Section 2
SEC. 2. Any unreserved, unappropriated coal-bearing public land may be leased by the Secretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources in blocks or. tracts of not less than four hundred nor more than twelve hundred hectares each, in such manner as may, in the opinion of the Secretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources, allow the economic exploitation of the coal. The lease may be granted to any person above the age of twenty-one years who is a citizen of the Philippine Islands or of the United States, or to any association of such persons, or to any corporation organized under the laws of the Philippine Islands: Provided, That a majority of the stock of such corporation shall at all times be owned and held by citizens of the United States or the Philippine Islands: And provided further, That any person, association, or corporation qualified to become a lessee under this Act, and owning any located or patented claim to any coal lands in the Philippine Islands, may, within one year from the passage of this Act, enter into an arrangement with the Secretary of Agriculture and Natural Resources whereby such claim shall be fully relinquished to the Government as a condition precedent to acquiring a lease under the provisions of this Act, said owner, in consideration of such relinquishment, being given the preference in applications for leasing contiguous tracts. The Department Secretaries, acting jointly, are authorized to pay a compensation in exchange for such relinquishment if they see fit.