By BRETT FRENCH
Of The Gazette Staff 

Hunting and angling groups, including 30 from Montana and four from Wyoming, are adding their voices to a growing chorus calling for reform of the 1872 Mining Law.

Irv Wilke, president of the Billings Rod and Gun Club, said his group signed on to support reform of the mining law after it was brought to the 15-member board of directors' attention by fellow members. He said the part of the current law that concerns him most is the provision that allows mining companies to claim public lands with only minimal payment to the federal government.

"That's something the taxpayers ought to take notice of," Wilke said. "We're losing enough ground as it is to out-of-staters without something like this."

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