The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1915-04-22
Who Is the Prospector and What are
His Rights?
Charles t KEENAN, in Mining World.

locks tossed by mountain storms ana
hleached by desert suns. whiten t.
oncoming death. His manly form once
rugged and straight as the giant
mountain pine becomes feeble. old, and
bent, the desert seems more hot and
dusty, the mountain trail more hare
and steep--the pick and the shove,
slip from his nerveless grasp, his foot
steps falter'-at the reckoning of the
God of the granite and the rose, al
empty handed and forlorn he lays him
down to rest in an unknown land
The hillside for his pail.
The stars for tapers tall
He continues the search In the shadow
lands of the mountains and deserts o.
the great beyond!
And yet, the greatest nation on eartr
Is seriously bordering now whether +
should not do something more to dis
courage this man in his business!
The most pathetic side of this pic
ture is that when these old prospectors
occasionally and finally do stumble
upon the very object of their life'y
search their scientific. mining anC
commercial knowledge is SO scant they
do not recognize their finds" and sci.
dow, or never, reap their reward.
Others Reap the Reward.
The sequence Is uniform. 1t was n
found and discovered the greatest MN
ing camp in America camp whicf
has already produced a quarter of :
billion of dollars, and made multimil
lionaires of scores Of men-shoulf
himself be dependent upon a lovins'
and hard working sister for his sup
and die helpless and penniless, hu'
such Is the history of "Old Bob We
mack, discoverer Of Cripple Creek COLE
district, who prospected ground whicl
for many years was supposed to b.
only suited for a COW pasture anr
upon finding the Gold King mine
which has itself made many mer
money kings, sold It for $500, and dice
a pauper!
Old Henry Comstock. discoverer Of
the great Comstock lode of Nevada
sold 1t to Flood, Fair and Mckay fo'
a paltry $4,000 and when he saw them
taking out of the mine their 1859, 000,
0O0 legend relates he retired to his
cabin at Bowie, Calf, and died of 6
broken heart!
"French Pete" discoverer of the
Treadwell mine of Alaska, which ha'
been pouring out its millions for
Quarter of a century, and looks al
though 1t would never cease, sold J
for $4OO-but so far from dying OF :
broken heart, we understand he Is still
living, q hale and hearty old pros
pector enjoying heroic poverty ant
looking for another mine!
And yet the greatest nation on cart
is seriously bordering now whether !
should not do something more to dis
courage this man in his business!
Almost without comment for z
years congress has sat passively b.
and watched our various presidents
urged on by our so-called "cOnserVa
ton bureaus" but authorized theret
by no law of congress, set aside
forest reserves" 25,0OO,000 acres q
strictly mining lands above timbe
line, and 75,0O0000 acres peioW timbe
line, upon which there was, and IS
no growing tree. For rs years, almoS
without comment, congress has Watch
ed the conservation bureaus sprea
their armies of detectives, speeia
Iagents. forest rangers, etc, over sue
lands, and drive the settler and pros
rector "off" and "out" of such flores
reserves" In their efforts to hold tines
lands Intact" and in the state of ma
ture, until such time as the "conser
walton bureaus" could induce congress
TO pass the general leasing bill
when the whole public domain wouI
fall under the administrator" OF IN
conservation bureaus" finally, firml
in the saddle as rulers of the gran
Ifeudal empire! The prospector mus
then prospect, not for mine, but 70
the privilege of paying royalties to de
FRAY the salaries and expenses or
million political taskmasters to admin
lister the grand estate!
The incentive to prospect would the
Ibe removed. The prospector would nc
prospect.
Apex Law Protects Prospeetors.
The abrogation of the Apex LAY
would not damage the prospector duit
80 much as the general leasing bills,
deprive him of a portion Of his 'hnd'
deprice him of portion OF his ma
perhaps the larger portion, but the en-
actment Of the latter would strip hlf
Of all!
The miners and prospectors OF IN
west look upon the proposed abroga
ltlon Of the Apex law as being meret
an "nterlocutory proceeding to mol
1.-The estate" intact until congress ca
Ibe induced by the Conservation bu
lz,,au - qua NJ 4ha "ppnera1 leaSln