St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1891-05-16
Deputy Billy Nichols Taken
Severely to Task by the
Oil Companies.
Charged With Trying to Gre
ate Public Sentiment for
His Papa,
So That the Nichols Family
Will Again Be Pulling at
the State Pap. 81
No Danger Likely to Accrue
From the Lack of Oil
Inspection.

| The oil inspection muddle appears to
be no nearer a solution. AS the war be-
tween the oil companies and the State
oil inspector grows more interesting. it
will not be out of place to note who is
responsible for it, The oil companies
are prepared. nay eager, to comply
with the requirements of the law. On
the other hand, there is some diffidence
on the part of State Oil Inspector
| Nichols to enforce the law, and this
diffidence simply arises out of the fact
that There is no money in it for Sam"
The almighty dollar is a great thing
with the state oil inspector. The law
| governing oil inspection requires that
20 cents barrel or package be paid for
inspection, and the courts have in
terpreted that package" may mean a
tank of OIL or what not. Hence
the fees for oil inspection are
now mere bagatelle. The law of 1889
does, however, contain a provision for
the oil inspectors salary, but unfort-
unateiy the money was not apprOpri-
ated. The Legislature in session the
past winter failed to enact law re-
organizing the state oil inspection. and
at the end of April Oil Inspector Mich
OILS took it upon himself to cease inspect
ing oil, though he took good care not to
resign his position and let some one
else undertake the work. Now, through
his son, Deputy w. Nichols, an attempt
is being made by the state oil inspector
to create public sentiment against the
Oil companies by darkly limiting that
considerable amount of dangerous oil
was being put upon the market. Gen
eral Manager Bartles, of the Independ
ent Oil company, replies to this in the
following strain:
Scorcher for Nichols.
The article in yesterdays issue of the
GLOBE, detailing the dire state Of things
predicted by Deputy Inspector Billy
Nichols, is SO Inaccurate and misleading
that in justice to ourselves, as well as to the
public, we cannot allow it to stand without
contradiction. The whole controversy in
volved in what the newspapers term the
''oil muddle" hinges upon whether the oil
companies shall pay for the inspection of
their oil the fees decreed by the courts, or
submit to an arbitrary anG excessive demand,
coupled with refusal to inspect oil at all
unless these exactions are complied with.
Deputy Nichols is correct when he says there
has been no inspection of oil by the
state for several months past. This being
the case, we think he should explain why
there has been no inspection, if it was his
duty to see that the illuminating oil was i'll
spected. He says further that he has tested
something like couple dozen samples
gathered up about town, and found large
| percentage OF it unfit for Illuminating pur-
poses, and predicts that the time is near at
hand when there viii be explosions ga
lore" The inspection law makes no provis-
ion whatever for determining the illuminat-
ing properties of OIL In other words, there
is no provision in the law regulating the
quality of oil sold in the state. Oil may be
of very low grade and
Really Unfit for Illuminating
purposes, and yet pass the required in
| spection and be legally sold anywhere in the
state. The only provision the law makes for
| protecting the public is in the matter of
| safety. Oil may be perfectly safe to burn
| and yet be almost worthless as an illuminate
| and the law allows it to be sold. Its flash or
| fire test has nothing whatever to do with its
| illuminating properties So much for the
| inspection law
| 1t is not denied that the oil companies have
| done their own inspecting for several months
| past but we do deny that we have sold any
| oil that would not pass the required state
| test, and II Mr.. Nichols will find any oil that
| we have sold that does not meet the legal re-
| Quirements of this state. we will cheerfuIly
| pay him not only the tees he demands, but
| i'll addition. he has authority to confscate the
| oil and suhjec us to severe penalties for vio-
! lating the law. We think this would be the
! best method of proving the necessity for state
| supervision. If Deputy Nichols can show that
! there have been any more lamp explosions
|
| several months when there has been no state
| inspection than during the same time when
! there was a state inspection, we will admit
| that he has some ground for his "predic-
dons;' but business men and the public gen.
| orally know fully as well as we
| do that it would be suicidal for any
| company to attempt TO put oil on the
| market that was un safe for domestic
| use. Competition in the oil business is per-
| haps keener than in any other class of trade.
| The great Standard monopoly are planted in
| every state in the Union, and if we were to
| put unsafe oil on the market they would
very soon find it out and easily
Destroy Our Business,
| while on the other hand. if they did it. we
would not be at al slow to avail ourselves of
| the advantage it would give us with the trade.
| There is no combination between our com.
| pany and the Standard. They openly declare
| war Of eXtermination against EVERYONE ven
| turing into competition with them. This is
| we'll known to the public and herein lies
| the protection of the people against unsafe
| oil, for neither they nor ourselves would dare
| TO take the chances of giving so great an adj
| vantage to the other as wonld result from the
| selling of unsafe oil. Oil is certainly being
| sold at very low prices in the Northwest, but
| not as low as Mr.. Nichols states. The inspec-
| ton law has nothing whatever to do with
| this condition. 1t is simply result of COM
| petition.
Deputy Nichols refers to the inspection
| laws of the state of Wisconsin, and terms
lndt Slale humping ground Tor all the
| oil that will not pass inspection in Min
| resota, Iowa and the Dakotas" The state
| legislatures fix the standard of test in the
| different states, and it is rather presumptu-
] Gus upon the part of Mr.. Nichols to say that
| the Legislature ofWisconSin would invite the
| oil companies of Minnesota, Iowa and the
| Dakotas to dump" their dangerous oil upon
| them. an0 endanger the lives and property
! OF their people. The great state of Pennsyl-
| vanie fixes The legal test ten degrees lower
| yet than Wisconsin. and it is only fair to as
| sumo that the people of Pennsylvania know
| something about oil, as it is as important q
| product in that state as wheat is in Minnesota
| We hardly think the average Pennsylvania
would set himself up as an authority on the
| inspection of wheat as against the more
| practical and experienced Minnesotan. Mi.
| Nichols reflections upon the Wisconsin law
| hit the Pennsylvania just 10 degrees harder
| than our near neighbors, and his reflections
| are therefore that much more severe upon
! the Pennsylvania, who really should be
| thoroughly schooled in the oil question
We have only to say that the people of this
state need have no fears of the advent of the
| time when there will be explosions galore
| unless all competition is destroyed. and they
| have to take only such oil as the survivor
may force upon them. =
| THE CTVEU,ON ETDD