The Elk Mountain pilot., 1881-10-20
Patched CLAIMS

, mi iag a; business, springs from tIle
u lccrtaln clemen. sur o:nding pos e.
sorry titles-only. Claim owners, as
rule, are content to go On year after
year with annuil assessments which
are due until United States patent
are granted and the money for the
land is paid in'o the hands Of R.
ceiver of the Land Office, and yet
their titles are liable 10 be imperileo
by contiguous discoveries any day or
hour up 70 the time the money is paid
and tie patent issued. Discoveries o.:
value are not liafreduen;ly made after
twice the amo.ln, actually required to
secure patent for an adjacent claim
has BEEN expended thereon without
important disclosures Of productive
ore bodies, ard in that way mary
conflicts arise which eliminate il cx-
pensive litigation That might be avoid
ed, if mine owners would apply for
ard secure patents as soon IS the pre-
liminary wo k required by law is com-
pleted |: Is ne; difficult to secure
patents for mining claim. bat whcl,
their value as n1iilas has been estab-
i!shcd, and they are &nowa to be
worth fighting for; the PERCENTAGE Of
'Isk from adyerses is gfeatly increased:
In other words, the feeling now ex.
isting il socl.ty vii! :!ot sustain man
In giving false tes.l aoney Hess there
is money in sig:lt and obtainab!e.
Consequently it is not easy to secure
preponderance of testimony to sus-
tain All adverse claim agains. all un-
productive property: T.at state Of
things alone should Bc sufic lent in.
cen;ive to claim ow lcrs 10 proceed
promptly with the work Of ob:ainine
pate IS orclil Il, ~ which all require
eae,;t, of til i,w nave ba.l fulfilled.
Blt other reasons exist. For example:
4 pwas lod- clam on whi:h he
mas exPead:d thcluli Eu.n Of 1890.
and has il addition only $500, or a,
most s 800 At his com nana for dtvel-
oil:,,elt purro ies; which SO fir as hu-
mar foresight can determine will be
'aSuiflclent to make his property pro-
>:uo,lvc or prove that 1t can be made
50. Waat onght he to do? Ough: he
to expeG?d the remainder Of his fund
IN development work for the purpose
o! aiming possessory right for a
brlet Interval only, and of which he
may be d pTivtd by some more fortu-
nate locator of an adjacent claim? or
ought he to proceed, while he has the
mca1s. to secure vested right to the
land that has cost him $50 an acre?
True, 1t may be worth its cost without
large additional outlay of money
But On the other hand its value is La
bic to be increased many fold at any
time. by the labor of his neighbors.
With qhlet TIL he may procure as
sista1cc. which came: be Obtained
oth-rwlsc, to Ceyelop his property
! aHd make it productive. Wlti,ou. it..
he must maintain his shadowy rights
as best he can at an annual tax of S 90
upon his resources. The qlestion
does not seem to be debatab!e one.
In the one case he risks his al for that
which nc cannot hold except with
augmented co t yearly. In the other
he secures tide to fell estate, a.
least, which may become valuable
without further outlay on his part.
Looking forward to the Co!o-ado Of
the yeir 1900. in the light Of her giant
strides Of the last three wears, who
will und-rtak, to estimate the value
of well located ten acre plat ol land
In proximity to thriving centers Of
trade and of.the growing Industry Of
gold and silver mining; even though
+ II may moi ieid do.1,r's worth of
precious meta.s-.Szryr CUF Ga5eAe.
fhe tunnel on the Alpine branch Of
the South Park road is II 500 feet
abou. the E!ne OF the sea, which makes
i The highest tunnel in North !Ameri-
ca or Ear pc. Ii is 1900 feet long.
By p!uaglNg sheet of paper into
al amnoniacal solution Of copper for
an instant. then passing it between