r 
 
 
 Cio^d. 
 
 ^So^. 
 
Glass_ii^£_41_ 
 
u^, 
 
 Department of the Interior, 
 
 " Washington, April 20, 1908. 
 
 Chairman Committee on the Public Lands, 
 
 House of Representatives. 
 
 Sir: 1 have the honor to submit herewith report on H. R. 19421, 
 "A bill to provide for the entry and sale of public lands containing 
 coal." 
 
 It is suggested that line 3, section 1, be raodified by omitting the 
 word "vacant." 
 
 The words "declaration of intention," lines 11 and 12, section 3, 
 should be modified to read "a declaratory statement of his inten- 
 tion," as that is in fact the nature of the paper which is to be tiled, 
 and, conforming in name to that in use under existing law, will be 
 more readily understo6d b}'^ the public. 
 
 The word " further," in line 22, section 3, should be omitted for the 
 reason that said line is the first and only provision for an extension 
 of time. Lines 10, 11, and 12 should be amended so as to read "and 
 the payment of the classified price for the same as fixed by the Sec- 
 retary of the Interior at date of the initiation of the claim, if classified, 
 or at such price as he may determine, if not determined when the 
 claim was initiated." This amendment is designed to secure to the 
 claimant the right to purchase the land at such price as may have 
 been placed thereon by classification at the^ time he initiated his 
 claim, preventing the possibility of an increased price being put 
 thereon by reclassification after he has opened the mine, reserving, 
 however, the right of the Secretary to fix a proper price upon lands 
 not classified at date of the initiation of the claim. Lines 25 and 26 
 of section 4 should be modified so as to provide for the outright sale 
 of not exceeding 610 acres in not more than four compact bodies, 
 which need not be contiguous. The bill as submitted would permit 
 of the purchase of sixteen noncontiguous 40-acre tracts, which might 
 be so applied for as to render the remaining surface practically value- 
 less for disposition or surround on two sides the entire 2,560 acres 
 embraced in the filing. It is believed that four noncontiguous bodies 
 of 160 acres each will provide ample ground for use in connection 
 with the working and exploitation of the coal under any one purchase. 
 
 A second proviso to section 4 is suggested, fixing the fees and com- 
 missions to be paid to registers and receivers upon the filing of declar- 
 atory statements and entry of the lands under the provisions of this 
 act. The fee is fixed at $2 for each 160 acres or fractional part thereof 
 embraced in the declaratory statements and the commission at 1 
 per cent each for the register and receiver, not to exceed in any case, 
 however, llOO. 
 
 The addition of another section to the bill, following section 4, is 
 suggested, providing that one enti*}" shall exhaust the right; also pro- 
 viding for an additional entry under this law by those who, prior to 
 its passage, may have exhausted their rights by the entry of the 
 smaller aVea fixed by the old coal law. The right of additional entry 
 has been granted to those who acquired title to less than the maxi- 
 
 19848—09 
 
 ^^m. 
 
mum area under the homestead laws, and it would seem but fair, in 
 view of the greath'^ increased area which may be entered under the 
 bill, that the right of additional coal entry be granted. 
 
 The fourth word, line 15, section 7, should be "after" instead of 
 "of," so that the entrymen may make their final proof and thereafter 
 have the lands examined in order to determine whether or not coal 
 exists therein. A suspension for examination prior to final proof 
 might delay same for a considerable period in some cases. 
 
 After the word "owner," line 6, page 6, it is suggested that the 
 words "or lawful claimant" be inserted. 
 
 Section 9 of the bill practically confirms all disputed entries or 
 locations made under the coal-land laws if the price therefor, as of 
 the date of such entry or location, has been oi shall be paid. It 
 would seem advisable to extend opportunit}'^ for relief to those who 
 are under charge of acquiring coal land under other laws, or who indi- 
 rectly acquired a larger area than the existing coal laws permitted, 
 because the passage of this bill by Congress will recognize the fact 
 that the existing coal-land laws are not practicable. Their imprac- 
 ticability has helped bring about the practice of attempting to evade 
 them. The culpability of such evasion is admitted. Yet if, after 
 the passage of this bill, those under charge of wrongful action should 
 be willing to take their land with the very considerable penalty of 
 assuming all the burdens and restrictions of the new law it would 
 seem proper to confirm their right to so much of the land as shall 
 not exceed in area the maximum amount which might be acquired 
 under this bill. 
 
 I therefore suggest as a substitute for section 9 of the bill the 
 following: 
 
 Sec. 9. That any persons, associations, or corporations who have obtained prior to 
 the passage of this act claim or title to any coal lands of the United States by alleged 
 unlawful means shall, upon proof to the satisfaction of the Secretary of the Interior 
 that the full coal-land price of such land as classified by said Secretary under author- 
 ity of law has been paid to the United States, have their patents confirmed for not to 
 exceed two thousand five hundred and sixty acres ot such coal lands if patents have 
 issued, or if patents have not issued shall receive patents for not to exceed said area: 
 Provided, That patent shall not issue or be confirmed for such alleged unlawful claims 
 or titles unless all land in excess of two thousand five hundred and sixty acres and all 
 the surface of the confirmed coal lands (except not exceeding six hundred and forty 
 acres in not more than four compact bodies, which need not be contiguous) involved 
 in any one such charge shall have been reconveyed to the United States free from all 
 incumbrances of any nature whatsoever: Provided further, That all moneys heretofore 
 paid to the Government in connection with such alleged unlawful entries, as pur- 
 chase price for lands involved in any one charge, shall be credited toward the pur- 
 chase price for any part of the lands embraced in said charge and retained by such 
 persons, associations, or corporations under the j^rovisions of this section. 
 
 This substituted section oflers opportunit}^ for relief and at the 
 same time automatically carries with it a punishment proportioned 
 to the value of the coal lands in question. For those who acquired 
 the land under other than the coal-land entry, the additional price to 
 be paid will be all or a great part of the classified value, while those 
 who paid the minimum coal prices will only need to pay such addi- 
 tional sum as will equal the classified value. It should be noted that 
 the opportunity given does not prevent the confirmation of entries 
 where further investigation of the facts may prove that the -entries 
 were lawfully made. 
 
 It is suggested that the provisions of the bill should be applied to 
 Alaska. To this end, sections should be added providing for the fil- 
 
 JAN 13 1910 ... ■ 
 
I 
 
 It ing of declarations of intention and the making of entries for unsur- 
 veyed lands; also maintaining in that district the present system of 
 ^ determining adverse possessory rights by the courts by inserting 
 ^ provisions somewhat similar to those contained in sections 2 and 3 
 of the act of April 28, 1904. (33 Stat. L., 525.) In order to meet 
 existing conditions and to enable those who made and are holding in 
 good faith coal locations in Alaska under existing laws to combine 
 their claims, a section is suggested which will permit such a combina- 
 tion by bona fide locators, their heirs or assigns, so that they may 
 include in a single consolidated claim not to exceed 2,560 acres of 
 contiguous lands. 
 
 Inasmuch as this bill is designed to take the place of existing laws 
 relative to the public coal lands of the United States, the addition of 
 a section to the bill repealing existing laws, but specifically preserving 
 the right of duly qualified persons to perfect bona fide existing loca- 
 tions and filings is suggested — 
 
 Sec. 10. That all laws and parts of laws relating; to or providing for the disposition 
 of the public lands of the United States containing deposits of coal are hereby 
 repealed: Provided, That nothing contained in this act shall prevent qualified per- 
 sons, associations, or corporations from completing and perfecting locations, filings, 
 and entries made in accordance with the laws and regulations in force at the date of 
 initiation of the claims. 
 
 Although the separation of the surface from the coal and the pro- 
 visi.m for the payment for the coal, reasonably proportioned to its 
 actual value, and the provisions of sections 5 and 6, designed to pre- 
 vent unlawful combinations or conspiracies in restraint of the mining 
 or selling of goal and to give the United States a preferential right to 
 purchase for the use of its army and navy such coal as ma}^ be needed, 
 and the general relief to the coal claimants and operators by so in- 
 creasing the area which may be purchased as to enable them to make 
 the required outla}^ and development, are matters of great importance 
 and warrant me in recommending the passage of this bill, I urge par- 
 ticularly upon your attention a further matter which is worthy of very 
 careful consideration. I believe that the coal now belonging to the 
 United States should not only be saved from acquisition under the 
 noncoal-land laws, as provided by the bill, but also that the coal now 
 owned by the United States should be protected by the Government 
 until it has all been used in an economical way. Such protection could 
 be practically assured b}^ retaining in the United States the title to the 
 coal itself and giving to the coal operators the right to mine it at 
 reasonable rentals, or royalties, under conditions as free from burdens 
 to the business interests of the operator as can be allowed consistently 
 with protection of the public interests. 
 
 This might be brought about by leasing the coal land with pro- 
 vision against holding it an unreasonable time for speculative reasons, 
 and particularly with security against mining in a wasteful manner. 
 Such a lease should provide an annual rental per acre, which in itself 
 would be a considerable security against mere speculative holding of 
 the land, and in addition thereto a royalty per ton, which should be 
 proportioned to the value of the coal property leased, looked at from 
 the same considerations which are made the foundation of fixing 
 classified prices of coal land preparatory to sale. Private owners, 
 various States of the United States, and different foreign countries 
 have tried the lease system with good results. This sy.stem would 
 
not unreasonably hamper the business development of the coal, and 
 without adding an unnecessary burden to the operators would ulti- 
 mately bring to the Government a much larger revenue. Further- 
 more, a lease system is of distinct advantage to the smaller operators, 
 who could pay for coal when developed, instead of being obliged to 
 advance the full price of the coal at the time of entry. 
 
 The natural conditions in the public lands are such as to make the 
 leasing system in coal mining especially applicable to their develop- 
 ment; the risks and uncertainties in many fields make leasing the safer 
 system for even the large operator, while in many areas, especially in 
 the lignite fields, the small cost of the necessarj^ mining plant favors, 
 as doejs also the leasing system, the mining by a large number of 
 small operators. 
 
 The supplies of workable coal in most of the public-land States are 
 entirely inadequate to the future needs of these great commonwealths, 
 which have but begun their real development; and yet probably in no 
 country is so large a part of the available supply of coal lost in mining 
 as is now the case in many of these western coal fields. The chief 
 purpose of the Government under the leasing sj^stem would be the 
 encouragement of economic mining methods, with a view to both 
 development for present needs and the perpetuation of the supplies 
 to meet the needs of the future. 
 
 This purpose can be accomplished in harmony with state laws, 
 including a state tax on the mine products, and with an amount of 
 federal supervision which would always be small; and even this lim- 
 ited amount of inspection would be done in connection with investi- 
 gations conducted with a view to helping in the development of 
 increased safety and efficiency in mining. 
 
 The United States does not look particularly to the question of 
 revenue in the disposition of public lands, and the chief purpose of 
 the Government in connection with these coal lands must always be 
 to secure their wise and efficient development in the interest of the 
 whole people of the West; but since it has devoted the proceeds 
 therefrom to public purposes, such as reclamation of arid lands, it is 
 reasonable to suppose that Congress would look favorably upon any 
 increase in the revenue from the public land which would not retard 
 its proper development. 
 
 For the reasons given I suggest that the bill be modified so as to 
 give the option of either purchasing or leasing the coal deposits, b}^ the 
 insertion, after suggested section ia, of the following sections: 
 
 4b. That if any individual or association qualified to enter coal lands under the 
 provisions of this act, or a corporation duly empowered to transact business in the 
 State or Territory in which the land is situated, makes application to lease coal lands, 
 the Secretary of the Interior is hereby authorized to lease to such applicant not to 
 exceed two thousand five hundred and sixty acres of coal land exclusive of the sur- 
 face, under such terms and conditions as he may deem proper to conserve the public 
 interests; and after such application for the leasing of any definite tract of coal lands 
 has been received at the appropriate local land office, the coal lands thus applied for 
 shall not be subject to sale under the provisions of this act during the pendency of 
 such application: Provided. That the Secretary of the Interior shall require in each 
 lease an annual rental per acre for the lands leased of five per centum of the classified 
 price for such lands and in addition thereto such royalty as he may deem proper in 
 each case, not less than one- half cent per ton nor more than five cents per ton for 
 the coal actually mined. 
 
 4c. That at the time of filing application to enter and purchase, or of the approval 
 of a lease for coal lands, the entryman or lessee may purchase also, at two dollars and 
 fifty cents per acre additional to the classified charge for the coal, or the rental price, 
 
by legal subdivisions in not more than four compact bodies, whicii need not be con- 
 tiguous, not to exceed six hundred and forty acres of the surfacje of the coal lands 
 entered or leased, or at his option the lessee may lease the exclusive use of such sur- 
 face under terms and conditions prescribed by the Secretary of the Interior in the 
 lease. 
 
 If the above sections are inserted in the bill, the first proviso to 
 section 4 of the bill should be omitted, as its provisions are embodied 
 in section 4c. To carry out the suggestions relative to Alaskan coal 
 lands, sections numbered 8a, 8b, 8c, and 8d may be inserted after sec- 
 tion 8. A typewritten draft of the bill, embodying the suggested 
 changes and additions, is inclosed. 
 Very respectfully, 
 
 James Rudolph Gakfield, 
 
 Secretary. 
 
 A BILL To pA)vide for the entry and sale of public lands containing coal. 
 
 Be it enacted by the Seriate and House of Representatives of the United States of America 
 in Congress assembled. That all public lands and landa included in national forests, 
 containing workable deposits of coal, are hereby classified as coal lands and hereafter 
 shall be disposed of only in the manner provided by this act. 
 
 Sec. 2. That every citizen of the United States who has not acquired title to coal 
 lands from the United States, or any association of persons who are thus severally 
 qualified, may purchase, by legal subdivisions, not to exceed two thousand five hun- 
 dred and sixty acres of s ch coal lands in contiguous, reasonably compact areas, at 
 not less than ten dollars per acre, or such other and higher price as the Secretary of the 
 Interior may fix after examination, having due regard to the quality of the coal, thick- 
 ness, character, and depth of the coal veins, and means of transportation and accessi- 
 bility to markets. But no purchase of coal lands under the provisions of this act shall 
 operate to convey any right, title, or interest in or to the surface of the lands containing 
 the coal thus purchased, except as hereinafter provided. 
 
 Sec. 3. That all public lands and lands included in national forests, containing 
 coal, shall be subject to exploration by persons qualified to purchase under this act, 
 and any such qualified purchaser shall have, upon the payment of the sum of twenty- 
 five cents per acre and the filing in the proper land office of a declaratory statement 
 of his intention to enter upon the exploration, discovery, and development of coal 
 upon the lands described in such declaration, not to exceed two thousand five hundred 
 and sixty acres, the exclusive right for a period of one year to enter upon the said 
 lands for such purposes and the preference right to purchase the same, and upon a 
 proper showing to the Secretary of the Interior that the work of exploration, discovery, 
 and development has been diligently carried on during the said period, and that a 
 further period is necessary to determine the character of said lands and their coal 
 deposits, the Secretary may grant an extension of the said rights for a period of not to 
 exceed one year at any one time, or two years in all, upon the payment of twenty-five 
 cents per acre for each year of such extension, and during all such periods the Secre- 
 tary of the Interior may, upon application, permit the sale of such coal as may be 
 mined for the purposes of development. 
 
 Sec. 4. That application to enter and purchase all or any contiguous, reasonably 
 compact portion of the lands described in any declaration of intention may be made 
 at the proper land office at any time within the period of exploration, as provided in 
 section three of this act, and upon proof that a workable vein of coal has been dis- 
 covered upon the lands applied for and the payment of the classified price for the 
 same as fixed by the Secretary of the Interior at date of the initiation of the olaina, 
 if classified, or at such price ks he may determine if not classified when the claim 
 was initiated, in not more than four annual installments, or upon applications to pur- 
 chase under the provisions of section two of this act, the entryman shall be entitled 
 to a patent to the lands applied for, including all deposits therein, excepting and 
 reserving therefrom and horn the grant the surface only of said lands, except as here- 
 inafter provided. The failure to make application to enter and purchase as afore- 
 said or to make any one of the annual payments within six months after the same is 
 due shall constitute a forfeiture of all the rights of the entryman to the land and to 
 the payments already made: Provided, That the entryman shall be entitled, upon 
 paying at the time of making entry the sum of two dollars and fifty cents per acre, 
 in addition to the coal land price, to a patent to the surface of not to exceed six hun- 
 dred and forty acres of the area entered by him, to be designated by legal subdivisions. 
 
and in not more than four compact bodies which need not be contiguous: Provided 
 farther, That if the land entered shall be within a national forest, the entryman 
 shall be entitled to a patent to the surface only of such portion of the area covered 
 by his entry as in the opinion of the Secretary of the Interior may be necessary for 
 the purposes of mining, marketing, and handling the coal, upon payment of the 
 value of the timber which may be growing upon such land, if any, in addition to the 
 sum of two dollars and fifty cents an acre for such surface: Provided further, That 
 each person or association of persons filing a declaratory statement under this act 
 shall, at the date of such filing, pay a fee of two dollars for each one hundred and sixty 
 acres or fractional part thereof embraced in the declaratory statement, and the regis- 
 ter and receiver shall each receive a commission of one per centum on all moneys 
 paid as the purchase price under coal entries made under the provisions of this act: 
 Provided, howerer. That the total commissions received by any register or receiver 
 under any entry shall in no case exceed one hundred dollars. 
 
 Sec. 4a. That the four preceding sections shall be held to authorize only one entry 
 by the same person or association of persons, and no association of persons any mem- 
 ber of which shall by entry have taken the benefit of such sections, either as an indi- 
 vidual or as a member of such association, shall enter or hold any other lands under 
 the provisions thereof: Provided, That entrymen who entered coal lands under exist- 
 ing laws prior to the date of this act may, under the provisions of this act and sub- 
 ject to its conditions, enter other lands which shall not, with the lands so already 
 entered, exceed in the aggregate two thousand five hundred and sixty acres, but not 
 more than one such additional entry shall be allowed to any person orassociation of per- 
 sons under the provisions of this act. 
 
 Sec 5. That title to the lands and deposits purchased under the provisions of this 
 act shall be forfeited to the Ujiited States by proceedings instituted in the courts for 
 that purpose, if the owaier of such title shall tacitly or otherwise enter into any con- 
 tract, combination in the form of a trust, conspiracy in restraint of trade in the mining 
 or selling of coal. 
 
 Sec. 6. That the United States shall at all times have the preference right to pur- 
 chase so much of the products of any mine or mines opened upon the lands sold under 
 the provisions of this act as may be necessary for the use of its army or navy and at 
 such reasonable and remunerative price as may be fixed by the President; but the 
 producers of any coal so purchased who may be dissatisfied with the price so fixed 
 shall have the right to prosecute suits against the I'f^nited States in the Court of Claims 
 for the recovery of any additional sum or sums they may claim as justly due upon 
 such purchase. 
 
 Sec. 7. That the surface of all vacant and unreserved public lands classified as coal 
 lands under the provisions of this act may be disposed of under the general provisions 
 of the public-land laws of the United States which would be applicable to such surface 
 if it were not underlaid with coal, but all patents issued under said laws for lands 
 classified as coal lands or within areas known to contain coal of commercial value 
 shall contain a reservation of the coal and other deposits beneath the surface, and a 
 recital of the right of the coal declarator entryman to enter upon and occupy the same 
 for the purpose of exploration or mining, as hereinafter provided: Provided, That 
 such entryman may, if he elect, within one year after the making of final proof and 
 before receiving patent, apply for an examination by officers to be designated by the 
 Secretary of the Interior of the lands contained within his entry for the purpose of 
 determining whether or not they contain workable deposits of coal, and if upon such 
 examination it shall be determined to the satisfaction pf the Secretary that such lands 
 do not contain workaV)le deposits of coal, then the patent shall issue in fee and without 
 reservation. 
 
 Sec. 8. That a coal-land declaratory statement or a purchase under this act may 
 embrace in whole or in part lands the surface of which has been disposed of as pro- 
 vided for in section eight, and the coal declarant shall have the right to enter upon 
 such lands for the purpose of exploration, discovery, or development of coal, and the 
 coal purchaser for all purposes connected with the raining, handling, and marketing 
 of coal, upon the payment to tiie owner or lawful claimant of the surface of reasonable 
 damages, to be determined in cast^ of disagreement between the parties in interest 
 by a court of competent jurisdiction. 
 
 Sec. 8a. That any declaratory statement of intention under this act made for 
 unsurveyed lands in the district of Alaska shall be for rectangular tracts, as compact 
 as possible, not exceeding in length tw4ce the width of the tract located, with north 
 and south boundary lines run according to the true meridian, and shall describe the 
 lands covered thereby by reference to such natural objects or monuments as will 
 readily identify the same. The location of said lands shall be indicated by marking 
 the corners thereof with permanent monuments, so that the boundaries may be readily 
 
traced. Applications to enter and purchase such hinds must be accompanied by 
 copy of a plat of survey and field notes thereof made by a duly authorized United 
 States deputy or mineral surveyor for the district of Alaska, duly approved by the 
 surveyor-general for the district of Alaska, and such plat, field notes, and the certifi- 
 cate of the surveyor must show that the boundaries of the land applied for have been 
 marked by permanent monuments at every corner of the tract and at intervals of not 
 to exceed one-half mile on the exterior boundaries thereof. 
 
 Sec. 8b. Upon the filing of the plat, field notes and certificate, and of api)lication 
 to purchase the coal lands under the provisions of this act, in the office of the register 
 and receiver of the land district in which the lands are loc ted, the register shall 
 cause notice thereof to be published at the expense of the applicant, in a newspaper 
 of general circulation in the district of Alaska, published nearest the land applied 
 for, for a period of sixty days, during which period of publication similar notices 
 of the application and copies of the official plat of survey must be kept posted in a 
 conspicuous place upon the land applied for and in the local land office. 
 
 Sec. 8c. That during such period of publication and posting, or within six months 
 thereafter, any person, association, or corporation having or asserting any adverse 
 interests or claim to the tract of land or any part thereof sought to be purchased shall 
 file in the land office where such application is pending, under oath, an adverse claim 
 setting forth the nature and extent thereof, and shall within sixty days after the filing 
 of such claim begin an action in a court of competent jurisdiction within the district 
 of Alaska to determine the question of the right of possession, and prosecute the same 
 with reasonable diligence to final judgment, and thereafter no patent shall issue for 
 such claim until the final adjudication of the rights of the parties, or until the adverse 
 claim shall have been waived or the suit dismissed. When judgment shall have been 
 rendered in such proceeding, patent shall be issued in conformity with the final decree 
 of the court therein: Provided, That nothing herein contained shall be so construed 
 as to authorize entries to be made or title to be acquired to the shore of any navigable 
 waters within said district. 
 
 Sec. 8d. That all persons, their lawful heirs or assigns, claiming under valid loca- 
 tions made prior to November twelfth, nineteen hundred and six, or in accordance 
 with circular of instructions issued by the Secretary of the Interior, May sixteenth, 
 nineteen hundred and seven, may consolidate their said claims or locations by includ- 
 ing in a single claim, location, or purchasenot to exceed two thousand five hundred and 
 sixty acres of contiguous lands not exceeding in length twice the width of the tract 
 thus consolidated, and for this purpose such persons, their lawful heirs or assigns, 
 may form associations or corporations, or may transfer their said claims to other quali- 
 fied persons, associations, or corporations who may perfect entry of and acquire title 
 to said lands, in accordance with the other provisions of law under which said loca- 
 tions were originally made. 
 
 Sec. 9. That any persons, associations, or corporations who have obtained prior to 
 the passage of this act claim or title to any coal lands of the United States, by alleged 
 unlawful means, shall, upon proof to the satisfaction of the Secretary of the Interior, 
 that the full coal land price of such land as classified by said Secretary under author- 
 ity of law, has been paid to the United States, may have their patents confirmed for 
 not to exceed two thousand five hundred and sixty acres of sucb coal lands, if pat- 
 ents have issued, or if patents have not issued shall receive patents for not to exceed 
 said area: Provided, That patent shall not issue or be confirmed for such alleged 
 unlawful claims or titles unless all land in excess of two thousand five hundred and 
 sixty acres, and all the surface of the confirmed coal lands (except not exceeding six 
 hundred and forty acres in not more than four compact bodies which need not be 
 contiguous), involved in any one such charge, shall have been reconveyed to the 
 United States free from all incumbrances of any nature whatsoever: Provided further, 
 That all moneys heretofore paid to the Government in connection with such alleged 
 unlawful entries, as purchase price for lands involved in any one charge, shall be 
 credited toward the purchase price for any part of the lands embraced in said charge 
 and retained by such persons, associations, or corporations under the provisions of 
 this section. 
 
 Sec. 10. That all laws and parts of laws relating to or providing for the disposition 
 of the public lands of the United States containing deposits of coal are hereby repealed : 
 Provided, That nothing contained in this act shall prevent qualified persons, associa- 
 tions, or corporations from completing and perfecting locations, filings, and entries 
 made in accordance with the laws and regulations in force at the date of initiation of 
 the claims. 
 
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