Arizona silver belt., 1888-08-11
SENATOR sriywARrs MINING n,LL.

tuS VII. iutVlutGu pN iocnutOT CteW art n tho II $. Senate and passed by
 that body without word of explana, , ton from anybody, relying on Mir stcwart's knowledge of the subjects in the bill. Fortunately, the bill has moi
 as yet passed the House of Rspresen.
 tatives; It is before the Committee on Mining, and in the interest of inning 1t is to be hoped that somebody in the
 House will be found who is not ID. clined to accept the infallibility ei Senator Stewart in mining matters
 and ask fer some explanations, when
 it will be found that the bill is want, ing that it invites litigatiens; that il ebstructs and complieates mining by
 associations, on scale beyond that oi mare prospsctors; that certain passa- ges arc obscure and ambiguous, and open to diver:ie interpretations, which
 would appear in multitude of n- struetionS by successive Commission CTS of the U. $. Land Office.
 take the text of the new amend ments to the mining laws from tho
 Florence Enterprise, assuming that it is correct transcript of the Stewart : bill, and propose to analyze Its pro visions, accepted as gospel truth by the concentrated wisdom as represen. ted in the U. $. Senate.
 The first change occurs in section 29i9 U. s. Reyised Statutes, winch provides substantially that mineral lands are open to exploration and purchase, or open to occupation and purchase, to citizens of the United States, or such that have declared thelr intention to become citizens. The regulations which govern the ac- quiremsnts of such mineral lands sim ply provide, that no one claim shall exceed in length along the lode CT vein l500 feet, when located; there is no other restriction by tho U. $. laws of 1872, referring to limitation ot ownership by locations, much less by subsequent purchase. The mining law of 1866 provides that each locator shall be limited to 200 feet on lode claim, and throwing in an extra 200 feet for the discovery; but a number of locaters may make a location joint ly, not to exceed in length 5000 iset, or the equivalent of two claims, as un- der the present law, approved May 10, 1872. Those joint owners, then, could trade, sell CT convey to any one of them, or to an outsider, their interest, and one party could hold under the law of 1866 claim of 5000 feet, and in addition, there was no restriction as to tha number of cliams one party could hold by purchase, nor was there any restrictlon as to the number of patents enc party could hold (See de- cision of U $. Land Office, September 2l, 1872)
 Now, this is all changed by Senator Stewart, with the silsnt consent of the U. $, Senate. His amendment to thls section reads as follows:
 But no person shall acquire, by lo- cation or posssssien, moro than one mining claim on the same vein, nor shall any person relocate claim which he had preylously located, With the second part of that amend ment, the winter has no fault to find; it is simply the law as it stands now, but as not kept. It IS the first part of the amendment which should be con sidered seriously; its effects, its com plications and it's impracticability, If passed and approved, It offers the al- terRatiyo, to find (easily too) means to evade it, to adept subterfugos, by skillful lawyers and a full purse of money; or to restrict the working of groups of mines by associations or in- corporations, in such a manner as to discourage such work most seriously In that ease a company, as such, can not hold title but to enc clam on tho sama lode; if it owns more, title must rest in individual members whe may lease or transfer the management to the company. How such condition would work, no one knows better than Senator Stewart. It is hardly neces- sary to mention that, ia majority of cases, large mining enterprise can not depend on one claim alene on the same lode.
 Agaln, this change works handShips on the individual miner or prospectsr. Suppesing that he works and tolls on one claim, and finally becomes con yinced that the richest ore body is in the continuation of his vein m the neighboring clain-may this be longi tudlnal or lateral--and tue claim is open to location or purchase? yet ne cannot, under Mr. Stewards law, ac- quirs that clam, unless ha abandons the first one.
 But another feature of importance presents itself III the almost endless com nliczt1ens ariSno from bends dina