Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1927-12-28
INTEREST HIGH
IN Gas we'll
AT RIO HONDO
Many Biologists Are
Visiting Site But
Have Little to Say
After Examination
Especial 70 TIE Heraldn

|
Especial TO The Herald
RIO HONDO. Dec. as-P-Is
there a large deposit ~ petroleum W
natural gas c.ose TO Rio Hondo?
This question has been asked Rio
Honeo resident hundreds Of times in
tne past three weeks, since the recent
wells.
biologists have come 10 town. look
Cd over the location, and like al 9TH
crs OF their cult have maintained q
dignified silence.
Ol engineers, developers and pro
motors have likewise examined the
gasoline wells. locked mystified. and
departed without adding 10 the wis
dom Of Rio Honco residents. One or
TWO promoters, after spending a few
Gays ~ the Arroyo City. e7deavored
20 secure oil leases on some az Rio
hondos prize citrus fruit and yege-
Fable lands, but were unsuccessful.
When the announcement was made
hy ~ ~ Maynard that he had & razo-
line well. twelve feet IN depth. from
which he was dipping gasoline daily.
the city was skeptical. When he con
tinred 70 dip gasoline day after day.
skeptieism vanished. and Rio Hondo
IS now satisfied that in close prox-
Unity 10 the city is a large deposit OF
petroleum or natural gas. and that
IN Natures laboratory the gasoline
Is being distilled.
Well is Paved
Unfortunately. the main well
which was IN the gutter in front Of
y. d .Maynard's store has fallen vie
time 10 the exigeneies Of civic prog
ress. When the concrete paving was
laid recently II became necessary 10
close the Well. but plans are now be-
ing made for additional tests on lots
adjacent.
The main "well' yielded a total
OF about thirty gallons az pure gaso-
line before 10 was closed. and similar I
wells" dug 70 a depth OF 10 or ~
feet, also proved producers. over 100
gallons Of gasoline have been taken
from the various wells, and there has
been no indication III any d%iminution
Of the supply. Approximately 20
gallons was used by II. a. Wiley for
hts motor truck and il had all the
kick Of the best grade gasoline.
The discovery Of the natural gaso-
line az a shallow depth Is believed 70
explain a very mysterious occurance
Of several years ago when certain Sec
NfWAA@ Va AHNN AAMAANaW y AWIAAMME EAAL" ]
walk refused "a remain IN the places
where they were laid.
Sidewalk Rises
! Back in 1920 Rio Hondo started a
sidewalk campaign and several blocks
OF concrete sidewalk were laid in the
business section OF the little city.
The summer was hot and dry. and
along IN September the residents OF
the town awoke one morning 20 find
that a section or Sidewalk about five Y
feet m length had been blown up.
.Ihe entire section was shattered ard
Netes Of concrete were found 80 10
W. feet distant. AS Rio Hondo hes
her boishevists nor FelnGns tie
uwAs Aon was az first attributed 10
w sion Of the concrete.
The shattered sect on az the side
wal was replaced. A few days later
Joe Yocnlan was walking down the
street when he asw the section Of
sidewalk just east ~ that Which had
been shattered rse in che abr several
feet and then settle back IN place. lie
rubbed his eyes and wondered II he
had been seeing things hut an in-
vestigation showed that p large sec
tior or the sidewalk had been moved
Old timers. who az that time con
sidCrcd these incidents aF very mys
ferrous. now attribute them % the eX-
pansion 81 Eas formed under the solid
concrete. Dge 10 the fact the wealth
err he'd been extremely warm, the eN-
pansive force of the gas was tremer-
dous. they state. sufficient IN one
case. 70 completely shatter a large
block Of concrete.
Discover Gas Well
~. lw~rm mwvruwF AZ smumH.ru fn tho n
lower strata OF soil was discovered
when workmen for the electric light
company were changing poles on main
street. A workman In a hole ~ feet
in dopth was nearly a%sphiTiated by
the flow ~ gas. and tests revealed
that gasoline was flowing into the
hole. The gas ign:tcd when matches
were thrown into the excavation. and
the dirt thrown out from the bottom
contained sufficient gasoline 20 bum
when 4 match was anriied. Some gas
and gasoline was found IN another
hole ten feet distant. but not as much
as IN the first excavation.
-Four test wells. ranging from Ia 70
u feet, were dug. and IN an az them
Gas or gasoline was found. The
amount dipped from the holes Is SUI
ficicnt 10 indicate that the gasoline
doc not come from tank leakage. AIT
tnr,;s in that section Of the city have
beea tested and have been found
tight.
Il Natural Gasoline
n. Z. Maynard, who made the first
lasts, expressed the opinion that q
faree deposit Of petroleum or natural
gas "A located in close proximity 70
Rio Hondo. and that by 2 series q
tests which will show the fault or
~crevlce through which II escaped 70
the uppsr stratas. the deposit can
eventuslly be located.
~ must confess tina; ! know very
little about the oil game" Mr. May
nar3 said. "but | am confident the
gasoline comes from some large DC
poslt and Il distilled hy some process
of Nature. We know there arc large
n~uhtcrranean cracks IN The sell az the
Valley. and I believe the gasoline Is
being forced hv pressure through
those cracks. Probably the deposit
could BE located III tests wete made.
Oil men who have been IN Rio
Horde recently stated thet the pro-
duc,ion IL the local wells may he
what IA known IN the oil regions rs
ssshale gasoline" This Is found oe-
~rasionally. they said. hat ~ almost
Invariably II poor quality. whereas
the gasoline found here is evidently
of the same quality as that distilled
81 mcdaniel means. Shale gaso
line j. found very rarely they stated
and orlv in small quantities; but Is
invariably found in close proximity
"a lrrFe deposits - petroleum or nat