Borger Daily Herald (Borger, Tex.), Vol. 2, No. 79, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 23, 1928 Page: 4 of 6
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j.i
iIf,
! Springs
'J Industry
Bui
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■ ■ ffSgpig
h. v
ioQ FEET
55 A LEVEL-
IN DEATu '/P/,LEY
KBMf ■
m
' CLOSE &V THE PA56 IN THE
n
PANAM1NT RANGE,ON THE WEST SIDE OF
the valley
p; .>
C>K'>'
: afc&ga
mm*
::
■ BtHMl
5w>mm\ng pool in the
>MEART OF^THE DESERT
inter Time It Is a De-
tful Place — Oases
eated By Pumping
%yyater From Mountain
The Borax
No Insects,
ul Reptiles In Plenty.
m i> hem; uache
CHAT hottest and most ter-
rible of all known deserts has
a delightful -winter climate
from November to March.
"With everelaslihg" sunshine, tho
*lay« are,coo! and pleasant, and the
nights in December and January
are aqmetimes chilly enough to
n-jhlte a blanket desirable.
The Furnace ftan oh In Death
VaUey occupies wh.it is said to bo
the hottest soot on earth, tempera*
tftre* as high as 13 1 degrees, in
the shade, haying been recorded
(here. It, Is 170 feet below sea
level, ar,d just about 100 miles
from Mount Whitney, the loftiest
peak in *he United States, 14,500
feet high.
An Up-Xq-Dnto V^isls
In that plate an oasis has been
'created by bringing: water by pipe-
line from Pumaee Creek, which,
IRowiu; from springs on the slope
of the Funeral Mountains, gets its
name from the fact that, at ono
point on its course; It drops into a
depression where the air Is so hot
as to suggest a furnace blast.
The water that Irrigate? the
m
observing station oe the d 5- we/vtver.
bureau in death valley
refining; plant,
s^atid that hor;
industry of De
to supply the
ranch Is used also for driving elec-
tric generators, and for operating"
the machinery for ri great borax-
One should under-
i\ mining is the big
nli Valley, and it is
mine workers with
food and living uua^tcrs that the
ranch Is maintained. Hence the
growing of grain and vrceiabb-s,
with oats for mules, end th^re are
also cattle raised for meat and
flocks of chickens.
Death Y"lh y is in Southern Cal-
ifornia', northeast from Los Angeles,
and clos^ to the Nevajda line. It
is about lfo miles long and ten to
thirty-five miles wide Ancientlv
If was oceuciecl by a lake, evapora-
tion of which ?ef* behind a deso-
late wade crusted with mineral
salts originally derived from rocks
and hrcught (kwn into 1 he'lake bv
rivers from P'e mount,', ins. These
salts arr* >arvely cr>ldnm borate,
frcn*. which the borax is separate''
out by re^ninjv processes.
The v It >y is walled on both sid^s
by l.ifty mountains. On the east
side Is the Funeral Range, on fhe
west the Pa nam in f Mountains.
Through the 1: 't« r runs a nnrrw
anyon. wbie|i. formerly offering a
dillieult passage for men and pack
animals, J as been converted by
explosives and engineering ski'<
into ;i siti-factory road for auto*
mobile traffic.
Wonders Of The Valley
There i water beneath even the
dry,vst deee'rts. Lohg a ;", a pros-
peel or in Dcre.h Valley came across
n spot where there v. s a small
tri cUling spring. .:nd « vk' «! * by
thrusting down into i« a piece of
stpye pip". Man** y*nrs later an
artesian well w-«« put down there
l(y\: .in-r, ON CARS OF THE DEATH"
VALt .E-Y. PA'.LRQAO/
wit
ria
a nd
,'ri!!
a;id brought
from a J< nth of r 0 feet, a flow of
1.000 gal!ons an hour of pure, cold
water. The place is now called
Stovepipe Wells.
From Dante's View, on the
heights" of the Funeral Range, the
"rubberneck" tourist's attention is
invited 'n the DevjI's Golf Course,
in the valley below- an extraordi-
nary confusion of masses of vol-
canic lava. Death Valley lias many
wonders. Seventy miles to the
so.mMi i - the Devil's Plnvrrrourvl a
fast sheet of black lava; and to
the southeast is Dead Mountain,
which gets its name from the fact
that the Xndians of that region
believe it to b<- the abode of their
departed warriors. The rocks that
cover its slope are much broken,
and the sun -hining on their white
points and angles makes it look,
from a distance, as if a convention
of ghosts \e• assembled n -nn it.
Though De'-.vh Valley is alleged
to have got its n.vn.e from tin fate
that befell many people who tried
to cross it in fhe early go!d-s. ••king
day.'', that grim designation was in
reality Ivstowcd upon it at a much
en rlfer period by 'lie Inmans. It is
what Is known rts an "alkali sink."
Shaped, somewhat like a gigantic
coffin, its atmosphere is much dryer
than 'hat of the Sahara. In con-
sequence. evaporation of body
ore is rapid that three ira 1 -
I cis >! water a day is the minimum
amount needed to support life. If
a man were to sit dov/n In that 1
desert and do nothing but drink
water, lie would still feel thirsty.
T! * Monaco Of Tlurst
In crossing tho valley, a man
cannot very well carry with him
more than one day's supply of
water. The only thing to da is to
try to roach the other ride beforo
succumbing t< want of drirk. In
some of the gorges that ru.i up
into tho mountain ranges the-fc are
springs, but in former days tho
location of these was kn.o* n to
few, and, as a result, *• endr^ds
])«-rishcd ot thirst. Their bciPes
did no! decay, but simply shriveled
into mummies.
Streams flow down from the
mountain springs Into the valley,
bet never reach It, because i;*:,
fierce bent dries them up on the
way. OncO in a great while there
is a tremendous storm In the
Amargosa desert, eastward of tho
Funeral Mountains, and a river a
mile wide tlows around the south
end of the Funeral Range and
northward through the Death
Valley. Dut it dees not flow out
at the other end; it. is dried up and
>st before it. gets that far.
Death Valley occupies only a
small part of a. region of ghastly
desert which extends from the
Was-'teh Mountains to the Sierras,
nearly all of its area in California,
bul, to the eastward, reaching over
the boundary line into Nevada. The
ill-omened coffin-shaped "sink" is
just wil! 'n the California line, fhe
Amargosa de -n. on the east side
of tho Funeral Mountain*, being in
Nevada. The whole of the vast
desert waste is intersected by a
series of high mountain ranges
running parallel north and south,
with valleys between.
Unearthly Scenes
The surface of the plain that lies
betwee:: the 10,000 foot walls of
T eath Valley is composed of salt
en l a'icali- the 'at!-r term f°fcr-
ring t° such minOral Qalts as cal-
eium Vrafn .nd magnesium. To
travel oyer it cn horseback i« im-
possible. becauS"i""if a. mere crust,
through, which i horse Is liable to
break up to if53 knees into a th'«"k
sort of paste that eats both'h«^
and hide. There are paths, hew-
ever, which may be safely trt>4^en
by a man on foot.
There is something unearth lv
about the whole appearance of
things in the valley. The ranges
on cither side, irregular in their
sky line, look like the backbones
of a couple of .monstrous beaa's.
A gray haze that never lifts ren-
ders everything indistinct to' the
view. There in no vegetation to
be seen, save n very scanty sage-
brush, with here and there a -tJlll
cactus which in I he night look?
like a dea,d man standing erw&t
with arms extended. There
sometimes a breczo. but,* Iftsfea*1 f
of being cool, it is scorching:'"hot
and blisters the skin.
Plenty Of Heptilea
Death Valley has animal 11*#. A
sorts. Mostly if- is- nocturnal,-h'Jf- „ M
ing in the daytime to escips ths^ ■
heat. There are kangaroo rats irid > 1
kangaroo mice, curious c.r*#Uir«*
which get. their name from (heir
long hind legs and swift jumping
'locomotion. Put the life o*. the
valley is mainly reptilian. T^her*
are horned toads and plenty of
rattlesnakes, also several spsc'.ss of
lizards, one of which, of larjr* .slip,
the "cnuckwalla." Is very good t®
eat. Its meat tasting like chicken
JX swift flight over l.mgley Field
fiear tho national 'Capitol, •• Ma
rine Corp- \ ator reaclc*! for
his -vatch to set how
itj'st wait for tho dinner hour.
IA icing altitudes sharpen the aj -
p-/Tite. ajuh in this ins'a : e Lieu-
t* ant Rogers was a mile al>ovo
grdnnd and - age:
meal.
The slight mover
J>.v,ching his tim
timers' flight in-a
not HCheduh d. in
When Planes Go Wrong
the Occupants Must
Jump /or Safety
Thrilling Incidents In
the Day's Work of Av-
iators.
B> MALCOLM Mao DON \U>
<hUnder. v\bw op h 5 z in
flight
*\. <a .:j M
rl for
v< wsdk. MtmSttos
v in^.ins
m-
l-stir k
•pi
i :' -Mm
IN THI5 WAV OF LEAVING PLANE THE JUMPER
15 LITERALLY BLOWN OFF
. PARACHUTE LE^ VINO ,
PLANE'
JUMPER V^ITH PARACHUTE STRAPPED,TO
BACK
I rial Jt\ I ire 111 Mi(l-Aii
l-.iliot
prospf
urn
luior
>■. i 1 :;
r.. ar of
wn.ch
rrem
he plane '00k an
of its pilot. Ke-
mtrol. the craft
:.- r*eri «arthward with abrupt pre-
lpi,;at5on. The nose-dive into
i-hi"b ft pV:ng'v ,V1R violent a.«*
Thleli won id mark the flight
r f a grind pi mo or an office safe
from f-he roof of a sky-
*era p^r.
Man Thrown Overboard
l./.eut en a'"
ebi.^e pilln r
sau " instant
was no lonrp;
faafons^i bc'.r
hitn in his fo:j
dropping fro:
;dlot followed
liogeri felt his ma-
downward. At .the
realized that h«s
r aboard. The ur-
had failed to hold
t. With the machine
1 bereath him. the
the law of Jnertia
and shot straight ahead, continu-
ing along the path in which his
plane had been moving before tho
parting of the ways. There was
nothing between Kogers and the
ground except 5,000 feet of atmos-
l here, and the r arachute which
he were strapped to his back—
the pa'Mchufo which regulations
rc.p'.'re wery military aviator to
en (light.
2t fortunate for Rogers that
• Amentum of 90 miles an'
hen*\ *• 'yfhich he haxl been mov-
l. fir. 'Sre/ him clear of the diving
p)a* * aad thus eliminated tho
!*;;•/< * f entanglement. For an
moment there existed the
\t\e- problem of the air as
to O* r?obable efficiency with
^l!ch the parachute would op-
erate. Until the moment of.
plunge the device had been t'oboj^
on the aviator's back, after the
general fashion of a soldier's
marching equipment. Rogers pulled
the strap, released the fold para-
chute, anl waited to see whether
or not it. svouli' unfold and float
him to the surface of the earth.
.During 'his interval the aviator
was plunging downward at rapidly
increasing speed. Ills life depend-
ed on the opening of the para-
chute and the checking of his
drop before it was too late.
The parachute did not fall. Its
fabric, fanned by the rushing air.
responded to the current and
spread its concave surface to the
atmosphere, with resultant gradual
check of the lieutenant's downward
plunge. Within a distance of a
few hundred feet Rogers stopped
hurtling and began to float. In this
orderly manner he rcached the
ground and landed feet formost,
ready for his noonday meal with
his brother officers. His machine
had been more precipitate, and
awaited him a mass of tangled
Junk.
Rogers' experienee had m!hch In
common with those of other avla-
< aught In Ilta/iuL Plane
Thrilling c.speriem «- with a blaz-
lun plane was the portion of Lieut.
Frank f. . D. Iluntere, it K< jUIiv
Field. Michigan. Hunter wis fly-
ing with his fellow pilots in daily
practice work when his craff
caught fire at an elevation of a
quarter of a mile. Noticing tho*
smoke um,< pouring from ben-a h
the engine cowling. Hunter put his
plane into a dive for tho surface.
The increased speed produced by
the (jjve forced tin fjre up ipto
fhe cockpit, burning lb*' pilot's
, face and elothinu. destroying his
nVustache. and clouding his goggles
Until lie could not .ve. Thus-
threatened. Hunter unbuekled Ills
safety belt and p-'mpkcmI bead
downward over the \;m ,
In s?ootl con illiop tlirnii^ivtiw> j> 1.
feet behavior ut bin parachute.
Wa
a rr
fae
his
orde;ii nf lire was somewhat
thrilling ;<>r Lieut. Laurence
lot 1 it the same field 1 few
s after Hunter's ex prudence,
oft encountered conditions wl
e him a chane • to« learn what
• rson thinl s about in the faco
danLl.ee .llunler, Klllott
At)it: aware of flames When he
< at an altitiyle (if a <|carter of
ib abov-- ground. With scoi - bed
, a ihI wish tin fur hurn *d from
11 > i 1 - boots. J",lJio:t found hlm-
1 UK
sn
b<*H. in tird()r that ho might
11 up ;i ?id jump. His lingers
c*"d to b< nd, and ,ho dcclaies
t it seenfed hours beforo h 1 felt
be 11 loo-cri to an • xfent that
liable him to move li 1 u head
mil the flames.
During this hair-raising period
d himself thinking of
,s —of the odor of the
on his boots, of the
having his accustomed
on at tho officers' club,
boy who stood on tho
)< whence all but him
fled. Relative values were all
upset, and he was curiously di-
verted from his major problems by
the shock which came when one
eyc-biroW dazed and Hashed like
powder touched by si lighted match.
Klliott figures that his machine
w.• s moving at a rate of 150 miles
an hour, or f v* o and one-half miles
to tin. minute, but to him the craft
'•cmed mot Ion le«s, as if suspended
by invisible threads. £?harp tongues
of brilliant llame. darted upward
and he insists that
ho counted more* than a million
Mich tongues. Iti spite of thi* state
of affairs the poem of tin* boy and
the buri I.i.-T deck ran through Ills
head until he effected a landing
and had extinguished the flames.
Kllioti's escape is considered ore
of the most remarkable in tho his-
tory of military aviation. Subse-
quent inspection showed that the
fire had been unique for the In-
tensity Its In at, and . that the
.Muminum cowlings of cockpit and
engine had been melted b;
fln rues.
Plane
It i* safe
has had c\i
la. than that o!
Hutchinson, test
Bombarded Him
to say that no aviator
.oicnee more specfacu-
Lleut. James T.
pilot at Wilbur
Wright field. Through several
thousand feet of parachute drop
Hutchinson was encircled and
bombarded by the bombi.ng plane
from which lie had jumped. The
plane had caught fire a mile and a
half above ground. Hutchinson'?
passenger, Test Observer Paul
Stanley, had achieved a perfec*
getaway in his parachute Jump, but
the pilot himselt was usuibls to
dodge the mena'ce of his itiar bltd
machine. During his parachute
descent he found that the
was moving in circles, and that be
was tiie constant e*nt>.* a.ound
which it revolved in tho jpoursa] of
its spiral travels.
With an ordinary plane th^ fi-
liation would not have been
daily thrilling, but with a ho:j#J< -
thc case was desperate. The
cirri I'd 3 2 0 gallons of Rasolln*,
bomhs, and 2,000 rouniln <>f , in -
clilnt" gun sijiimnriition, and
inson was fully conscious tb?.
those explosives held deadly m«n-
■T'o for ;i parncfiufe passeng" ri
within thtir sphere of acti*!l7'.
For much of the do*nwstd
tho plane kept even pace
parachute, circling, clipping,
itiK anil strainhtenlriff otiit '-jv,
occasional level spriiit as .if
by human skill. IVurluj r".. %,
Interval the ammunition
IcrinK and exploding like popflol •.
11 nd (he aviator wax aware Ou'.f. tits
nir was tilled with flylnir l>vUI«..r.,
any one of which might, strife, lrn
at any moment. Hi* ^oalUeni«.V
perilous to fhe last defcre, siul o «
in which he was utterly f. i?>l v.
irutchiuson relates that bi*
"hnu^lit waj of the man i^ Foa'f
tali- strapped down and winching
the lwlnKlng sclmMar as f j
own liei'd. He knew tHat. ti> r«
w«r nothing he catilil do, that
he mus' lake what might oome. lis
It bomb, bullet or saf«tj\*
from the bombardTn**' .did dot
come until the flames i**.l >.btirh«rt
away enough of the fUlpe mper-
.•trilCture to cause the d*t'1 w«iipit
to increase the p«e;l of :
descent. Hutcb.^uw.'n 1<
a simple mattur, t.. ji.' stiij wan-
ders why ono of •'*. 'flfciMnfli <f
bullets faiisrl to tilt h!ra wuU*
was a floating targ«t
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Borger Daily Herald (Borger, Tex.), Vol. 2, No. 79, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 23, 1928, newspaper, February 23, 1928; Borger, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth209380/m1/4/: accessed April 27, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Hutchinson County Library, Borger Branch.