Los Angeles herald., 1910-07-17
s OF THE MINES AND OIL FIELDS
EDITED
ASSOCIATED OIL REPORT
REVEALS NEW FIGURES
Company Owns Large Acreage in
Several Fields but Part
Is Wildcat Ground

SAN FRANCISCO, July ia study
of the Associated's annual report, the
same as that issued to the New York
stock exchange, writes the California
Oil World correspondent, reveals a
rather interesting condition. 1t shows,
first of all, that the company owns or
leases in it's own name 20,SS5.14 acres.
1t further has half interest in the
3l24.S4 acres Of the Amalgamated and
owns a 70 per cent interest in the Ster-
ling's 240 acres, so per cent interest in
West Coasts 10 acres, and 30 per cent
interest in the California Coasts 1000
acres
Estimating the Assoeiated's owner
ship in acres at approximately the per-
centage of stock owned in these COM
panies it Is found that the company
owns, leases or controls the equivalent
of $4,000 acres, in which are included
the holdings of number of companies
that are simply wildcat propositions.
In contrast to this the holdings of the
Union are approximately 100000 acres,
or considerably over ten times as much.
In speaking of its lands the report
says:
ut (the Associated) has acquired oil
properties in the various producing
fields of California as follows" after
which comes the above list, including
the San Luis Obispo and Kings county
tracts, neither of which has produced
a barrel of commercial oil, except the
tiny output at Edna. New Workers
will naturally draw very wrong in
ference from this statement, assuming,
as they should have a right to do that
all these lands are in or right ad-
joining proved fields, although unde-
veloped, as is stated further on in the
report.
The Assoicated's best holdings are
those with which it started business.
Excepting some acquired in Coalinga
Coast, the Santa Maria, the Amalga
mated and West Coast in Los Angeles
county, not a barrel of oil has been
produced from any other of the Asso-
ciated's wells. Besides the foregoing
and its holdings in Cat canyon, which
may be classed as proved, there is
none of the Associated's lands includ-
ed in this statement that are other
than wildcat.
In Kern county the holdings are
54398 acres. Fresno county holdings
are 519769 acres. These last are classed
as in the Coalinga field, but only
very small proportion are in the act
ual producing belt, practically none eX-
cept on section sc, the balance being
in the southern extension and much of
IT of no value, probably.
The 1880 acres in Kings county are
prospective only and as their exact
location is not given it is impossible
TO expires an opinion as to how good
a prosect they are. The largest hold
ings by far-between 40 and 45 per cent
of the WHOLESALERS acres in San n-Iuis
Obispo county; of these 4126 are leased,
the balance owned in fee. Not a barrel
of oil has yet been produced from them,
although test holes were sunk years
ago If anything was found the Asso-
ciated knows it. but nobody else does.
One thing is certain and that is that
not n quart of commercial oil has ever
come out of San Luis Obispo county
except the tiny production found in the
Tiber pool at Edna, in spite of the
large sums which have been spent in
prospecting.
Recently an oil man who was for
merly pro-Associated frankly declared
that he had not the confidence in it he
once had. He said:
'"The Associated should have been
acquiring more properties all these
years. It should have gone to Mid
way and Sunset, where the Union is
now and spent there the money which
the Recruit has spent in wildeatting
all over the state Had it done so it
would have been in better shape today.
Now it is trying to make up for this
by buying in the Midway. The first
move along this line was the purchase
of the Pioneer Midway. OF course it
can still get lands, but it will have to
pay high. A few years ago 1t could
have gotten them for a fraction of the
present price"