Couple in Australian Outback Strike Oil--What They Wanted Was Water

ROCKHAMPTON, Australia — Most people would be delighted if they struck oil in their back garden. Not Dick and Irene Stevensen. They wanted water.

The Stevensens, who farm a small property in the parched Queensland outback, put every cent of their savings into drilling a bore hole.

Down and down they drilled until, at 3,840 feet, they struck water. Sadly, the supply was little more than a trickle and the Stevensens went away to think about what to do next.

When they returned, the trickle had turned black--oil.

Petroleum analysts are testing the quality and quantity of the supply.

But whatever their findings, the Stevensens will not be pleased.