Newbill v. Whitfield

63 Cal. 81, 1883 Cal. LEXIS 365
CourtCalifornia Supreme Court
DecidedJanuary 26, 1883
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 63 Cal. 81 (Newbill v. Whitfield) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering California Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Newbill v. Whitfield, 63 Cal. 81, 1883 Cal. LEXIS 365 (Cal. 1883).

Opinion

Ross, J.

The contest on this case is between the claimants of two certain mining claims called, respectively, the Red Jacket and Burning Moscow, situated in Grapevine Mining District, in the Calico Mountains of San Bernardino County. The action is ejectment—plaintiffs claiming the lode in question to be within the lines of the Red Jacket, and the defendants that it is a part of the Burning Moscow.

The fact is not disputed that the plaintiff Uewbill discovered the Red Jacket on the 26th day of March, 1881, whatever its lines may be held to be. On that day, in traversing the mountain, he discovered certain veins of rock running in a northwest-: erly and southeasterly direction, and containing minerals of value, and with the intention of locating a mining claim thereon pursuant to the laws of the United States, and of the local customs and rules of the district, he placed a discovery stake in the ground near the vein, with a written notice signed by him, claiming three hundred feet on each side of the ledge, and running five hundred feet southeasterly and one thousand feet northwesterly along the vein, and stating in the notice that he claimed twenty days within which to mark the boundaries and record his claim — the time claimed being the time allowed by the local rules and custom of the district for that purpose. A few days afterward, and before the 11th day of April, 1881, Newbill again went upon his claim, named it Red Jacket, and commenced to mark its boundaries. For the purposes of our decision we shall assume—what is strenuously denied by the appellants — that the evidence sustains the finding of the court below to the effect that at that time he (Uewbill) “ erected a stone monument about five hundred feet southeasterly from the discovery stake [83]*83and notice afoi’csaid, with a written notice thereon marked south- ' eastern end of Red Jacket, and at the same time erected another similar stone monument about three feet northerly from the last named monument, and put a written notice thereon, marked northeast corner of Red Jacket.” ■

Owing to sickness, Newbill was obliged to suspend work, and did not do anything further at that time in locating or marking the boundaries. Continuing sick he agreed with his co-plaintiffs —Wallace, Parks, and Ferrell—that they should go upon the ground and complete the location and marking of the boundaries of the claim, in consideration of which they were to have an undivided half of it. Accordingly, on the 12th of April, 1881, Wallace, Parks, and Ferrell went upon the ground and marked out the boundaries of the Red Jacket claim, not, however, in precise accordance with the discovery notice put up by Newbill on the 26th of March, nor in accordance with the subsequent monuments put up by him, and marked as the southeastern end and the northeastern corner of the Red Jacket, but they marked the boundaries so as to extend about six hundred feet along the vein northwesterly, and about nine hundred feet southeasterly from the discovery stake and notice, with a width of a little less than three hundred feet on each side of the vein, and including the discovery stake and notice. Such boundaries were marked by erecting a rock monument at each corner, and at the middle of each end, and at the middle of the north or northeast side line, and placing written notices on each corner monument marked respectively: Northeast corner Red Jacket, northwest corner Red Jacket, southwest corner Red Jacket, and southeast corner Red Jacket, and on the southeast center end monument was placed a written notice of which the following is a copy: —

NOTICE OF LOCATION OF QUARTZ CLAIM:
“ Notice is hereby given to all whom it may concern, that we, G. B. Wallace, H. C. Parks, P. H. Ncwbill, j. B. Ferrell, citizens of the United States, over the age of twenty-one years, having discovered a vein or lode of quartz or rock, in place, bearing silver and nickel, within the limits of the claim hereby located, have this day, under and in accordance with the Revised Statutes of the United States, chapter six, title thirty-two, located [84]*84fifteen hundred linear feet of this vein or lode, with surface ground six hundred feet in width, situated in Grapevine Mining District, county of San Bernardino, State of California, and known as the Bed Jacket Gold and Silver and Nickel Quartz Mining Claim, and extending fifteen hundred feet to monument southeast to center of claim; this is the southeast end of claim; and three hundred feet north, eastern center of Bed Cloud, extending northwest fifteen hundred feet to northwest center of Bed Jacket from this notice of the discovery or prospect shaft, the exterior boundaries of this claim being distinctly marked by reference to some natural object or permanent monuments, and more particularly described as follows, to wit: Commencing at this notice, and bearing westerly fifteen hundred feet from this notice to a monument on center of claim; thence three hundred feet southwest to north corner of Bed Cloud Mine; thence fifteen hundred feet along this line of Bed Cloud; thence three hundred feet north to center of claim; thence three hundred (feet) northeasterly to corner; thence fifteen hundred feet northwesterly to monument; thence three hundred (feet) to center of lead; and we intend to hold and work said claim as provided by the local customs and rules of miners, and the mining statutes of the United States.
“ Dated on the ground this 26th day of March, 1881.
“ Discovered March 26, 1881.
“P. H. Newbill, Locator.
Located April 1, 1881.
“P. H. Newbill.
“ G. B. Wallace.
“H. C. Parks.
“ J. B. Ferrell.”

All of the monuments thus erected by Wallace, Parks, and Ferrell on the 12th of April were, according to the findings of the court below, placed in plain and conspicuous places except the southeast center end monument, on which was placed the notice above copied, which monument, according to the findings, was not placed in a plain or conspicuous place, but at the bottom of a deep and abrupt declivity or gulch, in an obscure place, where it was not likely to be seen by persons looking for monuments or passing through the country, and it was much smaller than any of the other monuments mentioned.” This [85]*85finding of the court we think unsupported by the evidence. Neither the testimony of Wiggins, Ray, nor Parks, cited by counsel for respondents sustains it. On the contrary, the testimony of Parks is, that a man going upon the ground to locate mining claims would have been apt to have seen it without tracing the monuments around. “He could have found it if he started to go up the mountain. It is the only pass by which he could get up there, and that notice stood right in the pass. He couldn’t miss the monument,” said the witness. Moreover, we can conceive of no motive on the part of Wallace, Parks, and Ferrell, or either of them, for putting the notice in an obscure place. The very purpose of posting it was to assert a claim, not to conceal one.

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Bluebook (online)
63 Cal. 81, 1883 Cal. LEXIS 365, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/newbill-v-whitfield-cal-1883.