GOLD DREDGING.

Greymouth Evening Star, Volume XXXI, 6 April 1901, Page 4

GOLD DREDGING.

The North Beach (Lake Rayn) pontoons were successfully launched on Thursday afternoon. The workmanship is first class.

The A 1 Company’s dredge will start op vi ms, according so r- sent expectations, about, iiio middle of the present month. According to advices received locally, the Duller Junction’s Company’s dredge is on good gold. Mr N 0. White has been appointed secretary of the Three Mile (Greenstone Crock) Gold Dredging Company _ The Secretary of the Mokoia Dredging Company reports a return of -Gozs, The screen for the Kokikolu dredge arrived in Murchison yesterday. It is of the latest improved pattern and weighs nearly six tons. The Dredging Companies in New Zealand have paid ,6143 71m in dividends during the past 21 months. Mr John Coyle’s tender Cor cartage of the Ross Daydawn G. D. Company’s machinery from Hokitika to Ross has been accepted. The prospecting on Loch s F reehold. near Stafford, is disclosing the existence of rich gold and the syndicate intend to follow it with the view of proving the extent of the lead.

The Secretary of the Woodstock Company reports that the result of the holing operations just concluded by the Keystone Company have proved highly satis, factory. The'local director wired yesterday that the material the dredge has to lift averages 11-dwt rough easily saved gold per yard. The full report will be to hand in a few days. All contracts are placed, and the work is proceeding satisfactorily.

The prospects of the Four River Plain Dredge have been more favorable during the past week and there are indications of a change in the company’s luck.

The contractors for the machinery of the Duke of Wellington Company’s dredge expect to be ready Ir the middle of May. The contractors for the machinery for the Garibaldi Company’s dredge anticipate completing the machinery by the middle of May. Arrangements arc nowbeing made for cartage and erection oi the machinery. The directors of the Ngahcrc Gold Dredging Company in forwarding the expert’s reports to shareholders state that after duly considering tnc reports they deem it advisable, in view of the results and the insufficient capital of the company, that a meeting of shareholders be convened so that a coiiaso ot action may bo decided upon. A motion to wind up the company will bo proposed at the meeting.

The Pactolas Company’s dredge, it is locally reported, bottomed last week, and obtained some coarse gold, which is taken as an indication that when the bottom is cleaned up tlic returns should be very good. In Otago the battery screens in general use have 2SO holes to the square inch They arc all punched screens, the wire wove screens never having come into favour. The life of wire wove screens is found not to be nearly so good as the punched screens. It is a good plan to have the screens deep so that they miy bo turned upside down when the bottom gets cracked or broken. There is a great difference in the metal of the different screens, some being much tougher than others.

It has been pointed out by an experienced dredgemaster that it is not always desirable to attach grabs to the ladder. Their use is only necessary when working heavy, stoncy ground, but iu a sandstone bottom they arc a great mistake, for the palpable reason that they make large ruts into which the gold falls and is probably never recovered by the buckets. The grabs, therefore, should bo removed when the dredge is working on a sand bottom. The secretary of the Greenstone Greek Gold Dredging Company (Hr F. H. Labatt) has received a report from the dredgmaster stating that the dredge has been engaged in opening out a paddock, the paddock excavated for tin dredge being very small. There is a good deal of work to bo done. It is expected that it will take a week before bottom is reached. A large proportion of the top stuff is silt and loan.

At the annual meeting of the Tucker Flat Gold Dredging Company, hold at Dunedin on Wednesday, the result of the boring operations conducted by Mr Appleton were givon as follows : —Boro No. I 21ft Sin deep ; boro No 2, 2Sft deep equal to 46ft Gin, yield of gold IJgr. This equals 17.74:3gr of gold per cubio yard. Bore No 4 24ft doop, yield of gold 2gr. This equals 45,837 gr of gold per cubic yard. Mr J. H. Chester stated that practical experience taught him that ho may safely add 20 per cent, to the yield of gold got by boring. He also reported that the gravel deposits on the claim were very hard and compact, with a much larger percentage of stone than ho had seen in the Grey Valley except Moonlight Creek; hence it would bo absolutely necessary that a very strong dredge should bo put on the ground. At an extraordinary meeting of shareholders held after the annual meeting, it was decided to increase the capital of the company by £SOOO by the creation of 5000 new shares at £1 each. It is proposed to put a dredge costing £9OOO on the claim.