The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1908-05-13
Heritage of American People
the Greatest on Earth
Says L. C. White, State Geolo-
gist, of West Virginia.
L BLUSH OF SHAME
Ehould Come to Patriotic Clt1-
Gems He Declares
When They Reflect on Criminal
Waste of Our Resources.

Washington, Nav 13.-"The Waste
Of Our Fuel Resources was the sub
5ect of an address delivered before the
conference of Governors this afternoon
By 1. c. White, state geologist of west
Virginia. He said in part
great geologist once said, THE
nations that have coal ana iron Will
rule the world" Bountiful nature has
lowered the American people with
heritage of both coal and iron richer
by far than that Of any other political
division of the earth.
simple glance at geological map
of the United States, will convince any
one that nature has been most lavish
to US in fuel resources, for we find
series of great coal deposits extending
in we'll scattered fields almost from the
Atlantic to the Pacific, and from the
lakes to the gulf, while even over much
of New England and the coastal
plains, vast areas of peat, the primal
stage of coal, have been distributed.
But coal of every variety from peat to
anthracite is not all of natures fuel
gifts to fortunate America. Great de-
posts of both petroleum and natural
gas occur in nearly every state where
coal exists, and in some that have no
coal. What greater dowery of fuels
could We ask when we find them
stored for us within the bosom of our
mother earth in all three of the great
types, coal, petroleum and natural gas,
only awaiting the tap of the pick and
drill to bring them forth in prodigal
abundance?
Criminal Waste.
What account can we as a nation
give of our stewardship of such vast
fuel treasures? Have we carefully
conserved them, using only what was
necessary in our domestic and indus
trial life, and transmitted the remain
der, like prudent husbandmen, unim-
paired to succeeding generations? Or
have we greatly depleted this price
less heritage of power. and comfort.
and source of world wide influence. by
criminal waste and wanton destruc-
ton? The answer should bring a
blush of shame to every patriotic
American. for not content with de-
stroying our magnificent forests the
only fuel and supply of carbon known
to our forefathers. we are with ruth
less hands and regardless of the flu
ture applying both torch and dynamite
to the vastly greater resources of this
precious carbon which provident ma
ture had stored for our use in the
buried forests of the distant past. The
widest anarchists determined to de-
stroy and overturn the foundations of
government could not act in a more
irrational and thoughtless manner than
have our people in permitting such
fearful destruction of the very sources
of our power and greatness. Let me
enumerate some Of the details of this
awful waste of our fuel res urces that
has been going on with ever increasing
speed for the last forty years.
Natural Gas.
First let us consider how we have
wasted natural gas, the purest form
Of fuel, ideal in every respect. self
transporting, only awaiting the turn
ing of key to deliver to our homes
and factories, heat and light and pow
er. Partial Nature has apparently de-
MED this great boon to many other
lands. 1t is practically unknown in
France. Germany and Great Britain,
our chief competitors in the world of
industry. Even wood and coal must
first be converted into gas before they
will burn, but here is a fuel Of which
nature has given us practical mon
opoly. lavish in abundance, already
transmitted into the gaseous stage and
stored under vast pressure to be re-
leased wherever wanted at our bid
ding. The record of waste of this our
best and purest fuel is a national dis
grace.
At this very minute this unrivaled
fuel Is passing into the air within our
domain from uncontrolled gas wells,
from oil wells, from giant flambeaus,
from leaking pipe lines and the many
other methods of waste at the rate
of not less than one billion cubic feet
daily and probably much more.
In my humble opinion the original
amount of this volatile fuel in the
United States, permeating as 1t does
every disturbed geologic formation
from the oldest to the most recent
Il rivaled or even exceeded in heating
value, AN of our wondrous stores of
coal.
No one can even approximate the
extent of waste. From personal know
ledge of conditions which exist in ev-
cry Oil and gas field, I am sure the
one billion cubic feet daily, and it may
be much more. The heating value of a
billion cubic feet of natural gas is
roughly equivalent to that of one mil
lion bushels of coal. What an ap-
palling record to transmit to poster
ity!
Notable Instances.
From one we'll in eastern Kentucky
there poured a stream of gas for a
period of 20 years without any at
tempt to shut it in or utilize 1t. the
output of which, 1t has been figured,
was worth at current prices more than
three million dollars. Practically the
same conditions characterized the first
Is years of Pennsylvania oil and gas
history, and the quantity of wasted gas
from thousands of oil and gas wells
in western Pennsylvania is beyond
computation. In my own state of West
Virginia only eight years ago. not
DYNYYrN