Los Angeles herald., 1891-10-26
Harry PattOn's Latest News
About SaltOn Sea.
Joe Carter Says the Crevasse
Cannot Be Closed.
Some Interesting Information About
the Desert Lake.
Mr.. PattOn's Theory-Carter Gives q
Practical View OF the Situation.
The Lake WIN Be Ten Times
Larger This Winter.

in the last issue of his paper gives the
following interesting data on the mat
ter:
1t is surprising to what an extent in
terest keeps up in the Salton sea. The
editor OF this paper never goes away
from home that he is not asked by three
out of five people he meets regarding the
present status of the lake. There has
been very little to report concerning it.
The water has been falling some, but
owing to recent rise in the Colorado
river it has again begun to flow past the
Summit and is finding its way into
Salton lake. word about the Summit: :
On our memorable trip from Yuma to
Salton, by boat, we found place near
Seven Wells where the water was only
about six feet deep for distance of about
a hundred yards. Before reaching this
spot, and after passing it, the water was
about twenty feet deep. Joe Carter named
this the Summit. Geo. w. Durbrow and
Captain Mellon have recently been down
to the break in the Colorado, and Dur
brow, in an offhand way, tells the news
papers that it wouldn't take much work
to stop the crevasse and prevent the
flow OF water to the desert. We received
the other day letter from our friend
Joe Garter, who is at his cattle camp
near the crevasse, and he gives his
views on stopping the break:
CARTER CAMP, Oct. 8, 1891.
FRIEND PATTON: On my arrival here
today from Seven Wells found yours of
Co0&or,haX O4kb op1 Oo+Ohar LET NNan
| will open up for you most cheerfully,
but l am very busy and can only promise
this one. | am now gathering cattle all
along Carter river as far as Seven Wells,
about IL miles from this camp. l go
out and sleep there at night, and the
next morning track herd Of cattle and
bring them home. l was not so fortu-
nate last trip, as / had to sleep out two
nights, and then three of us only secured
six COWS and three calves on the third
day, and got home about a. m. We
take out big load of bread, some
jerkey, coffee and sugar, and rough it
till we get back, Yesterday morning
we had no breakfast, but were fortunate
enough to find three watermelon vines
loaded with ripe melons, about three
miles southwest OF Cooks Wells. One
vine had at least 40 watermelons, and
many were delicious. We killed two
rattlesnakes in one day; one with seven
and the other with IA rattles the long
est about - feet long and two inches
in diameter. There is good grass and
queteta weed at Seven Wells, but not
much. We found enough to last five
head of horses several days. There is a
black weed, sosa, growing in different
places so thick that it's almost impene-
trable; in fact you can't travel through
it over mile. anyhow. 1t exhausts the
strength of both horses and cattle.
If we have heavy winter, and conse-
quently big rise in the Colorado, l
think Salton will be submerged en-
tirely. The ground is thoroughly
soaked, the sloughs keep up their sup
ply of water, and when the freshet
comes there will be but little soakage
and waste, and Salton lake will fill very
fast. We had a rise about the first of
September and the water was booming
in Carter river again, and continued ris-
ing even after the water was falling in
the Colorado; but it is now going down
very fast and can again cross it. Pre-
vious to the rise it had ceased flowing
just this side of Seven Wells-the Sum-
init.
Now, with all dne Difference to the
opinions and observations of Mr.. Dur
brow and Captain Mellon, l think they
as well as other humans, are likely tc
be mistaken. Captain Mellon no doubt
has an eye to business. Steamboats,
would be very handy about the time
they contemplated closing the crevasse
on the river bank. As soon as their
substantial ~ dyke or levee is built
suppose the water will do as it did for
merly, bank up against it until it finds
a low spot above or below, and will then
flow into the hills as it did before. You
know that the water flowed south and
west as we went in, and after going in
about one and half miles the water
flowed northwest and then north until we
got near the sandhills, when it again
took southwesterly course. How long
will their levee be? How high will il
be? l will wager that l can show them
channels that they never saw, shallow
and wide, but carrying immense bodies
of water. The river, recollect, had flown
through this region of crevasses two
years previous to '91. / suppose they
intend to close the big break-the new
river-the others will then wash out,
and then you will see body Of water
go to Salton. 1t is most likely true that
the main channel has been washed out,
but (as they acknowledge the channel
has not been closed, and the cut or
break is also level with the bottom OF
the stream; and the course of the river
is in direct line for the breaks or
crevasse, and the new east channel that
Mellon spoke of makes a turn south.
l tell you this crevasse was formerly a
dam, and all Mellon says only confirms
what | say the river will still flow to
that dam, and am id if he can stop
1t from overfiowing around any dyke he
can build @here they say, and still con-
tinuing to supply Salton lake. The
problem is not solved end won't be
until most thorough investigation is
made both by land and water, which
will not require less time than three
or four weeks, and it will cost money.
Even before the bend became such a
levee the water backed up from below
and overhowed these lands and backed
out onto the desert, but of course did
not reach Salton. as it did not have the
force and body. inclose small map.
When writing on the crevasse mere
" express my opinions and views from
observations. This is large, leve
country, and / am continually making
discoveries in regard to the topography
of the country. Mellon and Durbrow
accomplished a great deal in a very
short time. How about the notes taker
IL