PORT DARWIN.

Grey River Argus, Volume XV, Issue 1843, 2 July 1874, Page 2

PORT DARWIN.

[CORRESPONDENT OF THE ARGUS;] • Palme^ton, March 23. No quartz crushing has as; yet. c produced a large ,cake, for there is not yet erected a plant of any great power, and stone has not : been . raised: freely ' enongh to get out a.fair '.ferial ;s ißlpzfrpm Winn's second crushing is the largest cake yet retorted, but a much larger one is expected early next montb:from;tiieN..T. Prospecting Company's claim,-'" the which (Mr G. M. Newman) reports having obtained 340oz'of amalgam' frbit^the first nine days' crushing. I believe fiom 500oz to 700oz are expected^ ifrbrn this, the first, crushing- from that claim. During 1 the next' two months trial crush- - ings from some^of^the.jO^tlyih^ claims ,X which have no machines of their own will take place, and' these will produce a V vastly greater average m that; the. rTfam - Creek lines. In more than one case 20oz per ton is expected; The Union will, I believe, crush : at the .Telegraph Company's mill at Pine Creek as:soon as the roads are practicable, , and the Caledonian, .Fountain Head,, John Bull, and other proprietors are anxious to test their properties as soon as possible;- so that there wilt be many lines : prbvell shortly. Negotiations for of the plant belonging to theiHav^^ Company, upon Stapleton Cree^iarefSL progress, and as there is both -mofe r wrae and a better supplypf water there; the crufihingarwill be larger and more regular than further SOUth. ; ■■.-■ ■:-:-:•. '■ r;. Alluvial mining has been engaged in by a larger number of trien ! during the wet season now closing than at f any. previous time, and with more succesa than heretofore, many,, yeiry good finds having been made. ' I estimate the average earnings of the alluvial miners at LI per day wben'at work, and I know of numerous cases where twice or thrice this sum has been made for'weeks together." Last weekffwo men from the neighborhood ?ofi the Onion reef brought down 106oz ; and disposed of it at, the bank. Ttey had? b>en seven weeks obtaining it; As much as i6oz ; has been qbtained. from the bottom of a hole 4f t r 1 deep, and- on , Sandy C,reek a very good average has been made by about 40 men since the beginning of December. Provisions were* however, very scarce up country, though abundant enough here, and a good many wife* obliged to get down asTbest they could, leaving their claims to the next comer. The bad _, quality of the fobd-^-for scarcely anything will keep sound through the wet seasoncaused several 0 cases of 'scurvy; '" Horse flesh is now reasonably cheap; and provisions; will be' greatly reduced in price this year, cairiage being some L3O per ton less..; •':! : v .f :The schooner Twins, employed in trading between here i and Timor, has been wrecked, and our supply "of limes; cocoanuts, &c, is, cut;- oft* The schooner was thrown ashore by a squall off Letiy Island, on the 14th, Febrb^ry..: ;He* Captain and supercargo reached here ; in a Malay proa oft the 13th inst. 1 No lives were lost at the wreck. -. i i