Tulsa daily world. [volume] (Tulsa, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1905-1919, 1916-04-23
Situation so Acute That
Ships and Railroads
Must Economic.
OUTPUT Is SMALL
AND HARD TO GET
Oil Fields Discovered in
1907 Are Disap-
pointments.

Correspondence OF The Associated Press.)
DUENOS AYRES. March 22.-Coai
- for ordinary consumption in Ar
hard to purchase even at that figure.
To prevent the reduction of the pres
ent meager supply, the national gov
ernment has ordered the principal
steamship companies not to put on
board any outbound vessel more coal
than necessary to carry 1t to the near
est Brazilian port of call. This coal ~
the property of the steamship COM
panies stored here as "A precaution-
airy measure and the fact that the
government has been obliged to place
an embargo on this private property
is indicative of the seriousness of the
fuel problems in this country.
The railroads likewise have been
forced to economize by cutting down
the summer time tables of trains, and
in the meantime they have placed or
ders for 100000 tons of hard wood
for fuel hut even wood has gone up
S. a ton within week. and Is now
quoted at $33 paper. or si4 gold.
Charcoal which is largely used for do
nestle purposes is also $5 ton
dearer
Ships Impotcnt.
The situation Is such that even the
ships of the Argentine navy are de
clared to be impotent owing to the
lack of coal. The American-built
battleships Rivadavia and Moreno
were constructed to burn oil. but ap-
parently the oil problem is nearly as
serious as the coal situation. Crude
petroleum from the Argentine wells is
hnt ~ .,, ..s..
$50 paper. s34 gold, per ton Although
reported inferior only to the best Ru-
manian oil. the Argentine government
and people have displayed a skeptical
attitude today the native oil
The deposits have been said to be
unlimited. but despite this the output
has been small and neither the navy
nor manufacturers generally avail
themselves of the native product. The
German Electric Light Il Power Co.,
which supplies this city and suburbs,
and which formerly used coal exclu-
sively, began to use the Argentine oil
after the outbreak of the war but has
lately discontinued that and is now
burning the Mexican product. This
Notwithstanding the recent grant by
the government of SIS, 900 900 to de-
velop the Argentine oil region.
Water Also Lacking.
An official report of conditions
prevailing in and around the Como
doro- RiVadaVia oil area shows some
inefficient conditions under which the
development of the field is being un-
dertaken. Water is lacking in that
region and has to be brought from
place more than thirty miles away,
and labor is also scarce. Being
government monopoly and heavily
fiscalized. the operations have beer
elaborate and costly. but, it is
charged, extremely inefficient. 1t is
said to be doubtful who.her the oil
fields Will ever respond to the elabo-
rate hopes based upon the casual dis
covery of them in 1907 A govern
ment Inspector Just returned from
the district expresses his surprise that
the locomotives plving to and from
the petroleum zone are still being
fired with costly coal.
The peat deposits of TERRA del
Fuego are declared to contain mex
haustible supplies OF that fuel, but
with scarcity Of coasting vessels and
the difficulty of securing labor for
that bleak region. II is more than
doubtful whether it will ever pay.
OF wood there IS an enormous supply.
but 1t grows in the remote and gem
orally insalubrious regions.
American Coal Taboo
As for American coal. the freight
charged. 80 shill!ngs per ton, rules it
out of consideration. in view of the
fact that the British product is
shipped at $50 ton. This can be
done because freighters are sure Of
picking up profitable charters in the
river Platte for England or France.
To give an .dea of the manifold
ways in WHICH she lack of fuel affects
the currents OF commerce it is suf-
ficient to note that the great hotel
proprietors have met and deliberated
Upon the best course of action in
view OF the increased kitchen and
laundry expenses, which are nearly
double what they were.