The Hocking sentinel. [volume] (Logan, Ohio) 1871-1906, 1891-08-06
fnE LATEST shAks sroRY.
Remarkable Experience Of . Haxty -
wsll.Drillers IN South america.

Remarkable Experienoe Of RaYty q
wsll-Drillsrs IN South America.
Sneke stories are always In order,
and It matters little how long Q bow
the story teller draws everybody be-
heves him. It Is rule long establish
ed that 1t shall be 90. Now here u
one that comes from an Indianan:
About the middle of June, 1890
says he, q gas-well CONTRACTORS, con-
tracted for we'll to be drilled In
South America on the Uruguay river
q few miles below the city Of Assump-
ton Mr.. Freeman's contract called
for t100. 600 q the completion Of the
we'll. 20 he immediately shipped his
tools and rig TO San Francisco. They
were then loaded on steamer and
sent to their destination We COM.
meneed work - soon - tho tools and
rig was on tho ground. After every.
thing was in running order Tor dfalk
ing. II was q great sight to see TIE
derrick. 500 feet high, and. eovsring
thres-quarter Of an acre OF prounds :
We got along oil right for Q while
when q the depth Of 1.sD0 .fset the
cable broke and left all the tools HSths
bottom Of tho we'll. We worlssdstor
several days and nights, but. without
any success. The cable was all broken
to pieces, with the exception Of about
500 feet Of good cable. that was left ON
the shaft We had pulled some forty
Or Fifty feet Of that over the derrick
and piled IL on the floor! I do not
know Why We did this, but stwas done.
We did not have cable enough to do
anything with, 90 we finally all sat
down TO talk the matter over and come
to some conclusion as to what 70 do.
when, to our astonishment we saw .
monstrous snake crawling into the DER.
rick. Mr.. Steward. the driller that
worked on the opposite tower from me.
threw the anytlst MnNo sooner was
this done than the huge monster
started down the we'll. Il succeeded
in getting in, all but about 500 feet Of
Its tail. We Immediately took rope
hitched Il onto tts tail, turned on the
steam and then wound the loose cable
that was laying On tho floor around the
shaft Presently II. began 70 raise the
snakes tall. On on went the engine
pulling Mr.. Snake higher and higher
In tho derrick. TIL. finally. the end of
the tail went over the crown within
100 feet Of the SHAFT. when, all at onos
everything stopped. for the belt was
clipping. We doubled the cable from
the snakes tail to the shaft then put
plenty Of resin on tho belt Eacked
back little. took . run and shoot
turned on oil ths steam, end presently
something gaykv1. - AZ.
We keptnA Rlles and winding the
snake on the Ghaft when at last the
head Of the snake made it,; appearances
at the top Of the we'll. but 70 oor as-
tonishment IL had hold Of the end Of
the tools. We tried every way possi-
BILE to get Il loose We hammered II
with sledge hammers, burnt IS with
red-hot irons, but did not succeed In get
ting 1t loose We f1aily gave II up
and went ahead and finished the well.
using the snake Tor cable II had
such . death hold on the tools that NJ
had to burn its head OF after getting
the tools out Of tho derrick. yet II
should be said that We did not get
superabundance Of natural gas. Tho
snake was shipped to America Tho
skeleton is now on exhibition at No.
blesville, Ind, and the hide 10 used
for Q gas main in Hartford City.