Tonopah daily bonanza. [volume] (Tonopah, Nev.) 1906-1929, 1913-03-24
INVESTIGATION WILL DETERMINE
COMMERCIAL VALUE OF POTASH
DEPOSITS AT COLUMBUS MARSH

Ieyidence of having ever been sub
merged to a considerable depth. and
the deposits that lie in the lowest
parts of them are probably only al.
ternating strata of cIays and saline
muds, with thin salt crusts pro iueed
by periodic flooding and drying gp.
Large and massive deposits Of cry
stalline salts can hardly be expected
except as the result of tha drying
up of very extensive and deep sa-
line lake, or as representing the con-
.tinuous accumulation OF saline mat
ter in a water body during a very
long period of timo Record os the
existence of such lakes in prehistoric
times is to be found in CERTAIN parts
Of the great basin region. Contrary
to the general assumntlon, however,
the extensive lake basins are in
fact relatively few. It is evident,
therefore, that the search for the i'm
portant salt bodies of this type has
of necessity been narrowed to
relatively few localities.
The areas in Searles lake and the
Panamint valley, California, of public
land withdrawn from entry on ac-
count Of their potash content are the
lowest parts of two ancient lake
basins, whose waters at their highest
stage probably connected through a
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 con
tanned, before interest in potash
had been seriously awakened. The
mud flat that forms the bottom of
the Panamint valley has recently
been located in potash claims, but
without any evidence that can be
taken to indicate the existence there
of a valuable saline mass. The salt
that shows on the surface in the
Panamnt valley is relatively insig-
nificant in amount, and tests for pot
ash 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 generally.
The lands have therefore been with
drawn on evidence of more general
character. the theory being that the
former larger lake of the Panamint
valley when it dried up might have
deposited bed of salt as large or
larger than that now existing on the
surface OF Searles lake. The Pana-
mint valley is relatively narrow, and
the streams from the rugged noun
tain slopes that border it have spread
their fans far into the center of the
valley Drilling, possibly to a con-
siderable depth will be needed to
test the possibility of buried salt de-
posits in this valley, and If such de-
posits are found to be present, it is
believed that they will be essentially
like those of the Searles deposit.
Columbus Marsh, Nevada, is the
evaporation pan of a shallow lake.
Analyses of clays obtained in this
deposit have shown some exceptional
/ ly high percentages of potash. No
important beds Of cleary crystal salts
have yet been found in the marsh,
and the possible commercial value
lof such a deposit still remains a
subject for further investigation,
Pending such work these lands also
have been withdrawn from entry.
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