Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1907-04-27
copyright, 1907, by Frank G. Carpen-
terri
LoNIn-nEcHAR, pesert of sa-


~ OLoAIB-BECHAR Desert Of Sa-
hara--Few people appreciate the
~ extent OF the fertile spots cf the
Desert of Sahara. The French
have been exploring their territories in
these sandy wastes. They are mapping
them and are making kind OF cen.
sus OF their population. They are now
policing a great part of the desert and,
for che first time, travel In the central
Sahara is comparatively safe.
This is not so in the western part OF
the desert where | now am. can go
nowhere unless accompanied by SOL
oilers, and many OF The GASES about here
are now fearing an invasion from the
Tablet brlgands who live across the
mountains In Morocco Only day or
so ago a camel caravan coming liorth
into the French Sahara from the Soucam
was robbed not far from Lahe Cndd,
many Of Its people We're killed and the
French soldiers tell me that they appre-
hend trouble here in the near future.
THE GASES OF THE SAHARA.
But l want TO tell you something
about the GASES of this mighty dehels-
] have visited a number OF them and
through conversation with explorers
and travellers OF this part OF the world
have learned much about others The
GASES are scattered at wide distances
apart throughout the Sahara, Often
there will be none for miles and miles,
and again they VIII pepper the rocky
wastes as though The Lord had sowm
patches of green from out the sky. 1t
Is estimated that there are altogether
n ,.Ets- re
ouch garden spots scattered here and
there upon this ocean of sand,
Eighty Thousand Square miles.
That means a territory twice as large
as the state of Ohio, and one infinitely
richer. Suppose thai you could pick
out OF our country enough OF It's rich
est hot beds to cover Virginia and Ken
lucky, and patch them together. That
Will give you some idea of the extent
OF the GASES, TO appreciate them, how
ever, yon must aglne them lying In
the rnids; of 4 region larger than the
United States the res1 of which IL abb
sOutely sterile You mus nave them
surrounded by sand rocks, bouiders au6
all sorts of arid formations You must
have no green OF any kind for miles
about but a vast waste of blazing
white, dazzling yellow or cye-aching |
red. on in the distance the mountains |
may be blue and may change 10 q
ting SUN, but elsewhere all Is arid and |
bare.
DESERT ISLANDS,
Sometimes the GASES viii form |
string or rather a chain Of green islands !
marking the route of some dry gulf |
stream flowing through the ocean Of 4
sand AT others. there may he many |
in one place showing the site Of a sub
terranean lake, or of springs or wells /
far on from any other apparent water |
supply.
The desert has been described as a
vast ocean, and the GASES as Its Islands
These Sahara Islands, however. lie be-
low rather than above, the level or
their sandy sea- They are always
found In depressions whore tho scanty
waters have drained III and formed
reservoirs.
Much of the desert has bed of slim |
clay under 1t, The water may sink
down through a hundred or more feet |
of gravel and rock, but when 1t comes
10 this clay bed 1t flows OH until 1t
strikes a hollow and II this hollow he
high enough and deep enough the re-
suit is an oasis. In the district KNOW
as Ell Erg depressions OF this kind Iur
nsh wells which can irrigate S.OO0,oou
of date palms, and where i am now Is
the wady Saoora, a great underground
stream which flows far below the SUR
face for several hundred miles and then
rises and supplies the GASES OF tuat'
which sFe among the largest OF the
western Sahara.
THE RIVER GASES OF TARLA.
have already described the extern
sive date plantations of Figute. lying
northeast OF here near Benz Ountt' IN
Morocco. on the other side of the lnohn-
tains They are wateTed by hot springs,
some OF which have tempeta lure
above 100 degrees Fahrenheit THOSE
springs como out OF plateau III 'he
middle OF tho Oases and their waters
are conducted by underground Grains
over a solid date forest. covering an
area greater than that OF 81 lou-ucFe
farms / rode miles with my s0lultts
in going In and out among the pIlutH-
,ions and ] am told that their hu'iu"T
is close to a million.
The oasIs of Figuig is not at all like
the oasis OF TaTla, which also Hisiteu
dullng a s0-mile horseback ride over
The desert from Benz Ounlf, Tarla Is
one OF many GASES which spot here and
there the branches of the Wady Saoor9'
N Is found on the Sousfane river which
united with the Vady Cir near IgeIl
ia form the Saoora, the latter flowing
from there on southwark and finally
feeding tho GASES Of Tuat' From mere
TO IgelS distance OF more thah
hundred miles, lne liNel h"" - ~ -"' -
low the surface that there Is no Vese-
tatlon whatever
lust ca st of Figulg the Sousfane comes
10 The surface ia a trickllng stream,
and the result is scattered oases COW
erlne a distance of several miles, These
GASES are so narrow In places that one
could throw a stone over them. Ihey
are often nor more than 100 feet vide
broadening out to 800 feet or more N,
some places. Even there the river bed
is often dry but little pools OF water