Union County courier. [volume] (Elk Point, Union County, D.T. [S.D.]) 187?-1913, 1883-10-03
ELK POINT, UNION COUNTY. DAKoa
Bo.jug =, Oh, VII.

A letter from Bradford. Pennsylvania,
N the Drug Reporter gives very clear
description OF The above operation, ~
follows:
The machinery used In boring one VI
these deep oil wells. while simple
enough ia Itself. requires nice adjust
ment and skill ino:'erating. First comes
tne derrick. sixty feet higs,. crowned BY
massive pulley.
The derrick is n most essential part Of
the mechanism. and its shape and
height are needed in banding the long
rods. piping. casting and other fittings
which have TO be inserted p-r;Nni!cu-
larly. The bore or drill usc.l is not
much different from the ordinary hand
arm of the stone cutters. and the blade
is exactly the same. but IL OF massive
size, three or four inches across. about
four feet long, and Weighing 100 or 2U0
pounds. A long solid rod. some thirty
feet long. three inches in diameter, fnd
called the ''stem." IL screwed on the
drill. This stem weighs almost ton.
and It's weight u she hammer rolled %
I 11 = e = m -
rock. Nextcome tie liars" two long
loose links OF hardened iron playing
along each other about foot.
The object Of jars is to raise the drill
with shock, so rs to ,letach Il when 50
tightly fixed that steady pull would
break the machinery. The upper par
of the two jars is solidly welded to Al
other long iron rod called the sinker bar
to the upper end OF which, in turn. is az
atached the rope leading up to the der
rick pulley. aud thence to 4 stationary
steam engine. In boring the stem and
drill are raised with shock BY the jars,
amt tie operation Repeated.
Ii may hazard a further illustration
OF the internal boring machinery of tIle
well, let the reader link loosely to retn-
er the thumbs and foretinyers Of his two
hands, then brin. his forearms into a
= straight line. Cpnceivlng this line to
be perpendicular one. the point Of one
elbow would represent the drill blade.
the adjacent forearm and nHnd the stem.
the linked fingers tne jars. anil tie 9th.
er hand and form the sinker bar, with
the derrick cord attached TO u po.ni rep
resented by the second elbow Br re-
men, hering the immense an cuncen.
traced weight Of tue upright drill aaJ
stem, the tremendous force of even u
short fall may be conceived rae drill!
will bore many feet in single day
through solid rock. and a few hours
sometimes suffice TO force it fifty feet
through dirt or gravel. When the de-
bi is aceumulates too thick!y around the
drill. the latter is drawn up rapidly.
The debris has previously been reduced
to mud br keeping the drill constantly
surrounded by water. a sand pump,
not unlike an ordinary syringe, Is then
let dowu, the mud sucked up, lifted.
and then the drill sent down to begin
its pounding anew. Great def,ness and
experience are needed to work the drill
without breaking the jars or connected
machinery. and ia case Of accident there
are grappier, hooks. knives. and other
devices without number, to be used in
recovering lost drills. cutting the rope.
aud other emergencies, the briefes, cx-
plnuation OF which would exceed the
limits ot this letter.
The exciting moment in boring we'll
is waen a drill is penetrating the upper
covering OF sand rock which overiies
tine oil. TIE forcs with whicn the COM
pressed gas and petroleum rusnes up
ward almost s,rpasses belief. Drills.
jars, and slnaer bars are sometimes
shot out alor- with debris. oil, AMI hiss
iny gas. Sometimes tins ras AMI oil
take tire. ami las, summer one OF the
wells thus ignt..l burnel 80 fierccly
tnat y number .; days elapsed before
tire flames could DO extingu,saeu. More
often the tanka.e provided is insaffiesen,
and thousands os barrels escape. Two
or three wears ago. at toe eigl,t OF tine
oil production OF the Bradford region,
5000 barre.s y day were thus run
n.ng To waste. But tb sc lacyon days
OF Bradford are gone for ever. Al
though nineteen-twenlieths Of the wells
sunk in this region "struck" oil aud
flowed freely. most of them now dow
slu-gishly or have To be pumped two
or three times u week