GOLD IN MURCHISON

Hokitika Guardian, 17 July 1929, Page 2

GOLD IN MURCHISON

DREDGING PROSPECTS

REPLY TO PROFESSOR BARTRUM

(Evening Post.)

We have received the following from Mr John A. Spencer:— It’s an axiom of life “That an ounce of fact is worth a ton of theory.” The writer, having been engaged for the past two years in systematic drilling of, and testing out the alluvials in. the .Murchison district, is probably in a better position than Professor Bartrum to arrive at the true values and conditions obtaining in those areas. Scores of holes have been drilled to bedrock on behalf of certain British dredging interests. At the present time one of the largest dredging companies of the world is checking up the writer’s wort 011 the Upper Maruia River. The Matakitaki River (a portion of which is now unfortunately devastated) lias also been thoroughly and systematically mapped and drilled, this being the only known scientific method oi arriving at true gold values. 'i he writer obviously is not in a position to divulge the lvalues obtained on the two areas named, but can state 'bat they are excellent, and on those results a dredge was about to be placed on the Matakitaki River. The results are lodged with the Department of Mines, Wellington. With reference to the surface values on either the Matakitaki or the Maruia Rivers, Professor Bartrum is entirely in error. Henry Norris, oi Murchison, got £6 worth of gold in four days of five hours each, under two feet below the surface, in April last. Alfred Rogers, of Ariki, got £l2 worth of gold in eight, days of five hours in the same month. These results were got on the Lower Maruia and the Matakitaki Rivers respectively, and represent a fair average. Rogers carried his wash in a sugar bag, and both men used an ordinary “flycatcher.” The local tailor, Percy Mills, spent his summer holidays of 14 days prospecting for gold on the Matakitaki River and came away with £3O worth of gold. Those iosults can bo verified by asking any of the old prospectors now living about Murchison. Ho would bo a lazy man who could not make a good wage on the Matakitaki or Maruia Rivers. Each flood brings its quota of gold and deposits it on the beaches.

The average dredging depth on the Matakitaki River and flats is 17ft 6in and on the Upper Maruia about 10ft. The values are good and consistent throughout, and on the Matakitaki still comprise some 2000 acres of flats On both rivers a probable 100 years' dredging programme lies ahead. The systematic drilling of alluvials by power drills offers a true test of the values, and it is proved beyond all doubt that a very close approximation of dredging returns can be arrived at by ‘ this means, and so the risk of failure practically eliminated. In the Murchison district there are many thousands of acres taken up under di-edging prospecting license. The resurrection of the Murchison district will probably depend not on the rehabilitation of the farms, many of , which arc permanently destroyed, but on the results of the gold dredges which will very soon he in active operation.