Every person above the age of twenty-one years, who is a citizen of the United States, or who has declared his intention to become such, or any association of persons severally qualified as above, shall, upon application to the register of the proper land office, have the right to enter, by legal subdivisions, any quantity of vacant coal lands of the United States not otherwise appropriated or reserved by competent authority, not exceeding one hundred and sixty acres to such individual person, or three hundred and twenty acres to such association, upon payment to the register of not less than $10 per acre for such lands, where the same shall be situated more than fifteen miles from any completed railroad, and not less than $20 per acre for such lands as shall be within fifteen miles of such road.
Codification
R.S. §2347 derived from act Mar. 3, 1873, ch. 279, §1, 17 Stat. 607.
Amendments
1925—Act Mar. 3, 1925, affected words which now read "upon payment to the register of not less than." Such words originally read "upon payment to the receiver of not less than." Such act consolidated the offices of receiver and register.
Transfer of Functions
Office of register of district land office abolished and all functions of register transferred to Secretary of the Interior, or to officers and agencies of Department of the Interior as Secretary may designate, by Reorg. Plan No. 3 of 1946, §403, eff. July 16, 1946, 11 F.R. 7876, 60 Stat. 1100, set out in the Appendix to Title 5, Government Organization and Employees.
See also note set out under section 1 of this title.
Indian Lands Excepted
Commenting on this section and sections 72 to 76 of this title the Department of the Interior says:
"While there may be some Indian lands still subject to coal entry by virtue of the provisions of law opening such lands to entry, the coal land laws generally were superseded by the leasing Act of Feb. 25, 1920, 41 Stat. 437 [section 181 et seq. of this title], and it is at least questionable whether the coal land laws should be carried into the Code."
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