Am.  Jour.  Plmrm.  i 
Feb.,  1887.  j 
The  History  of  Californian  Borax. 
81 
He  was  much  struck  with  the  uumber  of  hot  springs  that  are  to  be 
found  all  through  the  Humboldt  Valley.  The  borate  of  soda  and 
borate  of  lime  are  known  to  exist  at  Hot  Spring  station  on  the  Central 
Pacific  Railroad,  also  at  Columbus  and  other  parts  of  this  State ;  and 
no  doubt  if  the  hot  springs  of  Humboldt  Valley  should  prove  to  give 
off  vapors  that  produce  boracic  acid,  or  that  borate  of  soda  is  to  be 
found  in  the  alkaline  beds  which  exist  all  over  the  district,  a  new 
and  profitable  trade  will  spring  up.  The  article  of  borax  has  been 
well  known  all  over  the  civilized  world;  still  but  very  few  people 
know  of  its  origin.  Iu  1818  Count  Lardarel  discovered  how  to  pre- 
pare boracic  acid  from  the  Lagoons  of  Tuscany,,  and  made  a  princely 
fortune  by  it.  This  boracic  acid  was  shipped  to  England  and  France 
and  converted  into  refined  borax  by  boiling  in  large  pans,  and 
crystallizing  in  vats.  Tincal  was  the  article  used  in  making  borax 
before  boracic  acid  was  discovered.  This  article  is  found  on  the 
dreary  plains  of  Thibet,  in  Asia,  and  sent  on  sheeps'  backs  across  the 
Himalaya  Mountains  to  Calcutta,  and  thence  to  England.  About  20 
years  ago  borate  of  lime  was  discovered  in  Chili,  and  found  its  way 
to  England,  Mr.  Robottoin  being  one  of  the  first  to  introduce  it  into 
that  country.  Mr.  Robottoin  will  also  visit  the  Hot  Springs,  Wads- 
worth,  Columbus,  and  San  Francisco."  The  result  of  this  having 
appeared  was  that  the  morning  after  my  arrival  in  San  Francisco  my 
hotel  was  fairly  besieged  with  persons  who  were  anxious  to  interview 
me  in  my  capacity  as  a  borax  expert.  After  many  interviews  with 
individuals  who  professed  to  hold  land  said  to  be  rich  in  borax,  I 
decided  to  visit  and  inspect  the  great  Slate  Range  district,  and  after 
making  all  my  arrangements  I  left  San  Francisco,  proceeding  South- 
wards by  steamer  down  the  Pacific  coast,  and  after  a  pleasant  journey 
arrived  at  Los  Angeles  or  City  of  Angels,  an  old  Mexican  town. 
Los  Angeles  is  now,  however,  peopled  principally  with  Americans, 
who  drive  a  considerable  trade  with  the  teamsters  who  visit  the  inter- 
ior. At  this  time  the  Southern  Pacific  Railway  was  not  made,  and 
this  section  of  the  country  could  be  traversed  only  by  the  aid  of  mule 
teams ;  the  Slate  Range  lay  about  240  miles  inland,  and  the  whole 
country  was  infested  with  a  band  of  ruffianly  bandits  and  robbers, 
composed  of  the  very  refuse  of  society  from  all  parts  of  California 
and  Nevada.  Under  these  circumstances  I  soon  discovered  that  my 
only  chance  of  travelling  with  any  safety  was  to  assume  the  role  of 
what  is  known  in  this  part  of  the  world  as  a  "busted"  miner, 
