The Meeker herald. [volume] (Meeker, Colo.) 1885-current, 1903-01-31


Standard Oil Company to be an IL
Illuminating oil equal to the best Penn
sylvanis oil, containing over 50 per
cent Of kerosene and the lighter oils
Of the naphtha-benzine series, the
gravity being about As degrees. 1t Is
Il pure parafIine oil, with no trace of
asphalt, sulphur or any objectional
ingredient. 1t burns readily in a
lamp In its crude state. The coal
miners in this vicinity use it In pref
erence to any oil on the market. 1t
also makes an exceptionally good
quality Of lubricating oil.
The structural formation is perfect,
both for accommodating and retaining
the oil The basin that contains it is
what is known as an anticlinal dome
the dream of the oil operator-and
identically the same ~ Spindle Top
(Beaumont), Texas. An anticlinal
dome is one where the strata from all
directions incline to common CEN
ter. The apex Of the dome here is
eroded away sufficiently to cause a
geographical basin about six by eight
miles. An anticlinal dome is shaped
like an inverted saucer, It's sides dip
ping under the other formations and
extending out in every direction-in
some instances rs much as forty or
fifty miles. AS the oil is formed in
the different strata underneath the
sides of the dome, owing to the water,
rock and gas pressure from below, 1t
gradually rises, working Its way up
wards and towards the apex, where,
further ascent and escape being inn
possible, 1t all eventually and per-
manently lodges. The Requena Oil
Company is drilling several wells
near the apex Of this dome, and, al
though still in the hanging wall is
getting u number of barrels Of oil
daily, notwithstanding it was not
supposed to get any until 1t dropped
into the oil reservoir below.
The forin4tion is one particularly
easy to penetrate with the drill. The
usual average il about 60 feet to the
crew per day. The drillers never en-
eountered . drop Of water and do not
have 10 use casing for any purpose.
Any operator can appreciate the
cheapness Of drilling In such field.
Every inch Of the wallis has been
shale. fN
Y The Denver, Northwestern q Pa
cific railroad commonly known RS
the Moffat road) lis to run through
the field. Tho Denver end of this
road Is now under construction. The
line will run between Denver and
Salt Lake, at which latter place it is
generally understood 1t will connect
with the Clark road, going to the Pa
cific coast by way Of Los Angeles.
At the present time the nearest rail-
road Is the Denver d Rio Grande,
about 80 miles to the south.
For the drilling Of well or two
liberal concessions of land can be OBJ
tanned, ranging in amount from 800 to
400 acres. Several contracts have
recently been made for the drilling
Of other wells.
This is distinctly an oil country, as
is evidenced by the almost inexhaust-
ible supply Of gilsonite In eastern
Utah, about ten miles to the west
tgilsonite being nothing but
dried oil; by the csnons about
twenty miles south of the gilsonite
veins being filed from side to side
many feet deep with pure asphalt,
where cows and birds have mired and
persisted, as is evidenced by their
bleaching bones; by the pure oil to
be seen seeping from the rocks be-
tween these two later points; by the
oil springs that gush from the noun
tain sides Of Whiskey and Texas
creeks, about thirty miles to the
south; by the two large gas wells at
White River City, about thirty miles |
to the east; by the fact that the
shale In the upper formation here is 80 |
saturated with oil that 1t burns as
readily as coal; and by the innumer-
able oil and gas seeps on Bear river,
. short distance to the north, and, in |
fact, by the oil and gas seeps on all |
sides for practically forty miles in
every direction.
But all Of these evidences Just
mentioned occur in the upper forma-
lions, and show merely an asphalt |
oil. The oil In this basin occurs in q |
formation many thousand feet, geo.
logically, below, but there can be no
question that the conditions that ex-
list to make the asphalt oil in the up
per formations also exist to make the |
parafiine oil in the lower formations
and even In larger quantities probably |
because Of greater hest and pressure. |
The hanging wall here over the oil |