Show u J. J AN APPEAL IS TAKEN ON OIL SHALE LANDS Question Involves States State's Bights to Largo Large Tract on Hill Creak Claimed by tho the Watson Vatson Oil on Company Can oil oU shale be hold held to have been known mineral land at tho the time the states state's title to such Buch lands as school sections would havo have attached unless they wore were known to lo have such mineral content is the question which the state of ot Utah has hass taken laken on appeal to lo the commissioner of ot the United States general land office at Washington The tendency of ot interior department department department depart depart- ment and federal court decisions has been to hold that unless the tho mineral content of lands Is known to exist in such quantities as to lo bo ho commercially commercial commercial- ly valuable it Is not mineral lend land within the means of the acts rc reson- reson ing lag mineral lands land to lo the tho United States Stales When the land is without known mineral content four sections of oC each township at the time of filing flUng of the plat of the federal survey survoy au au- go to the state Recently Albert Halen HarlEm receiver of the Vernal land office decided a claim of the Watson Walson Oil on company ad adversely adversely adversely ad- ad to lo the Iho protest of ot the state stale of ot Utah Ufah Yesterday tho the state stale appealed from Crom that decision to tho the commissioner commis commis- former Governor William Spry The alleged errors assigned are arc given In the following language The register and receiver erred First In holding that from the tho tes- tes produced the lands herein In Involved Involved involved In- In since 1908 were known to contain oil shale in commercial I quantities second In holding that oll i shale shalo in commercial quantities exIsts exists exists ex ex- n n these lands third in assuming assuming assum assum- ing that oil shale had at the time tho the title of the tho state of Utah Ulah at attached attached attached at- at to the lands a known or recognized recognized rec rec- rec commercial value fourth in that the protest of tho the state of Utah must be rejected It will be Abe the of ot the state It is expected that the demon demon- of the commercial value of or the Ule oil oU shale lands of ot Utah is at best a very rec recent nt event It If It can beald be said ald to have bave been demonstrated asyet asyet as asyet yet except possibly In a few rare in In- In stances At any DY rate as far tar back as 1908 fifteen years ago it could not reasonably be stated the tho state stale argues argues argues ar ar- ar- ar gues that the oil oU were commercially commercially com com- valuable A favorable decision to the state on such an Issue would cloar clear title to toan toan toan an immense amount of ot land in Hill Hillcreek creek now claimed by the state stale or orb orby orby b by successors in interest of the state stale On n the other hand band if it is held that the oil underlying thousands ml of acres in that section and known as a matter of geology to be bo present th there thero ro are to be classed as known mineral lands there is an immense area of ot the rich basin lands on which the school land grant of ot the Iho federal government will wn bo Io held In- In effective If the state wins under the Iho state leasing act the royalty resulting from the development of such oil on will all of it come to the tho state slain If U the federal government wins only three eighths of the royalty will come como cometo comoto to tho the state stale the tho remainder gong going to lo lothe the federal government for tor administration adminis of the federal leasing teasing act t |