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About Lake County examiner. (Lakeview, Lake County, Or.) 1880-1915 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 29, 1901)
VOL. XXII. LAKKVIKW, LAKE COUNTY, OREGON, THURSDAY, AU0.2'J, 1901. NO. 3. mm LAKE COUNTY WONDERS. Rim Rocks, Moving Lake, Modern Dead Sea, Fossil Field and Salt and Borax Deposits. p. J: I'aul l Uiii-y.ln 1'iirtlamt T.lcmm. i )nt. It ia impoiiblo to decent! Irom the While the extreme aoulherii mrt l of Ii1n rim down the wall or to a l.nku ruiiiily, Oregon, caiiecially that pa it t end from below to the lop of the rim bordering her great inland ationu J k-Ic, except wlit-r tliu wall Id broken lAKuia a typical Kanwn pm, riicii aa ,y crevanse or gulchca or canyon. N found on all of loo pure water course of tlio country, the northern part ol tint county embrace a lurvo territory Iving l .. I. - . I L l I... .1. ...... kinl u I I ! II w OH in Hint ii nit vim iirni-i t, mi'i itii in tin territory ia found wonder that will funiii.li fiMtd for thoiihl fur tlio Many of the small plain thua surround cil have been tho scene of wholesale slaughter in tho pant. Indian nn-l to llntl Jour anil atiteloe browsing in then Intuitu and placing a guard at the only entrance or entrance, w among the sciential (or year to come, and w hen , animal and slaughter the entire hand. they are thoroughly known to the outside world will draw ft horde of tourim and rtudenln of science to them annually. Tim Held I a virgin one yet, only having hceii visited by the stockmen who have intercut in the vicinity, and an oc-i-aaional traveler who i hurrying from one buniiif iint to another. Tho fos sil field, the "moving lake, thn modern I lead Kea, and the en It and horax de IHwitN, the hot prihg and nalral arte aian well are poanihly among the bent of the wonder within thi territory, hut they are ho prominent and many of them cover audi large section of the country lliey could not remain hidden from the moat caual observer, and their remark hie appeareance could not fail to at tract the attention of the moat disinterested student In the formaliona of nature. The county' name doubtle originat ed from the number of large lake in the -ftuuutjr more tban from tba large u urn tier A lake, Goose Lake, at the head of which i built the county neat town l.akeview I the laryeat, and it valley in the most important larming section in the county at present. While only about ID mile of the lake liea in Lake county, il i about 40 mile long and range from two to five mile in width, and the larger portion lie in Modoc county, California. Then come Hummer l.ake, Stiver lake, South and North Warner, all lurge and beautiful lake, but they are commonly known, their valley thickly evil led am: their description not included aa a par of thi alory. It i practically the un known, the unwritten, that the public! in oh t interested in. Kim-Reck. Few iioople realize tho beauty and gran Jeur of the rim-rock of Katern Oregon and Lake county haa her share of tliee In facf, many jieople do not know what they look like, and ome do not even know what the word means. A corres pondent to leading paper of the atate waa horrified to see the name of these rock, where he had referred to them, changed to "round-rock" by themanag ing editor. Throughout Eastern Oregon, and oie cially in what ia known a tho "desert" country, these rim-rocka are prominent feature. The country i a Biiecctibion of 'level plain, varying in width and length from a few mile to more than a hun lred. Thuae plain are often spoken of aa plateaus from their high elevation above sea level ; in fact, they are noth ing more nor less than a succession of baton, in many cane resembling crater lied, for they lie among the uiouutaiu lops, only lower than the snow-capcd peaks that have to be ascended from al most every point to reach them, and the tall rim-rock that toner immediately above them. These plateaus or basins are separated by the rim-rocks und along one aide or the other of the largo lakes towe' from a few feet to hundreds of feet in the air. The walls of iIioho rocks are perfectly perpendicular, often possess ing the appeurenco of having been con ntructed by skilled human hands. Layer iiMin layer of smooth rocks lie upon one another with the joiuta broken as care fully as modern masonry work, w ith pil lars now and then many foot tall to sup port thum on broader tables of rocks. These pillars, however, are close together and although possessing various sidui, from a triangle to un ou logon, they tit perfectly together. At the top of these walla broad level rocks lie, jutting out to several feet above the aide, of the wall Jike (he leaf of a table or the rim of a The deadly way in which they used to tire upon immigrant train from theae rim-rock ia part of the history of the country. Moving Lak. and Foll Bed. A two iluy' drive from Silver Ijtkr the entrance way to the main "desert," bring one to the greatest wonder on the 1'ariflc Coast, jxmaibly the greatest in the United Stale. Here i a rich foil field covering hundred of acre, in the midl of which is the wonderful "moving" lake. One doe not see it move in fact, but the evidence! there to how that in move, and there are men living in Lake county who can verify the fact that it ia con .tautly on tl move. Wot only the water move, but the lake change it bed from time to lime, and in the course of a few decade traverse considerable territory. lo thi region Hie re ia a continuous ex poaur of aaad beda. The aand ia of the finest grain and I of an unknown deptl it i always ury, it seem to never rain to amount to anything at thi poin and what little rainfall there ia in thi aection doe not even dampen the dry the deert proper, with tall rim-rock towering abruptly above it jastein hore, while it western shore I at the foot of a long range of rock and sage-bruh-covered hill. It wall aresoim pregnatvd with alkali and other mineral hat nothing can live in it. It ia fed by mall atream, called Chewaucan Kiver, and a few other smaller tream, and ha no outlet. It water stand and evaporate until il become thick and take on dark color and in death to every living thing. Chew aiuran Kiver, it prin cipal feeder, is lilleVl with tiah. At the mouth of thi it ream there i a fall where Hah that have ventured or fallen over these falls are there in evidence to show that nothing can live in Abert I-ake. The shore of the lake at thi point are com- miiwmI of dead fl"l and tin Ii bone. Ton of these bone cou'd be feathered up, and at certain eaou of the year the shores are lined with fish in all stages of decomposition. When the fish first (ti ike the water of the lake it make for ;he shore and tries to flounder' out, and if it fails, hugs the shore aa closely as ossible, with it head out of the water, until il die. The geeae and ducks and other water fowl that abouud in thi section do not even liuht upon the lake, except at the mouth ol trend-water streams. There ia mystery also con nee tod with w.gou which lieaxat the bottom of thi HOT TIMES IS KANSAS. sand, much less moisten the earth. At this point the witid blows a gale most of the time, and carries w ith it cloud of the sand. In ft few day' time th wind alalts the sand until a point that was high last week ia a deep hole or pit thi week. Then the wind changes and blow from another direction for few day, and thus shifts tho surface of the earth at this point again. The lake which 1 iea in these sand beds is nece sarily com 11 led to change it bed con tinually. As the w ind sweeps out a hole on the north side the water must follow then it changes to tlio east, then south and then to the west, so that one can see where it haa traveled about the des ert for years, never netting far from home, it ia true, but still it travel con iderable distances for ft lake. It ia mystery to all who visit this section why the lake never dries up in such a place. There seems to bo no springs and there is no stream to feed it, aud the rainfall is light, and being constantly on the move, one would think that it would be absorded by the dry sands, but, with in the knowledge of the first settlers of the country, this lake haa uover been dry and has neither grow n larger or smaller Hut the greatest object of interest to the scientist in this aection is the fossil beds. ine entire sanu-covereu socuon ia a fossil field. Animals for ages have come to this lake for water, and ifs the aged and sick ones have died they have been covered by the dry sands and their bodies preserved in such a stute so long that hey have become completely fossilized. And as they have followed the lake in its travels, thiconseiiuunco is that the no hi is a large one. 1 lie Inexperienced, who have picked up the petrified bones of these animals, find many the species of which ia unknown to them, and it is said tlmt species have been found here that puzzle and interest the few scientists who have seen them. They have been hauled away by the occasional visitors, and adorn many of the yards of distaut ranchers, but the field is still full of them and the scientist may find work here for years to come. Modern Dead Sea. Abort Lake, commonly called the "Mod ern Iead Sea," is better known. It is 20 miles long, with an average width lake. At the foot of the rim-rock at a poiut where they are several hundred feet high thi wagon lie in aeveral feet oi water, it Haa been there lor many years. It Is believed that Indian mur dered immigrant near this point in early daya and threw the wagon from the rim-rock abovo to conceal their i crime. Salt aad iter ax Deposit. Near the headwater of Warner Lake there are ft uereaioo of amall lake, not exceeding one mile in length or breadtb. Theae lakea go dry in the Bummer, and when the water ia alt evaporated layer of salt ia left on the ground several inches in depth. The raucher gather tons and ton of this salt annually, which they feed to their stock. In fact, no other salt ia shiped into this vast sec tion of country, except for table use. As ft slock aalt it is said to be of ft super ior quality. i ne discovery ol borax was an acct dent aud the industry at this point lias never been developed. A few years ago, when the lakes went dry one season they failed to leave the aalt deposit. The ranchers thought there must be a aalt mine beneaih, and as their stock was suffering for salt, proceeded to the place nd began to dig for aalt. Within ft few feet they struck white substance, but it wa not salt. They took it to a black smith, w ho did splendid w elding with it, and they afterwards learned that it was a fine grade of borax. No development haa been made, however, to this date, although the borax there ia practically inexhaustible, and it ia worth from 6 to 9 cents per pound. Hut thesj are only a few of the great wonders and virgin resources of Eastern Oregon. 04 It was ao hot In Kansas that the Corn waa ciu.ill- ij.j Ing on th ataika. -St. Paul Pioneer Pre. "HALT! PASS OUT THE BOX" Lakeview-Ager Stage Hld Up by Lone Highwayman at the Big 5pring, Near Ager. MANY LIVES LOST AT SEA A. P. Merritt. A. 1'. Merritt, of Globe, Arizona, ar rived hero last Saturday, and Lakeview looks so good to him that he has con cluded to locate. Mr. Merritt is an rtist a scenic and fancy sign painter who left a good business in Globe to seek more healthful and cooler climate. He has all the paraphernalia with bint to do handsome work, and within the next week a sample of his ability will be seen on the windows of Whorton & Smith's club rooms. Every man in town takes an interest in the only build ing in the tow n w here amusements can be held, and every man, woman and hild in town is tired of looking at that old drop curtain in theoera house, that as greeted them with all its hideous- ness for years past, at every public eu tertainmeut. It la the intention of some f the business men to have Mr, Merritt paint a new drop curtain for the hall, nd it is hoKd that eveiy business man n town will assist in the work. It isex- pected that we will have some splendid entertainments here during the winter mouths, and a new cuttain, arranged artistically would certainly be a pleasing nuovatioii, Mr. Merritt makes designs of all his work fur patrons to choose of from one to 10 milos and has a depth from. The Examiner hopes he will find of from one foot to 75 feet. It lies in a lucrative trade here. Steamer Islander does Down at Douglas Island and Seventy People are Drowned. The Lakeview-Ager stage iroing we from Klamath Falls was held up by a lone highwayman at 10 o'clock a. in. on the 21st inet., at ft point six miles from Agr. The masked robber told driver Tom Drews to halt and throw bis mits skyward and then politely requested him to deliver Wells Fargo's express box and Uncle Sam's mail pouches. But one passenger, George Frame was on the stage, and he was not molested. The box and registered mail packages were found rffled about two hundred yards from the scene of the hold-up. i The express agent at Ager reports that there was no money in the box. The contents of the registered mail is not yet known. The robber wore ft calico mask and had a couple of hours start of the officers in pursuit. The bhentt and posse were still on the trail at last reports, and they believe firmly that they know their man. The place where the stage was stopped is near the big spring at a high bluff on a curve in the road, about a quarter of a mile from McClintock's, the stage having been waylaid at the same place on a former occasion. The highway man followed the example of Winters in the Selby Smelling Works steal, and sprinkled red pepper all over the ground and vicinity, so that dogs could not scent his trail. The notorious crooks by this means, can evade any pursuit by hounds of any kind, even blood hounds. Oliver W. Goodale, ex-supervisor of Siskiyou county, a native of New York state and a resident of Siskiyou county since its first settlement, died a few days ago at his home in Scott Valley, aged 70 years, lie was an upright, in dustrious and substantial farmer, highly respected by all who had the pleasure of his acquaintance. He leaves a grown tip son, A. II. Goodale, at the ranch, and a daughter, Mrs. II. F. Walker, to mourn his loss. One of the most appalling ocean disas ters id the history of the Pacific Coast waa reported fast week by the steamer Queen, on arrival at Seattle from the north. The steamer Islander left Skag w ay August 14tb and when near Doug las Island at 2 a. m. the following day, running at full speed, struck a floating iceburg and in twenty minutes went out of sight, with all on board. The Islander carried 108 passengers, and all were in bed when she struck. Word waa soon passed that the steamer was doomed and a wild scramble for lifeboats ensued, many jumping over board and attempting to swim to the shore, the distance being short. It was said by some that the captain was en gaged in a drunken debauch with a crowd of miners who were coming out from the gold fields of the north with their wealth, and that he committed suicide when he found the craft was doomed. Others deny this. A number of the passengers were res cued. One man was on his way home to Seattle under an assumed name in order to give bis wife a glad surprise. lie dropped immense wealth on the deck and told a friend to tell his wife good bye. There were many heart-rending scenes. About seventy people were drowned, and (300,000 in gold went down. Mrs. B. B. Lyon Dead. Just before going to press The Exam iner learns of the death of Mrs. B. B. Lyon at her home near Willow Ranch, yesterday morning. Deceased has been an invalid for many months. The fun eral will be held at New Pine Creek to day, Thursday, at 10 a. m. Drummer It is pretty hard to get a drink in this town, isn't it? Landlord (Kansas hotel) You bet I Why, you can't even work the snake bite racket any more unless you carry the snake to the drug-store and let him bite you in the presence of a committee 1 Attorney-General Ford la quoted as saying that information at hand in the matter of the Modoc lynchings, is suffici ent to enable him to proceed to the trial of Eades, Brown and Leventon, now in jail. He says he has no doubt a convic tion can be secured. The wtit of inter vention, by which it is intended to pre vent Judg Harrington from trying the case, w ill be decided by the Supreme Court on September 2d, and then the trial will proceed. 1