The herald., 1894-10-19
TO LIGHT AND HEAT THE CITY
Oil Men Figuring on a Big Gas
Plant.
Could Furnish Gas at Very Low
Rate, They Say.
Now OIL District to Be Developed Near
Westlakc Park - Will Fight
Back at tho Oppo-
sitiCn.

The protest which the oil men have
made against the oil we'll regulating or
dinance bids fair to be successful in
having the ordinance revoked and a
new one, more satisfactory to them,
passed in its stead, or else there will be
no ordinance at all.
The mayor very promptly told tho
committee which waited on him with q
petition that the petition was not ne.
cessary; that he would withhold his
signature until their side OF the case
could be presented to the council. The
committee is now at work on the prepa-
ration Of the matter which will be pre-
sented to the council. The oil men will
ask that thoy be allowed to work the
wells continuously and to run wires and
pipes over toe streets inside the district,
which are not now used by the general
public. They will not object at all to
having an inspector, whose duty it shall
be to inspect boilers and see that the
regulations in regard to the methods OF
burning the oil be observed.
Within the last four weeks new idea
for utilizing the supply of oil in the
Second-street district has been promul-
gated. The plan is to build an immense
gas manufacturing plant right upon the
grounds to supply the entire city OF Los
Angeles with a very cheap fuel for both
lighting and heating.
The idea OF the projectors ia that gas
could be manufactured and supplied to
any part OF the city for about 81 per
$1,000 feet. With gas at that figure it
would become the principal fuel of the
citv. Every owner of q residence house
or business block could well afford to
put in hot water pipes and q boiler that
would be heated with gas. In addition
to this he would have gas stove for
cooking and cheap gas for lighting pur-
poses.
The oil men would then have meth.
cd OF disposing OF their oil which would
be constant and sure.
The market price of oil would not
affect them, and there would be no glut
OF the market.
The Gil men complain at the present
time of the way the oil-consuming in
stitutions of the city are treating them.
The presence of the wells has already
forced the price of fuel of all kinds down
considerably. and yet, the oil men say,
when the conditions are equal the users
still favor the imported oil.
The wells are not being pumped to
anything near their full capacity at
present, though about $50 barrels per
day is the present flow.
cone of the principal difficulties which
has 10 be overcome 10 the fact that the
users OF oil and the producers have not
the confidence of each other at present."
said Mr.. f. Turner to HERALDs-ep rter
yesterday. The oil men are
afraid to go ahead and devel.
op great deal of property un-
til steady market is obtained, and
large number who might use oil for
fuel, in place of wood or coal. are not
very anxious to change their machinery
80 as to burn oil, or, if they are now
burning oil. to drop their present
source OF supply and depend upon the
oil produced in this city, until they are
assured that the supply is constant and
there will be no danger of an inadequate
supply"
Mr.. Turner is one OF the largest pro-
ducers OF oil in the district, and was the
first man to invest a large amount OF
money before the first successful ntrike
was made. He is now ono of the most
energetic supporters of the gas plant
project and believes it TO be better
plan than any scheme to ship the oil
away.
After it is demonstrated that the sup.
ply is constant, he maintains there will
be no lack of manufacturing enterprises
to start up here. but the trouble is to
get the development necessary to demon
strate this and dispose of the oil as it is