The Goldfield news and weekly tribune. [volume] (Goldfield, Nev.) 1911-1947, 1914-12-26
MAKES PROTEST
AGAINST MOVE
JOHN CLEGHORN, NEVADA PROS
PECTOR, ARGUES AGAINST
PETITION CIRCULATED

culated among business men and ad-
dressed to the Salt Lake Stock and
Mining Exchange. asking that body
to take whatever steps may be nee
essary to secure Immediately from
congress an extension of six months
in which to do assessment work on
mining claims for the year 1914,
John ~CleghOrn, a prospector who has
spent the last year in prospecting
Utah and Nevada. says that he has
not heard of a single prospector or
poor mining man who is in favor of
~suspending the annual assessment
work. He maintains that the enact
ment of such a law at this time
would be a positive calamity tend
ing to encourage drones and a de
triment to the man who works. He
also argues that at this time of the
year all those who are entitled to
hold their ground have done their
work.
Mr.. Cleghorn's argument, which
he has signed and sent to the Salt
Lake City Tribune follows:
In reference to the proposal to sus-
pen1 the annual assessment work on
mining claims under the plea hat
it would help the poor %prospector
and poor mining man, a word from
the prospectors' side of the question
would not be out of place. In the
first place, as everyone familiar
with the mining laws knows, the law
requiring annual work is never en-
forced rigidly. In many cases there
is not more than SO worth of work
done, and S i'll the claims are not mo-
Tested on the principle that so long
as the prior occupants are trying, in
good faith, to hold the ground they
will not be molested.
And again, any citizen can go out
on the public domain and locate any
number of mineral-bearing claims
and hold them for two years for the
magnificent sum of IS cents a claim,
which goes to the recorder. If the
proposed measure is passed, he will
have an additional time to hold the
ground with II 70 expense whatever.
1t is the practice of some farmers
and some others who never spend q
dollar in legitimate development
work to locate a big group of claims
and hold them for two y1ars, not
with the intention of sticking a pick
in the ground but with the hope that
they will be able to sell out at a big
price on the strength of the other
fellow efforts when some poor pros
pector or mining man makes a
strike.
PrOspectOrs Opposed
| think if the matter is traced up
it will be found hat it is mainly
that class that is back of the pres
ent agitation to have the assessment
work suspended. l have had the
benefit of twenty-five years eXper-
fence in the prospecting business and
this year prospected in Arizona, New
Mexico, Utah, and Nevada, and have
not heard a single p%rospectOr or
| poor mining man that is in favor OF
%suspending the assessment work.
They are opposed for several rea-
sons. One is that the more mineral
country that is open for prospecting
the better their chance of finding
something. l might add that those
who are actually in real mining,
such as the average ~prospectOr, de-
pend to some extent on getting a job
doing the annual work for people
who are holding big blocks of
ground and are well able to pay to
have the work done.
New Year to the prospectOr is
something like new year to a China
man. 1t is the settling up time when
all the old accounts are settled up
and all are given a chance to begin
the new year on a clear slate.
While in some instances it is pos
sible that the doing of the assess
ment work will work a hardship, yet
in the great majority of cases it will
be to the decided advantage of the
mining business as a whole to COM
pei those who are holding big groups
of claims to either do some work or
IdNC III 6lOuIIo lSNSit W thS oO'
eminent. Then it will be open to
legitimate development work. To
enact a law now to suspend the work
I right at the end of the year when
practically all those hwO are entitled
to hold ground have already done
their work, would be a positive ca
lamity tending to encourage the
drones and parasites to the detri-
ment of the man who works. The
main trouble with the mining bust
ness is the lack of work done, and
the laxity of enforcing the assess
ment work is responsible for cOnsid-
cradle of the present ~stagnation.
JOHN CLEGHORN.
Congressman Karl Hayden OF
Arizona who proposed to submit
Croh a hill RI oonOrocc a foW months