Decorah public opinion. (Decorah, Winneshiek County [Iowa]) 1895-1928, 1921-12-14
The OIL QUESTION
IN WINNESH|EK
Conditions Discussed With Views of
Biologists by VIM. j. Daily,
OF Cresco. Q
DECORAH COMPANY
GETTING READY TO DRILL
Various Places in the County Show
The Best Kind of Evidence
For Oil.


OF VIM. j. DAILY, of Cresco, regard
ing oil in Iowa, will be read will
Interest by our readers. The article
appeared in the Dubuque Telegraph
Herald last week.
Your issue of Nov. 80 ult. contains
a news dispatch from Ames, Iowa
purporting to be an interview with
Prof. j. Z. Smith, geologist at Iowa
State college, "who says that the
geological formations of the sub
surfaces Tin Iowa) are not the kind
that ever contain oil.
State Geologist George F. Kay, in
his Administrative Report" Iowa
Geological Survey, Vol. %, quotes
the late Prof. Samuel Calvin of the
Iowa State University as follows:
Three conditions, therefore, must
exist conjointly-the source of sup
ply in some form of organic matter,
the porous reservoir and impervious
cover, and the arched or folded con-
, pdition of the beds. 1t is the last of
these conditions that is wanting in
Iowa"
1t is therefore admitted by Prof.
named are present.
Regarding the last named con-
dition, towit: "the arched or folded"
beds, Prof. Calvin speaks in "Iowa
Geologist Survey, VOL 49," which is
the Geology of 'Winneshiek county,"
as follows:
During the progress of deposition
of the sedimentary or indurated
rocks of Iowa, that are younger than
the Saint Croix sandstone, the north
es'' cofaHnerr of the state, together
sy.ssr, ss- Le,-7 adjacent area, was
gradually elevated or tilted up,
hence the shore line of the sea in
which the strata were successfully
laid down, retreated step by step,
toward the southeast" That quota
ton is from the Introduction"
On page 63 Prof. Calvin says: "At
Quandahl, about a fourth of a mile
east of the county line" the beds
have a slight dip to the west" Far
ther down on the same page he says
that in Pleasant township the "beds
here dip strongly to the west"
On page n Prof. Calvin tells us:
''The regular southwest dip of the
strata, which prevails generally
throughout eastern Iowa, is inter-
fered with by low anticline passing
northwestardly through Satire and
Locust in the northeastern part of
Pleasant township. North of this
axis the dip is toward the northeast;
on the other side the dip is regular
and throws the exposures of the
Saint Peter (standstone) toward the
southeast"
These quotations evidently admit
the wanting condition, namely
the "arched and folded condition of
the beds" in Winneshiek county. If
not, the Iowa geologists should make
a clear explanation as to how much
"dip" is needed to constitute an
"arched and folded" bed for oil pur-
poses. Then if the. other surface
indications are present, such as oil
seepages and gas escapements, as
they undoubtedly are in Winneshiek
county, they should state what more
evidence any other oil field presents
prior to drilling a well.
The first quotation above was
taken by DR.. Kay from DIR. Calvin's
Administrative Report in Vol. /. All
of the other quotations come from
Vol. 16 which undoubtedly was later
investigation by DIR. Calvin-that is,
more recently discovered evidence.
That may explain the apparent con-
flict in DR.. Calvin's statements of
facts.
A corporation has been organized
and is about to drill in Winneshiek
county. The well known surgeon,
DIR. Geo. Kessel of Cresco, Iowa, is
president of that company. All the
PROPAGANDA of the corporation warns
the prospective buyers of stock not
to put in more than he can afford
to lose, which is not sharp practice.
1t might be good business instinct
for those with interests in the field
to put in what they can afford to
lose just to try out the country. The
landowners in the locality may be,
even at the present time, million
aires in meek obscurity. Nothing
ventured, nothing won. Every bus
mess proposition has some fog to
dispel. Lifting the fog requires
some plunging in every venture.
There is nothing a dead sure thing
except making the world safe for
democracy; for that we always keep
the heart light and the future bright
Notwithstanding the taxes.
Very truly yours,
VIM. ]. DAILY,