Walker Lake bulletin. (Hawthorne, Nev.) 1883-1926, 1916-06-10

withal to pay the modest fees in ef-
feet at the private bathing places,
Uncle Sam bids them welcome at his
bathing house on the hill. After the
formality Of certifying that they own
no property, and are possessed of less
than twenty-five dollars in cash, the
government bathhouse Is open to
them. Here $500 persons were cared
for last year, taking total Of 1885,
988 baths at Uncle Sans expense.
The majority of these persons had no
medical attention whatever, except the
ordinary advice given by the govern
ment employees. Yet Doctor Parks
states that 80 per cent Of these people
left Hot Springs cured of their af-
flictions, which in the majority OF
cases were rheumatism in its various
forms.
1t naturally is to be supposed that
out of this large number Of people
there were a few who were not en-
titled to partake of Uncle Sans
bounty 1t should be expected that
among the 100000 annual visitors to
the resort there would be many with
the saving instinct. The employees
of the bathhouse, for instance, say
they never could have believed there
were so many people in the world
with only $24 If they had not heard
the statements made under oath.
Uncle Sam, however, is jealous OF
this water, and while he gives it free
ly, he hates to have 1t taken away
from him under false pretenses. If at
any time case looks suspicious, he
thinks nothing of shipping an inspec'
tor half way across the continent to
secure the facts. Only last winter the
conversation of man at his modest
boarding house did not chime har-
moniously with his appearance in the
water line" at the government bath
house. An inspector was sent up into
Michigan, and visited the little town
from which the man had registered.
When he returned he announced that
the 'indigent" owned four farms in
his home county, and had mortgages
on most of the others. 1t cost that
man nearly one thousand dollars for
the baths he had taken, and only his
old soldier record saved him from
having a trip to a federal peniten-
tiary in addition.
The record of Hot Springs as a
fountain of youth is long and hon
orable one, yet the strange part Of
it all is that no one has ever been able
to discover what is the property of
the waters that effects the cures.
Old Traditions of the Springs.
Away back in the early days, accord.
ing to traditions, which are connect.
ed with all places of this kind, the
Indians ascribed the power to Mani
tou, the Great Father. They said that
when the war chief of a great tribe
lay wounded in the shadow of the
Ozark hills, the Great Father took pity
on him, opened up the mountain and
poured the healing waters on his
wounds. Since that time the waters
have worked similar wonders for all
A somewhat similar story is told OF
Hot Springs, Va, though that is one
of discovery and not of miracle work
ing. According to this yarn an In
dian pursued by his foemen fell ex
hausted into the springs. He lay
there for while, and the waters so
revived him that he scrambled nimbly
up the side of perpendicular cliff,
and thus eluded his foes. Both OF
these are pretty tales, yet probably
carry lower percentage of truth than
the story of horse sense" attributed
to Mount Clemens, Mich.-that q
broken-down, swollen-kneed, rheumat
ic old plug was turned out in a pas.
ture to find for himself, Immediately
immersed himself to his withers in
a warm bog and in week grew four
new legs.
Now there is plan, backed by east
ern capital, to erect at Hot Springs
the largest sanitarium in the world.
Already options have been secured on
ten acres of property lying in the heart
of the city nearly opposite the reser.
walton. The option price is $1,000
600 and the project is said to have
$S,0O0,0O0 of capital behind it.