The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1899-12-11

vkv NEITHER ii ii true that the corpora
w tions have such q plan or not, the
miners have formed some sort OF
an organization, and have prepared petit
ton. which It is believed will be paced in
circulation this week. for the purpose Of
raising funds to pay for the services Of
James Hamilton Lewis in going to Wash
ington this winter to head OF any such
possible movement.
The petition. . copy of which has been
furnished to the acknowledgements. by one
OF the miners interested. recites that this
plan Of sending Mr.. Lewis to Washington
is for ''the purpose of preventing certain
big corporations from combining, and = :
obtain privileges that would enable them
20 monopolixe all the gold-bearing territory
OF Alaska" Col. Lewis admits that such
q movement is afoot. and does not deny
the fact OF the existence and contemplated
circulation Of such petition: but he says
the matter has not been settled, owing to
q disagreement as to the terms OF his EN-
ployment. He said yesterday:
The Nome people object greatly to the
publication of their plans. for fear that
their enemies will organize to head them
or"
Text Of Miners Petition.
A verbatim copy of the petition is as fol-
lows:
I'VE. the undersigned, desiring to protect
our rights a 8 miners in the Cape Nome and
Cape York placer mining districts and also
along the Northern Alaskan coast, and for
the further purpose OF preventing certain
big corporations and companies from mon
op0lizing all of the beach of the Northern
Alaska coast. and for the purpose OF pre-
venting these companies from combining
and through the acts Of congress or the
PRIVILEGES which would enable them t.
inonopolixe and appropriate all Of the gold
bearing territorv Of Alaska:
DO hereby form ourselves into the Min
era Protective League, and hereby engage
the Hon. James Hamilton Lewis. attorney
ct law Of Seattle. state of Washington as
our counsel and representative, authorizing
and empowering him to take such steps as
IN his Judgment shall be best TO preserve
our rights. and to protect us from being
forced out of the Alaskan gold-bearfng
territory by the unlawful and unjust acts
OF the said companies and corporations
And for the purpose of paying his ek-
penses to Washington and compensatipg
him for his legal services. and meeting such
upon him. we hereby subscribe and paw
such sum as set opposite our names: the
eaid sum to be paid to the said James Ham
ilton Lewis by the person WHO shall be Sc.
lected to act as treasurer and collector of
our organization.
Movement Not Unanimous.
While the movement outlined in the fore
going IL afoot It IL not unanimous: for
there are many Nome people. among whom
are some of considerable authority on mat
tiers connected with that district, who do
not believe such plans as are alleged are
under consideration by the corporations.
They hold with Kenneth NJ. Jackson. form
erly United States commissioner In Alas
ka, that the miners have almost entire
jurisdiction over the details of the man
agement of their own region, and can regu-
late the size OF their claims. powers Of at
~ +hexy
may consider for the general good.
It IL also claimed by them that the cor
rorations have not obtained advantages IN
the north over the ordinary prospectors and
miners, and that not a single claim Is held
by corporations as such. But they are also
of the opinion that congress should amend
the mining laws in some particulars. to give
the miners better basis for working on,
such as reducing the maximum size of
claims that may be located. abolishing pow
ers of attorney, and controlling or regulat-
ing beach mining.
These Recommendation have been made
time and again at meetings held in tho
north and numerous sessions in Seattle in
tho past few weeks. Last month a miners
meeting was held at the Diller hotel where
resolutions were passed calling upon the
Washington delegation In congress to aid
In such legislation as would abolish powers
Of attorney and reduce the size OF the
ciaims.
Nome miners taking this view of the sit
,,ation is william H. Whittlesey, formerly
secretary Of the Seattle Chamber of Com
merce who will himself go to Washing
ton next month to take up the cause of
the people OF Norton Kotzebue peninsula,
and endeavor to have congress and the
heads of the departments recast the reg
ulations for the miners benent.
MIR. Whittlesey's Views.
att Is a well known fact that the min
ing laws of the United States do not cover
the new conditions of Alaska: in fact,
they are almost useless" said Mr.. Whit
tlesey yesterday. At was not realized
was such an abundance. OF gold In the
north, and even IL 1t had been the absence
az Il basing experience would have pre-
vented anything like satisfactory leglsla-
tion We have q new country there, un-
der conditions totally dissimilar to any be-
long ago, before he banded IN his res.gna-
fion. that Judge Johnson told me, when
we were discussing this probable trip to
Nome in the spring to adjudicate the diff
ferences there, that he should have to
start an entirely new set of decisions, as
there we're none in the statutes and re-
ports to work on that would At the pecu-
far conditions of that part OF Alaska.
"When the power OF attorney was legal
lied there was not the slightest concep-
to the wholesale and abusive extent that
has obtained In Nome; but the condition
has come up, and II must be met, TO my
mind. by abolishing II entirely. Under
trss mower men have gone into the north
and located scores OF claims for outsiders;
and under the peculiar possin!iit!ss OF this
+