The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1891-07-02
TURNED lNTOA LAKE.
r,s Great Colorado Desert Sud-
denly Becomes Flooded.
! VERY STRANGE PHENOMENON
witch is PuzzlIng the People of the
pacific coast---ThO Desert Trans
armed in Some Mysterious Manner
into Vast Salt Lake-.TheOry of the
Indians.

Francisco, July 1.-The sudden
eooding Of the lowest part Of the Color
.1o Desert, about salton, is one OF the
' .,,,nyest phenomena ever witnessed on
.Sis coast. Here is a great inland basin
rbjeh at its lowest part is go feet below
,be sea level. Ithas an area OF 5000
'aoore miles, and extends from about
ioomjlcs from the Colorado river clear
- seven Palms on the Southern Pacific
,,ilrood. Near Salton are extensive salt
works where the product exists almost
IN il. natural state. On Saturday even
~, moisture was noticed all over this
III deposit, and soon little streams Of
T 1',t we're seen trickling along, coming,
s"n T, from the south portion OF
,bc valley. These kept increasing in
y5lume and spread out, joining each
o,bcr until by Sunday morning there
Tcre twelve inches Of water covering
,bc rronpd for several miles. OF course
a il came through the salt earth it was
fhe water continued to rise all day,
and the latest reports are that all the
rsrjoD for miles around Salton is a great
al lake which in its deepest part is
i i inches. The railroad, which
;.only three feet above the level of the
desert Is not covered, as it is on higher
ground. Thegreat salt works are ruined
Sra time. Those who have been on
the ground and watched the incoming
oit6e water declare that 1t is due to
strong underground current coming
from the ocean.
Al Indio another phenomenon was
tupd TO have occurred. For a number
Of wears the railroad company has had
an ar,csion well flowing at a little sta
ion seven miles east Of Indio, which
has been sunk ut considerable expense.
Thi. we'll was found dry about the time
that the flow Of water had first been
noticed at the salt mines, After TWEEN
y.iour hours the well resumed its flow;
which started the theory that the arte-
siaa stream was responsible for the
food. The theory OF the Indians, who
have lived on the desert many years, is
that the melting Of heavy SHOWS in the
mountains swelled the Colorado river
waters and they are forced buck nearly
lUO miles into the desert. 1t is the
OyCr!iowing OF the banks OF this stream
into the great basin OF the Colorado
that has caused the lake to appear. The
Indians say the same thing happened
about fifty years ago.
ALL the region in the Colorado Desert
which is now flooded shows signs OF
iormer marine life and shells and other
EVIDENCES Of great inland lake ex-
tending to the San Gorgonio Pass, in
San Bernard Mountains, the gateway
from the desert to the orange groves
q Southern California. The fact that
tbs region has once been covered by
water, caused DR.. 0. NJ. Wozencraft, OF
California, to devise scheme for di-
WHiRg the water OF the Colorado river
upon the desert. lie estimated that
2uO,0t0 acres could be converted into
fich agricultural land, rs the soil will
pUiucc like the valley Of the Nile if it
las plenty Of water. His scheme was
iHlorscd by competent engineers,
but he died before being able to put his
theory into practice.
The Colorado desert Of California is
iSan Diego county, the most southern
county Of California. 1t is bordered by
he Colorado river on the eastern side,
Tie san Eernardino Mountains on the
norh, Lower California on the south,
lElIhe fertile coast lands on the west.
This region of California is OF recent
formation and is sterile and forbidding
% the last degree. It has many dry
hkes and creek beds. These lakes, or
giIis, often very deep, are always suit
and bitter, and often without water
most Of tho year, but the beds OF the
IlEas are covered with alkaline deposits.
IIhisrelion, like the famous Death VAL
=! IN lnyo county, gives striking evil
dt1ce Of its former volcanic character
ana Of the grea changes which have
tSen place, som OF them in modern
l!ncs, There ara few stations on the
southern Pacific south OF Seven Palms,
anu SaItOn, which is reported to be
Hooded, is between two large dry lakes.
AH o! the towns mentioned in the above
uslatCh are in ono Of thu vollnva nj tha