Arizona republican., 1907-09-15

pipe and spilling down ovsr the bank into the creek whence it is carried away in the water, many barrels day being thus wasted. Incidentally the evaporation of the constant oil flow has enlarged the asphalt bed of the natural seepage until it is now a very big one.
 All these larger seepages and the three wells spoken of are within q radius of just a few hundred yards of the camphouse and barn. each place mentioned being within a stones throw of the next adjacent point Of interest, the little gulches dignified by the name of canyon being at their june tion with the main creek, separated by hills hardly larger than a strong man could throw q rock over. But the real big show place on the property is perhaps a quarter of mile further up this fourth canyon mentioned. though in the intervening length Of the gulch both down in the creek bed and up on the hillsides, there are sman seepages of oil every few yards. sometimes in a soft formation and sometimes leaking from porous spots in the solid rock. The show spot referred to occurs at a place where this fourth canyon itself forks into two gulches. From the point of divergence of the two gulches, back some four or five hundred feet up the hillside between them. the triangular area is a gently sloping mesa which seems to be composed entirely O; as- phalt. It probably is not entirely so but the greater part of it is. It was no hnnlnt forranl hn nYh no seepage was originally down near the junction of the streams but as the ages passed and 1t was stopped up IL would break forth further up until there is now an asphalt bed in evi- dence that must contain thousands and thousands of tons.
 The asphalt itself where found in such immense quantities. possesses a great commercial value if the proper machinery and processes are installed to treat it and prepare it for the mar ket. However. in this article it is not spoken Of for its commercial value. but only as an evidence of the almost inconceivable oil pressure below, for every pound of it has in days gone by been forced through the resisting rocks to the surface. in the form of oil. And where there is a pound of asphalt. many pounds of oil have sometime been exposed. the asphalt being only the residue after the volatile qualities have evaporated.
 The fifth canyon was not visited for lack of time but the writer was in formed that conditions there as in the first canyon. were quite similar and there is no reason to doubt the inform- ation. The heart of the 9tO acres was traversed and enough was seen to cause the visitor to have little interest in proving whether or not the big seep- ages were in evidence clear to the end lines of the property. though others who have been there assert it. Enough was seen to satisfy any thinking per son that an immense basin of oil lies below this property and that no hole driven could miss it. From tine seep- ages alone many barrels are daily be- ing forced to the surface and wasted in the soil or escape down the creek beds.
 The depth of the three wells spoken of as driven previous to 1903 is not ac- curately known to the writer but they are between 300 and 400 feet deep and when operated returned from twenty 10 thirty barrels day each. They are now looked upon merely as insurance policies. TheS are we'll equipped and with small expense can be put in com mission again. They are only shallow wells, driven at point where the oil strata are near the surface yet they are good wells and can be made to liqui- date Ia the property in further exploration. should il not be fruitful of results. But it is the purpose of the Aliso company 10 go back a quarter of a mile to a point where the oil bearing strata will not be crossed by a vertical hole near or the surface than 1000 of 1900 feet. Being that much nearer the basin which now affords a pres sure making seepages clear to the sur face through almost solid rock no one can doubt that every deep we'll will be a gusher or at least a pumping we'll of almost inexhaustible suppfy. The com pany owns property enough and the hundred. perhaps thousands of seep- ages, for they are countless) cover an area large enough to accommodate hundreds of wells as soon as they can be driven. It is an oil proJect with an insurance of money back" and prospect of enormous profits. It is un- derstood the plan of the company which is now at work in the field un- der the personal direction of MT. Sin clair. Is to first equip these three wells which are close together. with cen tral power station of modern device that can be run with the fuel oil on the premises and by a single engineer who can care for half a hundred wells almost as easily as one. the machinery being largely automatic and only re- quiring occasional inspection during the day. As soon as this is done ond the property is put on producing ba- sis of a hundred barrels. the Union Oil company has contracted 70 extend it's pipe line from Wheeler canyon two miles away. to the Aliso property. and handle the entire product whatever it's Then. and it will only be a short time, will begin the drilling of deep wells. where the big profits are expected to be made.
 The Phoenix men composing the ! company have bought and paid for the | sixteen years of the twenty year lease on the ground and long be- fore that time they will be too rich to need an oil well or they will have demonstrated that nature in one case