The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1909-09-27
OIL FIELDS DOOMED
SAYS STATE EXPERT
L. L. HUTCHINSON UTTeRS A
WARNINo-inDlANA AS EXAM.
PLE-sTkTE NEEDS IT ALL.

/ Norman. Okla. Sept 26.-l.. /.
. liu'cnisOn, assistant director of the
. Oklahoma geological survey. wno for
The past four years has made
special study OF the oil and gas
conditions in Oklahoma. in regard
to the life OF the Oklahoma fields
said in an Interview Friday
tn" recent rumor that the pipe
line companies are about to secure
temporary Injunction to RESTRAIN
the state from preventing them from
piping her gas beyond her bounda.
ries marks an epoch IN the develop.
mcnt OF Oklahoma's mineral re-.
sources. !; matters not whether the
injunction is sustained or dissolved.
II sustained, It means that the do2.
ems Of manufacturing industries
whose fuel has been exhausted in
the Indiana, Ohio and West Virginia
gas fields, and are now looking to
Oklahoma for future supply VIII
not come 20 the new state.
"One Of the most notable exam.
Piles Of the impoycrishing OF the gas
fields Is that of Indiana. Gas was
first discovered at Findlay. Ohio. In
1881. At the end OF three years what
Is known as the Lima-Indiana oil
f"ld vas pretty well defined. De.
velopment went forward so that tao
Indiana gas field was pretty thor.
oughly drilled by 1892, and about
this time everyone was believing
that the gas supply Of Indiana was
absolutely iEcXhaustible. The same
was true IN Ohio Factories were
established for the manufacture of
clay and lime products, besides tso
varions milling and implement fac.
tories which needed a cheap fuel
supply Indiana was generous. She
thought that her gas was inexhaust.
ible. II was therefore piped TO Chi.
cage Cleveland and various other
large cities. That was less than 20
years ago, but the field was not i'm.
mediately impoverished.
in 1906 indiana reached her eli.
max as an oil and gas producing
state, when she ranked as third Ia
the union. But by 1908 she occupied
the humiliating position of ninth IN
production. That her oil and gas
/ field Is irreparably ruined and even
owners OF the land from which the
gas was taken Will soon have To
LOOK elsewhere for their fuel supply
is a matter of common knowledge.
Oklahoma has been producing pc
troleum and natural gas In a com.
mercial way only since 1901, with
the exception OF the big Cherokee
lease near Chelsea and the Cudda
lease AZ BartlcSvlllc. witch began
in 1895 Howcve~, IN this brief
period Of five years there is no
eainsaying the fact that the r.
sources OF the Oklahoma gas field
have not been drawn upon one.tcnth
as heavily as they will be in the
naXt five years II the present con.
tcntion that We should supply natu.
raj gas 20 Kansas City, s.. Louis
and other outside towns Is sustained
Even with this light usage scores
OF gas wells in the Oklahoma field
have been exhausted and abandoned
Capital has been employed to sup
ply number Of cities In our state
along the line from Sapulpa to OK.
lahoma City with the intention OF
extending the line TO Chickasha.
La~ton, FL Reno. Enid, Perry and
intervening points, provided suffi.
Client supply could be guaranteed
10 warrant the investment. This
move has been held up pending the
issue Of the present case and in the
writer's opinion can not be success.
fully carried out II Oklahoma is ia
supply Kansas and Missouri cities
with natural gas.
The mineral resources OF okla. f.
homa are inestimabIe. To dcyelop
these she ncers fuel and she has Il .
To-day Oklahoma is shipping in mil .
lions OF Kansas brick and thereby .
paying Kansas taxes, speak advis.
edly when ! say that TO my certain
knowledge there are more leases in
the state which contain sna'c suit.
able for the manufacturing OF brick
than there are that do not. We are
also importing every barrel OF lime
used In the state. Yet what we are