The Portland daily press., 1866-03-24

alter the close of the war, number of Yam
kee, slrayed away to Boutwell,
az ILLS Tune there were five wells doing
snan business at e, the Chambers, Victoria,
Pepper, Lick and O,dScotch Compapy,s while
several more were going down. Two or three
OF the hve had been pumping about two wears.
but the Pepper had no yet shown her ouai.
ty. think l am safe is saying that each of
these wells has now pumped more than seven
thousand iarreis OF oh apiece, and two or
each. ~ III - 1" S''A1 s'
Inc first ssprinkllng of Yankees soon grew
70 smart shower, and the shower soon prom
iseu 10 become flood. One re. .ult l.. that
Bothwell has taken the lead of Oil Sorinos
and may justly be called the petroleum centre
of Canada West ~.
was recently at Boutwell, and took b. isf
survey OF things. What I S W, or thougbt T
saw, propose TO set forth in a few words
Perhaps another would haue seen things in
dlnerent light and would have come to differ
ent conclusions. '
| From Niagara Falls the Great Wester Rail-
way runs along the Erie shore to Detroit.- q
Ei7nt months ago, Boutwell,, In the towns bin
OF Zone, was small station upon this raj. way:
put IN a lew months more it counts upon be.
ing an Incorporated city. II Is now rough and
thrifty almost beyon conception of a stay-at-
home, steady ,uing, New Englander. So ma
ny are now Hooking thither fro u all parts of
the States that 1T is imposs ibe to piccure en-
tertainment. One can only make sure of
bed by retiring before sunset, and then living
awake all night to see that he Is not uncsre,
moniously pushed out of bed by a new conner.
VI course the price OF board, of rent ard
building lots tend rapidly upward. All, the
land within mile or two OF Boutwell, is own
ell by the Scotch Company and tbey are sell.
ing corner lots, fifty acres, for $3.50 in gold.
Rents are in double proportion, so much
greater is the demand than the supply even at
the enormous high prices asked.
Inc country around Dothwell is nearly a
dead level, and the same may be said OF the
whole peninsula. = -1T--9, -
Two small rivers, the Thames and Svaar.
ham nearly parallel and about ten miles anart. 1
run IN westerly course through the oil terri
tory. The land is fertile and large mart of
1t under cultivation; though larcer mart Ia
stun heaVily tfmbered with beech and maple.
Ihe inhabitants are chiefly of English and
scotch descent. Such is general Conclusion
from forty or fifty mile ride over the terrific
ry ymg between Boutwell, and Oil Springs,
along the Sydenham, and from what saw al
other portions of the country. -, e., i.
Durlng last summer and autumn certain par-
ties traversed the probable oil territory and
leaseu OF the farmers immense tracts of Ia
In each nei3hborhood these parties would se-
cure, where 1t was possible, sevetal hundred
! acres for an eighth or tenth royalty, upon
agreement that they would sink an oil well
within specified time and thus test the terri-
tory. These test wells are now going down
in all parts OF the county and new ones are
constantly be mn. 1t is within nv nersonaI
knowedge that at the present time il i, verv
dfhcult task to secure leases of unteste,l lands
from the farmers living en- or near the jina of
Dotswen or on Springs. So great Is their
Commence IA the favorable result that most Of
them have now determined to hold fbe hands B
| they have not yet lea ed As general thin
therefore, leases of untested TERRITORY within
ten or twelve miles of the tested centres must
now be obtained Of second or third parties
among others saw various wells going
down along the course of the Sydenham. =
This river Is about fifty feet lower than tha
surfacc at 6otnwei, and its bed Is shale rock.
Nearit fou d a M. Proctor of Portland q
sinking a well, which he had rot down three
hundred feet with strong indications of eli
He found the shale sixty feet thick. thsuch AT
Sothweh and Oil Springs it Is onN about fem
feet thick. Again, at BIthwel il Il mora
than hundred feet, and in some places two
nundred feet, through the surface to the rcck.
but only thirty feet on the banks O the Syden,
nam. Mr. Proctor thought he would have to
go mucn deeper on the Sydenham than at
Bothwel, but ne was very confident of secur-
ing OH IN IemuneratVe quantities.. The drill
must give the true result. Further down the
| oJdennam, at Florence, folinu d well owned
by the President OF Auburn bank, NY
This well was four hundred and sixty feet
deep, and mad been pumping one day the usu-
AZ amount OF salt water, With coed prospecs of
getting oil. The agent was strong in the
Iaith. yieEl 5{rs'T ue--..l on l0 .. = = !
80 much mention as specimen of what
is being done towards testing the probable oil
territory This work now promises to 20 on
until hundreds of test wells have been snnk
thousand ieet deep, if needfu' The prize Is
too great for the labor to be abandoned until
the question OF oil or no Oil has been definite
ly settled. For this work at least two or threa
years viii be required. 80 1-oa lsllla ~.
All that is oily is not petroleum; yet the
stories about petroleum are not All of them fab
uous. G. B. SrETsoN.