Deming graphic. (Deming, N.M.) 1903-1948, 1915-07-16
MINERAL FILINGS ON COLUMBUS
CLAIMS ALARM H0MESTEADERS
Discovery Of Oil and Gas Near Bor-
der Town Causes Rush for Claims;
Land Filed as Homestead or Desert
Claim is Subject 10 Mineral Filing.

There j. great distress among some
uf the Columbu, homcsteaders, be-
cause their land, have been covered
10y mineral filings following the oil
excitement which RACES undated IN
the border town. The general opin-
iuu seems 10 he that there is no relief
for those who failed 10 protect their
claims with mineral filings, rs proven
mineral lands cannot be proved NJ
under the homestead or desert act.
This fact give, the holder Of mineral
claims first right.
A~ Dcming i, well within the same
basin ~ Columbus, il would be well
for local claim holders To beware lest
'lr oil men that are. if rumor is to
hn credited. shopping around with
their nose, keyed 10 the richly pung-
,' oder nl petroleum. This recalls
t''u oil cyritcmcnt here of years ago
Irn the fathers of the village blew
b. their good coin for the excitement
,f lookm" down hole which led
from here tn half way to China. but
.pm whirh the much coveted black
nud sticky mass failed To cxude.
l.ack Of funds caused the drilling to
Poo abandoned,
That oil and gas are present below
10 feet. near the border. southwest
,t Columbus. seems to he well au-
lrmiratcd IN fact, citizen of the
border town j. now making his fires
from q barrel of the stuff that made
oal oil Johnny and John ID. famous;
landed lot of other riches; and ini-
ifaicd that interesting and lucrative
business of settling oil stock to the
.arl "f the population which is cred
i,ri with au increase of one per min
ute.
II the authority quoted before
Dame Rumor is Ia be- further be-
licyrd. the presence of oil on the bor-
der ha- hrpn known hy the wise ones
.r ila, section of the Mimbrcs Val
lev for several months. bearing
rock aud sand i being exhibited: but
the well which produces the lubricant
f. sealed and may not he examined by
the casual investigator. just what is
"a ihr well, j. vet ~ deep II mystery
l- the well itself i deep. The land
w1- bought mp by a mysterious com
hinaiiru that operated under the guisr
Of an irrigation development com
UYuv. Local citizens filed ON the land
.urromding that bought by the com
pauy.
The Geological Survey thirty years
leo found traces Of oil in the country
north "f Dcming; and periodically
there has been oil excitement here. II
may be that oil and gas do exist in
,hc valley in paving quantities in
.pitc Of the diScouraginc periods be
tween rcvivals of confidence. Beyond
The drilling done here thirty wears
aco. and which ended before n prom
i-iug depth had been reached, there
ha, been no serious attempts In reach
the oil hearing strata which is known
to exist. The Mimbrcs Valley
stretches well down into the land OF
friiolcs and revolutions. just below
the border i u cluster of lakes cx-
tending rs far ~ Lake Guzman.
Thc,, are the remains of a very an
cicnt fresh water body that. without
doubt. covered the present site Of
Dcming. Below the border, the water
i extremely shallow and in the lakes
have tide" This rise and fall of
the level of the water is credited to
the presence Of gas Mt the source of
(Continued on last pace)