The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1893-04-12
WEIRD PHANToMs OF THE PLAINS.
Strange Mirages That Lead Travellers
Astray In New Mexico.

One of the weirdest of desert scenes
is the mirage, and no more curious
stories have been told of them In recent
years than by Dean Duke of San Fran
cisco, who, as Superintendent of the
great Haggin & Hearst cattle range in
New Mexico, has been much in the
saddle during the last few months, and
has seen many of them.
Mr.. Duke has just arrived in San
Francisco. He tells of quaint towns
beyond the American border being re-
fracted in the skies and made to ap-
pear as actually existing on the New
Mexico deserts. The towns vary in
size, and the domes of churches and of
government buildings, the stores, and
all the outlines stand out in clear view.
The air is so thin and pure that real
object fifty miles away does not appear
to be more than five.
I'm riding over the plains have
seen many of these strange mirages of
towns of Old Mexico" said he. "The
spires of the churches, with their white
crosses, the adobe buildings and
everything about them are complete.
Riding at a distance one takes them
for real towns, and it is only after
learning that there can be no such
cities in the vicinity that he gives up
his idea of going to them. Many men
have been deceived by them, as they
have been by the mirages resembling
lakes.
LAST week an American named
Frank Seybold was journeying from
the old town of Juarez, Mexico, to Los
Palomas, in New Mexico, with lot of
merchandise. About forty miles south
of Deming, in Chihuahua, he saw a
beautiful lake and pulled over the
plains to get water for himself and
team, as both were very thirsty. He
drove for quite a distance and still
didn't appear to get any closer. Still
the lake was there before him in such
beauty and naturalness that he never
thought but it was genuine, and kept
on. He could feel, as he thought, the
cool breeze from the lake, and was en-
couraged to push ahead.
eat length after going several miles
and getting no closer the fact of its
being mirage of the desert dawned
on him and he wheeled his team
around to get back. But night came
on before he reached the road. He
pushed ahead, thinking to reach it
any way. and thus got lost and wander
ed around till he could not reach the
road.
HE had, therefore, to stay where he
was, and in the morning he renewed
his search. 1t was no use, however.
He could not find it, and after wander
ing around a good while longer he un-
hitched his teams, left his goods, and
proceeded in the direction he supposed
Los Palomas was. It was four DAYS
in all before he got back, and in that
time he had no water and suffered
greatly. 1t was a wonder he got
through at all.
"Another case know of occurred
last summer. A Mexican got lost on
the plains, was deceived by the
mirages, and went hither and thither
in quest of water. Finally he was de-
ceived by this so much and had gone
so long without anything to drink that
he became delirieus, and, whipping out
his revolver, shot himself to get rid of
his sufferings.
His hand was unsteady, and in
stead of inhicting fatal hurt he shot
himself in the leg. He saw the blood
ooZing from it, and in his crazed con-
dition drank it as 1t came from the
wound. Strange to say,it revived him
so that he partially recovered his
reason, and at last got back to where
he could get water and be treated. He
Ventually recovered.
"On the vast dry plains near the
Mexican border last summer great
many coyotes went mad because there
was no water to drink. In this mad
condition they would bite anybody
they found. Two Mexican boys were
sleeping on the ground in their blank
cts one night when mad coyote at
tackled and bit both of them. One of
the boys afterwards died of hydropho-
bia from the coyote bite, but the other
finally got well.
"There have been several Instances
of people dying down there of hydro
phobia from the bites of the mad
coyotes Rather more of them have
occurred over the line of Mexico than
anywhere else. 1t was the excessive
dryness that caused the coyotes to
get crazed. At such times they are
dangerous, and one must look out for
them"