The San Francisco call., 1897-01-30
Mr., MILLS GLAD
HAND TO MINERS
The Railroad Proclaims a
New System With It's
Mineral Lands.
Will Make Contracts With Pros
pectorS and Abandon Claims
to Mines.
A Novel Proclamation Quietly Made
That the Rair cad Will Cherish
the Miner.

The Southern Pacific Company has
taken a new tack that will surprise and
probably please the miners.
W. Il. Mills, as land agent for the Cen
tral Pacific, has issued proclamation
stating that hereafter miners wishing to
prospect on patented railroad lands can
do so under contract; that the company
is ready to relinquish all claim to any
operated mine on railroad lands; that
hereafter all railroad lands which may be
reasonably classified as mineral will be
held for the encouragement of mining
and that the company's policy will be to
encourage the discovery of minerals and
the development of mining enterprises.
This official announcement was not
made TO the Miners Association, which
has been conducting the long, persistent
and still pending fight to have the remain
ing unpatented mineral lands within the
railroad grants in this State and Oregon
reserved as mineral lands. The announce
ment was made this week by inserting it
as an advertisement in the Yreka Journal,
the MarysviIle Democrat and three or four
other papers in the northern part of the
State, and 1t had not yesterday come to
the attention of the leading mining men
in this City. The important portions OF
Mr.. Mills official announcement are as
follows;
All occupants of agricultural land who are
using the lands of the Central Pacific Railroad
Company for agricultural purposes are re-
ouested to notify the land agent at San Fran
cisco of such occupancy and cultivation.
All persons having an actual operated mine
upon any odd-numbered sect on OF land within
the limits of the grant to the California and
Oregon Railroad Company are requested to
notify the land agent OF the existence and
operation OF such mine. The land actually
within the mining claim OF any mine operated
viii be relinquished If the land Is not pa ted
and will be donated if the land is patented.
Persons wishing TO prospect patented rail
road land will 40 well to NOTIFY the land
agent OF such desire and they can enter into
contracts which viii make the discovery of
mineral upon lands safe to prospeetor All
lands which may reasonably be classified as
mineral viii be held for encouragement OF
mining. aid mining operations will be given
the preference OF occupancy aud use, unless
such land possesses q value for the timber
growing thereon. In such cases a timber
value only will be assessed against the land
held for ths encouragement Of mining, or, If
patented, will be sold at the minimum OF
81 % per acre, reserving the timber right. In
the disposition of its land the Central Pacific
Railroad Company Will pursue the policy of
encouraging the discovery OF minerals and
the prosecution OF mining enterprises, and in
no case viii its title obstruct or discourage
such enterprise.
Mr.. Mills was absent from his Office yes
enter into any further explanations. Many
will be interested in knowing in what
terms and under what sort of contract a
prospector may secure the right to pros
peet on patented railroad lands. 1t is not
known how many, if any, operated mines
the company may be asked 10 give quit
claim deed to.
Mr.. Mills has long protested that the
company was friendly to the mining in
dustry and wanted to encourage it, but
this is the first time that any definite
propositions Of this sort have come from
him. Meantime the company has steadily
received its patents from the General Land
Office in spite of miners protests.
Probably 100000 acres of the railroad
lands yet unpatented are more mineral
than agricultural, but when they are
transferred TO the company as agricultural
lands and then sold the buyer owns its
gold If any be there and the prospector is
barred. This new move is thought likely
to be a weapon for use in defeating the
mineral lands bill in Congress, but in de-