The Alaska daily empire., 1913-03-03

ARCH 3, 1913.
 Territory. Among the more import ant is a modification of the require ment that the first assessment mus be completed within the calendar year The requirement operates unjustly il the case of locators who make discov cries and stake their claims very lat in the year, when the time is insuiii cient for inaugurating profitable opera tions to improve the property. A com promise plan possessing such merit in my opinion, is the one which would require the first instalment of assess ment work to be done within ninet! days of the date of location, withou reference to the end of the calendar year period. This initiatory worl would be to some extent incidental tt the discovery and location, and would have tendency, at least to settle many of the questions of genuinness O the discovery itself
 Other desirable provisions are s' familiarity known and have been thu subject of such wide expressions O opinion that I refrain from a discus sion of them all within the limits o this communication as tn legislation on this subject must need be somewhat varied and voluminous Optional Amount of Assessment Work As plan calculated to enlarge great ly the extent of wagon-road Duildin without the imposition of furthe taxes, heartily favor the enactmen of a mining law as described in tn following extract from my current al ual report to the Secretary of the II terior:
 q strongly recommend further
 modification of the general min
 ing law as applied to this Terri tory, under which assessment work
 on both quartz and placer mining
 claims may be paid in cash or in
 labor to be applied to the construc-
 tion of roads and trails outside of
 incorporated towns. This policy is
 sound in principle and would cer-
 tainly accomplish much for the de-
 velopment of the Territory. The
 soundness of the principle rests on
 the fact that so-called assess
 ment work on mining locations is
 intended to promote the develop.
 ment of mines and to discourage
 speculative holdings. This pur-
 pose is notoriously defeated in
 countless instances not only be-
 cause false afIidavits as to labor
 on mining ground are promoted,
 but because much of the assess
 ment work, done in good faith
 with the object of complying with
 the law, really does not accom-
 plish any real development at all
 but. from the conditions of mining,
 is work wasted. This is particular
 ly true in groups of quartz claims
 and in placer tracts purchased for
 dredging operations, upon which
 labor in any given year can be
 proftably applied only within the
 confines of one claim. By grant
 ing to locators or claim owners
 prior to patent the option of pay
 ing the amount of their assess
 ments in cash for wagon-road con
 structions, much perjury would be
 prevented, litigation would be
 forestalled, and the real develop
 ment of mining properties has
 tened and rendered more profit
 able"
 The power of a territorial legisl ture. however, to enact such a proyi ion. under the terms of the gener; mining law is at the best a matter doubt. mention it here particular because of the paramount need of S curing the construction of more e tensive highways and trails, and b cause this plan of raising re enue may be made the subject of memorial to Congress by your homo able body.
 AS a matter somewhat nearly rela ed to the foregoing, recommend tn repeal of the road tax law of Apr 27, 1904, since experience has show that the tax is not only excessive bu unequal in the burdens which it in poses, and expensive and difficult t