The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-01-10
WEST VIRGINIA OIL CRAZE.
Sudden Fortune Brought to Owners OF
Poor Lands.

| through an Oil craze at present. "A
| stranger a one of the hotels anywhere
| herea bouts will hear nine men out or
ten talking about the clinal and anti
clinal salt sand and Berea grit. gas
| pressure and leases, 45-degree line and
royalties and a thousand and one other
things which are more or less meaning
less to him. What he does understand
| all relates to OIL Some men and Wo-
men are growing rich, While others are
losing everything in the rush for oil
| Nature, in this instance, has been
most charitable, as the greater part
of the development thus far has been
! on lands so poor that the owners were
put to it to make living. Rough and
| rocky hills and soilleSS creek bottoms,
| almost worthless for farms, produce
nine-t enths of the oil in West Virginia,
| and hundreds of poor farmers who
few months ago found it difficult TO
raise the commonest kind OF food ana
pay for the cheapest of clothing are to-
| day monthly depositors in the banks
of this city. Royalties and rentals are
! being paid in sums ranging from a lew
| dollars up to thousands every month 10
farmers clad in rusty butternut ana
ragged clothing. Drake farm was
| rented six months ago for 500 The
man who leased the place lost comb
dence in the territory before any de-
| velopment was made and offered II 10
an oil land Spectator for $140 His
| offer was refused by this Spectator, but
was taken by another. a few days
ago the lease was sold for 100000 and
the owner of the land has an income
from his royalties and rentals OF W.
600. A year ago young farmer living
near this city was head over ears in
debt and was at last compelled to move
to farm owned by his mother, IA miles
north in order to make a livelihood. He
leased the land for oil purposes few
months ago and in less than SO days
three paying wells were struck on the
place. They were all good wells and the
royalties amounted to almost an indie
| pendent fortune.
some money into a bank and was about
| to start back yesterday when he re-
| ceiVed the intelligence that another
! well-a gusher this time-had been
struck on his farm. The last well is
considered the best shallow. salt sand
we'll in West Virginia and is reported
to be flowing 100 barrels an hour. In
law office here there is a notary public
| who seldom had a dollar to spare. The
lawyer received several months ago, in
return for legal advice, a 20-acre lease
of a farm y miles away. AS reward
to the notary for tbs little acts of kind
ness the attorney gave him fourth in
/.
on the lease and it is now quoted as
| 90 barrel AN hour well.
Oil scouts are travelling all over this
region hunting for desirable properties.
The scout keeps tab on the wells, pro-
dusing or dry, for miles around. He
thereby secures a knowledge through
which his employers. some wealthy
firm or corporation. are enabled to get
the best-paying territory or to buy out
good producing wells. Nearly every
large oil company has in it's employ
number of scouts. Following the scout
| comes the leaser of lands. His business
| is to select what is considered valuable
territory for prospecting and to secure
| leases. binding himself to sink or be-
gin a certain number of wells in GER
| tain number of days and to pay GER
| tain monthly rental. These leases arc
| all plotted and offered for sale to the
| Spectator or prospector. Sometimes 1t
| occurs that lease is refused value
| less and is given up when, perhaps,
within 60 days development in it's vcin-
| ity brings it within the producing
boundary, and there is rush for it's
| possession. One proSpectOr may offer
500 for it, and in less than "a hours an
| other may increase the bid to 81 900 or
even $1,000, with a royalty of one-eighth
or one fourth of the OIL
All these things add to the excite
ment of the pursuit. which is not, how
| ever confined to the search for Oil.
| Natural gas, which some years ago
was allowed to go to waste as useless,
Is now as eagerly sought GOOD gas
| wells are IN many locailtles much more
valuable even than Sood oil Wells one
gas Wen may produce enough gas 10
run whole pool or section of oil wells
"hlle others are SOU 70 tne DIE gas
companies, ana Ihe ptoouct IS plpeo 10
distant towns. me Guy OF faikerSnuig
Is an instance, -Natuiai gas ~ Iseu IN
neatly eseiS hous, az" lsctoiS III tllv
toWil, anu II IL ''iuti Cieahei anu ciiea p
er ti,ah coal 49,. .,, :
~ men pi'eh say ma tnsie 10 no
eeiiins "i1at a "Sli may 40 may 5"
oh rom Jay ~ uoH @eai " veal l' -
uuelilS "a VI SoI Nltti he liIu'i ies' Ila
ny az ne s"lISliiS "a I" PelIuUlpI'' OF IL
may piea an ioose ~ d minute an. NAN
iuunie Iol SHeI Stiilll9 ~ us Nl,Ill'% =
w heH Tue DIG muses. wen was stFuCh
II hoMea as az SeIl-I'sosrtliiS Me'IS
SHoulu' HING me laLhs VITA OH Gay al
Yer uay: uhtll one ortu .nl AFTERNOON
| something broke loose. men 2aS, SAND,