There were many prospective buyers, but it was necessary to possess a report from some supposed “oil expert.” To save time, the seller of the claims drafted what he considered quite an alluring statement, and the next day the report, couched in the same language, bore the “expert’s” signature. And the “wheeze” worked. But to return to the main subject. Prior to 1870, the crude petroleum in the Baku district, as well as in the minor fields of Russia, was obtained from surface pits, dug by hand, and rarely more than 50 feet deep, and the production was carried away from the mouth of the shaft in leathern bottles. The general arrangements were on the most primitive lines, but, nevertheless, the industry--such as it was then--thrived. Even to-day in several fields in Russia we see the survival of the hand-dug wells, but they are steadily becoming a feature of a page of oil-field history which is almost filled. It was in 1873 that Robert Nobel went to Baku, and to his enterprise and technical genius a great deal of the subsequent rapid development of the Russian industry is due. Boring by steam power was introduced, and the deeper oil horizons were reached, but, owing to the depth at which the strata became commercially productive, it was necessary to commence the well with a starting diameter of 36-40 inches, so as to ensure the requisite depth being obtained with a workable size of baler--for the Baku crude oils are “baled” from the wells. Upon the question of baling wells, I shall have something to say in another chapter. Under the improved conditions which were introduced in methods of boring and operating the oil-wells, the industry steadily expanded, the general awakening of boring enterprise being best reflected in the number of oil-wells in operation in subsequent years. For instance, in 1893, the Baku fields could boast of but 458 bore-holes; in 1898, the number had increased to 1,107; in 1903, it was about 2,000; while in 1911, there were over 3,000 bore-holes in the Baku fields. There has been a steady decline in the number of these bore-holes since 1914 due in some part, I assume, to the difficulties of securing the requisite materials for new boring, combined with the enormous increase in the cost of the same. The drilling of the wells in Russia is a very expensive item, for they cost from anything over £10,000 up to £15,000, and usually take a couple of years to drill. But when they are down to the producing strata and commence production, it can be taken for granted that they will continue, providing ordinary care is taken of the well itself, for many years to profitably produce.