The daily journal. (Salem, Or.) 1899-1903, 1903-09-21

PUZZLES
THEM
Indiana Has a Pond
That Battles the
Scientists
OverflOws IFS Banks Every
Seven Years Then RecedeS
TO Begin over
Again

A dispatch to the Chicago Record
Herald under date of Indianapolis
August /, says: with neither outlet
nor inlet that is at any time visible
Lake Cicott. a small body of water in
Cass county. has now reached height
which II attains every seven years,
and hundreds of acres Of fine corn land
is covered by several feet of water.
The rural mail route which runs
along its banks has been abandoned
by the carrier. for the water covers II
20 a depth of three feet and stretches
beyond for several hundred yards.
Lake Cicott has been an interesting
phenomenon to the people of North.
ern Indiana for many years. but the
secret Of its rising and falling has
never been discovered II Is the only
lake In Cass county, and is about one
mile square The water Is clear and
cold and perfectly fresh, and. though,
IL must be fed from some unseen
source and emptied I'm the same way,
no one knows whence the water comes
or whittier Il goes.
! It's most mysterious characteristic
Is the fact that Il overnows its banks
every seventh year and then the water
gradually recedes TIL II is confined TO
It's limits. SO accustomed have the
farmers who own the land upon It's
banks become 20 this characteristic
that they never attempt to cultivate
the land in the seventh year. but give
up the area that they know is sure to
be claimed by the waters.
The Pottawattomie Indians, who In.
nabit what is now Cass and adjoining
counties, were familiar with the char.
acteristic OF the lake. and bore testi.
mony that II had never failed TO over.
How its banks in the seventh year.
They believed that the bottom OF the
lake was inhabited by a powerful spir.
H. which at intervals OF seven years
caused the lake 10 overflow. They
construed this action as approval OF
the tribe by the spirit and watched
anxiously for the time TO come, for
they saw in the rising waters a sure
indication that they had done nothing
TO displease the spirit that Inhabited
the lake. The early white settlers be. |
came acquainted with the legend. and
the Oldest inhabitant Is not able 10 re. |
call a time when the seventh annual
overflow did not take place.
The water has now reached its high. |
est point and will soon begin TO re. |
cede and continue 70 do so till the old |
confines are reached. Residents OF |
The locality say that the weather con.
dltions have no eject upon the lace.
Tor It's rise In the seventh year takes |
place regardless OF the fact OF rain or |
drouth, Amos Jordan. veteran OF
the civil war who lives on a blum |
overlooking the lake. says that IL has
time.
The only apparent difference he.
tween wet and dry seasons. when the
rise occurs. is that the water appears
TO be colder in time OF drouth. What
- true OF the rising OF the waters is
aIso true OF their recession, for they |
sIauuahy disappear regardless OF the |
amount OF rainfall in the country.
me water usually reaches its high. |
est stage during the latter part of |
June ana the early part OF July and
seems TO remain stationary for ten or /
ntteen days. The falling OF the water |
Is then noted by the rim OF wet earth |
around the margin. and this gets
broader from day 10 day tin the ola
eonnnes are reached. The phenome' |
non Is explained on the theory thai
there Is a subterranean outlet which
becomes closed in some way and Is
opened by the pressure OF the wotsr
Nhen the highest point is reached oy.
cry seventh year bur this is mara
seess~ork, and nothing has ever hem
discovered 70 justify such a tbsorv
me pennsylvania Railroad Comnany
Nhieh owns a number OF ice houses
on the edge OF the lake. made Soma
MS AZ different places before the rise
be ninety feet. uep'n 10