The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1866-01-04

Coal Oil.

Coal Oil.
The earth seems 10 be in all it's parts oleagi-
nous or oliferous, if we may coin n word.
From almost every part of II comes the news
,hat oil has beca discovered. At first IL was
supposed that Pennsylvania, and particularly
Ncnango county, was the one favored spot
whore the borcr could lie down poor and
" IKE 10 find ir>self rich Next, the en-
.rsprising sons Of Nirginia-shall we correct
ourselves and say of West Virginia 2-pierced
.. the bowels Of their mother earth and drew up
,nc precious fluid in such quantities rs to make
many of them poSSessors of wealth such as
thcy had never dreamed TO be within their
reach. Writ, Richie, Wood, Harrison, Mar
SHALL, Marion, Ohio, Monongalia, and we
know not how many more counties, are among
.hc fortunate ones Hundreds of thousands of
dollars have been brought into Northwestern
Virginia by the oil wells; and this money is,
every dollar of IL, so much added 10 the capi-
;al stock or common wealth of the State hav-
ing been literally taken out Of the earth like
ore OF gold, or iron, or lead.
These were the pioneers i'll this new branch
of business. But now Wall street is redolent
q petroleum the London Exchange and the
Paris Roursc do not disdain ii, and every body
acknowledges it TO be Il power in the earth--a
new article OF merchandise, which may turn
:hc balance of exchange in favor of the country
which produces most of ii. 1t is not money
itself and therefore may seem out of place
among bankers and brokers; but, then,
what inuumcrahle companies are there
,a, lIpou the market with their solid and
fancy stocks? And how without much
clamor and contention, is il possible 10
distinguish the genuine from the bogus
In Italy petroleum, superior, so the re-
uov;, saw 10 any found on this continent,
has becn discovered in abundance. We think
-probahlc that there is no country without
- though The accounts Of lis preseuCe in Asia
are 80 old rs 10 render il doubtful whether the
article i the same.
our space would not allow us TO specify the
numerous localities, even in this country, i'll
which this subterranean product has been dis
covered or is being sought for. The latest at
,cmplS 10 find il which we have noticed have
been made in Kentucky The Louisville
j,oraal says of the Kentucky Oil Company:
This company's lands consist of about
three thousand acres of oil lands, located Ill
,hr oil belt, extending from the Joe Lick moun-
Tain in Il southwest direction to the Mount
Vernon road, Il distance OF about twelve miles,
and from two TO three miles wide. In the wa
Ter courses that arise from the base OF Joe LICK
mountain on almost every side, oil arises from
crcyiccS in the rocks and IN the beds OF the
streams. The company are now drlIlhg Il wen
on the Pollard farm. in Garrard county, ana
trrl confident OF success. AT the distance OF
one hundred and sixty feet Il vein OF heavy OIL
was struck, which flowed over TWO barrels
dty for several days. They have had fine
shows of light oil all along, and feel sangulne
OF a big strike by boring deeper"
This " flowing" of the oil is what we never
SAW nj the celebrated Virginia wells, where
Lpini,eIs of barrels were pumped out every
day II is true that the oil is forced ont when
the mir il first let into the reservoir whence the
fluid is drawn: but this outflow lasts but
few minutes generally, and the aid of 4 steam
engine is always brought into requisition be-
fore any considerable quantity of oilis obtained
And by the way, this fact initiates against
,hn theory that the oil is in a "basin' which
is tapped at different points; for If this were
So the gas would escape from the first aper-
tirrs made and there would be none left to
force up the oil through each successive open
ing.
But we are wandering from the point. The
y',urnai tells of another :. strike in Kentucky
Their lands (the Glasgow Petroleum Com
ptuyl on Royd's, Skcgg's, ana Peters : creeks
are IN the midst of the most productive o,t
iaAia vet developed in Kentucky, and the We'll,
now down six hundred feet, on BOYD creek,
III which oil has been struck, tsome three miles
north of the kinslow flowing well,) promises
10 be one of the most productive wells IN the
State
There is the 'oil basin again; but we un-
dcrstand the reference TO be to the surftce OF
the earth and not to the source OF the nuld
itself. Here is another from the same paper
Mr.. H E Lewis, formerly of the house OF
II + Lewis x Co., of this city, now resident
Of Henderson county, Kentucky, showed us a
sample of lubricating oil, said to be the best
quality, from the we'll of Alves, Lewis Co,
four miles from Lock No. /, Green river. This
oil was struck st 4 distance OF three hundred
and fifty eight feet from the surface, is con.
Stantly Increasing, and the company are OF
the opinion that Lick creek, from present IN
dications, will prove one OF the fnest ana
most profitable oil regions as yet discovered
IN this State"
But if there is SO much of this oil, will II
not become valueless? No danger of that.
The suppIy from any given well, or number
Of wells must have limit. The cost OF boring
for and pumping out the oil is so insignificant,
when contrasted with the price for which IL
sells, tina. ii is really the most profitable busl-
ness in which any man can engage. Ana SO
anxious are we to see stream Of gold pouring
!ntn Virginia i'm return for something or other
ana oil is the only article which can be OBJ
ysined if at ALL forlt,citl-that we have
thrown these rambling thoughts together In
hurry, by way of encouragement to the enter
prising oil company in Campbell county, and
with the hope that the people OF other counties
may look into the matter and learn whether OF
not this valuable article of merchandise is
living useless under their feet.
"IreIand's Wrongs"
"A 4 .n1 81 o. a