IV. Copper ores.-Native copper in river beds and lodes, red oxide, mala- VIII. Salt. In salt lakes and springs. IX. Precious stones.-Garnets, turquois, opal. X. Quicksilver. XI. Soda. XII. Gypsum, lime, cement, sulphur, sulphuret of iron, chromic iron, etc. CONCLUSION. It is difficult for the uninitiated to understand why the Territory of New Mexico, with all her resources, produces so very little. Yet there are several reasons which, so far, have prevented the rapid progress this part of the country should be expected to make. At the head of the list stands the apathy of her own inhabitants. There are about 90,000 native Mexicans and Indians, 3,000 persons born in the States, and about 9,000 foreigners in the Territory. The larger part of the Americans and foreigners have found profitable employment under the government or in mercantile pursuits, and the Mexicans are generally very poor and content to earn enough for the bare mainten ance of their lives by cultivating the soil. The hostility of the Indians is a great drawback, and the military authorities, as well as the Indian commissionors, have so far been ineffective to stop the depredations of the red man. Immigration only can overcome these evils, and that is greatly hindered by the prairie wilds and long distances without railroad communication which separate the Territory from the States. Sooner or later, however, it will be known that New Mexico need not shrink from a comparison with her sister Territories; none of them surpass her in natural resources and riches, and many of them stand be low her in the scale. UNITED STATES MINING LAW. The following letter was addressed to me, at my request, by Hon. E. F. Dunne, of White Pine County, Nevada, a gentleman who formerly resided in Humboldt County, and whose legal knowledge, as well as his long familiarity with the conditions of title, etc., of mines on the public lands, entitle his views to the most respectful consideration: WASHINGTON, D. C., December 20, 1869. DEAR SIR: You have asked me to state what I have observed with regard to the workings of the national mining law-how it is liked; what faults, if any, are found with it; and what improvements, if any, are proposed; and to embody in the form of amendments such sugges tions as I have met with as seem worthy of approval. I hesitated long before promising any compliance with the last request, my experience in mining codes having taught me that while it is easy to point out defects, the cure for them requires great time, thought, and care, combined with a knowledge of the subject difficult to attain. I was disposed to be grateful for the benefits secured by the act in question, and to look with distrust upon any attempt to supplant it with a more elaborate code, fearing that to open the subject again might imperil advantages already gained; but when I came to understand your position better-when I saw that you were as anxious as any of the miners could be, to preserve the most popular features of the law unimpaired, and only sought to add to the efficiency of the act by amendments with regard to details, which it is universally admitted the first general draught of the law did not cover, I felt bound, of course, to do anything I could to aid in the matter. It is only by a free interchange of sentiment on the part of all who are affected by the law, that the information can be obtained which is necessary to enable any one to draught general provisions which will be applicable to the vast extent of country sought to be brought within the operation of the act. My observations have been confined chiefly to silver mining in the State of Nevada, yet it is with great diffidence I venture some suggestions as possibly being applicable to that branch of mining within even that comparatively limited area. How they would affect California, Colorado, or New Mexico, Arizona, Oregon, or Idaho, Montana, Washington, Wyoming, or Dakota, in silver mining alone, to say nothing of gold, cinnabar or copper, which the law also covers, is more than I can tell. There is a great probability, also, that we will before long acquire jurisdiction over the Mormon Territory of Utah, when further modifications in the act may be necessary. If we had a full discussion of this subject from the different regions mentioned, we might then hope to educe some general principles applicable to all. We cannot expect a satisfactory law in a day. If we succeed in getting a good one after ten years' careful work, we shall be fortunate indeed. RETROSPECT. A great many persons feel that what they call interference in this subject by Congress, is somewhat in the nature of an infringement upon established rights. A slight review of the status of the case may cause such persons to look upon the matter in a different light. Up to the year 1866, we had no general law on the subject of mining, nor any official declaration as to what policy the government intended to pursue with regard to the precious metals in its soil. The general policy of nations had been to reserve these treasures as jura regalia, and thus treat them as the special property of the sovereign, to be mined under such regulations as might from time to time be ordained; to be licensed, leased, or granted, as might at any time be thought best. In older times. when all authority was concentrated in a single sovereign, who could quickly adopt and easily enforce any policy he pleased, it is easy to see how a system which furnished so convenient a means of revenue was eagerly established. But the discovery of our precious metals, in quantity worthy of national consideration, came in the midst of great excitement, right after the Mexican war; the mines were in a distant region, and before the government was able to acquire any definite knowledge of the extent of the deposits, hundreds of thousands were engaged in working them. To determine upon a governmental policy in the matter, required, not the will of a single sovereign, but the concerted action of some hundred members of Congress, to whom the subject was new and the information thereon scanty and difficult to obtain. As a natural consequence, nothing was done at that time. The ultimate rights of the government, it was argued, were safe. They could be asserted at any time. Meanwhile, the people, finding some law necessary, began to make regulations for themselves. Whenever a number of miners found themselves working together in a certain locality, they called a meeting, organized a mining district, established its bounds, defined the extent of ground each man might hold, and fixed the amount of work he should do per month, or per year, to retain it. They enforced these rules vi et armis at first. Very soon the courts, in the absence of other laws, and finding these codes well suited to the cases coming before them, adopted them as the rule of judicial decision. The system thus instituted in California, gradually spread to the adjoining States and Territories. It had some imperfections; it gave no absolute title to the mine. If a man left his district, he was liable to find the law of tenure changed and his claim "jumped" on his return; but on the whole, the miners preferred to let the system stand rather than ask any aid from Congress. All they wanted from the government was uniformity and stability of tenure, with the right to purchase the absolute title when their labor had demonstrated the value of the claim; but they feared to agitate that question, lest the price should be placed at a figure beyond their reach, and so, by common consent, they kept very still on this point, and worked away under the let-alone policy of the government. NEW POLICY PROCLAIMED.-THE GOVERNMENT ASSERTS ITS RIGHTS For nearly twenty years the government had quietly looked on at all this work of the miners, saying nothing, not knowing what to say. Nobody was complaining. Millions of dollars were rolling into the great cities of the East every month, trade increasing, manufactories thriving. and everything seemed to be working well enough without the need of interference. But now came a great difficulty. The government, for the first time in many years, began to be pressed for money. It had just emerged from a great war; was burdened with an enormous debt; heavy taxes were levied, and still the treasury was empty. Suddenly there rose a party in the East with the cry, "Sell the mines! they'll pay the |