The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1865-04-15
Life at the Oil Wells.

A writer In the new 4 Ork WOTCd, VINO
has just returned from Oil City, gives the
following graphic and truthful sketch of
life, men and manners there; 5s3 as
Life in Oil City is fast and peculiar. Go
into bar-room, or sitting-room, and you
will find conclave resembling no other
ever assembled on the face Of the EARTH
The representatives of millions of green
backs and thousands of acres Of oil land
jostiein company with teamsters, stage
drivers, carpenters, workers at wells, PEN
niless, adYenturers with small capital, ma
bobs from afar, come to see what ''all the
row is about" spectators of every class,
| and democratic people generally. Oil is
the great leYeler Your neighbor, no mat
| ter how wretchedly garbcd or how detesta.
bly, vulgar in his speech and manner, may
be so far your superior in moneys worth,
that, in this community, where wealth is
the only recognized aristocracy, he is held
to be something more than q simple loafer.
Men accustomed to the amenities OF civil
lied society here descend to the plane of
oE-handed slang absolutely necessary to the
establishment Of pleasant and profitable
| intercourse. "Airs" are absolutely of no
account whatever. A digniGed bearing
does not impress. The common courtesies
ola business transaction may or may not be
required. They will, of course, prevail be-
| tween gentlemen here as everywhere. But
they arc not generally yalued or depended
upon. Men who find that, by the mere
strength of their wits, they can make mo-
ney here as we'll without a high and grace
fal bearing as with it, cease TO respect it
in others. The democratic principle ad-
hered to in the oil business is, that all men
are equal The very trick and essence of
money making is to make the man you bar
gain with believe that you are his inferior,
and that you are permitting him to gouge
you accordingly. sd ss...f.a ti.s. j. ...l ,
You have come down to look about you,
with the view of purchasing some land
You casually allude to the fact loud. Lo
from the mouth of greasy individual in
the corner, who from his appearance, might,
in ordinary circles, be held coal-heaver
or rollor Of barrels ..lt ..
give got few acres up here. Perhaps
you'd like to look at it p
elbow many =" ~ ....,... ta.l i.
Bout two hundred" aaaG ii .i
at'What price p ii 5a.a a.' aas 8,
Thousand dollars an acre." ia b,
Il say, Bill" (up speaks one of the COM
pany 10, another man in pair Of worn-out
boots and frayed overcoat,) chow much
did you git for three hundred acres ?"
Sixty thousan'." - t'..
"Whew did they look at it ?"
"No!" l-.,., ........-.. ...,
The oil conversation once started, soon
gets into tumble. sdi sa.
Not until Oil City is left behind does
the full magnitude and bewilderment Of the
oil mining region dawn upon the traveller.
The developments along the Allegheny
are simply nothing to it. A perplexing
maze of derricks is woven thickly along
both sides of the stream, from the banks to
the bases of the hills. Engine-houses, shan-
ties, offices, tanks, groceries, taverns, en-
bryo villages, give the whole valley an air
of activity such as surrounds the machine
shops and manufactures of large Cities
Smoke and steam arise the clanking of
machinery and the putting Of engines sound
near and far. Sleighs and wagons fill the
roads, and are drawn up beside the differ
ent wells, where the process of filing and
shipping the barrels is going on. Men on
horseback aud men on foot--hundreds Of
them throng the crooked ways or linger
beside the derricks. Knots Of spectators
gather to witness the yield of the large
wells, or to discuss the prospects of new
ones going down. The new wells and the
old are easily distinguishable from each
other at glance, the derricks of the form
er being freshly hewn and white, those OF
the latter brown and stained with oil. '@