Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-01-11
THE CARS OIL FIELD
Should Not Be Underestimated BY
the Producers of America.
A RETURNED DRILLER'S STORY.
Operations of the Rothschilds, Nobels and
Other Big Firms.
COMPETITION WITH THE STANDARD

CORRESPONDENCE OF THE DIsPArcH.1
NEW YORK, Jan. 10.-James Dufield
was passenger on the Bothnia from
Queenstown. He is on his way home to
Detroit after three years spent as a driller
broken and he proposes to farm all the rest
of his life. Dufield had his first experience
as driller and tool dresser in the Pleasant
VILE district, in Venango county, where he
was employed by DR.. Shamburg. 1 saw
him short time before his departure for
home and had a talk with him regarding
oil developments in Russia.
Mr.. DufieId is of the opinion that the oil
business in Russia has hardly been fairly
there are 80 in the American fields, and it
is good thing there isn't or the whole
country around Baku would be covered
with oil. None of the tremendous spouters
of former days are struck, but large wells
Vast Possibilities Remain.
There remain, however, vast domains
never yet touched by the drill, ami If ex-
perience is good for anything, all this. is
good oil territory. Lands as favorably 10
Cdtcu IL ILLS COuutEN WOulQ De Regarded as
'sure territory" He had no doubt that
these lands would develop as large wells, or
fountains" as were originally found
around Baku and which spoured oil in such
a sensational manner.
The refining capacity is being constantly
increased, which is good evidence of the
stability of the production. There are not
so many refners in the district as there
were, for the reason thatmany of them have
been consolidated and enlarged. In 1880
there were 200 refneries, large and small,
but at this time there are not over half the
number, while the aggregate capacity is
much greater.
Shutting In Big Spouters.
Mr.. Dufield said popularity of the big
Russian wells was that shutting them in did
not often hurt them much, if any. The
early spouters that threw out as much as
%, 900 barrels day were too big to touch.
They blew everything out of them and
smashed everything in the vicinity, besides
creating Noah's flood of oil for half mile
around. These kind of wells they could do
nothing with, and never tried. But with
their improved appliances a good-sized
spouter can now be handled.
He had seen one of these wells shut in
absolutely for two months. and when opened
up 1t was found to gush as fercely as ever,
The big wells are shut in when the price is
depressed by the inability of the refneries to
handle it all. Then there comes a glut at
the wells, and the price drops to ridicu-
lously low figure.
Oil for Cent Barrel
There have been times there, butnot during
Mr.. Duffield's stay, when q coin of the value
of an American penny would buy 80 gal
Ions of oil. "Thiik of a barrel OF oil in
A foro ox,1 4
Mr.. Duffield, "and you will get an idea of
hard times among producers"
The death OF Ludwig Nobel, the Baku
oil king, followed not long afterward by the
death of NJ. Shibajeff, the head of the largest
Russian oil firm after the Rothschilds and
Nobels, occurred about the time of Mr.,
Dufield's arrival. The demise of two men
so prominent In the trade created some
anxiety. 1t was feared that there would be
a great curtailment in business, but such
did not prove to be the case.
The Rothschilds at Work.
There is abundant evidence now that the
capital of the Rothschilds is being literally
invested in the production, refining and
Of Russian OIL 1t is the
Paris Rothschilds who have interested them
selves so much in petroleum, and it appears
that they have been able gradually to over
come the unfriendliness of the Government
of the Caucasus. For time the Govern
ment was extremely hostile to them, and
many bitter attacks upon their operations
were made in the semi-oficial newspaper.
KdUkos.
Mr.. Dufield had a crew of men in his
charge, one OF whom. Russian from st.
Petersburg, would translate for the Ameri-
cans some of the anti Rothschilds articles
in this paper, and intersperse favorable COM
ments as he went along This Russian par
took of the spirit of his Government with
regard to the encroachment of the Roths- |
chiIds on their oil preserves, and sometimes
in the excitement Of his comment he would |
drift into his native language, when all |
would be lost to the boys from Butler county
and orher parts of the United States.
Competing With American Oil
There is a great deal of talk regarding the !
relations of the Nobels and Rothschilds, but |
it is not voucnsafed to the public to know |
Just what these relations are. There seems |
to be no doubt, however, that the Roths- !
childs are large investors on their own ac- |
count as seen in their producing wells, re- |
fneries, pipe lines and ocean steamers. They |
or their agents have done much to push the |
trade into other countries, and with their |
cheaper quality of oil have been able to |
make big inroads upon the business of the /
Oil Company.
Mr.. Dufield found that the Russians were |
very patriotic in the matter Of their oil, and |