GOLD DREDGING.

Greymouth Evening Star, Volume XXXI, 11 September 1901, Page 2

GOLD DREDGING.

The Kohikohi dredge is working well. During July 11250 z of gold, valued at £4500, was exported from Westport, The Greenstone Junction return for last week was l4oz Bdwt for 110 hours The delay in washing up was duo to the breaking of the tumbler shaft.

The Prince, of Wales Company nontoons are afloat, and the full complement of machinery will shortly be on the ground.

The pontoons of tho Day Dawn Company are afloat, and a fine substantial dam has been constructed, and„machinery is reported to be on its way, The Kohinoor Company are rapidly approaching a termination of preliminary work and probably will be the first to commence practical operations in the Boss district. Most if not all the machinery is now on.tho ground, and a strong gang of men are rapidly excavating a reservoir into which to launch the vessel. Tho Welcome, is assuming a more dredge-like appearance, and will be ready probably about the same time as the Premier, or earlier if tho latter is unable to reach the water for soma time.

The El Dorado pontoons are to bo erected opposite Berlin’s, on what is < described by an experienced dredgemaster as “the best site on the Buffer river.” It is about a quarter of a mile below the Company’s ground. Skids are being placed under the Premier dredge for the purpose of relaunching her. A medium fresh will be required to accomplish this. In the meantime the farther erection of machinery is postponed. There was no washing up at the Island Creek dredge last week, the work of , ’»wStirsg on'the tables and extending the being in hand. The whole of this week will be similarly occupied. Further news from London confirms the cablegram received some time ago stating that the Mahinapua Golden Gravels claims have been floated, and that five dredges are likely to be built forthwith and sent out to work the ground. The Britannia Gold mining Company, Westport, crushed for a period of eight months (November to Jane inclusive) 500 tons of quartz fora return of 7570 z 14dwt ISgrains of melted gold. The return from the Golden Blocks mine, Collingwood, for twenty-two days’ work is 190 tons crushed for 2420 z of melted gold. • Last mouth 198 tons yielded 2480 z of gold. Mr Nelson,- who is at present boring the Hokitika Golden Gravels mid-way between Hokitika and Boss, has struck some of the richest wash that he has yet come across during his boring experiences on the West Coast. The Booklands dredge had a very trying experience during the recent floods. The paddock completely filled in and brought the machinery to a standstill. But the dredgemaster, Mr Inwood, made the best use of his opportunities and skilfully extrioted the dredge from its awkward position. Since the dredge has been steadily working towards the old river channel, but has been delayed to a certain extent by the accumulation of logs. In the course of two or three weeks with favourable weather, the dredge will be in the old bed. Once that is reached, Mr Inwood intends to open with a long face up the channel. As the position is a good one, with little danger even in flood lime, the returns a month or a couple of months hence should compare very favourably with the best so far obtained on that river. For the next three weeks tho returns are not likely to be high-as the dredge is not working on the bottom but simply to clear the way for entrance to the old channel.

The Old Diggings dredge was opening out a paddock and making for good ground when the bottom tumbler broke on Thursday last. Prior to that the floods in the river had filled in the paddock and prevented the progress being made ' that the dredgemaster anticipated. The dredge was taken down to within about a quarter of a mile of the bottom of the claim, and the paddock opened there, the intention being, ws understand, to work the bottom later and pick up any gold which might have been washed down from the higher workings. As the broken tumbler was purchased for the dredge when it was taken over by the Old Diggings Company, it would appear as if there had been a very had flaw in it. The Company will have to purchase a 'new one at a cost of some £36 or £3O. but will run the risk of having the paddock filled in by further floods before the dredge is again ready for operations. It would be well also to have duplicates of the vital parts of the machinery as in the ease of the Buller Junction dredge. When in thorough order the Old Diggings dredge should give a good account of itself. Mr. tAK.Smith, the dredgemaster, is an old hand on the river and may be depended on to obtain the beat results possible from the olaim. Prior to the stoppage, the dredge was working splendidly and putting through doable the quantity of stuff put through by her originally, the increase says the Westport News being due to the larger size of backets, which are now 4ft Bin, as compared with 2ft ip the original buckets* The dredge had passed over the tight ground and had reached freer shingle.

At a meeting of the shareholders in the Mahinapua Gold Dredging Company hold in -Wellington, Mr W Watson "presiding, it was resolved to voluntarily wind up the company, and Mr W Jack was appointed liquidator. The reason for winding up was that an appeal for more capital had not met with sufficient response. However, several of the shareholders present expressed their intention of purchasing the rights of the company, and it was intimated that those of the present shareholders who had confidence in the proposed venture and desired to take shares in if, would be allowed to do so before the ■ala of the old company’s interests to the new company had been effected. . A. resident of Westport who holds shares in the Cromwell dredging company Otago, believes that he has a safer invest* meat than “Tattersell” affords. Within the past fortnight he has received two dividends of 2s 6d per share. Since starting operations a little over twelve months ago, the dredge has returned 15s per share, 75 per cent on the money invested. i

Many of the claims taken up during the dredging boom are being surrendered. In Otago, during the past month, there were forty-three forfeitures or surrenders, embracing the aggregate area of nearly 3,000 acres; and in Nelson and the West Coast there were twenty-five forfeitures or surrenders, the area reverting to the Crown being nearly 1.000 acres. On the other hand, ten new claims, with an area of 326 acres, were taken up in Otago, and twenty-seven claims, with an area of 1,215 acres, in Nelson and the West Coast. There were also forty-three prospecting licenses, over an area of 2,095 acres, applied for[in Otago, and forty-four prospecting licenses, over an area of 3,465 acres in Nelson and the West Coast.

The reported discovery by Loggoe and Kearns of Mabilles claim proved to be incorrect. So far as we can learn, a defined reef has not yet been discovered, but the miners are working steadily in the hope of striking a good reef. As the y*. country in which they are working is close to Lyall township, the future of which is dapsndent mainly on the disoovery of new auriferous reefs, the residents are anxiously awaiting the results. The men employed at Neville and Perkin’s claim, who hare rocoitly gone out on strike because of a prohibition order placed up at the works by the owners of the claim, were earning from 8s to_ 10s a day. The action of the employers is said to have been due to the fact that numbers of the men spent too much time at the Ll hotel and neglected the work, and not in ■ B ny way due to personal Motion between Messrs Neville and Perkins and the hotelkeeper,

The Mokoia’s paddock was over-run with logs during the recent freshes, and consequently, operations were delayed. Some big stones were also met with. The dredge is in good working order and is at present operating in a paddock some 150 or 200 yards wide, in the middle of which the best gold is found.