The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1895-12-15

could not complain if at the dates of
locations of defendants claims such
marking had BEEN omitted. 1t is i'm
material the order in which the acts
going to constitute the location are
! performed-if they be all performed be-
fore other rights have interviewed.
Golden Terra Mining company vs.
Mailer. Morisron Mg. Rep. $50.
The Jim Blaine mining claim. how
/ ever. was claimed to have been locat-
| ed on the Goth day Of April, 1892. Ii
this were true. the evidence shows
that it was not located until after
! o'clock in the evening of that DAY.
Prior to it's attempted location, MI:
Mackay had placed three substantial
stakes on the West Geyser mlning
! claim. had adopted and marked as
| fourth stake a corner of the Geyser
| claim, and il the stakes on the ground
| had been connected with straight lines
! they would have included the discoV-
| cry of the jim Blaine mining claim
! and this claim would necessarily fall.
But it appears that the notice OF TO-
cation of the Jim Blaine mining claim
was recorded in the office Of the min
ing recorder Of Camp Floyd Mining
! district and appears to have been SO
recorded on the 2Sth day of April,
1892 The record shows that the name
Of the claim and the date of loca-
ton have been erased, and Jim
Blaine" as the name of the claim and
the "26th' as the date of location IN
| serted in lieu of the original. II. w
Brown, who was deputy recorder re-
cording the claim, testified that as
originally written the name of the
claim was Society Red" instead OF
"Jim Blaine" and that he thought
| that the day of location was the 2Sth
instead of the 26th of April, 1892. He
had no Independent recollection Of the
date, but inferred it from the appear
ance Of the book, the figure under the
being slightly perceptible. 1t APP
peared also that as originally recorded
the name of the locator was Evan
B. Jones, instead of Evan Jones. John
Mcfarland, recorder of the mining
district testified that a short time af-
ter the record of the claim, Evan
Jones, the father, came to see him
and spoke about there being some
doubt of his sons ability to hold
mining claim, owing to his minority.
and also desiring to change the name
of the claim, made at least these two
changes. The evidence persuades me
that the claim was not in fact located
until the 18th of April, 1892. I am con-
frmed in this because of the testimony
of Evan B. Jones. Of his co-locator,
and of Joseph Smith, all denying
that the name of Evan B. Jones was
signed to the notice as locator, which
fact is clearly proved. There appears
an intention to date back the notice
vening rights. But whether located
on the 26th or 2Sth day of April, 1892.
it would have been equally invalid
provided the West Geyser mining
claim was not then subject to reloca-
ton.
AS to Assessment Work.
Much evidence was taken as to as
sessment work done on these various
mining claims. 1t appears that no
work was done on any of them for
the year 1891 until the 31st day Of De.
cember, 1891, and that on that day
men hired by Osborn commenced to
work on these claims and continued
to work thereon until about thirty
two days work was done on each Of
them. the work ceased early in
cost Osborn over $1O0 for each
claim; that thereafter and COM
mencing about the 24tIh day Of
April 1892, Dr.. Leete, holding an op
ton on an interest in the claims by an
agreement with Mr.. 7. Osborn, COM
menced with a force of men to work
in the Geyser tunnel, a tunnel which
leUQS TO N6NSlOp IHo Florence
No 5. and the West Geyser mining
claims, and which was being run for
that purpose; that these men continued
to work in said claim until about $3.50
worth of work was done: that the Jim
Blaine mining claim was attempted to
be located in the evening after these
men had quit work, but during the
period that they were working regu-
larly each day thereon. It also ap-
J,tot +1,O Col Af
mancing shortly after Thanksgiving
day, the defendant expended on each
Of these claims more than 500 as as
sessment work for the years 1892. The
plaintiffs contend that this work was
not in fact worth what it cost the de-
PENDANT and much evidence has been
introduced on that point. Reputable
witnesses who have gone to the camp
since that date and have worked in
large mines and with convenient appli-
ances have testified that the work was
worth much less than was expended
for it. Such testimony ignores the cir
cun1stances under which the work was
in fact done. At the time that this
labor was performed, the mining camp
was deserted, only one mine being
worked, and the evidence tends to
show that the miners to do the work
had to be procured at some little dis
with their supplies; that the weather
was Indictment when the work was
done in January, 1892, and conse-
quently that the progress made would
not be such as might be made under
more favorable conditions.
The law does not require that the
men doing assessment work ON a min
ing claim should put UP a convenient
plant with which to work, or eXpend
hundreds or thousands of dollars for
the purpose of protecting miners at
work prior to doing any assessment
work. 1t would in all cases be dam
gerous to accept as final the Judgment
of a relocator or of his friends as to
the value of assessment work based on
their Willingness to do it at a cheaper
rate, when their knowledge of the
work has been acquired after the con-
troversy has arisen. Miners doing as
sessment work rarely do more than
they deem to be 500 worth of work,
the law requiring only that amount
If their rights to their claim We're to
be lost because some other man, after
a suit has arisen. will testify that he
would have been willing to do the work
for less sum Of money, mining titles
would be very insecure. The fact that
the owner expended the money is
strong evidence tending to show that
it was worth that amount. A selfish
interest usually prevents a man from
over-paying for work, and there has
been no evidence in this case that Gis-
born had any motive in paying these
men for idling away the time Many
men doing the work have been called,
and all of them testify that they
f1;% f,,I1x