The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-05-04
VISITED DEATH VALLEY
Two PaIo Alto Students Who
Explored the Dangerous
Ground.
FOR MINERALS AND FOSSILS.
Thew Secured a Valuable Collection
for the Stanford
Museum.

Two students at Stanford University,
R. M. Maynard, a graduate of '94 and ].
81. Wilson, who is taking special course
in civil engineering, have explored parts
of Death Valley and returned laden with
specimens of quartz and other rock forma
tons of that desolate region. They had a
perilous time, and their hairbreadth
escapes will often be retold in college his
tory over their collection, which is to be
added to the geological laboratory of the
university.
The explorers were gone from February
Is to about April 81. They went from one
end of Death Valley to the other, losing
only two of their burros during the trip.
They were in dangerous position on sew
eral occasions, but always managed to
pull through after some hardships.
When the call for volunteers was made
Wilson was the first to offer his services.
He is from Honolulu, and is son of ex-
Marshal Wilson, who served under Queen
Liliuokalani. 1t was not long before May
nard Joined him. Maynard is a son of
Dr. Maynard of the Bankers Alliance of
California at Los Angeles.
Once it became known that there was
danger in the venture, every student in
the university wanted to participate, but
the professors finally decided to send vii.
son and Maynard. From the university
they came to San Francisco and parted
Maynard going to Los Angeles to visit his
parents and Wilson going direct to Te-
hachapi When Maynard joined him at
that point they at once proceeded to pur-
chase their outfit.
In telling the story of their journey into
the valley yesterday Wilson said: eve
first of ali purchased five burros, and these
we packed with flour, ierked meat, canned
goods, cooking utensils, a tent and all the
other odds and ends of a prospector's out
fit. For water we had three-gallon keg,
two one-gallon canteens and two quart
canteens, all of which we kept constantly
filled. When we made start each OF our
donkeys had 100 pounds on his back and
we were afoot. The next day we made
twenty-three miles and were completely
tired out when we reached the Sixteen
nile House.
after a nights rest we made an easy
stage and reached Kane's Springs early in
the afternoon. We stayed there six days
and explored Red Rock and Last Chance
canyons in search of fossils and minerals.
We got plenty of the latter but none of the
former. AT our next stopping place
Mesquite-we lost one OF our burros.
There was no water and he followed a COW
for seven miles, sucking her whenever he
could get chance before we could catch
him. A band of wild jackasses kept US
awake all the next night. and Maynard
finally drove them away by firing load
of buckshot into their midst.
Passing through the Goler mining
camp we reached Searls' San Bernardino
Borax Company's camp, and there we put
in Friday, Saturday and Sunday of the Sec
ond week in March. We secured num-
EDo nd a flor Ii nd
dressing steer for Searls we secured about
twenty pounds of jerked meat from him.
Searls has garden in the desert, which is
seven miles from any habitstion and which
he keeps alive by water piped from the
hills, seven miles away. The oranges were
Just ripening, but carloads of dried peaches,
apples, apricots grapes and figs were on
the ground going to waste. We took a
sack of them along and had stewed fruit
for supper and raisins for our rice pudding
whenever we wanted them.
After leaving Searls' place we crossed the
State Range into Panamint Valley, and
the next morning attempted to cross the
Alkah Lake. From Redland's Mills we
went to Postoffice Springs.
at took US seven hours to cover the ten
miles between Postotfice Springs and Sur
prise Canyon. At the latter place our
burros again ran away, and Maynard had
to chase them fully forty-six miles before
he caught them.
"On the hills the snow and ice were very
much against us. In order to gain the en-
trance to Death Valley it took four hours
OF incessant toll to cover mile and half
Our burros were tagged out, and two of
them went over precipice and were
dashed to death 500 feet below. After
gathering up the remains of their packs,
strange to say all that was missing were
two teaspoons and can of pepper. That
night we dug hole into the mountain and
made camp there in the snow.
''On arriving at Furnace Creek we
camped for seventeen days and explored
the valley from one end to the other
Samples of minerals we secured without
any trouble, but, as to fossil life, there was
next to no trace. Our homeward journey
was almost in bee line, and we covered
the 206 miles to Tehachapi in little under
seven days, the first hundred being covered
in thirty-three hours.