The new North-west., 1891-01-30
THE MINERAL.LA BILL.
General Eaton Talks About the Prospects OF
Its Becoming Law.

Surveyor General George O. Eaton, OF
Helena was summoned to Washington re-
Gently to consult with Secretary Noble,
and gave the Secretary the benefit OF his
personal experience in connection with
railroad lands On his return to Helena
he was interviewed by the journal, and
talked to this effect on the mineral land
bill which is now before Congress:
",rhe general provisions of the bill are
that the Secretary of the Interior shall ap-
point commission of three, who shall at
once designate all lands already surveyed
Of the Northern Pacific land grant as being
either mineral or non mineral, this to be
done within two years, and all lands mere
after to be surveyed are to be designated
as such as soon as convenient alter the
completion of the survey. The commits
sioners shall make the returns to the regis
ters Of the land offices in which the land
is situated. Non-mincral lands (among the
odd sections) so designated to be at once
conveyed to the Northern Pacific Railroad
Company by the Secretary of the Interior,
and lands designated as mineral lands to
! be forever withheld from them. Appeal
can be taken from the decision OF this
commission to the land office, as in the
case of a land contest at the present tlfhe.
The object of this bill is simply to deter
mine at once the mineral or mineral
character of land within the boundaries OF
l the Northern Pacific land grant.
! "The object Of my being called East.
e continued the General, twas simply to ad-
& wise with the Secretary of the Interior and
the nossbltv Of there ind sNn MninS nH as 30 70
y palpably non-mneral in character that it
: would be excluded from the action of this
G bill The Secretary said that Of course he
y had had no practical experience III this
II matter, and that he understood that was
e. posted, and that whatever | represented to
s. be the case, would be satisfactory to him.
III After much work and several consultations
Il with the committee l recommended as
: being proper to exempt from the provisions
Is Of this bill all that portion OF the Northern
on Pacific land grant south Of the main track
"a of that company from the eastern bound
ed arv Of the State of Montana, westerly tc
a the 107th degree of longitude west from
n, Greenwich, and all that portion of thu
s. grant north of the main track eXtendin!
G. from the eastern boundary Of the state
NJ westerly to the Tooth degree Of Longitude
Ut west; the 1O7th degree being the eastern
ce boundary Of the Grow reservation, and thu
nc 109th crossing the main track OF the North
es ern Pacific four miles west Of Park City
ry This recommendation has been incorpon
~ rated as an amendment to the bill and vii
y be 50 reported BY the committee to I'll
U House
"a ain bidding the Secretary of the lntcrio
ne good bvc. he intimatcd quite strongly t
!, a me that, irrespective Of the action of Con
ne gress on the bill, he might possibly 500
II commence to issue patents to the Norther
~ Pacific Railroad Company for such land
T. as they have already selected which Ii
"a within the limits Of the area | have Dc
i, scribed: but he added, cmphaticallv, tn;
IA, neither the people Of Montana Or anyhod
~ else need consider such an act on his pa
~ us 4 precedent which would mean that h
~ proposed u issue patents to any land va
r. Or those described until some judicial Do
Ah iEnation of their character was had