[Witness examines document and counsel examines document.] Mr. ATKISSON. You had a partner or co-owner in your exploration efforts in the Red Desert area for these 9,000 claims; did you not? Mr. SCHAUSS. Yes. Mr. ATKISSON. Was the name Stevens? Mr. SCHAUSs. Yes. Mr. ATKISSON. Was he responsible for one-half of the annual assessment work that you performed on those claims? Mr. SCHAUSs. Yes. Mr. ATKISSON. Did you have the occasion to submit to Mr. Stevens a bill accounting for the assessment work you spent on those claims in the years 1971 to 1974? Mr. SCHAUSS. I should perhaps give you a little background. Mr. ATKISSON. We will get to the background in a minute, but did you submit a bill to Mr. Stevens indicating the amount of assessment work for which he was liable for one-half? Mr. SCHAUSS. I gave Mr. Stevens a bill on what I felt he would not dispute. Mr. ATKISSON. Is the worksheet in front of you the bill that you sent in this [indicating] envelope in 1974 to Mr. Stevens? You can look at it. It is in front of you. Mr. SCHAUSs. Yes. Mr. ATKISSON. That is your handwriting; is it not? Mr. SCHAUSS. Yes. Mr. ATKISSON. Let us go over it a second. You indicate to Mr. Stevens, who is responsible for fully one-half of your expenditures that for 1971 for these 9,000 claims, you spent $6,911; is that what that says? Mr. SCHAUSs. Yes. Mr. ATKISSON. For 1972 you spent $5,480; and for 1973 we get $6,604; and finally, in 1974 we get $5,717. That is just under $6,000 a year. That is a far cry from $40,000 or $50,000; is it not? Mr. SCHAUSs. No. Mr. ATKISSON. It is not a far cry? Mr. SCHAUSS. No. Mr. ATKISSON. That is a judgment I will leave for the members themselves to make. Can we at least assume, Mr. Schauss, that the staking you did on these claims was proper and was done according to law? Mr. SCHAUSS. I contracted for it to be done. Mr. ATKISSON. I asked you, if I may safely assume, that the staking was done properly. Do you, of your own knowledge, know whether the staking was done properly? Mr. SCHAUSS. To the best of my knowledge, it was done properly. Mr. ATKISSON. It is an important matter, because you are familiar with the Zweifel act under which an assessment affidavit pointing to the assessment work you have done, no matter how artfully drawn and no matter how accurate, it is a felony, in fact, to file any assessment affidavit for a claim that was improperly staked in the first place. That is your understanding; is it not? Mr. SCHAUSS. You are talking about assessment work? |