Report on the Property of the Swastika Gold Mines,. Ltd., at Mokohinui.

Dominion, Volume 6, Issue 1860, 20 September 1913, Page 5

Report on the Property of the Swastika Gold Mines,. Ltd., at Mokohinui.

To the Chairman and Board of Directors, ' Swastika Gold Mines, Ltd., Wellington., Gentlemen,— . In company' with your representative, Mr.. F. F. Munro, I visited your mine on the 13th August, 1913. ' I was much; impressed at the outset with the .quantity of ore visible,, its high. assay values, and the many features presented by the lode for economy in working. In this respect I should class'it as easily tho most economically worked mino in the field. Quantity of Oro. —The reefs are exposed on the side of a precipitous gorge, and are visible for a vertical height of 800 feet. Youi - principal prospecting has been dono on Numbers 5, 6, 7, and 8 lm-els. These show a considerable quantity of oro, some of it extremely rich.' At a rough estimate in sight there aro at least 12,000 tons of payable, oro. Economy of Working.—Under capable management working costs should be extremely low. I would recommend that a level bo driven about 100 feet below the old Red Queen Drive; this should be just conveniently above the proposed battery site. Tho whole of the ore above "this could! be attacked by an inclined rise to the upper levels. -The country appears to me to bo - of the right nature for this, as it should stand without timber, and this method would bo exceptionally cheap development. Tho stone underfoot in tho old mine which was phenomenally rich could be taken out simultaneously with the, oro ini No. 8-7, and 6 levels, and a large Output maintained' at very low costs. There should bo an immedii'ate installation of a. power plant—abundance of water power is available—and should be utilised to work a compressor and machines. Tho country is hard, and especially suited for machine working, results from which would mako startling comparison in that country • wnth hand [methods which you have had to adopt. The inclined rise suggested, for oxample, would bo driven in this manner for 20s. to 2os. per foot. The quartz by tho same method should bo broken out for about 6s. per ton, and the cost for transport to the battery rtot exceed Is. per ton. Allowing liberally for all other expenses, the stone should bo placed in tho battery when the mino Is properly developed at under 10s. per ton. Valuo Of Oro. —There is a considerable quantity of rich ore available in the old Queen workings. Access to this is obtained by a cross-cut from No. 8 'and in tiho top level for a distance of 210 feet the reef has not been stoped it varies from 6 inches to 15' inches hi thickness. Manager's report and audited accounts of this company show that in 1885, 1886, some 1500 tons of ore mined for a gold return of 2250 ounces. This was prior to tho discovery of cyanide treatment. The level No. 7 is undoubtedly an upward continuation of this, and is driven on 2o feet, it showed a thickness of 8 or 9 inches. • Gold was visible, and I did not deem it uccobsary to assay. Your manager reports an experimental crushing of this, and' stated that 1 ounce 3 dwts. was saved by amalgamation, ' and the tailings, which require cyanide treatmont, assayed 2 ounces 6 dwts. 9 grains. This result .is in keeping with tho genoral iippenrimco of tho stone, ' and proves that this block can bo dealt with at a ■ good margin of profit. At No. 8 the reef' here is laminated, the ; stone being intersected with horseß of mullock over a lateral width of thirty feet, there being five makes of stono varying from a foot to 3 fcot in thickness. This is a common, feature in large reefs in the Reefton district. The assays in this level are poor, mainly, I/think, by an error in driving on the

centre of the reef system, as the better values appear to be on the footwall, and: this is borne out by sample numbered 7, which was taken from the footwall 65 feet abovo the level. Here tbo section of the reef exposed was 2 feet 6 inches, and its assay value was £4 16s. 6d. per ton. Nh. '8 level is in a distanoo of 170 feet, and my samples were taken at intervals of 20 feet. A gradual increase in values as the level approached the strike and underlay of No. 6 is apparent. The sample numbered 8, taken from the face of the drive, assaying a value of £2 2s. per ton; here the reef was 4 feet in thickness. If a crosscut is now put to intersect the stone on. the foot-; wall side, I am confident the values obtaining in No. 6 will be found here also.

At No. 6, which is vertically 225 feet above No. 8 level, has been driven 117 feet on stone 18 feet wide on the outcrop, and at 97 feet in a crosscut, showed a width of 14 feet, an assay from the crossout from the side of the drive to the hanging wall taken by your manager is reported to me giving 7J dwts. over 8 feet of stone. My samples (six) were taken, at. intervals from the face outwards along the footwall and over the full width of tho drive. Thoy showed ramarftablo values, tho average of tho six being £6 95, Gd. per ton. I understand that experimental bulk samples have borne similar values, and the assays reported by your manager have at some points even exceeded this. In practice the usual custom in this (tho Reeftoni field) is to deduct 20 per cent, from the assay values as tho probable gold Teturn. You thus have at this, point a highly profitable body of ore on this side of tho reef.

I had not tho time nor did I deem it necessary to make an examination of No. 1, 2, 3, 5 drives, which aro parallel on the same level some 200 feet above No. 6. Y«ur manager reports taking small cmishings from this area with satisfactory results. _ No. 4 has not been driven on, it is a sulphide vein, carrying a heavy percentage of arsenopyrito; I refrain from quoting the assays reported to me, at the same time I am glad to record that your representatives, where I did mako close examination, had under _ rather than over-estimated the proposition, which is unusual for prospectors on tho spot where visible gold occurs. Mv time was , short, otherwise I should like to have visited the north sido of tho river. Your manager reports that half a mile distant on the opposite side of the gorge on the Swastika North property the lino of reef outcrops approximately 500 feet lower down than No. 6 level. A winze was being sunk on it, and the stone showed' the saano characteristics. Further north, beyond tho intervening Bprur, the reef crosses Maori Creek, and is visible on both banks, and has been traeed_ for about a mile north from No. 6. This indicates that a reef of considerable length- along the line has been discovered, and I report the fact as showing the probability that the reef will develop to a considerable depth in your property. -I have to thank your officials for their courtesy and faoiiities afforded me to get all the information necessary for this report. Tho work done has been intelligently directed, and your mino manager, Mr. Avery, is to bo complimented on, the workmanlike way the prospecting has been carried out. In conclusion I can confidently assure you that properly equipped and under capablo management an average return of 5 dwts. to tHb ton would make it a profitabls venture, so favourably is the lode situated for cheap mining. I am, Gentlemen, ' Yours faithfully, W. J. MEEHAN, Mine l^anager. Assays of samples from Swastika Reefs done at tho Westport Sohool of Mines by H. Lovell, Esq., Director. To be appended to Mr. W. T. Meehan's Report. From No. 6 Level—From face downwards. Per ton. Sample. No. oz. dwt. ferns. £ s. d. 1 0 16 2 3 610 2 1 7 2 5 12 6 3 18 6 - 5 17 8 4 '23 4 8 19 10 5 0 17 0 310 10 6 2 15 6 11 10 2 From Outcrop on footwall 160 feet below No. 6. Per ton. Sample'. No. oz. dwt. grns. £ s. d. 7 1 3 4 4 16 6 No. 8 Level—Values from 2s. at outcrop, to 425. at the present face. Remarks. —Assays all done in duplicate. Some are extra good, but I find they confirm my assays, which woro done previously. Value of gold l taken at 4s. 2d. per dwt. Extract from Mr. Wilson's Report — "At tlio mino tho Mokihinui River runs roughly east' and west, mid your leases aro situated upon tho southern side of tho gorgo. Tho river runs in a rocky bed at the bottom of the gorgo, and will supply ample water power for any sized plant. The mine occurring as it does on tho side of a steep gorgo all the dnvolopmont work has been done by tunnels, and it will be many years before it will bo necessary to have recourse to shafts to work tho property."