This is Henry Fonder. Tonight's cavalcade story is about a man from the mound of earth and an idea. The idea was O-L. What happened when Pete Green was seen together with the man and the mound and the idea as the film of the most chilling moment in the story about... Nothing. 1895. place the home of Delphic Jefferson, a famous American actor You know The seat of him he was sitting under a bullet just around that head Last was paid on campus and pressing like a mule driver with a misery It was biting back at the mosquito What's our depth about? 2010 feet with the last sample. That's right. We're both the two Yep Oh I'm gonna feel the Jefferson Right party farther than the first and the reason to Hello there, mr. Jefferson. Oh, there you are Lucas Chaining I see what's it supposed to be? It's supposed to be a landscape. That's right I think we were in it. Mmm Yeah, sure it's a tree It would look more like a tree if that damn the volcanic of yours wasn't in the way of that to have a Derek to Be the world, but it's the whole composition of a teaser I see what you mean, but you're asking to come down here and put down a test well for salt and what have you found? Watch your sample here. No, there's Oh, what is it? Oh Not a dish for my palate Jefferson I think there's oil on your father, but I'm not interested in oil Lucas, I'm sorry. I even started this I never intended to make my estate into a machine shop I'm sorry Lucas, but you'll have to stop and immediately You're good on that. I am really down the curtain exactly So we get started. Who's it down right now? Well, it's your property mr. Jefferson, but I think you're making a mistake. I don't alright Patsy Patsy stop the beer. I'll cut it off I'll have a written down by tomorrow. Good. Good Well, and what are your plans now? I'm going west California no Texas. I found an underground mountain of salt here on your land mr. Jefferson And I found traces of oil everywhere. I put down a well here about that found the same thing salt and oil Oh, and that follows a pattern a line that points west Points like an arrow to Texas sounds like a wild idea Maybe it is that I'm gonna follow through on it. I'm sending news to my family my wife and son I'll have a meeting in Beaumont. You're letting yourself into a lot of trouble captain Lucas. Just a follow through what a wild idea I can't figure out why you're doing it. It's not hard to figure out really Why do you keep returning to the stage season after season? You're a rich man Oh that's different the stage the smell of grease paint It's in my blood. Give me sir. It's the smell of oil. It's in my blood Here we are like a caroling. Oh, it looks like a wonderful house here. I'm dying to see the inside No Indian. We'll dig some up for you tomorrow Tony come on You like it? Yes, it's nice but it's empty. Where's the swimming pool? That'll come. I needed the cash I had the supplies for digging. Anyway, I want you to take it out yourself Meantime I got some packing cases we can use for tables and chairs And plenty of wide open spaces. Well I suppose wide open spaces is exactly what one has to expect in Texas Oh it's good to be here Antony. It's good to be here with you Oh it's nice out here. It's a really nice day in Texas. It's even nicer to have some chairs to sit on What's the matter with sitting on the porch? Good old American customs You mean I wouldn't be patriotic and use cushions even? Oh shy. Well Antony, you know it's a gamble don't you? What's a gamble Antony? It's a whole lot of money that you can find oil by finding salt buildings There's no proof. But you had Barry's pen oil. He wrote me a deal What traces? Not only to keep your sewing machine going, but only to get me started on one of the wildest ideas a man ever had I suppose at the time the whole world is spinning around on a wheel of these days and it's plenty to need oil Millions of barrels of oil to keep it going. Well I thought there was plenty of oil in Pennsylvania and West Virginia Well near enough. New fields have to be opened. New supplies of oil have to be found And there's only one thing that's going to find them. Science. The old age of drill and pray are over It's going to be geology now that finds oil and engineering that will bring it up That sounds sensitive Southerly there's not many others that agree with me Matter of fact, hereabouts, your loving husband has been building up quite a reputation as a local crush pot Wrong? That's right. Lots of people think my idea of finding oil by locating salt buildings is a mild form of insanity Well I don't care what they think for me. It doesn't matter. But... Well there is more. We've built up a wonderful reputation as an engineer. We can always get a loan fine We don't need oil wells to be happy. We don't need the money It isn't the money. It's the idea. Either I'm right and the others are wrong or they're right and I turn out to be the village idiot Wait Anthony. What are you doing in the jungle? One thing. I'm going to see a chap of the improbable meaning. It's the pillow Higgins tomorrow He has a piece of property I've heard about and I want to investigate it. And if I get it, I start drilling. With me? With me? One hundred percent Hello. Howdy. I'm looking for a pillow Higgins. That would be me My name is Lucas. Chap of Anthony Lucas. Glad to know you. Swap and have a seat Thank you. You have some property to sell? There's a man too in there to buy it. I've got it to sell I'm interested. Why? Oil. Oil? Now now look here mister. You just listen to me. Get over that chair and walk to the door Climb it behind you and take the next train out of Beaumont. I'm warning you for your own good. I'm talking from experience You're not a very good salesman Higgins. I'm an honest man mister. Years ago I got the idea that there'd be oil here about First place I decided to drill was on a mound of folks around here called Spinnertop. You ever hear of it? Yes I have. The worst I never had. Everything I had in the world I sunk in that hole. This ever last red sand. First we couldn't get enough water to flush out the grills. Then the floods come when we had too much water. Then the windstorm blowed down the derricks. Then we hit quicksand at the forty foot level and couldn't get it to circulate Even with three pumps blasting away. That's trouble I'm talking about brother. I can see that. You think that? You think that's all? You just think some more. At sixty foot level we hit a gas pocket and the gas was all over the place. Well sir a wild archman of a roustabout decided to light a match. He picked the archman up in the next county. That's my rigging. For all I know it's still sailing. Now you want to buy it Lucas or be a sane man and wise? What will you take for your interest? Frankly I'll take what I can get. I'll give you a ten percent interest in the lease. Done. I'll move my drill over to the property tomorrow. That's okay Lucas but listen to me son. It'll break you. It'll smash into little pieces. You hear that? Spinner top will break you just like it broke me and all the others. But man now that thing ain't just a mound. It's a nasty hungry devil. It eats up our kind. Oh I tell you you're walking into a trap Lucas. Spinner top will break you. You mark my words. It'll crush you the way that I crushed this stogie. Just like this. You've ruined your cigar Mr. Higgins. Here try one of mine. Depriving the jinx of the salt dome near Beaumont, Texas called Spindle Top, an engineer named Anthony Lucas is determined to drill it for oil. Working with a small drill he's managed to get down about 500 feet in about six weeks of drilling. That's you Anthony? Yes. Is Tony asleep? Uh huh. I kept him up as long as I could. I couldn't get home before. Well I'd hate to separate you from any more. You know it seems to me you might leave just a little dirt at the well. You don't have to bring it all home with you at night. This is extra special dirt. Come here. Smell it. Oh I don't have to get any closer. I can smell it from there fully. You know what it is? Or whatever it is. Oil sand. Anthony! That's right we hit it today at the 575 foot level. A good showing that we're going deeper. But you found oil! That's a trace but it shows we're on the right track. We've got to get... Who's that I wonder? Come in! Captain! What is it Patsy? What's happened at the well? We came in. What do you mean? It's right after you left. We pulled out the bit and a whole size came in like it was made of custard pie. We got no more wells. We got nothing now. Quicksand. I reckon. Going back I'll see you in the morning. Yes Captain. I'm sorry for you Mrs. Lucas. I'm sorry I am. It's alright Patsy. Folks was always saying the devil was in that mound. Sure enough he is. And laughing till they kill our bed. Well, bye. See you later. Oh Anthony. I know. They'll have a picnic in town. All of them. The I told you so they'll be flying thick and fast. What do we do now Anthony? We dig another hole. Our savings are just about gone. I know. We haven't enough money to dig a post hole. But I'm not giving in. I'm fighting spinnaker up and a dozen different devils that are dancing in that mound. I'll get help. I'll get back. But who? One mistake I've made Caroline. I've tried to be a lone wolf. I found out something. Having an idea no matter how good the idea, having it isn't enough. You've got to have know how, the right equipment, enough money to see it through. Yes but you know anyone who will go in with you Anthony? No I don't. Joe Jefferson? No he hates the world. Oh. Hickey? He starts shaking with just so much as they spingletop. Well who else? Well there's a man in town, Dr. Hayes. He's head of the United States Geological Survey and step number one. I'm going to get him out the spingletop. Get him to back up my findings. He carries weight hereabouts. If he's okay I'll get the help I need. Will he do it Anthony? Why shouldn't he do it? I'll show him my log books, my stampings. He's a scientist. He's got to see the truth. Now if you'll come over to work Shaq, Dr. Hayes, I'll show you some of the stampings I've taken. Yes, it's very hot out here isn't it? You've got to admit it Dr. Hayes, all the wells I put down in Louisiana show a clear as crystal. Wherever there's a salt bone there's evidence of oil. I've shown you my log books, my chart, my... Let me sit down for a minute. I'm exhausted. Look Dr. Hayes, all I want is your statement that my theory has a sound scientific basis, that's all. You do agree that it has don't you? Captain Lucas, you have a fine reputation as an engineer, but as a geologist? Now look here, there's nothing to prove that this particular hump here means that there's a salt dome below it. What else could account for it? A thousand things. The folding of subterranean rock structure, an anticline perhaps? Yes, sir. Let me go on. Even if there were a salt dome below surface, that still is no proof of oil. But I've found that every time... After all Captain Lucas, facts are facts. Why at Galveston, they put down a well to over 3,000 feet and had no trace of oil. No, I'm afraid I can't agree with you. But I tell you I'm right. And I tell you you're wrong. And now sir, I'd appreciate your taking me back to my hotel. I need a bath. Anthony? Uh, he wouldn't do it. I've spread it out before and spelled it out in simple sentences. My log books, my samplings, everything. The only thing he knew was that he wanted a bath. That means you won't be able to get the help you need. Not around here. Right now I haven't got the credit rating of a homeless prairie dog. What do we do now, Anthony? Up in Pittsburgh is a firm called Guffy and Galey. They're wildcatters, specializing in opening up new oil fields. They're supposed to like tough propositions. Well, okay, I'll bring them a beauty. Everybody who knows anything about oil says my idea is hobwash, Mr. Guffy. They do, eh? They call it a wild and woolly idea. Is that a fact? Everybody I know has turned me down cold. Well now, Captain Lucas, that's real interesting. One man I spoke to said he'd sooner bet on a mule having pups than put a ten cent piece in his spindle top. By golly, that sells me. I'll back you. How far? Till a mule has pups, if need be. But understand, Lucas, if we take the risks, we take our share of the profits. Agreed. It's not the money that's important to me now, Mr. Guffy. It's never been the real thing. It's just the idea, the chance to prove it to myself and some others. Tell you what I'll do. I'll get off the wire to Corsicana. Know of the Hamill boys out there? No, can't say I do. Best drillers in the business. I'll have them haul the biggest drill they've got to spindle top and bring a prize crew along with it. Now, you'll need supplies. Drillers can't eat pipe. I'll write you a blank check. How's that? Wonderful. Yep. And if spindle top comes in, that'll be even more wonderful. Good morning, Al. Oh, morning, Captain Lucas. I don't like the sound of that drill. Don't like it myself. She's rearing like a year old bronch. Have you been able to log anything at all? Ah, not much. Every time we have to stop the pump to put in another length of pipe, gas pressure from below mokes up the hole and we lose whatever we've drilled. Past two days we show minus 40 feet. Stop drilling. What? Stop the drill. It's no use going on this way. Either we find a way to control that gas pressure or we give up. I don't like giving up. I don't like it either, Al, but I'm not wasting money, especially when it isn't mine. Would you like a bun with your tea, Anthony? Might be nice. Look, Daddy, Mommy bought this kettle today. It whistles. Listen. Just shows you. You spend money on toys and they pay no attention to them. Buy a little tea kettle that whistles and they stand for hours watching it. When you put your finger on the hole, it stops, like this. Careful, Tony. You'll burn your fingers. It's not so hot. Do as your Mommy says, Tony. Oh, it doesn't burn. I heard in town that you stopped drilling. Yes. I told you first you're in bad news. It was so... What are you doing with that kettle? My Lord, it's bad enough that Tony keeps playing with it. It stops the steam coming out. Oh, not either. Take my finger off. It starts again. A valve. A check valve. What in the world? Well, I never mind my dinner. I'll grab a bite out of the well. Captain Lucas, that's the dirtiest looking contraption. I hope it'll work. It does look funny, though. Made out of an old pine box and some leather sheeting. It's clever, sure enough. And the idea of using the check valve, well, that's maybe okay, but that there thing will never hold. Why not? The pressure coming up will slam the door of the valve shut, like this. It'll keep the bore clear of sand and gas. Maybe, but I doubt it. Fix it in between the cupping to the casing. Try it out. Well, this is it. We'll find out now. Dump the pump. Right. Hold it, Joe. Hold the pump. Rig on another length of pipe in a hurry. Doctor, I'm going to need a pipe, Joe. Hear that, Mother? Gas pressure. Valve it a little. Okay, five seconds. Start pumping. Now throw her in. Let her dig. Hey, sweet. She's diggin' sweet. That check valve works. My golly, like I said, it wouldn't work. Hey, Kurt. Yeah, Al? Where's Captain Luke? Did you see him this morning? Yeah, he was out early. He went to town to fetch the new fishtail drill. It could stop, of course. What's that? I don't know. It keeps blowin'. Kurt, get down off that rig. Get down. Kurt, get down. Well, it looks like the business. We're really washed up now. Yeah, look at the way that flyin' pipe smashed the dirt. And the mud must be six foot of mud over everything. Well, I suppose you ought to try and clean up this mess. Hey, let's get out of here. Here she comes again. Come on, Al. That mud is brown. You'll get to... Al! Al! Kurt, come in. Get to her telephone. Get Captain Luke. Look, great stuff from Horn's Coat. This thing ain't spoutin' mud, it's spoutin' oil. Now send that along as soon as you can, Mr. Campbell. Yes, sir, Captain Lucas. I'll just... Pardon me. Yes? Yes, he's here. Wait a minute. For you, Captain Lucas. Thank you. Hello. This is Captain Lucas. Wait a minute, Kurt. Don't shout so I can't make out what you're saying. What? When? Yes, yes, I'll be there right away. Something wrong, Captain? No, no, no. It's a sandal top. She's bald or head. Al! Al, it's oil! Oil it is, Captain. Smell it. Taste it. Anthony, Anthony! Caroline. You're wonderful, Anthony. A million years of power blastin' out of the Earth. Look at it, Caroline. We worked for it, we fought for it. It's the gusher. Let it pour! Spindle top, the pioneer well that tapped the tremendous petroleum resources of the Texas Gulf region, has since produced over 130 million barrels of crude oil, oil for America's machines, automobiles, and homes. And today, with more than half a hundred producing wells in the spindle top fields, with modern oil scientists constantly locating new underground reserves beneath the United States, nearly 27 billion barrels ready to be tapped for a thousand and one uses. The men of oil continue to find it faster than we can use it. These are the accomplishments of an industry this year celebrating its 90th anniversary that grew because it was free to grow. Grillers in the fields, pipeline engineers, scientists, tanker men at sea, investors, gas station attendants, and refiners. The men of oil, who tonight turn their thoughts back with us to the dawn of the 20th century, and a man working with a crude rattle trap grill atop a salt dome in the hot Texas sun, a pioneer of American oil, Anthony Lucas, griller of spindle top. Music Next week, Cavalcade presents one of Hollywood's loveliest stars, Jean Tierney, in a dramatic story of courage and hope, The Wall of Silence. It's a true story of a gallant young woman who, afflicted with deafness, refused to admit defeat. Be sure to listen next week to Cavalcade and our star, Jean Tierney. Tonight's Cavalcade play, spindle top, was written by Earl Tunick and was directed by John Zoller. The music was composed by Arden Cornwell and conducted by Donald Voorhees. Featured in the cast were Gertrude Warner as Caroline, Malcolm Keene as Joseph Jefferson, and Larry Haynes as Al Hamill. Your narrator was Ted Pearson. Our star, Henry Fonda, is appearing in the current Broadway success, Mr. Robert. Cavalcade of America comes to you from the stage of the Belasco Theater in New York and is presented by the DuPont Company of Wilmington, Delaware, makers of Better Things for Better Living through chemistry. Applause Stay tuned for the Baby Snook Show on NBC. Music
