Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1893-06-27
AN INFERNO ON EARTH.

God may nave wrought place more
terrible than the Cocopah desert OF low
er Californis, but II so 1t IL unmarked by
the trail of mortal. A desert from which
Dante might have added to the horrors
Of his "InfernO"; level Of gray death.
feared by man and forgotten by Its ere
ator; a region separated from the seeth.
ing caldrOns below by thin crust Of
sand through which the fumes aud heat
from the ebb and fiow Of fire seem plain
ly apparent.
AZ a starting point for a desert trip
find Campo, n village In southern Call.
fOrnia, near the Mexican boundary, and
about sixty miles back from the coast
line. Twenty miles south Of that, ~ an
initial point, run a line 100 miles south.
east until It touches the gulf coast line.
Between that line and the gulf lies th.
famous Cocopah desert with it range Of
mountaius-a territory about 100 miles
square, but as little known as the interi-
or Of Africa; an innocent looking little
spot on the map, but on the surface Of
what II represents lie bleaching the
bones of many men, both white and red.
You will note that Il Is not marked
with the zlgzag lines which generally
donate water-courses, nor Il 1t marked
with the shaded lines representing
mountains. whys Simply because as
yet there has been found no corps of en-.
gineers with sufficient hardihoOd to at.
tempt Its survey. There are maps OF
the region, but they are scared on the
brains of less than half dozen hardy
prOspectors.
Standing on the line you have drawn
aud looking eastward, you may see the
outlines of range Of mountains, distant,
with water. forty, possibly sixty miles.
Without water, eternity intervenes be-
TIVE, n you and that range of hills rising
darkly purple through the shlmmerlng
heat. That stretch Of forty or sixty
miles ls the worst part Of the Cocopsl
desert-a wide stretch of arid, sterile,
sandy plain, lying far below the level Of
the sea and absolutely devoid OF vege-
tation aud life In any form; too hot and
dry for even the lizard and horned toad.
The heat rsdlates from the sand and
rocks with scorchlng effect, bllsterinR
the skin.
Forty or sixty miles IL not n great
distance, YOU say, and ought TO be cOv-
tItu. Iu IC-s tstUu
Other good men have though the same
and have tried Il. Their bones scattered
about on the sand afford proof Of their
error. Every year for noarly halt u
century that desert has claimed its
victims, singly and In groups. Yearly
since the Argonauts drlfted south from
the gold fields In the centre Of California.
men have started for the Cocopahs and
never returned.
Once having reached the mountains,
YOU are n saved from death by thirst.
There are but two or three places In oil
that range on the west eide where water
at to drink may be found. There are
strange phenomena In that region, how
ever, which are worthy Of scientific
exploration. At the foot of the mount
ains, on the west, Il q lake known ~
the Laguns Salado. Il is probably eight
miles In length and from one to two
miles iu width, lying parallel with the
range. The water is very salt and has
tides like the oceans. Its shores are
fringed with q marine vegetation, and it
ID evident that the lake Il fed from the
Gulf Of California, but the gulf 10 more
than sixty miles away and . range OF
mountains lntervenes. Francisco
xxanissr.