The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1907-02-21
.H!!|l|||RvEsTs ] OF SALT
TheusANps or roNs ON CALI
1. FohNlA Beach.
water, Ar and sunshine Make For
tune In Pure Saline Material for
~. Two Men-wealth Taken
|stS from Ocean Water.

Aos Aneeles, Cal.--The most won.
derful harvest over reaped in southern
California and the largest Of its kind
IN America is lying glistening and
white IN the sun on the fiat lands be-
tween San Pedro and Long Beach.
IT u salt; 10000 tons of it. Pure
white and heaped In windrows, It re-
sembles great plain of snow. Acre
after acre Of 1t is there. and hundred
or more industrious workers dig and
shovel among the shining heaps, max.
Ing still more white mounds.
1t Is not the salt of the earth, but of
fhe sea. II 10 from the waters of the
Peoifc, with the assistance of the sun
and air, that the crop has been har.
vested. Not a human hand touches
the salt from the time the inrushing
Tide OF the ocean sends 1t in solution
'ooursilg through an automatic gate
over the 500 acres of fiat lands until
the beautiful crystals are loaded by
automatic machinery into waiting
freight cars or ground and dried sand
placed In bags for domestic use.
! The harvesting OF this crop near the
Los Angeles city limits Is truly great.
The 10000 tons lying OH the ground Is
valued at about 31s0,000, and 1t Is
simply condensed sea water" The
only three elements which are consid.
cred absolutely free to man--water,
lair and sunshine--have been used, and
by the ingenuity OF two young men,
Orton and Linley Dunn, brothers,
these three elements have been con.
!1ured into obedience to their purpose,
and the result is this fortune in pure
salt lying at their command.
As a result the Dunn boys have be-
come known as the salt kings" Their
supply. the Pacific ocean, will never
ldiminish: their means of manufacture,
the sun and the air. are likewise un.
limited. and the limit placed upon the
homage Of their plant" is only bound.
ed BY the number Of men they care to
employ. Everything is automatic. and
IT is ridiculously simple how salt is
made at San Pedro.
! About the middle OF March the great
gate at tide water is opened. 1t is in
reality q great valve. 1t win let water
enter, but not drop escape. As the
tide rushes In the cato opens, but
when 1t recedes the gate closes auto.
matically, and tho salty water remains
imprisoned. The next tide does like. |
Wise: and so on.
The property of the company com.
prlses about 500 acres, and the highest
point Is but a foot or SO above tide |
level. Tho acreage. is divided into 10 |
ponds or Enclosures. bounded by tikes
of about two faet In height. Each Of
these ponds is connected with the
other. The highest pond, No. /. is
where the tide water rushes. When |
this is filled 1t is allowed TO drain on
slowly by gravity into No. 3 and No. | |
is again hlled by the next tide. From
NO. 2 the water. considerably con,
;depsed by this time, is again drained
on by gravity into No. Q, and so on
by the time the briny water reaches
No. 13 1t Is q powerful solution OF salt
water. The sun OF the summer months
has evaporated thousands OF tons OF
water, and the ocean breezes playing
over tho surface have also helped to
eliminate the water.
! In the center OF the vast field there
are 26 watts or small ponds, each GOV.
ertng $4,000 square feet. These arc
the crystallizing vats. Into these the
heavily charged salt water is admit,
ted, and there 1t stays until the bot.
toms OF the vats are from six inches
to one foot deep with salt. BY this
time tt.re Is but little water in the
watts. and the salt is fast crystallizing.
It does not settle, as is supposed, but
crystallIxes, and the dirt in the water
keeps clear OF the salt crystals, as
nothing but absolutely pure salt will
crystallize.
Tho last water to be drained off Is
called "bittern." This contains about
one per cent OF sodium bromide and is
concentrated about 200 times from
ocean water. From this bittcrn water
the powerful element bromide, ono OF
the most perfect caustics known, can
be manufactured. Experts from Ger
many have tested this bittern water
and say that II the bromide were taken
out 1t would be worth over $3.50, 900
but at present the entire United States
consumes but 10000 worth of bro
mide, and there is no market for such
o vast amount.