plication for a mineral lease on 80 acres of unsurveyed land lying and being in the bed of Red River, south of section 5, township 5, south of range 14 west, of the Indian meridian, Tillman County, Okla. I. The General Oil Co. is an incorporated company incorporated under the laws of the State of Texas; capital stock, $1,000,000, with a par value of $10 per share. A draft of the by-laws, certificate of stock, etc., is herewith attached and marked "Exhibit A.” II. Your applicants, in making this application for a lease on the abovedescribed land, do so for the reason that prior to February 25, 1920, they had made a discovery of oil and gas upon said 80 acres, having caused to be drilled four wells which have been and are now producing commercial oil. Said wells are now being operated by the Federal receiver appointed by the Supreme Court of the United States, and at the time he took said wells over they were making an average of 10,000 barrels per month; this company has no data as to what they are making; for this reason your applicants believe they are entitled to a lease from the United States Government. III. Your applicants state that said land is not now within any naval reserve and same has not been withdrawn from entry as such. IV. Your applicants have been in peaceable possession of said 80 acres from and after the 31st day of July, A. D. 1919, under an oil and gas lease issued to Sam Sparks marked "Gas permit No. 3131," issued by the general land office of the State of Texas on the 30th day of April, A. D. 1919, who on the 31st day of July, A. D. 1919, issued a partial assignment of same to the General Oil Co., a copy of which is hereto attached marked "Exhibit B." V. Your applicants have not made a placer filing on this land, but have been operating under the Texas State lease, and herewith declare their willingness to relinquish to the Government of the United States, the State of Texas, or whomsoever the department may determine a relinquishment of all their right, title, and interest in said lease in exchange for the granting of the requested oil lease herewith applied for. VI. Your applicants who herewith sign for the General Oil Co. are all citizens of the United States and legally entitled to sign said papers; also that all the stockholders of said General Oil Co. are either citizens of the United States or of a country whose laws are not in conflict with the laws of the United States. VII. Your applicants believe that they are entitled to a lease under section 19 of the Federal act approved and signed by the President on February 25, 1920, for the reason that they have made a discovery of oil on said land, therefore demonstrating that it is within the same geological structure as that of Burkburnett, Wichita County, Tex. VIII. Your applicants state and herewith bind themselves to pay one-eighth of the entire past production from said wells, or any future wells on said land, up to the time of the grant of this lease, and that thereafter they will meet all requirements and fulfill all rules and reguations of this department that may be required under the terms of the aforesaid lease, if granted. IX. Your applicants have been guilty of no fraud and have no knowledge or reasonable ground to know of any fraud in connection with said location or tract, but have acted honestly and in good faith and have diligently endeavored to make said tract produce, and have done all work in a businesslike manner, using modern appliances for same, and herewith bind themselves and this company to continue the development of this tract, if granted this lease, in a businesslike manner for the benefit of this geological structure and of the country at large. X. Your applicants herewith state that the location of this land is in the Red River bed, lying north of the high bluff line, but are unable to state at the present time whether it is south or north of the south bank of Red River, but same does lie south of the old meander line established by the Government survey of 1875, and also south of section 5, township 5, south of range 14 west, of the Indian meridian. A map of said land is herewith attached and marked All of which is respectfully submitted for your consideration, and any further requirements that this department may require will be cheerfully furnished by John C. Williams, general attorney for said General Oil Co., Houston, Tex., and to whom all papers are to be sent. Attest: President. Treasurer. STATE OF TEXAS, County of Harris: Before me, the undersigned authority, on this day personally appeared S. E. J. Cox and A. H. Klees, known to me to be the persons whose names are signed to the foregoing instrument, who, being by me duly sworn, state that the facts set forth in the above application are true to the best of their knowledge and belief, and that they signed the same for the use therein set forth. Given under my hand and seal of office this day of August, A. D. 1920. Notary Public, Harris County, Tex. EXHIBIT C. THE GENERAL OIL CO., Houston, Tex., November 22, 1919. Now comes the General Oil Co., a corporation of the State of Texas, domiciled at Houston in Harris County, Tex., and S. E. J. Cox, L. E. Aven, H. A. Kibby, A. H. Klees, and A. J. Henderson, all citizens of the State of Texas and the United States of America, and residing at Houston, Tex., and state that we have located a piece of land under placer claim, which land is described as follows: Lots 2, 3, 4, and 5 in block 3 of Sam Sparks subdivision of the Red. River Valley lands, which includes 80 acres, and lies north or sections 820 and 821 in the northwest extension of Burkburnett oil field, which land also lies south of section 5, range 14 west, in the State of Oklahoma; said subdivision is recorded in the plat records of Wichita County, Tex., which record is here referred to for a better description of said property, along with a plat of same hereto attached and made a part hereof; that we have actually discovered petroleum, gas, and oil on said property and have expended several thousand dollars developing and producing said mineral; that we have had said property surveyed and the boundaries of same have been distinctly marked by monuments on the ground and plat, together with a notice of this application for patent, and we are herewith inclosing a copy of said plat and notice application together with affidavits of two persons showing that st have been duly posted, and we ask that we be granted a paten United States of America to said land as provided for under the ary 11, 1897, chapter 216, 29 Statutes at Large, 526, relating fas We further state that we hold title to said property from the State of Texas, and not waiving any of our rights under said title, but urging that this application for patent be granted. Witness our hands this 22d of November, 1919. THE GENERAL OIL CO., By A. J. HENDERSON, Secretary. S. E. J. Cox. A. H. KIBBY. H. A. KLEES. L. E. AVEN. A. J. HENDERSON. STATE OF TEXAS, County of Wichita: Before me, the undersigned authority, on this day personally appeared A. J. Henderson, and after being duly sworn stated that the foregoing statements are true in substance and in fact, and that he is acting as agent and attorney for the above-named parties. Given under my official hand and seal of office this the 22d day of November, A. D. 1919. MARY L. CARTER, Notary Public in and for Wichita County, Tex. NOTICE OF PLACER MINE CLAIM. Notice is hereby given that General Oil Co., a corporation operating under and by virtue of the laws of the State of Texas, and S. E. J. Cox, H. A. Klees, A. H. Kibbey, L. E. Aven, and A. J. Henderson, all citizens of the State of Texas, have developed and actually discovered petroleum, gas, and other mineral oil on the following described property, to wit: Lots 2, 3, 4, and 5, in block 3, containing 80 acres, in Sam Sparks first subdivision of the Red River Valley lands, about 15 miles northwest of the city of Wichita Falls, Tex., which property joins the Powell survey 820 and T. E. & L. survey 821 on the north and extends northward to the center of Red River, said boundary being shown by an iron stake at each of the four corners of said property, as indicated by a plat of said land hereto attached and made a part of this notice; all of said subdivision being recorded in Wichita County courthouse at Wichita Falls, Tex., which record is here referred to for a better description of said property. That the above-named parties are now in possession of said property and that application is being made to the Commissioner of the Land Office of United States of America for a patent of said land under the placer mine laws of the United States, especially under the act of February 11, 1897, chapter 216, 29 Statutes at Large 526, relating to the "Entry of petroleum or other mineral oil land under the placer claim laws.” The General Oil Co. and the other parties mentioned herein are holding said property under and by virtue of a title vested in them by the State of Texas, and they claim it under title from said State and do not waive any right that they have, but made application for a patent as a matter of protection in case the United States Supreme Court should declare that the State of Texas did not own this property. Witness the signature of the applicants this the 18th day of November, A. D. 1919. THE GENERAL OIL CO., S. E. J. Cox. H. A. KLEES. A. H. KIBBY. L. E. AVEN. Witnesses: H. F. SHAW. J. T. DICKIE. STATE OF TEXAS, County of Wichita: Know all men my these presents that I, J. T. Dickie, whose address is Wichita Falls, Tex., having first been duly sworn, certify that I was present on the property of the General Oil Co., lots 2, 3, 4, and 5, of Sam Sparks first subdivision of Red River Valley lands on the 19th day of November, 1919, which land is now held by the General Oil Co. and S. E. J. Cox, A. H. Kibbey, H. A. Klees, L. E. Aven, and A. J. Henderson from the title of State of Texas and also claim under the placer mine law of United States Government; and I hereby certify that I saw the notice posted on said property showing that the above-named parties are making application to the General Commissioner of the Land Office of the United States Government for a patent to said land. Witness my hand this the 13th day of November, 1919. J. T. DICKIE. Subscribed and sworn to before me this the 13th day of November, A. D. 1919. HARRY L. CARTER, Notary Public in and for Wichita County, Tex. My commission expires June 21, 1920. (Thereupon at 4.50 o'clock p. m. the committee adjourned to meet again at 2 o'clock p. m., Wednesday, January 17, 1922.) COMMITTEE ON THE PUBLIC LANDS, HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, The committee this day met, Hon. Nicholas J. Sinnott (chairman) presiding. The CHAIRMAN. The committee will come to order. Mr. Roote was to be heard at 2 o'clock. We will be glad to hear you, Mr. Roote. Tell the committee your name, your residence, and whom you represent. STATEMENT OF COL. JESSE B. ROOTE. Colonel ROOTE. Mr. Chairman and gentlemen of the committee, my name is Jesse B. Roote. I appear before the committee on behalf of a number of citi zens whom I shall mention in a general way. First and primarily I appear on behalf of the Burk Divide Oil Co., a corporation that has some 1,114 stockholders, about 700 of whom reside in Vigo County, Ind.; the remaining 400 reside in different States-some in Missouri, some in Colorado, some in California, some in Montana-and a few in various other States. Mr. LARSEN. You did not give your address. Colonel ROOTE. I live at Butte, Mont. I appear also in behalf of 24 citizens who live in and near the town of Grandfield, Okla. They are the 24 men who located three placer claims on the bed of Red River in January, 1919. I shall not encumber the record by giving the names of all of these unless it shall be desired, but will refer to them as Francis M. Crane and his associates. Mr. Crane is a well-known citizen living at Grandfield, Okla. Grandfield is a town about 5 miles from the property that has been the subject of investigation by this committee. I appear also on behalf of the successors in interest of some of those 24 gentlemen; some of the 24 locators of those three claims have since sold not all but an undivided part of the interest that they still or did retain in the property when they entered into a contract with the Burk Divide Oil Co., that I shall refer to more specifically further on. These I appear for directly and as their representative. I also appear, at their request, for 32 citizens of Tillman County, Okla., who located four placer-mining claims in the bed of Red River in the same monthJanuary, 1919. I shall refer to these as Alva Varner and his 31 associates. Mr. Varner is a farmer and lives near the town of Grandfield, Okla., and a few miles from this property. Mr. Varner and his associates located four placer claims immediately west of the three claims that, for the sake of brevity, I shall refer to hereafter as the Burk Divide claims. The Burk Divide claims are known officially as the Judsonia claim, the Belle Isle claim, and the Mary Isle Claim. The CHAIRMAN. That is three 160-acre claims? Colonel RooTE. Three claims, no one of which embraces quite that much land. I shall give the committee the exact size of the claims a little later. One of them embraces 159 acres, another 148 acres, nad a third a very much smaller acreage. Mr. RAKER. And those embrace the Grandfield claims? Colonel ROOTE. Yes, sir; they are the Grandfield claims. The three claims aggregate in acreage 435 and a fraction acres and were located by 24 citizens, as I stated a moment ago, the idea being at the time, that each of these locators would have a 20-acre interest in the property. After Mr. Varner and his associates located the four claims west of the Burk Divide claims they entered into a contract with the Pacific-Wyoming Oil Co., a corporation formed by some Colorado and Wyoming citizens. The president of the corporation is Mr. Fred A. Williams, of Denver, an acquaintance, I believe, of one member of the committee, Mr. Vaile. The arrangement that was entered into by Mr. Varner and his associates with the Pacific-Wyoming Oil Co. was-the contract is here if any one desires to see it-to the effect that the Pacific-Wyoming Oil Co. would furnish the money to develop the property, the consideration being a certain part of the proceeds of any oil that might be recovered. And I might add here that the same kind of contract was entered into between Mr. Crane and his associates with the Burk Divide Co. I ought to make it clear at this time that the original locators of these claims, the seven claims, still retain an interest in the property, they only having made a contract; one group of them, with the Burk Divide Co., by which the Burk Divide Co. was to furnish the money for the development of the property and retain a certain part of the proceeds of any oil that might be developed therefrom. The CHAIRMAN. Were there 24 original locators? |