New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1905-03-19
OIL IN NORTHWEST.
Much Excitement IN alberta Deer
What Has Been Found.

Egg Lake, Alberta, March IS. (SpeciaD.-On of
good quality is now gushing from the earth in the
Canadian Northwest In the extreme southwestern
section of Alberta. five miles from the American
boundary line thriving town has sprung up with
in the last few weeks, populated almost entirely by
oil prospectors and those interested in the develop
ment of recent discoveries. The valley in which
these wells lie is described by biologists enor-
nous crevice, caused by volcanic eruption cross
cutting the formation of the Rocky Mountains and
forming a basin, into which the oil has seeped
until 1t has formed lakes underlying the rock forna-
ton at depth Of thousand feet. The oil is said to
have been made by the distilation of the large coal
bodies lying to the north surface indications Of
oil have been seen throughout Alberta for a num-
Der of years.
Several years ago a farmer named William AL
drich used TO gather the oil in barrels from the
surface seepages and sell it to his neighbors for
lighting and ubrcating purposes often gathering
much dozen barrels day. In 1891 John Lin
ham, a lumberman of Okotokos. Alberta, heard of
Aldrich gathering oil in this crude way and deter
mined TO investigate. He went up the valley and
looked the ground So satisfied was he with
what he that he went East and engaged the
best oil expert he could get to make report on
the district. So hattering was the report that MI
Lnham at once formed company of mis- friends,
and they purchased this tract of oil land in the
mountains
All the latest oil appliances purchased. and
operations begun in the spring of 1902 Almost
at the start 3c0-barrel well struck at depth
Of lO2O feet but the bore hole" was plugged and
the find was kept as quiet possible. More wells
were struck and before the outside world knew
what going the company had secured prac-
tcally all the land likely to produce oil in that
gion Owing to the extreme difficulty in having the
land surveyed, on account of the roughness of the
country and the fact that the surveyors had to go
TO the monuments on the international boundary to
get their bearings and the delay in getting the
title of the land from the government, it took
time for the work of development to get under
but suddenly the people OF Canada were aware that
their country producing something richer than
wheat in the great Northwest Roads were being
built, machinery brought in, bridges built over the
mountain streams, while houses and shanties were
going up in all directions. The country was oil
crazy. Men were working night and day on the
wells and this company has two wells each
of which will produce over three hundred barrels
OF Illuminating oil a day, and during the last few
weeks another large drill has been taken in which
Is capable OF boring Pinch hole to depth of
@'Vp Ieet, II necessary. This machine has already
bored to a depth Of over seven hundred feet and
oil has been struck, but the company is going
Further north it is the same story. To the north
of here for distance of fully a thousand miles oil
or so prospectors have covered the country boring
and striking oil, and then plugging the bore hoIes
10 Keep the matter as quiet as possible j. S. Will
Jams. an oil expert from Summerlands, Cal has
been employed by local syndicate to prospect for
OIL ana ne reports that he has located the richest
subterranean lake Of fuel oil he has ever known
Companies are being formed, and land is command
ing hlgh prices all through the oil belt. Capitalists
are rushing in to get there at the bottom of the
market, and the railways hurriedy preparing
plans Tor extensions to run into the fields.
At the present time Alberta and Athabasca are
oil crazy Oil is the leading topic of CONVERSE
another on the road, and at inquiries about any
new strikes there may have been; in the stores and
hotels ana on the trains 1t Is the samethe topic of
conversation is oil. Prospectors everywhere are
keeping to themselves as much as possible. hushing
has been thoroughly looked over.