Oil Restriction

Some of the country's more potent oilmen met at St. Louis, last week, to see what could be done about the overproduction, from which their industry has long been suffering (TIME, Dec. 17). Oklahoma operators agreed to cut production from 700,000 barrels a day to 650,000. Meanwhile, however, Texas and California oil fields continued on an unlimited production basis. Unless a national agreement covering all oil fields is reached it would appear that regional agreements can effect no major improvement. Present U. S. production is approximately 2,690,000 barrels a day and wildcatting (opening up new fields, greatest obstacle to controlled production) continues.