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Show 4 INTER-MOUNTAI- The Geyser-fUrlo- n Suit. N MINING REVIEW. it require parallel end lines. The pa-ten- t, however, was issued under the The case of the Geyser Mining com- law of 1872, which gave to a location all the veins found within its surface pany vs. the Marion Gold Mining comand also required that the pany is set for trial before District boundaries, end lines should be parallel. It will Judge Young in this city next week. be noted that the discovery is upon the This case is one of extraordinary interest and importance, not only by silver vein, and that the end lines, or reason of its being the first apex dis- those lines through which the Marion claims the croppings of the pute arising in the famous Camp Floyd company gold vein pass, are not parallel. gold belt, but also because of the great It is probable that the plaintiff, in number of new and interesting quesof its denial of extra-latertions that will be raised as lateral is- support sues. Owing to the fact that ore bod- rights, will attempt to show that the vein is a blanket vein, having no ies occur nowhere else in exactly the gold apex, and that therefore the law of same form or under the same condicannot be applied. If tions as in this district,, the trial will apex and dip is raised, and there seems be of general interest to the mining this point to be little doubt but it wTill be, the community and of particular interest to the owners of property in the Camp al enters through one end line and passes out through the other, and that they derive their rights under both the laws of 1866 and 1872. The requirement of parallel end lines cannot be enforced against them, they contend, because these end lines (the lines AA) converge, and they have therefore less of the dip than they have of the apex. They claim that the intention of the law was to prevent diverging end lines, thus giving to a location more of the dip than it had of the apex, but that no ones rights are infringed by a location that takes less of the dip than it has of the apex. Aside from the questions indicated above, it is quite likely that each side will endeavor to surprise the oppo-? Floyd district. The properties of the Geyser and Marion companies are located in the heart of the mineralized zone, and much development work has been done by both. Each company is operating a cyanide process mill, and the work of these mills has demonstrated the great value of the ore bodies in dispute. The suit is an action in trespass, brought by the Geyser to prevent the extraction of ores from beneath the surface of claims adjoining the Marion location on the northeast. The only location involved is the Marion, a map of which is printed herewith. In following the vein upon what the Marion company claims to be its dip, the workings were extended beneath the claim designated upon the map as the Fraction, and also known as the Florence No. 3. In another suit, involving this claim, the lower court held that it belonged to the Geyser, but final settlement of the case has not been had. If the judgment of the lower court is affirmed by the higher tribunal, the ownership of the ground lying to the northeast of the Marion claim will be The settled in favor of the Geyser. case to be tried next week will deter-min- e the ownership of the ore bodies extending beneath the surface of this ground. It should be stated here, and borne in mind by the reader, that the dotted lines on the accompanying map only indicate in a general way the claims of the litigants as to the croppings of the gold vein. The maps prepared by the experts will not be released until the case goes to trial. For obvious reasons, it is neither possible nor proper to give a full statement of all the issue involved, and the position taken by each side with respect to these issues, prior to the trial. This article is merely intended to convey to the public a general idea of the nature of the case, with some suggestions as to the questions likely to be raised. The Geyser company bases its suit upon a general denial of any extralateral rights to the Marion location. This location was made under the law of 1866. As is well known, in this district a silver vein underlies the gold vein, and the discovery location was made upon this silver vein, as shown in the map. The law of 1866 gave to a location no rights to any vein except that covered by the discovery, nor did decision will go far toward settling the question of extra lateral rights for the whole district. It is understood that the Geyser will also contend, in case it is decided that the vein has an apex, that the true apex is entirely outside and to the westward of the Marion location, and that its strike is at nearly right angles to the line of croppings, these croppings being termed the eroded edge of the vein, and not its apex. It is also claimed that the true dip is southeasterly, at a declination of 15 to 20 degrees from the horizon, and not toward the Geyser ground. The question of parallel end lines will also be raised, the plaintiff contending that the lines AA cannot be held to be end lines, as they are not parallel, but that if the claim has any end lines, they are the lines BB, which are parallel. Among the lateral questions involved will be the definition and determination of the apex of a vein, and whether a vein can have more than one apex. The Marion company takes the position that the case involves the one plain question of apex and dip, claiming that the line of croppings Is the apex of the vein and that this apex sition by the presentation of others of equal importance and interest. There has been no such imposing array of counsel and experts as will appear in this case since the famous suit was tried ten years ago. The Geyser lawyers are Bennett, Hark-nesHowat & Bradley and Booth, Lee & Gray, and the experts are Messrs. Eu-reka-H- ill s, Robinson. A. F. Holden, Maynard Bixby, E. J. Raddatz, P. J. Qualey and one other. The Marions attorneys are Dickson, Ellis & Ellis and M. M. Kaighn, and the experts are Prof. Palmer, W. A. Wilson, Col. E. A. Wall, and three others, each side being limited by stipulation to six. A dispatch from Pretoria, Transvaal, conveys the startling intelligence that the five members of the Johannesburg Reform Committee have been sentenced to death, they having been induced to plead guilty to the charge of high treason. Among the condemned men is John Hays Hammond, the American mining engineer, who has G. H. so many friends throughout this gion. re- It is believed that President Krueger will commute the sentence to a short term of imprisonment and a heavy fine. |