GOLD PRODUCTION

Hokitika Guardian, 4 February 1931, Page 2

GOLD PRODUCTION

A STEADY INCREASE. STATEMENT BY MINISTER, WELLINGTON. February 2. When in the South. Island last week the Minister for Mines, the Hon. A. J. Murdoch, visited the Law.erne district and spent the best, part of a day in Gabriel’s Gully and Weatherstones area where there are huge deposits of a blue gold-bearing conglomerate not unlike cement in appearance. It was suggested to the Minister that his Department migh t assist in the finding of methods by which the material could he more profitably worked than at present. A peculiarity of the conglomerate is that' it is as hard as rock until exposed to the weather, which eventually breaks it up, and this factor has enabled the substance to be worked in the gully for a number of years. Companies are at present operating at both Gabriel’s Gully and Weatherstones,

The Gabriel’s Gully company is sluic. ing the material, but before it goes through the successive sluicing processes it has to be left for long periods exposed t'o tbe weather. The object of the company is to obtain a method by which the material can be pulverised at low cost so that it can bo treated only once, and its entire gold content obtained. It is estimated that if suali a method can be found £5,000,000 can be taken out of the nrea at present being worked. But this is only a small portion of the conglomerate, and if the whole deposit, many miles in length, could bo worked, possibilities would be opened up which would be almost staggering. If the while of the Weatherstones deposit alone could be worked and averaged 2s fid per ton., gold valued at £50,OOO.OGO could be obtained. HELP FOR PROSPECTORS. Reference to his southern visit and tile gold-mining industry in general, was made by tbe Minister this evening. During his term of office, he said, his Department had made 57 grants, 17 to companies and 40 to prospecting parties in twos or more. It bad a proposition which it would put up to the Unemployment Board by which it would supply money for prospectors on a £ for £ basis. It could utilise a number of men to send out- in parties led by one good prospector. He was hopeful that the Board would agree and so help to extend mining operations. In the Thames district an attempt was being made to work low grade ores which should be profitable. The trouble in the past had been that a profit was not possible for small companies, but now an endeavour was being made to find means of treating the material, The largest amount of gold exported since 1857, when the records had been first kept, had been in 1866, when 735,37602!., valued at £2,744,517 had been exported, Tho lowest amount exported bad been in 186 Q. The export * u that year had been 45380 a,, valued at £17,585. The rpumtlty of gold exported for the year 1930 had been 133,7310 z,, valued at £550,637. The figures for the years 1929 and 1928 were as follows:

Value. Ozs. £ 1928 ... 118.722 489,584 1929 ... 116,848 480,212 Tt would be seen that the figures for 1930 had shown an increase over those for the two previous years, and it was to be hoped that this year the increase would be even greater.