Coalinga field. Three companies at least have started wells in the territory under question, and two of these three have expended at least $50,000 each in drilling. As soon as the land in the vicinity of these "wild-cat" wells was thrown open to homestead entry, filings were made on all of the land around these prospect wells, irrespective of whether or not there were mineral filings on the same. In fact, the quarters filed on by the oil men were the ones most eagerly sought by the "scrippers". As a matter of opinion, the geologists believe that the classification of last June is correct, but as a matter of policy it seems to them that an effort should be made to protect these operators long enough to allow them to prove or disprove their belief that the land in question is oil bearing. The land in question lies south of Coalinga, and is pronounced by the geologists as having little or no agricultural value, and in this opinion I concur, from my own observation last year. I recommend that the debatable strip, including the lands described below, be again temporarily withdrawn from agricultural entry, pending the exploration in progress by the oil men. I am confident that the operators are acting in good faith, and deserve protection, inasmuch as they are backing their judgment by large expenditures in drilling. I have discussed the matter with Secretary Garfield, and he authorizes me to express his approval of this recommendation, provided there are no complications other than those which I have set forth. The following are the lands recommended for temporary withdrawal, pending the completion of the drilling tests: T. 21 S, R. 15 E; S T. 21 S, R. 16 E; S MOUNT DIABLO BASE AND MERIDIAN 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, N. † 16, N. E. † 23, 24, 25, E 35, 36. T. 22 S, R. 15 E; 1, 2, 12, N. E. † 13. 35, 36. T. 22 S, R. 16 E; 3 to 11 inclusive, 14 to 18 inclusive, N. E. † 19, N. † & S. E. † 20, 22, 23, S. 24, 25, 26, N. & S. E. † 27, N. E. 28, N., S. E. T. 22 S, R. 17 E; W. & S. E. 30, 31, W. & S. E. † 32, S. W. 33. T. 23 S, R. 16 E; N. † 1. T. 23 S, R. 17 E; S. W. † 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, N. † 8, 9, 10, 11, S. W. † 12, 13, 14, N. † & S. E. 15, N. E. 16, N. & S. E. † 23, 24, N. † & S. E. † 25. T. 23 S, R. 18 E; W. & S. E. † 19, W. † & S. E. † 29, 30, N. † & S. E. † 31, 32. Very respectfully, LETTER OF SEPTEMBER 24, 1908, FROM RALPH ARNOLD TO DIRECTOR. DR. GEO. OTIS SMITH, Director, U. S. Geological Survey, Washington, D. C. MY DEAR DOCTOR SMITH: MC KITTRICK, CAL. Sept. 24, 1908. I am enclosing herewith a list of townships along the southwestern side of the San Joaquin Valley lying between Coalinga, on the south, and Martinez on the north. This land covers the area now being mapped topographically, and which we expect to map geologically next season if plans prepared this year are carried out. There is considerable activity in oil development work thruout portions of this territory, and the same old problems of mineral rights vs. agricultural (mostly fake propositions to get the land for oil) are coming out. The Coalinga proposition worked out so nicely that I believe an effort should be made to have this land temporarily withdrawn from agricultural entry pending our classification of it after mapping the geology of the region. How about the temporary withdrawal of the land covered by the McKittrick Sunset map? I sent in a request for the withdrawal sometime ago but have heard nothing from it. Do you know whether the suggestion was acted upon by the Land Office? A memorandum should also be sent to the Land Office protesting against the issuing of patents to oil land on gypsum development work. This gypsum ruse to obtain oil land is one of the biggest steals that has ever been tried in this part of the country. All of the men who are working it admit they want the land for oil. If these men are allowed to use this method it will be but a short time until there is no vacant oil land whatever. And the gypsum proposition is being resorted to by the biggest companies, I am sorry to say-companies that ought to have better business standards. Cannot something be done now to stop this sort of thing. This is the most important problem in the government land side of our work here, and it certainly needs prompt and permanent treatment. Our geological work is going on nicely. We will not be able to entirely cover the area mapped in the McKittrick Sunset sheet, but we will finish the most important parts. Mr. Campbell and Mr. White spent four days with me and saw all of the fields from Sunset to Coalinga. They were well impressed with the magnificent way in which the geology shows up on the bare hills. I expect to arrive in Washington by October 31st. I am in receipt, under date of September 17, 1908,1 of a letter from Mr. George Otis Smith, Director of the Geological Survey, recommending the temporary withdrawal of certain lands in the Coalinga oil district, Visalia land district, California, in order that drilling tests for oil may be completed therein. His reasons for making this request are set forth in his letter from which I quote the following: Under date of August 15, 1907, the Acting Secretary of the Interior directed you to temporarily withdraw certain lands near Coalinga, Cal., pending examination by the Geological Survey. On June 19, 1908, I sent you a list of lands in the Coalinga district which had been classified as mineral lands by the geologists, and requested that those be withdrawn from any but mineral land entry. The basis for the classification was given, and the belief was expressed that all the lands lying between the north line of T. 19 S and the south line of T. 24 S, M. D. M., and between the west line of R. 14 E. and east line of R. 19 E., are non-mineral bearing, in so far as petroleum is concerned. I am now informed by Geologist Arnold that among the lands thus restored to agricultural entry there are some tracts which are considered oil lands by operators in the Coalinga field. Three companies at least have started wells in the territory under question, and two of these three have expended at least $50,000 each in drilling. As soon as the land in the vicinity of these "wild-cat" wells was thrown open to homestead entry, filings were made on all of the land around these prospect wells, irre 1 See p. 110. spective of whether or not there were mineral filings on the same. In fact, the quarters filed on by the oil men were the ones most eagerly sought by the "scrippers". As a matter of opinion, the geologists believe that the classification of land [sic] June is correct, but as a matter of policy it seems to them that an effort should be made to protect these operators long enough to allow them to prove or disprove their belief that the land in question is oil bearing. The land in question lies south of Coalinga, and is pronounced by the geologists as having little or no agricultural value, and in this opinion I concur, from my own observations last year. I recommend that the debatable strip, including the lands described below, be again temporarily withdrawn from agricultural entry, pending the exploration in progress by the oil men. I am confident that the operators are acting in good faith, and deserve protection, inasmuch as they are backing their judgment by large expenditures in drilling. I have discussed the matter with Secretary Garfield, and he authorizes me to express his approval of this recommendation, provided there are no complications other than those set forth. The lands involved herein, together with other lands adjoining, were withdrawn from agricultural entry "pending investigation of the character thereof by the Geological Survey" by office letter of August 21, 1908, under direction of the Acting Secretary of the Interior dated August 15, 1907, and were restored to all forms of entry by office letter of July 10, 1908, approved by the Department, on the recommendation of the Director of the Geological Survey under date of June 17, 1908. In view of the facts set forth by the Honorable Director, I concur in his conclusions, and recommend that the lands be temporarily withdrawn from agricultural entry pending the completion of the drilling tests now going on. A list of the lands for which withdrawal is requested is attached herewith. LETTER OF OCTOBER 24, 1908, FROM DIRECTOR TO SECRETARY. The Honorable, SIR: I The SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR. OCTOBER 24, 1908. desire to bring to your attention an extreme case of the waste of a mineral resource able to suggest some method of conservation. The Chief Geologist of the Survey, in the United States, in the hope that the legal officers of the Department may be C. W. Hayes, recently visited the Caddo oil field in Louisiana, in company with David T. Day, who is in charge of the Survey's investigation into the subject of oil production. The Chief Geologist's report is as follows: This field is located about twenty-five miles north west of Shreveport, Louisiana, in Caddo Parish. The field, as at present outlined by the preliminary well drilling, is They arrow and extends for some ten miles in a north west and southeast direction. extent. There is every indication of further extension of the field to the north and southeast. In fact, no definite limitations have as yet been determined for the field, and it may be safely assumed from present conditions that it is likely to be of much greater several years has given evidence of very great natural gas pressure, and several gas This field has only lately come into prominence as a producer of petroleum, but for wells have been connected by pipe lines, first with Shreveport and later with Texarkana, by six and eight inch pipe lines respectively. 15211°-Bull. 623-16 -8 LETTER OF FEBRUARY 24, 1908, FROM DIRECTOR TO SECRETARY. The Honorable, SIR: The SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR, Washington, D. C. FEBRUARY 24, 1908. I have the honor to call your attention to page 15 (inclosed herewith) of the Daily Consular and Trade Report of the Department of Commerce and Labor, of Saturday, February 15, 1908, which directs attention to the superiority of liquid fuels, that is, petroleum products in one or another form, on steamships, and also to the policy of the British Government in using such liquid fuels as emergency fuels in battle ships; also to the editorial on page 3 of The Oil Industry of January 15, 1908. It will be easy, if desired, to multiply the authoritative statements already in print concerning the superiority of liquid fuel for the Navy. For that reason I have to recommend that the filing of claims to oil lands in the State of California be suspended in order that the Government may continue ownership of valuable supplies of liquid fuel in this region where all fuel is expensive. It is evident from the many reports on the superiority of liquid fuel that the question of its adoption is simply a question as to the price at which suitable petroleum products can be purchased. The present rate at which the oil lands in California are being patented by private parties will make it impossible for the people of the United States to continue ownership of oil lands there more than a few months. After that, the Government will be obliged to repurchase the very oil that it has practically given away. The inadequacy of the coal supply on the Pacific Coast is well known to everyone who has made the subject of fuel a study. The local supply is derived entirely from a few mines on Puget Sound and one locality in eastern Washington. There are also some coal developments in Oregon, but no deposits here of a quality much above a lignite. In California the supply is limited to a small production of poor coal and coal briquettes about Mount Diablo, near San Francisco; and one mine in Monterey County, which is producing a small quantity of a fairly good bituminous which is not being marketed as yet, owing to poor transportation facilities. The great bulk of the coal used on the Pacific Coast is obtained from our western inland fields or from Australia. Regarding the petroleum supply, the production last year did not meet the requirements of the trade, and the reserve stock was drawn on to meet the demand. At present the rate of increase in demand is more rapid than the increase in production, and this, taken in connection with the great falling off in certain of the older fields, due to depletion of the sands and to flooding by water of sands which otherwise might be productive, shows how important is this matter of a conservation of the remaining supply. Those areas in which the probabilities are greatest for striking commercial deposits of oil have nearly all been prospected with a drill and either proven or condemned. There are only a few areas of probable oil territory now remaining under governmental control, and these are rapidly being filed on and patented, either through legitimate oil development or by subterfuge, over claims for gypsum, etc. If anything is to be done regarding the matter, there is no question but that it should be done at once, for prospecting is now going on at an unprecedented rate throughout the West. All of the larger oil companies realize not only that the supply in the proven fields is limited, but that the area over which prospecting is liable to result favorably, is also restricted. Very respectfully, GEO. OTIS SMITH Daily Consular Reports, February 15, 1908. LIQUID FUEL. Its use favored by the British Admiralty-Used in Russian waters. J. D. Henry, in the London Times, regards the use of liquid fuel on steamships and for engines generally as settled, which he thinks will be a good thing for the oil fields in general. He says: It would not be easy to overestimate the importance of the position secured by liquid fuel in naval engineering science. Practically every problem arising out of its safe storage, complete atomization, and smokeless consumption has been solved, and 1908 finds it permanently established in the British navy as an emergency fuel in battle ships and the steam-raising power which gives the greatest speed in thirty-six of the "coastal" torpedo destroyers and at least five of the "ocean-going" type. We have this further evidence of the admiralty's confidence in fuel oil-that many oil-fired warships are being built; that the fleet auxiliary tank steamer Petroleum is due in this country with a cargo of Texas oil; and that the new tank steamer Oberon is, on Government charter, bound for Rangoon to load the first full cargo of Indian oil for the admiralty. Used in conjunction with turbines, it has revolutionized the power and speed ideas of those who are responsible for the steam-raising equipment of the mosquito and scout types. The British triumphs of 1907 were secretly secured while foreign naval authorities neglected the subject; in the future, however, as the result of these successes, oil fuel will be an important naval and engineering subject in every country which has a navy. Liquid fuel is used extensively on vessels running between Baku, Russia, and Petrovsk and Astrakhan, at the mouth of the Volga, and on that river there are large fleets of oil-fired cargo carriers. The Caspian tank steamers (oil-fired) completed the following voyages between Baku and Astrakhan: In 1905, 4,550; in 1906, 3,631, and in 1907, 4,212. During years of large exports the monthly voyages equaled 900, or 7.200 voyages by liquid-fuel-burning carriers of petroleum and its products for a single navigation. I am enclosing herewith a list of the lands in the Coalinga District, California, which have been classified as mineral lands by the geologists of this Bureau. The lands classified as mineral include all those lying between the outcrop of the lowest oilbearing formation, the Tejon (Eocene) and a line marking the limits of the area in which the uppermost oil sand of the District can be reached by a well less than 4500 feet in depth. This basis of classification is believed to give a wide margin to the oil producers, as, with one or two exceptions, no successful wells over 4400 feet in depth have been drilled in the California oil fields. In dealing with oil lands it must be borne in mind, however, that absolute determination, by work on the surface, of the occurrence or non-occurrence of oil in any one locality is not possible. The best that can be done is to calculate the degree of probability on the basis of surface indications and structural conditions. Such calculations have been made in the Coalinga field and the lands mentioned in the accompanying list are believed to be those which future development will prove to be more or less oil-bearing. and It is therefore requested that the lands mentioned in the accompanying list be withdrawn from any but mineral land entry. It is believed that all of the other lands lying between the north line of T. 19 S., and the south line of T. 24 S., M. D. M., & between the west line of R. 14 E., and the east line of R. 19 E., are non-mineral bearing in so far as petroleum is concerned. Very respectfully, GEO. OTIS SMITH Director. |