Sistersville daily oil review. [volume] (Sistersville, W. Va.) 1902-1905, 1904-02-06
LATEST FROM KANSAS
Interview With an Oil Nan Just
Home From the Field

In the oil fields of Kansas and the
Indian TER TORY" said ST. Booth,
who returned to Boliyer, Friday,
from trip through the western oil
fields. 1.-THE man who gets into
the game now must pay for the
chance. Excitement is at fever
heat and the tenderfeet are putting
up all kinds of bonus money In Of
der to take a fling at fortune.
There Is no denying the fact that a
great oil field has been opened In
that regiop. but 1t Is spotted, made
up of little..rich pools without any
connection with the other pools as
1t looks now. The general trend
| of the field Is the same as that OF
the Allegany field, northeast and
southwest. From Chanute, Kans ,
the northeastern end of the field, to
below Bartlesville, In the Greek
Nation. the southern limit, Is dis
Itance of 1870 miles. The width OF
| the field Is problematlcal. At pres
emit defined 1t Is not far from 100
miles.
"The field Is succession OF pools
some of them miles apart. The
greatest activity just now and the
richest pool Is at Bolton, seven
miles southwest of Independence.
John Smith, formerly OF Boliver,
owns half interest In the heart of
the pool. He and his partner have
refused $50. 900 for their holdings.
Their first two wells produced H.
600 barrels of oil In 40 days, an
average of 800 barrels day. They
have FIVE down ard are drilling No,
Is. I stood on one of their $50
tanks when Nos. 3 and 4 were
turned into Eve inch lead line and
over night they filled the tank
The wells In the Bolton pool flow
and the gas pressure Is very strong.
The oil sand Is light gray, soft
and fine, and they get 1t from IL to
40 feet. The wells at the northern
end of the field are only few hun.
dred feet deep, but as you 60 south
the oil sand dips. At Independence
they are LOO feet deep and at the
southern end of the district from
I, 900 to 1,4oo. The oil as you 20
south Is of a lighter gravity. 1t Is
as black as Ink, and the gas press
ure being so very heavy makes 1t
appear to be very lively. The Kan.
sas field Is thoroughly piped by the
Prairie Oil &Gas company,a branch
of the Standard. The oil that IS
not sent to the Standard refinery
at Neodesha Is stored In big iron
tanks. Big forces OF men can be
seen all over the field laying main
lines and hustling to take care of
the oil. They are so busy that so
far no time has been found to bury
the six inch main line. The pipe
is laid to the Kansas border but
not into the Indian Territory. Un-
til pipe line Is completed down
over the Indian lands, the produc-
ers will be hampered greatly, owing
greatly to excessive freight rates.
SIN Peru, Kansas, the town lots
being drilled tor oil and W. H.Mil.
liken, well known In Bolivar,is busy
at the work. At Peru there Is a
compressed air plant that cost $780,
600 that furnished compressed air
to blow the oil out of the wells on
two farms. Lines are laid to the
wells and connections made the
same as Is done on the Lewis EN-.
cry lease In Toad Hollow, In the
Bradford field. In the shallow
pools much of the drilling has been
done with drilling machines, but
for 600 feet or deeper majority of
the producers use the standard
drilling rig. Still In all parts of the
field you will here and there see a
drilling machine at work.
LAS near as l could learn 1t costs
about IS. 900 to complete we'll In
the new field. A standard rig costs
500; drilling. 81 10 foot, every
thing furnished. Water Is very
expensive and has to be piped or
hauled from the rivers. Scarcely
any water Is found In drilling ex.
cept a blackish water that will ruin
a boiler and has to be cased of.
Within defined limits there IS plen-
ty of gas and fuel Is cheap, but In
validating 1t Is necessary to haul
coal from the railroad stations,