The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1896-06-29

When a man is new at mining he is
apt to take up more ground than he
can properly handle, and it takes him
good many years to get over the habit.
Yet there is scarcely anything worse
than having a whole lot of ground in
camp held by a few men, who just
manage to. do the assessment work
each year and no more. The result is
that none of the claims are properly
developed or brought to such a stage
as to invite inspection from those who
might be purchasers. The mining
laws are complied with simply be-
cause they have TO be. but men holding
claims in this way are APT 10 rely more
Oh the results of the labor of their
neighbors than on their own exertions.
This sort Of thing is not honest min
ing. Men who hold claims in this way
prevent others from working the
ground they have and yet they do not
work it themselves, says the San Fran
cisco Daily Call.
There seems to be no way to prevent
men acquiring larger locations than
they can handle. A 1,500-foot location
on a ledge ought to be enough for any
body, but the class of men referred to
take up a dozen rich locations, and
then use the names Of others on the
combinations Of the lodges to acquire
more. Such men do more harm than
good to a camp. They keep it back
because they keep out men who would
do actual development and not mere
assessment work The latter is en-
forced OF course, or even that little
would not be done. If, instead of scat
tering their work in a dozen or so
places. prospectors would concentrate
their efforts on one claim and open it
properly, they could bring it to a
proper condition for sale of some
value to them and to the camp. Inere
are plenty OF ''claim-poor" miners all
over the country, who will never get
any better off until they drop some Of
their superfluous holdings and put all
their work and energies into one or
two.
Again, there does not seem to be any
way 10 protect the public in the matter
of purchase Of stock in ValueleSS, or
titleless mining properties held by cor
porations. The statues governing in
CORPORATIONS of this nature were not
framed in the interest of the mining
industry or the investing public. A
company is organized by half dozen
men and the fee paid for incorpora ton
ana IIle SkOCh Is uOdl6Q II lllC ll4OO4
poratorS know their business. The
state does not know, and does not care,
whether there is even any mining
ground as the basis Of the corporation,
much less inquire into the validity of
the title TO the property supposed to
be represented by the stock. Ii has
happened a number of times lately, in
different parts Of the country that
the incorpora tors only hold the pro-
nerfv IN hOnd running a sDecifieCl
time. If the money is not paid, of
course, the mine raverts to the original
owners.
The result is the people who bought
stock in the company have nothing To
show fol the investment but the paper
shares. Most purchasers of stocks
never take the trouble to inquire into
the title of the property represented by
the stock certificates. The result is
dishonest promoters can and do make
a good thing by floating such COM
panieS and then naver pay for the
ground. Such men might be punished
for swindling, but few people like &c
get into suits Of that kind. where they
must confess to their own carelessness
in not making q proper investigation.
OF course, many companies are form
ed TO purchase property under bond
with no pretenSe to ownership. The
indiscriminate selling of stocks. how
ever. is apt to lead to people making
purchases without inquiry into this
particular matter, in which case they
are buying an interest in property the
sellers do not actually own. II the
money is honestly used to pay for the
mine ii is all right, but sometimes il
is not, and the exchanges which list
stocks should look to it carefully thai
buyers are protected in this respect al