The Washington times., 1917-11-24
|Mon6a Sohn
On the Gasolene Shortage.

of the country, clipping implication from Geological
Statements elaborated, fabricated, and falsed
fact to make pnhead expressions for ambitious editorial
columns.
Gentlemen with purposes, stocks, and other selfish
interests famed the flame to occasional fury and
used oil . that oil which is thousand times more
volatile than gasolene.
And so the rumor went forth and multiplied.
But there is NO shortage of gasoene.
Six months ago, when declared, the first
thought of the country of conservation. That
thought fathered little, illegitimate thoughts
Government seizure of motor and wartime gaso
lene shortage.
Today, both of those ilconceived rumOrs are so
branded. =
Henry L. Doherty, second largest producer of
Unable oil in America stated in July that sudden fall
ing off in demand would seriously hamper new work
and production meaning that unless the profit from
gasolene continued wells would require cold capi
tai from the producer He also remarked that it
the hgh price the gasoene user is willing pay for oil
that makes it economically possible to produce oil
Which is an astounding expression of frankness.
At about the time, Glenn Winship chief statis-
tician of the Sinclair Oil Refining Corporation and few
better fitted to discuss the question-had himself
few words to say:
'Early in the current year the Healdton field
producing daily about $4,000 barrels oil than it
sod and in Butler county, Kan production exceeded
shipments by about IT, 900 barrels daily. At the
time, producers in Cushing field could have sold at
premium fully 10000 barrels than their wells
yielding. r ~
"This, he added, "was not due entirely to differ
in quality of the oils produced Though the fields
not far apart lack Of transportation facilities was
of the chief reasons why the Headton and Butler
producers could not satisfy the excessive demand for
Cushing oil''
Winship said in conclusion: "We may expect
therefore, recurring periods of high and low prices but
Of petroleum products need not be disturbed by
the exhaustion alarms of wemeaning statisticans'
On November 8, David Beecroft, directing editor of
the Glass Journal Publishing Company in the interests
Of the third largest industry of the country visited the
Bureau of Mines.
The petroleum division of the bureau showed him
figures it had just compiled Those figures establish
beyond doubt that gasoene shortage exists only in the
statement and not remotely in fact
There is gasolene shortage and there is likely
to be none.
For short time as has happened before and must
recur drew not nconsideraby upon the reserve
supply of petroleum But the 164 1000 barrels which
approximate that reserve healthy today as be-
fore the calamity howers first gathered for their close
harmony.
Government officials know exactly what the remedy
must be- if the 164 100000 BARRELS of oil reserve are
ever in danger of consumption.
The remedy is Government Intervention and regu-
lation and operation the last thing producers seek
While succulent prices prevail the allimportant
fuel nothing is further from their minds than to invite
Governmental control during the period of the
control which would prove certainly that oil shortage
is myth and that production is largely matter of
producing control which would have the effect not
of radically reducing general consumption, but of
ducing retail prices today unnecessarily high.
We're the Government to take hold of the oil in
dustry today it would discover that only four elements
enter into the matter of production consistent de-
mand, railroad tracks, oil-we castings, and labor.
War calls for conservation of all resources. GasO-
lene is of many But the need for conservation i'm
plies no lack of supply. 1t should provoke no condition
Of panic will seriously hamper the successful opera
ons OF the automobile industry, upon whose successful
conduct the Government must depend for the effective
naturalization of its plans
1t is estimated that the daily war needs of gasolene
will be $4,000 gallons daily The daily production is
900 gallons These the figures Of the Bureau of
Mines.