A properly constituted Indian reservation is not public land of the United States, until the Indian title is extinguished, and a mineral location thereon is void. Land included in a military reservation is incapable of being located upon; as are also forest and park reserves.10 9 The statute relating to the location of townsites on the public lands, provides that title shall not be acquired thereunder to any mine of gold, silver, cinnabar, or copper, or to any valid mining claim or possession held under existing law. Under this statute it is held that valid mining locations are, by operation of law, excepted from the grant and do not pass; nor does the townsite grant interfere with them."1 "In all the grants to the subsidized railroads, with the public land states and territories, all mineral and mineral lands, except coal and iron were reserved and excepted from the grant.12 By earlier decisions such reservations were construed to mean 'known mines' or lands, known to contain minerals at the time of filing the map of definite location, but the later cases overturn this doctrine and hold the language of the grant is to be construed to mean just what it says, namely, that mineral lands are reserved, and no right whatever, attaches thereto, until the issuing of a patent, unattended with any act of concealment, misrepresentation, or fraud on the part of the grantee." Am. & Eng.Ency. of Law, Vol.XX, p. 690; Kendall vs. San Juan Silver Min. Co., 144 U. S., 658. Ft. Maginnis, 1 Land Dec., 552. Whenever any lands containing valuable mineral deposits shall be vacated by the reduction or abandonment of any military reservation under the provisions of this act, the same shall be disposed of exclusively under the mineral land laws of the United States. 10 U. S. vs. Gear, 3 How. (U. S.), " Am. & Eng. Ency. of Law, Vol. 12 Barden vs. Northern Pac. R. Co., CHAPTER IV. WHO MAY LOCATE CLAIM. SECTION 13. IN GENERAL. The Federal Statutes provide that mining claims may be located either by citizens of the United States, or by those who have declared their intention to become citizens.1 Under this statute it has been held that a private corporation formed under the laws of a state, whose members are citizens of the United States, may locate a mining claim on the public lands of the United States. A minor may become a locator of mineral lands under this statute. No requirement that the citizen shall be of any particular age is expressed. 2 SECTION 14. ALIENS. "The Mining Acts throw open the public domain to citizens only, and to those who have declared their intention to become citizens. "It would seem from their language that an alien could not locate a claim, and if he could not locate his holding by deed and perhaps by devise or descent, might be questioned. "But the matter in its practical importance is controlled by the rule laid down in opinions of the Federal Supreme Court that the question of ownership by an alien is a matter between himself and the government, and that as long as the government does not U. S. Rev. Stat., Sec. 2319. McKinley vs. Wheeler (1889), 130 U. S., 635. See, also, U. S. vs. Trinidad Coal, etc., Co. (1890), 137 U. S., 168. Thompson vs. Spray (1887), 72 152 U. S., 505; McKinley Co. vs. make inquisition to deprive him of his title, or become a party to proceedings to perfect the title, his title, even when he claims under his own location is good against all the world." SECTION 15. LOCATION BY AGENTS. A location may be made by an agent, and in such a case, written authority from the principal is not necessary. In such a case, however, there must either be a previous authorization to use the name of a principal or a subsequent ratification or adoption of the act. Where the name of an absent person is used without his knowledge, there is no legal owner to the claimno person to stand for its paternity-and the location is not good as against a later valid appropriation.' Morrison's Mining Rights, p. 308. • Murley vs. Ennis, 2 Col., 300; 12 M. R., 360; Dunlap vs. Pattison, 42 P., 504. 7 Morrison's Mining Rights, p. 58. CHAPTER V. KINDS AND EXTENT OF CLAIMS. SECTION 16. IN GENERAL. The two important kinds of mining claims are "lode" and "placer" claims. Subsidiary to these are "tunnel" claims and "placer" claims containing a "lode." The Federal statutes make separate provisions for the acquisition and working of each species of claims. SECTION 17. LODES AND VEINS. 1 The word "lode" and the word "vein" are used indiscriminately in the Acts of Congress as well as in the popular language, to signify the same thing. In Bainbridge on Mines, the text defines them in the same sentence: "A mineral lode or vein is a flattened mass of metallic or earthly matter, differing materially from the rocks or strata in which it occurs." A note to the same suggests the use of the word "vein" as incorrect, when applied to such deposits as those of anthracite coal. But the note is not justified, for the word "vein" is universally used to include coal, and other flat, non-metallic deposits, while the word "lode" is not so used. This is the principal distinction in the use of the words. The word "lode" is of Cornish origin," "vein" is Latin. In the Eureka case, where it is said every known definition was presented to the Court, the opinion does not intimate any difference to their meaning, but says: "Those Acts give no defini3 Eureka Case, M. R., 578. 1 Bainbridge on Mines, p. 2. Bullion Co. vs. Croesus Co., 2 Nev., 176. 3 |