740 



FRANK A. WILDER 



lake is but a remnant of the much larger Lake Bonneville, which 

 was at one time fresh and was drained by a stream flowing into 

 the Snake River. Its present salinity is high, the specific gravity 

 of the water being i.i^ and its saline contents, varying with the 

 seasons from 14 to 22 per cent., is distributed as follows, as 

 shown in five analyses:^ 



Sodium chloride . . . . 

 Potassium chloride . 

 Magnesium chloride 

 Sodium sulphate. . . . 

 Potassium sulphate . 

 Calcium sulphate . . . 

 Chlorine (in excess) . 



Russell regards the analysis made by E. Waller, 3 of water, 

 taken from Great Salt Lake in August, 1892, as the most com- 

 plete and satisfactory that has been published. 



Analysis by E. Waller, expressed in grams in a liter : 

 Specific gravity, 1.156. 

 NaCl - - - - - - - - 192.86 



- - - - - 8.75 



- - - - - 0.16 



15.04 

 5-21 



8.24 



0.004 



0.018 



0.051 



K2S04 



Li2S04 - 



MgCl2 



MgS04 - 



CaSOt 



FesOa and AI2O3 



SiOa - 



Surplus SO3 



Total - - - - - - - 230.333 



In these analyses the absence or the very small content of 

 calcium, both as sulphate and carbonate, is remarkable. Analyses 

 of the fresh waters tributary to the lake show that the lake could 

 accumulate its total content of calcium in eighteen years, while 

 the accumulation period for the chlorine would be 34,200 years. '^ 



' Specific gravity in 



1850 Summer 1869 Aug. 1873 Aug. 1889 Aug. 1892 



1. 17 I. Ill 1. 102 I-I57 1-156 



— -Compilation by Russell, Lakes of North America, p. 81 



= U. S. Geological Survey, Monographs, "Lake Bonneville," p. 254. 



^ School of Mines (Columbia College) Quarterly, Vol. XIV (1892), p. 58. 



■♦U. S. Geological Survey, Monographs, "Lake Bonneville," p. 256. 



