The silver state. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1909-1925, 1915-11-13
FROM
s. P. LAND Agent
San Francisco, Nov. 10, 1915.
Editor Silver State:

Jan AhhSlS1Oy NOV. ~, 1910.
Editor Silver State:
Winnemucca, New.
Referring to the item in your issue
of October 80, 1915, headed Prospect
ors must report claims on g. p. Grant, -
you make the statement:
ut might as well be known broad.
cast over the state that the Southern
Pacific is using every means possible
to force their railroad lands to patent,
and ii is becoming very evident that
they like mineral land better than any
other
If you will read the Act of Congress
making the grant to the Central Pacific
company, you will find that as fast as
any portion of the route might be
finally located the Secretary of the In.
terror was charged with Immediately
surveying the granted lands, and that
az rapidly as twenty consecutive-mile
sections of said railroad were complet-
ed and equipped as required by law,
patents wore to Immediately issue to
the company and that mineral lands,
other than coal and iron lands, were
to be excepted from the grant
Regardless of these directions bv
Congress to the executive officers of
the United States, there still remains
very large area Of land within the
limits of the grant not vet surveyed,
and another very large area has only
been surveyed within the past two or
three years. Furthermore, there is still
another large area which, although sur.
veyed years ago and patents applied
for by the company years ago, has not
yet been patented.
The company is not endeavoring to
FORCE the issuance of patents, at the
same time it is insisting that the execu-
tive officers of the United State should
do that which they were directed to do
by Congress and which should have
been done years and years ago.
In respect of mineral land, the COM
pany and the executive offers of the
government and Mr.. Ralph Kelly each
well understand that when a patent
issues it is an adjudication of the fact
that the land is on-mineral, and be-
fore that patent issues the company is
required to file non.mineral affidavit
covering each tract, made by its en-
ploye, setting forth that he has care
fully examined the land and that the
only is this done but under the rules
now existing in the general land Office,
that office also has an examination
made of each tract of land for which
patent is about to issue to the compa-
NY Insofar as either the company
employees or the general land Office c~..
ployes may find lands showing indiea-
tions of mineral, both parties are en-
titled to a hearing in order that the
facts may be ascertained and the ques.
tion adjudicated, and such hearings are
fiom time to time ordered by the gen.
eral land office when occasion requires.
Their is certainly no objection on our
part to advice being given to pros
peetors, either individually or through
advertisement in the papers, that they
should appear and file their claims in
sofar as same may be found to rest up
on unpatented odd numbered sections
within the limits of the grant; that is
the proper thing for them to do and
had your article confined itself to that
announcement without undertaking to
diseredit the Southern Pacific conpa.
ny's attitude and intentions, there
would have been no occasion for this
letter.
Your article further says that there
are rumors so often repeated that they
sound suspiciously good that the com.
pany once having gained patent
twill listen to no sort of proposition
to either sell or lease their mining
ground.
1t is true that occasionally there
have in recent years been discovered
small mining prospects upon land pat
ented to the company years and years
ago and upon which at the time of
patenting there existed no reason to
suppose that mineral might be feund
thereon. To the extent that these cases
are disclosed to the company by the
prospeetor who discovers the mineral
indications, the company stands ready
to treat with him on fair and reason
able basis either by way of lease or
sale of the land in question, and this
has been the attitude of the company
for the past six years, during which
time all the cases coming TO its knowl.
edge have been so dealt with. AS
matter of fact such cases have been
comparatively few in number
So far as any discoveries may here
after be made on patented lands there
is no present intent of changing this
policy. Yours truly,
B. A. McALLASTER,
Southern Pacific Land Commissioner.