The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1901-07-28
Big PURCHASE OF LAND
Near tIle Beaumont Field Has Been
Made by an English Syndicate.
A TALK WITH GEOLOGIsT FTznUdn
Thinks that WsstefuI Methods Of Boring
Are Being Used on the ttill--De-
nand for Oil Growing.

Beaumont. Texas, July 27.-The past week
On the oil field has been more fruitful OF
disappointing accidents and delays IN the
bringing In Of wAlls than anything else.
Last Saturday nigSt II appeared that be-
fore the end Of another week half dozen
new gushers would be spoutlng, but the
passing Of the week has not added q single
new sponter. However, all Of the wells
that were DELAYED by accidents are working
again aud 1t now appears that next week
win witness the bringing in Of more gush-
ers than any week since the beginning Of
the development.
The wells that are expected In next week
are the Manhattan, the Beatty, the Cattle
mems Consolidated, the Spindle Top and
the Ground Floor.
The growth of the demand for fuel oil is
now the most encouraging thing In connec.
tion with the development here OF the big
gest industry the State has ever seen. Peo-
pie wondered, and with some show Of rea-
son, what use could be made OF such
vast quantity of oil as could be drawn from
even three or four gushers, but the cheap
ness of the oil compared with coal Is sOlv-
ing the question admirably. OF course,
the amount OF oil now consumed as fuel IS
very small compared 10 what II win be
Is Installed as fuel the orders multiply rap
Idly and with the passing OF the expert
mental stage OF oil fuel the consumption
Will increase ut greater ratio. The rail
roads, which will perhaps be the greatest
consumers OF the oil, have not begun to
draw on the wells for a supply yet but
when the lines that are now experimenting
with II adopt 1t big inroad Will be made
on the product of the gushers.
~
Among the big deals closed this week
was the sale of 1000 acres of land between
beaumont and Galveston to a syndicate Of
london capitalists Mr.. w. NJ Fitzhugh
a geologlst and oil expert, making the
tsale. The purchase includes well now
ldown about 800 feet on the Arcenaux farm,
ftwenty miles southwest Of Beaumont, and
another down about 100 feet, a mile from
Big xiii. The syndicate making the pur-
chase has set aside $4,000 for developing
the land. DR.. Boycrton- Redwood an en-
inent oil expert Of London, visited this
field about two months ago and has since
had experts here. and II was on his advice
and in connection with him that Mr. Fitz.
hugh originally purchased the lana and
proceeded to Interest English capitalists
Mr. Fitzhugh has the following to say
concerning what he considers great danger
Ia this field
the same conditions that exist IN this; that
Is, an immense loose arteslan strata over
lying the oil sands and while l am on this
point might as well make a certain ny
pothesis az to a probable reason as TO why
a great many dry holes have been struck.
"SnppOsing that by the present method
Of boring, which seems to be particularly
adapted COR bornr In this district. anC
witch ~ undoubtedly cheaper than any
ot1sr known method, some one In thel
haste should bore hole connecting thi
Immense water strata with tho underlyin
oil sands. the result would be as follows
First, we would have q Tremendous dis
charge Of gas which at present exists In tn
oil sands This gas as every one knows
Is produced by the chemical formatl ons O
the oil. then. MS s also we'll known. tn
water strata Is an nrtesian belt who's
at the point where the well Is dug, IN
the water int he well sunk to strata rise
200 feet or more In the pipe Now, con
anon senSa tells man that water Away
seeks the outlet OF least resistance and W
nll know that running down hole waite
has gravity besides dts hydraulic head I
assist It, This, then, would be tho result
and IL rs surely in my opinion very scrlou
and grave one: tremendous volume O
water would be. forced down into the o.
strata OIL which floats in water, wou
BE forced out of the oil sands ahead Of tn
Tpater Into some other position. II Their
was range OF hills or an elevation any
Immediately seek THAT part. If there wer
an nnticline In the oil strata, the oil woul
take that direction and would add to tn
oil which already exists In that 0ntcllne
il there were neither hill nor anticline 4
The immediate neigbborhood, the oil wou
be forced into some strata where water a
present exists. Anyhow the result wou+
be thai Spindle Top wells, which now hav
an almost inexhaustible supply Of oil, wou
with their oil, ana the property that
now of almost inestimRble value would b
rendered useless and valueless.
II personally do not own one dollar
worth Of property on Spindle Top an
therefore have no personal interest In mai
Ing shis statement, and | wish also to sa
that, while this Is my own view OF the sil
nation, ], OF course, may he mistaken.
"Rut to revert hack-does II not seer
probable that az some point in the ca
which oyerlies the oil sands there may no
at some geological period have been a crac
or opening through this cap which connect
nd the artesinn ducksanas With the o
Fands and Is II not at least probable tina
khe water from this artesian belt poure
Into the oil sands underneath and fOrce
tho oil away from that particular neigl
boIhood and compelled II TO seek q poll
Ncf the anticline higher than II was at tha
point-Spindie Top heights?
''If this condition existed IN Russia or
any other government besides the Unite
States II would be strictly watched an
regulated and the methods at present pu
sued would be immediately stopped Me
who have large Interests on Spindle To
ought TO unite for their own protection an
regulate methods Of boring
''To conclude, l may say that oil is CO
Sour Lake and four chances out OF ave
many places on the plains in all direction
from these points. / still maintain that III
oiiY strata Is comparatively nat and this
only where there have been cracks hetwea
II and the arteslan belt VIII You ind
rich Ia oil. If process were used wherein
rould be determined the exact substanS
md formation taken from the wells, yo
would find, In the case Of dry holes thi
my oil sands were simply replaced b
water"
The Chicago Crude on company. while
Is drilling a test well Just north OF spnd
TOP. has reached a depth of more tina
100 feet and is getting ON nicely
The work Of battling the well Of the ca
tIemen's Consolidated oil company WI