San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1894-08-07
TO RECLAIM A DESERT.
Plans to Turn Death Valley Into
an Inland Sea.
A Region Where Human Beings Cannot
Exist on Account of Its Extreme
Heat and Aridity-A Huge
Undertaking.


tated by irrigationistsi is the retaining
of the famous Death Valley" in the
great American desert. 1t is proposed
to make it an inland sea by turning the
melting SHOWS and rains that fall upon
the Sierra Nevadas into this dry sea-"
The valley is two hundred feet below
the floor of the desert, is one hundred
and fifty miles long, thirty miles wide
at the northern end. tapering to about
three miles in width at the southern
extremity. One of the schemes to re-
claim the desert is to turn the Colorado
river into the lower end, or, as it is
called, the Colorado desert, from which
water would naturally seek its level
in Death valley. Another gigantic
scheme is to tap the ocean by system
of canals. This would reclaim millions
upon millions of acres of land by mod
flying the torrid climate, and perhaps
rendering this desolate region habita-
BILE for other beings than horned toads,
rattlesnakes and lizards. AS the re-
clamation, if feasible, would require
the expenditure of several millions of
dollars, besides leakage it is doubtful,
says the Chicago Tribune, whether
congress will lend a listening ear. 1t
is believed that when Death valley
shall have been filed with water the
reclamation of the entire upper portion
of the desert is assured. An opposition
theory is that as the sands of the des-
ert absorb the streams that triclIle
down from the mountains before they
make much progress the absorption
would be very rapid: or. in other
words, that the valley would not hold
water; also. that as the temperature
ranges from 10 to 1856 degrees the year
round the absorption would also be
very great. The schemers admit that
the absorption would be great, but
that it would decrease as it became
modified, and would soon become SO
permanently.
They deny that the valley will not
hold water by proving, to their own
satisfaction at least, that several CEN
turtles ago the entire desert, including
the hot valley, formed an arm of the
gulf of California. In proving this,
one of the promoters of this gigantic
scheme told of finding the timbers of
an old vessel in the desert about one
hundred miles inland. But. the usual
''old pioneer comes forward and up
sets that method Of inductive reason
ing with the statement that in the
early days he and others built ferry
boat and started with it to point on
the Colorado river; their OK teams dy-
ing from thirst, the boat was aban-
doned, and was soon covered by the
drifting sands.
These theories. and more. will all
come to the front as soon as the pro-
moters of the enterprise begin the agi-
tatiOn. There is no fear that il will
amount to anything. yet congress has
done many impracticable things.
Death valley is the hottest place on
earth, SO far as known up to date.
There is no spot so deadly, more desc
late and so thiclzly strewn with dead.
1t is appropriately named, for human
life cannot exist amid its poisonous va
pOrs. and even the birds are infected
with its nOXious gases and fall dead in
their fight. Heavy rains never fall in
this death-deaing place, and the few
light showers only make the atmos-
phere more humid, if possible. With
the thermometer at one hundred and
thirty-siX degrees in the shade, and the
sun beating against the black bristling
rocks, rejecting back the intensified
heat, one may form some idea of this
desolate region. 1t is the dryest place
in the wOrld-the bodies of those who
persisted from thirst have been found
in after years completely mummified.
The cOrpses were not disturbed by even
the prowling hyena. Animal life can
not exist there-only the reptile species.
Men have died from thirst, and yet
water was within reach.
The blistering heat and dryness of
the air rendered it impossible to
keep the body to the proper temper
AZURE to sustain life. This valley
was named by Gov. Blaisdell, of Ne
vada. He and few others were max
ing a survey, and found the mummified
remains of about twenty emigrants,
who, in attempting TO cross the valley,
lost their way and died of thirst and
starvation.