An Oregon Breathing Well

The well is one and a quarter miles east of Stanwood, on the high land, nearly 150 feet above sea level. lts owner, O. W. Coltom, began digging it last June, trat abandoned it various times because of gas or firedamp. He succeeded in reaching an abundanee of good water at a depth of ninety feet from the surface last October, having passed through successive layers of clay, sand and some kind of stratified rock. About eighty feet below the surf ace he f onnd a sprinkling of anthracite coal, and still farther down large quantities of loose specimens of volcanic stones of severa! kinds, many of which have the appearance of having been melted and run together. Abont the close of October Mr. Coltom noticed that the well was blowing out a kind of gas with considerable forcé, and at irregular periods of time, varying from five days to sixteen hours' duration. It would reverse the operations and befrin to draw in the air with equal f orce, the inhalations lasting about as long a time as the exhalations. Shortly after the gas disappeared, but the respiration of air continued with increasing f orce, until at the present time it has sufncient force to drive a large windmill. Not long since Mr. Coltom went down into the well and discovered that the air was being drawn in and blown out at a point Bfteen feet from the bottom of the well. Itls supposed that there must be a large Rvern at a distance from the well, and the air comes through a small passage leading from the cavern to the well. No ;avern or passage has yet been found, ss the well is walled up, and the air comes through the rocks in the well. -