Found this on pintrest

Neat looking pump set up, possible danger when getting in and out. Pre-OSHA. Wonder what the p.t.o set up was?

Dropped front axle.

Yeah, that front axle is dropped big time. I wonder why? Is it possible they did that to make the front of the tank lower than the rear to facilitate pumping it dry?

Great photo John, and they must be pretty good at what they do, because they are still in business today.

http://www.mcphails.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&i d=25&Itemid=65

Is the axle dropped or something else ? That radiator is really low,
compared to the headlight and fender height.

The axle is definitely dropped. It looks is like it lowers the front engine mount by around 4 or 5 inches. But I think you're right Burger. The hood/headlight/fender arrangement looks to be altered also. Maybe they did that to prevent the tires from rubbing on the fenders, but that still doesn't explain why it's lowered. It's hard to imagine it was done just for looks on a vehicle like that. It would seem to me there must have been some functional purpose.

I guess nobody worried about all that oil dripping off the tank when they were spraying oil on the roads anyway.

Looks a little different now:

Many of the buildings in other parts of San Rafael still look the photo.

The rear axle might have out rigger over load springs. That makes sense as it would keep the load (oil) from sloshing too much side to side.

By the looks of this last street scene, There needs to be some rounding
up of those responsible and holding of some public executions.

The fenders appear to be raised to give clearance over the wheels, necessary with such a big drop in the axle. The support irons would have to have been modified to suit, and the headlamps repositioned as part of the modification. But why?

Would lowering the centre of gravity have had a significant impact on the stability of a tanker hauling a fluid load?

Allan from down under.

The front tires appear to be much larger than stock, almost as big as the rears, probably to handle the weight of a tank full of fuel or oil. Compare the tires to the ones on Burger's truck. The axle was dropped to keep the frame level and the fenders raised to clear the bigger tires.