The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1901-05-11
THE ORIGIN OF OIL.

AT
Survey the recent discoveries of oil in Texas Wyomns ~
California are regarded with compasance not only because
they will add millions the visible wealth OF the oou'
but they furnish additional fields Tor
into the and origin of the various grades oi or
II is not apprehended at the survey bureau that inc %
discoveries will lower the price OF oil the value OF 'e
Standard Oil stock fraction 1t is believed the prouu'
the new field will be absorbed largely by neghborng local.
ties that with the everncreang demand ana inc eo
any widening field for the consumption OF botn CRUDE anu
refined oil the price OF oil will be maintained steadily unless
there should be great find in the oil heds OF
ylvana the Middle States. The oil wells OF texas anu
Wyoming will draw populations which, IN turn WIN NC
supported by the oil wells and these discoveries VIII oene
the State in population we'll in wealth market WIN
be found Texas field for much of IT'S product Ht
the Southern Pacific railroad has been burning coa
brought great expense from the coaheds OF Alabama anu
Arkansas No coal deposit is found along its route But oil
80 barrel Whereabouts, is much cheaper ue
than coal hauled from distant fields tanks are being erect
ed ali along the line for storing the oil and soon the loco
motives road will burn OIL they have been doing
for time in Southern California
The oil is carried in the tender like and is forced
by under the boiler tubes in fine spray mixed with
compressed air The flame several feet from the nozzle
and the flow be regulated easily that OF gas mere
being perfect combustion there is dirt refuse or smoke
and the duties of fireman become almost nominal Al
though America yields less than half the petroleum pro-
duct o. world it leads the world its oil of so much
superior quality is said the Russian oil producers whose
the Standard Oil company absorb them so
that oil monopoly of the world be possibility within
the next few years.
With all the study original research which has been
going many connection with petroleum there
is much ignorance the subject Where it can be found
whence and its origin all unanswered questions
When gusher is struck it spouts black fluid known as
oil This may be compound of different oils
which have be separated far possible before being
marketed The qualities and characteristics Of oil vary
not only in the different wells but often in the well
the yield from stratum being different from that OF
another lower down. The oil of the United States is
tirely different from that found in Russia Java Peru
which subsanates the theory that the several oils have
different origins
of theories the of oil is that
from the fat of animals FISH which had been squeezed
distilled through countless ages be collected in the oil
sands
Experimenting this line in effort to verify the
theory Warren and Sorer took menhaden oil and through
dslaon produced kerosene which they marketed with
artificial being discovered In 1883 Eng,er
distilled under pressure half of menhaden oil, from
which he obtained petroleum dstlates The distlatc
brown but uoresceu Sixty consisted of saturated
hydrocarbons from which he isolated and identified number
of oils usually contained in the products of oil fields
He also purified the product and made good kerosene oil
Not satisfied with this he further and showed that other
fats olein will yield petroleum. that fish oils
essential Ordinary fats through simple heating break up
that the unites with of the hydrogen
water leaving the carbon and of the hydrogen about
the proportion to form paafin oils Considering the ease
with which petroleum oils be obtained from the
plentiful supply of such fats in the animal which
there is evidence in oil rocks it surprising that
the opinion has gained ground favorng the animal
the limestone oils of Ohio Indiana and Canada.
Il
Another theory that the oil is from vegetable matter is
apparently sustained in the of the Russian fields where
the oils contain substance similar distiation pro-
ducts of coal such benzoe Decaying vegetable mat
ter leaves evencreasng layer the bottom neat
bog which, growing dene gives unbroken graduation into
all kinds of coal This method of storing up fuel suggests
the probability that similar vegetable decay has
also yielded petroleum
There scientists who discard both of these theories
Those adherng the vegetable animal fat theories are
largely biologists while the advocates mineral and chem
cal origin principally chemists Experiments with hvdro
carbons have resulted in obtaining gas closely related 70
petroleum. Betheor claimed petroleum hydrocarbons
made originally by either carbonc or carbonaes
at red heat coming into with metals This
he claimed produced carbdes. and then these eacnp with
water gave hydrocarbons perhaps, simply by water
charged with carbonc acid fterng the region of aa
metals both reactions took place has been found
that iron suphide of iron acting containing
bonc acid, will give an oike petroleum. as will carbide
OF iron when treated with suphur or hydrochoric acid or
even boiling water.
IT, therefore be open question as TO whether
oil is OF mineral vegetable animal origin and il will
1 lin ppap .,