Show valid oil 01 01 and coal claims in giving definition of what is meant by valid claims mentioned in the new oil leasing bill a special from washington to the salt lake tribune says owners of valid claims either to coal oil phosphate gas or sodium lands in the west will be permitted to perfect their claims under existing laws as provided by section 37 of the coal leasing bill which has been passed by both houses of congress there has been much inquiry from claimants in the west as to just what is meant by congress in providing for the protection of valid claims to clear up this point representative sinnott of oregon chairman of the committee on public lands made a careful explanation of this term to the house house citing authorities he said term explained 1 I 1 shall give a brief explanation of what the committee on public lands understood by the language in section 37 valid claims existent at the date of the passage of this act some members of the house have expressed to me solicitude concerning the status of locators on oil lands at the time of the passage of this act should it become a law who have not made discovery prior to the taft withdrawal of september 1909 a valid claim was considered one where discovery had been made but the valid claim referred to in section 37 does not require discovery it is the valid claim referred to in the case of the consolidated coal company and others against the united states a decision of the circuit court of appeals of the ninth judicial district fed where the court in rendering its decision says it is insisted on behalf of the government that exemptions from the effect of the order of of the president therein provided for will not be properly held to apply to to any land upon which at the time of its promulgation no mineral had been discovered even though as in the present case the land had been located under and by virtue of the mining laws its boundaries properly marked on the ground and the assignees of the locators in the bona fide actual possession and actively engaged in seeking mineral therein perfected claim Is Pro property pirty the court goes on further A mining claim perfected under the law is property in the highest sense of the term which may be bought sold and conveyed and will pass by descent it is not therefore subject to the disposal of the government ern erni ment nent president taft who had himself been a distinguished federal judge of course well knew kaev this and we think it altogether unreasonable to hold that the words employed by him in his order all location or claims existing and valid on this date may proceed to entry in the usual manner after field investigation and examination were intended or can be fairly construed to apply to lands upon which discoveries have already been made and to which its locators have already acquired an equitable title but on the contrary that they were intended and should be held to apply to all locations and claims existing at the time of the making of the withdrawal order to which the locators or claimants have some valid right in the consideration of the bills H R and S 2812 before the public lands committee of the house sixty fifth congress second session francis J kearful assistant attorney general of the united states representing the attorney general in the hearings of said bill on page gave the following explanation of a valid claim if you undertake to define what are valid rights existing under the present law if you intended to express the intent which mr lenroot thinks is expressed here you could only quote from the pickett act or from the language of the express oil company case which was the foundation of the pickett act and which no court has ever disputed that is that one who is in the diligent prosecution of work leading to discovery although he has madeno made no discovery has a valid claim in which he will be protected against any intrusion by any person and so long as he continues in the diligent prosecution of that work he will be protected and when lie he makes a discovery his location will be complete there never was any reason from any quarter to doubt the soundness of that proposition information furnished mr kearful further furnished the committee at said hearings with the following memorandum explaining the meaning of the term valid claim it is found on page of the hearings by y executive order of september 27 1909 in aid of proposed legislation large areas of the public land in california and wyoming were temporarily withdrawn from all forms of location settlement selection filing entry or disposal under the mineral or public land laws the order declared that all locations or claims existing and valid on this date may proceed to entry in the usual manner after field investigation and examination in consolidation mutual oil company vs united states fed the circuit court of appeals for the ninth circuit held that the exception from the executive order of all locations or claims existing or valid was intended to save the rights of the prospectors who although they had made no discovery were in bona fide actual possession and diligently engaged in the prosecution of discovery work no reason is prece ived to doubt the correctness of this ruling the intention to save rights which would otherwise be cut off is manifest and as those who had made discoveries had rights which could not be diverted the rights intended to be saved must have been those inchoate rights existing before discovery which the law then recognized as entitled to protection that is rights founded upon actual bona fide possession accompanied by the diligent prosecution of discovery work see also alpo united states vs mccutchen fed united states vs stockton midway oil company fed 1006 1009 united states vs thirty two oil company fed Y claim owners secure mr Kear fuls statement and citations were in reference to section 31 of the house bill found on page 22 of the hearings which was as follows section 31 that the deposits of coal phosphate oil and gas herein referred to in lands valuable for such minerals shall be subject to disposition only in the form and manner provided in this act except as to valid claims existent at date of the passage of this act and thereafter maintained in compliance with the laws under which initiated which claims may be perfected under such laws from these citations and the statement of mr kearful it is apparent that the phrase valid cl claims ainis referred to in section 7 do does es not contemplate a claim wherein discovery is made |