Marietta daily leader. (Marietta, Ohio) 1895-1906, 1901-04-26
The Marietta Daily Leader.
FRIDAY, APRIL 20, 1901.
Texas Oil Stock Boomers,


are booming in the Beaumont oil
fields is furnished in special tele-
gram published in the Derrick of
Monday morning. A drilling well,
three fourths of mile northeast of
tn original gusher, found strong in
dications of gas before reaching the oil
rock. An enterprising Chicago specu-
lator had secured an option on the
well for which he paid $4,000. The op-
tion would have expired before the
drill reached the sand, but so certain
was he that the indications were good
for another gusher that he planked
down his purchase money. His next
move will be to form stock company
with a capital of one million dollars,
based upon this well and thirty
acre lease.
If Texas oil brings 20 cents barrel,
when the field is further developed,
this lease will have to produce five
million barrels of oil to pay back its
original capital. If ten wells are drill
ed on the lease. each well will have
to make $4,000 barrels of oil to real
ize the expectations of the companys
share holders. Now the Bradford
field was one of the richest ever struck
in the United States. Some of the
best territory in that section sold at
$400 an acre in fee when certain to
produce oil in paying quantities and
81 900 was regarded as an extravagant
price for the very best the field af-
forded Large quantities of territory
changed hands at $100 an acre and an
eighth royalty.
There is nothing certain about the
Beaumont field as yet, and no one is
able to rate it's productive capacity.
With dozen or twenty wells in the
pool, all drawing from the same source
of supply, the biggest kind of wells
are sure to decline, and with sudden
ness that will prove very surprising
to the holders of stock in over-eXpand-
ed Oil companies. Wells are now be-
ing drilled to the oil, bearing forma-
tion with an utter disregard of the fu
ture. The prospector, with a PROPOSE
tion and an o. prospectus, gives such
questions as to how the oil is to De
marketed and who is going to buy it,
no attention whatever. He holds out
the most alluring bait of prospective
dividends that he is capable of elabor-
ating, carefully concealing the fact
that the oil has to be converted into
money before the owners of the prop
erty, represented by shares of stock,
can receive any dividends. The only
profit he is seeking lies in the sale Of
the engraved certificates, calling for
so many shares of stock at dollar a
share. If he can dispose of million
or so of these at from ten to fifty cents
a share, it is a great deal better than
drilling for oil, which, as yet, can't be
sold, and for which there is no immed-
late demand.
If the people delight in being hum
bugged, they can find abundant salts
faction in the purchase of stock in
Beaumont oil companies. 1t is issued
in unlimited quantities and there is no
danger but that there will be enough
to go around. OF course, some basis
must be had for the eXtravagant
claims of the pushing promoters of
these stock companies, and Beaumont
can be relied on to furnish a full-sized
sensation ever so often that is bound
to keep things booming. There are
a half dozen or more gushers now in
the Beaumont field, any one Of which
is sufficient to more than supply twice
as much of the crude product as the
Southwest will need for long time
to come.
One way in which some of these
boom companies are seeking TO pull
the wool over the eyes of probable in
vestors is referred to in the Corsicana
Daily Sun, which notes that Beau
mont firm, after falling to secure a
drilling outfit in either Corsicana or
Dallas, ordered one from the East to
be sent by express. The weight Of the
rig and machinery is over 10000
pounds, This fact alone" says the
Sun, should make people who are in
vesting promiscously in the Beaumont
field think a little. Would bang up,
legitimate oil company rush a rig,
weighing 10000 pounds two thousand
miles by express? Does not this look
as If some men were about TO float
something they would advertise that
we have the machinery on the
ground?' A few days ago an oil
boomer in Beaumont offered seven dol
lars foot to a well contractor, saying
that his people had TO make show OF
beng at work in order to sell their
stock. And there you are.
Still the stock continues to be showed
up on the market and Eastern papers
are filled with glittering advertise