USA > Colorado > Gilpin County > Early Records of Gilpin County, Colorado, 1859-1861 > Part 13
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99" R M Briscoe was then elected Constable and also to act as stake master, and whose duty in that line shall be in cases of dispute, to stake the claims in dispute if necessary & all claims necessary to be measured in getting to said claim in dis- pute shall be paid by the parties in dispute. The Independence
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District was also by a vote of the two districts attached to Wis- consin district, & be hereafter known as Wisconsin district.
There being no further Business the Meeting Adjourned Sine Die.
RESOLUTIONS OF SEPTEMBER 15, 1860
At A Meeting of the miners of Wisconsin Sept 15" 1860 called according to law the following resolutions were adopted.
1st That no Motion shall be put at any meeting of the miners except in writing.
2nd That any person shall be entitled to one tunnel claim in the district and but one by location and shall hold good with- out labor till the 1st day of July 1861 if recorded within ten days of location, or purchase. That the same claim shall be planly marked or staked and location plainly described on the record of the District
3rd That Tunnell claims may be 400 feet apart and no nearer, that each tunnel claim shall hold two hundred feet each way from the tunnell on all Lode claims undiscovered which may be discovered by the person or persons driving the tunnell & all above & below Provided that all Lodes discovered over the route of the tunnel after said tunnel claim is taken previous to being found by the tunnel Co the discoverer thereof shall be en- titled to the claim down as deep as 50 feet & the length of 100 feet on the Lode, as discovery and the same by preemption if within the limits of the tunnel
4th That after the 1st day of July 1861 said claims shall be worked regularly once in ten days until they shall have tun- nelled in fifty feet after which they shall hold good without labor as real estate.
5" That Art 4" in regard to work shall be construed to mean at least five days work every ten days.
6th That no company shall hold more than two tunnel claims in the district by location and only two by purchase
7" That person or persons owning tunnel claims shall have the right of way or room for pasage through all Lodes dis-
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covered previous to the location of the tunnel claim but shall have no portion of the quartz.
8" That the Tunnel Co shall be compelled to convey the water over the lodes that may be sunk deeper than the tunnel, or the right granted to persons owning the lodes to tunnel to his claim for the purpose of draining.
Art 9" Resolved that all water claims shall be measured up & down the stream taking the general course of the Creek and run from point to point reaching the creek at end of each claim & not to follow the short turns of the stream and that persons holding water claims shall be entitled to sufficient ground on either side for building on & improvement of the claim.
Sheriffs Office being vacant, R Akin was duly elected sher- iff of the district, & C.C. Welch Stake Master, and both of said officers to have power to appoint a deputy.
The meeting then adjourned "Sine Die"
MINUTES OF OCTOBER 27, 1860
At a meeting held pursuant to a call of Ira Andrews & other Miners, the miners assembled at 2 o'Clock P.M. J W Arndt was called to the chair and E. L. Moody chosen Secretary.
On Motion of H. R. Howard The Meeting proceeded to ballot for the following officers Viz. President, Recorder, and Sheriff, resulting in the choice of J.W. Arndt for President, Ed.L. Moody for Recorder and Stephen Card for Sheriff.
On Motion of Mr Card, Mr Sibley was required to deliver the Wisconsin District Records to the Recorder Elect within three days.
The Meeting then adjourned to meet at the house of W. D. Slate & Co Nov 3rd 1860.
Ed L. Moody Secr J. Wallace Arndt Chairman
MINUTES OF NOVEMBER 3, 1860
At a meeting held this 3rd day of November 1860 The
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meeting was called to order by the President. Whereupon the Constitution and by laws were read by the Recorder.
On Motion of E.B. Newman the following Resolution was passed-Resolved that at the discovery hole of every Gulch or Lode, be a stake firmly placed, bearing the name of the discov- erer, also the name of the Lode or Gulch, and that persons pre- empting claims on said Lode or Gulches are not required to number the claims on the Stake. But by placing them on file in the Recorders Office, the said claim or claims shall hold good for ten days without recording
On Motion it was Resolved that a Committee of three be elected to revise the laws of Wisconsin District, and whenever ready to report, that they shall notify the President to that effect, and it shall be the duty of the President to call a meeting of the miners to receive their report On Motion J.W. Arndt, E.L. Moody & G.W. Hawkins were elected said Committee.
On Motion the meeting was adjourned "Sine die"
J. Wallace Arndt President E.L. Moody Rec.
MINUTES OF NOVEMBER 24, 1860
At a Meeting of the Miners of Wisconsin District held Nov 24th 1860, according to notice, the following motion was adopted.
That the Miners of this District give permission to Mam- mouth City Road Co to build a Toll Road from Mammouth City down Boulder Creek to the limits of this District, hereby granting them the right of way and giving them permission to erect a Toll Gate thereon.
On Motion G. W. King was added to the comittee for com- piling a Code of Laws.
On Motion the meeting adjourned J. Wallace Arndt President
E.L. Moody Rec.
LAWS AND MINUTES OF DECEMBER 13, 18601
Mammoth City, December 13th A D 1860 At a meeting held Dec 13th 1860 for the purpose of re- 1 Wisconsin District, Records.
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ceiving the report of the Committee previously chosen to revise the Laws of this District, and to transact such other business as was necessary the President & Recorder being absent Geo W Ring was chosen President pro tem and E B Newman Deputy Recorder acted as Secretary Meeting called to order a peti- tion was presented to the miners of this District from those of Climax District asking to be annexed to Wisconsin District to become a part of the same and be governed by the same Laws
On Motion said District was annexed On Motion the re- port of the Committee on the revision of the District Laws was read
On motion said report was received and Committee dis- charged
On motion said report was again read by the Secretary On Motion the following Laws as revised were adopted
Boundary of Wisconsin District
Be it enacted That the boundery of Wisconsin District be as follows Commencing on the summit of a bald mountain sit- uated near the head of North Clear Creek and running thence in a Northerly direction along the summit of the Snowy Range to the divide that runs East and west on the north side of Mid- dle Boulder Creek Thence east along the summit of said divide to the East end of a Prairie being at the junction of Middle and South Boulder Creek Thence south to North Clear Creek Thence west along the south side of said creek to eastern point of the divide being next south of Secreta Gulch Thence in a westerly direction following the summit of said divide to the place of beginning
Article 1st Be it enacted That the officers of said District shall consist of a President Recorder Sheriff and Stake Master
Art 2nd Be it further enacted That it shall be the duty of the President to preside at all public meetings of the Citizens of this District when called for purposes relating to public busi- ness of the District, to give the casting vote in case of tie; to preside and act as Judge of the Miners Court to be held in this District
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Art 3rd Be it further enacted That it shall be the duty of the Recorder to keep in a propper book a record of all claims deeds mortgagues and other papers that shall be filed for record upon the payment of fee hereinafter provided, and to furnish Certificates for the same when required so to do writing upon the back of each certificate deed mortgague or other papers the date when each claim or paper was filed for record The Re- corder shall also be exoficio Secretary of the District and to act as such at all public meetings of the District keeping the minutes of the same free of charge
Art 4th Be it further enacted That the Sheriff shall have the same power by virtue of his office as under the laws of Kansas
Art 5th Be it further enacted That it shall be the duty of the Stake Master upon the payment of fees hereinafter pro- vided to settle all disputes in regard to the boundery of claims when required so to do by either of the disputants measuring and staking off the bounderies of said disputed claims.
Art 6th Be it further enacted That the fees of the Presi- dent shall be five dollars for presiding at each trial and double the fees allowed by the Laws [of] Kansas for making out the necessary papers for him to make
Art 7th Be it further enacted That the fees of the Re- corder shall be fifty cents for recording each claim or instru- ment of writing not exceeding one hundred words ; and one dol- lar each for all others
Art 8th Be it further enacted that the Sheriff may charge double the fees allowed by the laws of Kansas
Art 9th Be it further enacted That the fees of the Stake- master shall be one dollar for measuring and staking each dis- puted claim and twenty five cents each for all other claims nec- essary to be measured to ascertain the bounderies of said dis- puted claims
Art 10th Be it further enacted That the term claim shall be construed to mean ; when applied to a Lode one hundred feet in length of the same and fifty feet wide; when applied to a Gulch one hundred feet in length following its meanderings and
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extending from bank to bank; when applied to Patch diggings one hundred feet square; when applied to a Tunneling claim two hundred feet each side of the point marked for the center of the Tunnel; when applied to a Quartz mill claim two hun- dred and fifty feet square; when applied to a ditch claim the entire distance staked out which they intend to run the same or shown by the survey or stakes; when applied to water claim the exclusive right to use water for mining or mill purposes upon any stream not exceeding in distance two hundred and fifty feet measured in a straight line and touching the centre of the stream at each end of the claim when applied to a farming or ranche claim one hundred and sixty acres when applied to a building claim sixty feet front and one hundred feet deep
Art 11th Be it further enacted That no person shall hold more than one Lode Gulch Patch or Water claim on the same Lod Gulch Patch Diggings or Stream except by purchase or dis- covery ; and no person shall hold more than one building farm- ing or ranch claim except by purchase
Art 12th Be it further enacted That each Discovery claim shall be marked and recorded as such
Art 13th Be it further enacted That when claims are taken or held in the name of a company the Company shall place on record the firm name and the name of each individual mem- ber of said Company
Art 14th Be it further enacted That all deeds bonds con- tracts bills of sale or instruments of any kind relating to the conveyance of claims and bonds shall be witnessed by at least two disinterested persons and recorded
Art 15th Be it enacted That when water companies are engaged in bringing water into any portion of the mines they shall have the right of way secured to them and may pass over any claim road or ditch provided the water is so guarded as not to interfere with vested rights
Art 16th Be it enacted That any person shall be entitled to one Tunnel claim in the District by Location and shall hold good without labor till the 1st day of July 1861 if recorded
Art 17th Be it further enacted That the said claims shall
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be plainly marked or staked and location plainly described on the records of the District
Art 18th Be it further enacted That Tunnel claims may be four hundred feet apart and no nearer that each Tunnel claim shall hold two hundred feet each way from the Tunnel on all Lode claims undiscovered which may be discovered by the person or persons owning the Tunnel and all above and below Provided that all Lodes discovered over the route after said Tunnel claim is taken previous to being found by the Tunnel Company the discoverer thereof shall be entitled to the claim down as deep as fifty feet and one hundred feet the length of the Lode and the same by preemption if within the limits of the Tunnel
Art 19th Be it further enacted That after the 1st day of July 1861 said claim shall be worked regularly once in ten days until they shall have Tuneled in fifty feet after which they shall hold good without labor as real estate
Art 20th Be it further enacted That Art 19th in regard to work shall be construed to mean at least five days work every ten days
Art 21st Be it further enacted That no Company shall hold more than two Tunnel claims in the District by location.
Art 22nd Be it further enacted That any person or per- sons owning Tunnell claim shall have the right of way or route for passage through all lodes discovered previous to the location of the tunnel but shall have no portion of the Quartz
Art 23rd Be it further enacted That the Tunnel Co shall be compelled to convey the water over the Lodes that may be sunk deeper than the Tunnel or the right granted to the per- sons owning the Lodes to tunnel to his claim for the purpose of draining
Art 24th Be it enacted That in any District or Territory that has been or shall be annexed to this District all claims held in good faith by premption-purchase or discovery shall be valid after such District or Territory is annexed
Art 25th Be it further enacted That no person be enti- tled to vote on Lode Gulch or Water claims respectively unless
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he own in this District such a claim or claims as said business shall pertain to to wit a Lode Gulch or Water claim
Art 26th Be it enacted That all motions made at a meet- ing of the District shall be in writing
Art 27th Be it further enacted That the President may at any time he deems it necessary call a public meeting of the Citizens of the District by giving not less than forty eight hours notice and by posting six notices in as many conspicuous places in the District.
Art 28th Be it enacted That persons cutting trees for timber or other purposes shall by cutting or stamping their mark upon the same and having said mark recorded hold said fallen trees as other personal property
Art 29th Be it further enacted That all claims in this District held by preemption purchase or discovery shall be held as real estate except as hereinbefore provided in regard to Tun- nel clainis
Art 30th Be it enacted That an annual meeting shall be held for the election of officers on the first Monday of December of each year and the officers elected shall hold their respective offices for one year or until their successors are elected unless they shall die resign remove from the District or be removed from office for misconduct, or neglect of official duties
Art 31st Be it further enacted That in case of temporary absence of any of the officers of the District they shall have the power to appoint a deputy to act in their absence but if they are absent to exceed thirty days their office may be declared vacant for neglect of duty in manner as hereinafter provided but in case it is the President who is so absent the Recorder may call a meeting for his trial in manner as hereinafter provided
Art 32rd Be it enacted That when a petition shall be pre- sented to the President asking for a public meeting of the citi- zens of the District signed by ten or more Citizens of the dis- trict stating the object of said meeting it shall be the duty of the President to call in manner as hereinbefore provided a meeting agreeable to said notice
Art 33rd Be it enacted That the Stake Master may have
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the power to appoint two deputies to assist him in his official duties
Art 34th Be it enacted That no officer shall be removed from office except by a two third vote of the citizens of the District present at a public meeting called as hereinbefore pro- vided except there shall be ten days notice given and the notices shall state the name of the officer to be tried and the nature of the charges prefered against him
Art 35th Be it further enacted That in case of a vacancy of any office the citizens may at any meeting thereafter elect officers to fill said vacancies
Art 36th Be it enacted That it shall be duty of the court of this District to sign all writs issuing out of said court either by himself or his clerk to make all transcripts of judgments re- quired, on payment of his fees; to enter judgments and issue execusions, and pay over to the proper parties moneys collected on such judgments and execusions ; to try all criminals and hold all moneys he may receive for the District for fines and judg- ments subject to a vote of the majority of the people taken at any meeting where notice for such a vote is given in the call for the meeting, and to perform such other duties as necessarily appertain to his office
Art 37th Be it further enacted That if the judge of said court shall not be able to attend any trial or shall be disqualified from any case to try any suit, or if there shall be more business than the court can attend to or if any person shall make his affidavit, in writing that he does not believe he can have a fair and impartial trial before the said judge of said court or if the said court shall be interested in the event of any suit either as plaintiff or defendant, or with either of them in any manner Then the respective parties shall each choose an arbitrator and the arbitrators so chosen shall choose a third and the three arbi- trators shall sit and hear the case and their decision shall be final as far as the court of this district is concerned
Art 38th Be it further enacted That the court of this Dis- trict shall have equity as well as law jurisdiction and may grant writs of injunctions upon motion in all proper cases and all
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other motions upon proper cause shown, to be supported by affidavits alone and all such other acts as a court of equity has power to do
Art 39thi Be it further enacted That the said court shall have power to appoint its own clerk whenever it shall be deemed necessary and the said clerk shall have such power as a clerk of record has by the laws of Kansas relating to matters that may come before the court in consequence of some process issued therefrom
Art 40th Be it enacted That if any person shall wish to cominence a civil action in the court of this District he shall file with the judge or Clerk thereof a statement in writing setting forth his grounds of complaint which shall contain all the alle- gations and facts necessary to constitute a cause of action in plain and unequivacal language. Such statement if in equity shall be in the nature of a petition ; and if in law of a complaint as the case may be. Upon the filing of either a petition or complaint as aforesaid the court or the clerk thereof shall issue a writ of summons to be served upon the defendant to appear and answer at the time therein named or judgment will be taken against the defendant by defalt. If the relief demanded be for a sum of money the amount shall be stated in the summons; if for a sum of money and other relief the summons shall state its sub- stance, that if the defendant do not appear and answer at the time therein named judgment will be taken against him by default for the sum of money demanded and such other relief as the court may deem nec. If the remedy applied for shall not be for any sum of money the summons shall ask judgment for the relief demanded in the complaint if at law or the peti- tion if in equity.
Art 41st Be it further enacted That the defendant may at any time before the time of trial at law of any cause entered in the miners court file his answer or demurrer, upon either of which the plaintiff may join issue and if an answer be filed con- taining new matter irrelevant to the issue it must be denied or avoided by the plaintiff in his reply ; and all matters not denied
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or avoided by one p[l]eading subsequent to another shall be taken as confessed and true
Art 42nd Be it further enacted That all pleadings sub- sequent to the petition in equity, shall be the same as used in the United States courts of equity and the term of three days shall be granted for the filing of each pleading subsequent to another until the issue is made up
Art 43rd Be it further enacted That all pleas in equity shall be verified and no remedy shall be allowed in equity when the same can be had at law.
Art 44th Be it further enacted That in all cases of the foreclosure of a mortgage or lien of any kind upon a claim the equity of redemption shall not extend beyond ninety days
Art 45th Be it further enacted That in all cases of judg- ment for the partition of claims between joint owners, three dis- interested cominissioners shall be appointed by the court who shall affect such partition
Art 46th Be it further enacted That the rules of evi- dence as admitted in the court of the United States shall be observed in the miners court with the exception that either party may file his affidavit in court at any time before the commence- ment of a trial wherein he may depose to any facts relative to the issue and shall thereafter depose in the same that none of the foregoing facts contained in such affidavit can be proven by any witness whose evidence it is possible to procure either by de- position or the usual process of this court to compel the attend- ance of witnesses when the affidavit may be read in evidence. The adverse party may have the right to rebut or explain the said facts, so .set forth by affidavit or depose to any facts that may legally affect the matters deposed to by his opponent which affidavit may also be read in evidence.
Art 47th Be it further enacted That depositions may be used in this court in evidence provided the witness is sick and unable to attend the place of trial, about to leave the country, or is out of the jurisdiction of the court Notice shall be given to the adverse party of the time and place where the said depo- sition is to be taken, The opposite party may demand the nature
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of the evidence expected to be proven by the absent witness and upon its being stated may if he chooses admit such evidence and proceed to trial
Art 48th Be it further enacted That in all cases of at- tachments and replevin the practice perscribed by the laws of Kansas shall be observed and when in the case of attachment the defendant has left the country or keeps himself secreted within the same, so that process cannot be served upon him pub- lication in some public newspaper printed in the county for two week shall be deemed sufficient notice. The order of publi- cation shall not be granted by the court unless a summons has been returned by a proper officer, which return shall show that he has made diligent search and inquiry and cannot learn that the defendant is in this country or that he cannot find the de- fendant and believes he keeps himself secreted to avoid the serv- is of a summons togather with other evidence tending to make either of said facts appear
Art 49th Be it further enacted That garnishee process may issue as a part of the original writ to be served on both de- fendant and garnishee or separately; or it may be issued after execusion is returned unsatisfied ; and in either case if the gar- nishee pay the demand over to the defendant after legal notice he shall still be held liable to the amount of plaintiff's judgment and costs if he was indebted to that amount when service was made and if in a smaller sum the amount he was indebted at the time notice was served
Art 50th Be it further enacted That all special proceed- ings in the court of this District shall be conducted according to the forms prescribed in the Statutes of Kansas for the year one thousand eight hundred and fifty nine as far as consistent with the laws and local affairs of this District; and all motions relating to such proceedings shall be sustained or approved by affidavits alone
Art 51st Be it further enacted That new trials of all causes which have been or may be tried shall be granted upon the same terms or by the rules of the common law, and it shall
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be discretionary with the court in all cases to grant or reject the application
Art 52nd Be it further enacted That no debt or demand of any nature shall be collected by suit in this court which has not originated either in coming to this mining region or since the arival of such debtor within the proposed limits of this Territory
Art 53rd Be it further enacted That in all cases where the liability of persons in action founded upon contract or in mixed actions is not pointed out and defined by the laws of this District the common law rules shall apply as to such liability
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