The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1888-03-22
SEEKING OIL.
Something Very Few of You
Know Anything About.
A Company With Improved Ma
chinery Boring Into Mother
Earth for Oil on Wal
nut Creek.

For years, indeed ever since the settle
ment of the country, it has been known
that oil, mingled with water, flowed from
spring on Walnut creek, some nine or
ten miles north of the city.
1t has also been known, from time i'm
memorial, that, further down the creek,
not far from the crossing of the old
Bastrop road, another oil spring
has existed, so rich in its flow that a
STATESMAN reporter has often heard of
wagoners using the oil deposit to grease
their wagons.
If The STATESMAN remembers Alright,
many, many years ago m expert from the
oil regions of Pellsy lvsnia was paid
good round sum t. come down here TO
examine this spring aud the country
around it, with view of asoertaining if
there was possibility OF obtaining oil in
paying quantities.
The expert was hero some days,
If not for several weeks, aud after most
searching investigation he reported to
the gentlemen that all the Indications
were decidedly favorable forsn abondauce
of oil. Indeed, il was current at that
time, that the ex pert stated alphabetically
that, in his Judgment, we'll bored might
possibly flow thousands upon thousands
of gallons OF oil daily, and about this he
was very positive.
"Why was not the well bored"
For the following very simple reason,
as stated at the lime by the expert"
Gentlemen, if you bore
your we'll, and my judgment Is sustained
and great flow OF oil is obtained, what
will you do with 10 You have NO rail
roads, and to think of hauling it or on
ox-wagons is folly"
This was about the substance of his
remarks az reported at the time.
The gentleman thought so too, and the
matter was dropped, with the understand
ing that as soon as railways reached this
section it was to be revived.
Time wore on and the gentleman most
interested and most active in having the
investigation made died.
The oil springs, however, continued to
flow and the Indications continued to
stand out inviting pluck and energy to
develop and bring them forth into real
active life.
Pluck and energy are now on the
ground, but very few if any of you know it
until this morning. When the bright,
CHEEKY STATESMAN reaches you not half a
dozen people in all the city are aware of
what is going on to develop the oil re-
sources of the country.
AS stated, the springs and surroundings
have maintained their ground bidding for
investigation and inviting enterprise and
industry.
1t is not strange, then, that, in this busy,
hustling age of running to and fro, they
have attracted the attention of people
from abroad.
This they have done, and, without any
blow; without any committees of able and
distinguished citizens; without any meet
ings and windy speeches in the parlors OF
the Driskill or Musical Union hall-with
out any and all of these things, certain
gentlemen have been preparing for some
time and are now actively at work testing
the oil possibilities of this section.
A company of Indiana gentlemen have
placed a costly oil boring plant on the
grounds about ten miles north of the city
near Walnut creek, and not far from
Mr.. HolIer's.
The plant consists of all the improved
drills known to the business, and costly
and large twenty-horse power engine fol
running Jnou' luoy OOhnlOhOeu DOAAAe
, day before yesterday, and their augers are
running day and night, and yesterda!
/ morning a well was down eighty feet.
. "They are fools;" so said a gentleman
yesterday.
r Oh! yes; Robert Fulton was fool
The English parliament reared up on it
8 hind feet and, by resolution, denounce'
Williams, the inventor of the locomotive
as fool. Morse, the telegraph man, wa
called another fool; Mccormick, tn,
reaper man, another, and whe
poor Howe, watching his weary wifi
bending over her needle at the dead hon
g of night, conceived the idea of a SEWN
l machine, he was another colossal foo
The man who first thought of boring fo
0 oil in Pennsylvania was calmly informe
: that he was fool by able and distiI
! guished citizens. The man who wer
= down to Birmingham Ala.,s few years ag'
t and got to meddling around some {
y the iron beds there, was a foo
I. and when he offered to bu