CLASSIFICATION OF MINEEAL LANDS. 



63 



PREPARATION OF DATA FOR CLASSIFICATION. 



The geologist, on returning to the office from a field examina- 

 tion of land for the purpose of classification, informally presents to 

 the appropriate section of the board a general outline of his work, 

 the area covered, and the problems met. Thereupon the section de- 

 cides the particular form of map and report desired. The essential 

 factor in determining in just what form the data shall be submitted 

 is the requirement that all pertinent facts determined by the field 

 investigator shall be recorded and that the finished report shall be 

 as accurate as the field work in location and interpretation. The 

 importance of accuracy and completeness becomes apparent when it 

 is realized that the record once submitted must form the basis not 



Resurvey T. 19 N., R. 105 W. of the Sixth R M., Wyoming 



Coal land price 

 not fixed because 

 General land Office 

 records show if lobe 

 Jn privafe oy/rtership 



Replaoinf pfaf 

 iransmiffed by 

 Geological Survey- 

 September 8, 1909 



Large figures 

 e/ive price in 

 clollar6 per acre 



Coal land mf/>in 

 IS-mile limit 



Wl 



^^■1 



20\30 



—2,0- 

 30\40 



50\60 

 -32— 

 60 70 



60 70 80 90 



90 105 /15\9S 



miiouo\f60 



m m ISSS20 240 235 ^0 



105 I35\I3S 200 



m /36 /ad23C ?7S 3Si }75\40i 40S 



235^5 335 395 «?5j35J 



290 ?40«!5'fOO3^ 



WO 250 300 350 



v., 



W 



'-:\\ 



^if 



Acres 

 Coal.priced 13,819 

 Coal, not priced 6,634 

 Non coal 2.775 



Total 23.208 



As given 

 Minimum 



f 1,773,289 

 276,381 



I classify and 

 price the land 

 in this township 

 shown hereon 



U.S. Geolop'cal Survey 

 May 28, 1910 



Figure 1. — Township map showing classification and valuation of coal lands. 



only for the classification of the land as mineral or nonmineral, a 

 classification which may affect the interests of a large number of 

 people, but also, in the case of coal land, for valuations aggregating 

 millions of dollars. As an example, a copy of a township classifica- 

 tion and valuation plat as transmitted to the General Land Office is 

 given in figure 1. In June, 1912, private individuals purchased from 

 the Government sec. 12 of this township, for which they paid the 

 classified price as shown, amounting to over a quarter of a million 



dollars. . 



In general the data are compiled by the field geologist from his 

 original maps and notes in two forms. The first consists of a small- 

 scale map with an accompanying general report presenting the re- 

 sults of a study of the whole field. In this report the geologist dis- 

 cusses the stratigraphy and structure of the field as well as the oc- 



