells, with a five-me current, tile distance be-
Ing about niuety-seven miles.
TOPOGRAPHY OF THE COUNTRY.
TIE liver al Yuma IS l % feet above sea level.
mere the water leaves 1t below FL Paso II is
40 fret above, while The iagUna aud Big Holes
al IHdian Wells aIe IS feet below The level OF
the sea, making aeSceut OF los Leet Ia the
. ntnety-seven miles TO Indian Wells. or l II TO the
Im Of The basin, over which the water passes.
Tive Eieat flood of FEBRUARY, this year Qlyer
% Ga. nearly five feet higher than ever before
! known, niled The Indian els region for forty
miles square with waller from two 10 ten feet
deep, and also The whole of the Colorado Valley,
100 ml .tS square, With water two 10 five les
deep From that time To the present The water
lbs been pouring into the great lake section.
That region Is pa feet above the Salton Salt
Works
All that separates that vast area OF water from
tie indlo OF Salt0H Basin is a bank OF sand nine
znd half feet high and hSli a mile wide. The
water does not sink from the time il leaves the
Colorado. near the Algodones live miles below
Il RIO, until 1t reaches Big Holes and Mud
Lakes, near Indian Wells, where II does sink.
The Big Holes region, ten miles square and
mar The dividing river between tie Laguna or
Ike reg ON and the basin ri Salton, Is nied with
ihouSdhds OF holes from loot 10 eight feet IN
diameter tNith no bottom so far as can be ascer-
,ainedh into which the waller from Tie heavy
desert rains pOurs for days without filling uu.
WHERE DOES THE WATER GO?
Last year the water filled this basin in part,
aud II an into these thousands Of holes ior Two
months or morr- / have carefully examined
these, watched the waller as II ran iuto them and
wondered where II went 10.
Since February 10Th, this gear, the water has
been running INTO mat region, and since say
y March 10Th il has been from hve ten feet deep
all ever thar whole region. ana as result it has
been touring down the open lhroatS Of these
thousands OF open or underground channels.
Sly idea OF theory OF The rise OF the wafer al
oSltOn Is this: That Laguna region. forty miles
SQUARE has been fun OF water since February
and It las been pouring into these holes, which,
,tNiu the pressure of water above, has forced the
1sater IN these underground channels until II
has forced fer Itself channel or passage
and found an outlet into the blsin al Salon
The Indian Wells basin Is thirty eight feet below
the sea level and IA feel above tie Salon salt
90 = orks, making descent Of pa feet IN sixty
Or June oath the water at Big Holes. near tie
rim, WAS within four ieet OF tile top OF tile sand
bank or lin Of the basin l apprrhe 10 dan
ger from his. As every foot OF that water Iises
II must spread over tie iotty square miles OF lake
already made and cover the whole 100 miles
square at least from SIX 10 ten inches deep
Therefore there can be no immediate danger
unless the subterraHean passage enlarges, so as
10 PERM a much larger body Of wafer TO pass
through II INTO the Salem sink.
HARD Nut TO CRACK.
If this great volume Of water that runs Of to
tie west since February does not sink at Big
HOieS and run into SaitOn underground, then
- .ere can 1t gO2 If The water at Saton does not
come from this great elevated lake, Then where
does It come from?
The Data given here are the result of my own
Z
Work IN that sFcii0u of the Colorado Valley.
vhiclI ended some eighteen months ago.
ny views are eoheurfed IN BY my t%o assistants
Known engineers We were iheIe during the
dryesI season ever known; also saw il IN The
f highest water seen since White men or live In
dIaus Knew II. II Is fact that all OF that desert
county has been uuder water at different
periods, three times under salt water ana three
times under fresh waller The shells and rocks
y bear the record.
No DANGER TO THE ROAD.
/ apprenend yet 10 real danger to your ROAD
across Tie desert from the fact that found the
enlHe river region between the Indian Wells
LAKE region and the Sdlton sink TO be composed
OF a tough, hard clay shale. True, at &c feet IN
depth. We struck salt water oil ana qulckSand.
IutO THIS we'll 66 feet deep, the wafer poured
DUNG several days Without Milling The well OF
raising the water 10 the well. My Idea was that
i iouud rs escape through the quicksand cur
rents. The Colorado River near III Rio or Pilot
Knob has not changed ITS course for IA year. 1t
YEEs aud IS tie same now that IL was a year ago
eHJune 23d, when was there and carefully ex-
amined, Ill.
A few days ago did The same and found that
the rivers bed and current were the same a
year ago. The report that the Colorado has
broken through its banks, changed Its course or
current 1t Pilot Knob IS the merest ''bosh.'
Friends OF mine. competent judges, men who have
lived where the break IN the bank OF the Colorado
Is said TO have taken place, just ia from here,
say that there Is not word Of truth Ia the re-
port
l Think that you VIII find when the water is
finally drawn of from the Indian Wells region
THAI The water sinks at Big Holes and Mud Lac,
where those great wells, or holes, and The sub
ieTanean passages are known TO exist
NATURAL CANAL SYSTEM.
Z One thing is certain, ana that is the whole vast
region NOW overlooked. which is ] 80 miles in
length by 80 wide, can all be drawn eli and into
tie SaItou 3 tsiu, and when this Is doue the nat
Ural canal system of New River viii convey the
Fwater from the mouth of New River back 10 In-
dian Wells aud Will keep supply going there
i from the Colorado and from the Gulf of Califor-
MIA. in which case the ancient sea at Saron will
be hlled TO It's brlm.
My reasons are these: The mouth OF
New River (HaIdys ColOradOl is twenty feet
n Ove lie level of the sea, and Indian
Wells Is thirty feet below sea level, making
E1fiy-epht feet fall, with no obstruction between:
{ b sides This tie tile al the mouth OF New yer
E rises twenty feet, which makes The actual
difference seVeniy-eigbt feet, with nothing In The
F way, a plain river in which The wafer can run
from The Cuff of California into the new inland
E sea at Salton.
In this case there Is danger as TO your line
across Tie desert, which this wafer musi FILL pro-
-yidiug Tie passage Undef ground is sufficiently
. h. &c 10 allow wafer enough TO pass through IL to
tn mai great basin. The trip or journey from
here 10 Indian Wells at this season OF the year
i is a peIiUus one, on account OF the heat, diff
= Gully IN getting focd for animals and crossing