PEALE.1 SPKINGS NEAR MOUNT WASHBURN. 87 



distance higher np the hiJl. The following is the description of the springs in the 

 first group : The first one contained a rather thin lavender-colored mud. It is a 

 cavernous-like opening on the side of the hill, and is the topmost spring of about five 

 springs that are situated in a line, one above the other, at difi"erent levels. There 

 seems at one time to have been a fissure here which determined their position. It 

 was the only spring of the five that could be approached, but the temperature even 

 of this could not be taken on account of the steam coming from it. It was probably 

 at the boiling-point. The mud was in active motion, and the steam came from it with 

 a continuous roar. The spring also gave off sulphuretted hydrogen gas. 



No. 2 was a large pool of muddy water, through which a number of steam jets forced 

 their way, giving the spring the appearance of a sieve full of water, through the bot- 

 tom of which the stream was forced. The temperature of the water was 194° F., and 

 the air 78° F., the time of observation being about 9 o'clock in the morning. This 

 spring was 30 feet above No. 1. Near it there was a spring of very thick, blue mud, 

 the temperature of which I was unable to take, it not being safe to approach near it, 

 as the mud on the banks was very soft. 



A short distance to the right of No. 2, and a little above it, is No. 3, a large, yellow, 

 muddy pool 30 feet by 50 feet in diameter, in which there was a great deal of bubbling, 

 the water near the edge of the sjjring being especially agitated. The temperature 

 was 140° F. , the air remaining at 78° F. On the banks of this pool there was an abund- 

 ant deposit of sulphur and alum. No. 4 is the most active spring of the group. It is 

 about 20 feet higher up the hill than No. 3, and is about 30 feet in diameter, somewhat 

 irregular in shape. The mud has formed a rim about it which is 2 feet above the 

 spring on one side and 3 feet on the other. It contains a very thin blue-black mud, 

 which is in violent ebullition, rising at times to the height of 3 and 4 feet. A dense 

 column of steam, mingled with sulphuretted hydrogen gas, is continually escaping 

 from it. I was able to take the temperature only at the edge, where I found it to be 

 190° F. ; air, 78° F. In the center it was probably at the boiling-point, which at this 

 elevation is 198°. 2 F. About 20 feet below Ko. 4, and alittle to the right, is No. 5. It 

 is 15 feet long and 5 feet wide at the widest place, being somewhat triangular in shape. 

 One edge of the bank overhangs the water and is coated with a deposit of sulphur, 

 which is deposited by the sulphuretted hydrogen gas. The water here is clearer than 

 in any of the surrounding springs. The center of the spring is in violent ebullition 

 from the escape of steam. The temperature of the water at the edge of the spring 

 was 184° F., the air being 78°. The second group has a general elevation of about 

 150 feet above the first, and is also situated on the slope of a hill. 



No. 1 in this group was called the "Mush Pot." It is about 20 feet in diameter, and 

 has three openings, each about 10 feet in depth. The mud at the bottom of these 

 holes is very thick and of a bluish-black color. The mass heaves and throbs as the 

 steam escapes through it. It was impossible to take the temperature of the mud, as 

 the steam scattered it in all directions, rendering it impossible even to look into it 

 with safety. 



No. 2 was named the "Paint Pot," the mud in it resembling lead-colored paint. 

 The entire surface was in violent agitation. The diameter of the spring is narrower 

 at the top Ihau at the surface of the mud, which was 8 feet below the surface of the 

 ground. The mud is scattered in all directions, as in the last-mentioned spring, ren- 

 dering it impossible to obtain its terai)erature. At intervals of about three minutes 

 it sceuis to t:ikc a rest, remaining quiet for a few seconds. 



No. 3 is a fissure of nearly 100 feet in length, in the course of which there are a 

 number of black-mud springs, their average temperature being 185° F., while the air 

 was 79° F. This fissure is about 100 feet above spring No. 1. 



No. 4 is a similar fissure of about the same length. It is about 100 feet above the 

 jtreceding one, and contaius nnid springs of the same character, the average tempera- 

 ture being 190° F. The boiling-point at this elevation is 197.6° F. All around this 

 fissure there is an abundant dei)osit of sulphur and alum, the sulphur crystals being 

 exceedingly brilliant and delicate. 



No. 5 is a blue-mud spring of about 3 feet in diameter, having a temperature of 

 190° F. 



Nos. C), 7, 8, 9, and 10 form a small group distinguished by the abundance of sulphur 

 surrounding them. The mud in them was very thick, and varied in color from blue 

 to black. The ground about them was too treacherous to allow of a near approach, 

 but their temperature would probably average about 185°-190°. 



Besides the springs I have described above, there were numerous smaller ones, and 

 a great many steam vents. I have only mentioned the most inii>ortant springs. Both 

 the groups aio situated in banks of clay, and the deposits consist mainly of clay, alum, 

 and sii]))liur. All the springs are acid in reaction from the presence of sulphuric acid. 

 Tlie siiliiliur results from the deconijjosition of the sulphuretted hydrogen which is so 

 abundant in this locality. The oxidation of the sulj)hur and its union with the 

 alumina aud iron give us the alum which we find here. 



