Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1897-08-25
THE SALT INDUSTRY
How The Mineral Wealth Of Salt Like
is U ilZed.
INTERVIEW WIN NIX. CLAYTON.
simple lie, PERI ct Process of Refining
-SiaIistics Of Con,ump ion
NtbO salt Works.

OF water that once 6lleu the RTea
basin from 81. George on the b to
Idaho on the north and from the Wa
aatcn mountaiue on The east to the
Sierra Nevada on the wesi--an inland
sea by the side OF which the G;eal
Lakes sink Toto in.ignificsnce. lie
shore lines at tbrse distinct levels can
DO seen on the Wssstcn and Oquiirn
mountains, the highest being u tnou.
sand teet above the preseat surface oil
the lake.
Aud this WAS a body Of fresh water,
which from geologic Ia locations, must
nave teemed with rquatic life o: nil
sizes and varieties, As is well known,
the remnant OF this lake Ia the salt.
feet briBe In the world, with the single
reception OF the Dead Sea. l varies
from twenty to twenty.three per cent
cold matter, and lie thus many times
more dense than ocesu water. What
mas wrought the ohang,?
MOUNTAINS OF SALT.
This question brings isirly be-
VIZ oo tbC ihIt VAuhk Sthh
liz more than ordinarily blessed
with the mineral product Ia Us
native slate. A BODY water with n
outlet would beooms salt In time, from
the drainage of ordinary surfaces,
which all cOntsin a fraction Of the
mineral; out IN Utah there are noun
tains OF i-mountsin ranges, one
might almost say. The largest depo.-
Its are to bo uud in SILT Greek
capyon in Juso oIunty, anu
II Sallns canyor, SEWER county. ID
these places the wboe eide Of the
mountain lie one vast ledge Of crystal
salt, sometimes so pure as to be trans
parent. In many places also spriI e. o
pure brine OF dszzling clearuese II w
anu mingle with the iresh.water
slresms.
Here, then. lie the origin OF the solid
portion OF Great Salt Lake. Salt
which the rains OF primevsl ages
have licked from surface lodges or
Dissolved by trickling through Gle
and cavern tor sm,iIion years per-
hapt-still remains II Jating 10 the
lquiu bath OF our matcLless lnlsnu
sea.
THE PROBLEM OF REFINING.
but OlntT iDlDeIaIe are suspended
there slso-mlllions OF tons OF soda,
glsuber salts, anu lime. Salt that Is
not Tree from these substances !.
practically worthless for any other
than the cruuest purposes. The
problem OF salt manufacture from
the brine OF Salt Lake resolves
itself therefore into the question
Of how to evaporate the salt aud leave
isahtfn tha m m ~ nauttn ,I
calcium sulpnates.
The Process b, d to be learned by
exper Ell ce; nut that 1t 10 now done bj
natural, simple, and economical
vys.tm, any one will be convinced
wac takes the trouble to Invest gate
the extensive plants Of either the In
EermountSiD or the InlaEd CIystal
salt company of this city.
Unusual terest attaches to the salt
I'M usuy at this particular season b.
reasO OF the numerous excursions 10
Ssliair, Whereby part oil the harvesting
prOcets Can be seen, but the rest Is lei
conjecture. The following facts mr..
furnished the Readers OF the NEWS
throu h the courtesy OF General Msn-
ager N. w. Clayton, aud apply to the
Interm0untain Salt company's pla I,
which, however, uiifers IN no essential
from the Other salt hsrvesting and re-
Il ing companies on the sh res OF the
Lake.
THE SALT GARDENS.
Nine huuureu anu twenty acres OF
alkaline tiii, miiwAy between the
city anu Saitair beach, are uniiiz I'd for
evspOratiug the brine, 800 OF which
are used Tor harvesting purposes. This
IL the order OF crysializitian: A
volume OF water, sgsregsling $1,000
gallons per minute, or abGu1 as large a
stream as CITY creek, is pumped
fourteen feet above the level OF the
lake, ana flows eastward In canal on
the north sue OF the saitsir track. This
stream 10 kept running Il + sixty days OF
twenty houfs each aud sixty days OF
ten hours each. the SalIair electric
p ant furnishing the power.
The evaporation goes on In the larger
basin TIL uensity OF IS per eeut sail
10 reached, when the brine IL IurnsJ
into the harvesting gardens aud bs.
gins to crystalise. By September a
depth OF six inches VI sals has been
reached, all beneath deep layer oil
brine, which, however, 10 by this time
"a very impure liquor containing as 1,
does, all the lime, magnesia, anu soda
OF a seasons run, which do not readily
crysiallze save with intense cold. This
refuse liquor is therefore drawn of,
leaving the pure salt below.
HARVESTING.
Tho harvest is accomplished by
means OF suovels and wheelbarrowe
whereby the banks OF salt six to eight
feet In height, as seen on the way to
5altsir, are piled mp during the m nth
OF September. The dark hue seen In
tuOse banks Is due t. cInders, which,
however, ars winnowsd out by Ian
al the refining W rks.
"How do you escape getting mud 10
SEQ ping up the sah?" asked the re.
lOrter.
"BY fret making solid floor Of
SALT" replied Mr.. Clayton. "You are
doubtless aware that should we let q
salt depusiI OF three inches dry solid,
II would support the weight OF
loo motive ana train. Our
door deposit Is one inch OF solid-
med salt, and on this Il or
he salt Ia scooped up while stiIl un -ef
water.
SOME FIGURES,
Nine hundIel tons OF salt are gar.
nered from each acre OF the harvesting
basin. Two hundred and esventy
thousand tons 10 therefore the anuusi
working capacity OF the Intermoun.
tain Salt company. There is OF course
market Tor this enormous product.