The herald., 1896-01-11
The Proposed City Legislation
Will Be Contested
STATISTICS OF INTEREST
Concerning That Branch of the Oil
Industry Elsewhere
The Exchange VIII Take No More Contracts
With Local cansum rs-ProbabIe Rise
in the Price OF Petroleum

The owners of oil refineries and others
Interested have prep ared for the members
of the council a st,tement of the industry,
the figures therein co tained being take
from The government cen sus of $40.
The report In question presents statistics
concerning the refining of petroleum dur
ing ie year ending december 81, 1889.
The figures show that the investment in
1887 wa. $27,325 ,746, whereas in 1899
the figures show an Investment of $77,-
4i6,2D6, or an increase of 1881 per
cent.
The average number of employees aggre-
gated in 1880, 9S69, AMI in Is 50, ~ AL,
while the total wages paid in the two de-
cades were S4.3S .572 and 5000, ,47S, re-
spectively, showing an increase of 80 81
per cent. There has also be sn an increase
of "a Oh per mt in The cost OF ma erials
us' d, x34 4.999,lOi in 1880 AMI $b7 .9lS,-
723 ten wears later. The increase in he
va'ne of the products has advanced in
about the same prop ,rlion, $i3, 3,7O5, ,2lS in
1880 and $-5,OOl 1913 in $50.
Though only ninety -four est ahli-hments
reported in the above rAturns during 1899,
1Oh seperate refinere5 were in opera ion.
Pennsy vania leads the van with fifty
eight retinerips, New York follows with
sixteen, and Ohio is good third with fif-
teen.
The following figures showing the capt. al
inves'ed in active establishments will be
of interest:
Number of es ablshmants reporting, "a !;
canita. aggregate, $77.4 6,296: land,
~ SS6.66S: build ngs, $6 6,4O3,9a4; ma
chinery. tools aid implements, $2O.S37,- =
OBS; raw mlterials S3,0So, BOB; stock in
process and finished products OH hand,
$lO.3S6,52l; cash. bills and ace 'unts re-
ce,vab @, and all srndries MT elsewhere re-
pori ed, $2S,S1 ,272.
The TO low ing shows the statement of
employees reported by occupations and
their average daily wages: B'rre house
mel, 81 6S: boiierm .kera, 81 .62; boiler
men, $2 %; bonepurners, $2.26; book
keepe s, $3 66; carp inter. 81 81 {; clerks,
$29l; coupound-rs, S3.44; coopers,
81. l6; drivers, ~ :; engineers, $2.35; ;
errouseman. W %; firemen, $l,99;
foremen, S322; iabbrers, 81 81 machin-
lists. S2.55; pipeh ter4, S2.lS; pressmen,
$l.S7; stillmer, $!26; superintendents,
S. 3 timers, $3.50; ire ,ters, S2. 5; va
1ious mechanic W 15; watchmen, $l.77;
yarimen. $l l.69.
During the year here were 1887, $780,
4O2 gallons of crude petroleum, or So
$50 $40 barre of A. gallons each u sed
by petroleum refiners. cost ig S44.S79,-
1888, an average cost of 81 46 per barrel.
The cost of the crud ne roleum is the cost
at the refinery, including all CHI trges for
transportation. OF this quantity of cru lie
prtrO cum bv far the greatest proportioi,
1.232, ,s6S.s5S gallons. was reported by
the retin.ies obtained through trans
portaiiou companies. titrer by pipe lines
or tank cars, 52,732.S49 gallons being
OBJ aIned direct from the wells, and 2,22s,-
695 gallons from oil other sources, in
bsrpeS and barrels.
The " 'ges pai annually in the diff aren't
star. wa: New Jersey. ST. 6IS sol;
New York. ~ % 5.54 !; OHIO. $l.29O,e9l;
Penn ,ylvanla. l,725.2'7 West Virginia,
500 .992: all o her S ates, $232 1913.
THE Argument will be made before the
council on Nond tlat the indus ry, while
as Yet an infant IN Los Ange les, BIDS fair
to increase to soUe of the proportions.
abnvr, If given an opportunity. If The
pronb tive ordinance is adopted at all, it
will. nv the time that it goes to the mayor,
have been so amendsd 10 make its pro-
visi ms. from a legal standpoint, absolute
ly worthless.
IL ls a significant fact that the oil ex-
change has ceased to make any further
CONT acts to furnish oil to lncal consumers.
There are several reasons for this step. The
principal one he ng that the corpora ion
is bound by It's cont acts wi h northern
consumers and the transportation COM
pany. Yesterday the secretary signed the
las con tract which will be m ade in this city.
The fnal outcome. if what has been sad
by the lead ling oil men regarding the fall
ing off of the productivity of the local field
be true, will be that prices will e yentually
rise.
There is a possibility that Los Angeles
may soon pay higher price for pc roleum
than is given by northern consumers.
Old producers take some satisfaction in
contemplating The possibility OF such a
turn in affairs, as they feel that their in
du-try has not received sufficient encour-
agement at home. In he natural course
of business affairs oil was forced down 10 a
price far below the actual cost of produce
ton. In some cases lhis was not notice.
ablc at first, but now that many of the
put the truth is disagreeably forced upon
the owners.
Improved prices, if brought about by a
dec ease in productions, Will not result very
Iavoiably to producers.
No other baking powder acts so quickly