The Indianapolis journal., 1891-07-05

season they are covered with few inches
Oh water, and are thus converted into
ectusl lakes for q short time The water
efap0rates rapidly with approaching warm
Mes.hei, ;un ,h sno tnay soon become dry. Dur
ing sne greater part of the year they are
hsTd and smooth. and glare and glitter
under the scorching rays of the sun like
Immense sheets of tin
T.. me soiI In many places is very peculiar.
~ 10 known as self-raising ground After
being wet 1t rises up and cracks open, and
eiter becoming dry it ls so light and soft
tnat one Will sink six and seven inches into
IL at every step. Stretches of this ground
miles In extent are found In MANY places
In the great Colorado sink
HORNED ToADs AND SNAKES.
Lizards and horned toada ahound Thew
dart past or lie painting on the ground. nm
hotieed' unless 1t be some peculiarly
marked OF brilliantly colored one. The
most common lizard is fght-colored,
trim-built fellow, about four inches long,
with taperinR tail about the same length
as his body. Near the end his tall ia
marked with white and black rings alter
nately. When alarmed be darts off like al
aTTow. mere are many kinds of lizards
seen on the desert-white, black and mot
tied. with brighr-colored sides
liz was noticed by traveller that horned
t0ads would; to degree, assume the color
OF tne ground or rocks they live upon like
chameleons. horned toad is no toad at
al, out hzaTd. Some of the larger lizards.
the chuckwaila, for instance, will bite and
III strong enough can give one q severe
pinch. The chuckwalla 10 favorite article
OF diet with the Indian. Its meat is white.
ana when thoroughly cooked resembl
chicken in taste.
Rattlesnakes are numerous The most
interesting OF these is the '.sidewinder -
ms Is small gray ish snake with ordinary
la'.iers markings. It's length is about
eisnteen inches over each eye Is horn
about one-eighth of an inch long The
peculiar features of this snake are it's horns
shd It's occasional mode of iOcomotiOn. 1t
ls the most dreaded of the rattlesnakes.
MANY hves have been lost on the. arid
desert. In many OF the cases of death by
| ness and ignorance of known watering
places was the primary cause, though il is
dimcuit to conceive of the terrible heat of
these verltable ovens of the desert The
sun smoothing It's burning rays into the deep
and, at times, windless valleys, and being
thrown back by the glaring. whitened sur
| face. fairly cooks the atmosphere.
Porsplration is so rapid and profuse that it
seems Impossible TO drink enough water.
DANGEROUS TO TRAVEL
The csnteen will DO more than leave the
lips when they are dry and parched again.
Conservative men, men VINO are perfectly
familiar with the country, says that it is
very dangerous thing to travel even a
short distance at the hottest time of year.
1he Thermometers frequently reg listers l30
| to 140 In the shade uring July and August
Those who have visited it say that It is
beyond human powers of description to
picture the wholly unnatural scene to be
beheld In some parts of the desert--the vast
stretches Of white plain. variegated with
black lava, the allurIng mirages the total
absence OF trees the dearth of animal life
and the intense heat, from which there is
no escape. Here and there too, are pebble
beds. miles in extent. made up of agate,
moss agate. chalcedony, jasper and Obsid-
| ian.
Irrigation would make this arid region
blossom like the rose. Scientific eyes have
been cast upon the Colorado desert for
many years. and scientific minds have sug-
kested plans Tor turning It's immense vol
umes of water into channels cut through
| the valley. Gen. John G. Fremont actively
advocated the diversion of q portion of the
Colorado into the great IndiO basin to the
reclamation of the asst expanse of parched
| vet fertile land. Another scheme was, by
| the ColOrado's waters. to make vast in
land sea OF the basin. Such a lake. it was
| urged. would materially change the climate
| of the neiChbOring sectiOns in ma king rain
much more abundant.
Upon the Arizona side there is project
| TO cut q canal from the Colorado about
twenty-eight miles above the town OF
Yuma, at q point where the rocky fOrma
| tiOn of the banks and the narrow ness of
| the channel furnish important a6van-
| tages for the construction OF dam. The
plans of the dam embrace details of an eff
| fective lock. in order that the navigat on
| of the river be not obstructed. In addi-
| tion TO irrigating the lands north Of the
F, ella river it is designed to construct an
aquednct across the latter stream AND to
| furnish water for irrigating the mesa
lands lying TO the south of Yuma. AS far
As the Mexican line the canal would ne the
means of irrigating 10000 acres of unsur-
| passed fruit land