Los Angeles herald., 1910-07-16
S100,0OO,0O0 CAPITAL
PROBING OIL FIELDS
Jack Merrill and a Wall Street
Party Arrive, and Leave
for Kern River


1t was happy day for the oil fields
of the Kern river valley, when Jack
Merrill, the astute, clever, shrewd,
nervy publicity man in New York city,
whose brains have been responsible for
the building of more than one great
mining section of this North American
continent, when he elected to turn his
attention to this immensely, fabulously
rich oil field. As a result of this de-
termination, one hundred million dol
lars' worth of capitalists, numbering
twenty, rolled into the Santa Fe station
yesterday morning and left for Bakers
field at $3.50 o'clock last night.
on the report of these gentlemen to
their respective clienteles and financial
houses from their Wall street offices
there should result a soaring of Cali
fornia oil fields as worthy of unlimited
| investment and an influx of eastern
capital that shall metamorphose the
already intensely developed industry
should follow.
But woe betide the wildcat if these
distinguished visitors shall detect the
faintest glimpse of it's presence in any
of the fields to be visited. Wildcat
ting must stop" they say, and they
say it with an emphasis that permits of
no misunderstanding.
INVESTORS "FROM MISSOURI
Mr.. Merrill, interviewed on his pri-
vate car, Rainbow, on its arrival over
the Santa Fe yesterday morning,
summed up this fact with unusual
terseness.
THE people are all from Missouri
they must be shown. 1t is impossible
to convey samples to the buyer, so we
1 hA 70 ho
pies"
The distinguished party consists of
influential and wealthy mining and oil
brokers and bankers of New York city,
many of them holding seats on the New
York stock exchange and the New York
curb, while others are contidentially
identified with other large financial
houses whose names are coupled with
the history of those famous financial
marts. Still others represent the Pear
sons Magazine, which national publi-
cation some time ago challenged the
interests behind Mr.. Merrill to first
prove that the California oil field in
vestments they were offering the east
ern capitalists were really worthy of
public confidence before any advertis-
ing matter could be carried in its col
umns.
The acceptance of the challenge was
instant and characteristic of Merrill.
Name your members of the party
and I'll name mine, and we'll put them
all on a special train. and I'll just
spend five or six thousand dollars to
prove whether California oil fields
aren't as good or better than any pho
tograph, any experts report or any
blueprint that we have ever shown in
| Wall street Wen let these men judge
for themselves. If their report is ia
/ Vorable, you take our advertising; II
unfavorable, you don't"
| Merrills proposition was accepted,
| and he gathered one hundred million
dollars worth of capitalists together
and has brought them to the California
oil fields. He is entirely sanguine that
their report will be far more fiatterlng
than anything he has attempted to tell
the eastern investor.
The party consists of Messrs. Nicho-
las II. Colwell Hector M. Hetchings,
Frank English, John V. Dunno, Alfred
q. Kohn, Herbert S. Einstein, E. c.
Rowe, George w. Samiger, John Tevis,
e. McKernan, Dewitt Smith, Paul de
Montcalm, William r. Garrison, A. G:
Drake. Jack Merrill, Harold Smith and
&. M. McMurrin, all of New York, and
| G. a. Burgess of Rochester, n. Y.
The party was met at the depot by
Thomas Allen Box, G. Charles Bullen,
Francis D. Cooper, M. ]. Batchelder j.
] Y,
HAYNES and Capt. j. F. Lucey, and tax
en- to the Sierra Madre club, the social
organization of the oil and mining men,
and given a much appreciated break
fast in the handsome club roms, after
which the party divided into several
groups and spent the remainder or the
day in sightseeing or visiting with
friends A considerable portion of the
party were the guests of j. V. Gordon
and M. ]. Batchelder at luncheon
given at the Annandale club. Other
went to the beaches.
The local arrangements for the even
ing were somewhat changed, the con-
tcmplated banquet at the Sierra Madre
club being abandoned and dinner
over the ocean at the Bristol Pler CAFE
being substituted, inasmuch as the heat
is said to be very gerat in the oil fields
and it was thought best to cool the VS.
itors off before their hard trip
They were driven direct from the
cafe 10 their special car, leaving on
the 9:30 o'clock train. The party Will
leave the car at Bakersfield and go on
to the Maricopa and Midway helds'
visiting also the Kern river districts,
hut will not, it is believed, go so far as
Coalinga. They will doubtless return
to this city tonight or tomorrow, en-
route for the east
EXPECTS MORE CAPITALISTS
This special carload of capitalists is
but the forerunner of many that VIII
be brought out by Mr.. Merrill Wlthln
the near future, in pursuance Oh the
same policy which he followed num-
ber OF years ago when he influenced
millions of dollars TO be invested IN the
Cobalt mines of Canada.
Mr.. Merrill had prepared for year
of idIeness, but was urged by many OF
his old Cobalt investors to get INTO the
oil promotion field, which he finally
consented to do
Il don't know when l shall bring my
next carload of investors and investl-
gators" he said to The Herald, but l
have promised the promoters of the
American Mining congress that l shall
use all nv efforts to induce a large del,
coat tion to come from the Wall street
financial houses that are interested in
oil and mining investments, and 1t IS
not unlikely that | shall harmonic
NV Dlans for another coachload or two
of investors with the convention dates,
and after attending the Mining con-
press. invite many of the delegates TO
toin our party and go by special train
to the oil fields. l have been invited
to do this, and l can see where 1t
would be for our mutual behehI' mas
much as this would give us an oppor-
tunitv to meet the big mining men
from all over the United States and
other nortions of the North American
continent, and this is what we would
like to do"
HERALDS OIL ERA
Mr.. Merrill talked interestingly of his
present trip to the California oil fields.