Mono, Owen’s, and several other large lakes are the “sinks” into which rivers flow and lose themselves in the sandy or marshy shores.  These lakes have soda or salt in their waters, and great stretches of dry alkali lands around them.  The famous Death Valley is a dry lake of this kind where the sun beats down on the white alkali plain till it is almost certain death to try to cross it without a guide.  The Salton Sea is a dry lake where almost pure salt is dug out, and great quantities of borax and of soda are found in other beds, of dried-up streams and lakes.

But to tell of all the curious things nature has to show us in California,—­of the forests of petrified trees, of the caverns cut out of the ocean cliffs by restless waves, or of those in the mountains or the Modoc lava-beds,—­well, you will see most of them, let us hope, in your vacations.  A large book might be given to the wonderful sights of this great state, and it may be your fortune to visit and so always remember a few we have named.

PRONOUNCING VOCABULARY

Alta (ael’-ta). 
Amador (am’-a-dore). 
Alvarado (al-va-rae’-do). 
Ayala (ae-yae’-la). 
Bernal (ber-nal’). 
Bodega (bo-d[=a]’-ga). 
Cabrillo (ka-breel’-yo). 
Calaveras (kal-a-v[=a]’-ras). 
Carmel (kar’-mel). 
Castro (kas’-tro). 
Cortes (kor’-tez). 
Coloma (ko-lo’-ma). 
Diegueno (de-[=a]-gw[=a]n’-yo). 
Farallones (f[)a]r’-a-lones). 
Figueroa (fi-gwa-ro’-a). 
Franciscan (fran-cis’-can). 
Galvez (gal’-ves). 
Gringos (gring’-gos). 
Guerrero (gur-r[=a]’-ro). 
Junipero Serra (h[=u]-nip’-er-o ser’-ra). 
Klamath (klam’-eth). 
Los Angeles (los an’-ga-lees). 
Marin (ma-rin’). 
Mariposa (mar-e-po’-sa). 
Martinez (mar-tee’-nes). 
Mechoopdas (me-choop’-das). 
Mission Dolores (mis’-sion do-l[=o]r’-es). 
Modocs (mo’-docs). 
Monterey (mon-ta-ray’). 
Noe (no’-a). 
Ortega (or-t[=a]’-ga). 
Pacheco (pae-ch[=a]’-ko). 
Padres (pa’-drays). 
Palou (pa’-loo). 
Pio Pico (pe’-o pe’-ko). 
Placerville (pl[)a]s’-er-vil). 
Point Reyes (rays). 
Pomos (po’-mos). 
Portola (por-to’-la). 
San Antonio (san an-t[=o]-ni-[=o]). 
Sanchez (san’-ches). 
San Carlos (san kar’-l[=o]s). 
San Diego (san de-[=a]’-go). 
San Fernando (san fer-nan’-do). 
San Francisco (san fran-cis’-co). 
San Gabriel (san ga-brell’). 
San Jacinto (san ha-sin’-to). 
San Joaquin (san waw-keen’). 
San Jose (san ho-say’). 
San Juan Bautista (san wawn ba-tis’-ta). 
San Juan Capistrano (san wawn kap-is-tra’-no). 
San Luis Obispo (san loo-is o-bis’-po). 
San Miguel (san mig-gell’). 
Santa Barbara (san’-ta bar’-ba-ra). 
Santa Catalina (san’-ta kat-a-lee’-na). 
Santa Cruz (san’-ta krooz). 
Santa Lucia (san’-ta loo-she’-a). 
Santa Ysabel (san’-ta [=e]’-sa-bel). 
Santa Ynez (san’-ta e’-nes).