Arizona weekly citizen., 1884-09-06
THE COAL FIELDS.
The Present status of the Matter and the
 steps Necessary to be TakeE.

The Present Status of the Matter and the
 steps Necessary to be IakeE.
 PHILADELPHIA, PA, Aug. 9, 1881.
 EDITOR CITIZEN: Outside of the question of the public lands there is none affecting Arizona, with which the general government has to deal, fraught with so much importance as the hbera- ton of the Deer Greek coal fields and their use by tbe public.
 Considerable work has been done in Washington with that end in view, and the status of the question IS ss follows;
 A bill, involving the segregation of the coal lands, as well as all that DOT ton of the southern and western sides of the White Mountain, upon which the whites have settled in ignorance of the line, and in which much money has been invested. is on the calendar. m the House of Representatives, with the unanimous recommendation of the con- mittee "that It do pass" This bill has the hearty endorsement of the Secretary of the Interior, and was drawn from suggestions made by him. He has been persistent in its advocacy. Like all Western men, he does not believe in a joint ownership Or occupancy of the same land by Indians and whites.
 The Commissioner of Indian Affairs, MT. Price, dld not favor segregation, and so he offered a bill to lease" the coal lands, which was accepted by the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs, and recommended for passage to the Senate. When this bill was reached on the calendar, Senator acting in the interests of some spectators in the lobby, had 1t recommitted "without prejudIce;" and when he reported it back, 1t was in the form of an amend ment to the appropriation oill giving five thousand dollars to send out a com mission to determine the size of the veins of coal, their depth" @ etc.
 A bill was also introduced at the in stance of John J. Safely "authorizing the Interior Department to confirm cer- tain leases made to him. This bill never has been-thanks to the honesty of the committees - considered, and never will be. It cuts no figure ID the matter.
 What the report of the committee will be, IL Is hard to forecast. Even if IL shall be an honest one, as it no doubt will be, the peculiar Hay" of the coal seams, and the in1eterminate condi- tions under which they were deposited will prevent report that shall be definite or valuable.
 Three lines of action suggest them selves upon which settlement of the question may be had.
 tirst:-They (congress) will segregate the coal lands, and the little triangle whose base rests upon Disappointment Valley, and within which the Tweed copper property lies, and take a town ship out of the section of country about McMillen, making the locatOrs of the coal lands pay from S5 to Sl0 per acre, and allowing the others to hold under existing laws.
 Second;-They will lease the coal lands for term of years under a royal ", per ton, of from ten to twenty-five cents; the other lands at a nominal rental, and the mines of silver, copper and gold with tax of say one per cent Of the net proceeds.
 Third:-rhey will pay the coal land discoverers something for what they have done, let the mines afterwards to the highest bidder, aud do nothing with the other interests involved.
 The first proposition would be the best, were 1t not for the hardships it Eould work to the coal land men to procure the money to buy the land with.
 The second carries with it the least present difficulty: and the seyeralty idea which must become the national policy) will in a few years materially reduce the area of Indian land. and the holders of the leases will naturally become the owners.
 The third, while a possibility, is so thoroughly un-American and unfair that It seems impossible for Congress to adopt It. Tins nation cannot afford to refuse recognition of fairly earned rights, or place itself Tn the attitude of a sDeculator upon the necessities of any of its subjects.
 There IS little doubt that the ques- tion will be settled during the next ses- sion of Congress, but 1t ought to be | done upon basis that has iD 1t a recog- | milton of the equitable claims, to say the | least, of the lecators as well as the | rights of the Indians and the needs Of | the public.
 IO this end il is desirable to secure. | In the Territorial papers, a full expres- sion of opinion; the circulation of peti- | tioDs to "The Senate and House of Rep | resentatives Tn Congress assembled;' an | official representation of the case tO the | Interior Department by the Governor; a | strong expression of opinion on the part | of the party conventions, and an sxer- tiOn of influence, on the part of mining | and individuals who have in- terests affected, on such COngressmen | and Senators as they can reach.
 While much of this work may seem | in view of the advanced | of the legislation on this | question, 1t is better to travel and make | sure of all the avenues that lead to sue cess.
 The next session of Congress IS the short one. and the work outlined cannot | be begun too quickly.
 Believing that yourself and your brother editors will see, by vigorous presentation Of this matter. an opportu- | nity to conserve the interests of the | whole TarrTtnrv I raraafu