The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1895-04-18
OIL TAKES A TUMBLE.
A Brokers' Panic i'm the Ex-
change at Pittsburg.
BUT THE MARKET is NOT BROKEN:
department of Agriculture Begins to
Sec That the Rise I'm Beef l. Due
to Scarcity of Cattle.

Pittsourg. April I7.-'4Tnere VIII be more
money lost In the oil business this year
than for a Icing time past
Afts was the prediction OF the pr>si-
oent % one Of thu local pipe lines He
SAID ne did not refer 10 the result 81 the
transactions on the exchanges. but 20 the
operations in the aeld I.aasss, bonuses.
tSyattlss. material and labor are being
ba7ea On tire advance in the price Of
crude oil The number Of field operations
last year was 1850. the largest total sincs
ler1. Notwithstanding this large increase.
the production Of new wells was coupar-
atiNeiy small Approximately 81. 0ts9 6ss3
was pat into field work From reports al
READY received from various regions the
number Of operations and the expenditure
involved VIII greatly exceed the total
Tor last year If oil IS struck In large
quantities the market price of the CON-
modify viii certainly decline while The
cost or producing wiIl have been based
upon the present high figure. IL oil is
not struck In large Quantities the loss
WI De equally great In any event phil
lions win be sunk I'm dry holes
The Lowest sales were made az s215 and
the lowest point touched was s. 10. The
closing was S.lsia. Although the mar
kei Tell - cents during the day il is esFi-
mated that few people lost, as most OF
the OIL held here was bought at figures
below = Besides this. nearly all the
brokers have refused 10 handle margins
OF less than 81 a barrel The market fell
from s. 81 10 s2.I5 in twenty minutes. The
orokerS here explain the slump by the
fact that speculators In OH City became
panic stricken and all tried TO sell out at
once. The alarm was increased by the
fact that Standard agents refused 10 buy
certificates from curabstone brokers az the
fixed price of 81. per barrel, though they
never stopped taking oil from regular
producers al that figure. In spite o. the
panic here. not over 1900 barrels were
sold all day.
y Standard Official today said that the
scarcity OF oil was not sufficient TO JUS
tify prices above g. and characterized
the fancy prices as a wind boom. The
Standard advanced the prices of refined
today cent. This makes an advance OF
cents since last Saturday
j. II. Guffey predicted that the market
tomorrow would recover all IL had lost,
saying 1t had fallen because lot Of peo-
pie got scared. 1t is said here that IL
the Standard retains frs present price of
$50, tomorrow oil viii go to 50 by 4
O'Clock. and should the Standard reduce
the price for cash oil to 81 the specula-
tive price will range between 81 - and
$40. Two men holding $500 barrels Of oil
announced on the exchange during the
panic that they were going 10 hold II I'M
III II was worth s. a barrel
Pittshurg April 17.--Oil broke from s. So
90 $40 ~ 2:3o this afternoon and closed
at $2.T. Great excitement prevails on
Ihe exchange. The break came al go D.
IN. Ike a thunder storm. The market
had been lowering about SEQ all the af-
ternoon with light trading. and from the
fact that the price Of refined OIL rccejv-
ed another lmt today no big break was
expected. But at $50 a slump began. and
inside or ten minutes II had gone from
S2.6@ to s2,3T. Brokers stood about dazed
10y the suddenuess of the blow, and each
quotation from the OIL City exchange
brought n lower figure. uRtl 30 was
reached. Within a few minutes Of closing
time II rallied seven points. The excIee-
neut was more intense than al any time
since the present bull movement began.
Operators scarcely knew what 10 make OF
the situation. though many predict che
market will recover tomorrow.
The Southwest Pennsylvania OIL Com
rany, Standard concern. has bought the
remaining three-fourths interest In the
Warrington and Fairview. Virginia. con-
tanning about 80 acres and 800 wells. with
a production OF 3.e00 barrels a day. The
Standard has also purchased a three
nfths interest IN the Carter OH Company
OF SlsterV3lle. West Virginia. at a price
In the neighhorhood OF $s9 0e0 The Car
ter OH Company owned about 100 wells
with a daily production Of l.00o barrels.
BfaUtHfai. t0-s April line OIL eNCit g.
ment continues and the specializing ele-
ment Is plunging heavier than ever. Pipe
lines are paying $50 on the report OF re-
fined oil being advanced IN Europe.
New York. April 11.--Nhile great excite
ment was prevailing IN the oil region
through a break in the price of OIL today,
the New York market had a sinister tenn
pest in prices declining from s.. 20 bid to
S2i5 asked. AMI closing at SET bid With
out sales. The weakness developed after
. o'clock. but resulted In no business at
this point. The decline has made tho
price Of spot oil even more nominal than
10 has been. leaving quotations mere
guess work on the basis Of about $l050
for refined IN barrels. and $50 for case
OIL with crude in barrels worth $50 But
nobody pFetends TO give close quotations
IN the present feverash state OF the mar
ket. nor has any satisfactory explana-
ton Of the decline been given at this
point.
Glasgow. April 1.-THE Scotch on Com
pany az a meeting here today raised the
price % petroleum 81 per gallon, making
an advance Of 81 on the week