344 
MINING GEOLOGY 
form of calcium borate, or the mineral Colemanite, in California, 
and the subsequent abandonment of the process of extracting 
boric acid from lake waters, the industry concentrated around 
Daggett, a small station in the Mojave desert. Death Valley 
deposits were too far away from rail to be profitably mined; and 
the 120 miles which 20-mule team traversed were confined, it is 
said, to a single trip. 
In the meantime the famous colemanite deposits of Lang, north 
of Los Angeles, were opened up, giving by far the best transpor¬ 
tation facilities of any. This was far back in 1907. At the same 
time new and extensive borate deposits were discovered in Death 
Valley; and the borate-bearing beds of southeastern Nevada — 
the recent new discoveries — were also then pointed out. But the 
Lang deposits proved so extensive and so near market that all 
operations elsewhere were severely curtailed or shut down. 
After fifteen years of continuous operation the Lang deposits 
began to show signs of exhaustion; and preparations are now 
under way to develop the next best field, which is in the Muddy 
Mountains district of southeastern Nevada, now served by the 
Los Angeles and Salt Lake railroad. The extent to which private 
enterprise provides for the future, and the curious lethargy dis¬ 
played by ponderous Government bureau in making great and 
sensational mineral discoveries a decade and a half after private 
corporations only too cogently indicate the need of a closer 
adjustment of results if the mineral industry is to receive ade¬ 
quate benefit. Although reviewing the borax activities year after 
year for two decades the only noteworthy result obtained, ap¬ 
parently, is a sumptuous monograph setting forth a grand theory 
of origin, which, however, falls flat before the first breath of 
boreal wind. 
Keyes. 
Potash Wells in Western Texas. Summarizing the evidence 
recently obtained showing the existence of potash salts in Texas 
the following borings are noted. 
In 1912 S. M. Swenson’s borings at Spur, in Dickens County, 
gave a brine at 2,200 feet below the surface, which contained 5.4 
per cent of potassium, calculated as chloride. 
In 1915 a boring at Boden, in Potter County, furnished some 
