BAKU, THE CITY OF OIL.

Timaru Herald, Volume LXXXIII, Issue 12896, 6 February 1906, Page 3

BAKU, THE CITY OF OIL.

Baku, the city of oil, ini}lk<:iaires, -it).' massacres, will in a few mor.ths jj.sve been a hundred years under tiie dcniisuou «.j Russia. No other ci;y in the w .r:<i, ii is safe to say, has had a teniu:y »>; lus.ory uiore romantic, more mysterious, » r s,> hill of transforming events. Tb:s s.un uty of the Caucasus has been very much misrepresented. Far from being dbcr.al and ugiy. it is beautifully silua'.ed on ,1 niaguificent bay in the C'a.spi.ui Sc.., wiiiiv i's buildings include a number of private palaces designed by the greatest arciiiictts of the country. and lavishly d««iai«| by Italian artists. These are owned by the principal oil men of the Caucasus. Baku was ioriLiiriy a grc;;t cc:»l;e foi fire woi shippers, temples being around ti:e spots where j-jts <<[ ita:.aaa)::li.t g,";s issued from she ground. vf txis kind arc- s;iU obseivei .--jmSs round Baku, and even :c she C.:*j,3a;» .Sw itself. If burning tow is :utwvs sea half an hour's row <:n i-.c ioLisd at Bibi"-Eibat. an immediate ignition of natural gas bubbling up from the b.jU;jn is observed, the flames spreading ovtr s <cs,siderab?o area. Only the wjnd ;<;:d wives are capable of extinguishing the lire, vrivh is a most intciesting spc-iade, especially at night time.

The principal method of i> by boring, aud this tc-'ctss is nineattended with considerable danger. In the case of a "spinier," i; it is a powerful one, the oil bursts upw,*jds through the tubing, frequently sends :hc boring tools and workmen flying in all directions, shatters the derrick, and raises itself in a black, unbroken mass. Jl.n cii.ir in the sun, it shoots oil sprays in faui.ist:< shapes, acd gives fortlig il.isiirs of.rainb>w colours as it falls ;vway and swirls the ditches into the reservoirs.

How immense are the subterrane-m forcf* wt work in these oilfields mar be gathered from the effect of a boring in 1883. When the drill had gone down 546 feet, there was a tremendous gas explosion. Dry sand spouted with terrific force to height of from 350 feet to 400 feet; the windows of the neighbouring *ngite sheds were smashed, and the iron roof of a., boilerhouse collapsed beneath the weight- *f fulling stones. The "sand volcano"' tasted 45 .minutes, and was succeeded by a blow out of gae, which poisoned the atmosphere at Balakhani the rest of the day. From a well which was opened in 18S7. the oil occasionally shot twice as high as Kelson's Column. Holes and depressions near the well were filled with oil, which flooded the country for miles around, while ihe sand which was thrown out formed a 14ft- high crater round the well and completely buried a number of houses. Sometimes the sponters get out of control, and the waste of oil is enormous. This was the case once, with a well owned by the Druzba Company. Starting on August 19th, the flow continued unchecked till December 10th, and, according to aa avowedly low estimate made by the owners of adjacent properties, threw up in th* 114 days 220,000 tons. Some even estimate the waste at twice as much. The setting alight of the Balakhani oilfields was one of the most terrible events of the September rising. The belching forth of these fountains of liquid tire, the terrible roar of escaping gas. the short, sharp reports, the fierce flashing of blinding light, and the thick clouds of which i roll -upwards, fold upon fold, and shut our. the sky, is a thrilling and appalling spectacle.