Butte semi-weekly miner. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1886-1890, 1889-10-23

ana iron, we're exempted, and ownershi
allowed TO lie in the general uovernman
extent OF the grant was forty mile =
acn SIDE o. the main line Of the road. an
al 1ndemnliying grant Of tan miles berid
Mm. Facer OF Champion, was b ne,
peaker. he said that q meeting had bee
pc OF all the miners in Orc Fino distri,
lew Gays ago and that he was q of
committee OF three SEM TO this citv 10 ~
operate with the board Of trade IN an
action that body might see t to take. II
Ghen explained how the survey made n
rage affected that district, and cited Il
sIancee OIL q number OF claims which Tai
wnoly or IN part in one OF the township
ciaime by The Northern Pacific and Il
GUIDED In b lands designated as non.mir
eral in character by Page in his returns 6
the g neral and Office. The speaker ha,
QUILT q hotel at Champion which cost hin
$f,oOo, and now he found that it was lo
cased upon land claimed by the railroa.
company and il the fcompany's claim t.
title was allowed hewould lose his property
ne also owned q number Of shares o
champion stock. Ten days ago he coul.
have sold the stock for 20 cent? a shar
Il now could get only 40 cents for th,
same stock. During the last week propert,
10 the camp had deprecated no less tina
because of the recent troubl.
arising from the railroad company advers
ing applications for patents to claims 10
Gated in the district. Capitalists did no,
desire to invest in mines located ON landt
belonging to the Northern Pacific company
but wanted mines situated on lands be
longing to the government. It was the
speakers belief that il patents were issued
to the railroad company, the loss to the
people OF Orc Elmo district would agra.
gate no less than two million OF dollars. !
Being asked by Mr.. Mantle how the lands
Ia this immediate vicinity were affected
BY the railroad company's claims, Mr..
O'Bannon said that as far as he knew the
lands OF Silver Bow county generally and
those in Butte particularly we're in no
danger, having been returned as mineral
lands. No danger need be apprehended
provided the railrokd company insisted
upon the correctness Of the returns made
by the surveyors as it did in the case OF
Deer Lodge. Beginning at o point two
miles north OF the Parrot all lands were
indeed in Pages survey and had been desig.
mated by him as non.mineral.
MI. Goodale asked what had become OF
the maps, protests and eviden % forwarded
to Washington by the mineral land con.
vention. Mr.. O'Bannon didn't know, but
had been informed that they had been
~pigeonholed in the d partment and could
not now be found. Mr.. Mantle stated that
Mr.. Merrill had COPIES OF all OF them to
produce at the proper time, although |.
was not known what had become OF the
originals.
Mr.. Ray was then called upon for infer.
nation OF the status of mineral lands in
Silver Bow. He said that what Mr.. O'Ban.
o had said was substantially correct. He
had no doubts OF the northern portion OF
this mineral district beingincluded in Pages
survey, and consequently was designated
as mountainous timber land. He also
thought that some mineral and in Jeffer-
10 county was included in the Northern
Pacific grant.
Mr.. Goodale asked Mr.. O'Bannon il any
work had been done at Champion since the
testimony formulated by the land conven.
ton at Helena had been forwarded to
Washington. MIR. O'Bannon said there
had and thought that il the fact were sub
mitted to Secretary Noble it would have a
tendency to strengthen the peoples case
against the ra lroad, and suggested the ad-
visibility OF employing counsel to repre-
sent the people and to secure delay in the
matter OF issuance OF patents so that
ttOhkCi PLC5OhtbOiou SouHo oO b1ouS W. u
secretary. He also thought it advisable to
secure the services OF some able lawyer at
Washinton who would look after matters
there ank keep the people posted here.
John F. Forbis, Esq, then moved that
the following dispatch be sent at once to
the secretary OF the interior.
BUTTE, Montana, October Is, 1889.
Hon. JHo. W. NOBLE, Secretary ofthe Interior.
Washington:
In behalf of the miners and people of Mon;
tana, We most earnestly request and urge that
any order for issuance OF patents to the Northern
Pacihc railway company for lands in Montana
Of Of t ds.a facts sn as { to 1q The ana %in pasPe ch srsesaes Of a
large portion of them can be made. Millions
are at stake, and our people are threatened with
an ~irreparable injury, which will bring ruin to
to present the. facts ty your department " tout
delay. BY order of the Board of Trade y
LEE MANTLE, President.
The motion was carried unanimously,
and the presid, mt instructed to forward
the telegram.
Mr.. Talent deemed it advisable, that
inasmuch as Mr.. Stockslager was in the
city at present. and thoroughly conversant
with ali details OF the question. to secure
the services OF hat gentleman to lay the
matter before Secretary Noble.
Mr.. Mantle thought it inadvisable to
take such a step. The matter was one
which affected the people OF the entire terri
tory, and il the miners OF Butte were to
employ counsel they would have to assume
tie responsibility OF paying for such serv.
ices. He next said that "a great many
people were Of the opinion that it was urg-
ent that another session OF the mineral
land convention were held. That while q
~.1zslnrk ~ thu nnnuonfinn hn wnn nm.
powered to call it's delegates together, still
he would prefer to hear from all paris OF
the territory before he cared to assume
the responsibility which such a call would
entail.
Mr.. Talent-"I think that it would be ad-
visable for us to hunt up the men who
made afidavits certifying to the non-min-
eral bearing character Of lands embraced in
Orc Emo district, when it has been known
since '64 that those lands are mineral
lands. This matter should be gotten be-
fore the United States grand jury"
Mr.. Irvine-"The matter OF prosecuting
these men for perjury should be left to the
people OF uro Elmo and other districts az
fected by such false testimony. It is not
the proper thing for the Butte board OF
trade to take action upon, ss it is q local
question and it is the duty OF the people OF
U0Ob6 uloUElCOo w pkoc0OuoO OhO pOAyuASACs
Mr.. Facer spoke again upon the actions
of the railroad company, and urged the
necessity OF calling the land convention
together again as soon as possible. In tbs
matter OF instituting proceedings against
the periurers, he took the same view OF the
situation as did Mr.. Irwin, and said that
the people OF Orc Elmo would look after
them.
A. 81. Barrett moved that it be the sense
OF the Butte hoard OF trade that the
president of the land convention call the
convention together again at the earli.
est possible date. The motion prevailed.
Mr.. Merriman and Mr.. Riggs OF Jefferson
were presented and informed Mr.. Mantle
that Jefferson county wanted to join in
with q call for a re-assemble OF the mineral
land convention. Mr.. Leggat said that he
owned property in that county, and there
fore would join in the request OF the two
delegates from that county.
BY this time the delegates from the Orc
Elmo district had gotten together and
drafted the following dispatch to the secre-
tary of the interior, which they requested
M. Mantle to forward with that OF the
board Of trade:
BUTTE CITY, Montana, October 18, 1889.
Hon. JOHN W. NOBLE, Secretary OF the Interior,
AZ Chosen representatives of Orc Elmo mining