Columbia weekly news., 1859-06-09
EIiuing Regulations.


That the inchoate mining communities
o California have been able to make
their own laws, with admirably breviry
elearness, adaptabiiity to varied shifting
circumstances, thus solving the problem
that threatened to puzzle legislative
wisdom and that these laws have been
characterised by so lille injustice and
observed with so much fidelity. is several
y creditably 10 our people aud illus
trates their capacity for self governments
IN the eaily days only few simple
rules, fixing The size Of claims and de~
noting the cosdition Of tenure, were
required but as mining interests have
now become better understood, more
settled and permanent, the want of a
system Of regulations corresponding to
this happy change begins to be felt and
nsticed..
The Sierra Democrat remarks. that
"a growing embarrassment to the mining
Int st is the loose maau5r il which
the laws Of minipg districfs are famed
aud the not c:eraice de.iui. Ion Ct elaims
bonn laries ua;il ricL rip aon
made. I'h-se tTo thin6s
I eein t. occasion m2cl eoulusA
gard to ii les ani consequent cov
,i;ig2:isa. both c{ which couid be larecfsg
prevented If tAc 1er4i p,iaipg districts
in q county, or townships here the
j'ggings are Identical or similar in
character, would agree upon some more
general and carful system Of regulations
and surveys. IN this (Brilgeport) town
hip, foe instance, there are several
mining d.s-icts each with It's .s5pcrate
s. = of .aE5 resembling one another IL
heir chief features, tie liggiugs being
mostly OF the same nature Nov i.
from aii these sfc;s Of local rules could
be framed general code, an organic
Law 50 to speak, It strikes Us that much
couhieiirg OF titles aDd Jisputing about
jurisdiction, otherwise sure to occur
hereafter would b prevented
The miners ought to have, also some
general mode of esiai fishing the metes
and bounds OF claims In this district
and in enc or two adjoining districts, the
county or some unofficial surveyor has
been employed to make accurate surveys
aud plots Of Claims, bs heans Of which
much litigation is avoided, the record
made more definite, and the convey
aneIng Of such property rendered more
precise and satisfactory la San Juan
district, particularly. there are few
claims that have not been thus surgeYed
aud mapped But how much better
than these isolated surveys would be a
general one, embracing the whole town
ship or any given number of districts,
showing precisely the several district
boundaries, il necessary 10 retain them
The typographical features of the section
embraced, and the particular localities
and claims A map made from snch a
survey would be Of great value By
means Of it the exact location of partic-
alar plots could be readily determined,
fraud and monopoly meas;irably checked,
and some aid afforded to the inyestiga-
tions of the scientific.
The miners owe it to their own vel
fare, fthey wish to preserve the mineral
lands free possession as heretofore, to
adopt some such general and systematic
regulations as have been crudely sug
eested. They would thus remove one
great argument in favor Of sale of
these lands, besides mere fully securing
their present titles to them and avoiding
expensive law suits. Some action to
this end is needed, and will eventually
be bad. The sooner the better.
MRS PARTiNcToN says, sha. il she
should be cast away. she would prefer
meeting with the catastrophe in the
Bay of Biscuits - FOR then she should