Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1901-05-05
OIL OPERATIONS.

ELLENBCRO, w. Va, May 4.-The
recent rich Oil strike in Texas and Cali
fornia have caused bankers and bro
kers'' in New oYrk to flood the mails
with glowing prospectuses OF the musn-
hoom concerns formed with millions or
capital on paper, offering giltterlng III
ducements O unwary investors. tnous-
ands of these circulars have been sent
to West Virginia, and in some instances
conservative business men nave Deen
caught by the bats offered by these
oil promoters.
There is little or nothing reliable TO
be gained from the cleverly worded
prospectuses issued by many of the
concerns, as can be shown by anyone
who will take the trouble to make
even casual investigation of the facts,
or who knows anything about the lay
of the land, either about Beaumont or
in the California field, yet nearly every
circular issued by these concerns con-
tains a half-tone picture of the great
Lucas gusher, saying their holdings are
"in the same locality The fact is,
they describe land hundreds OF miles
away.
n one case it was found that COM
pany claimed an entire tract OF several
hundred acres near the Beaumont,
Texas, field, while a part of the same
tract was included nthe prospectus of
aonther company. The so-called maps
of these concerns are literally sprinkled
with stars labelled wells, but whether
they are proposed wells or wells that
are dry, is not considered necessary to
state.
Thousands of dollars are being spent
in advertising these oil companies and
stock is being offered at from five cents
to one dollar per share, even before
some of the companies have filed cor
porate papers in Texas, an essential
proceeding under the laws of that State
before companies can take title and hold
property.
Not one of the companies are in a POI
sition to guarantee anything except
this: That the investor sewers himself
from his money and becomes the pos
SCISSOR of a beautifully Autographed
certificate of stock, and that the owner
is specializing on the possibility of
something turning up" when the
company gets to work-if it ever
does
Bankers ana brokers" on Wall
street, New York, are the fiscal agents
for many of these companies, some
with capital stock as much as s5,000,-
600. This is offered as low as five cents
share.
If wells were drilled on every half
acre in the whole State of Texas, it is
difficult to believe they would yield
sufficient oil to use as balm to soothe
the pain of financial distress some in
terests are likely soon to suffer.
Special to the Register
WESTON, w. Va, May 4.-The fol-
lowing are to-day's runs from the Sand
Fork field: Cox No. l, 80 barrels; No. 2,
so barrels; No. 4, so barrels; No. 5, %
barrels. Joe Cox No. l, 70 barrels.
Mullady No. /, 40 barrels; No. 2, 20
barrels; No. 4. barrels; No. 5, SO bar
rels; No. 6, 10 barrels; No. Z, 10 bar
rels; No. s, 40 barrels. Collins No. 1,
10 barrels. Bohan No. 1, 20 barrels;
No. 2, 20 barrels. Smith No. 1, so bar
rels Turner No. /, 20 barrels: No. 2.
20 barrels; No. 3, Is barrels; No. 4, 10
barrels; No. 5, 10 barrels. Romine No.
1, Is barrels. Reynolds No. 1, 80 bar
| rels; No 4, 5 barrels; No. 5. 80 barrels;
No. 6, IS barrels; No. 7, 80 barrels; No.
s, 20 barrels. kirkpatrick No. l, 5 bar
rels. 2. Sommers No. l, 20 barrels; No.
4, IS barrels; No. 5, 8 barrels; No. s, 90
barrels; No. Z, 8 barrels. Clayton No. 1,
barrels. Copley heirs No /, % bar
rels; No 2, 10 barrels; No. 8. 120 bar
rels. John Copley No. /, 6 barrels; No.
3, 20 barrels. Romine No. L. i bar
rels.