The times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1890-1903, 1896-10-18
WEST VIRGINIA COAL OH
A SECTION GIyFN ORE 10 "'s
GTNG WELLS md LAYING PfPEs
Ten Miles from "a Railroad and Out OF y"
Excitement Of Poiitics-iiow t"o
Work Is Done.

sAsITHFIELD. WETZEL COUNTY
w. VA. Octoi or lit Is rather reIre go,
ing I'm these days OF active politics anu III
business to be sixteen miles from . ran
road, two days behind the news, an" ~
place where. though four attempts nav
been made recently TO get up meetings
DC addressed by visiting politicians i"''
urc has marked each and every one
them. This is the centre OF one OF IN,
most attractive of the West Virginia Oh
helds, and Is being worked In great par
ny the south Pennsylvania Oh company.
a branch OF the Standard. a. / am toli
An army or busy men are here, CONTRACT
ing, drilling. dressing tools" pumping
making roads laying pipe lines. driYint
teams, ciefking, experimenting. and feed
ing the workers. AT 4. NJ the l0u<
whistle sounds, and az sharp the pro
cession tcgins It's daily march. At u M
rest of an hour, and at y. NJ. the
daily halt Is made. This does not apply
however. to drillcrs and their assistants
They work from midnoon to midnight
and then TO noon again. so that the work
on "A well does not cease until oil IA
reached or the hole Is declared dry.
This work Is done BY contracts. and
there are a number Of men in the ficld en-
gagged In IL. When the work proceeds
without interruption it requires from a
TO GO days TO complete well Of 300 feet.
and the contractor, at Si25 foot making
SUI" WHEN THERE is TROUBLE.
But when trouble comes. that Is wncn
drills are lost or cavings occur, or water
asserts its power, ruinous delays come,
and some times great loss. contfac tor
nj once sees the sympathics Of the entire
fold when he has drilled 10 within
few feet OF the finish, ana theh mas 20
abandon the lob without receiving a cent
for his entire work. The company ohly
PAYS for completed job. that -, Wheh
certain sand" (here the big indian
sand | believo). has been reached. and
then the contractor gets as much Tor.
dry hole" as he does for the best Pho
ducing' well. He Is only rcpull'u 10
reach n certain point but not 10 strisc
lie" some estimate Of heir loss can be
made when "hshing' fails TO remove ne
obstacle in the way OF further dfiip'B
when II Is known that they pay uill
crs $3.50 a day and tool dresscis f'i'.
That means SIG a day on each wei 20
say nothing OF other charges. such as e
pairs water ana gas. rent, etc. \ iaife
number OF wells have already been dtiii-
ed I'm this field. and are now producihS
finely, though there are many dry hoiet
scattered here and there over n. New
ones are no wheeling drilled on every hand,
and preparations are going on which
would indicate that II will be FAR IN Tho
future when Wetzel will De known as IN
abandoned oil field.
THOSE BENEFITED.
or course some OF the matt ls have reap
ed rich harvests from the incoming OF
This great corporation, and others nave
suflered-sore disappointment The dit-
ference between a dry hole" and a PRO-
during wcll' draws sharp line between
success and defeat. Years ago, the lands
in an this section were leased at so much
an acre and as interest increased ID tho
section the oil rights In them were puf-
chased: the owners retaining l-lb gene
rally. though now and then md one VINO
owns as much as l-S-small as TINS seems
TO be i'm many instances. II is making tho
owners so much money that iney just
don't know what 10 do with X. Two nun
bred dollars a day 10 "A man VINO lives IN
a dirt daubcd log hut, and who was not
accustomed 10 handle that much money
during a year. looks big. They SIN NE
IN their huts. however, put on no airs.
huv no "nnery' bus DO look immensely
well pleased. Some of them are looking
out for improved farms, too. and already
good baraaius have been obtained. An
old gentleman who lives in sight OF tnis
place recently secured an ONO river iaim
Tor y2O.UOy cash. which Is said 10 Doe worm
twice that. The cash tells now.
OK THE PAY ROLL.
Most every one here has his name in
n pay roll and as $50 month ls MN
mum nav. I hcl. of no complaints and
then. pay-day here diners so widely from
payday i'm the coal fields. There are no
..couulnv stores TO be seen. and Nhen
pav-day comes. IL means pay, ana not 4
rcceipted store bill. Men fro~n IN tne
coal REGIONS when they are paid 90, mere
they smile Happy looklns men are s'ud
fo look on J said there WAS refreshing
1bseuce of political excitement. and yet
these men are not ignorant or puhN' USE
49, nor indifferent TO them. Perhaps
Mr. Mckinley has nowhere more loNhi
suuporter than I have met Win nero
among the lahoring men. ON recent
SUNDAY he selected central pihc" IN
town and spoke for four hours. TWO ih
tra forenoon. and two in the Afternoon
Ills audience was changing ono. but no
bod some one 10 listen TO him all the time
From the campaign hats in use should
saw the voters were equally divided mere
- that a spider had been found
near here of golden hue. and win tnle
name of Mckinley plainly marked on Us
bodv. he says 30 meant victory. con,
fess thar I have NOT seen Dr. nor ~"
prele"U ~ r. 3. y.