Mohave County miner., 1913-05-17
Sources of Potash.

made by the U. s. Geological Survey, great number of localities have been visited by the Survey geologists, es- pecially in the Great Basin. Shallow desert lake beds, so-called dry lakes or playas, are extensively distributed throughout this region. Most of these playas contain salts to greater or less extent. and nearly ,dl these salts show on analysis from 1 to per cent. or more of potash. Few of these lake beds show evidence of having ever been submerged to a considerable depth, and the deposits that lie in the lowest parts of most of them are prob ably only alternating strata of clays and saline muds. with thin salt crusts produced by periodic flooding and dry iug up. Large and massive deposits of crystalline salts can hardly be eX- pected except as the result of the dry ing up of a very extensive and deep saline lake, or as representing the con- tihuOuo ol Sdlluo uldUleE in water body during a very long period of time. Record of the exis- tence of such lakes in prehistoric times is to be found in certain parts of the Great Basin region. Contrary to the general assumption, however, the extensive lake basins are in fact rela- lively few. It is evident, therefore, that the search for the important salt bodies of this type has of necessity been narrowed to relatively few To. calities.
 The areas, in Searl-s lake and the Panamint valley, California, of public land withdrawn from entry on account of their potash content are the lowest parts of two ancient lake basins, whose waters at their highest stage probably connected through narrow strait Both basins were filled by overflow from the drainage of Owens river and in both the salts are believed to have accumulated by natural concentration of the normal drainage waters from that source. The salt body in Searles lake lies at the surface of the ground and was located in claims for the soda it contained, before interest Tn potash had been seriously awakened. The mud flat that forms the bottom of the Panamint valley has recently been To- cated in "potash" claims. but without any evidence that can be taken to in- dicate the existence there of a valu. able saline mass. The salt that shows on the surface in the Panamint valley is relatively insignificant in amount, and tests for potash in the surface salts or ground waters of this valley do not run higher than the average of such salts in mud flats and dry lakes gen. orally. The lands have therefore been withdrawn on evidence of a more gen. eral character, the theory being that the former larger lake of the Pana- mint valley when it dried up might have deposited bed of salt as large as or larger than that now existing on the surface in Searles lake. The Pan amlnt valley is relatively narrow, and the streams from the rugged mountain slopes that border it have spread their fans far into the center of the valley. Drilling, possibly to consid- erable depth, will be needed to test the possibility of buried salt deposits in this valley.
 Columbus marsh, Nevada, is the evaporation pan of shallow lake. Analysis of clays obtained in this de- posit have shown some exceptionally high percentages of potash. No i'm portant beds of clear crystal salts have yet been found in the marsh, and the possible commercial value of such a deposit still remains a subject for fur ther investigation. Pending such work these lands also have been withdrawn from entry.-Mining and Engineering World.
 A. D. Smiley, of Pioche, Nevada, re. gently returned from the east where | he purchased fve-ton motor truck | for use in the fourteen mile haul from | the Silver Comet property at Pioche to the railroad. The company has been shipping gold, silver and lead ores and has recently prepared to ship tungsten ores to Plttsburg, Pennsyl-