Tonopah bonanza. [volume] (Butler City [i.e. Butler], Nev.) 1901-1909, 1904-07-09
PATENTING CLAIMS.
A Simple But Important Matter
to Mine Owners.

IL
ing districts apparently fail to see
the great value of obtaining a patent
to the ground. If for any reason the
claims are rot being actively devel-
oped, the annual assessment work
NAV become an irksome duty and in
the case of absentee owners it may
be delegated to some third person
who NAV not do sufficient work to
comply with the requirements OF the
law leaving the ground open to be
jumped. The method Of obtaining a
mineral patent after the owner of
the claim has expended $500 on it in
labor and improvements is very
simple. In the case OF a group OF
claims the amount expended must be
equivalent to $500 on each claim.
The first step is the application to
u. S. Surveyor General of the
state in which the land is situate, for
an official survey, which a be done
with the use Of a printed blank form.
With this form must be sent the fee
Of the surveyor general, which in
Nevada is $50, for each quartz or
placer claim. The applicant should
at the same time nominate some local
deputy u. S. mineral surveyor to
make the survey, with whom a on
tract is usually made for his charges.
Accompanying the application for
survey must be a certified copy Of
the record of location and a descrip-
ton Of the claim to be surveyed and
also affidavits showing that the claim
has been located and held in accord
ance with local customs of the dis
tricts. Any number Of locations may
be surveyed as a consolidated mining
claim, or any portion of any single
claim which contains the lode. After
the deputy U. S. mineral surveyor
has complied with the regulations for
surveyors which are clearly defined
by the government and must b.
rigidly adhered to. the owner or hi
surveyor must post on his CLAIM
notices of his intention to apply for
patent together with a copy of th
official field notes and n of the off
elal plats as description. The mex
step is to file an application for
patent in the local land Office tC
gether with sundry affidavits, in tn
drawing Of which a lawyer who is
specialist in mining litigation shoul
be employed. The notice must RI
main posted on the claim for sixt
days and the publication of the appl
cation for a patent must appear in
daily newspaper FOR sixty days or
a weekly newspaper for ten inse
tons. In case of any fatal defect
these the whole proceedings mu
begin anew. When the proceeding
are completed the owner max
formal application to purchase t
land and on payment of the pric
obtains a certificate of purchase
due course from the general la
Office at Washington.
An application for a mineral pa
ent is liable to be defeated by
protest or adverse claim. The form
is an objection which may be ma
by any person on grounds that m
defeat the application, the protesta
need have no personal interest in
matter, but his objections will be flu
investigated by special agents of I
land Office authorities. "Advers
claims must however be filed by sol
one who claims ownership in I
whole or part of the land applied fl
In this case the contestant mu
within the sixty day period of pr
LEGATION, file his protest and adveI
claim in the land office and follow t
up by bringing suit in the state col
for the purpose Of determining
ownership OF the claim. If no p
test is filed and no suit begun wit
thirty days after, the objection g
on default and the applicant obta
the land.
In the case Of mining compar
the matter Of obtaining a patent