446 



SCIENCE. 



[Vol. XIV. No. 360 



"from the lake-water consists of little more than evaporation and 

 <;rushing, and the former part of the operation is effected wholly 

 through natural agencies. *The simplicity of the process, and the 

 lavish yield, enable the manufacturers to put their commodity on 

 'the market at an incredibly low price. The Inland Salt Company 

 -sells dry, coarse salt for the Eastern trade, packed on cars at the 

 -works, at one dollar per ton. 



The quality of the lake-salt is of the highest grade. Several 

 •specimens''of the commercial article, as manufactured and sold by 

 Ahe various companies, have been analyzed by the writer ; and of 

 'these, the following are typical : — 



According to published figures, commercial bay salt from other 

 sources seldom exceeds 96 per cent sodium chloride. 



Next to common salt, in the order of abundance and ease of prep- 

 -aration, sodium sulphate should be named. This is deposited in 

 the crystallized form as mirabilite (Na, SO4 + 10 H^ O) during the 

 winter season. When the temperature falls to a certain point, the 

 lake- water assumes an opalescent appearance from the separation 

 of the sulphate. This sinks as a crystalline precipitate, and much 

 is carried by the waves upon the beach and there deposited. Under 



■ favorable circumstances, the shores become covered to a depth of 

 several feet with crystallized mirabilite. The writer has on several 



■ occasions waded through such deposits, sinking at every step to 

 the knees. Speaking only of the amounts thrown upon the shores, 

 and of most ready access, the source is practically inexhaustible. 

 The substance must be gathered, if at all, soon after the deposit 



- first appears ; as, if the water once rises above the critical tempera- 

 ture, the whole deposit is taken again into solution. This change 

 is very rapid, a single day being oftentimes sufficient to effect the 



■ entire disappearance of all the deposit within reach of the waves. 

 Warned by these circumstances, the collectors heap the substance 



■on ihe shores above the lap of the waters, in which situation it is 

 comparatively secure until needed. To a slight depth the mirabi- 

 lite effloresces, but within the piles the hydrous crystalline condi- 

 tion is maintained. At the present time there are thousands of 

 tons of this material, heaped in the manner described, remaining 

 from the collections of preceding winters. The sodium sulphate 



■ thus lavishly supplied is of a fair degree of purity, as will be seen 

 from the following analyses of two samples of the crystallized sub- 



■ stance, taken from opposite shores of the lake : — 



Waler(H2 O) 



Sodium sulphate ( Nas SO4 ) . . 



- Sodium chloride ( Ni 01 ) 



■ Calcium sulphate ( Ca SO4 ). . . . 



Magnesium sulphate ( MgSO* ) 



Insoluble 



55 070 per cent. 



For purposes of easy comparison, it should be added that chemi- 

 cally pure mirabilite (Na^ SO4 + 10 Ha O) consists of 44.1 per 

 - cent of sodium sulphate (Nag SO4) and 55.9 per cent of water. 

 Beside such substances as are presented in a comparatively pure 



form by the lake, the price being simply the labor of collecting, 

 there are many other compounds that may be had for the asking. 

 The unlimited quantities of sodium sulphate spread upon the shore 

 every winter, forcibly suggest the sodium-carbonate industry as a 

 promising undertaking, the chemical labor for preparing the car- 

 bonate by the Le Blanc process being, in fact, already half done. 

 A few years ago an establishment was founded for this purpose in 

 Salt Lake City, and, though the labor thus far accomplished has 

 been mostly experimental in its nature, the results conclusively 

 prove that sodium carbonate and a number of other chemical com- 

 pounds may be derived from the lake-water with ease and profit. 

 When once such manufacture is undertaken on a proper scale, the 

 output of soda need be limited only by the capacity of the works. 

 Caustic soda and sodium hyposulphite have also been prepared 

 from the lake. 



The importance of the Great Salt Lake as a source of chemical 

 supplies is still unrealized. Figures would have but little meaning 

 if used in an attempt to express the chemical wealth diffused 

 through its briny waters. 



Even for the unscientific observer and the casual visitor, the 

 characteristic phenomena of the lake possess a fascinating interest. 

 Many persons who would be but slightly moved by the statement 

 that the waters of the lake vary in density between 1.12 and 1. 17 

 would be deeply impressed to learn that a bather can float at ease 

 in the water with a large proportion of the body above the surface. 

 When once accustomed to the lake, the swimmer can lie in the 

 watery cradle, with his head resting on a pillow of wood, as se- 

 curely as in a suspended hammock. The chief difficulty in swim- 

 ming is the tendency of the lower limbs to rise above the water ; 

 and the principal danger lies in the occasional entrance of brine 

 into mouth or nostrils, producing a painful irritation followed by 

 suffocation. 



The concentrated state of the brine insures the lake against the 

 fetters of frost. Ice is not to be seen upon its bosom even during 

 the severest winters. The temperature falls at tmies to — 20° F., 

 yet the lake remains as freely open as during the wanner seasons. 



The antiseptic properties of the water have been known from the 

 time of its earliest investigation. Capt. Stansbury reported a test, 

 which has been repeatedly verified since his time. His description 

 was as follows : — 



" Before leaving Black Rock, we made an experiment upon the 

 properties of the lake for preserving meat. A large piece of fresh 

 beef was suspended by a cord, and immersed in the lake rather 

 more than twelve hours, when it was found to be tolerably well 

 corned. After this, all the beef we wished to preseive while oper- 

 ating upon the lake was packfed into barrels, without any salt what- 

 ever, and the vessels were then filled up with the lake-water. No 

 further care or preparation was necessary, and the meat kept 

 sweet, although constantly exposed to the sun. I have no doubt 

 that meat put up in this water would remain sound and good as 

 long as if prepared by the most improved methods. Indeed, we 

 were obliged to mix fresh water with this natural brine m prevent 

 our meat from becoming too salt for present use, a ver) few days' 

 immersion changing its character from corned beef 10 what the 

 sailors call ' salt junk.' " 



As would be expected of so concentrated a brine, and as has 

 been proved by observation, life in the waters of the Great Salt 

 Lake is confined to few species. Some writers ha\e declared that 

 no form of animal or plant life exists in the lake ; but this is an 

 error, with but little excuse for its perpetration. The imy crusta- 

 cean, Artemia fej-tilis, exists in very great numbers, often tinting 

 the water over wide areas with its own delicate pmk. There is 

 also Epkydra gracilis in its early stages. The pupa cases of this 

 insect are often carried ashore in large masses, where they under- 

 go decomposition with characteristic odorous emanations. One 

 form of Corixa has also been found. No fish or other large form 

 of animal life, however, has been discovered in the waters. The 

 vegetable organisms of the lake, the presence of which may be 

 considered a fact from the abundance of animal existences, are 

 almost entirely unstudied. The life of the Great Salt Lake is a 

 subject awaiting further investigation than has thus far been be- 

 stowed thereon. James E. Talmage. 



Salt Lake City, Utah, Dec. ii. 



