The Indianapolis journal., 1892-12-10
GAS AT PENDLEroN.

The Prosperity That Has Come 60 the Town
Because OF the Eew Fuel
staff Correspondence Of the Indianapolis Journal.
PENDLEToN. Ind. Dec. 9.-Pendleton is
one of the enterprising and busy little
manufacturing towns of the southern part
of the gas region, which may be said prac-
ticslly to have sprung into existence since
the finding of gas Before the wells were
sunk Pendleton was simply q small agri-
cultural community, scarcely sufficiently
populous to afford market for the garden
produce of the adjacent farms. and
certainly not to be called manu-
featuring town. In the three years
following the develpment of her
splendid system of wells. she has added
over one hundred dwellings and business
blocks 20 her town site. and $40 per acre 10
every farm within q radius of five miles.
Her prosperity ie founded. not upon the
wild imaRinIngs of real-cstate men or the
magnificent rhetoric of newspaper writers,
but upon the great natural advantages she
has to offer TO capital in every line of manu-
facture. in every branch of trade. and foR
general, profitable investment No dry
or unproductive well has ever been sunk
in this part of the district. and the supply
of gas for the town and manufactures ls
drawn from wells situated within the cor
porate limits.
It was here that the Indianapo gas
trust sought TO secure leases bot met with
failure. Although many of the trusts
wells are located only i've miles west of
Pendleton. it has never been able TO secure
my privileges here. No gas is piped out of
the district, and the management and title
of the whole system are solely in the hands
of the citizens.
MORTGAGES AND FACTORIES.
In the years before the discovery of gas
Eastern mortage ard loan companies prac-
tically owned PeDdleton and much Of the
surrounding country. Farmers were
crushed beneath q burden Of debt, and
merchants assigned their businesses and
property to satisfy obligstions unon
which their utmost efforts never enabled
them even to pay the interest The
DEVELOPMENT of gas wells brought business
into the country. put money into circula-
tion, created markets and employed labor.
Real estate began to assume an intrinsic
value, the law Of supply and demand raised
prices, the mortgages were gu ickly paid of,
and to-day there are few, IL an Y, applica-
t,ons made for loans The agricultural
lands about Pendleton are among tn o most
productive IN the State. and the corn
and cattle that were once contribute 20
the great mortgage industry OF Eastern
capitalists are now converted into cash IN
the home market and the proceeds put into
circulation in the place where they were
created.
When Pendleton was an agricultural
village O grain elevator and blacksmith
shop constituted it's entire claim TO distinc-
tion ae o manufacturing town. Within tho
past three years there have been located
here two window glass factories. a manu-
factory of chemicals, q mineral paint
plant and q glass-tube factory, which is
said to be the only one in the United
States. These. together with two Touring
mills and three grain elevators. constitute
some of the new businesses that have been
drawn TO this single little town since the
discovery of gas.
The simple enumeration OF these things
carries no remarkable argument with IL
but when it is known that the window
glass factories alone pay out $1,000 per
week for labor &c forms q basis for Interest,"
ing speculation.
Naturally the creation of new wealth.
producing agencies has had marked in-
fuence upon property values throughout
the district Outside or suburban proper
ty in Pendl Teton has advanced 25 to 20 per
cent, while good business property 10
strong At an advance of 30 TO IS per cent
over the prices OF ante~gas days Ii would
be difficult. if not impossible. TO name. in
one lump sum. the aggregate amount or
capital now IN active operation in this
thriving little city, but the rapidity with
which IL ebbs and aows through the chan