Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1902-03-22
Something About the Deserts of Both
Hemispheres.

bined streams to halt on their useless
pas sage to the Arctic ocean and to find
their way backward to the thirsty
plain Of Turkestan and the Sea Of Aral.
This is so mighty a conception, viewed
in its details, as greatly to stimulate
the imagination. The Russian govern
ment is now undertaking great enter
prses; the SHOWS of Siberian noun
tains afford almost ineXhaustible cur
rents of water, for which areas vast in
their extent and fertility, are SEEM
ingly waiting.
The Russian engineer whose idea is
described in the Forum, asserts that
a canal only eighteen miles in length,
and through an elevation which is not
great, would turn the lake that might
be formed by the Obi's water into the
inland sea of Aral. Several streams
now How into ii. but the dryness Of the
atmosphere makes its loss by evapora-
tion equal TO its inflow. This balance,
IL is maintained. would be upset by the
new current from the north, and the
Sea Of Ar1l would rise and eventually
inundate the plains to the north, east
ana south After it's area had been in
creased 10 six or seven times its pres
ent dimensions the ancient channel
which connects the Aral and Caspian
depression would be reached and the
Aral once more would become a
tributary of the Caspian sea. which is
eighty feet below the level of the
ocean
II the Sea OF Aral were increased
seven fold il would be swollen from a
lake less than half the area of
Pennsylvania, to an expanse of water
covering as much ground as Pennsyl-
vania,, New York. Ohio and In
diana together. This extension, with
the doubling of the evaporating area
Of the Caspian sea would, it Is claimed
so increase the moisture OF all that
part Of Asia as to bring dews and rain
fall 10 a territory which is now dry,
and to make balmy and refreshing
winds which are now so scorching as
to ~ither all vegetation in their
course.
Thus far such attempts to moisten
regions of great aridity have not been
strikingly successful. We have had
one of the most interesting expert
ments of this sort with the Colorado
desert in Southern California, which is
one of the most remarkable of geo
logic formations. That basin lies for
an area of 80 miles north and south
ami fifty miles wide, distinctly below
the level of the sea, in some points
reaching as much as 300 feet below
tide-level. The Southern Pacific Rail-
road passes around the edge of this
basin. and at one of it's stations is more
than 200 feet below the neighboring
Pacific ocean. Formerly the Gulf of
California extended much farther
northward then now, and this basin
was a part of it. But the Colorado is
a river of great vigor and energy,
and carries down immense quantities
of sediment with which it gradually
built up a delta of such magnitude as
to dam this basin in, separating II
from the rest of the gulf. For time
it was a salt water lake, until the
Colorado in it's wanderings turned
soatlfward so as to go into the main
portion of the gulf, and from the rapid
evaporation of that region the lake
dried up and became merely a basin.
About four or five years ago" said
Professor w. ]. McGee to the Tran
script CORRESPONDENT, IAN actual flood
ing of this basin took place through
one of the chances of river work. The
Colorado rose to an exceptional height.
50 that it broke over it's barriers and
[sae sof the bayous turned northwar1
mt that basin. A considerable part of
|the flow of the stream for several
months, as | remember, went into 1t.
Locally the people were greatly dis
turbci: there was come apprehension
that the railroad would be interrupted
through the part OF its course that
Law below the tide level, and thai
other disasters would follow. Some
people, q Titles more hopeful, had an
idea that when the basin became
flooded it would greatly ameliorate the
climate, because the evaporation CT 50
large body of water. charging the air
above with moisture. would be dis
tributed and precipitated as rain over
the arid regions thcre1bout. This
basir is entirely uninhabited except al
the Southern Pacific stations and I'M
used except for the extraction of salt.
| but the great fact was that the
stream had hardly a perceptible effect
| in filling the basin, even at the height
of the flood, and as soon as there was
a subsistence evaporation rapidly ex-
ceeded the inflow, leaving the basir
eventually as dry as before. This lead.
me TO believe that the Colorado river is
not big enough to fill that basin, with
the evaporation which is taking place
there. / doubt if the whole current o.
the stream would have been effectual
THE best example of cooperation q
art and nature in this work was al
forded perhaps in the Humboldt rive
of Nevada 1t is a long stream. gather
ing water in the mountains and flow
ing for perhaps 200 miles. when
reaches a great basin, and has no otn
er outlet. This broad expanse int
which the river falls is known as TN
Humboldt lake or Humboldt SINK
During most of the year no water
the river flows beyond that expanse
evaporation offsetting the inflow. ~
during the very wet seasons tnere
sometimes an outflow from the Hun,
boldt sink to the Carson sink, llt'.
farther down in the same desert. ln'