226 Serentifie Intelligence. 
from springs at that place. In the borings made for oil in the 
various oil districts of the Western States, the gas which has been 
roduced so abundantly has been regarded as a useless, frequently 
an inconvenient and dangerous product. Within a year or two past, 
however, this gas has been utilized in nunierous localities, and 
mrendy a large number of wells have been bored for the express pur- 
e of obtaining it. In some cases these gas wells have been 
ighly productive, furnishing an abundance oF material for heating 
and lighting in i most convenient and manageable form, so that 
mineral resources of our country. As this Sse of procuring 
which 
reference to its present condition and prospects may not be without 
interest to the public. I therefore extract from my notes a few 
tricts, Of these, pa bored by ae Neff, Esq., near Kenyon 
College in Knox county, present some remarkable features. 
These wells were fond in 1866, at he same geteges horizon as 
that which furnishes the oil on Oil Creek, Pa. At the depth of 
jet of flame thven fect in diameter and fifteen feet ong. The 
other well, which has never been tubed, ape ejects, at inter- 
vals of one minute, the water oh fills it. It thus forms an inter- 
mittent fountain one hundred and twenty feet. in height. The 
derrick set over this well has a deg of sixty feet. In winter it 
comes incased in ice, and forms a huge translucent chimney, 
through which at regular intervals of one minute a mingled cur- 
rent of gas and water rushes to twice its height. By cuttmg 
through this chimney at its base, and igniting ate gas in a paroxys™, 
it affordsa magnificent spectacle—a fountain of water an fire w 
brilliantly illuminates the ice chimney. No accurate measure has 
been made of the gas escaping from these wells, but it is estimated 
to be sufficient to light a large city. 
At West mfield, N. Y., is another gas well, not unlike 
those I have described. This is bored to the depth of five hum 
et feet, epee down to ue vicinity of the Marcellus bitumin 
shales. From some measurements made by Prof. Wurtz, it 
