Clark-Montana Realty Co. v. Anaconda Copper Mining Co.

20 F.2d 1008, 1927 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1309
CourtDistrict Court, D. Montana
DecidedFebruary 18, 1927
DocketNo. 339
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 20 F.2d 1008 (Clark-Montana Realty Co. v. Anaconda Copper Mining Co.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Montana primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Clark-Montana Realty Co. v. Anaconda Copper Mining Co., 20 F.2d 1008, 1927 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1309 (D. Mont. 1927).

Opinion

BOURQUIN, District Judge.

This is a mining apex suit. Because of the excessive volume of evidence, it is impracticable to collate and analyze it at length herein. Nor is it necessary, for, though there is irreconcilable conflict of inferences, opinions, and conclusions, in the main there is reasonable harmony in the vital and determinative facts out of which the conflict arises.

Moreover, trial courts, always pressed for time, well might decide forthwith like juries and their special verdicts at most. Five experts testify for each party, viz. for plaintiffs, Burch, of Oregon, Mead, of Wisconsin (U. of W.) Lawson, of California (U. of C.), Simkins, of California, and Roddewig, of Butte; for defendant, Bateman, of Connecticut (Tale), Wiley, of California, and Sales, Steele, and Barker, of Butte.

The premises are in the Butte district. Plaintiffs own the Poser claim, and its east end line is the west end line of the Elm Orlu claim of the Elm Orlu Case. Clark-Montana Realty Co. v. Butte & Superior Copper Co. (D. C.) 233 F. 553. Defendant owns a group of claims, part of the north side line of which is the south side line of the Poser claim.

Titles are by United States patents, date from 1875, and the Poser has priority. The geology is like that in the Elm Orlu Case. The country is granite. The first Assuring resulted in the great Rainbow and other veins of the East-West age; the second, in the Blue fault veins of the Northwest age; the third (in the district, if not in these premis[1009]*1009es), in the fault veins of Steward age; the fourth, in the Black Rock fault. These master fractures have many branches, and, in addition, the country is permeated with innumerable mineralized joint planes, crevices, seams, veinlets, and veins, to 12 inches in width, slips, faults, and gouges, confused and misleading, a network without strike or dip, incapable of identification or correlation, yet traceable to many real or apparent connections. The whole is that complex geology for which Butte is noted, at once the' sometime despair of the scientist and the delight and profit of the expert.

By and large, it offers no great obstacle to practical mining of commercial veins and ores. But when it is attempted to identify and correlate these minor seams or veins with greater ones, the former’s abundance, ramifications, and possibilities attach difficulty and danger or impossibility to just solution of the problem. As always, however, where scientists fail to interpret geological phenomena, the law supplies a just answer, viz. the ores are the property of the party within whose vertical boundaries they are found.

The Poser claim is located on and lengthwise of the Rainbow vein, of northerly dip and East-West age, and both are intersected by the Emily vein, of northeasterly dip and Northwest age, which at the surface enters the claim 370 feet west of the southeast corner and departs 50 feet east of the northwest corner. Also, at the surface, a vein, named Poser by plaintiffs and Pilot by defendant, enters the claim at the southeast corner, dips northerly, and courses northwesterly to the east side of the Emily vein. At some depth the Intermediate vein branches from the south side of the Rainbow, west of the Emily, dips southerly, and courses easterly a disputed distance. Various other veins are found in the claim and need no description. And the Black Rock fault of southerly dip courses through the Poser claim from end line to end line.

Within defendant’s claims are many veins which, without real dispute, apex therein, viz. the North State, State, North Badger, and Badger veins, of East-West age, southerly dip, and easterly and westerly strike; the Emily, Mill, Jessie, and Edith May veins, of Northwest age, the first two of northeasterly dip, and the last two of southwesterly dip, and all of northwesterly strike; and various other veins. And the Black Rock fault also is therein.

Some 100 to 800 feet south of the Poser claim, and 1,300 to 3,000 feet in depth, are great ore bodies within defendant’s vertical boundaries and the veins apexing therein as aforesaid. To some of these ore bodies plaintiffs allege they have superior right. They contend that at the surface of the Poser claim, west of the Emily vein and 100 feet south of the westerly end of the Poser vein on the east side of the Emily vein, the continuation of said Poser vein appears; that the entire vein is of Steward age; that west of the Emily it dips southerly and courses westerly to and across the west end line of the Poser claim; that these east and west segments of the Poser vein unite above the 500 level, and, united on dip, extend to and unite or merge with some of said ore bodies and the veins including them; and that the Intertermediate vein likewise extends to and includes a small ore body on the 2,800 level.

Defendant denies that the Poser vein exists west of the Emily vein, admits plaintiffs own the Pilot vein east of the Emily vein, contends that in the region west of the Emily plaintiffs have defined a course for the Poser vein through the country and along the Black Rock fault, and denies that the Intermediate vein extends to the small ore body aforesaid. As none of the ore-bodies are in the Poser or Pilot vein east of the Emily vein, the case divides in two parts, viz.: (1) The existence of the Poser vein west of the Emily vein; and (2) the relation of the Intermediate vein to the small ore body on the 2,800 level.

Since the ore bodies are within defendant’s vertical boundaries and veins apexing in its claims, they are prima facie its property, to it conveyed by United States patents. The burden to prove otherwise is upon plaintiffs — to prove if they can (1) that the Poser vein exists as such west of the Emily vein, is of Steward age, and unites or merges with the said ore bodies and veins including them; and (2) that the Intermediate vein includes the ore body on the 2,800 level. This burden upon plaintiffs is by no means a light one, for “the proof in effect * * * seeking to withdraw or except from a solemn grant, over the seal of the United States, premises prima facie conveyed by it, must be clear and convincing, ,in quality and quantity that inspires confidence and produces conviction.” See Clark-Montana Realty Co. v. Ferguson (D. C.) 218 F. 963.

And plaintiffs can recover only on the strength of their own theory, ease, and title, and not at all upon any weakness, if any, in defendant’s. Their ease may fail of its own inherent weakness, by the testimony of its own witnesses, as well as by evidence presented by defendant. If, upon consideration of all evidence, plaintiffs’ contentions are no [1010]*1010more probable than defendant’s, tbeir case fails for want of proof, and decree must be against them.

Plaintiffs’ theory that the Poser vein is of Steward age is that upon which the suit has been tried. It is so far vital to their ease that, if not proven, but little, if any, further consideration is due that part of it.

In further detail, it will be remembered that fault veins of Steward age are younger than veins of Bast-West and Northwest ages. It follows that, where the former and either of the latter cross, the vein of Steward age will intersect or cut through the other. In these premises are exposed many crossings between the Poser vein and veins of East-West and Northwest ages. Plaintiffs’ experts testify to the inference, opinion, or conclusion that the Poser vein intersects the Emily vein, and defendant’s experts that the Emily vein intersects the region plaintiffs assign to the Poser vein.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
20 F.2d 1008, 1927 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 1309, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/clark-montana-realty-co-v-anaconda-copper-mining-co-mtd-1927.