The New Bloomfield, Pa. times. (New Bloomfield, Pa.) 1877-188?, 1879-03-18
THE TIMES, NEW BLOOMFIELD. Pa, MARCH 49, 1879.

though sometimes transported In sec-
tiOns, as the oil departs. Large stoves
manage to keep heat In these frail edi-
fees but often to their speedy destruc-
tion. As we passed one town on the
overhanglng hillside above IL house
suddenly ilamed forth, and before by
rounding the curve we could reach the
town itself, the structure lay In clnders
on the ground. Parties must be quick
TO even get themselves out of such hous-
es In time.
Oil wells here are from 1900 to 1900
feet deep before reaching the third or oil
producing sand. Three different pipes
are put into the wells The first largest
and outermost about 8 inches In dame
ter, Is called the drive pipe, and Is by n
tile driver forced down into the solid
ground till the surface OF the first thick
bed Of rock Is reached. This pipe Is
to prevent the soil from crumbling In
on the next or casing pipe, which hav-
Ing often to go deeper, must be free at
least from interference or friction at or
near the surface or within few hun
dred feet of It, Where the bed of rock
that Is the rock nearest the surface Is
actually at the surface, as often on the
hillsldes no drive pipe Is necessary, but
where needed IL Is driven down as far as
rs t can be forced, section after section,
and then follows the next inner or cas-
ing pipe, of 5s inches in diameter, which
must be forced TO the red sandstone and
into 10 II few inches or feet. This pipe
keeps out water which Is never found
below the red sandstone, rock general
ly five or six hundred feet from the sur
iace In this region. The casing pipe
also supports the tubing or innermost
pipe of all, sectional iron pipe of two
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bend or fex too much II surrounded
only by the wide drive pipe; otherwise
the latter pipe might he used to exclude
water and thus take the place of the
casing pipe. The size of the drive pipe
would, however, allow too much bend
ing in the tube, and this would prevent
the pumping of oil through 10, and al
though most of the wells In the region
are flowing wells, yet too much ilexion
would also interfere with flowing
through the tubing.
The tubing Is of course the only pipe
that extends through the 1900 or 1900
feet down to the third sand. The hole
for II Is drilled as Is also the hole for the
casing pipe, but for the 500 or 600 feet
through which the casing proceeds there
Is of course, no separate drilling for the
tubing, since IL goes inside of the casing.
Drilling Is done by engine power, the
engine being little distance from the
derrick and moving the drill tools up
and down by means of n long rope and
walking beam. The loose sand shale
etc, when drawn up by special Waived
tube let down in place of the drill Is cast
into what Is called the conductor hole,
q hole dug before commencing any oper-
ations ut IL. 1t is dug by hand shovel
ing and the loose sand brought up final
Ia 10 h,t M, flno h.afs \,
casing and driving pipe and then runs
over around the derrick. In the shale
between the second and third sand, oil
Is found but not worth handling and
even in the third sand 1t Is usual to drop
down nitro-glycerine torpedo, anchor
ing it In the floating oil of the well and
in proper position and by weight drop
ped down the torpedo is exploded having
the power it is claimed of driving back
the gas In the third sand rock and. .liberat-
ing more oil. The productions range from
"a dozen to forty barrels day with ex-
ceptional cases of rs or 100 or over 200
barrels. The crude oil sells at about 80
cents barrel, but the Standard Co.,
having control, few parties are buyers
of il, and what it offers must be taken.
1t has $4O, 900, 900 to back it and can
throw 100000 barrels on the market at
any moment. All the pipe lines are in
the hands of its second SELF the United
Pipe Line Co., except the one now build
ing to Williamsport, and that also may
be gobbled up. Oil production, there
fore, pays no one now beyond ordinary
labor, unless big well is hit. Many
operators will, probably, break at the
low price, and be absorbed by the Stand
ard, until, practically, all is owned by it.
The separate producers are really more
powerful, but have never been able to
unite their forces. The nearest attempt,
the Producers Union is now carrying
forward the fight in the Supreme Court,
but it is not generally credited with
success.
The derricks, which dot the ground,
are about rs feet high, not made of
heavy timbers, but mere planking,
braced together, and having on South
side ladder to ascend to top. The
height of derrick is to give proper force
to the falling pile driver, and it also
gives opportunity for two or three sec
tions of succor /. e., pumping rods or
tubing when extracting latter for tor
pedOing or forming to allow flowing
where gas will sufficiently force the oil.
When oil is struck on third sand and
gas begins to come, the stove in derrick
and all fire must be taken away, and
even fire under engine at some distance
guarded, as full spout often over top
of derrick, and an explosion follows If
any fire is reached. j. E.
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