GOLD MINING IN VICTORIA.

Grey River Argus, Volume X, Issue 852, 20 April 1871, Page 2

GOLD MINING IN VICTORIA.

[argtjs summary for march.] The history of the gold-mining industry during the past month does not present any features of new and striking importance, but the accounts from all the gold districts that have been published are to the effect that the industry is being steadily and profitably pursued, and the yields of gold kept quite up to, if they do not really exceed, the standard obtained during the last 18 months. It is, indeed, considered by many that the yield of gold, taking all the districts into account, is increasing, and the returns of the exports for this year to some extent bear out that impression, as they are larger that those of the corresponding portion of the previous year, even allowing for a considerable increase which took place during the first week or two in the year, and which increase might be reckoned as the produce of the latter part of last December. The most gratifying phase of the mining world is, however, the remarkable extension of quartz-mining consequent upon the discovery of new goldbearing quartz reefs, and the further de velopment of reefs which have been worked for longer or shorter periods, many of them for a number of years. The ultimate importance and henefit of the extension of this class of mining cannot possibly be over-estimated. It is now returning, according to the best authenticated accounts, nearly one-half of the gold being obtained in the Colony, yet seldom a week passes in which the discovery of some new reef, . giving prospects of profitable returns, is not announced, or in which it is not stated that some of the old lines of reefs which have hitherto been worked at great cost, and for a long time have proved profitable, and given undeniable signs of rewarding the energy and perseverance of those engaged upon them, either as working or contributing shareholders. There are now very many quartz-mines which have been worked for years in this Colony that still exhibit no signs whatever of exhaustion ; and it is in the permanency of this class of industry that its great importance lies, for a good welldefined reef will furnish employment for many compames for years. Another point ia connection with the importance of the quarfa-uiiniug iuterest deserving of especial notice, is the fact that the theory once preity^je morally believed in here in Victoria, that quartz mines would become poorer the further the reefs were followed downwards, is now held by nearly all persons to be exploded, and to bo proved to be nothing more than a mistaken idea, There are numbers of quartz mines now being worked in different parts of the

Colony at depths which, at one time, it was considered would have been altajger'' ther unprofitable, in consequence of 'the gold having run out, and these same mines have, as a rule, quite kept up the yield of gold per ounce <per ton, if they have not — as has been the case in many reported instances — exceeded that which they returned nearer the surface. At a very moderate estimate it may be stated that the quartz mines already returning gold, and those which are being prospected, with every reasonable hope of success, will furnish employment, combined with the alluvial gold diggings, for at least another generation, for a population quite as large as that which' is already employed on the gold fields, and with satisfactory results. Some idea of the value of the claims on a good quartz reef may be given by the following extract from the Argm, of the 13th inst., respecting one of the numerous reefs of the Bendigo Gold Field :— " During the past week political excitement has run high, and discussion as to the probable result of the state of the poll on Thursday next has been the topic of conversation. At the same time a very good amount of business has been done in the shares of various lines. Those of the Garden Gully seem to have reached their limit for the present, and no doubt the prices obtainable are very excellent, although some of the claims now in a progressive state will, when yielding gold, advance in market value. The value of the various claims from the Garden Gully United to the Cornish United Companies may now be set down at upwards of LBOO,OOO, the distance being less. than half a mile. The lowest depth yet attained in working of the reef is 300 ft, and that is in the Unity Company, whose present stone is the richest obtained on the line, thus establishing the belief that the returns from the Garden Gully reef will be the best* ever sent in by any of the Bendigo lines of reef." "• /. Another extract published in The Argus of the same date, respecting a reef in another district widely apart from Sandhurst, will also illustrate the value of a quartz claim. It is as follows : — " One of the best. returns ever received by the shareholders of any mining cbmpany^in the Pleasant Creek diotrict is the dividend just declared payable by the directors of the Pleasant Creek Cross Eeef Quartzmining Company (Registered)- a kiln 'of 1088 tons having given a return of 1,8670z Bdwt of gold. After providing for all expenses, this yield allowed a dividend at the rate of lls 6d per 10,000 th share, or a total sum divisible amongst the proprietors of L 5,760 for 17 days. The value of this company's mine can best be judged by glancing at the following figures, which, we are informed, represent the yields therefrom from January 1, 1871 :— On the 31st of January, a kiln of 1,022 tons yielded 1,3640z 12dwt 12gr ; and the 21st February, 1,052 tons gave 1,5450z 6dwt 12gr, and on the 9th March, 1,081 tons gave 1, 8670z Bdwt of gold. The total tons crushed during 1871 have been, up to date, 3,162 ; total yield af gold, 4,7670z 7d wfc; total dividends for the same period, L 12,250. Besides paying the current working expenses of the mine, a very large outlay for new machinery, and for sinking a new shaft has been liquidated duringthis time, and Dearly 1,300 tons of equally payable quartz are now on the surface. Examples like the above are frequently to hand from other gold-mining districts ; for instance, the Long Tunnel Company, Stringer's Creek, Gipps Land district, have just obtained 40260z of gold from. 1299 tons of stone, which return -is only similar to the returns generally published of late by the same company ; and the extracts are merely given to show the great value and permanency of the quartzmining industry of the colony. It has -long been held by persons practically experienced in mining that both in alluvial and quartz mining a very considerable proportion of the gold contained in the earth or stone operated upon has .been lost through the imperfection of the appliances used in saving it after the quartz has been crushed or the earth puddled, and mining and other engineers -have devoted their energies to the discovery of appliances which should, at a moderate cost, enable the shareholders and proprietors of claims to obtain the gold held to be lost with the tailings or the sludge. The universal belief is yet, however, that none of the new machines or appliances invented have come anywhere near perfection ; for when that stage is reached it is expected that the tailings or debris of past years, which have been thrown aside, may be worked over again with most profitable returns. What is thought to Be an important discovery tending to the end of accomplishing the saving referred to was noticed by the Ballarat correspondent of the Argus, and published as follows in the issue of that paper of the 6th inst. :— "The constant loss of fine gold that has been going on for years at most of our mines has been proved ey.en with the most approved appliances now at work to be, if very much reduced, at least of considerable extent still. Some experiments made by' Mr Poeppel and Dr. Migeod, of Ballarat, with patent saccharate of quicksilver during the last few months, have shown that there has been and still is an enormons loss of gold taking place, and the result of their own experiments in a small way has been fully confirmed in a larger by Mr It. L. M. Kitto, of the Australian United Mining Company, Fryerstown, who, after trying it himself according to instructions, has declared the result to be •everything which the inventor's most sanguine expectations could desire.' Two experiments made during the past week show to what an extent we have allowed our gold to be lost. The directors of the Hand and Band Company sent/Mr Poeppel some tailings to be tested with his 'saccharate of quicksilver process.' He took 31b weight of these, and, without crushing them, obtained at the rate of about 6dwt of gold to the ton ; and the directors will probably now get- a fewtons put through a mill and tested by this process, "which, if eqnaTto the first test, ought just to deuble the value of the mine. The second experiment was on 61b of sludge taken indiscriminately from the sludge-hole of the old Ballarat Freehold claim, and this, by simple amalgamation, yielded at the rate of nearly 3dwt of gold per ton. If this saccharate process proves equal to what some expect of it, the whole of Ballarat may be re-worked profitably." Later on in the month, after ; the discovery of the process had become more widely known, the same correspon? dent again referred to it in the Argus of the 22nd inst., in the following terms:— "Mr F. Pceppell, the. patentee

of thft/saccharate of quicksilver,' is likely to havMhis hands full soon. Orders are coming in from different parts of the Colony for small portions for trial ; but laboring under the disadvantage of being a foreigner is against him somewhat. His experiments have certainly shown rather extraordinary results, which may not be obtained on a large scale, but if a near approximation to these only be made great result? must follow. If I have not misunderstood him, the saccharate may be applied without the use of the amalgamating barrel at all, by using puddling machines or buddies constructed for the purpose, and in the use of these appears to lie the success of the operation. Thousands of tons of tailings may be subjected to the process with buddies or puddlingmachines with much profit, that would give none at all if the barrel only was used, because it would require so much time to put so large a quantity through it. Mining companies desirous of giving his pracess a fair trial should get explicit instructions in writing from him to prevent disappointment." Mr Steinfeld, a well-known citizen of Ballarat, has sent to the local papers a novel suggestion for the discovery of a good mode of saving the gold which has been hitherto lost by the modes of quartz-crushing in use. It is, that a shipment of quartz should be made to Mr Verdon, our a«ent-general, and that a reward of LIO,OOO should be offered by the V.ctorian Government to any person who reveals a cheap and practicable process for extracting the whole of the gold from such stone. Several new rushes have occurred during the month. One of these is thus referred to by the Pleasant Creek (Stawell) News : — " A new rush has taken place to ground situated on the boundary between M'Millan's and Dennis's stations on the Dog Trap Creek. Gold has been procured in the same neighborhood before, and we believe the ground now opened is very promising looking. The discoverers are A. Robertson and party, who found a nugget of 3oz 6dwt in the shaft. A prospecting claim was registered in their names on Tuesday last. The sinking is from 35ft to 40ft in depth, and washdirt from 14in to 15in thick. There is no cement. The gold is described as being Bhotty. About one hundred people are on the ground. Another new rush, or what may prove to be a new gold-mining district, occurred some weeks ago to Stockyard Creek, Gipps Land South, and attracted several hundred people, some of whom have been stated to be obtaining payable gold. As the country in the neighborhood had not been prospected before, it is thought quite probable that a new and extensive gold-bearing country may be added to the already numerous mining districts of the colony.