REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR IO,l6 279 



provement Co. In Allegany and Cattaraugus counties the Gowanda 

 Natural Gas Co., the Empire Gas & Fuel Co. and the Producers 

 Gas Co. are important. In Ontario county the main producer and 

 distributor is the Ontario Gas Co. Among the smaller companies 

 engaged in the business are the Consumers Natural Gas Co. with 

 wells in the town of Darien, Schuyler county, the Baldwinsville 

 Light & Power Co. of Baldwinsville, Onondaga county, the 

 Pulaski Gas & Oil Co. of Pulaski, Oswego county, and the Sandy 

 Creek Oil & Gas Co. of Sandy Creek, Oswego county. 



PETROLEUM 



The production of petroleum in 1916 fell a little short of the 

 usual average, for which the decline in prices in the previous 

 season and the resulting discouragement of new drilling may be 

 held partially responsible. The total pipe-line receipts were 

 874,087 barrels, as compared with 928,540 barrels in 191 5 and 

 933,511 barrels in 1914. A gradual falling off in the production^ 

 furthermore, has to be expected; no new oil pools are being dis- 

 covered to take the place of those now drained nearly dry after 

 many years of steady output. There is still left some undrilled 

 territory in the Allegany and Cattaraugus county fields and its 

 development will keep the industry alive for some time to come. 



The progress of drilling from year to year depends largely upon 

 the encouragement that is received from the market. The new 

 wells can be depended on for a yield of one or two barrels a day 

 as a rule, but rarely more. Consequently it is unprofitable to carry 

 on the work when prices are low, which for New York crude 

 means considerably more than the general average of quotations, 

 .When prices fall below $2 a barrel for New York crude there is 

 little profit in production. The trend of quotations in 191 5 was 

 downward during the first half, starting at $1.50, and then a 

 gradual rise began, persisting to the end when the price reached 

 $2.25 a barrel. In 1916 the course of the market was upward! 

 during most of the twelvemonth. At the start the price was $2.25,. 

 the same as in the preceding December, but in February an advance 

 to $2.35 took place, to be followed in March by a further raise to 

 $2.50 and in April by another to $2.60 a barrel. The market re- 

 mained at this level during May and June. In July a decline to 

 $2.35, with a further recession to $2.30 in August, brought an 

 interruption to the usual trend. In September the price advanced 

 to $2.50. A sharp rise to $2.75 came in November, followed by 



