The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1899-05-02
GAS FIELDS In KANSAS
COVER EIGHTY SQUARE MILES IN
SOUTHEAST CORNER OF STATE.
The Natural Fuel Discovered by Ac-
dence that Kansas Has a Future.
II in Chicago Record.

of eighty square miles in the southeastern
corner of the State. just where cheap fuel
Is most needed, and furnish a remarkable
illustration of the wisdom of nature. The
zinc mines of Kansas and Missouri, or al
most unlimited deposits. are so near that
the flames of the gas wells may almost be
seen from the shafts. In Indian Territory,
a few miles to the south. are coal and Pc
troleum in practically inexhaustible quantl-
ties. and all around the gas fields are beds
of clay which make the best brick in the
world. Sooner or later some one is going
to find sand for glassmaking and iron ore,
which will make southeastern Kansas
center of industry similar to the gas fields
of Pennsylvania, Ohio and Indiana.
Here, in a little area not much larger
than Rhode Island, have been assembled by
the hand of the Creator all the necessary
materials for several Of the most important
mechanical Industries. To the north and
west and south is an agricultural country
that produces the best and cheapest food in
the world. To the east are the great forests
of Arkansas, which will furnish timber in
abundance within easy distance. A little
farther south are the cotton fields Of Texas,
and 1t will not be many years before a large
part of their crop will be consumed here by
factories fed by natural gas, the cheapest,
the most convenient and the best fuel in the
world.
There has been no boom in the gas dis
trict. People out in this country have hor-
ror Of "booms''-the result of experience
and nothing has been done to create an ex-
element or bring in money or labor that Is
not needed. The gas wells now are utilized
chiefly for smelling, brickmaking. flour and
paper mills and for domestic purposes. 4
man pays 81 a month during the winter and
80 cents during the summer for heating and
an equal amount for lighting his house, in
Guiding fuel for the cook stove. There are
no ashes, no dust and no kindlings are need
ed When he gets up in the morning he
strikes match and lights the kitchen fire.
He sets the furnace going in the same way
and can start fire in the crate easier than
one can light an oil lamp. Companies are
being organized to pipe the gas for manu-
featuring and domestic purposes to Topeka,
Kansas City and other large towns
There are now about twenty wells In the
lola district, varying in depth from Sl2 10
937 feet, giving a daily flow OF from 3,Ooo,OOO
to 100000 cubic feet and pressure vary
ing from $40 to $50 pounds. Several experts
have pronounced one of the wells at lola the
best in the world. 1t is perfectly dry. No
water has ever flowed from it. The pres
sure gauge stands at 319 pounds day after
Gay, and there is an open flow OF ,l40,O0u
cubic feet of gas every twenty-fOur hours,
which is equivalent in heat units to 235 tons
of bituminous coal. This would be sufficient
TO run a 1900 horsepower engine and fur
nish enough light and fuel for a town of
5000 inhabitants.
WHERE THE GAS IS FOUND.
Professor Grimsley, the state geologist of
Kansas, tells me that 1.-The lola gas occurs
in a porous sand rock, and when the wells
are drilled about fifteen feet into II the
pressure Is so great that it throws out the
tools. The gas is held in this rock by cap
Of hard shale from one to eight feet in
thickness The total volume of the twenty
wells at present is about 1850 600 cubic feet
day, but the most of them are
not used. The wells lie about 17s
feet above the sea level. With re-
gard to the duration of this supply
he says, there is very little data, because
of the newness of the field, and the fact
that most of the wells are shut in to prevent
leakage. The life Of any gas field is limited
but believe from my. studies that the lola
field will outlive all the others. The Rob-
ert Lanyon smelter has used gas from the
same well for two years and the pressure
has fallen but five pounds. When they shut
on the gas for short time the original
pressure was restored They have a pres
sure of $50 pounds, but they only use about
eight ounces"
1t is estimated that Loco. 900 cubic feet OF
gas has the energy of fifty tons of coal
hence the wells already drilled at lola have
capacity of $3.50 tons of coal daily. Elk
periments are now being made in the manu-
facture Of white lead, sewer pipe, glass and
other articles. A Detroit company is putting
up large cement works A brick company is
pipe and the representatives Of several
other industries are now on the ground
making inquiries and looking over the field
m
the knowledge Of this great source OF
wealth came by accident. They fed Kansas
gas to the invalids for twenty years be-
fore they knew what it was, and many re.
markable cures were effected. The certifi
Gates of grateful patients are now still
on file with the Acer's sanitarium. Away
struck what they believed to be a min.
eral spring. The water mad a peculiar
taste and was full Of bubbles. 1t was
bottled and sold in large quantities fol
medicinal purposes, and a large sanitariun
was built at the spot so that suffering hui
manity could go to the fountain head fol
wrought were entirely imaginary, although
some people down here like to Joke about
h o a shes sh aRv s rs 1es
who were benefited by using the water
have nothing to complain Of and they are
the real parties in interest.
Some fifteen years later, when the boon
| was on In the Indiana gas fields. other pros
pectors sunk new wells, and in severa
/ Eases got SlSiiS VI SdS, just enough 10
talize them and convince the scientists tina
| there was a plenty here If ii could bt
| found. So great was the confidence tha
| the town of lola issued bonds TO pay tn,
| expenses of the proSpectors, and when the
proceeds were exhausted the city govern
ment entered into a contract with Cleve
land company to continue the investigation
with a liberal franchise as it's reward Il
successful. Finally, at about 500 feet, the
company struck splendid well and tht
prospecting was continued until a field OF
| from sixty to a hundrd miles of area wa:
developed.
FIRST TO USE GAS.
The first people to use the gas for manu-
| featuring purposes to any extent were tn,
| canyons, a family Of Cornishmen. VIII,
came to this country fifty years ago and set
| tied at Mineral Point, Wis, where they hav,
| been manufacturing zinc oxides ever since
| There were eleven children in the origina
| family. nine of them boys. All married ant
| have raised large families, who have gen
orally followed the occupation of theil
| fathers, so that scattered over the country
engaged in smelling zinc. You can fine
| Peru. ILL.,, Nevada and Joplin, Mo-. apt
| wherever there is zinc mine. Most of the
machinery and processes now used in re-
| ducing zinc are the invention of the Lam.
yons and wherever they have gone they
have been successful In that peculiar trade
They built and are running the smelter:
at lola and four cousins are acting as man.
| zinc smelters I'm the world. The machiner,
| is all new and much of IL Is of recent in