The Meeker herald. [volume] (Meeker, Colo.) 1885-current, 1908-11-28
Asphalt POOL IN SALT LAKE
OIL DISTRICT A MoRoUE.
RsIles Of Past Timss N Form Of
Claws, Teeth and skulis Found
Investigation Draws ecIsn-
lists and Tourists.

Sherman, Utah.-The crowd Of curl
Gus visitors to the asphalt pool In the
Salt Lake oil district grows in proper
lions from day to day, a. Investigation
progresses. The fnd of bones that
were weighted with the age Of centu-
Hes when Christ and the apostles
were busy with AFFAIRS in Galilee has
aroused the attention Of scientists. ~
well a. laymen. Already there II .
wsll-worn trail from Rosemary to the
pool Of mystery.
The persons who would view the
wonders has but to trek eastward
from Rosemary along La Brea boule-
ward as far as Fourth street and north
along that thoroughfare for q distance
Of 1900 feet. The pool 10 there. with
the natural gas constantly bubbling
from below. The chance visitor might
suspect the buildings to be caused BY
frogs or fishes, but upon near ap-
proach to the lake he discovers that
what at hrst had the appearance OF
water 10 q combination Of water and
the several oil products.
The lake occupies deep impress
sion In the swale. Its banks are OF
dried asphalt and In appearance is not
unlike that of . roughly, paved asphalt
street. This II the sink from which
years and years ago this dried Pc
troleum product. known as Ia brea.
was dug and transported to San Fran
cisco, where 1t was employed In the
construction of pavements and side
walks. Bones were found a-plenty in
the brea at that time. but as they fell
not under the eye Of persons versed
In the records Of the past the pre-
sumption was that the find was moth
ing more than that Of horses or cattle
that had become mired in the asphalt
when It was in liquid state. In the
early days this Ia brea was hauled by
wagon to Santa Monica, where by
lighter 1t was transported to ships
that stood OF shore and was taken to
San Francisco. This was before the
building of the hrst pier at Santa
Monica. The industry fourished for a
time. until the percentage Of bone
matter was found to be 30 great Is to
render the otherwise desirable ma
terial unserviceable. That was the
4Ebt NuU Ouly ouUcAvul ~ YUM shV PV-
troleum product to commercial advan-
tage, although the derricks Of flowing
oil wells surround the pool.
Quite recently 1t became known that
these bones had NO counterpart In the
animals that are found to-day In this
part Of the state. and with q view to
determining the scientific value Of the
discovery systematic investigation has
been attempted. The result IL that col
1ege professors and PSYCHOLOGISTS have
succeeded in finding portions of giant
sloths, saber.tooth tigers, elk, deer, i'm
mense wolves and other rare and curl
Gus animals that must have been in
cased for centuries In natures oil pre-
sentative. Claws. teeth, skulls-alI
portions of the great beasts-are
found. When one Of the explorers had
reached . depth from which the air
had been excluded for aeons there
was the distinct scent Of purified
Aesh. Blow fiies buxxed. and the next
stroke OF the prospector's pick ex-
posed to view . bundle Of bones from
which oosed = slime that must at one
time have been nesh.
However. the explorers say the
work 10 rather fascinating than other
wise. They never know what wonder
tie next blow Of the hammer will *
nose to view. The bones are 70 thick
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