The Sumpter miner. [volume] (Sumpter, Or.) 1899-1905, 1900-10-31
REVISE MINING LAWS.
Recent Decision That b q Tsavesty on
Human Intelligence.

and passed on kink IN the extralateral
endless chain Of the United States mining
law, so expensive to Iitigants, so full Of
promise TO mining lawyers. The law has
only been IN operation 70 years, and II Is
expected that before 1000 A. d. is reached
two or three other little points will be
made clear.
The case noted was brought up over the
famous old Tom Cruise mine, the Drum.
lummon Of Montana. The St. Louis Min.
Ing and Milling company sued an alien
corporation, the Montana Mining com.
pany, limited, alleging trespass on the
part Of the defendant and claiming dam.
ages. The Montana court awarded dam.
ages to plaintiff IN the sum Of S33. 900.
The plaintiff considered the sum insutti.
Gent aud appealed tof a new trial.
The court oi appeals on the 9Th inst, IN
an order ot aitlrmante, says:
"The question under present considera'
ton Is when q secondary or in,idrnta'
vein crosses u common side line betu een
two mining locations at an angle, and the
apex oi tn. vein i ot such width that u Is
Tor q given distance partly within one
claim and partly the other, to whom
does such portion oi the vein hrlongf
his question does no, appear 10 have
been ever directly passed upon by the
courts. a mining claim can have but two
end lines and, having been once estab.
ilshrd. they become the end lines tor all
veins found within the surface boundaries.
This cour, has already determined that the
line T. ID shown IN the diagram intro.
duced on the trlil Is u side line common To
the two claims, and, therefore, II can not
lummon vein.
III, then, IN construction oi law the vein
IN the IS tret IN controversy must either
he upon the one location ~ the other, and
II the senior location has priority oi title,
Il would follow that the hight ot lateral
petsuil would remain with the senior 10.
Gator within a plane parallel to the end
line oi the senior ,laim, and w To point OF
departure oi the apeN; or, IN this case, the
front wall. nasmuch rs neither statute
nor authority permits u division oi the
,rossing portion ot the vein, aud the
weigh, OF authority iavors the senior To-
Gator, the entire vein must hc considered
rs aprNing under the senior location until
II has wholly passed beyond its side line"
Its a trav-stv on human intelligence
that such a jumhle oi mystliving, rNprn'
sivr aud veNa,ious Legislation" as the |
United States mining "laW" should I've
allowed 10 continue. One of the printi |
pal reasons that 81 many practical miners
snif at "s,irn,e" as applied to mini,g Is
he,au all this riiitulous tumble about
was put In the mining law Nv scientists.
I he miners themselves never had any.
thing to do with putting this mass Of ab.
surdlly into the working statutes that
govern their affairs, and instinttirely re.
jet the hindrantc,
The surprising thing Is that public opin.
ion permits the continuance ot such u law.
IN its relation 10 modern mining Il il
about the same as II an up'to.date mine
with a double compartment shaft 400 teet
deep should pu, mp with a hand windiass
tor its entire hoisting facilities. Mining
and Scientific Press.
n a N ~ q N M