The record-union., 1895-05-06
THE LIBERTY HILL DAM.
The following notice appears in Sal
Francisco morning contemporary:

Francisco morning contemporary:
TIME CALIFORNIA DEBRIS CoMMIs-
sion having received applications to mine
by the hydraulic process from T. g. Phelps,
in the Liberty Hill mine. Nevada County,
and John Spaulding, in the Polar Star mine,
near Dutch Flat, Placer County, to impound
tallngs behind the Liberty Hill dam, IN bear
River, gives notice that meeting will be held
at room 90, Flood building, San Francisco,
CAL, on May 13, 1895, at 1:30 P. NJ
If we have not already given facts
enough to prove that there is strong
general tendency to resume hydraulic
mining free from all restrictions that
restrict, the above notice of itself would
go Jar toward substantiating the charges
and emphasizing the warnings that we
have been called upon to utter.
The Liberty Hill dam again! Is the
case of Hardt VS.. the Liberty Hill Con-
solidated Mining aud Water Company so
old as to be forgotten? No, not if it were
century old, nor even SO long as there
remains a fear that hydraulic mining
may affiict and threaten the State again
as in former years. But the case was de-
cided only nine years ago, when Judge
Sawyer took occasion to reiterate his con-
victions as to the insecurity Of restrain
ing dams, with special reference to the
Liberty Hill, and to picture in memora-
BILE sentences the uncertain nature and
threatening possibilities of such strucs-
ures. After complete hearing he va
Gated the order temporarily suspendlng
the Injunction against the Liberty Hill
and made the injunction permanent.
Query: Will the Debris Commission
undertake, now, to consider the granting
of permit which would have the effect
Of nullifying the order Of the United
States Court?
Said Judge Sawyer: "a court having
power to enjoin the nuisance might, with
just as much propriety, refuse an injunc-
tion against the erection by the owner on
his own premises of magazine for the
storage of gunpowder and dynamite.
Nothing short of omniscience is
equal to the task of determining the alb
solute sufficienoy of such a dam, and
nothing should be accepted as sufficient.
except upon the most indisputable and
demonstrative evidence"
And, as though he had already foreseen
the utter impracticability of hydraulic
mining with any assurance of safety de-
pendent upon any sort of dams whatever,
which experience shows to be the fact. he
brought the whole matter to logical issue
in the following paragraph. If he had
had the proofs before him then which
abound now and have been SO rapidly
accumulating during the last year, he
could not have spoken more to the point
Said he: ''If restraining dams must be
relied on by the inhabitants OF the val
leys of California to protect them from
destruction by mining debris, it would
seem that such dams should be con-
structsd by or under the supervision and
In accordance with the ideas Of the par
ties in danger and liable to be injured,
rather than under the supervision and in
accordance with the ideas of those who
commit the trespasses and perform the
acts W hich give rise to the danger and
whose interests are not in danger or in
any respect liable to suffer. 1t is
to the pecunisry interest of the hydraulic
miner to get out as much Of the precious
metals as possible. = What hap
pens afterward is no concern Of his"
The mere suggestion of using the con-
demned Liberty Hill dam is a serious
menace, but if license should possibly be
obtained to use it, the end of hydraulic
mining will have been reached then be-
yond all compromise. Perhaps it may as
we'll come to this. in order that the nui-
sance may be really abated uncondition-
ally and forever.