Democratic Sentinel, Volume 1, Number 27, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 17 August 1877 — Natural Gas. [ARTICLE]

Natural Gas.

“ Within two years,” says a tourist in the Pennsylvania oil region, “this village of Bradford has, grown from about 250 to 3,000 inhabitants. The streets are lighted by gas from one of the wells, which also affords fuel for fifty-five steam engines sinking fifty»-five other wells or pumping those already sunk. Besides, lights for night-work and fuel for many kitchen stoves come from the same source. Yet there is no sign of exhaustion in this even, constant, powerful flow of gas. Indeed, this well affords abundance of fuel sufficient to run engines to put down 100 more wells all at once. The oil discoveries have resulted in a transformation of the landscape quite bewildering to the old inhabitants. They hardly know their little farms, and the heretofore pure air is impregnated with a bad smell, but with these little inconveniences have come riches, and in our fast age wealth is an antiddte for many ills. The bad smells, the tramps, the eighteen groggeries where before was but one, the free fights, the lawsuits, the drunken brawls and sounds of revelry by night, are all borne with philosophical resignation.”