A High-Stakes Coal Theft Lawsuit
Investors launch a $375,000 legal battle over coal allegedly mined without permission from their land.
A Post-Intelligencer reporter called on Mr. C. K. Jenner yesterday to learn the result of his recent visit to San Francisco. Jenner and his associates claim ownership of section 36, or 640 acres of coal lands adjoining the Newcastle mines operated by the Seattle Coal and Transportation Co. Jenner claims the company has been taking coal from their land without authorization, estimating the theft at 125,000 tons. He stated: 'We have commenced suit against that company in the Superior Court of California to recover $375,000. It is a principle of law that the value of minerals taken wrongfully from the land of another is computed to be what it is worth when it reaches the light of day.' Jenner noted that they brought the suit now because the Seattle Coal and Transportation Co. was moving toward disorganization. The case will come up for hearing on the 16th inst.
“It is a principle of law that the value of minerals taken wrongfully from the land of another is computed to be what it is worth when it reaches the light of day.”
This dispute illustrates the 'Gilded Age' scramble for resources in the Pacific Northwest, where the law was often used as a tool to consolidate or reclaim control over industrial wealth. The clash between local landholders and large, distant corporations remains a familiar theme in Washington's economic history.
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