The Washington herald., 1918-01-21
PETROL OUTPUT
REACHES PEAK
Holland Quotes Official Fig.
ures and Reviews Vast
Growth of Industry.

II il were not an Official announce
ment Of the Geological Survey at
Washington. which tells of the
amount of petroleum produced and
marketed in the United States In
1917 the figures probably would be
regarded as an unreasonable exag-
geration. But the officers Of the
survey state that the aggregate
amount of petroleum produced and
marketed in the United States last
year was 341, 500, 900 barrels. These
figures fairly well supplement other
reports which tell of the stupend-
Gus production of copper in the
United States in 1917. also of steel
and of pig-iron as well as OF coal
They are figures which almost stag
ger the imagination
Expert authorities have estimated
that at the present rate of produc-
ton nearly seventeen years will
pass before the exhaustion of our
petroleum supplies. However, this
is a matter of pure conjecture. The
great authorities in the oil industry
frankly say that no one knows how
long the petroleum supply of the
United States or OF the world will
last. II may be exhausted within a
quarter OF a century, or, through
the discovery or operation of new
oil fields and highly perfected meth
DDS of treating the oil and trans
porting it, the supply may last many
years longer than a quarter Of
century. The leaders in the oil in
dustry are going on as though they
had a right to expect that there
would be abundant supplies of oil
Oh -
hence.
Ho wwonderfuIly our production
and marketing of petroleum have in
creased in twenty years is shown
by figures which report the produc-
tfon and marketing in 1887. In that
year 90. .5O0.O0O barrels, approximately,
OF petroleum were produced and mar
keted in the United States. Each
barrel contained forty-two gallons
Therefore twenty years after the in
auguration of William Mckinley as
President of the United States the
production and sales Of petroleum
were FIVE and one-half times greater
than the production OF petroleum in
the United States. stated in barrels
Of forty-two gallons. amounted to a
little under 3Oo,O0o.O0O. Therefore
there was an increase in 1917 Of near
Iy 10000 barrels.
Demand and Its Source.
OF course this increase in the pro-
duction of petroleum is partly ex-
planned by the demands which have
been occasioned by the European war.
Not wholly, however, on that account
is the increased production to be ex-
planned. The uses to which petroleum
it,
been put have greatly increased; as,
for instance, the farmeys OF the West
are using each year more and more
tractors. which are operated by the
internal combustion of gasoline and
the presumption is strong that there
is to be speedily a great Increase in
the use Of these tractors. For It has
been determined that a tractor which
costs about 500 and which can be
easily operated by a lad or young
man, will do the work OF four horses
and at a much less cost of gasoline
than would be entailed by feeding
the horses.
As recently as 1903 there was
sent to England much the largest
consignment of. gasoline that has
ever been exported from the United
states. The estimate was that this
gasoline would be sufficient to
meet a nine-months' demand. An
other greatly extended utilization
of petroleum, one Of which the
public has little or no appreciation,
is its distillation into oil which
furnishes a highly satisfactory Iu-
bricant.
Expert authority estimates that
approximately one tenth of the Pc
trOleum produced in the United
states is now converted by distfI-
latiOn into lubTicating oil.
Only Exceeded by Water.
If this estimate be substantially
accurate then the petroleum pro-
duced in 1917 in the United States
will furnish 100000, 900 gallons of
lubricating oil Probably no other
liquid excepting water is to be
found in this amount.
Yet when 1t is considered that
the freight cars Of the United
states alone employ considerably in
excess of 100000 bearings and
Journalistic say nothing of ma
chinery-which are fabricated with
oil. then it is more easily under
stood why so stupendous an
amount as 1,500. 1000. 900 gallons of
lubricating oil is now used in the
United States.
The industry is to be maintained at
top speed. at least as long as the war
continues, for the producers are ready
to take great risks in exploiting oil
fields SINCE the prices now obtained for
fuel oil are so high as to justify the
taking Of risk of this kind.
One of the great oil operators Of the
country said that the production of
new oil is after all "A great gamble.
Those who are disappointed lose much
money; those whose shafts reach rich
bearing properties gain great profits
and will continue to do that while the
war lasts. nor is there any doubt that
after the war the demand for petro-
leum will be as great as has been the