The Washington times., 1915-12-19
Legislation Sought to
Save Great Oil Field
BY JUDSON C. WELLIVER.

The appeal which has been made u
Congress for relief of the California
oil industry represents wider and
larger interest than is generally ap-
preciated. California is the greatest
oil producing State in the Union, and
the Governm'n is trying to recover A.
per cent of the producing properties I'm
the State.
This recovery is not sought on the
ground that there has been an" fraud
against the public domain. 1t is not at
tempted on the assumption that the
Government has any moral right TO take
the property back from the men who
have invested many millions In its de-
velopment on the supposition that they
were entirely within their rights and
the law.
Many Face Ruin.
Itathnr, the Government Is trying TO
take back these lands in spite of all
the admitted equities, merely because
of technical condition that has arisen
under the close decision given by a
bare majority of the Supreme Court.
If the suits that have already been
started shall be pursued to the technical
decision that seems inevitable, 1t Will
bring ;uin to about 80 operating com
innocent stockholders, all over the
/ 1t VIII bring disaster to ever, bust
, ness interest in the West that has any
! relation to oil; and this practically
, means the whole business structure oI
= the Pacific coast.
A number OF corporations have al
ready been wrcckcd thousands OF mer
, hHVe been thrown out of employment
! tanking interests have been seriousl!
affected, confidence has been impaired
/ tho production of oil has been greatly
! reduced, and manifold lines OF nusi
less, seemingly unrelated. but In iac
dependent on the prosperity OF the oil
business have been affcctfd d adversely
Prices Inflated.
In such Il chaos. with no unpatentet
claim safe from tho danger of attack
nobody cares to deal even in the sound
! est of claims unless final patents h9N
been secured. The marketing oil com
panjes decline to buy from the produc
crs who are Liable to attack. Producer
Who are perfectly confident OF tnel
rights are experiencing as much dr
ficultv as those who are menaced, be
cause the refining and marketing con
Germs have no way to difrerentiate.
i The community at large suners u
. reason of the inflated price OF oil re
sulting from these conditions. n
I'acifc coast is perhaps more depend
ent on cheap oil than any other par
, OF the country; it means fuel. power
steamship operation.
All these conditions are weli know
ard easily understandable. II mgr
possibly be contrnded that these Wer
minor misfortuncs. incident to the ~
portant affair of conserving the OIL nel,
But. as a matter of fact. the OIL nel
is in danger Of being ruined rather ina
saved. This is one of the most seriou
aspects.
| Conservation Impossible.
The oil men who have come to Wasr
ington to urge their case before COZ
: gress explain this situation in a mahh'
tha; has deeply impressed public mel
II is physically impossible to conserN
tho oil. because alternate sections are pa
cnted and being oUcrated without uuei
tion The whole country is thus checKe
1 boarded i'm alternating sections or pa
cntcd and unpatentcd. operating AT
idle oil lands. on flows undergrouh
i seeking its level: ana when the Cover
= mont stors DEVELOPMENT on one sectio
In" oil under it H. drawn away to u
| surrounding sections where the pum
ing Is still going on. The operator WI
has a patent is privileged to pump o'