Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-01-14
BY JOHN r. SINCLAIR.

Special Dispatch to The Star.
NEW YORK, January 14.-Harry F.
Sinclair of the Sinclair Oil Co.. Charles
S. Jones, Rio Grande OIL Co., and
w. S. Fitzpatrick, chairman OF the
Prairie Oil & Gas Co., are in the West
inspecting oil and gas properties con-
nected with one or all of these COM
panies.
Should merger of these occur, II
would probably include the Prairie
Pipe Line.
Rio Grande properties are in FL Paso,
West Texas, Arizona and in California,
in which State the company has its
largest interests.
Should such a tie-up occur, the Sin
clair group would probably sell its half
interest in the Sinclair Pipe Line Co.
and the Sinclair Crude Oil Purchasing
Co. to the Standard Oil of Indiana,
which already owns the other half Of
these companies.
Such a merger would be the first en-
try of the Sinclair oil group west OF the
Rockies.
The Rio Grande's most valuable
property at the moment Is the Elwood
Terrace, in California. But so per cent
of this producing company is owned
by the Barnsdall Corporation:
Does this mean "a possible tie-up with
Barnsdail, which has its main proper
ties In the Midwest field?
Whatever develops, big oil merger
Is in the making.
While rounding out oil mergers, one
should not forget the growing impor-
lance of natural gas in the oil industry.
Today more than 81, 900, 000,0 900 is in
vested in the natural gas industry
Manufactured gas has increased 81 per
IA,If
period natural gas consumption has
more than doubled.
John z. Kelly, vice president OF the
natural gas subsidiaries of the Inland
Utilities, Inc, of West Virginia and
Kentucky, believes the move has only
begun and that the linking Of produc-
ton, piping and marketing units in
superpoWer organizations as in the cleo
trical field will take place in the field
Of natural gas.
so 600 miles of pipe Is serving such cities
as Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Cincinnati, st
Louis, Columbus. Denver and Los Ange-
les" says Mr.. Kelly. "An extension OF
the lines will take natural gas to Chi
cago, Philadelphia, New York and other
Eastern cities"
while 90 years ago a pipe line 100
miles long was rare thing, today
project Is u0Qer COuLcIIlpldCIOIl W Ca
tend q gas pipe line from West Texas
to Chicago, 1000 miles.
A pipe line from the Monroe-Rich-
land field, in Louisiana, to Birmingham,
Ala, 325 miles, taking natural gas to
Birmingham. has just been completed.
The work on the extension OF the line
to Atlanta, Ga, 1877 miles farther, is go
per cent completed. according to j. H.
White, president Of the Southern Nat
ural Gas Corporation.
Towns between these points are sup
piled also by lateral lines. Thirty towns
in Mississippi, Alabama and Georgia
will be supplied.
The Southern Natural Gas Corpor-
alton has a 20-year contract with pro-
ducers in the Monroe Richland field to
supply 150,000,0O0 cubic feet daily
through its new line.
Aggressive Southern cities, quick to
see the advantage of cheap power, both
in electricity and gas, are looking ahead
Is years.
Japan, back on the gold standard
after being of for IL years, faces her
real problem. For years spectators
and merchants have been holding bills
bought when the yen was low. Now