Reviews 



Oil Investigations in igiy and igi8. Bulletin 49. Illinois Geologi- 

 cal Suivey, 1919. Pp. 144. 



The volume Consists of five papers bearing on the oil and gas of 

 Illinois. The first, "Petroleum in Illinois in 1917 and 1918," by N. O. 

 Barret, contains statistics of the economic phase of the oil industry. 

 The salient facts, as summarized in the report, are (i) that in 1917 

 Illinois fell in rank from fourth to fifth among oil-producing states, due 

 to the actual decline that same year in Illinois production, and to the 

 enormous increase in oil production in Kansas in that year; (2) that 

 in 1 91 8 with further decrease of production in Illinois and a notable 

 increase in production in Louisiana, Illinois fell to sixth place as far as 

 quantity was concerned; (3) that evidence of the high grade of Illinois 

 oil is found in the fact that Illinois ranked fourth and fifth in value of 

 product in 191 7 and 1918, when it ranked fifth and sixth in quantity 

 of oil produced. 



The three following papers, "Brown County" and "Goodhope and 

 Laharpe Quadrangles," by Merle L. Noble, and "Parts of Pike and 

 Adams Counties," by Horace N. Coryell, are reports dealing with the 

 geology of the areas mentioned with particular reference to oil and gas 

 possibilities. All the reports have good structural maps. In the areas 

 described there are four possible oil and gas horizons, (i) the Potts ville 

 conglomerate, (2) the Niagaran dolomite, (3) the Hoing sand (Silurian, 

 just below the Niagaran), (4) the Maquoketa shale and Galena Platts- 

 ville limestone or dolomite (Ordovician). The Hoing sand has furnished 

 the best showing of oil, but prospecting in it is hazardous, owing to the 

 discontinuous and lenticular nature of the sand. The other formations 

 have furnished only slight showings of oil and gas in this territory. In 

 Warren County gas occurs in small quantities in the glacial drift; the 

 gas probably was derived from the decomposition of vegetable matter 

 buried in the drift, and no large amounts are to be expected. 



The fifth paper, "Experiments in Water Control in the Flat Rock 

 Pool, Crawford County," by F. B. Tough, S. H. WiUiston, and T. E. 

 Savage (in co-operation with the U.S. Bureau of Mines), is a statement 

 of investigation and work done in regard to corrective work in water 

 control in oil wells. Various aspects of the problem are discussed, 

 including the use of mud fluid and cement in water control. R.A.J. 



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