up by the abrupt hills, it is a soft and sandy loam,
irreclaimable for agricultural purposes. The
whole western shore of the lake is bounded by
an immense level plain of soft mud, frequently
traversed by small meandering rills of salt and
sulphurous water, with occasional springs of fresh,
all of which sink before reaching the lake. For
a few months in midsummer, the sun has suffi-
cient power to render some portions of the plain
for a short time dry and hard, during which it is
often covered for miles with a coat of salt half
an inch thick or more; but one heavy shower is
sufficient to convert the hardened clay into soft,
tenacious mud, rendering the passage of teams
over it toilsome and frequently quite hazardous.
This extensive area, for a distance of 75 miles
from the lake, is for the most part entirely bare
of vegetation, except occasional patches of arte-
mesia and greesewood, and destitute of water.
The minute crystals of salt, which cover the sur-
face of the moist, oozy mud, glisten brilliantly in
the sun, and present the appearance of a sheet of
water so perfectly that it is difficult at times for
one to persuade himself that he is not standing
on the shore of the lake. High rocky ridges pro-
trude above the naked plain, and resemble great
islands rising above the bosom of this desert sea.
On the N. the tract of low ground is narrow, and
the springs bursting out near the surface of the
water, the grounds cannot be irrigated. But on
the eastern side, including the valley of the Bear
River, which comes in from the N., the land above
the line of overflow, to which the lake rises
with the spring freshets, is fertile and capable of
cultivation between the mountain and the shore.
The same is the case with the Ogden River, which
breaks through the Wasatch Mountains on the
W. To the N. extends the valley of the Jordan,
and of the Utah Lake, already described, also
that of the Tuilla, parallel to it on the W., wa-
tered by a small river of that name, and separated
from it by the Oquirres Mountains. The Bear,
Ogden, Jordan, and Tuilla are the only consider-
able tributaries of the Great Salt Lake. The
valleys of these rivers afford rich and perennial
pasturage, and are capable of cultivation wher-
ever they can be irrigated.

The Great Salt Lake, 70 miles long and 30
broad, but very shallow, is perfectly saturated
with salt, and its waters are so dense that persons
float cork-like on its waves, or stand suspended
with ease, with the shoulders exposed above the
waters. Yet to swim is difficult, on account of
the tendency of the lower extremities to rise, and
the brine is so strong that the least particle in the
eye causes intense pain, and if swallowed in any
quantity, it brings on strangulation and vomiting.
The salt makers affirm that they obtain two
measures of salt for every three of the brine.
This is an exaggeration; but the analysis of
the water shows that it contains 20 per cent, of
pure salt, and not more than 2 per cent, of other
salts, forming one of the purest, and most con-
centrated brines in the world. It is a refreshing
and delightful sport to bathe in the Salt Lake ;
but on emerging, the body is completely frosted
over with salt; and a fresh spring, of which many
break out on the very edge of the lake, is a neces-
sary resort. The shores in summer arc lined
with the skeletons and larvas of insects, and of the
fish that venture too far from the mouth of the
rivers; and these form banks that fester and fer-
ment, emitting sulphurous gases offensive to the
smell, but not supposed to be deleterious to health.
These, often dispersed by storms, are at last
thrown far up on the beach to dry into hard
cakes of various dimensions, on which horses can
travel without breaking them through ; but the
under side being moist, the masses are slippery
and insecure

There are several beautiful islands contained
in the lake, two of them of considerable magni-
tude, with a mountain ridge through the centre
2000 feet high, affording fresh springs of water
and good pasturage. Around the contour of
those islands, and along the adjacent mountains,
on the whole circumference of the lake, the eye
traces three principal ten-aces, each about 50 feet
above the other. At the base of the hills around
the lake issue numerous warm springs, that collect
in pools, inviting aquatic fowl during winter by
their agreeable temperature and the insect larvae
which they furnish. Along the brackish streams
from the saline springs grows a thick, tangled
grass, and the marshy flats are covered with fine
reeds or dense fistulas. In early summer the
shepherd boys fill their baskets with the eggs de-
posited in that cover by the goose, the duck, the
curlew, and plover; or, taking a skiff, they can
row to the Salt Lake Islands, and freight to the
water's edge with those laid there for successive
broods by the gull, the pelican, the blue heron,
the crane, and the brandt.

From Provaux City, the settlement on the
Tinpanogos, already mentioned, N. to Ogden
City, on Ogden Creek, an affluent of the Weber,
a distance of 90 miles, the base of the Wasatch
range is already studded with flourishing farms
wherever a little stream flows down the moun-
tain side with water sufficient for irrigation, while
in'the gorges and canyons (the name given to the
narrow passes of the mountains,) where alone
any trees are to be found, are erected the saw
and grist mills.

To the S. of Lake Utah, on one of its tribu-
taries, another city has been founded, called
Paysan, and 130 miles farther on the road to Cali-
fornia, another, named Marti, in what is called
San Pete valley, on a tributary of the Sevier, or
Necolet River. Still farther S., near Little Salt
Lake, 250 miles from the Great Salt Lake, a
fourth settlement, called Cedar City, has been
laid out, in a spot possessing the advantage of
excellent soil and water, equal, it is said, to those
of Great Salt City itself, and plenty of wood, iron
ore, and alum, with some prospect of coal. It is
the ultimate object of the Mormons, by means
of stations, whenever the nature of the country
will admit, to establish a line of communication
with the Pacific, so as to afford a new route for
their emigrants. With this view they have re-
cently made a purchase, and established a colony
at no great distance from San Diego, on the coast
of California, which settlement they design to
connect, by intermediate stations, with those on
the Little and Great Salt Lakes.

Several other settlements have been established
within the year past, including one in the Tuilla
valley, and another on the line of communication
with San Diego, which has been called Fillmore
City, and made the seat of the territorial govern-
ment. By an act of the last session of Congress,
an United States mail route has been established
on this line, from Great Salt Lake City, via Amer
ican Fork, Provo City, Springfield, Payson'3
Summit Greek, Nephi City, Fillmore City, Red