﻿166 
  ANNUAL 
  REPORT 
  SMITHSONIAN 
  INSTITUTION, 
  194 
  3 
  

  

  made 
  in 
  the 
  actual 
  location 
  of 
  good 
  gas 
  territory 
  on 
  this 
  theory. 
  During 
  the 
  

   last 
  2 
  years, 
  I 
  have 
  submitted 
  it 
  to 
  all 
  manner 
  of 
  tests, 
  both 
  in 
  locating 
  and 
  

   condemning 
  gas 
  territory, 
  and 
  the 
  general 
  result 
  has 
  been 
  to 
  confirm 
  the 
  anti- 
  

   clinal 
  theory 
  beyond 
  a 
  reasonable 
  doubt. 
  

  

  But 
  while 
  we 
  can 
  state 
  with 
  confidence 
  that 
  all 
  great 
  gas 
  wells 
  are 
  found 
  

   on 
  the 
  anticlinal 
  axis, 
  the 
  converse 
  of 
  this 
  is 
  not 
  true, 
  viz, 
  that 
  great 
  gas 
  wells 
  

   may 
  be 
  found 
  on 
  all 
  anticlinals. 
  In 
  a 
  theory 
  of 
  this 
  kind, 
  the 
  limitations 
  be- 
  

   come 
  quite 
  as 
  important 
  as, 
  or 
  even 
  more 
  so 
  than, 
  the 
  theory 
  itself 
  ; 
  and 
  hence 
  I 
  

   have 
  given 
  considerable 
  thought 
  to 
  this 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  question, 
  having 
  formulated 
  

   them 
  into 
  three 
  or 
  four 
  general 
  rules 
  (which 
  include 
  practically 
  all 
  of 
  the 
  limita- 
  

   tions 
  known 
  to 
  me, 
  up 
  to 
  the 
  present 
  time, 
  that 
  should 
  be 
  placed 
  on 
  the 
  state- 
  

   ment 
  that 
  large 
  gas 
  wells 
  may 
  be 
  obtained 
  on 
  anticlinal 
  folds) 
  as 
  follows: 
  

  

  (a) 
  The 
  arch 
  in 
  the 
  rocks 
  must 
  be 
  one 
  of 
  considerable 
  magnitude; 
  (6) 
  A 
  

   coarse 
  or 
  porous 
  sandstone 
  of 
  considerable 
  thickness, 
  or, 
  if 
  a 
  fine-grained 
  rock, 
  

   one 
  that 
  would 
  have 
  extensive 
  fissures, 
  and 
  thus, 
  in 
  either 
  case, 
  rendered 
  capable 
  

   of 
  acting 
  as 
  a 
  reservoir 
  for 
  the 
  gas, 
  must 
  underlie 
  the 
  surface 
  at 
  a 
  depth 
  of 
  

   several 
  hundred 
  feet 
  (500 
  to 
  2,500 
  feet) 
  ; 
  (c) 
  Probably 
  very 
  few 
  or 
  none 
  of 
  the 
  

   grand 
  arches 
  along 
  mountain 
  ranges 
  will 
  be 
  found 
  holding 
  gas 
  in 
  large 
  quantity, 
  

   since 
  in 
  such 
  cases 
  the 
  disturbance 
  of 
  the 
  stratification 
  has 
  been 
  so 
  profound 
  that 
  

   all 
  the 
  natural 
  gas 
  generated 
  in 
  the 
  past 
  would 
  long 
  ago 
  have 
  escaped 
  into 
  the 
  

   air 
  through 
  fissures 
  that 
  traverse 
  all 
  the 
  beds. 
  Another 
  limitation 
  might 
  possibly 
  

   be 
  added, 
  which 
  would 
  confine 
  the 
  area 
  where 
  great 
  gas 
  flows 
  may 
  be 
  obtained 
  

   to 
  those 
  underlaid 
  by 
  a 
  considerable 
  thickness 
  of 
  bituminous 
  shale. 
  

  

  Very 
  fair 
  gas 
  wells 
  may 
  also 
  be 
  obtained 
  for 
  a 
  considerable 
  distance 
  down 
  

   the 
  slope 
  from 
  the 
  crest 
  of 
  the 
  anticlinals, 
  provided 
  the 
  dip 
  be 
  sufficiently 
  

   rapid, 
  and 
  especially 
  if 
  it 
  be 
  irregular, 
  or 
  interrupted 
  with 
  slight 
  crumples. 
  

   And 
  even 
  in 
  regions 
  where 
  there 
  are 
  no 
  well-marked 
  anticlinals, 
  if 
  the 
  dip 
  be 
  

   somewhat 
  rapid 
  and 
  irregular, 
  rather 
  large 
  gas 
  wells 
  may 
  occasionally 
  be 
  found, 
  

   if 
  all 
  other 
  conditions 
  are 
  favorable. 
  

  

  Ashburner 
  (1885), 
  of 
  the 
  Second 
  Pennsylvania 
  Geological 
  Survey, 
  

   replied 
  promptly 
  to 
  White's 
  announcement. 
  While 
  conceding 
  that 
  a 
  

   relation 
  existed 
  between 
  the 
  position 
  of 
  anticlinal 
  axes 
  and 
  the 
  loca- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  gas 
  fields, 
  he 
  regarded 
  the 
  problem 
  as 
  more 
  complex 
  and 
  cited 
  

   other 
  factors 
  which 
  he 
  considered 
  to 
  be 
  controlling, 
  as 
  follows 
  : 
  

  

  Although 
  it 
  is 
  a 
  fact 
  that 
  many 
  of 
  our 
  largest 
  Pennsylvania 
  gas 
  wells 
  are 
  

   located 
  near 
  anticlinal 
  axes, 
  yet 
  the 
  position 
  in 
  which 
  gas 
  may 
  be 
  found, 
  and 
  

   the 
  amount 
  to 
  be 
  obtained, 
  depend 
  upon 
  (a) 
  the 
  porosity 
  and 
  homogeneousness 
  

   of 
  the 
  sandstone 
  which 
  serves 
  as 
  a 
  reservoir 
  to 
  hold 
  the 
  gas; 
  (o) 
  the 
  extent 
  to 
  

   which 
  the 
  strata 
  above 
  or 
  below 
  the 
  gas-sand 
  are 
  cracked; 
  (c) 
  the 
  dip 
  of 
  the 
  

   gas-sand 
  and 
  the 
  position 
  of 
  the 
  anticlines 
  and 
  synclines; 
  (d) 
  the 
  relative 
  pro- 
  

   portions 
  of 
  water, 
  oil, 
  and 
  gas 
  contained 
  in 
  the 
  sand; 
  and 
  (e) 
  the 
  pressure 
  under 
  

   which 
  the 
  gas 
  exists 
  before 
  being 
  tapped 
  by 
  wells. 
  

  

  Lesley, 
  in 
  a 
  paper 
  published 
  the 
  following 
  year 
  (1886, 
  pp. 
  654-655), 
  

   strongly 
  opposed 
  White's 
  theory; 
  the 
  following 
  quotation 
  states 
  his 
  

   views 
  : 
  

  

  Quite 
  recently 
  the 
  location 
  of 
  the 
  anticlinal 
  lines 
  in 
  the 
  Pittsburgh 
  region 
  has 
  

   become 
  a 
  sort 
  of 
  popular 
  mania, 
  produced 
  by 
  a 
  theory. 
  The 
  whole 
  community 
  

   interested 
  in 
  the 
  subject 
  of 
  natural 
  gas 
  has 
  been 
  carried 
  away 
  by 
  a 
  theory 
  

   * 
  * 
  * 
  the 
  anticlinal 
  theory 
  of 
  gas. 
  

  

  