A PETROLEUM KING. The First Man to Make a Fortune in Oil.

Te Aroha News, Volume V, Issue 219, 10 September 1887, Page 2

A PETROLEUM KING. The First Man to Make a Fortune in Oil.

A I'i'.w d;<y~> a^-o, in a public hospital of Yk'nna, pour ami alone, died the only son ot a man a\ ho a few decades back was called the " Pcti oleum King " in his (<alicum home, and u;b the founder of one of the mo^t colo.ssd industiies in modern times — the letinin^ of oil. This man— his name w«i-> Adolph Sdireinei — shaied the lot oi the majoiity ot imentors and benefactors ot mankind. Ho inoi eased the world's wealth by millions, eniiehcd thousands, laid the ioundation ior immense foi tunes but remained a. i (>Mii"ty-sti icken man. The peti oleum iudusti\ in the United States dates fiom the " fiftie-,'' the h'isb sales of Ameiican oil taking place in 1854, but Abiahain .Sclnoinei, by documents in the aidmes of Vienna, piodueed illuminating oil a.s eai ly as 1853. He owned a piece of land in Boiy»la\v where, in an opening in> theeaith, he found a black, tai-like substance v, hkli the peasants had used fiom time immemoiial to heal wounds and grease theii A\a«if>on wheels. Schreiner got the idea t.'iat (he fluid in the clay mi«>ht be employed in other ways. Jle kneaded a ball iioin the slime, stuck a wick into it, and it binned bii^htly with a led ilame until the substance was exhausted. Thi^ was the iii-t peti oleum lamp. Later, Schreiner hcAid «.omethin» of distillation and determined to try a few expeiimenU. lie purchiised a hu^e kettle and tianstoimed it into a distilling appaiatu-* a^ v.el'E as possible, idled it with the black eaith r and placed it, upon the the to accomplish the di.still.ition. But th.it happened more lapidiy than ho wished. The petroleum . exploded, the kettle w.is broken into a thousand pieces, 'md Schieinor's. body was. coveted with scar.s. Hardly lccovered fiom his wound.s, he be<jan his experiments a<-ain iiith a ])iopcr app.uatus, into the M'ciets ot which an apoHiec.uy had intiodueed him. Here he was crowned witfa'i bettci .succcn-. He a jnoduct wliicb ' lesembLd a stiongl) -Muellino- oil, and 1 petioleum j\a.s found. He filled a bottle rtnd .sold ifc to a divL f fti-t in Dropobyez. X.hat was in thu \eai 1853. Schreiner was, l[ /A:' 1 . i|Ot onl> the disco\erer of ]ietiol/nm 1,.,.' O| «^»t ull ° intiodueed it into commeice. The W<*]™' the new fluid in quantities was- . hu ."pothecaiy MiluJaaelu in Lemberij. The hu.* r « ™o acquii ed the iii-t 100 pounds for hfttC T| iloiiiw, rellned the oil until he .succeeded in making li (•ompalnti^ely clear and coloiu Iles^ Jle was accoidinal.y the prime oil refiiuM. In the >a rne year the Kaiser Ferdinand "Railway C'(;inpany purchased 3,000 pounds nt 100 y;uidens per 100, to use m li<, p htinjr their signal lamps. Encourftged',, Schieincr enlarged his factoiy and bep;an4 the pioduction of oil in quantities.. In 1856 he bored the first, oil well in Galicia., He then elected hi* refinery and distillery. In 1865 the ontire works were burned to> | M 0 '-V^mul.' Hut he completed them anew,, iiopi'njr for bettei luck. He had hardly .started his motoi, when the flame« a^airj robbed him of hi- treasure, and this time beyond lestoiation. His j'outhfiil ensrpcy/ had deserted him now thafc grey hairs,, feeble health, and a^e had come. He tried" to diown his misery in diink and died in. great poverty, hvuinef his son nothing save a document which stated that Abraham .Sehreiner v,a^ the first man to discover petroleum for illuminating purposes and introduce it into trade. Adolph Schieincr, theffton of the former kinc£, from horn the world Imped #reat Llungs, went to ruin as a small merchant in Lembei<x, proceeded to Vip,,^* where he travelled from house tcj selling matches. At last he die;^ • stated, in a public mstitu^ on) most , raiec l bynobody v raul follow;,,, to tho trrme by none of his kin 01' name,