The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-02-12

a fre they will not boil over and send anood OIL
burning oil Town the hill and along the streets
In no other field in the history OF the OIL
business has there been so little oil allowed TO
run to waste rs in this new field. Just ms soon
as the Standard oil Company's Ohio branch
saw that a new poo. was in sight a line was laid
and preparations made to take care otthe OIL
! A pump station has been built OF hemlocN
boards and two storage tanks set up ON the
fats near the railroad tracks. The hrst line
was too small and u thrse-lnch line is now
being laid. Tho oil is p!ped east TO the main
line ami then forced across three States to the
reflneries at the seaboard. when the great
Bradford oil field was opened thousands OF
barrels OF oil ran to waste every day because
the pipe lines could not handle 1t. but the
modern pipe line system is equal to any de-
mand. In one respect the Scio field is unique
-no sunday drilling is llowed The oil men
tried II. but the crew was arrested and fined
and that settled II for the present. The drill
ers quit work at midnight on Saturday and
start up again at midnight on Sunday
The Scio college authorities do not know
whether to be sorry or Glnd about the oil boom.
Several OF the 300 students enrolled at the
opening Of the fall term have been called home
by their parents and other parents are hesi-
tatinC about having their sons and daughters
EXPOSED TO the much-hernlded wickedness OF
a'boom oil town. The only excuse for n town
here was the college, which distributed about
$4,000 a year through the students. Several
other Ohio towns which haven't an oil boom
have sent delegations here Offering free sites
IL the college officials decide to move. TIL
college grounds embrace seven acres and the
location is an ideal one and It is also on the oil
belt. With an eye to the main chance a well
has been drilled on the college grounds and II
ia ,,orrinn n,,t con yrp,th pf oil n day Appthor
rig is up and the drill Is pounding on the Soc
ond college well. One OF the professors OF tho
college was interested in the first well drilled
in the field and his share OF the purchase price
received by the owners was $1,000.
The indications are that Scio will have 1000
or 5000 population when spring opens. This
week the village editor converted his weekly
into a daily in order to meet n competitor at
tracted by the boom. More than $50 wells are
being drilled. Rigs are going up In every d.
rection and hundreds OF thousands Of dollars
are being dumped into Harrison county. One
Of the oil well supply stores sent In an order for
$4,000 worth Of @~certain make Of steam boil
ers the other day. That is the style OF doing
business here. Everything Is cash aud money
is plenty. Such famous oil operators as Col. J.
NJ. Gufrey, John Galloway, George V. Forman
and Jennings brothers are either here in per
son or have men at work leasing up all the
available land in sight. Oil operators from
West Virginia. New York. Pennsylvania and
are focking here. Scio people have
not yet learned what the effect OF nitroglycer-
Inc ia. and the thunder wagons have as much
freedom en- the streets as the butchers wa
gon. After a load Of the stuff -xpl"des and
a corner Off the town thev will pass an
that will make the shooter drive
around the back way.
As soon as a well is drilled on a town lot the
company cancels the policy on the
nearest house. That fact is causing the av- !
nrage citizen TO wonder what will ha ppen next.
Over in Dead Mans Gulch. so named because
or three lease hands have lost their lives
here by accident. the wells are crowded in
fhick. There are eight Of them on a piece of
and 100 by 500 feet. The wells are located in
he back yards of eiGhty-hve foot lots. The
:nIch is n steep gully that runs from the up
ner end of the college campus back to the top
II the mountoin. The derricks are built rig ut
in the gully. with the tanks below. and
here is scarcely room to turn around between
hem. There is either a derrick built or one
lnder way on every lot in the entire half mile
II the gully. u a tank of oil at the head Of
he Culch should happen to catch fire. "A wave
u lame would roll down the steep raVine aud
,he houses on both sides. between which the
are built. would burn like straw.