Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-07-25
Arizona's Whisky Geyser.

Told 70 San Francisco Examiner reporter by Editor
Cahill of the Oakland Tribune.
That Colorado desert country is full of sur
prlses- man can never tell what to expect
when he's onn desert. II were travelling that
way and should come across a statue of Tom
Carneal as the goddess truth, I'd merely take it
for one of the natural freaks of an unnatural
land But this overflow business is nothing
new. They have special dispensations in those
unholy lands OF FAR more singular character
something In the way OF the law of COM
pensation After L had neglected to make
a fortune in manufacturing wine after the Kill
kenny theory in Anaheim. urgent neces-
sity and the sheriff made me move on.
So. with nothing much on my mind or nv
back, went over to an Apache reservation in
Arizona TO live on an old Trinity College friend
who was Indian agent. / found nv chum in a
state of alarmed surprise. His Indians were
all drunk, and he hadn't sold them any liouor-
And again, still more strange TO relate instead
Of being fighting drunk. with a desire for
scalps and muti!ation, they were as pleasantly
jagged as beery crowd at a Turn Rezirt
The agent and / spent three days in irving TO
discover the source of supply, but all we could
get out of the Indians was:
lymph, Big drunk come again"
At last, however, by giving a half tipsy in
terpreter and rolling scout box of cartridges
and seven red poker chips they uuburdened
We ''cum seed after them about three miIes
out into the bad lands. There We found a Lake
at least a mile across with a fringe of dancino
Indians around its entire margin. Nolake had
ever been seen there before. The water was NJ
a light brown color and exhaled a pleasing
odor. which could be smelled mile away. Tho
interpreter dipped up some of it and Offered
il TO us to drink. II was hquor-good hard
stuff-something like the poteen of my boy
hood days. You don't believe it, eh? Wby
the phenomenon Is easy enough of sciea-
tific explanation. In prehistoric ages all that
country was thickly covered with the cactus
from which mescal is distilled. This growth
was covered with water and mud in time. and
the heat and chemical forces of the earth's in
terror worked upon it the process of distilla.
ton something as gas and oil are formed be-
meath the earth's crust Then some drastic
lift Of pent volcanic fires" heaved it up TO meet
the air. IL was whisky geyser, for Il all dis
appeared within a month-iust as the agent
and were arranging to pipe it into Phoenix.
When II disappeared You couldn't get the In.
dans within mile of the hole through which
| il vanished. We found that they had tradi.
ton referring TO the original big drunk" OF
many years sgo-the oopuk bungalloo. as they
called il. Al that time, they said, party Of
shining white men, who made a big noise
when they walked, followed the LIQUOR into
the hole and were never seen again
To my mind that offers the explanatior
Of the mysterious disappearance OF Can't
lllusterio Velasquez and his warriors, who wen,
out from Sante Fe when the Spaniards frs,
| established themselves there, and of whom nc
| trace could afterward be found. They couldn't
give up their tipple and are probably preserved
In alcohol to this day. Thus science and his
tory go down the ringing grooves Of time with
hands In each others pocksta