88 
ALASKA. 
twenty-five feet of surface on each side thereof. The remainder of the placer- 
claim, or any placer-claim not embracing any vein or lode-claim, shall be paid 
for at the rate of two dollars and fifty cents per acre, together with all costs of 
proceedings; and where a vein or lode, such as is described in section twenty- 
three hundred and twenty, is known to exist within the boundaries of a placer- 
claim, an application for a patent for such placer-claim which does not include 
an application for the vein or lode claim shall be construed as a conclusive 
declaration that the claimant of the placer-claim has no right of possession of 
the vein or lode claim; but where the existence of a vein or lode in a placer- 
claim is not known, a patent for the placer-claim shall convey all valuable mineral 
and other deposits within the boundaries thereof 
Sec. 2334. The surveyor-general of the United States may appoint in each 
land-district containing mineral lands as many competent surveyors as shall 
apply for appointment to survey mining-claims. The expenses of the survey 
of vein or lode claims, and the survey and subdivision of placer-claims into 
smaller quantities than one hundred and sixty acres, together with the cost of 
publications of notices, shall be paid by the applicants, and they shall be at 
liberty to obtain the same at the most reasonable rates, and they shall also be 
at liberty to employ any United States deputy surveyor to make the survey. 
The Commissioner of the General Land Office shall also have power to estab¬ 
lish the maximum charges for surveys and publication of notices under this 
chapter; and, in case of excessive charges for publication, he may designate any 
newspaper published in a land-district where mines are situated for the publication 
of mining-notices in such district, and fix the rates to be charged by such paper; 
and, to the end that the Commissioner may be fully informed on the subject, 
each applicant shall file with the register a sworn statement of all charges and 
fees paid by such applicant for publication and surveys, together with all fees 
and money paid the register and the receiver of the land-office, which statement 
shall be transmitted, with the other papers in the case, to the Commissioner of 
the General Land Office. 
Sec. 2335. All affidavits required to be made under this chapter may be veri¬ 
fied before any officer authorized to administer oaths within the land-district 
where the claims may be situated, and all testimony and proofs may be taken 
before any such officer, and, when duly certified by the officer taking the same, 
shall have the same force and effect as if taken before the register and receiver 
of the land-office. In cases of contest as to the mineral or agricultural charac¬ 
ter of land, the testimony and proofs may be taken as herein provided on per¬ 
sonal notice of at least ten days to the opposing party; or if such party cannot 
be found, then by publication of at least once a week for thirty days in a news¬ 
paper, to be designated by the register of the land-office as published nearest to 
