Show M mineral n e r a 1 land litigation HERALD WELLS NEVADA during the past several years there has been more or less litigation in nevada between the southern pacific company and the miners and prospectors over mineral lands to which the company had laid title attempting whenever mineral was found by a prospector to oust him from the land but this state of affairs seems about at an end it is quite possible that all of the big land cases twenty six in all between the united states government and the southern pacific company will be settled negotiations are now being carried on and it is believed that before many more days have r passed assed that the litigation will swill all be disposed of attorney charles lewers or reno recently spent several days in san francisco and it is generally believed that he was in conference with the southern pacific attorneys in that city and frank hall and other government attorneys and from all indications some agreement agre emet will be reached which will put an end to litigation expensive both to the southern pacific and the government if 11 the settlement is reached many thousands of acres of mineral land will be thrown open to the mine owners without any cloud on their title and much development may result throughout the state the attorneys for both sides are at present working on a plan to segregate all lands cither ather under actual location at the time he patents were issued to the southern pacific or known to be mineral land at that time from the other southern pacific land this will not include the land under litigation in olinghouse which is embraced in what is known as the buck ingalls case but if the present conference ends in a settlement of the cases the buck ingalls case will be taken up and it is believed it will be disposed of without further litigation for more than two years past the southern pacific company has been engaged in expensive litigation with the government over mineral lands in the state the government has contended that the lands were patented as non mineral under false pre deses A large amount of testimony has been taken and so far no evidence of fraud has been shown the position now taken by the government is that the land was patented through inadvertence and mistake in reference to this matter the carson news of sunday morning had the following united states attorney platt returned from san francisco this morning to resume his duties in the federal court here he was shown an article in the reno gazette announcing the probable settlement of litigation commenced by the government adaist the southern pacific railroad company to mineral lands in the state of ne reco recover ver vada mr platt was asked for a co confirmation following sta statement e made the of the rumor and about a month ago while in washington I 1 took up the matter of a possible amicable settlement of this litigation I 1 did so for the reason that the twenty six suits now pending against the railroad company would in my judgment require a consider able time to try and I 1 felt if possible that the mining interests of nevada were entitled to as speedy a determination as possible in this effort I 1 had the operation cooperation co of special assistants frank hall and E D lacey and we were given authority to negotiate to that end during the past week we have been in conference with railroad attorneys and officials in san francisco and in the sight of the publication already given I 1 believe I 1 can say with considerable confidence that the litigation will be settled the separate suits filed embraced in their consideration thousands of acres of land and it may be imagined that a careful review of twenty six suits involving special reports of examiners and land agents was somewhat of a long and telous task manifestly the government could not possibly have prevailed as to some of the lands asked for the railroad company had been given title to the land by the government under a special statute and it devolved upon the government to prove fraud inadvertence or mistake upon the part of the railroad company in filing a non mineral affidavit selecting the land and to establish further that the land was mineral in character at the time the selection was made As to what is or is not mineral land under a state of facts at issue in this litigation is not always easy of ascertainment and the investigation vesti gation gatlon and determination of this question from all its legal aspects would woula have drawn out these cases to a very remote determination in affecting the tentative agreement just reached at san francisco concessions were naturally made by both sides when the law and the fact seemed to favor the railroad company as to a peculiar subdivision of land an effort was made by us to preserve at least the rights of locators and prospectors who had actually located upon the lands and developed their claims in good faith we were almost universally successful in this and in many cases the agreement calls for an actual segregation of particular mining claims for the benefit of the prospector and mine owner I 1 cant help but believe that this agreement will tend to the splendid development of many mining properties in the state which have been lying dormant on account of th the e railroads claim to the land when the agreement receives the th 6 stamp of judicial approval the prospecto ector may work his claim with the assurance that thai if it develops profitably he will realize the th fruits of his industry the jumbo and ramsey mining districts in this vicinity will be materially benefited by the arrange arrant ment as some very important mining Z claim in those sections will be practically turned over to the locators and claimants valuable mining properties in the eastern part of the state will be relieved to a large extent of railroad assertion of ownership owner shin and there will be encouragement for further development while the compromise of itself imports mutual concessions I 1 feel that the trial of the cases would have accomplished little if any more and best of all it means a speedy ending of the litigation both contending sides appeared to have been liberal and reasonable and I 1 am frank in stating that I 1 have no doubt that a decree will be entered I 1 in ii ac accordance C ordanie with the arrangement made |