HAVE WE RADIUM ORE?

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1987, 18 February 1914, Page 8

HAVE WE RADIUM ORE?

IN NEW ZEALAND.

PROSPECTOR VERY SANGUINE,

(By Telegraph.—Special CottespondcnU Ghrlstclruroh, ilfebruary 17. Staying in -Ciiristelnlreh is a Ca.fiadi.aa miaifig engineer, Mr. J. Hughes, -whoso six years 1 praspeftUflg Jn'tlie Korfli Island of Niiw Zealand has ~ coiVykced him that tire extent of the Dominion's mineral wealth has nnver yet been fully realised. He states- that during his travels iio has discovered JV deposit of carnotito of uranium, aft-tl his object m mow to start a small syndicate to make preliminary investigations. Cariiotitq of uranium does not sound a, v-ujj i.ivitiug .mineral, anfl it is only when the magic word "radium' , ' is .breathed that people «t up and listen. "Oarnotito of radium," said tljo prospector to mi ''Evening Kdws" reporter, "is a radium ore. As a rough estitfiatp, forty toils of earnat-itp- will yield cmo milligram Of radium. I doiiM; -know what the present market value of radium is, but it is a huge figure, f-ii appearanee it is a yolfiwisji mefrt.l, canary yfrllmv, with a specific gravity of about six. There is no niista'ko about the ore. I have had considerable oxperienco, and thopouglilv understand minerals. I sent raniplcs to a fiermsn fii'jn. tiftt tfioir caWegra.m \was rather Vo.gUc. Th«y made me- anotii.cr offer tq take forty tqns per month- of the ore, bi.it the Ije.st proposal would be to iVcfrk it in jfew Zealand."

Uv. Hughes're.mavkod : thai carn.otito of .uranium Was a.remarkably vAto ovo, and there wore few known existing depesjts. Ho could not say whether the deposit which, lie had found vras a larfto one, but,' if the= quantity Was there, ho n'as satisfied that tli.qrs tfSre woudfcrful possibilities in tho find as -ft ccfnimercial ventw-re. His method of proceixiro would be to take tip fifty or sisty. acres of tho laiid, -riufc hi prasprctiup. pits, take samples to'prove the dejtasit, and t-heu send them away for analysis. Jf the ore Was tficro in any quantity tt would he a big thing -for New .Zealand., Every was looking very. liard indeed for radium ores.'

■ Although lie did not say so, the pros? pector gave the interviewer ta iiiidev-s-taiid, that the deposit was in the Attr.klaiitj., district-, Naturally, juS-t yet,'-ho is nat whisperine to. anybody tli'o exact lodii.lH.y in which 'tho carnotito is to ho found. . Speaking generally, Mr, Hughes said that lie .could' not tniderstaml wiiv iiho geological survey of NpW Zcatai-d lind not been Completed. In tho IVjiaiigajfei district, ho said, it was his firm belief that tlicre were, pavablo minerals to bij found: in abuii-danco other than, in the ftoWfieldsi For instance, there Was iv valuable rih'Cx field tbat slio-tlld hot be allowed to be undeveloped. "Some time fi:go," the prospector added, "I Was employed by a syndicate- prospecting- oft one of tho. ranges running down from Mount Etfwont, in TaranakL -1 st-fucic a fwo reef* but wo -.hni to a.baiidon it. Tho : £x}id was there, biit->' unfortujjAtely, th.dro was too ntiicll carbon dioxide; it. was a, great disappointment. Dr. ] Doll in* spec-ted the reef, aii.d pointed nut that fcliero was too much poisonous gfts tn ijiaico tho R?ef. of any coinmcrci'al value." ■ ■■".■,