The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-03-01
IMPORTANT DECISION.
Secretary Of Interior Renders Decision
Of Interest to Miners.

Following is an extract from an I'M
portant decision rendered by the sec
retary of the interior in the Anna Marie
lode claim case of Park City. The de-
cision was received Thursday at the
local land office.
Where several contiguous mining
claims are held in common and eXpen
ditures are made upon an Improvement
which is intended to aid In the develop
ment Of the claims held. and which
is OF such character as to rebound
provement is properly called common
Improvement. In legal contemplation
these terms import a single, distinct en-
or apportonment in its application TO
the claims intended to be benefited by it.
The entire body Of claims held in COM
mon, the group as IT is ordinarily denom-
mated. not the individual claims sep
arately considered. is the beneficiary on
the one hand, while on the other, the
common Improvement IL its entirety is
mon development or the community
benefit. Such benefit accrues and at
taches 10, and becomes available for the
claims as body. not individually by the
very reason Of the construction OF the
common improvement and as soon as the
construction takes place. The physical
act OF sinking a shaft, or driving tun
mel; which us common Improvement.
makes this so; not the certificate OF the
surveyor general TO that effect,
Where TWO or more persons own prop
erty In common each owner has only
an undivided interest therein, represented
by no physical or tangible part of the
taching TO the whole thereof. BY a SIM
pie computation the value OF such In
terest, based upon the value Of the
entire property. is easily ascertained:
Likewise each claim OF a group developed
by common improvement has an un-
divided. but nevertheless beneficial and
asSeTtainab,e dn Interest in the common
based upon the number of claims In the
group and upon the value of the common
Improvement, It is readily ascertained
whether the equivalent of the required
expenditure In labor and improvements
for the benefit OF each claim is repre-
scnted in the common Improvement: afid
whether more or less and also what
credit is available to such claims as are
embraced In any particular patent pro-
ccedipgs.
braced In the group involved. and the
common Improvement Is valued at $4,000,
as is shown by the record. Fourteen
of these claims have been accredited
with the sum OF 5000 each, derived from
the value Of the common shaft, siX
claims with 5000 each, from the same
source, and three claims are accredited
with nothing from this source, Such
method Of arbitrarily adjusting the credit
10 be derived from common shaft.
merely, as the exieecies of the case
seem to require. is destructive OF the
essential idea inherent in the term,
common improvement To undertake to
set apart or apportion a physical seq
ment or section. or an arbitrarily frac-
and accredit the value thereof TO a par
ticular claim Is in violation Of the
theory OF common benefit accruing
scheme here invoked for adjusting the
monetary worth of the benefit derived
from O common Improvement is, on its
face, unreasonable and leads 10 re-
suit but little short OF absurd. The de-
partment is OF the opinion that it is un-
warranted and unauthorized by. and
contrary TO, the law.
Equally. therefore. are arbitrary ap-
portionments heretofore made of physi-
cal segments OF the Silver King shaft
was In violation OF this principle AS
TO all the company's claims which had
been located prior to the commencement
OF the development project: which are
contiguous upon the ground and which
have been the beneficiares of that pro
lect the whole Improvement or project
is common, and each clam has an equal
and undivided interest therein. II the
Anna Marie Is one OF those claims, the
full facts must be shown. whereby 1t
may be made celarly TO appear what
the common development enterprise and
what claims are particularly benefited or
developed by the drift from the 900-foot
level. in order that the due and full share
OF the cost or value OF the improvements
10 which each is entitled may be deter
mined Before any further assignment
OF the available improvements. or any
OF them, the number of contiguous claims
having common ownership. TO be de-
vcloped through or by means thereof
must be shown, conformaby to the rul-
Ing In the Carretto case.
The company VIII be accorded a rea-
sonab]e time. to be fixed by your Office
within which 10 make an additional
showing along the lines herein Indicated
II a showing in all respects satisfactory
be submitted within the time so TO be
iiNed, land u appears 10 the satisfaction
oi your Office. from the record as then
made up. that the improvements relied
relative TO expenditure are sufficient in
value; and or such character as Ia re-
dound to the benefit OF the claim In
question. the entry may stand In tho
absence OF other objection, otherwise II
VIII be Cancelled AS herein modified
inc IN decision Of your office is affirmed
respectfully. e3
L a HITCHCOCK. Secretary