The Weiser semi-weekly signal. (Weiser, Washington Co., Idaho) 1904-1911, 1905-06-03
THE PLAINS OF YUHA
SOME OF THE cuRIosITIEs OF THE
COLORADO DESERT.

of Tragedy of Heat, Thirst and
strew the Bnrren Region.
There is a section of the Colorado
desert where nature has left some re-
markable records. She has visited the
region alternately with fire and water
and has left it with neither. It's the
most desolate, wild, barren, forbidding
part of the desert, says the Los Ange-
les Times, and 1t Is Stunned a Ike by
man and beast That there is good
and sufficient reason for avoiding this
locality is attested by numbers of
found In the terrible region.
These graves are simple affairs,
merely mounds Of earth with border
of stones about each and a pile Of
rocks two or three feet high at the
head. Each tells the story of a
tragedy of heat thirst and death.
Those items are about all that is ever
known Of the stories Of those who
perish. Their mummihed bodies or
bleached bones are found long after
the struggle Is over, and the finder. re-
speeding the memory of the unknown,
scoops a hole In the earth, lays the
ghastly relic within and piles up the
only monument available In that wild
region
The plain now lies nearly hundred
| feet below the level Of the sea, and the
rocks of the plain and the bases OF the
mountains are washed and eroded In q
wonderful manner. Mingiing with the
burnt stones and volcanic debris are
rocks worn by the waves and shaped
into hundreds of fantastic forms. There
are many acres Of these stone curiosi'
ties, and certain sections Of the field
seem devoted to certain shapes and
| figures.
For instance, one passes through Q
region which he at once names the CAD
bage patch, for 1t presents the appear
ance of field of those vegetables
which have turned to stone. The waves
have worn the rocks into round bowl
ders about the size of the vegetable
which they 80 much resemble and have
cut into the globes, Eliminating them IL
perfect imitation of the leafy layers o.
the garden vegetable.
Another locality is devoted almost ex
clusively to dinner plates. Thousandi
of rounded, thin disks are scattered
over the plain or are piled scores deeI
in singular piles, each piece shaped ex
actly like the crockery which adorni
our tables and quite as thin and sym
metrical.
Another section of this truly wonder
full region is given almost wholly u
dumbbells. These vary in size iron
pieces weighing one or two pounds VI
to those seemingly calculated for eAer
cising the muscles of giant an'
weighing thirty or forty pounds eacn
In almost every instance these natura
dumbbells are well balanced, the ball
at either end of the connecting plec
being of the same size and weight
There is In this plain an arsenal also
While guns and swords and bayonet
and powder were not there to be found
! there are thousands Of cannon Dall
t varying in size from two and three inc
balls to those fit for the big thirtees
|, inch guns of modern warfare. Ana a
J are of stone, all formed in nature
8 workshop.
. There are other objects innumeraDl'
I There are stone roses, stone ilies' ston
5 tulips, stone leaves, stone bros, slon
= animals, stone quoits, stone ornament
In varied and unique designs, ston
canes-in fact, almost everything COZ
ceivable in nature or art Initiated
Z stone on the plain of Yuha.
: In one portion Of Yuha rise two NIL
or small mountains. one might MI
4 take them IN the distance for anciel
: craters, but when he approaches VI
3 emlnences he discovers them 10 y
: monuments 20 an ancient llte-tne re-
! ords OF species now extinct They az
. shell mountains, great beds or prem
9 forie blyalyes which were left sifailae
4 when tllat ancient sea swept back iiol
q the region aud left a dry ano 's'''"'
. land.
one Of these mountains, uls lnip
Ons, n composed wholly " iafss iDes
shells, much larger Dpi isps ''vp i..'..,.
fbap tbe shells " tae moaelp 'ssu
i, gbleb M s0ne respects tlfy ~ ips ,.
Tasanible as ~ Lead ~ uls svsl'l's
a fhai iley age ihe Iemainf " n'' 49,
/, iole III our mud pglaed blYhlff u.
u ghe lassar hiu y composed :" NJ, W.
/, sliplls M 4 plahlsi0fle illf NJ t'H'''
poda lAke 40 lalfW Hip'N' W. ~
l0Nna Nf0spi M Nf Hnlfe'f ~ nf ~
\. alsugll0a slAll hQln lNllm I" h,i'
plny ahe|l lelnf found N fs,,,'f '
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lln|N IanlslNl iNlMNl flN'WN -
I, IN p.lflN| WI NJ HANlh Nii rliH'N
7 IaI Nlll M NlNN NH lNllf "A ~
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