Holmes County farmer. [volume] (Millersburg, Ohio) 1857-1926, 1865-06-15
Cory yO'Lanus AT the OiiRegions.

have reached the land of Oil, having
taxed a safer route than the Erie
Pennsylvania is good sized State, and it
takes some time to get there
When you do get here you wish you hadn t
come.
There is plenty of oil--and that is all ex.
cept lots of people.
am for Snake Run," the most likely
place for ALL
They call these places runs, because every
body who is after oil runs here.
Every man you meet is the President,
director or engineer of petroleum company
The natives who are white people and re-
semble country people, live by selling land
and ereenhorns
They have a system in both transactions
They double the price of land every morn
ing.
Ifyou know anybody who has few va
cant lots that he wants to sell, tell him to
bring them out here.
The folks are so busy looking for oil they
havn't time to build houses, and everybody
is afraid to put up house for fear he might
cover an oil well.
Consequently the hotels are little crowd
The Muggins Hotel, where l put up is
much So
Muggins, the proprietor, is the most ac-
commodatlng man you ever saw. A city
railroad conductor isn't circumstance to
him.
He has only six beds in the house, but he
is always ready to take in everybody.
He took me in.
AL so about two hundred more petroleum
pilgrims.
The sleeping accommodations are various.
We go to bed in platoons
W hen the first platoon get asleep they are
carefully taken out of bed and hung over a
close line. The second platoon 90 through
the same process, until everybody is provid-
ed for.
Preferring to sleep alone, l slept on the
mantle piece with the coal scuttle for pill
low.
As | observed land is precious out here.
L bought lot ten inches by four, for ten
hundred thousand dollars, and commenced
operations.
The next thing is to commence boring.
You want sharp bore. A public lecturer
wont do, neither will skating gimlet.
took brace and bit and went in.
Got down about seven thousand feet into
the bowels of the land when I came to an
impediment.
Found that had struck the pre- Adamite
rock Of the ossitied strata of the Siluriar
formation.
This is geology, and you perhaps won T
understand it, but will explain it all in the
paper to the Historical Society l am about
writing.
Got candle and went down to see about
it.
| found a big Megatherium, about six
hundred feet long, and nine wide, in cap
ital state of preservation.
got him out and will send him along by
express.
Went on boring through forty feet of sond
stone.
Here encountered a strange smell of sui
phur, which alarmed the native who sold
me the land, and to ease his conscience gave
back half the money, and wanted me to stop
boring.
Told him l was bound to keep on until |
struck lie, or come out on the other side of
creation.
Bored on. Went through about sixty
thousand feetmore, when suddenly the brace
and bit went in, and there was a grand re-
port like that made by Butler powder boat
that didn't blow up Fort Fisher.
Things were slightly confused for awhile.
A section of Pennsylvania went up and
went up with it. guess I must have come
down again, as the next idea had was find
ing myself comfortable, hung over theclothes
line at Muggins Hotel.
| An investigation into the matter showed
that / had struck through into gas factory
in China, which had exploded at both ends
of the bore, killing half Il million Chinese.
The casualties on our side were confined
to one native and a small dog.
4! haven given up yet.
The folks here are very encouraging they
will stick to a man as long as he has cent
left, and never knew Muggins to turn g
man out of his hotel to pay his bill.
A kind hearted chap offered me another
piece OF land, the size of a stove plate, with
in mile Of seven hundred barrel well
for the reasonable figure of half million
and two thirds of the well.
L had concluded that boring for oil is not
so profitable as bleeding the public. shall
start an oil company on more liberal terms
than any yet offered
lshall be prepared to guarantee anything.
The capital will be million dollars, divided
into two million shares at fifty cents EACH
Dividends of two hundred per cent. will
be paid weekly, in addition to which each
subscriber will be entitled TO a season ticket
for Lanigans ball, new hat a farm neal
La Crosse, and a ton of coal at market
prices
The "Scaly Run" Petroleum Company
will be the biggest thing in oil in the market.
| am going on to arrange the business as
soon as my friends send me funds enough
to pay my way back.
am yours, oleaginously,
CORY OLANUS.