OTAGO.

Grey River Argus, Volume IX, Issue 662, 16 April 1870, Page 4

OTAGO.

[DAILY TIMES, APRIL 5.] There appears now to be little doubt that a valuable quartz reef or reefs has been discovered in this district. The locality has already been described as between the Otekaike and Marewhenua rivers. The direction is nearly due north and south, and there appear to be two distinct lines of reef running nearly parallel to each other. One of these, as far as yet been tried, appears to be about seven feet wide, and gold has been discovered in the stone, taken from it ; but the principal work done as yet has been in the other line of reef, which is about four feet wide. In the- prospecting claim fivo holes, have been sunk : one at the nothern boundary 37ft deep ; one at the southern boundary, 27ft deep ; and thre9 others respectively 27, 10, and 7ft deep. The reef is got in each case, and carried all the way. The walls are well defined, consisting of schist, clay, and slate, and the dip of the reef •appears to be slightly to. the eastward — say about one foot in ten. Several holes have been sunk in the adjacent claims on the same line, No. 1 North and No. 1 South, 27 and 30ft deep, and the reef has been got in each case ; the total length of the reef now clearly disclosed is about 700 ft. Several small crushings have been made of a few pounds of the stone, and gold got in every case, but a great deal of it is very fine, only a few specks being visible to the naked eye, and requiring quicksilver to give the quantity of all accurately ,• but as far as a rough estimate can be formed, the prospector is sanguine of two or three ounces to the ton. About 100 tons of stone are raised in the prospecting claim, and from the case with which the reef is worked, it promises to be one of the most valuable in the country. We are glad to see that a spirited prosecution of this discovery is now likely to take place, the machinery being contracted for, and the necessary financial arrangements being for the present made without the intervention of any joint stock company. We wish to see true enterprise devoted to the development of our auriferous resources, and not wild speculation. The necessary water power can be obtained at moderate cost from the Otekaike. A small quantity of stone has been sent to Macraes to be crushed, but no report has yet been received. A Cromwell paper states that a great many claims have been abandoned at Bendigo Gully, shareholders seeing no prospect of having the stone crushed. The want of a public crushing machine is greatly felt, but it is confidently hoped j.that next spring will bring with it new blood, as the Bendigo district is really but in its infancy at present. Many have left the reefs before the winter set3-in. The Mount Ida tfironicle understands that the expectations at first formed regarding the richness oil tho stone of the newly discovered reef at Strathtaieri have not been realised. Three tons of stone taken out of the prospectors' claim were sent on to Macraes and crushed .at the Macraes Quartz Crushing Company's machine, belonging to Mr Alves. The total result of the crushing was 29dwt or little over.Qdwt to the ton. The prospectors are not satisfied with the yield, and we are informed that another crushing will soon take place, this time at the works of the Rough Ridge Quartz Mining Company. The gold is of so very fine a nature, and so evenly distributedthroughout the stone, that considerable care will require to be taken in a trial crushing, and the machinery also will have to be of the most perfect description.