The Wheeling daily register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1864-1878, 1865-02-10

should all theories worthy of the least re-
gard rest. Iurf uGL .yls4 hue gu. %
Imay promise that | am not an Oil
speculator, having never been interested
pecuniarily in the business, but the geoi-
ogy of our coal field and its underlying
rocks, has been matter of deeply inter
esting study Tor nearly thirty years, both
by the aid of the observations of Others
and by extensive personal exanlinations'
and in the light Of these examinations !
can see 20 difficulty eVerwithout tread
ing upou the verge of human knowt
edge. ;" in pointing out q source for the
immense oil deposits of this basin, and
accounting for many of the phenomena
attending them "'-.A atH --.tl -
1t is well known geological TACT that
our coal field is underlaid--enelosed as In
an outer basin, first, By stratum Of con-
glomerate rock, two hundred feet IN
thickness secondly. by a series of strata
of fine grained sandstone about three
hundred and fifty feet in thickness, and
thirdly a stratum Of rblack" or ''bitumi-
mons" "shale about two hundred and fifty
feet in thickness. These measurements
will apply only approximately TO all io-
calities, being sometimes somewhat over
or under what | have given Beneath
the "bituminous shale" We have the
great cliff and blue limestone deposits,
seen at Sandusky. Dayton, Cineiniiatl,
Louisville, &c, and which constitutes the
only rock over so large portion OF ONO,
Indiana and Kentucky, and has tmck-
ness of 900 feet or more. Each oi the
first named cropping out beyond the
verge of the coal field proper, occupy
successive downwards, a larger breadth
of territory than the one preceding it
Consequently the territory OF tho btu
minous shale" greatly exceeds that Of the
coal field: the bottom of which Is geo
logically five hundred and fifty feet above
its upper surface. This stratum OF shale
crops ont on the shore of Lake Erietrom
near Sandusky Bay into the State OF New
York, and having less dip there than far
ther towards the interior of the basin,
il passes under the Lake and into Cana:
da. 1t NAV be seen at the crossing Oh
the Cleveland and Toledo Railroad over
the Huron River at Monroevilie-
ouoht TO be seen on the Pitts
burph and Fort Wayne Rail
road. in any of the deep streams between
Mansfield and Bueyrus. The city oi 20
lumbus stands upon its western lllnt'
and il crosses the Ohio river into Ken
tucky between Portsmouth and Mays
vile. This bituminous shale at ITS ex.
posed surfaces presents few Of its real
characteristics. The bleeching process
of the atmosphere has deprived II OF ITS
real color, and much OF its more volatile
constituents have been evaporated, but
by opening into the bed short distance,
it will be found of brownish black color,
emitting an odor of bitumeL on being
rubbed or slightly heated, and will tame
when placed upon the fire. The proper
ton of bituminOus matter 1t contains
NAV vary somewhat in different local
itiees. The specimens l experimented
upon many years ago, were procured Dy
myself in the bed of fuckers Creek,
where the G. & z. r. K. now crosses that
stream over the high bridge east OF the
village of Bedford, in Cuyahoga county,
Ohio, and also on branch of the Chag-
rim river, few miles eastward OF the
same place These specimens lost one
eiQhth of their weight by subJectlon TO
the fire, while the places retained their
original size and shape. .. ...
Here then we have i'll this immense
bed of bituminous shale. $50 feet thick,
and underlying a portion of the State OF
New York, large part Of Pennsylvania,
Ohio, Kentucky, and Tennessee, all OF
West Virginia and part OF Virginia,
source capable of producing supply OF
petroleum far beyond anything We have
vet conceived, and to which all the facts
vet brought to my knowledge point as
its origin. Dipping with the everything
strata, according TO the best data yet OBJ
tanned, at the rate of little over thirty
seven feet to the mile towards the geol-
opiCal centre of the basin, somewhere be
tween the Ohio river and the foot OF the
mountains, this bituminous shale would
at the contre of the basin attain depth
of probably 600 or 1000 feet beneath
the surface, and possibly more. At
ParkeTsbuTg it's upper surface can hardly
be less than 1900 feet lower than the
Ohio river, at which distance from the
surface Of the earth we would have at its
lower surface, according TO the progres-
sive increase of heat downward, a TEN.
perature of abOut 1853 of + Near the
centre Of the basin il would be proper
tionately increased, aud the slow distil-
lation of oil and gas would take place
from it And as these substances were
reyolyed, the oil would be driven by the
immense expansive pressure Of the gas
in every direction which afforded II
passage. This movement Of the OIL by
the pressure of its expansive associate
would of course be upward OF laterally'
along the planes Of stratitcation,-be-
cause il would he in these directions
alone II would find vent. Bat as the
oveTlaying stratas are, in most places,
sufficiently impervious 10 bear an enof-
nous pressure without any perceptible
leak, a. is proven by the powerful out
bursts of gas, often experienced IN per
forations made for oil, the movement OF
oil and gas would approach the surface
in those places only where hssures OF
some sort extended to permit its passage
in that direction And on the other hand
it might be driven along the more open
seams Of the stratifeation 10 long dis
tauces from where the heat Of the earth
was sufficient for its distillatiOn, and
then come 20 the surface IN small guam
titles where fssure extending in that
direction was reached; and IL might all
along its line Of movement be deposited
in such assures and cayerns as lay IN its
L.