The White Pine news. [volume] (Treasure City, Nev.) 1868-1906, 1886-09-25
DEADwOOD TOWNSHIP CASES.
Secretary Lamar Again Decides In
Favor Of the PFOspectOrs.

Secretary Lamar Again Decides I'm
Favor OF the PFOspectOrs.
WASHINGTON, Sept. g. The render
Ing of several decisions the past week
By Secretary Lamar will put a final
quietuS upon the famous cases known
ss the Dsadwood TOWNSHIP cases, unless
they are carried to the courts. When
gold was first dis covered in the Black
Hills the site of Deadwood was survey
ed and laid out. The sides of one of
the guches in these famous foot hills
attracted all who came until some
thoughtful genius began to prospect
within the very streets of the new town,
and fou nd substantial deposits of metal
that left no doubt of the mineral char
acter of the land. The land laws Civ
ing precedence always to the prospector
over the preemptor, even after the latter
has "filedn upon his entry, the enter
prising individuals who had been sit
ting upon store boxes prospecting In
theory, while the rest were working
their claims outside the town, staked
down claims in the principal streets
and "filedn upon some of the most val
liable improved property in town.
Good buildings, residences, and blocks
of stores were "staked out" rs claims
by the prospectors, and as the law
allows nothing for improvements made
by the person who takes the risk OF
building before he has perfected his
entry, these people were in danger of
losing all they had invested.
A bitter fight ensued, and as result
a resurvey, both field and geological,
was ordered IN 1878. 1t resulted in
the engineer declaring 1882 acres out
of the 745 in the townsite mineral lands,
within the meaning of the law. This
strip of mineral land ran through the
very heart of the city and involved
some of its best property In vain
the preemptors and townsite people
sndeavored to prove that these lands
were not of mineral character of any
value. In vain they strove to show
TINT the mining claimants were Selling
this property to secure the valuable
buildings and other Improvements on
it. The Commissioner of the General
Land Office decided that the land was
mineral, and mast he sold to the mining
prospectcr. An appeal was taken to
the Secretary of the Interior, and he
sustained tho Commissioner. Each
new. Secretary has been appealed to to
reopen aud rehear the case. Two of
these cases Secretary Lamar has al
ready decided, ana TO day he filed u
bird decision.
Tho Robert Hawke entry, known as
placer entry No. y, has been one OF the
lost casee upon winch the battle has
been fought. 1t contained about four
teen acres, and extended in Il strip
about three hundred feet wide straight
UP the center of the city, aud involved
some of the best buildings therein.
d. II. Vaughn and others, who owned
part oi the TOWNSHIP and had built these
buildings. have been trying to regain
possession since 1878, when Hawke
first made his filing. Over eighteen
hundred pages of testimony bearing
upon the mineral character of the land
has been taken in the case. some
three months ago the TOWNSHIP people
came before the Secretary and asked
that the case be reopened. To-day he
rendered a decision refusing to do so
and affirming Hawkes. title to the land.
1t is probable that the tewns.tc people
will now give up trying to regain their
property rather than go into expensive
litigation.