York v. Washburn

AMIDON, District Judge.

The defendant and those associated with him acquired a right to a mining lease of three 40-acre tracts of land situated in the Mesaba iron range, in the northern part of Minnesota. The consideration given by them for this right was the exploration of the property, by core drills and otherwise, to discover and define the extent of the ore deposit contained in the property. They undertook this work at their own risk. If no ore was found, the expense of the exploration was their loss. If, however, a valuable body of ore was discovered, then the owners of the fee agreed to…