Invest in Legitimate Stock, Not Land That May or May Not Have Oil, Sept. 17, 1924

Warning to the Public Inasmuch as a syndicate which plans to make a canvass of Wayne county in an effort to market land in the section around Havelock, Craven county, where a well is now being drilled with the hope of striking oil, has opened an office in Goldsboro and is presumably, planning to wage a selling campaign in this section, The News feels that it is an opportune time to advise its readers against investing their money in this proposition.

The News is not opposed to the legitimate sale of oil stock, that is stock in companies who own properties where oil wells have been drilled and have produced, but it is opposed to what is known as “wild-catting” or the selling of land which, so far as is known now, is absolutely worthless as far as being a producer of oil.

According to press reports sent out from Raleigh, following the handing down of an opinion by the Attorney general relatives to the operation of this syndicate, Frank Dempsey, head of the syndicate is reported to have said:

“We aren’t selling any oil stock. We are selling land and we aren’t saying there is any oil under this land. . . . We are selling land on a gamble, and we are digging a gambling well.”

And that is the whole thing in a nutshell.

Mr. Dempsey has “let the cat out of the bag,” so to speak, and the public should be warned accordingly.

Businessmen in Craven county had reason to believe that there was oil near Havelock. They dug down in their pockets and brought forth enough money to finance the drilling of a well. They haven’t tried to sell any stock, they haven’t tried to sell any land. If there is oil, they want the land themselves and will probably retail what they have.

But, along comes the syndicate, composed of men who have probably followed up the stock selling end of the oil business for years and years. They employ high-powered salesmen and when the go out into the highways and byways, they usually get the cash. They intend not to sell stock in an oil company; the laws of the state will not allow that now—not until oil has been found and a company formed, neither are they selling ??? on oil properties. That also is taboo. But there is no law to prevent them selling land.

Accordingly, this syndicate buys up several acres of land, at let us say a price of ?? an acre. They cut each acre into four parts and go out and tell the prospective buyer that there is a possibility that oil will be found nearby. They paint a glowing picture of riches about to be realized and charge $400 for that same acre of land.

Let us say that the purchaser doesn’t have the money sufficient to pay for the entire acre. He pays $100 down and gives his note for the remainder. This note or notes as the case may be, fall due within 30 or 60 or 90 days. He has made the first payment, that pays the syndicate for the price of the land, pays the stock salesman and if they do not collect another dime they are out no money.

Time goes on, no oil is found, the purchaser has it all figured out that there is no oil anywhere near. He refuses to pay any more money. Then the land reverts back to the syndicate. But suppose he does pay the entire amount. The land is located in what one might term a barren, inaccessible part of Eastern Carolina. He allows the taxes to roll up and double and treble and finally land reverts back to the state, and it isn’t worth a cent to the state either.

It would be much better of the Attorney General would rule that tis syndicate could sell oil leases. Then, in case no oil is found, the land would not be cut up into small, useless blocks, owned here and there by persons all over the state. The land would be left in tracts large enough to be of some service to the owners.

The Raleigh Times says of this proposition:

“Any man who takes his rent money, money due the grocer or the laundress, and put it in this proposition is more than foolish.”

And the Times is dead right. We sincerely trust that the people of Goldsboro and Wayne county will not be mislead by the propaganda that is being sent out. There may be oil in Eastern Carolina, and then, again, there may not be, and the chances are that there isn’t a drop of it.

After oil has been found, then there will be plenty of time to buy stock in oil companies, or leases or even oil land, but until this has been found, we advise our readers to keep their money in their pockets and to spend it for the things they need.

From the editorial page of The Goldsboro News, Wednesday morning, September 17, 1924, R.F. Beasley, editor.

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