Singers and Storytellers Page: 81
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THE OIL PROMOTER AS TRICKSTER
more than they had considered the land worth in fee simple.
But instead of signing up, they decided to investigate. Wynne
found the well. When the man on duty would open a valve,
oil would flow from the casing head. It would be permitted
to flow only a few minutes, for, the operator explained, he had
no storage. But the driller gave the secret away. The oil flowed
from a tank car on the railroad siding near by, and there was
enough gas in the well to bring it to the surface. Leasing
activity ceased abruptly and Wynne and his partner did not
get their $19,200.6
This method of salting is rather crude. The more sophisti-
cated salter leaves the evidence for others to discover or
interpret. This is more convincing and less dangerous. He may
sprinkle the derrick with crude oil, and if he means to sell
stock, he will photograph it. He may pour oil in the slush
pit, or bring oil sand from a producing well and leave it on
the derrick floor for a scout to find. When Dad Joiner's driller
hit the oil sand, he washed the bit in a bucket of water and
left it on the derrick floor. The stories resulting from this are
too many to recount here. One man told me of going to the
derrick and finding it unattended, of examining the sand
and finding all the evidence of salting. He joined the legion
of East Texans who failed to grasp the forelock that Dad
Joiner's discovery provided.
It was inevitable that some well salter would be hoist with
his own petard, for wherever there are stories of tricksters,
there are stories of the trickster tricked. My story comes from
Burkburnett and the operator will be called A. D. Siever. He
poured crude into his well and hauled it out with a bailer in
the presence of prospective buyers, a couple of New York
Jews. They bought, and Siever was happy in his success. To
outwit a New Yorker was a considerable achievement, to outwit
a Jew was a greater achievement, but to outwit two New
Yorkers and two Jews at one and the same time was a superb
achievement. But Siever's complacency was short-lived. The81
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Singers and Storytellers (Book)
Collection of popular folklore of Texas, including personal anecdotes about storytellers and singers, as well as folk songs, myths, and ghost stories. The index begins on page 295.
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Boatright, Mody C. Singers and Storytellers, book, 1961; Dallas, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc67655/m1/87/: accessed April 27, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting UNT Press.