The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1908-11-12
FIT SUBJECT FOR
AN INSANE ASYLUM"
Hearing In Standard Oil Cases
Is Very Lively
CON troll OF PIPE LINES
Witness Testifyine In Court Denounces
Not Only Pipe Line Regulations,
But Relations Between the
Lessees and Landowners.

New York. November 11.-Praise of the
Prairie Oil and Gas company a sub
sidiary of the Standard Oil company in
Oklahoma was coupled with denuncia-
ton of federal regulations for the con-
troll of pipe lines in Oklahoma at to-
days session of the hearing here in the
governments suit to dissolve the STAN
dard Oil company.
George w. Barnes was again on the
stand when the hearing opened Asked
what his opinion was of the government
regulation making pipe line building con-
tingent on the consent of the Secretary
of the Interior, who also has the right
to suspend the license at any time for
cause Mr.. Barnes said he considered a
man who would build line under such
conditions subject to the within of the
Secretary of the Interior, "a fit subject
for an insane asylum"
J. R. Greenlee, an Oklahoma oil pro-
Queer, strongly denounced not only the
pipe line regulations but those controlling
the relations between the lessees and
landowners. The obnoxious regulations,
the witness declared, had retarded
growth of the mid-continent oil fields
through the fact that no person or COM
pany would construct pipe lines there I'M
der existing conditions
Too Many Regulations.
Il know" said the witness 'if those
regulations had been out of the way we
would have all the pipe lines by this
time necessary to pipe away our oil,
Then you would have no regulations
governing the pipe lines or regulations
governing the relations between the les
sees and the Indians?' asked Mr.. Kel-
log.
LAS with the Indians, no.
How long would the Indians have any
thing left If there were no government
restrictions?" the witness was asked.
"That would depend upon the Indian
as well as the white man. There are
plenty of Indians down there that
could skin any white man In this room
out of his eye teeth"
Mr. Greenlee said he would not OBJ
jeet to regulations provided they were
based upon Ordinary business sense"
In particular he objected to the lack
of right to appeal to a court from the
rulings Oh the secretary oI lhe inter
ior
W. H. Johnson, also an Oklahoma
oil producer, had nothing but good
words for the Prairie Oil and Gas COM
pany.
Barnes Testifies.
George w. Barnes, the Oklahoma oil
producer, tested that the Prairie Oil
and Gas company, Standard Oil sub
sidiary and rival of the Texas Pipe
Line and the Gulf Pipe Line compan-
les, entering the Oklahoma oil fields
from the south, had started to extend
its pipe lines to the Oklahoma Glenn
Pool section, but because of an ad-
verse official ruling had suspended
work. Counsel for the Standard OIL
read the regulation under which a pipe
line may be built through government
land contingent upon the consent of
the Secretary of the Interior, who also
has the right to suspend the license at
any time for couse Mr.. Barnes said:
II consider a man who would build
a line under such conditions, which
make 1t likely to be taken from him at
any time a At subject for the asylum.
What company would spend millions
building a line subject to the within
of the Secretary of the Interior, who
might suspend the license at any time
he got bilious?"
Mr. Barnes said that the producers had
suffered much through a lack of pipe line
competition Our only competition is in
selling the OIL He said that 80 per cent
of the producers were favorable to the
Prairie company, as it had been their
friend.
GreenIee's Testimony.
]. r. Greenlee. another Oklahoma pro-
Queer said that the Standard Oil com
pany's treatment was fair and that it
shipped out oil as rapidly as it could be
piped. The Prairie company, he said,
helped the small producer by purchasing
the product and storing it in it's own
tanks until it could be piped, sometimes
as much as 4O,00O0OO barrels being SO held
at one time, despite the fact that in
year there is 10 per cent depreciation in
storage because of evaporation of gaso-
line.
Since the present regulations of pip
lines had been in existence, Mr.. Greenee
said capital had refused to consider the
erection of pipe lines in the Oklahoma
field.
Minor provisions Of the regulations were
pointed out by the witness as being I'M
fair to the producer and he declared that
they had evidently been drafted by mex
perienced persons. Especially unfair. he
said, were the provisions limiting the hold
ings for any one person or company