Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1854-02-27
For the Grant County Herald.
FAIRPLAy. Feb. 14th, 1876

FAIRPLAy, Feb. 14th, 1904.
Mfr. Editor: The remarks, that accompany
tie published proceedings Of the Miners
Meeting, at Fairplay, Certainly do great in
idstice. to the miners here: Allow me then, to
give a brief statement of the origin and ndt#re
Of the difficulties with the American Mining
Company =
There are quite number Of mineral ranges
on the land lately purchased by that Company.
Part of these are Still worked when the water
is ic,s, during part of the fall and the winter.
The spring rains prevent work sometimes for
months. Those claims referred to, in the
Resolutions were leguliy obtained from the
former owners, by the usual permit, but not
committed to ,rriiins, and recorded, as per-
haps they should be. When the Mining Com
Ipany made the purchase, there was no one at
work, in consequence Of high water. When
THE miners were ready to work, some found
their ranges occupied, or were forbidden to
work. The Company would recognize, at
had a acriten lease. Some of these miners had
'abored and persevered for years in proving
their diggings.
| Now Mr.. Editor should a change of owner
ship, or lease of the land, throw miners out
of valuable diggings?
The Mining Company have commenced
proceedings against several Of those who dared
TO work on their oun digglngs. The Company
is rich, the miners generally of limited mgans.
The former can drag the p9br miner from
court to court, far away from home or friends.
Latey3 sesera, have been sued in Lancaster.
The miners, PERHAPS, ought to be thank faL that
| parts of The County, to defend the rights they
have labored so haru to acquire.
Mr.. Editor, you. also object to the term "Ra-
pacious Landlords as used in the Pream Bile,
and say it is .sbad nse." Now is it not a TACT
that where landlords are present, that they are
generally In harmony with the miners? But
when ioreign company, through their agents.
refuse to acknowledge any rights, unless recor-
ded, and attempt TO take away the hard earn
ings of years from the miner, it is chad use''
SUPPOSE, to say any thing about rapacity!
incidentally, they benefit the county Not
that they are SO benevolent, or that anything
but Filthy Lt.cre tempts them.
From the way they start, am not sure that
their Coming win be really benefit. If they
use their power properly, the Company can be
of great benefit both to us ard themselves, but
II not they will be a curse to US. Unless mi
ner. can have some stability to their rights, they
will betSme slaves to Company.
And now little further. The ranges about
here, can, many of them, be drained, and VOID
lists, By means of Levels. Slower, to be sure,
but m6re certain in the end.
These remarks are hastily penned, but the
writer fees that the independence, and conse-
quent happiness of many, perhaps thous4 nds,
depends on the proper settlement of these
lquestions.
Garnet believe, Mr.. Eiitor, that you pen
ned the remarks annexed to our resolutions
!. cannot believe that yoa would intimate that
the miners here, are in the habit Of 1fespass-
ing in the matter of digging, and that our
meeting was to Uphold any such practice
However that may be, it appears as editorial
and we have to treat it as such.
I One principal object of cur meeting was to
let the company feel the force of Public Opin-
ion, which | am happy to say, together with
some other considerations is having some eff
| feet. A MINER,
MISUNDERSTANDING the responsibility
OF the writer of the above, and of those GER
Itiiying to the facts set forth, we ask it an at
Itentise reading Since the "princpal object
of the meeting was to let the Company feel
the force of public opinion" we have moth
ing further to say, but rather approve, for a !
have equal claims to the benefits of pubic o.
pinion, difference hotr obtained hn..r
Expressed, lin public meeting or Otherwise
Our impression was, that the meeting was cal
led for organizing resistance to rights claimed
by the mining company, and under that i'm
preston we wrote the remarks alluded to-
We are assured however that such was not the
intention OF the meeting. The remarks refer
red to by the writer above, we're written BY
ourself, and precisely expressed our opinion
of amy rights claimed by miners; when the ex-
ercise OF such rights contrary to Common
and Statute Law.