The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1888-07-19
Russia's Petroleum Geysers.

Statistics of the oil business in Russia
have just reached this country, and
American oil men are studying them
with a great deal of anxiety. They
throw new light on TIE business in
Russia, and show too plainly that the
Baku districts are Il most dangerous
rival of the American fields The out
put of many of the Russian wells is
prodigieus, and far eclipse anything
ever heard of in this country. Ameri-
can oil producers have claimed to have
no fears of Russian competition, but
with the new information on the in
dustry in that country they are taking
another view of it.
There is no better way to bring this
fact to them than by a few COM
parisons. Take well at Baku called
| the '..Wet Nurse" 1t has been yield
ing oil for twelve years, and in that
time has averaged $1,000 gallons day.
These figures are amazing to an Ameri-
can oil producer. They mean that
the we'll has produced lac, 100000 gall
Ions of oil, or over 5000, 900 barrels.
These figures are startling to the peo-
pie of this section when they turn to
the statistics of their own industry and
find this one well has produced three
times as much as Pithole in year of its
wonderful business It lacks less than
400, 900 barrels of producing as much
as the famous Oil Creek district pro-
duced in 1879, its most prolific year.
The Washington district. among the
richest ever discovered in America, in
1887, its banner year, produced but s.
500, 600 barrels This is but 500, ,OuO
barrels more than the output of this
one we'll in Russia. The wonder
full Thorn Greek pool, in Butler county
produced in its best twelve months but
268, 900 barrels more than this one
Russian gusher.
Such astounding facts as these bring
the danger of Russian competition
home to the people of the Pennsylvania
fields. This well does not stand alone
in this enormous production. The
yearly output is given of number of
wells, many of them nearly as large as
this one. The ..Mirzoeff No. g." also
at Baku, has for six years produced
10000 gallons day. This is above
1000 barrels, and the production of
Cogley, Tarkill, and Red Valley, three
prolific Venago county pools, pro-
duced but 1,965,0O0 barrels in 1886,
their best year.
The record is given of well drilled
by the Nobel Brothers, called the
''Droojba we'll" 1t cost $500 to drill.
The record of the well is thus stated:
This well spouted for lis days. the
yield being 8, 400 tons day for forty
three days, 900 tons for thirty, and 800
tons for eleven days. The well was
then plugged, and the supply kept
under ground for further wants The
total amount of oil spouted by this
well, according to the highest estimate,
500, 900 tons, or 125, 900 gallons"
The spray from one of these geysers
was blown through the air for eight
miles,
With these figures before them,
coming as they do from official sources,
American oil men realize that Russian
petroleum deposits are too great for
computation. Five hundred wells have
been sunk in the Baku districts, 200 of
which, irrespective of the enormous
fountains, are now producing 5OO,OOO,-
600 gallons of oil every year. 1t is the
opinion of American operators now in
that field that this flow '.could be in
creased tenfold." A very significant
fact to oil men is the interest which
the Rothschilds have taken in the
Russian field, controlling, as they do, a
large percentage of the producing and
refining business.-St. Louis Globe
Democrat