The Republican journal., 1876-01-13
Our Coal Oil.

|
ing the war yielded the Government $1O.-
900, 900.
The greasy stuff lards the lean earth in
many lands. 1t is found in small quanti-
ties in England 1t has made some sandy
barrens in Austria far more valuable than
the finest farming land. Ilindoo>tan yields
nearly 100000 barrels Of it every year
China contains deposits Of it. but imports
vast quantities from the United States
British capital is boring oil wells in Japan
and New Zealand. In the New World it
is found in Peru and Ecuador, Nova Scotia
and Canada, and it abounds in the United
States. 1t was first obtained from surface
wells in the "frosty Caucasus which
thus bellies its name by Welding the raw
material of fire, light and heat. In the
future, Russia will probably rival Us in
the production Of petroleum. n She does
now 10 that of grain.
The precious material was Il sore gliev-
| anCe to its first discoverers in this cOun-
| try. 1t oozed into their salt wells and
spoiled the salt. Many such wells aban-
| doned on this account, have since been
| reopened for the sake OF the oil. Tho
first mention Of petroleum in PeunsyIva-
MIA, according to the report OF the geo.
| logical survey of that State, was in let
ter Of the commandant at Fort Duquesne,
the intended goal OF. Braddoch's fatal
march and the site of Pittshurg, 10 the
Marquis de Montcalm, in 1850, In that
year, the commandant saw the Seneca
| Indians perform some rites at what il
! now Oil Greek, where they maze Il fire
| from the oil which had ooZed ont Of the
| ground. just u century from that time
| the first refinery was erected III Pcnnsrl-
sania by Samuel kier. The early settlers
found on the shore of the Alicghaly River,
near Pittsburg, broad ledge Of Saud,tun
across which Il film of oil sluggi~hlv poU-
ed down into the water job speahz Of FL
rock that poured out .ivers OF oii7 This
one was called "Slippery Rock, aud has
| given its name to one Of the richest dis
trict in the great interior basin Nhcrr oil
wells abound.
In 1897, two New Workers leased ll1
acres Of land containing u natural oil
| sprIpg, in Nenango County, Pa, and be-
| gar boring ton oil. Aug. IS, 1852 their
! drill struck the stratum now Known as
| 'oil-sand rock" at q depth of seyeuty-one
| feet below the surface, and the r3up
brought twenty-five barrel, OF petroleum
| per day to the upper air. The well was
sunk to the second stratum (20O treD ann
yielded more. In February. ISjl the
| third stratum was reached. when tine oii
rose spontaneously to the surface aal
overtlowed. Soon afterwards another
well, 400 feet deep, poured forth a Hood
of petroleum that filled jJ0O barrels I.
day. Then came the mad rush of Spe,u-
lation. Farmers who had painfully cN-
tracted a scanty subsistence from Il Sterile
| soil saw themselves enriched in an III
| slant. They woke mp and found them
| selves wealthy 4 fourth stratum of oil
sand rock was found. Hundreds Ot wells
went down. a forest OF dericks studded
the country The business wa7 euor-
mously profitable at first and is now very
remuneratiye although crude oil which
rose from ten cents u barrel in 1851 To
| 81 in 1861, now sells for only abOu,
Sill. But science has already mutt
piled many fold the uses Of petroleum.
and is still constantly inyenting new ones.
For long while the origin of the oil
was one of natures secrets, Theories ct
various degrees of probability We're ad-
vanced. One sagacious person declared
that a vast school OF whale, had been
caught in shallow water in prehistoric
times; that earth had gradually formed
above them. and that the di@gers had
/
carcases, A more reasonable theory was
that fine oil was contained in coaI aud
| that the pressure OF suncrinrumbent earth
and rock had squeezed it out of the coal
| sbales into the sandy beds below. The
discovery of impcryious belts OF solid
rock between the coal and oil put an eud
| to this idea Petroleum is the product Of
t ,t'M o,so M Iatbe,s L " wharf w. ' shaE,nr.
h,s # Jbn creot oil tield !, trianduIar
with witt the AjjeGbanies at It's base and Pitts
bnra for IFS a1ey, Tbjs was once an arm
Of he sea swarminr with marine 2ryr.
tahIn Hfe
The nlants with which it WAS lii,ei were
rich in nnctuous iuicps which have ~ioc,.
iain in thn oil beis hnnnath th,. rsrIb lb...
has t,1's ranInco1 70 i,, tho watnr ..Thron@h tbr-.
nhannls @ ;, says proGrssor Owen .. rlr
weeds, have come at Inst TO cure .1bru-
nnoti,,n ana hnL, hn,I , r,>h. tn ,il,