The Monticellonian., 1904-12-15
REPORT ON HOT SPRINGS.
Secretary of Interior Hitchcock De votes Much Space to the Resort.

The anual report of Secretary of the Interior Hitchcock contains the fol. lowing about Hot Springs, Ark:
 The reports received from the vari- ous local land offices, estimating the reserved as well as the inappropriate ed public lands at the close of the ifs cal year, give the following figures for Arkansas:
 Area unappropriated and unre- served: Surveyed, 2.427S57 acres; un- surveyed, none Area reserved, 2,56O acres; area appropriated, 31.113, ,2G3 acres.
 The report of Martin A. Eisele. su- perintendent of the Hot Springs reser- vation, Arkansas. indicates that the total number of visitors during the year was 101 900, showing a gain of 100 per cent in the patronage of the resort during the past five years
 The city of Hot Springs adjoining the reservation now contains resi- dent population of about 15.000. and has all the appurtenances of a metro politan city With it's delightful eli mate. beautiful scenery and the at fractions of the town itself, to say nothing of the baths, the city of Hot Springs is one of the most interest ing resorts in the country.
 Under the authority of an act of congress, approved March 3, 1891, rules and regulations have been formulated by the department from time to time for the government of the Hot Springs reservation the management of the bath houses, and the protection of per sons taking the baths Among other objects sought 10 be accomplished by the regulations adopted June 6. 1903, was the suppression of the nefarious and demoralizing practice of drum ming by physicians which has flour ished at Hot Springs for many years, says the report A vigorous crusade had been begun against this evil by the various local societies, assisted by the doctors of standing in the com munity, and 1t Is believed that the long fight against the drumming evil, which has done so much injury to Hot Springs and it's visitors, is now prac- tica1ly won.
 There are twenty-five leases provid- ing for the use of hot water from the reservation. the total number of tubs operated being 551. One new lease was granted during the year to Jodd & Aldrich for bath house of twelve tubs, known as the Crystal bath House. for the exclusive use of col ored people. One lease expired by limitation during the year and was abandoned by the parties in interest.
 The total number of paid baths dur ing the year was 6o2,54O; total num- Der of complimentary baths. l1.16S. The total amount received by lessees for baths was S18S,38705.
 The report gives an account of the experiments made by Dr. Bertram B. Boltwood of New Haven, Conn, to ascertain the rado-activity of the wa ters and his conclusions, as follows:
 l. The waters of the springs on the Hot Springs reservation are all radio active to marked degree.
 2 The radio-actiyity of the waters Is due to dissolved radium emanation Ga gas), and not to the presence of salts of radium or other radioactive solids.
 g. The tufa deposited by the springs does not contain appreciable quantities of radium compounds.
 The theory as to the source of the heat which is now generally accepted is that advanced by the United States geological survey. viz. that the heat comes from a great body of still heat ed, igneous rocks intruded in the earths crust by volcanic agencies and underlying a large part of central Ar kansas Deep-seated waters converted into yapors by contact with this bath olith" of hot rocks probably ascend through Assures toward the surface, where they probably meet cold spring waters, which are heated by the vap- ors, or these vapors are condensed and flow to the surface as hot water.