THE Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY. THURSDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1871.

Grey River Argus, Volume XII, Issue 1062, 21 December 1871, Page 2

THE Grey River Argus. PUBLISHED DAILY. THURSDAY, DECEMBER 21, 1871.

However beneficial enterprise or speculation may be in developing the resources of a district, or pushing a business, it is . necessary that discretion should be used, or it will develop itself into a mauia, not only ruining individuals, but over-estimat-ing in the first place, and afterwards retarding the progress of a district. Rumors have been afloat recently of the extraordinary yields obtained : from some of the reefs in the Murray Creek and Inangahua districts, which, if examined by the sober light of facts and experience, must prove to be greatly exaggerated, and therefore it' would be well "for. not' only capitalists, but speculators, to pause before" entering^ or initiating, a quartz-mania without due consideration ; for till a line of reef has been thoroughly tested and been at work for a time, it is unknown what the extent of it may be. Instances have been known where the cap or casing of a reef has been extraordinarily rich, and the reef itself of very little value. This was instanced in the case of the Wood's Point (Victoria) reefs, where the Pioneer, Standard, Morning Star, Alpine, and several other reefs were enormously rich towards the surface; and in the matter of the Royal Standard, the richest specimens of quartz ever yet seen were obtained from the casing, while for a short time the crushings from the prospectors' claim in the North Star Reef were something fabulous ; and yet, when they commenced to sink and drive, the gold-bearing quartz run away to nothing at all. A like result was obtained at Steele's Reef, Yandoit ; while, on the other hand, the Bendigo Reefs, which have required years of labor to develop, only now begin to show signs of their richness, and from a poor cap or casingiare gradually getting richer. It therefore behoves all the residents in the district not to be carried away by first impressions. " There is no doubt but that the Murray Reefs are rich— we. are almost justified in saying very rich ; but till the test has been applied, till some hundreds, nay, thousands, of tons have been subjected to the action of the stampers, till the lay or run of the quartz has been proved, till it is ascertained whether the quartz is confined to a solitary vein or lode, or whether there is any underlie, it is judicious -not^te-be-m-teo great a hurry to get rich. ' Quartz-reefing, above all other pursuits in the Southern Hemisphere, presentsthe finest field for gambling speculation, for it ia impossible for dealers at a distance to ascertain w^^J^Ax^fttlj^aJbßen /j.satted" O r not, promiscuously; It is scarcely necessary to refer to a comparatively neglected quartz-reefing district that at one time attracted some attention in New Zealand, viz., the Waimangaroa Reefs in the Buller district. There is no doubt but that these reefs are payable, and gold was very plainly visible throughout the stone, which was of that dark cement color so well liked by quartz-reefers^ - Mr Martin^ of Westport, spent both time and money in trying to develop the Pioneer claim, and for a time Westport was smitten with a small form of quartz fever, but from some cause or the other, whether it was proved that only tlie casing was rich, or whether it was through lack of funds the enterprise died out, and the inhabi- . tants of Westporfc were left lamenting. Almost in a bee-line the same reef is traceable to the Moonlight, and again the same thing is observable in regard to the Murray Creek Reefs, which are situated in a direct line from those discovered at Wangapeka, and, in fact, almost as if drawn with a pencil and ruler, the same line would strike from Doran's Reef on the north, through Shiels' Reef at Ihargaliua to the reefs at the Taipo. Knowing that the reefs have been only to a certain extent proved at either end, it is necessary to be cautious, but should they prove on examination to be payable, there is no foretelling, or even speculating, upon the richness of the Murray Creek district, lying as it does about the centre of the line. In connection with this subject it is highly necessary to avoid spreading false rumors respecting the yields an.d capabilities of any particular claim, especially by persons connected with the mines in any .capacity whatever, as it not only damages the credit of the mine, but ultimately of the whole district. It has been found neces : sary in Victoria to make a provision under the Mining Statutes regarding this matter ; and should any shareholder in any company, by means of information derived from the manager, subject himself' to loss in the buying or selling of shares, the manager becomes liable for loss. ' Such things have 'been done, and Bhould the Murray Creek reefs become a serious source of speculation j is sure ffco be repeated in this district, therefore all news received from interested parties should in the meantime be taken with caution. For ourselves we are thorough believers in the richness of the reefs in the Inangahua District, and look forward to the time when they will all 'be properly developed. | But we can also plainly see the indications i of the setting in of a quartz fever, which, if not carefully guarded against, may upset all business arrangements and prove disastrous to many of those who are drawn within its influence.