MINING.

Press, Volume L, Issue 14889, 31 January 1914, Page 13

MINING.

WEST COAST COAL MINES. (specialto "the press.") GREYMOUTH, January 3a Working agreements for two year* haT« been signed at the Millexton acd Granity Mines. _ _ About 150 m«n are engaged at No. 2 Extension Coal Mine, and fresh handa are beinj. taken on daily. It ia expected that as aoon as the new agreement is ratified, ai M complement of men will be engaged, and there will then be a large output of coal from the mina.

GOLDEN BAR COMPANY. As a result of the recent rains tbe increase of water coming down the race has enabled the management at the Golden Bar battery to run the full complement of twenty-five head of -tampers dining the past few days (says the "Pelorus Guard.--"). Advantago has been taken of the full power available to run the stampers ccntiuuo-sly, and the accumulation of quarts hae been considerably reduced. As there are already signs of the water diminishing, it is more than likely that the number of working stampers will Boon havo to be reduced as before." There are at present about seventy-five _*«_ employed at the mine and battery. The "Guardian," understands that an offer from an English firm through Messrs Dalgoty s_id Co., has been received foT the purchase of five tons_-of schcelite. This product h_s hitherto all been sold in Germany. THE WAIHI MINE. (press association telegram.) AUCKLAND, January 30. For the period ended January 17th (actual crushing time 11 days 1C hours), the Waihi Go.dmining Company crushed and treat-vi 7184 tons of ore for a return of bullion valued at -12,562 14s lOd. NEW ZEALAND CROWN MINES. THE SCHEME OF RE-CONSTRUCTION. .EBOH OTJB. OWN CORRESPONDENT.) LONDON, December 19. The- shareholders of tho New Zealand Crown Mines Company, Ltd., have decided on the scheme of re-construction as recommended by the Board. Sir Westby .Perceval presided over the third ordinary general meeting, which was held yesterday at Copthall avenue. In proposing the adoption of the report, the Chairman said tho accounts at the present time showed a liability of -ISOO, and tho company ira. faced with a critical position. When the fresh working capital was provided, three and a half years ago, only a little more than one-third of tho authorised capital was taken up, and that amount, after providing certain additions to tho plant, which wero absolutely necessary, had proved insufficient to develop tho mine on a scale large enough to enable an adequate tonnage of payablo ore to be sent to the mill for treatment. Tho Board had no alternative but to do tho best with the capital that was provided, and it was hoped that the body of payable ore known to exist in tho Talisman section, could have been developed sufEcientlv rapidly to accumulate funds for the develoomcnt work so urgently needed in other parts of tho mine. That body of ore was estimated by the mine manager to contain 48,000 tons of ore. However, very alow progress was made in the extraction of ore from that section of the mine, and up to date, only some 3300 tons had been treated, the balance of, roughly, 44,000 tons remaining to bo extracted. That slow progress was a great disappointment to the directors and every effort was made, both by cable and letter, to urgo upon the management more rapid progress. The advice and counsel of the local agents —the New Zealand Mines Trust—was invoked and frequent visits to the mine hod been made by their experts to confer with Mr McCombio and help him. Despite the fact that the ore reserves were given at 79,000 tons, they had failed to get their monthly tonnage sent to the mill increased, and they wero. told that until fuTthcr development work had been carried out on a more liberal scale than hitherto, they could not hope for returns showing a profit after payment of the standing charges for administrative and other necessary expenditure. The Board was satisfied that tho scheme put forward for raising further capital yw__f tho only possible one. The perusal of the general manager's report must have convinced shareholders that the mine was far too good, and the possibilities too attractive, to make the alternative of abandoning the mine worthy of serious consideration. The management in New Zealand was consulted before the reconstruction echeni. was prepared, and an emphatic opinion had been expressed, in favour of equipping the mine with additional capital and definite recommendations had be .n made as to tho parts of tho mino in which further development work should be carried on. They had deemed it prudent to secure tho subscription of £20,000, and that amount had therefore been underwritten, although they hoped, that a sum in excess of that amount would be subscribed by shareholders. It was somewhat -reassuring that their prospects seemed sufficiently attractive to justify a guarantee having been given, and uncertain though mining undertakings must necessarily be, the prospects for tho future wero encouraging enough to justify fa sanguine hope that with tho vigorous prosecution of the development work proposed, a large tonnage of payablo ore would be opened out, and commensurate profits secured. Mr J. Cutcliffe seconded tho proposition, which was carried. The chairman was reelected a director. ._._. ~ . An extraordinary meeting was. then held'when resolutions were passed embodying tho scheme of Te-construction, Briefly, the details are: —The present company to go into voluntary liquidation, and to sell its undertaking to a new company with a capital of £100,000 in 600,000 shares, 4s each, of which 304,650 shares of 4s each aro to be offered, share for share, to tho ' present shareholders credited with a sum of 2s per share, of which Cd per share will be payable on application, 6d per share will be payable on allotment, and the balance as and when required in calls not to be made at. less intervals than three months and not to exceed 6d each. One hundred and fifty-two thousand three hundred and twentyfive shares of 4s each are to be under option to the subscribers of the foregoing, 304,650 shares (that is one,share for each two shares subscribed for) at -Is a share, to be exercisable at any time prior to the 31st December, 1915. Forty-three thousand and twenty-five shares to be under option to - the underwriters at 4s at any time prior to the 31st December, 1915, as part consideration for the guarantee. [A Press cable message from London, dated January 17th, stated that the New Zealand Crown Mines Company, with a capital of £100,000, had been registered.]