as inflaon acceleratedin ts country about 1965 this meant that in terms of purchasing power the realce ooil was declining. there was lessncentive to ill. illing activity clinedy abou70% from the '55-'56 period the low point1971 when fewer than 1,000 rigs rainhenited states. from '51 or '5to '73 the dollar number was $3.25 for west texas crude. your purchasing power, of course, decreased all that time, and the costs obviously escalated during that 22 years. the american oil industry had other problems. to curb inflation, price ceilings were set in 1971 by the nixon administration. james scesinger, the nation's first secretary of energy. ife attempted to control the price of oilr tural gas based upon the assumion at a5%ate of returwas the ceiling because there areso many ilures, dry holes, we would discover that it would not have been the entrepreneurial activity in the industry atasecessa maintain any acvity. e control of price in highly risky industry will destroy that industry. we were doing damage to the industry during the period of control. world oil prices kept rising. although