The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. FRIDAY, JUNE 23, 1933. BEACH MINING.

Hokitika Guardian, 23 June 1933, Page 4

The Guardian And Evening Star, with which is incorporated the West Coast Times. FRIDAY, JUNE 23, 1933. BEACH MINING.

The fresh mining entei prise to start at Mahinapua cn what is known as the Aylmer Lead, is interesting as indicating that the early day yields of gold from the beach lsade did not exhaust the wealth provided by nature.. When the beach was the main route for'travelling up and down the coast, few ‘deposits of readily won gold were missed. This was the case irom Karamea to Jackson Bay, a distance of fully 240 miles. Probably had craruc not been diverted by the inland roads, so built us to open the back country, the treasure trove from the sea beaches would have had more attraction. When first discovered, the beach le'ads south of Okarito were exceptionally rich, but tlio mining did not go much below the surface. This is evidenced by the gold now being won by the nearby dredge, and its the encouraging result for other beach mining enterprises. The Aylmer Lead was well known in the early days, and by the beach route was situated about halfway to Ross, but in later days gcoj returns continued to be won there. Apart from the claim 'about to be worked, other areas in that locality would be tried were it not that the regulations governing scenic rr&orves blocks the ventures. Probably if the new claim to be opened by working deeper ground than previously possible, yields the payable results indicated by the prospecting, there will be an agitation to lift the embargo on the scenery. In any case its scenic, value is hut trilling. Along the rim of gold the upper levels were, worked in former days, before the scenic regulations rmc into force. This i>; testified to by the heaps of overgrown tailings and the second growth, much of the noxious variety .hen no scenic value. Certainly there are no legitimate grounds for checking the possible expansion of. gold mining in that locality. The price of gold is a special incentive at this j time, while the "rWication r f moder-’ I methods, and particularly the use of electricity for power purposes, are me a its for overcoming former difficulties with water or the quick removal of over burden. In the northern parts

<>f the coast, at Addison’s Fiat, fresh enterprises arc caning sli.-pc there al-o. Sea beach loads at a consider-

able elevation ironi ciu- present i,ca. level, have been worked in that locality boloie, There, fan, modern metiiuls arc being applied cncniirimed b.v the higher ivrico of gold, it semis very likely that more attraction will be turnon to beach leads. While Hie minors c-f the oaiiy days were content Lo comb the readily wo n gold near the surface, there will bo a search for the deeper leads farther back thorn the sea front. As mentioned above, there are 240 miles of isea shore to engage attraction, and in many localities procpecting is being clone. It is quite likely therefore that beach mining will come more and more to tile ii-cnt as gold saving is perfected for the fine metal, and new methods are adopted to combat water, with otherwise might Hood out the workings. Looking to the extent of country known to be mere or less highly auriferous, sea beach mining on the coast should grow substantially from now' on.