398 



AMERICAN HOMES AND GARDENS 



December, 190$ 



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The Salton Salt Works, now Forty Feet under Water 



the thirsty desert drank up the water and the desert reigned 

 again. 



It was found at this time that the Rio Colorado had broken 

 its banks between Yuma and the gulf, and the water had 

 poured into an old river bed not far from the line and had 

 entered the bed of what was known as New River. From 

 here it ran south to a dry lake, about fifty miles southwest of 

 Yuma, about midway to the delta, then striking the dip 

 toward Salton flowed northwest seventy-five or eighty miles, 

 crossing the line into California, flowing parallel to the 

 mountains. Finally, increasing in vigor, it found its way 

 into the sink of Salton and covered it, forming a sea one 

 hundred and forty-five miles in extent. Another river, 

 called a branch of New River, was formed at this time that 

 skirted the old shell or sea beach from Cook's Wells past 

 Seven Wells, forming two great lakes, and finally flowing 

 into Salton. 



It was evident that this 

 was not a new phenomenon, 

 and that it would occur 

 again when conditions were 

 right. The expedition that 

 determined the cause of the 

 inflow was under the charge 

 of a man named Patton. 

 Up to this time an Indian 

 had been sent out, a famous 

 runner, to run around the 

 sea, but he failed, as did a 

 party of miners in a boat. 

 They traveled one hundred 

 miles, then returned, fear- 

 ing that they would be 

 stranded. Patton began at 

 Yuma, sailed down the 

 river in a skiff, with a tem- 

 perature of 112 degrees in 

 the shade. Fourteen miles 

 below Yuma he found a 

 break, which he entered, 

 then passed into a slough, 

 and after fourteen miles of 

 that came out into a large 

 lake near the little Indian 



camp of Sigeno, from 

 which a number of 

 rivers were carrying 

 water to the northwest. 

 In a word, he had 

 struck the beginning ot 

 the sink toward Salton. 

 The appearance of 

 the country here baffled 

 description. It was evi- 

 dent that the desert was 

 being licked up and the 

 entire face of the land 

 washed away. The 

 main stream was twelve 

 feet deep, and appeared 

 to be rushing in every 

 direction, giving the 

 country the appearance 

 of a vast and changing 

 delta. The party saw 

 the tops of tall mes- 

 quit trees above the 

 surface at points, and 

 the old Yuma stage 

 road to San Diego was 

 fifteen feet under water. Fifty miles from Yuma in a direct 

 line, but after sailing one hundred and fifty miles of detours 

 and runs, the navigator shot by the old stage station of Alamo 

 Muchos. Ten miles from here he met another stream, half a 

 mile wide and twenty feet deep. It was most erratic; now 

 moving slowly, then without warning rushing on with fright- 

 ful force. Suddenly the river turned and flowed in the direc- 

 tion of Yuma, coming out in a few miles into a large lake, 

 where the water spread away, shutting out the desert com- 

 pletely. The stream often divided and became several rivers, 

 forming here dangerous rapids and falls where it cut through 

 the sand dunes. In some places the walls of the stream were 

 one hundred feet high; again, just at the surface but every- 

 where, the soft treacherous sand was being eaten up — swal- 

 lowed by the devastating water. 



Suddenly the boat was seized by a mad current, whirled 

 about, tossed into an enormous whirlpool, capsizing it, most 



The Desert Sand Blown Up by the Wind. The Water Cut its Way through the Sand Hills 



to Reach Salton Sink 



