The weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1878-1881, 1880-01-27
THE MINING LAWS,
How Congress Thanked the General
Land Office.


WASHINGTON, Jan. IL, 1880.
There is some satisfaction in knowing that
congress can, occasionally. rise above party
and pass an important bill. Reference is here
made to the passage of the Senate bill in the
House on the 7th inst, which places the Land
Department back where it used to be relative
to principals employing agents in making
aflidavits of 'posting." The committee on
mines and mining, through Mr.. Stevenson,
reported the bill, and it was carried through
i'll one session. Mr.. Reagan and one or two
others attempted to antagonize it, but failed
before the clear explanations made by Messrs.
| Beltord, Page, MaginNiS and others, and the
Dill received on its passage IT'S affirmative
| votes to only 20 negative vcteS--a result
Fhardly to have been anticipated because there
was considerable outside work done to defeat
the bill On the other hand L. G.. Ford, EST,
and others interested in prosecuting mining
| claims before the Department. posted the
members from the West so thoroughly in the
details of the subject that they were able to
meet and overcome The arguments made by
the objectors at every point i'll the debate.
The very day before the bill passed the
House, Messrs. Ford and Flagg had filed their
argument in the Head Light case on an appeal
| to the Secretary from q decision of the Acting
Commissioner Of thex4ieneral Land Ullict,
involving the very question settled by this
bill OF course, as soon as the bill is signed
and becomes a law, all proceedings in this
and other cases will be dropped.
| The importance to all interested III mining
Of passing this bill can not be over-estimated
and there is great rejoicing here. The oris-
ual plan was to endeavor to secure a rcstora-
ton of the old practice of the Department by
an appeal to the Secretary Of the interior, but
each day brought with it an accession of
capitalists and miners, and after frequent
consultations and talking with the Western
Congressmen, it was determined to take the
bull by the horns and override the Depart
mcnt; and it is best that this conclusion was
reached, for there is very strong influence
here i'll favor of the new construction Of tie
law and it is very doubtful if the Secretary
Of the Interior " ould have gone against the
Acting Commissioner Of the General Land
Office, for it is limited that he decided as he
did only after Il formal consultation.
If you have not received the act in full by
telegraph, here it is:
THAT Section 232G of the Revised Statutes
Of tile United States bc amended by adding
thereto the following words: 'Procided,
That where the claimant for patent is not a
resident Of or within the land district wherein
the vein, lode ledge, or deposit sought to be
patented is located, the applications for patent
and the atfidavlts required to be made i'll this
section by the claimant for such patent may
be made by his, her, Or its authorized agent,
where said agent is cOnyclSant with the facts
sought to be established by said allidavitS
Ind pr0rided, That this section Snail apply IL
all applications now pending for patents to
mineral lands"
SEC ,. That section 1924 Of tie Revised