Daily Los Angeles herald., 1884-08-03
i New Supply or Ferti lizins Matte
The Origin of Petroleum.

The Origin of Petroleum.
Many old settlers have seen '.Jack OF
Lanterns" and "Will o. the wispsH|
hoveriBg over and dancing above the
brea pits and deposits Of this county
and have noticed with wonder the phos-
y phorescent light produced by the
friction of carriage wheel
|.rolling rapidly on dark night
over the earth in the vicinity Of some|
7of our petroleum springs and wells.
Many conjectures and theories have|
been advanced as to the cause of these|
phenomena. II We accept the old the
Dry regarding the formation of petro-I
leum--that 1t is produced from dead
trees and plants in the same manner as|
ordinary coal--we have an explanation
ready at hand, as all dead and decayingl
organic matter shines and CLOVIS, partic-
ularly so in the old forests, marshes andI
swamps, and the phosphorescent quail !
ties OF this matter would display them
selves during the process of conversion|
into petroleum. But the fact is that the|
formation of petroleum is entirely inde-
pendent Of any organic source. 1t oc-
ours In many geological formations|
where organic life has only sparsely ex
isted, and when examined by the micro.
scope il does not exhibit the least traces
Of organized structures. On the other|
hand, when piece of coal is put under
the microscope, or even when it is close
ly examined by the naked eye, we see|
that it is q mass OF compressed andI
mineralzed vegetation, the organic
structure being often as distic ly|
displayed as the cells and fibcfs nj
. piece Of timber. The range Of geo
logical formations in which petroleum
is found is considerable. Near the Cas-
plan Sea it is found in the tertiary
sands, having a comparatively modern|
origin, speaking in a geological sense
In Canada it occurs as low down as thtI
silurian formation, and in Pcnnsylvania|
it lies below the coal measures in the|
under series Of the Devonian formation |
: The oil belt OF the Southern coast
of California extending nearly 200 miles
from Santa Barbara to Los Angeles lies|
i'm the tertiary sandstones, correspond !
ing in this respect to the deposits around
the Caspian Sea, which yield such anI
enormous quantity of oil, and where the|
spouting and flowing wells exceed in|
volume and height the boasted wells of
Pennsylvania and the Kanawha valley i
fhe wonderful production of the Gas j
plan region should give us confidence in|
the permanence and value Of our south
ern coast deposits, the geological condi
um is not formed from pre-existing or-
ganic debris, we must look elsewh here forI
4 satisfactory explanation of its forma-|
tion. Sir Lyon Playfa the eminentl
English geologist and chemist. in a re !
cont contribution, advances the theory
that petroleum is being constantly
formed anew in the deeper parts of thc|
earth from the union Of two of the ele |
ments-carbon and hydrogen. He says|
that in the depths Of the earth there are|
probably large abundance of com
pounds Of the metals with carbon, for|
We find such compounds in basaltic and|
SJther eruptive rocks. When the crusi|
of the earth becomes fissured, waterI
would reach these compounds, which
being In heated state from their near
ness to the heated center of the globe.
would deconpose the water, its oxygen|
passing over to the metals, while its by-|
drogen would unite with the carbon,
producing hydrocarbons. the most com
mon form Of which is petroleum. The|
gaseous hydro -carbons, formed by .theI
same action, are pent up in cavities, and
when boring is made for petroleum|
well, force it up to the surface. The|
petroleum wells Of the Alleghanies, oil
the Caucasus in Russia, and of oarI
own Coast Range, in Southern
california, are generally found
near the base of the mountains. These|
niountain elevations indicate cavities.
fissures or crsvices below, for when 81
mountain is pushed up by volcanic sner-
Ky from central depths it assures and|
cracks the ground in every direction.
Into these cavities and assures as a raJ
Deiver the hydro carbons become distill1 !
ed and condensed. This is comforting
Theory. for as long as water runs into|
the ground petroleum will be formed
Afresh and be deposited in natures res
ervoirs, guaranteeing to mankind indefi- i
nitsly an ample supply Of light and fuel.
As then organic matters have nothing I'd
do with petroleum, the. phosphorescent
appearancesallude to cannot arse from
decomposition of woody fiber. In the
decomposition, however, Of certain
rocks, notably the limestone group.
phosphatcs are produced which exhibit
phosphorescent phenomena. Phosphate
of calcium gives the glow when mechan-
lcally abraded and when slowly decom.I
posing, and some other rocks. whenI
struck or broken open violently, emit
the CLEAN. The appearances then near|
the pits and springs must arise from the
decomposition of the rocks in theirl
vicinity. Asa new source Of wealth to|
Southern California, the phosphates|
should be looked after. Millions Of 'tons|
of phosphstes or ''bone earth" are|
shipped from the South Carolina deposits|
yearly to the northern States. Perhaps|
careful analysis may show that we have|
NATIVE guano, as the South Carolinian.|
call it, at our very doors, and we should
like to see some Of the earth that en,itl|
light tested with reference to its value
Il