The Arizona copper camp., 1919-11-15
COPPER Mining BILL INTRODUCED
BY CONGRESSMAN HAYDEN WOULD AID
GREATLY in DEVELOPMENT Of STATE

from Arizona, has introduced a bill
to provide for the disposal of public
lands in Arizona, New Mexico, Ne.
vada and Utah containing copper at
depth. The legislation proposed by
the Hayden bill is designed to meet
and deal with a condition to which
the existing federal mining laws are
not, from the practical standpoint,
applicable
The important copper deposits in
the states mentioned do not occur
in technical vein or lode formation,
but in extensive low-grade bodies,
usually underlying a heavy overbur-
den Of wash, conglomerate, or non
mineral bearing formation To dis
cover such underlying deposits deep
and expensive drilling or shaft sink
ing is necessary, requiring months,
and even years, for it's accomplish
ment. Under existing law a discov-
cry in such a drill hole or shaft could
serve to validate, and vest posses
sorry title to, only one claim, 1900 by
600 feet, or an area of only about
twenty acres, which is absurdly in
sufficient to justify the great outlay
involved
In the past the mining communi-
ties have attempted to meet the con-
ditions by locating claims and doing
annual assessment work in the over
furden. Such claims, in most in
stances unsupported by any sem
blance of discovery, have been by
the communities recognized as prop
erty and bought and sold as such,
but, generally speaking, the ground
has remained undeveloped.
In many instances meager surface
showings, not connected with the un-
derlying deposits, have been claimed
as discoveries and even made the
basis of patent proceedings. In the
early days the land department did
not critically examine into the mat
ter of discovery unless the question
were raised by protest or contest,
and large numbers of such claims
were patented. This was the case
at Bisbee, Arizona, where the ore
formation occurs at depth of 1000
feet or more In later years the de-
partment has established the prac-
tice of requiring detailed showing
as to the character and quality of
discovery claimed and of making.
through it's field service, an investi-
cation on the ground. AS a result,
the department has been confronted
with the question as to whether in
consequential mineral showings in
the overburden could be accepted as
sufficient to constitute discovery, as
ir the case of the Rough Rider and
other claims which were finally pat,
ented because it was felt that the
previous patenting of similar claims
in the vicinity had established a
rule of property.
But, generally speaking. lands of
the character contemplated by the
proposed legislation cannot now be
patented under the existing mining
laws unless discoveries are made by
deep drilling or shaft sinking. On
the other hand, large areas of such
land were in the early days patented
under the non-mineral laws, under
the rule which then prevailed that
land could not be classified as min
eral in character, or patented as q
mining claim, unless mineral had
been actually disclosed. In recen
years, however, the department ha:
adopted the rule that, through geo
logical deduction as to underlying
deposits, land may be classified a:
known mineral in character and now
declines to patent such lands under
the non-mineral laws.
There are thus large areas of lant
in the four states mentioned which
the land department recognizes, o
would recognize, as being mineral il
character, but which remain unde
veloped because title thereto can
not, as a practical proposition, b.
acquired under the present mining
law.
TO justify the great expense o
exploration by drilling or sinking
shafts to a great depth, as we'll al
the great outlay in working shafts
machinery and equipment for actua
mining operations, it is necessar'
that reasonably large acreage b
acquired or controlled. To operat
on the extensive scale required, no
only are extensive ore bodies requ
site, but a large area of surface
also required for reduction plants
failing dumps, etc.
!, The proposed legislation is desigr
ed to encourage the exploration an
f5oyo10Dpoonf Of cunh lands nv PiVin