Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1898-04-30
,co,vrlrhted. 1898. by Frank G. Car

the desert of Peru In hand car. There
10 at this point a railroad which goes
over this great South American Sa-
bara on its way up the Jequetepeaue
valley. The officers of the road loaned
me car made at Kalamazoo, for the
trim. and a couple of native Peruvians
furnished the motive power. With
them behind and Mr.. Rudolph d.
Kaun/lnn. young American who
lives here, and myself. in front, we
rode out from the shore and wound for
miles in and out over these wonderful
Peruvian sands which lie at the foot
Of the Andes. Now and then we
stopped to examine the black volcanic
rock with which mucn of the desert is
covered, and again we went off to pho
tograph the travelling sand hills which
shall describe further on. Since then
have spent much time on the desert.
have ridden for miles over 1t on horse
back, and have visited the queer little
towns which are found in the short IT.
flgated valleys which run here and
there through It, This desert extends
from the borders OF Ecuador, 1000
miles southwark, along the Pacific
coasts OF Peru and Chile. 1t is as long
as the distance from New York to Salt
Lake City. and in no place more than
eighty miles wide. l have seen some
thing of the other great deserts of the
world. From the top of the Pyramids
| have looked over the dreary white
rocks and sands of Egypt. l have
sailed along the deserts of Arabia In
going through the Red sea, and from
the Mount of Olives have cast my eyes
over the bleak wastes between Jerusa-
lem and the Jordan. | have Travelled
extensively over the dusty plains and
rocky highlands of our western terri
tories. and have had my eyes dazzled
by the alkall deserts of Mexico. This
Peruvian desert Is like nothing else in
the world. It's formation is wonder
to the average man.
HOW THE DESERT WAS MADE.
can explain It best by saying that
the atmosphere forms the clothing of
the earth. and that old Mother Earth
igOrks well only when her clothes are
decidedly. wet The mountains are
great clothes wringers, which squeeze
the rain out of the air and by the DIFF
ference in temperature cause 1t to fall
at higher points than any other noun
talns on the globe, with the single eS-
eeptiOn of the Himalayas. The direc-
ton of the winds which sweep over
South America is such that they all
come from the east i am now not as
far from the equator as | was few
weeks ago, when ! waded through the
tropical mud amid the dense vegeta-
ton of the lsthmus of Panama. The
sun Is continually drawing up vapor
from the sea in front of me, but the
winds are carrying 1t northward and
westward, and the air we have is the
cool, dry, ralnless ozone which sweeps
down upon us from the Andes. This
cir started on from the west coast of
Africa. As 1t swept over the Atlantic
1t pumped itself full of water, and
when 1t reached the coast of Brazil 1t
was we'll loaded. As It crossed the
continent II dropped its moisture feed
Ing the great rivers OF lower South
America. and covering the land with
tropical verdure. 1t dropped more and
more as 1t climbed up the eastern
slopes of the Andes until when 1t
reached the top 1t left its last water
there in the form of snow. The result
is That all Of the. water that comes
down to the west coast is from the
melting OF the SHOWS. This is enough
10 form a river here and there through
me desert. and It is in the valleys of
these rivers that you md the habitable
parts OF the coast region of Peru and
northern Chile.
There is another habitable region
further up In the mountains, between
the two ranges of the Andes. which
mere run almost parallel. and wild
strlp on the eastern slope. which will.
oy means of the railroads of the flu
ture, some time be one of the most
productive parts of the globe. Peru
dt0gttDpT is "a 10
Mould make more than nine states the
Ls OF New York. II runs from north
south IN the shape of great wedge.
"ncn, II laid upon the surface of our
OSVIih.ry would no as far south as New
hcahs, az which point 1t would be
N.u' rs Wide as the distance between
Wv York and Washington,
THE TRAVELLING SANDS OF PERT
one OF the wonders OF this desert ia
Is travelling sand hills. Back of where
49,, am there are great mounds con-
,,iNHE hundreds upon hundreds of
sra u me gray sand. These mounds
ways moving onward under the
~ uehoe OF the winds. They are in,
~ shape of perfect crescent and
snelr little grains, not 30 large az n
AVA a seed, are ever rolling up, up
alive. over the top OF the crescent, going
otys toward the north. They climb
tbro,, mus, they make their way
gte,5isu NuHeys, as uneasy but ms
dNrtuuy N their march as was the Wan
tbaahs Jew. Here at Pacasmayo
de- Is railroad which crosses the
veira,t on Its way up the Jequetepeaue
tbn,y, When II was built the engineers
vbfnssnt nothing of these sand hills.
ea,6 In We're far to the southwark. The
,iius, however, are no respecters of
sS,..In1ads. They moved onward ana
t IN a. up the track so that Il had
ga taken up and relaid on the other
III, VI them. In the ride which /
esyo On the hand car up the valley i
o.. one place. where mound OF sand
cnnnsilning some thousand of tons wae
80 oachlng unon the track. A stream
In ,.user from the river had been lei
vai. through ditch at the side In a
AVA ' attempt to carry away the sand,
A.. men We're at work shovellng the
''. away from the rails. As passed
law saw me sand coming down in a
T'seain like that of thick moiasses. and
II eouiu see that II was almost impossI-
"'s 70 conquer It,
nus morning | went out md took
iirIosraphs OF some Of these Inoyine
,LhHs, climbed to the top OF one of
S' expecting to find myself sinking
co,,. 20 my neck IN the sand. / ais
y v.nr on the contrary, that the hills
Mere quite hard. and that even INV
snoes We're not covered by SAND SOME