The Cordova daily times., 1921-04-18

lhe IollOWlng letter addressed to oil locators has just been received from Delegate Dan Sutherland at Washington, conveying in detail the recent ruling of the general land of flee pertaining to surveys, will be
 read with interest by many here at
 this time, with development in the oil fields on the verge of great activity:
 To the locators of oil claims in the Cold bay and other districts of
 Alaska to whom permits have been issued:
 l desire to call your attention to
 the terms under which these permits
 have been issued by the general land office and to urge upon you the ne | cessity of complying with the condi- tional provision contained in section 712 of the permit, to-wit:
 This permit IS granted upon the
 express condition that the permittee will adjust any conflict with any prior applicant within (six) months from date hereof"
 Under the conditions that precailed in locating areas, it has been impos-
 sible for the department to prepare accurate maps thereof. The require ment of the leasing law was for the placing of one stake only in locating
 an area and consequently it is more
 than probable that survey would demonstrate that many of these
 claims overlap, and this would apply
 particularly to the west field of the Cold bay district where most of the locations were made.
 In issuing these conditional per
 mits it is the purpose of the general
 land office to facilitate and encour age prospecting, and the oil prospec-
 tor should appreciate this unusual pro
 cemre in his interest to the extent of
 cooperating with the department by
 establishing the boundary lines of his
 claims within the period of time pro
 vided for in the above quoted section
 No. 712.
 Any prospector is aware of the fact
 that the only sure way of fixing the
 boundary lines of a claim is. by the
 establishment of corner posts or
 mounds, and that any claim that is
 worth locating is worth locating well,
 with a view to preventing future liti-
 gation.
 We assume that the locating at
 Cold bay was done in the manner
 usual with prospectors and that
 groups of two, three or four men
 were present at the locating of sev
 eral claims and that some one mem
 Der of the group is capable of acting
 for the other members in fixing the boundary lines of the several claims, and l therefore respectfully suggest that if it is not convenient for all
 lOcators to go to the fields within would be well to select one who is familiar with the locations and give
 him the authority to go to the field
 and act for others as well as himself
 in placing corner mounds and estab- fishing the lines.
 A departmental surveyor is going to the Cold bay district this summer who will make sort of skeleton
 survey of the district, but this survey will have no connection with your claims except insofar as it may es- tablish a few base lines. Section I7k does not imply that survey of your claims is required but simply that all conflicts be adjusted within the six months and all conflicts will be permanently settled when corner mounds are established by common consent of all interested locators. It is believed to be a certainty that at least one drill will operate at | Cold bay this summer; boundary lines can be easily adjusted without dis