PETROLEUM AT CONTROLLER BAY. 101 
between the drill and the rock, in both ways reducing the power of the 
blow. The only remedy is in casing off the water, which can not be 
done too often without reducing the size of the hole to undesirable 
dimensions and finally limiting the depth to which it can be drilled 
without pulling the casing and going back and reaming out the hole. 
REMOTENESS FROM SUPPLIES. 
The remoteness of this region from a base of supplies increases the 
cost of labor and of freight, which will be discussed under a subse- 
quent heading, and also increases the time and expense of drilling, by 
making it necessary either to carry an exceptionally large equipment 
of fishing and repairing tools and of general supplies or to be subject 
to delays in ordering special tools from a long distance. Conditions 
will improve in this respect with better facilities for communication 
and transportation, and can also be bettered if ma -hine shops and 
supply depots are established, as they will be if the presence of pro- 
ductive oil territory is shown. 
INEXPERIENCE WITH LOCAL CONDITIONS. 
The difficulties caused by the lack of experience of the drillers with 
the rocks of the local section have already been alluded to under vari- 
ous headings. They may be summarized as including failure to drill 
slowly or dress the tools so as to avoid deflecting the drill on hard, 
steeply inclined surfaces; failure to note the crookedness of the hole 
and remedy it promptly; ignorance of local caving strata and conse- 
quent failure to case in time to prevent cavings; and failure to obtain 
proper and adequate outfit and supplies. 
COST OF LABOR AND TRANSPORTATION. 
The cost of drilling has been very largely increased over what it 
would be in more favored and better established oil fields by the 
high cost of labor and of transportation of men and freight. Not 
only are the drillers paid higher wages than they would receive at 
most localities, but the unskilled labor receives excessive pay. It 
is highly probable that when conditions become more settled and 
work is done on a larger and more permanent scale wage conditions 
will become more normal and transportation charges will be reduced. 
SHIPMENT AND MARKETS. 
If petroleum is produced in commercial quantities at Controller 
Bay a new set of problems concerning its disposal will arise. All 
the petroleum of the region, as far as is now known, is a refining oil 
of high grade, for which there is a good demand on the Pacific coast. 
The content of extremely volatile constituents, such as gasoline, is so 
