HALF-OUNCE.

Grey River Argus, Volume XV, Issue 1938, 22 October 1874, Page 2

HALF-OUNCE.

[from a correspondent.] The late wet weather has had a most depressing influence on mining affairs, but now since an alteration appears to have taken place, matters will brighten up a little. Rainy weather is not the most suitable as regards the profitable working of a large number of a claims at Half-Ounce Creek. There is sufficient bottom water to contend against without having to keep out the water which percolates from the surface, for when there is a heavy rainfall some of the claims have to desist working altogether, the pumping machinery not being powerful enough to keep down the extra drainage. Now that all the claims are in full swing again, there will be less complaints about dull times expressed either by miners or business men. The closing of the dancing-room here — done by Act of Parliament I'm told — makes the Upper Township look somewhat dull, on Saturday night particularly. The miners who used to come to the township on that night to have a dance and enjoy themselves in a rational manner, have now to take other means to amuse themselves, and most likely this is done in a way not so harmless or innocent as having a dance in a well-conducted ball-room. The casino in the Upper Township has, without doubt, during the time it has been carried on, given every satisfaction in regard to the way it has been managed by the proprietor. Another thing is the police have never had occasion to make objection to it, and from the extreme vigilance of the members of the force stationed here from time to time, it is certain if anything objectionable were carried on in the dancing-room, the authorities would soon hear of it. Erickson and party's claim suffered a good deal of damage during the late storm. A large portion of the fluming was carried away by a landslip, taking some time to repair, but they have got to work again, and are turning out good dividends as usual. This claim may be considered one of the best on the creek, as the owners have several years work before them at remunerative wages. Bosted's party have just commenced to get into good working order, but for some

time back they have suffered great inconvenience through not having their tailrace deep enough to draiu their ground. Now they have found means to get clear of the water, they will get on better. The members of the Eolipse Company have been undergoing an almost total eclipse lately. They have made an alteration in the number of shareholders in the lease ; they were twelve in number originally, now four have been bought out by the remaining eight, who think the dividends will be improved in the time to come, as eight men can work to the same advantage as the twelve did previously, for they intend to tunnel out a deal of the claim instead of washing the whole depth of the ground as they did hitherto. The Just-in-Time .Company is on very good payable ground at present, and it bids fair to last. The lead gives the workmen a little trouble to follow, because it makes so many turns and windings in its course, making necessary to take out a lot of mullock, which causes them to have poor washings occasionally, though on the whole the leasehold is a very good one. As the company hold ten acres of the course of the lead they are working on, the shareholders will be able to — if not make a pile — melt a good round sum of money before the claim is worked out. It is, I hear, the intention of the party ; who holds the next lease to the Just-in-Time to commence operations shortly, and if they do so it will tend to make Upper Half-Ounce look up again. brandy Jack's. The shareholders in the Union Company, at Brandy Jack's, have got their new drainage tunnel, which they have been engaged at for some weeks, into the lead. They are getting out good washdirt again, and from the appearance of the ground it gets better as they work down the creek in the direction of Totara Flar. It is qinte possible fchey will trace the lead through the swamp and into Totara in time, and they will do it if they are let alone, as they are regular stickers at their work. DUFFER CREEK. This creek now is thoroughly in the hands of the ground-sluicers, and the late wet weather has been a season of prosperity to them. If they have not put a large addition to the contents of the historical "shammey" lately, it has not been for the want of water to extract the metal from the ground that they have to operate ob. Doig's party have finished sluicing the Old Kerry Terrace, and they are now engaged making a tail-race to a part of the creek where Fireman Jack got a " lobb " in the early days. The constant supply of water this party have command of will enable them no doubt to make a good thing out of Fireman's leavings. Walmsley's party at the head of Buffer Creek have done great execution on the terrace they are working at lately. They had to employ additional laborto make profitable use of theabundant supply of water recently at their command. Still higher up the creek the " Hatter" ha 3, he says, gone over as much around during the late spell of wet weather as will take him some weeks to clean up. In the right hand branch, Abbot and Baybutt have done very well lately. They are slucing out the old creek bed, and their claim is said to. be a verj. spod one, aad I aai hold ih averages six pounds per week all the year round. In Sullivan's Creek one of the branches of j Duffer Creek,} Godber's party have employed four wages men all winter, so that they would not let any water go to waste. This parties' water-race is a valuable mining property, and gives then splendid returns year after year. They have just finished constructing a dam in Sullivan's Creek which, as a piece of work of the kind, is second to none up the Grey Valley. Et is 60ft high from the bed of creek, and 100 ft long ; substantially-built with massive logs, and a puddled bank of earth 20ft thick. They put in the dam to enable them tomse the water that they sluice with high up the creek, a second time, on the terraces lower down Sullivan, which will greatly increase the value of their mining property.