The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1897-07-08
{ WlTHERED AS a GouRD.

WlTHERED AS A GouRD.
Pithole, Once the Bletropol is Of the OIL
Fields, Now Deserted Of Mankind.
Poets have sung ind orators fervent-
" pictured the ruins Of great cities.
Babylon, Troy and Pompeii have been
made the subjects Of the finest and most
impassioncd literature known. There
are hundreds Of other buried and for
gotten cities on the face of the earth
and more or less has been written about
each of them. The less that is known
the more that can be written.
When q city is builded in night and
sperishes in the day following, as it
were, merely as the result Of the wild.
feverish chase for that will h'-wisp.
fortune, and the whole thing occurs in
the sight Of the prosaic business world,
very rarely does poet, orator or his:
torian bother himself about it. Such
a thing partakes too much Of the COM
monplace to have any charms for the
sentimentally inclined. Yet the ruins
are eloquent, whether of massive
granite or of old log, thatch-roofed
cabin. Humanity has been born, reared,
toiled, enjoyed life, grieved and died
in each, and tits this that adds the ever
felt charm that hallows the crumbling
evidences of lives Of mortals.
Only about five hours ride from Pitts
burgh stands the mute yet eloquent
ruins of what was once probably the
most famous city of it's brief day in
this country. ~ 49,
Who has not heard of Pithole? Every
oil man in the country pricks up his
ears at the sound; at an instant later
shade. of recollection of blighted
hopes, fearful strainings for wealth,
immense fortunes accumulated, grand
possessions suddenly swept away,
sweeps over his face. E4sry oil man
has heard of Pithole. -.
Pithole's rise, birth or origin was
January z, 1864. Upon farm in Venan-
go county some enterprising "wild-
caters" struck oil. Twas the famous
well, No. 4, U. S., and it was gusher.
Within two months Pithole was a
borough of 5000 souls, and by the mid
die of the summer is was a city of fully
10000.
| When the trees commenced to shed
their golden and yellow leaves the great
city, then the third in population prob
ably in Pennsylvania, had reached the
zenith of it's growth. There were q
dozen good hotels, three churches and
even two theaters. Each one of these
institutions was thriving, too. Two
railroads were built to the city and
several others had been projected. All
of the accessories to a big, rich city
were provided in Pithole. There was
nothing lacking which men of money
and energy demanded.
Land! Why, the land around Pit
hole at that time could only be bought
by heaping gold upon it and offering
the yellow dirt for the most ordinary
and humble-looking stuff which was
supposed to cover the precious petro'
leum which then lowered around five
dollars per barrel in price. Farming
of course, was given up. The tiller OF
the soil gave place to the driller into
the rock. Farmers sold their farms fol
fabulous prices and were made ricfl be-
yond their widest dreams. Yet some
of them, as is the case with all men
held back.
One old man owned a farm of ovel
200 acres. Copeland was his name. H,
refused an offer of $7OO, 900 for his place
maintaining that if he sold out he would
have nowhere to go. Another agri
culturist of that neighborhood refused
to dispose of $50 acres for $750,ooo
He demanded $1,000,000 and wouldn'
take cent less. He never got a cen
for his land, as it afterward turned out
for his land, upon being tested, yielded
no oil and he was left to scratch thu
surface of the land for the poor living
he could get from his scanty crops.
Pithole was a great business place
while in it's glory. It had stores ane
banks and the post Office was reckonet
one of the most important in the coun
try. A tremendous amount of trade
was done there. The demand for sup
plies upon the rest of the country CAV
it great commercial Importance. While
it had all the places of amusement tina
could be desired, it was a work-a-day
place. The whole country for mile
around was literally honeycombed BY
the interchangeable drillers. Millions
of dollars were made in and around Pit
hole and millions of dollars sunk int
the earth or squandered in the town it
self. The life of but too many was o
that ''come easy, 60 easy" sort.
But Pithole is Pithole no more. I
reached it's top notch in one short yea
and came down almost as quickly as i
sprang up. The great fire Their
fastened it's downfall.
There was nothing Of the Phoeni,
about this place. To get into the city
now you must either climb fence o.
let down the bars. The whole side O.
the place, public buildings and all
were but three or four years since solt
for taxes and bought in by farmel
for only $1,000. Since then he hal
farmed there and most of the place II
either used to grow grains or as pas
ture for cattle.-Pittsburgh Dispatch
The Worlds Blind.
| It is stated that there are 1,0e0,O0|
blind people in the world, or one t,
every 1900 inhabitants. Latest report
show $4,000 blind persons in England
or $40 for each million Inhabitants
Blind infants Of less than five years
166 for each million; between ant
IS, 288; between 20 and Is, 422; between
As and go, 1925, and above 65 years
1900 for each million. Russia ant
Egypt are the countries where the BLIND