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Show 4 INTER-MOUNTAI- rester, John May, S. R. Thurman, J. B. Milburn, James Rooney, C. T. Atwood, J. T. Hammond, J. C. McNally, George Thomas, W. C. Stone, F. Houghton, Thomas Kearns, J. X. Ferguson, S. W. Eccles. A. G. Norrell, Oscar Vander-cook- , J. N. Butts, J. L. Thompson. The courts and the land ollice have . held that mineral lands within Indian reservations are not open to exploration or purchase; that a mineral location made upon lands within the limits of an Indian reservation is void at its inception, and, although the proceedings for patent are regular in all respects, the entry must be canceled; furthermore, that parties engaged ir mining upon a reservation proceed in violation of the law. In view of these decisions, the action of the Governor and Secretary of State, in employing another State official to enter upon and locate these lands, in violation of the law, might be mildly characterized ar bad form. But this is a matter of less interest and importance than the fact that the locations were made upon the advice of United States Senator Arthur Brown, acting in his capacity as an attorney, and the views entertained by the Senator concerning tht status of the reservation are of deep interest to the people of Utah and to those members of Congress who passed an act providing that these land should be thrown open. He holds that the Uncompahgre reservation is not a reservation, and never has been. After the Ute uprising in Colorado, which followed the Meeker massacre, the Government intended to locate these upon a new reservation near Grand Junction, but they preferred to settle on the lands in Utah, now occupied by them. President Arthur, accordingly, by executive order, established the present reservation, anc the lands were withdrawn from settlement and set apart for reservation use. It is contended by Senator Brown that the President exceeded his authority, the power to withdraw public lands and establish reservations being vested solely in Congress, and therefore these Uncompahgre lands are still part of the public domain and open to settlement. Some attorneys who have been consulted admit that there may possibly exist some ground that may serve as a slight basis for a test in the courts, but whatever may have been the authority of the President, it is pointed out that Congress, in providing a manner in which the reservation should be opened, as well as by numerous legislative acts prior to that time, confirmed the action of the President and recognized the status of the reservation. Good lawyers express the opinion that the first locations made after the reservation has been regularly opened in the manner provided by law will hold the ground, regardless of any locations made prior to that date. These same asphaltum claims were located eight years ago by Sam Gilson, the discoverer of gilsonite, and his locations are on record, but they are not regarded as of any great value. It is worthy of note that Senator Brown was not included among the lo Un-compahg- res MINING REVIEW N cators, although it was upon his advice that the locations were made. Had ht become a locator he would have been disqualified from acting as counsel in any litigation involving the validity of the locations. It is also of significance that Judge W. H. Dickson, one of the ablest mining attorneys in the State, was recorded as a locator without his knowledge or consent. He disclaims any interest in the locations, and while he had not investigated the subject, was inclined to the belief that such locations were invalid. If these Uncompahgre lands are opei to entry the general public ought to know it, but it will require a more substantial assurance than the contention above mentioned to inaugurate a stampede of trespassers. It would be interesting to know what Acting Indian Agent Randlett was doing while these locations were being made whether he was asleep or was simply winking the Other eye. He has always been regarded as a terror to trespassers and lawbreakers, and it is reported that when he was informed of what had been done he ordered out the colored cavalry to destroy the location notices. If it should become necessary to enter upon the reservation to perform assessment work, it is intimated that Senator Brown will apply for an injunction restraining the Indian agent from The depression of the lead market has induced the owners of a good many silver-lea- d mines to reduce their output or close down entirely, and the miners who have thus been thrown out of employment are taking leases upon the properties that their employers did not think they could operate at a profit. Working property by lease is a growing feature of modern mining, and it is noteworthy that many mines, operated at an actual loss by the owners, are worked at a profit, both to the owners and the miners, under the leasing system, and in addition the owners usually secure a certain specified amount of development work. This result is doubtless partly due to the fact that the work is in the hands of practical men, which is not always the case when the property is operated by an Eastern company, which may have sent out some inexperienced favorite to superintend the work. The leasing system has been followed extensively in Little Cottonwood and at Bingham, and it is reported that two of the big properties at Mammoth, the Sioux and Utah, have just been leased. While the supply of lead is now in excess of the demand, the demand for lead ores is in excess of the supply. The result is that the smelters are paying, for lead ores, an average of 10 cents per unit more than the value of their lead contents and cost of treatment. This is only true of the high-grad- e ores, in this market, however, as transportation rates exclude outside ores. In concompetition on sequence of this bonus, the smelters lose 10 cents per unit on all the lead ores they purchase, and this loss is taxed against the silicious or dry low-gra- de ores. Gold Mining in Idaho. 1IY T. J. SUTTON. One of the effects of silver demonetization, and a good one, has been to turn the attention of prospectors and miners to the discovery and develop- ment of gold-beari- quartz. ng Willow Creek, twenty miles from this city, is an illustration of my meaning. Gold was discovered there thirty-thre- e years been i ha and cavried ago placer mining on successfully ever since. About two quartz was discovered, both on Willow and Rock years ago bold-bearin- g creeks, arastras were constructed and some money taken out, but quartz mining for gold was not and has not been regarded as a legitimate or safe business in Idaho, and as the returns from arastra mining were not equal to the inflated notions of that period, work was discontinued and the mines were finally abandoned. Later the Wood River silver mines were discovered. Frequent rich strikes were made. Everybody wTent wild over silver, and gold mining as an industry ceased to exist. Our rich placers had been worked out, and the consensus of opinion seemed to be that Idaho gold quartz would not pay for working. True, the Gold Hill company kept hammering away, and kept declaring dividends, just as they had always done, but that mine was declared to be an exception to the rule. Meantime the blight of the demonetization crime was spreading. Wood River, the Coeur dAlenes, Bonanza, Clayton, Bay Horse, Atlanta and Smoky collapsed. Seventy-fiv- e thousand people employed and sup- ported by these great camps were cast adrift without silver-produci- ng oc- cupations or means of support. Farm and orchard products were without value; business men neither believed nor would invest in our gold mines; prospectors and developers could get neither encouragement nor assistance and left the State, discouraged and disgusted. And so it wras that our gold mines fell into disrepute among mining men and investors through the fault of our owrn people and not for lack of intrinsic worth in the mines themselves. But a bstter era has dawned upon the State. Willow and Rock creeks have been restored to the map of profitable quartz mining territory in Idaho. Half a doxen claims are now shipping ores from those localities, and four times that number are known to carry gold in paying quantities. Some ore from these properties is being worked in local mills of small capacity and paying a profit to the miners. Of the ore shippers the Checkmate takes the lead; that mine up to the 20th had shipped 100 tons for the month of August. At the same rate it will ship 150 tons for the month. A now discovery was made of a large body of ore in the Star of Bethlehem mine a few days ago, wrhich, report says, eclipses all former discoveries, in richness, made in the camp. New discoveries are frequently reported, and new enterprises projected in and around Boise basin, showing that renewed interest and activity are being awakened in our gold quartz mines, while the progress made by the |