Parsons v. Kazange

SCHOTTKY, J.

Defendants above named have appealed from a judgment quieting the title of plaintiffs to two unpatented placer gold mining claims known as Atlas Number 1 and Atlas Number

2.

The record shows that the claims were originally located in 1920. In 1942, a John Finlayson and his wife acquired an interest in the claims and thereafter performed the necessary assessment work through the mining year ending July 1, 1950. Both claims were open for location after July 1, 1951. On July 1, 1951, a Vernon Aaserude and Raymond Minners posted notices of location on both claims. The notice on Atlas Number 2 was posted in a berry box nailed to a tree. The notice on Atlas Number 1 was nailed to a tree in a similar fashion, though it may have been placed in a tobacco can. Both notices were faulty. The descriptions encompassed more land than was claimed. The notice as to Atlas Number 2 claimed only 40 acres but the description encompassed an area of 160 acres. On August 18, 1951, the locators and their wives posted amended notice of location as to Atlas Number 1. This time they claimed a total of 70 acres. The amended location notice as to Atlas Number 2 was signed by the locators and their wives and an Anna Berg and a Terry Morrill. The amount of land claimed was 105 acres. Aaserude testified that he and Minners performed the required discovery work on each claim by making a cut or digging a trench from each of which an estimated seven cubic yards of material were removed. Notice of the discovery work on each claim was

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recorded on September 22, 1951. Proof of performance of assessment work was made for the year ending July 1, 1953. In 1954 respondent Parsons performed the annual assessment work at Minners’ request.

In September, 1954, both claims were quitclaimed to respondents herein. The deed to Atlas Number 1 is executed by Raymond B. Minners, Jacqueline Minners, S. Vernon Aaserude and Dorothy Aaserude; the deed to Atlas Number 2 by the same four persons plus Anna Berg and Terry Morrill. A name is blocked out in the deed to Atlas Number 2.

Appellant Pete Kazange and his wife testified that they located a claim in June, 1953, and performed the necessary discovery work. This claim occupies part of the territory occupied by Atlas Number 1 and Atlas Number 2. They also testified that they never saw Aaserude or Minners on the Atlas claim in 1951 nor did they ever see their location notices or any evidence of work done by them.