Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1910-10-17
SPECIAL LEGISLATION
FOR.PHO5|p HATE LANDS.
Given by Int erior Department
Stnrts More Trouble Over Proper
ties i'll Utah. idaho nd Wyoming.

With the giving OF a decision as to
Il The method of toIs!ns up phosphate
lands by the land office OF the interior
4 Department at Washington, further
complica lions are raised in the con-
troversy. For several years the Union
phosphate company ana Morse S.
sNDunield Ennc. associates have been at
war over krge area OF phosphate
lands in Rich county.
Some time ago the United States
r Geological survey made n rather ex-
haustive repors as to whether the
property should be taken UP as u lode
claim or u placer location. Under
placer location 1T would cos about
5000 to take up 100 acres, while to
take the same Thing up under lode
claim would cost about 5000. j@
The Union Phosphate company filed
suit against DufEielG, and associates
claiming groalnd under a placer To-
cation This clse was filed In the
United States court a nd was later dis
missed so MS to take the matter up
with the land office. The local land
= office passed on the question and 1t
was handed to the washington office
for final decision. 1t was on this case
that the assistant commissioner of
lands, S. v. Proudft, has made a de-
cision. 5il
While this was in progress Duffleld
and associates brought suit against the
Union Phosphate comENny. seeking to
GUST them from certain properties on
the ground that the proper location
was not made. This case Is now at
Issue and will be tried shortly by
Judge Marshall
The decision by the land office in
wolves tho Henry lode, which the Duff
field people attempted to have patented
rs q lode claim and which was pro-
tested by the Union Phosphate.
PROPOSALS. FOR GLEGISLATION
Local people Interested In the great
phosphate beds of Utah. Idaho and
Wyoming declare that special legtsla-
\ ton will be necessary to settle the
question. Theoretically the beds nre of
Z sedimentary formation and come under
8 q placer claim. while the phosphate Is
/ also in place and answers a full de-
scriptionj Of the lode claims. In his de-
cision Mr.. Proudht says:
IA study of the phosphate beds of
the Idaho. Utah and Wyoming fields
and of the relation OF, the ores to the
series of stratifed rocks within which
they are embedded, shows them to be
original sedlmcntary deposits. The
phosphate rocks are part OF the great
series OF sedimentary strata. deposited
under water at n time when this region
was largely submerged. Since the de-
5 position of these beds other deposits
4 have accumulated in n similar manner
Z to n thickness of many thousands of
feet and reformation Of the earth's
crust has folded and broken the orlgln-
ally fat-lylng strata. Thus the rock
phosphate ores are far more similar in
the manner OF their occurrence and ori-E
ain to such deposits OF coal, sandstone
and limestone, and especially to the
p Clinton iron ores of the Appalachian
y region. than they are to the ore depos-
its formed in veins. lodes. shoots or to
y alluvial deposits Of the placer type.
lowing to the precedent that had
been estn blished from the first placer
i locations that had been granted IN
z FLORIDA, 1t was at first assumed that;
phosphate lands In Idaho should also
be located under tho placer provisions
&of the mining laws. In both the loyal
Y and geologic meaning Of the term, the
Idaho rock phosphate deposits are GER
tainIy rock in place. They are ana To-
gous to most sedimentary building
stone deposits in the manner OF their
formation, and like coal they are also
Z bodies of valuable mineral Enclosed be-9
tween walls According to the scientific
or geologic definitions. these deposits
is are not properly lodes or veins In any
sense, however. the western phosphate
deposits do not conform to the placer
type. md unless by specific act Of Con-
gress 1t appears that there Is so far
emo sufficient warrant for their location
under the placer law.
QUESTION OF PATENT.
is d | I ~