The Wallace miner. [volume] (Wallace, Idaho) 1907-current, 1917-06-07
The Extralateral Right Law;
Shall It Be Abolished /?


laws and propose a general revision.
The commission advocated the aboli-
ton of the axtralateral right in its
comprehensive report made in 1880
Assuming that it were desirable to
abolish the extralateral right, this
was the most favorable time to have
eliminated it. The act of 1872 had
been in force only eight years and to
have wiped out the law of the apex
at that time would have resulted in
infinitely less hardship and readjust-
ment than must inevitably follow If
that right be abolished after the act
has been in force for nearly half a
century. Since this report of the pub
lie land commission was issued, the
attempt to repeal this feature OF the
mining law has been urged at inter-
walls. In recent years this sentiment
has increased to such degree, and
the abolition of the right is now ad-
vocated by so many distinguished
mining authorities and leading min
ing associations, that the subject de-
mands serious consideration. Most or
this agitation, however, has thus far
been entirely too much engrossed with
partisan condemnation of the law or
the apex, while but slight consdera :
ton has been given to the principles
underlying the origin and exercise of
the right and those features which
furnish some measure of justification
for it's existence; and practically no
thought has been directed to the con-
sequences which must inevitably flow
from an outright repeal. These con-
sequences would be exceedingly vital
and far reaching and, unless the anti
extralatera advocates can furnish
some practical solution which Will
minimize the mischief, the advocacy
by many of them of outright repeal
of the extralateral and discovery fea-
lures of the mining law without a
corresponding REIMBURSEMENT of our
public land laws all along the line to
meet this sweeping change, is going
= to produce results which will be most
detrimental to the mining industry.
1t is generally conceded that the
fundamental principle of the eXtralat-
eral right is ideal in theory The
statements of those who have analyz-
ed the situation surrounding the &C.
currence of lode or vein deposits and
who have pointed out the lack of any
essential relation between veins or
mineral deposits in depth and the
everything surface amply support the
principle of severance. All that one
has to do is to picture a vein dipping
at an angle into the earth and visual
ize the result of vertical planes passed
through the surface boundaries cut
ting off the right to mine on the vein
in depth at various points Take the
case where several veins dip either
parallel to each other or at varying
angles and realize the complex con-
dition that would result If everything
surface ownership controlled, and, YER
teal planes were projected down
ward to chop these veins into seq
ments of varying size and at different
depths. Then conceive the ideal con-
dition under the eXtralateral law
where the apex proprietor can follow
q certain length of vein down indefin =
itely on it's dip no matter where 1t
leads The practical result where
veins are controlled by surface own
ership and chopped into segments OF
varying size and at varying depth is
to bring about an attempt to consol-
idate the right to mine on the Vein
and thus to sever the underground
rights from the surface rights and to
make them independent of one an
other. Only by this means can veins
be most economically operated. The
intent of the extralateral law was to
accomplish this result in the first in
stance and avoid the necessity OF
subsequent consolidation, and hence
the extralateral law is based on the
fundamental conception of economic
operation. But unfortunately, though
the extralateral law is ideal in the
DRY, it is far from ideal in practica
results. If veins were ideal, with
regular width and dip and strike, the
extralateral law would work to perfec-
ton and no one could seriously advo-
cate change. Veins are, however, sc
complex in occurrence, with branches
faults, splits, functions and ever!
conceivable variation in strike, dip
width and degree of naturalization
that no matter how well the law o
the extralateral right may become set
tied, disputes will always arise owe
these physical vagaries.
II we analyze the arguments ad
vanced by those who advocate abol
ishing the extralateral right, we fin
that they practically resolve them
selves into the objection based on a.
excessive amount of litigation. !
has been assumed by most of thes
critics without investigation that ex
tralateral litigation is common oc
currence and has become burde
which is seriously hampering the min
ing industry Examination of the sta
tistics leads one to believe that tn
situation has been exaggerated. Their
has been much expensive litigation