The Washington times., 1916-01-15
GAS BOOST SEEN IN
OIL LAND CLOSING
Frisco Consumers Would Pay
High II Government Took
Over Fields. Says Expert.

San FRANCISCO. Jan. 15.-Curtsu-
rient of the production of the Cali
Tornia oil fields, says John :. Britt"n.
vice president and general manage
Of the Pacific Gas and Electric Com
pany. spells disaster for the gas hI-i
ness and the gas consumers OF Cali
fIrnia. Discussing the Federal Gov.
crnments attempt 70 take over DE-
veIopcd California oil lands. repre-
scnting nearly 80 per cent of the tota'
oil production OF the State, Brht"a
said:
Il cannot imagine a greater cslam.
itv for the gas business and the ga
consumers OF California than III" redr"
ton OF the oil production of the stat"
Meaning In Dollars.
San Franciscos annual gas bin !!
now about s4,OO0.0Oo. paid by approx
mately 100000 consumers. An !ncresa.
of 10 per cent in the cost OF gas wou''
mean 100000 a year to the consumers
Of San Francisco alone: that is. an
average addition OF $500 to the bill "f
every consumer of gas in this city. Per-
haps you can estimate from those A.
ures what that 20 per cent reduction I"
the available supply OF fuel for thu
manufacture of gas would mean to th'
consumers of the State.
at must be remembered that thcr, l.
no bitumnous coal in California. = a.
gas Is made from bituminous coal On'I
Before the discovery of oil in talitorn
the consumers in this State paid about
s. per 1000 feet for EasA With the &c
relopnent Of plentiful supply OF oil.
the price OF gas went down steaCllT ur"
I'll now it averages about ~ cents per
100 feet
"A reduction of the available oil san
ply such as Is now ;'.s threa,en;ra
of the gas business as it is now con
| Quoted. we would be comDe.l led to re
! turn to the use Of coal for the MANI
facture Of gas.
Consumer Would Pay.
without regard to tremendous ex-
pense involved in the necessary change
of apparatus and machinery the manu-
facturer of gas from coal would multi
ply the present cost to the consum"r
| three times nearly.
| The State by its railroad commits
| sion regulates the rates charged to gas
consumers and that commission Ia
| bound by the law to permit .proht on
the bona fide Investments. That means
that the increased cost OF manufacture
| will be laid upon the purses of the con-
sumers in the shape of increased rates
! The whole California public and cS-
| pecially the gas consumers have n very;
| genuine interest in this controversy"
| Through series of amendments >
adopted while it was sitting as com
| mittec Of the whole the House yester-
! day adopted proposals of the Mineral
| land leasing bill. which grants Ieasin =
rights to oil operators in California and
| Wyoming fields.
| These operators We're dispossessed by
| President Taft's withdrawal OF the
| lands, and the Supreme Court uphclJ
| his action. Votes taken yesterday in
| dicate the passage of the principal pro
| visions of the bill on the final vote.
| When the House adjourned as a COM
| mittee of the whole il voted to resume
| consideration of amendments today.
hundreds OF thousands of dollars Of
private investments arc represented OF,
the lands in question. The provision
as accepted by the House in commit
| tee OF the whole would grant no patents
but would permit the operators 70 con.
| tinue their work on leases. under Ger
| tain conditions. which are said to be
! satisfactory to them.
The bill now would permit the leas-
ing of unpatented oil and gas lands to
all claimants who fled prior to July 3
1910 and who either developed wells o.
were actively engaged in work on Jan
surrender their lands to the United
States within six months after the pas.
sage of the act, and then the SecrrtarS
OF the Interior would. in his discretion
grant leases. No person. association oI
| corporation. however, would be permit
ted to lease more than $40 acres Roy
, atty on the land would be not less thar
one-eighth of the income from th
product.