The Alaska citizen., 1911-01-30


 bill was introduced in the s nate on January 9, four days later than the Wiokorsham bill had been introduc- el and referred t0 the committee on the public lands of the house The bills iOll W.
 The Nelson Bill.
 A Bill to provide for the leasing Of
 coal and coal lands in the Terri
 tory f Alaska.
 Be i, enacted by the senate and house of representatives f the Unit ef States of America in congress assembled. That all lands within the r rritory of Alaska to which patents have not heen earned or to which vested right has not been ac- quirel. and which contain deposits Cf coal IT of Ignite. or associated minerals. which Tor the purposes of this act shall be called coal. and the coal therein, are hereby reserved from all forms of entry, appropria- tion. and disposal except under the provisions f this act: Provided, That all other minerals in such lands shall he expressly reserved to the United States and from disposi- tion under this act
 See. .. That any person above the age of twenty-One years, who is a citizen of the United States, or any associati n or corporation of such persons. may. in writing, apply to the Secretary of the Interior for a license to prospect and explore for coal. or for lease to mine and extract coal from a coal deposit or mine. on any of the lands of the United States in the Territory of Alaska, not exceeding an area of three thousand two hundred acres in any one license or lease under such regulations and limitations not inc nSiStent with this act, as the Secretary of the Interior may pre- scribe. The applicant for such license or lease shall in his applica- tion. if the land be surveyed, de scrite the land applied for by the subdivisions of the survey, and if the land is not surveyed then by permanent monuments placed at the exterior corners of the land. with the courses and distances between the same The Secretary of the In teri may reject such application if !, appears to him that it is not made in good faith or that il involves a purpose to munopoliZe the output or supply Cf coal CT to control the price If lhe same. If the Secretary of the Iuterior approves of the ap- plicarion for a license to prospect and cNplorr. he may, on behalf of the United States. under his hand and the seal of his Cflice. issue to lhe applicant a license to prospect and explore for coal, to the eXclu- sion of anyone else, the land ap- piled for, not exceeding an area of three thousand TWO hundred acres in a impact body. for term not exceeding two years. for a cOmpen- satiOn of twenty-five cents per acre for the first year and fifty cents per acre for the second year, with the privilege of leasing. before the eX- piratiOn of the lease, the coal mines or cal deposits on the land upon the terms and conditions hereinafter prescribed. Such license shall be is sued in triplicate and one copy thereof shall be filed in the interior department. one copy with the reg is'er of the land office in the dis trict in which the lands are situate, and one copy delivered to the li- censce. The Secretary of the Inter- for may. in his discretion if all the conditions of the license have been duly complied with, extend the term of the license for an additional year at cOmpensation of one dollar per acre. The liCensee can not assign his interest in the license without the consent of the Secretary of the Interior. nor to anyone not qual- flied to obtain such license in the first instance; and no person, firm, association, -Or corporation shall ac- quire or hold. directly or indirectly, more than one such license.
 Sec. 3 That if the Secretary of the Interior approves of an appli- cation for a lease, made as here inbefOre prescribed, he is hereby authorized in his discretion, under such rules and regulations as he may prescribe, or lease, on behalf of the United States, to the applicant, the coal deposits or coal mines on an area Cf not to exc ed three thousand, two hundred acres of land, in a compact body, for the purpose of mining. extracting. and dispCsing of the coal, for a period of thirty years, al a royalty to the United States of five cents per ton run of mine coal extracted, if the lease is made with in ten years from date of the pass age of this act, and if the lease, or any renewal thereof is made after that period then a royalty of not less than six cents nor more than feen cents per ton, and in addl- tion to such royalty a rental is to be paid the United States annually at the beginning of each year as follows: Fifty cents per acre of the leased premises for the first year, one dollar per acre for the second year, two dollars peracre for the third year, and four dollars per acre for each and every year there after during the continuance of the lease. Such rental for any year shall be credited upon the royalty accruing during that year. Every such lease granted under the pro- visions of this act shall be upon the conditions, that the lessee will not mCnopolize, or attempt to monopo!- ize, in whole or in part the trade in coal; that the lessee will at all times sell he coal extracted from the leased premises at just, fair, and reasonable rates, and without any discrimination in price or other wise, as to persons or places; that the interstate commerce commission shall. upon its own initiative, or up on the complaint of an aggrieved party, have the same power to pass