Show U search becomes more costly as field narrows the days when a geiger gelger counter and a little luck were all that wax was needed to find uranium ore are just about over geologists figure most 0 f the areas on the colorado plateau easily accessible by jeep or truck were s staked taked out last summer and now uranium prospecting 19 Is I moving into the realm ol 01 bil big bu business requiring airplanes and well organized scientific searching parties more and more the demand is for technical experience in mineral hunting this new phase of prospecting sp spurred burred on perhaps by the governments men is guaranteed ore purchasing program will continue until 1962 unless ended by congress has attracted many long establish ed mining companies and oil firms into the field one oil firm staked out over claims recently in some of the roughest st regions of colorado and arizona in montrose county colorado they have claims in the davis mesa group and they have another south of glenwood springs near Flar arizona he the 0 company claims in the shadow mountain group and all of the prospecting done BO so far by this one company has required only about 50 hours flying time in small ft according to one prospector it is possible to obtain readings on which narrow down the search to about one square mile from then on the square search earch is by foot trudging over mountains and around canon rims to remote areas areis where uranium deposits are suspected sometimes there is disappointment uw wo when a not too careful study of maps has resulted in leading ground searchers to already ed out claims too hunting uranium Is an expensive proposition if by air it is necessary to use a scintilla meter which costs all the way from to 2000 once the bearc search wag is on the ground there is a geiger counter to be used or even a 24 geiger gelger tube nuell ometer which costs mill as much as expenses dont stop once the claim is staked and the record filed at the county courthouse the government insists that at least a year be spent on each 20 2 acre claim and that money cannot be marked off as geological expenses such as incurred when buying geiger gelger counters it must be spent in actual drilling or improvements prove ments such as road building then in colorado there is an old state law dating back to terrt days making it even rouga er on s shoestring h cestr ing operators this law requires u 1 res t that list a pit at least 10 feet wid wide e and 10 fe feet et d depp e p must be dug on each claim j just us t ai as it wag was in he the days of the 3 silver fiver and gold rush wyoming recently changed taj mining lows laws to require re only the th drilling of small core cor holes in order to secure samples that leave leaves only colorado on the colorado plateau with the antiquated pu pit law but uranium seekers are not discouraged cou raged because of the pit law if they find a uranium deposit they are most willing to dig a hole in order to extract it from mother earths bosom |