The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-11-30
CURIOUS FACTS ABOUT
THE GREAT SALT LAKE
1t Is Gradually sinking and the Water
Is Becoming Fresh.
lt Lake dor. Philadelphla Times.

Salt Lake Cor Philadelphia Times.
| The Great Salt lake is two feet low
err today than ever before known in the
| history Of Utah. and, according to COM
| petent observers. it Is rapidly changing
| it's chief characteristic and turning IN
to an inland sea of fresh water. Every
! fall the lake is several feet lower thah
| in the spring. but this year the waters
| have snbSided to such an extent that
! many of the bathing pavilions and boat
| houses are left high and dry upon
the beach. 1t has always been believ-
ed by experts that the lake had an un-
derground outlet. but no explorer has
yet been fortunate enough to discover
any. 1t is supposed however, that out
lets exist, and that during the last six
months they have gained noticeably
upon the springs which supply the lake
with it's water.
| on the northern slopes Of the lakes
shores and down the western border
are umberless springs which have al
ways ran pure brine into the inland
| sea. These springs evidently come
through immense rocks of salt in the
| earth, and by washing through them
| they make the spring water intensely
brinY by the time 1t reaches the sur
| face. There have been signs of
change in these springs in recent years.
! Several times they have ceased to
| flow as rapidly as usual. and the water
they poured up appeared frtsher. They
| have now become partly chicken up
either with rocks or salt, and they no
| longer give the same supply of salt
water as they did years ago. In sever
| al other places--nOtably on East Ante
lope, within fifteen feet of the briminS
lake basin-tberc are many fresh water
springs that gush up at all seasons.
These fresh water springs have become
larger and more powerful since the salt
water springs became ClOgged up, and
it is supposed the underground reser-
voir of water, diverted from its usual
course, Is now seeking an adequate
outlet through the springs where no
salt rocks exist.
FRESH WATER,
If this theory is correct the Great
| Salt lake will gradually turn to fresh
water, and the surface will continue to
| fall until the winter and spring fresh
cts from the mountains fill it again.
! This additional water will add no salt
! to the great sea, but make it fresher
| than ever 1t has been well known for
many years that the Great Salt lake
| is fresher in the early spring than in
| the summer, and the phenomenon is
! probably caused by the addition Of
! great quantities of water from the
| SHOWS and streams of the mountains.
! Those engaged in manufacturing salt
| on the lake say that ii takes six gal
/ Ions of water to make one gallon Of
| salt in the summer and fall, but that
| in early spring 1t often takes seven
| and even eight gallons to make the
! same quantity of salt.
There are three large streams
! cmptying into the Great Salt lake-the
| Bear, Weber and Jordan rivers--but
! they make no appreciahle difference in
the saltncss Of the lake, except early
| in the spring when they carry the
melting SHOWS of the mountains down
| to the lake. So long as the under
! ground springs of salt continued To
| pour their brine into the lake it re-
| uuired an immense volume of fresh
| water to neutralize their effect,
The Great Salt Lake Is seventy miles
! long and fifty miles across in its Wild
! est part, and 1t has an area of 1000
/ square miles. Another peculiar change
! that has taken in the lake is the grad
/ ual upheaVal Of the bottom. In re-
/ cent years its greatest depth has not
/ exceeded forty feet, while the average
/ depth is only from twelve to twenty.
/ Fifty years ago the bottom could not
| be sounded in places, and lines hum
dred feet long failed to strike bottom,
What has caused this remarkable
| change i'm the bottom of the lake?
There are various opinions and specu-
Al ID coo FoNG N
When the bottom was sounded in all
+ places a few years ago expert divers
were sent down to explore the bottom
and to find, If possible, an und rground
. outlet. They did not succeed in this
latter work, but they made it clear
that the bottom of the lake was like
any other body Of water, and that If
! beds of salt existed they must be bur-
! led out Of sight by stratum of sand,
| mud and rocks If the salt beds had
| been located near the surface, COM
| panies would have ben boring for
/ them long ago; but at present it is
cheaper to obtain the saft by evapor-
alton than by trying TO find the orig
inal source OF the brine,
ENCAsED IN SALT.
The shores Of salt lake are COM
! posed chiefly Of barren fats covered
in places with a, scant growth Of
dwarf sage. These bushes and their
branches are covered most Of the time
with a covering of salt which makes
them glisten and sparkle like ice or
snow in the sunshine, The running
springs of brine mG'tly bubble up
from these fats and pour into the lake
in innumerable rivulets and streams.
There are several islands in the Salt
lake Antelope island is the largest
and best known, and it is sixteen mil
es long and four wide. 1t lies twenty
miles off the south coast, and it is