American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1876-08-19
An Oil Pipe 800 Miles Long.

The Pennsylvania Transportation
Company, of which Mr.. Henry Harry
is President, has been chartered by the
State of Pennsylvania for the purpose
of transporting oil from the oil regions
to the principal Atlantic seaboard cities.
The plan proposed is to run the oil
through four-inch pipe laid on the
surface; the forcing power will be 900
pounds to the square inch; there are to
be stations at a distance of 15 miles,
at each of which an engine of hundred
horse power will be erected to work a
pump to continue the flow from point
to point. The company having decided
upon the construction of the work, the
President sought the services of Gener-
al Hartman Haupt, of Hoosac Tunnel
fame, and who, during the war, was
chief of the Bureau of Military Rail-
roads, and photographed engineer
of great skill and experience. He pro-
nounced the scheme, after thorough
examination, to be entirely practicable,
and he is now acting as engineer-in-
chief.
In view of the enormous product of
oil in this country-thirty thousand
barrels per da5-and the rank that 1t
now holds among the leading articles
of export, coupled with the exorbitant
charges for railroad carriage from the
wells to the seaboard, by the compile
ton of the enterprise and its success
full operation, a complete revolution
will be accomplished in the handling of
this article. i ir --- se..f-.-7s4t. sr
AS proof of how valuable this traffic
has been to several railroads over which
the oil has been borne, it is only neces-
sary to say that up to the present time
the railroad charges aggregate S79, 000,-
000- The minimum cost of transport
ing oil by rail is so cents per barrel,
and the minimum cost by the pipe pro-
cess rs ,16 cents. The average charge
! by rail is $l.25.
The estimated cost Of the entire work,
including fixtures, ETC., is 81, 25O,O0O,
| and, considering the difference in cost
between this method and that by rail,
upon the hypothesis that the company
| will discount at least % cents IL
rates, it will readily be seen that, with
sn the expenses of operating g, the first
years earnings win paythe first cost of
the work. sEs;Iss8sts aff 81. Isif,,,it,,
Fs0The Rennsylxania Company is the
parent company, but there is, also the
Baltimore Transportation Company,
chartered by the State of Maryland,
and some five other companies are ex-
pecting to unite The first objective
point or terminus will be Baltimore, as
being the most feasible and direct route
for the pipes Following which other
termini will be established, in Philadel-
phia, New York, etc. . ~
The pipes being laid on the surface
and there being no obstacle in the way
Of forcing the oil to any height, the line
viii literally be an air line, and the dis
tance from the oil regions to Baltimore
is three hundred miles.
. The oil will be distributed from the
pipes into immense reservoirs with re-
filming establishments adjacent. OF
course the whole railroad system will
oppose it, for it is taking from them a
traffic from the very nature of which
there could be no competition, but the
advantage to the oil producers, who
will have the entire control, will be i'm
mense, and the advantages which will
accrue from such facilities to this inn
portant branch of our export commerce
will be incalculable. .
The feasibility of this enterprise, SO
far as the passage of the oil through
pipes is concerned, has been fully
established by the present system in
operation in the oil regions, where the
aggregate length of the pipes convey
ing the oil from the several wells to
the reservoirs is nearly two hundred
and fifty miles.-Boston Traveller.